THE HERTFORDSHIRE STREAMS 69 



The Lea between Hertford and its source, which 

 is six miles north-west of Luton in Bedfordshire 

 has some of the best trouting in England. The 

 At various places between Luton Park ^^^ 

 lake and Hatfield Park the trout run very big, and 

 in the club water above Hatfield in particular there 



A. 



is a backstream famous for its four and five pound- 

 fish ; nor is a four pound trout by any means an 

 extraordinarily heavy fish for the river at Brocket 

 or at Wheathampstead. The old Lea trout is 

 believed by some to be a distinct variety, but re- 

 stocking has introduced various other strains such 

 as Loch Lcvens, and also trout from the Wick 

 and the Test. The Lea is a chalk stream, fairly 

 clean and pure in its upper lengths or head waters, 

 containing large quantities of the fresh-water 

 shrimp, on which trout always thrive so well. 

 Grayling have been introduced, but — fortunatcl)- 

 perhaps — do not seem to have taken very kindl\- 

 to the w^ater. There are a few bicf ones in 

 Hatfield Park, and so high up as Wheathampstead 

 I have my.self taken one with a May-fly. The\' 

 rarely rise, however, at an artificial fly. Coarse fish, 

 particularly pike and dace, are still too plentiful in 

 many lengths, and here and there in the deeper 

 holes there are some fair perch. The cream of the 

 trout fishing on this stream is in the May-fl}- 

 .season, and the insect often comes in great 

 quantities on most lengths from Luton to Hatfield. 

 Some of the heavy fish frequenting the more 

 sluggish water then rise for a week or so at the 

 artificial fly, but can rarely be induced to look at 

 it at any other season. The natural flies fre- 

 quenting the Lea include, besides the May-fly, the 

 olive or blue dun, the yellow dun, the little May 



