Famous syndicate turns day-ticket

SOME of the biggest carp in the north of the UK are going to available for all to fish for from the beginning of next month.

For the past decade the Eric’s Angling Willows Lake has been run on an exclusive syndicate basis with only a privileged few able to target its impressive stocks.

The 25-acre venue holds over 350 carp and is home to the Yorkshire carp record of 52lb 8oz. This is backed up with around 12 forties, 35 thirties and numerous twenties.

The majority of these fish were stocked as singles over 10 years ago and with a combination of careful fishery management and a rich natural food supply have flourished and grown to the current specimen sizes.

The change in access has come about in a bid to safeguard the future of the venue and its outstanding stock of fish against predation. A spokesperson for Eric’s Angling said: “Some people have been asking why we have changed from syndicate to day-ticket with reasons such as fish dying or we’re trying to cash in on the lake now that the carp have grown so big. The simple fact is, however, the water needs to be otter fenced and due to the size of the site doing this will be incredibly expensive. As a syndicate it just simply didn’t generate enough income for this to be financially viable. The decision was made to open the venue to a wider audience so the fencing can commence as soon as possible. It also gives many more people the opportunity to fish for by far the best stock of big carp in the area, which can’t be a bad thing.”

To fish the lake a one-off registration fee of £75 will be required, however, an introductory special offer of £50 is currently available for anyone who joins before May 1. Tickets will then be priced at £30 for 24 hours on weekends and £25 for 24 hours during the week. To prevent overcrowding the amount of anglers on the lake will be limited and all sessions will have to be booked in advance.

To register or for more information call Eric’s Angling on 01430 440034