Vote now: The hunt is on for the greatest canal angler
The search is on to find the UK’s greatest canal angler of all time – and you can have your say.
The Canal and River Trust are calling on members of the public to vote for who they think deserves the accolade from a list of 10 top anglers, including Kim Milsom, Ivan Marks and Ian Heaps who started their careers and made their names by fishing canals.
The online poll follows a series of articles created by the charity which features profiles on each of the 10 anglers, the first of which was revealed on their website earlier in the summer.
The chosen anglers were carefully picked by staff from the agency with the help of angling historian, John Essex, and as well as selecting your favourite you can also pick an angler who you think is missing from the list.
Becca Dent, national angling development manager for the Trust, said: “We really wanted to celebrate the rich heritage of angling on the nation’s canals which sadly can become forgotten. It’s a chance for us to remember and recognise the great sportsmen and colourful characters who helped to inspire a generation of anglers. These men started as novices trying angling on their local canal for the first time and between them went on to win numerous titles, compete for their country and, in some cases, change the way we fish today. Each one of them has a brilliant story to tell which we want to recapture today; encouraging more young people to have a go and hopefully developing a new generation of angling heroes.”
Former World and European Angling Champion Ian Heaps added: “I grew up fishing hard canals in the North West so canal fishing will always be in my heart. Those days helped make me as an angler and they are still a great place to learn how to fish.”
To place your vote and view the anglers profiles visit: www.canalrivertrust.org.uk/greatest-angler
The Nominees
Dave Roper
Bob Fuller
Kevin Ashurst
Ian Heaps
Alan Wright
Billy Lane
Fred Foster
Kim Milsom
Ivan Marks
Benny Ashurst
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Your questions answered by the Environment Agency's Head of Fisheries
In April 2014 the Environment Agency appointed Sarah Chare as their new head of fisheries, taking over from Geoff Bateman.
Having worked in the EA’s fisheries department for nearly 20 years including stints in enforcement, disease prevention and as an area fishery officer, Sarah has plenty of experience in the subject.
One of her main aims since taking on the role is to see the EA working more closely with anglers and angling based organisations but what else does she have in store? We were given an exclusive interview and decided to ask her some of the questions that really matter to Angling Times readers.
Q: Are you going to change the format or the price of rod licences? Josh Turner, Ramsbottom, Lancs
A: We are starting a full review for changes to be made starting in April 2016 and that includes the price, how anglers can buy their licence as well as the number of rods you can fish with. We will be talking to the Angling Trust and others making any decisions about this. We have a great relationship with the Angling Trust and I would like to see this continue – sometimes they challenge us in our role as the regulator but we have many areas of common ground.
Q: Would where you buy your licence ever change? Sam Whetting, Liverpool, Merseyside
A: It is important to us to keep the costs of selling licences down so at the moment we are not looking at selling licences in any other venues other than the Post Office or online.
Q: Is the way rod licence money is spent going to change? Colin Hoban, Wakefield, W Yorks
A: The priorities will stay the same as we need to protect our licence income so we can spend it on enforcement, fish kill response and eradication of non-native invaders to name a few. Unless anglers tell us differently these will stay the same. However, the way we go about our work will constantly be monitored and improved. I believe partnerships with other organisations are becoming increasingly important. For example, working with the Angling Trust has really helped with our enforcement work.
Q: Is the problem of illegal fishing and fish theft still high on your agenda? Michael Gittins, Runcorn, Cheshire
I will be looking at how the area teams are organised to do enforcement work that includes how we target illegal activity and working across boundaries. We have had some great operations recently such as Operation Vulcan which was a joint operation with the police. My job is to make sure the teams are funded and organised in the best way they can to maximise their effectiveness but we can’t fight this alone so my message to anglers is to report everything, as we use and process all information for future operations and to highlight problematic areas. Last year alone we had just under 3,000 prosecutions. We support fisheries or clubs asking for licences upon entry; anyone who goes fishing and claims to care about their sport should have a licence and those who don’t are robbing other anglers.
Q: Is the closed season going to be reviewed again? Charlie Robins, Lechlade, Glos
A: I know the closed season is really crucial to anglers and I am aware that there are some very strong and differing views surrounding it. We are going to be working with the Institute of Fisheries Management (IFM) and the Angling Trust to review past studies and to look at how we can make an informed decision on something that is very important. It is possible we may do some limited trials at some point but this work is only just beginning.
Q: Is the amount of fish stocked into rivers and stillwaters going to change? Granville Noble, Nottingham, Notts
A: At the moment Calverton Fish Farm meets our demands so we have no plans to increase facilities. They will continue to provide fish to stock venues such as river stretches which are recovering from long term environmental problems or a pollution incident.
Q: With an increasing number of migrants resident in the UK, are the EA still working to reduce illegal fishing from these groups of people to educate them about our rules? Steven Wallis, Oundle, Northants
A: We are still funding the Angling Trust Building Bridges project which provides information to foreign anglers with what the rules are but those who are deliberately taking fish will be fully prosecuted; it is still high on our list of priorities like any illegal angling is.
Q: Angling venues have suffered a lot from pollution in the past. Are the EA still keen on prosecuting offenders despite high litigation costs? Matthew Walsh, Bridgwater, Somerset
A: If we think we have a case we will always take it to court; we owe it to anglers and the environment to try to prosecute those we think are guilty even if there’s a risk of it not working out. We also seek to recover our costs in court and provide information to the sentencing council about the impacts of fishery offences to help with future cases.
Q: Are government budget cuts going to affect how the EA goes about their work? Gavin Kelly
A: We are going through a big organisational change at the moment. Since April we have been changing from a three-tier organisation to a two-tier one which means working at a national and area level in order to make efficiencies and savings. We are also always looking at new ways of working to make the money go further and we have to spend on the right things and in the right way to continue to provide the same level of service.
Q: Are you going to help try to improve participation in the sport? Jane Rollins, Hemel Hempstead, Herts
A: The angling strategy is now with the Angling Trust who we have partnership projects with and these are also funded by Sport England. We are currently doing some marketing work targeting around 500,000 lapsed anglers who have left the sport to encourage them to get back into it. Our primary route is with the Trust but we have also been working with schools recently to get kids into fishing.
Q: Are you going to do more to eradicate crayfish numbers and other non-natives affecting fisheries? Scott Nevitt, Enfield, London
A: Non-native species is one of our priorities and a big part of what we do. When we discover a new one we need to look at what harm it can cause, where it has been distributed and how it can be controlled. In some instances we can only prevent spread rather than full eradication. There are many ways of eradication including biological control but with this you have to be sure how it’s going to behave as often there is no comeback.
Q: Would the EA consider educating fisheries with things like baliffing and disease control? Matthew Thomas, Aberystwyth, Wales
A: We have always run workshops for fishery managers and owners with organisations like the IFM and these will continue where there is local demand. We also have the stillwater fish ageing kits we can send out to anyone who requests them. These involve fisheries taking a scale sample and fish measurement and sending it back to our lab so we can determine the fisheries’ health. We can then give them advice or help. Also fisheries can always contact their local fishery officer if they seek any advice that includes bailiffing.
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Pretty One out at 35lb from Fryerning
This 35lb mirror is known as the Pretty One, and it’s easy to see why.
Carl Carlucci caught the large-scaled fish at Fryerning Fisheries in Essex while trying a new bait.
The 46-year-old from Chelmsford said: ““It was my first session on a new Bait from DT Baits so I was over the moon to catch Pretty One!
“I moved swims after two nights after seeing showing fish and caught the fish at 7am after a 1am rig change and recheck.”
Second 40lb-plus carp in a month for Rich Seeds
Rich Seeds is on a roll at the Carp Society’s Farriers Lake after banking his second forty in a month.
The 31-year-old Hampshire angler caught a new personal-best common in the shape of this 42lb 6oz chunk during a 24-hour session at the Gloucestershire venue.
The fishery manager got through 7kg of Sticky Vor-Tex boilies and fished a six-inch blowback rig at 80 yards.
He said: “This is my second forty from Farriers in three weeks and again a new pb common.”
Dinton delivers 30lb mirror carp at midnight
Dinton Pastures doesn’t give up its resident easily but Tony Roberts seems to have found a winning tactic, as demonstrated by this 30lb mirror.
The Kent angler fished the Berkshire venue’s White Swan lake and targeted a clay hump at 45 yards during a recent 24-hour session.
Fishing over a half-kilo scattering of different-sized Sticky Krill boilies, Tony got the take at midnight.
He said: “I pulled into the fish which gave a spirited battle. When I got the fish over the net cord I saw it was one of the few fully scaled fish that are in Dinton and I thought to myself, this bait certainly seems to be sorting them out for me.”
Trio of thirties in just 36 hours
Haydn Hoskins banked three thirties in 36 hours in a memorable weekend session at Kingsmead One.
The Nash-backed angler said: “For sure, it’s the most thirties I have had in such a short space of time.”
Having arrived after dark on Friday at the Berkshire venue, Haydn got his rods out by 10.30pm. “To start with I applied several kilos of a new prototype bait mixed with a handful of so of the Coconut Crème baits, and by 2.30am I'd had my first take. Unfortunately, the hook pulled soon after.
“By morning I’d had no more action and so decided to top up the area with another kilo of bait as I was simply too tired to put any more bait after my first take. It seemed that more bait is what they wanted, as around 30 minutes after putting out a kilo of boilies, I was in again.
“This time I was fortunate enough to land a lovely 36lb 8oz common, although only just! A friend arrived to help me with the netting as the weed in front of me was so heavy, and as he slid the net under the ball of weed and lifted I could see half of the fish wasn't in the net at all. Not thinking, I jumped in and pulled the net up and over the fish. As I got out of the lake my friend mentioned how my rod and reel looked nicely submerged in the margins! I wasn't even thinking, I must have just thrown it out of my hand when I jumped in to ensure I landed the fish.”
Haydn introduced a total of 7kg of bait over the course of the session and managed another common of 33lb 4oz and a 34lb mirror. His rigs featured 20lb Nash Combi Link and size 8 Fang X hooks.
54lb 12oz mirror carp from Wingham syndicate
A Kent syndicate water had produced its second fifty in recent weeks with this 54lb 12oz mirror.
Rob Burrage banked the giant fish during an overnight session at Wingham Carp Lake. The same venue also produced a 50lb 11oz common during the summer and owner Steve Burke is enthusiastic about the lake’s prospects.
He said: “"Both the fifties were born at Wingham and so I don't know how old they are, let alone how big they'll grow, but even I'm getting excited now!"
The giant mirror was caught just 25 yards out in 8ft of water. Structural designer Rob said: “If I had realised just how special the fish was I wouldn't have played it quite so hard to keep it out of the weed!"
The 43-year-old from nearby Sevenoaks added: “There's no place like Wingham for peace and tranquillity plus the chance of catching something special.”
Rob presented an S2 pop-up from Specialized Hookbaits on a size 6 G-Force hook tied to G-Force Blackout hooklink. He baited with a kilo of GLM Sausage Oil boilies from Shoreline Baits and the bite came on the morning of his overnight session.
Persistence pays off with 33lb 2oz common carp
This immaculate 33lb 2oz common was Paul Nixon’s reward at the end of a gruelling three-night session on a windswept Cambridgeshire pit.
The 30-year-old Ipswich angler presented a Sticky Krill boilie to a weedbed at 80 yards and endured a frustrating time before the common arrived.
He said: “It was the most punishing trip! I moved twice and was wiped out by floating weedbeds five times at all hours of the night. It's been pretty horrendous really!
“After getting the rods back out as good as I could at first light in big winds, heavy rain and just about everything Mother Nature could through at me, this beast made it all worth it.”
Second-largest Irish carp is caught at 37lb
The second-largest carp in Ireland has been banked at 37lb.
Gerry Heapes slid the net under the specimen, known as The Other Mirror, during a three-day session at Lyreen Carp Lake in Maynooth, County Kildare.
The Dublin angler said: “This fish is one of the most sought-after carp in the lake due to the fact she goes very long periods of time without visiting the bank. She is no mug fish, and this made it all the more sweet.”
The 44-year-old hairstylist presented Sticky Krill boilies in the margins on multi rigs.
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'No feed' tactic pays off with 7lb River Lea chub
Phil Buckingham proved that you don’t need mountains of bait to catch big fish when he landed this 7lb 7oz chub from the River Lea.
The 63-year-old vice president of the Barbel Society, opted for a no feed approach, instead casting a running lead rig with just a large chunk of hair-rigged meat into his swim at Kings Weir in Hertfordshire.
The Essex rod remained patient through a biteless first few hours but when the light faded his rod wrapped round and the fish - his eightieth chub over 6lb - was no match for his 10lb Berkley mainline, 10lb Drennan Sink Link hooklength and size 8 Korda Longshank hook.
14lb 4oz barbel within ten minutes of casting out
A bite within 10 minutes of casting out produced this 14lb 4oz barbel for Alan Stagg during a session on a Thames tributary.
The Gardner media manager’s rig was positioned just half a rod length from the bank over a spot which he’d primed a few hours before with a mix of 4mm trout pellets, hemp and chopped CC Moore Odyssey XXX boilies.
“It’s one of the trickiest stretches I have fished to date,” explained Alan, who used a critically-balanced hookbait consisting of a 14mm boilie tipped with buoyant pellets from Enterprise Tackle.
“The fish are well worth the effort, though, and my last four bites have resulted in barbel of 11lb, 12lb 10oz, 15lb 8oz and 14lb 4oz.”
He completed his set-up with 15lb Trickster Heavy braid and a size 8 Covert Wide Gape Talon Tip hook.
Seven roach over 2lb from Lochnaw Castle Loch
John Sucksmith enjoyed the ‘best roach fishing session of his life’ at the famous Lochnaw Castle Loch in Scotland.
The venue is widely regarded as one of the UK’s finest specimen roach waters and the experienced angler from Lincoln proved why with no less than seven fish over 2lb including a 2lb 15oz 8dr personal best.
Accuracy was the key to his success and he followed every cast of his groundbait feeder with the introduction of 10 boilies directly over the top. All of his fish fell to Dynamite Baits 10mm The Source boilies hair-rigged on a size 10 hook.
“This is the best roach fishing I’ve experienced in over 60-years of angling,” John told Angling Times.
“As soon as my feeder hit the water I’d fire 10 to 15 boilies into the ripple created by the rig and I’m convinced that keeping everything really tight made the difference.”
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Single bite results in 26lb pike from Scottish loch
Garry Christie only received one bite during a session on a remote Scottish loch – but he wasn’t complaining as it resulted in this 26lb 8oz pike.
The impressive predator – which measured more than 46ins – fell to a small section of popped-up lamprey.
Edinburgh-based Garry said: “My wife and I were on a three day highland break and I managed a day’s fishing with her tucked up in the bivvy. I’ve fished for pike all my life and this is definitely the hardest fighting pike I’ve ever had the pleasure of landing.”
Foreign carp removed from Cheshire fishery
Environment Agency fishery officers had a catch to remember after removing these three non-native silver and big head carp from a fishery in Cheshire.
The fish, which weighed around 40lb each, were removed from Shakerley Mere, near Knutsford, after a request was made by controlling club Lymm Angling. Both the big head and silver carp which can grow to 100lb in weight are native to China and the Eastern Asia regions and look very similar in appearance. As well as harming native species, bighead carp have an alarming response to danger, jumping out of the water, which can pose real risks of injury to boaters and anglers.
Andy Eaves, an Environment Agency fisheries officer, who was involved in the eradication, said:
“Fishery owners play a vital role in our work to tackle non-native species and we encourage any other clubs to contact us if they suspect they are present.”
5lb 6oz eel tops big haul from club water
Former Drennan Cup holder Ted Bryan admitted that his latest session was one of the ‘toughest he’d ever experienced’ despite landing a string of big eels to 5lb 6oz.
The Sydenham, London-based specialist spent 48 hours at a club lake in Sussex and primed his swim with a mixture of maggots, chopped worms and liquidised prawns. As darkness fell his target species fell to his maggot hookbaits.
“The first night I had nine eels up to 4lb 4oz and the rest were all in the 2lb to 3lb bracket, so I was up and down all night and only got some sleep once it was light,” said Ted.
“The following night went exactly the same way and the first fish was the biggest of the trip. These were two of the hardest nights I’ve ever done, but so rewarding.”
Bait switch results in 32lb 11oz common carp
A change of baiting tactics and a tweak to his rigs gave Ben Francis this 32lb 11oz common known as The Tiger.
Having endured a frustrating few months, the long common was Ben’s reward for analysing the situation and adapting his approach. “That’s the joy of fishing,” he said, “you can always learn from your mistakes and improve your success.”
The Wychwood brand manager had caught another 30lb common from the venue in April on tiger nuts, which he had used to avoid the resident bream, but the tactic faltered over the summer.
He said: “The bream started getting on the tigers and I spent a very frustrating few months trying to work out how I should be fishing the lake. Other anglers were picking up the odd fish here and there and a few of them had started catching consistently, so there was something wrong with my approach and I have no shame in admitting that things don't always go to plan.
“In the early part of September I changed approach, did away with the tiger nuts and starting baiting a marginal spot with scopex boilies in an attempt to bring the fish to me.
“It was clear that the fish were on the bait within days and the first couple sessions were uneventful, but the fish were lumping out over my baited area all night, every night. At this point my baits were fished on a mega-simple stiff rig attached to a micro swivel on the D loop.
“I really felt I should've had a bite with the amount of fish in the area so the next night I tweaked my stiff rigs to present the bait on an elongated, supple hair instead. The first night using the revised rig resulted in one of my targets, The Tiger at 32lb 11oz.”
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12lb 10oz barbel from Thames tributary
Alan Stagg has continued his successful start to his barbel campaign, adding this 12lb 10oz to his tally during his latest out on a Thames tributary.
The Hampshire-based specimen hunter used his trusty homemade bait dropper to introduce a bed of hemp and 4mm CC Moore pellets and fooled the impressive fish with a mag-aligner rig consisting of 15lb Trickster Heavy braid and a size 12 Covert Mugga hook.
He said: “My last three bites from the stretch have all been doubles, so I’m certainly pleased the way this autumn’s barbel fishing is going.”
Chris Yates defends management at Redmire Pool
Former British carp record-holder Chris Yates has defended management at Redmire Pool amid claims it has become 'just another fishery.'
The accusation came from Robert Fox, who has resigned as bailiff at the iconic Herefordshire pool after 20 years' service.
Souvenir T-shirts, the creation of a lakeside picnic area and the appearance of ghost carp are some of the reasons given by Robert for abandoning the water which has produced three British record carp.
“Jack Hilton would turn in his grave if he could see Redmire now,” Robert told Angling Times.
“Instead of the crystal-clear, weed-choked venue that we all know and love, the lake is now heavily coloured so there’s virtually no weed.
"Newly stocked, easy-to-catch carp are swimming among the original strains of fish and breeding with them.
“Redmire is now a commercial fishery. Anglers are queuing up to fish there fish there. There’s even a picnic area, and you can buy souvenirs such as mugs and T-shirts.”
But Chris Yates, who has been associated with Redmire since he broke the UK carp record therw with a 51lb 6oz fish in 1980, is still a regular visitor to the lake and is confident it will return to its former glory.
“It’s a real shame to hear that ghost carp have found their way into the lake and now swim among the original leney strain of fish,” he said.
“But I know the owners and Les the fishery manager very well and these guys only have the venues best interests at heart and will rectify any issues.”
Meanwhile, fishery manager, Les Bamford, was quick to react to the claims and explained that they are working hard to resolve the issues.
“Redmire is a commercial water and has been for many years," said Les, "but I assure you that the welfare of the environment and the fish that inhabit it have, and will always be, our main priority.
“We have had problems with run off when potatoes were being farmed on nearby fields which has caused a build-up of silt and added colouration of the water, but we have now drawn up detailed plans on how to resolve this," he continued.
"The same goes for the ghost carp that now inhabit the lake. We don't know how they got there."
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50lb common carp from Bluebell Lakes
Bluebell Lakes’ reputation as a big-fish venue continues to rise after the day-ticket complex produced this 50lb 12oz common.
The fish, which has packed on an incredible 10lb since its last capture in four months ago, fell to Jared Ferguson during a 72-hour session which also produced a 34lb mirror and two twenties.
The Essex angler, who has caught on all five of his visits to Swan Lake at the Northamptonshire complex this year, said: “It’s my new British personal best and in, terms of my fishing in this country, it was an excellent session. I didn’t realise how big the common was until I looked in the net and then I was all smiles.”
Jared fished 10mm Mainline Hybrid boilies on hinged stiff rigs and baited with an initial 3kg of matching freebies, sweetcorn and hemp.
He said: “I arrived on Sunday and found a swim in the middle of the lake as I know Kev Hewitt has had some success this year from that area.
“Within two hours I’d had the mid-thirty mirror, followed by a couple twenties, before the common arrived at about 7pm. It was a slow and steady take and a fairly uneventful fight. It weeded me up a little and I lost my lead, but it didn’t cause me any problems until it got tangled in another of my lines in the margins.”
That was the last of the carp action for the 46-year-old landscape gardener, who went on to catch a succession of tench to 9lb.
37lb-plus pike caught during British Lure Angling Champs
This estimated 37lb-plus pike was the biggest fish caught during the final of the inaugural British Lure Angling Championship held at Chew Valley Reservoir in Somerset.
The impressive predator fell to the rod of Ben Tregoning whose day didn’t get off to the start he’d hoped for when his car broke down.
Despite the initial set-back he still made it to the venue where he proceeded to smash his previous best for the species of 16lb when the fish took his Ecogear BTS shad type lure.
As he didn’t have any scales on the boat he measured the fish at 120cm which gave an estimated weight of between 37lb and 40lb.
