I hold the distinction of being an Orvis Pro. As such, I think it’s fitting this Labor Day to share a portion of a travelogue that I composed in September 2021, while I was on sporting holiday in the UK – over there actually on double-duty to also promote Orvis Trips and Adventures. This, in truth, is the trans-Atlantic foray referenced in the 17 February, 2025 post, Joe Brooks: Extraordinary Fly-Angler and a Great Man.
I’ll grant the travelogue is now a little dated inasmuch as it firstly discusses the Helios 3 fly-rod series, which was superseded by the Helios series in 2024, and secondly opines for the return of the Superfine Carbon series, which Orvis thankfully relaunched this year in new-and-improved form. Even so, I believe the heart and soul of it remains relevant, especially for those in the audience who are contemplating traveling to the UK for a sporting holiday for the express purpose of fly-fishing English chalkstreams. Therefore, the account begins at Dulles International Airport as I await my flight and ends with instructions regarding both how to contact Orvis Trips and Adventures and how to make a cocktail of mine entitled Avington Park. So here we go.
Orvis Afield: 09/15/2021, Dulles (IAD), Pre-Departure
I might as well be productive as I wait to board British Airways Flight 216, destination Heathrow, London, UK, and field two questions that people reading this Orvis Afield series might ask. Firstly, why travel to the UK to fly-fish English chalkstreams? And secondly, why book with Orvis Sporting Trips and Adventures? Both are legitimate queries. They’re also easy to answer.
There are many great destinations vying for the attention of the consummate fly-angler, and Joe Brooks was the one who discovered and popularized quite a few of them. Just flip through the Orvis travel catalog and you’ll know what I mean. But the spring-fed, gin-clear chalkstreams of England rank high on the list not only because they’re home to impressively large and beautifully formed brown trout, but also because modern fly-fishing was born on them. True, the discipline is now cosmopolitan and a number of nationalities have contributed to its development. Yet, just like barley malt whisky was invented in Britain but has since become the international style of its corresponding spirit category (not bourbon or rye), fly-fishing as we know it began on these chalkstreams. Which means if you want an experience that connects you to the spiritual heart, the culture and ecology, of fly-fishing itself, then you ought to travel to the UK and fish them.
Now, why book with Orvis Sporting Trips and Adventures? It’s simple. Most of the world’s chalkstreams are found within a 50-mile radius of the company’s UK lead store in Stockbridge, Hampshire. And not only is Orvis literally in the middle of it all, it also owns several beats on each of the two most famous ones, the River Test and the River Itchen, for its customers to enjoy.
Of course, there’s a lot more to say in regard to both UK chalkstreams and Orvis Sporting Trips and Adventures. But you probably get the idea. Yep, what’s not to like?
Orvis Afield: The Perfect Chalkstream Fly-Rod
It was late Thursday morning when I introduced myself to Orvis UK people in Stockbridge, the center of not just England’s but the World’s supply of chalkstreams. Mostly I interacted with Olly and Harry, the two running the show in the fishing department. Yet, several customers joined in, too. Either way, I knew immediately that I was with kindred spirits. And because these guys were English true-to-form, meaning genuine and informal in character, they made conversing easy. That’s probably why I walked away with so much information to process.
I began by remarking how taken I was seeing fingers of the River Test running through and around the village. Olly explained, “All around Stockbridge, there’s all these little carriers running behind people’s gardens that go to Houghton Fishing Club.” Now for the uninitiated, not only does Houghton Fishing Club own the stretch of the River Test immediately adjacent to Stockbridge, it’s also the most famous and exclusive institution of its type in the world. It’s actually a ‘dead man’s shoes’ club, one that’s joined by appointment only.
I pray that my day will come. Anyhow, discovering just how close I was to Houghton Fishing Club was a bit of a religious experience for me. So I asked, “These carriers – If people have them running behind their gardens, can they fish them?”
“They can,” Olly explained. “But here it’s quite an expensive game. Strictly speaking, they don’t have fishing rights. Houghton owns them. However, the club will let them for a fee.”
Harry then mentioned that renting fishing rights often isn’t an option. “There are sections of the River Test [with adjacent property owners] who think they can fish it,” he said. “They can’t even pay to fish. And if they’re caught, they’d be charged.”
An expensive game – there’s no denying the high barrier-to-entry corresponding to many an English chalkstream. You have to want it badly enough. I think I do, and so I popped the question: “What’s the all-round Orvis rod for the Test or the Itchen?”
“Well, obviously you have to start at the top with the Helios 3,” Olly remarked. “It makes a good caster even better. I would choose the F because it has a bit more finesse than the D. The flavor used to be – We used to sell them hand over fist – 9-foot 5-weight. But we are beginning to see a culture change. People are dropping to an 8,6-foot 4-weight.” Olly went on. “It’s more pure. It’s a bit more delicate. You have to be a bit more reliant on playing the fish.” Though American and by no means the expert, an 8,6-ft. 4-wt. is exactly what I anticipated to be the perfect English chalkstream fly-rod. So, I gave myself a pat on the back. Then completely unsolicited, Olly waxed on and the heavens opened. “I’m a great ambassador of the Superfine range. I love all this soft-action…”
“Ah, yes – Superfine!” Harry interjected.
At that, I lit-up. Now, I was tired. How a person can sleep on a flight is beyond me. But my energy immediately rebounded such that I was like a third-grader raising his hand and jumping from his chair to answer a question before the teacher even grants permission to speak. “The Superfine Carbon was my all-time favorite rod!” I exclaimed.
“Fantastic!” Olly said. “I’ve got one, too. It was a lovely soft action rod. I’m hoping [Orvis] will revisit the category and reintroduce it because we can sell it all day long.”
Soft and lovely: On social media, I had previously stated, “There will never be another production fly-rod like the Superfine Carbon.” So, how could I not bare my heart even if it was to fly-anglers on the other side of the Atlantic who I’d just met? “Mine was an 8-foot, 2-weight.” I lost it for good May 7th last year,” I confessed. “I drove away leaving it at a parking area and only realized it when I got home. I returned as fast as I could, but it was gone.”
My two English peers reflexively lowered their heads and sighed. “Oh dear,” Harry said. Olly then smiled and remarked, “Someone was bestowed a nice gift.” His gesture was bang-on, and so I laughed. But I was crying on the inside (Olly, you’ve no idea. It was quite a gift – and a polyvalent one, too.).
You can see what was happening. I now was opening up too much. I attribute that to sleep deprivation…or maybe not. So, I shifted the topic. “Is there a place in your heart for the Recon?”
Thankfully, Olly took the fly. “Yes, there is. It’s great value-for-money. A USA-built rod. Great cork. I love the wood insert on the reel seat. While the Helios 3 is the rod you aspire to, the Recon is value-for-money. You can’t beat it.”
So there you have it. The all-round English chalkstream fly-rod is an 8,6-foot 4-weight. Again, it’s what I expected because the dry-fly is king on the Test and the Itchen. That’s true for all chalkstreams, really. And these dimensions are perfectly calibrated for casting a dry wherein presentation is paramount. Here’s the fine print, though. The rod will be the aspirational Helios 3F if your goal is absolute performance. Yet, if value-for-money is what matters most, then it will be a Recon. I think you ought to try both. “Know thyself.” In truth, you can’t go wrong with either. But if you desire an affair to remember – hopefully one with a happy ending, not a broken heart – and if Orvis takes Olly’s advice and reintroduces the range, then unequivocally it will be a Superfine Carbon.
Orvis Afield: An English Chalkstream (“That’s the classic!”)
I was thoroughly enjoying my time with Orvis UK in Stockbridge. But it was now early afternoon and I was scheduled to meet Steve Cronan, Orvis ghillie, in Kimbridge at the “Ginger Beer” beat on the River Test. So returning to my auto, a Citroën C3, I headed south on the A3057. I’d only driven a few football fields from the village, though, when I saw it on the right – Houghton Fishing Club, the ‘Holy of Holies.’ Yet being a regular guy, there was no point in stopping.
The Ginger Beer fishing hut, where I expected to find Steve and his ‘Sports,’ is adjacent to the beat’s car park, and I cut a path to it upon arriving. Now, chalkstream fishing huts are simple, rustic structures. Aesthetically, they’re meant to be provincial and unassuming, which they are in the context of the Hampshire countryside. However, to an American accustomed to fly-fishing the Adirondacks, they always seem fancy. And Ginger Beer’s post-and-beam version, with its thatched roof and rough clapboard siding, ranks with the best of them. Even its interior hits the right notes, which I discovered when I stepped inside.
Neither Steve nor his Sports were present, though. They had obviously started fishing. So, I called his mobile and left a message announcing my arrival, then walked out on the footbridge crossing the Test and looked down at the water flowing beneath. It was smooth as polished glass and gin-clear.
I know my mind. Back home, I’ll take a tumble-down Adirondack brook over just about anything. But an English chalkstream is an idyllic creature. I can’t help myself. It captures my heart and I go head over heels. For this reason, I stood there facing upstream and savored every detail – the sound of the river against the weir above; the sunlight glistening on the surface; the crowfoot, starwort, and watercress pulsating underneath; the brown trout and grayling betwixt and between – yes, all of it.
Well, after a few long minutes, I turned to admire the downstream view. And in the distance, I saw Steve moving toward me. Please note that I’m an Atlanticist. June 6th, 1944; Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher; Ed Sullivan and The Beatles – I value our special relationship. So, I walked the bridge to the end and met him half-way (reciprocity).
The ‘Council of the Steves’ began with a hand-shake. Yet, I soon discovered that we had key things in common. We’d left careers – his in advertising, mine in chemistry – and turned our fieldsports passions into professions, all the while finding our second livelihood to be better than our first. We were both Orvis men, too. Steve made his position especially clear. “I’m an Orvis ghillie and that’s it.” I then asked why. “My wife bought me an [Orvis] rod about 35-years ago and it was great,” he said. “I eventually broke it and Orvis replaced it.”
“So you were smitten by rod?”
“Yes.”
You see the pattern, right? Joe Brooks, Steve Cronan, myself – we became Orvis men all for the same reason. And you’ll hear it again and again if you speak to other members of our tribe.
“What model was it?”
“I think it was the Graphite.” Interestingly, the Graphite is a lineal ancestor of the Superfine Carbon. They’re related. Now remember, I was jet-lagged and you saw what was happening in Stockbridge. So, I had to change the subject.
“In your view, why should an American fly-angler come to the UK to fish an English chalkstream?”
“Well, I’ve had a few Americans fish with me in all our waters. And they say it’s just so different. English chalkstreams, okay, fly-fishing started here. I haven’t a bucket list. But [English chalkstreams] should always be in the top five [fly-fishing] destinations.”
What did I tell you, pre-departure at Dulles? Another Steve was now saying the same thing, and he went on. “It’s a very special place because of the history, and people from all over like to come here. The thatched cottages, the little villages, the pubs – it’s just the whole atmosphere; a lovely place to be.”
Steve also mentioned that the fishing is quite good. “People catch 25 to 35 fish. And all on the surface,” he said. “Here, it’s the dry-fly. You work upstream only. You spot the fish.”
I then interjected, “You hunt them!”
“You wait until a fish rises. You cast to it. You catch it. That’s the classic!”
Steve and I compared notes a little longer. He enjoys wingshooting and so do I. After describing what it’s like hunting ruffed grouse, I made the off-hand comment that, no matter how I prepare the red grouse of Britain for the table, it always tastes like stewed Christmas greens. He then gave me George Digweed’s (MBE) recipe. That was a bonus. Afterwards, we parted ways. A 5-hour drive lay ahead of me. But I had just experienced a great first early afternoon in the UK.
Now we come to the heart of the matter. Fly-fishing has just one Jerusalem, the spiritual center where Heaven and Earth are joined, and English chalkstreams, taken as a group, is it. Yes, there are rules to follow. You stalk champion brown trout but only those that are rising. You only work upstream and only fish a dry fly. Some beats even require that you wear a tie.
Fine, because whether on the Test or the Itchen, or any of the others, it always happens on polished, gin-clear water. And if you fish an English chalkstream once, you’ll fall in love and keep returning because she’s beautiful, and you drink it all in each time as if it was the first you set eyes on her. That’s the classic!
Orvis Afield: Contact Information and a Cocktail
If I’ve done my job and written persuasively, then you might be on the verge of contacting Orvis to book a sporting holiday in the UK to fly-fish an English chalkstream. But what if you have questions that need answering before you proceed? “What exactly is a chalkstream?” you might ask. Or you remark “History and tradition are great, but what makes an English chalkstream so special with respect to the fly-fishing itself?” To answer these and others, I highly recommend visiting fishingtv.com and watching the film Chalk – Bedrock of Fly-Fishing.
Now, if a picture is worth a thousand words, and a film ten thousand, then a cocktail must be worth a million. So, how’d you like to try one that I developed in 2018 as a memento of time spent on the Itchen? Would that interest you?
I thought so. The name of the cocktail is Avington Park. Regarding the appellation, it pays homage to my absolute favorite locale on my absolute favorite English chalkstream. Drum-roll please: It’s the eponymous manor, Avington Park, and the River Itchen.
Now, an English chalkstream is always gin-clear (and gentle). For this reason, the base spirit of Avington Park is a London dry gin. Bombay Sapphire works great due to its broad range of botanticals. Moreover, I think that also makes it thematically fitting because the entire landscape through which these chalkstreams flow is garden-like. Things want to grow here.
Freshly squeezed grapefruit juice and a grapefruit twist are critical ingredients. Here’s why. If you look at the photo at the top of An English Chalkstream (“That’s the classic!”), you’ll see that the Test is a well-manicured river. While the Itchen is more natural in character, many chalkstream fishing clubs adorn their beats with roses, especially the antique varieties. Yes, I know: A grapefruit isn’t one. But its presence in the cocktail Avington Park evokes roses (I love roses!).
Lastly, there’s Angostura Bitters and tonic water. The first gives the cocktail balance. The second gives it effervescence.
If you get out enough, you’ll recognize that Avington Park has a lot in common with a gin and tonic. Hey, it may even be better than a G & T. Even so, I grant you permission to stick with the ‘G & T’ moniker if you want. After all, ‘G’ stands for grayling and ‘T’ stands for trout. But either way, I think you’ll like it. It’s a chance to taste and see that an English chalkstream is good.
Now, go ahead and make two Avington Park(s) – one for your mate, one for yourself. Simply follow the method below. Then sit down together and watch Chalk – Bedrock of Fly-Fishing. Yet, beware. Because the next day, you’ll probably want to contact Orvis Sporting Trips and Adventures. So, here’s the number: 800-547-4322. An Orvis travel specialist will be there to assist you.
Ingredients
2 fluid ounces Bombay Sapphire London dry gin
2 fluid ounces Grapefruit juice, freshly squeezed
2 dashes Angostura Bitters
4 fluid ounces Tonic water
Garnish
1 Grapefruit twist, flamed
Glass
Double Old-Fashioned (1 drink) or Rocks glass (2 drinks)
Method
- To a shaker, add 4 dashes Angostura bitters, 2 ounces grapefruit juice, and 2 ounces of London dry gin.
- Shake contents vigorously and strain into rocks glass containing 1 large ice cube, filling two thirds (66%) of the glass volume.
- Top-up with 4 ounces (or volume to taste) tonic water (4 for Double Old Fashioned, 2 for Rocks) and stir in.
- Flame a grapefruit twist over the drink.
- Garnish with the flamed grapefruit twist.