BONUS AT BECK! ANDREW WILKINSON'S weekly look at the local angling scene: New batch is stocked.

TROUT TOPICS A BATCH of huge rainbows - among the biggest ever stocked at the reservoir - have gone into LOCKWOOD BECK.

Twenty-five of them ranging from 8lb to the high teens, were stocked yesterday.

And they are bonus fish on top of the usual stocking of around 220 fish to 6lb.

A lot of fish have been rising this week, Olive Murray of Brotton catching half a dozen on small dries in just a couple of hours.

Steve Trafford went afloat to tempt 21 on CDC Shuttlecocks, while Tim Grove caught 10 from a boat on Daddy Longlegs and Klinkhammer.

Shore anglers have also fared well, Michael McCauley opting for a tiny size 18 Black Spider, fished dry, to take 11 fish from the dam wall.

WEST HOUSE is on song, with good catches, including some large fish.

Paul Chaytor, a regular at the venue, caught a 9lb 6oz rainbow on an Orange Blob while William Hamilton of Stokesley had a good day catching 12 fish, including a cracking rainbow of 16lb. He used Buzzers.

Michael Swan of Stockton caught a brown of 4lb on a Cat's Whisker. He returned his fish to grow bigger. Peter Brown of Darlington and his son David, aged 14, had a super day, catching 24 fish between them, with rainbows to 7lb and a chub of 3lb.

The best flies this week were: Black Zonkers, Damsels, Crunchers, Black Buzzers, Klinkhammers, Black Hoppers, Hare's Ears and mini lures. LEGERED worm with Powerbait has been the method to attract a lot of fish at SCALING DAM.

And the wait for the first double of the season is over, with an 11lb rainbow taken by W Jones, who was fishing the east end of the south shore.

Other big fish showed with L Bateman catching one of 9lb 8oz, while Craig Daniels from Markse, fishing on the east end of the dam wall, tempted a 7lb 11oz rainbow on Orange Powerbait.

In the last week 110 anglers caught 327 rainbows, and a further 700 have been stocked.

RAINBOWS to 14lb 3oz were caught at JUBILEE LAKES, where Sedges retrieved across the surface brought savage takes at times. Lures also fished well with Zonkers and Dawson's Olive accounting for double figure fish.

LEIGHTON is fishing well, with rainbows to over 14lb and a rod average of just under three. Fish are taking lures with more gusto than for some time, though imitative surface patterns are also taking fish, especially when there is a light ripple.

PAUL Fenney of Hartlepool caught a rainbow of 12lb 4oz at STONEBRIDGE, one of 14 he caught on Olive Bloodworm. CDC and Cat's Whisker are the top patterns.

CAPTION(S):

DAM GOOD CATCH: CRAIG Daniels of Marske with the 7lb 11oz rainbow trout he caught at Scaling Dam reservoir, in a week in which big fish were caught at several of the region's stillwaters