Here is the very place that Izaak Walton fished with his friend and collaborator Charles Cotton, who together published four editions of The Compleat Angler. To celebrate their friendship they built the beautiful Fishing Temple in 1674. Three hundred plus years later it stands unchanged, almost completely encircled by the meandering curve of the river.
I am not sure if Walton or Cotton ever described the building as a temple but it certainly has that ecclesiastical feel; the inscription on the keystone piscatoribus sacrum means sacred to fishermen leaving you in little doubt you are entering a place of importance. The heavy oak doors, worn flags on the floor, the carved stone and the leaded light windows make it at the same time both sombre and uplifting.
As well as the Grade II listed fishing house the sale also features some three miles of double bank fishing, available as a whole or in three beats, and approximately 33 acres of woodland and grassland.
I have no idea what will happen on the change of ownership but I will certainly miss my trips to Beresford with the chance to walk and fish in the footsteps of some true greats.
For more details visit Knight Frank or call Jonathan Bengough on the Hereford office 01432 273087
FM is delighted to bring you Simon’s short news feature, which was first published in his ‘Fishing Breaks’ Newsletter.
Simon’s company, Fishing Breaks, based in the heart of the River Test Valley, offers some of the finest chalk stream fly fishing available in the UK – and a whole lot more. Check out their website HERE
