Barbel boost for River Aire
Match and specimen anglers from Yorkshire have cause to celebrate this week thanks to the completion of a five year project to rejuvenate barbel stocks on the River Aire.
Last Tuesday around 1,500 barbel were put into the West Yorkshire waterway by Environment Agency officers between Keighley and Leeds City Centre taking the total number of fish stocked during the project to 17,500 spread across six separate locations.
All the fish came from Calverton fish farm in Nottinghamshire which is paid for by rod licence money and follows numerous other stockings of fish into other UK rivers this autumn as part of the EA’s regular re-stocking programmes.
EA fishery officer for Yorkshire, Pete Turner, is passionate about improving angling on the Aire. He told Angling Times: “We have run a number of surveys on the river and seeked advice from the angling clubs who run stretches and although we knew there were barbel in the waterway we wanted to improve it for anglers.
“These fish have gone in at around 6-8 inches long so they should already be spreading out and taking anglers baits, and we will continue to monitor them to check their health and see if they breed.”
Some of the stockings have taken place on free fishing stretches of the river but several clubs have also benefitted, including Keighley Angling Club, who control a stretch west of Leeds. The club’s match secretary Darren Watson told Angling Times: “We have already started to catch them in matches which is a great sign and bodes well for the future. However, it’s not just barbel that we are catching – the whole river is fishing better than it has done in years for all species.”
The EA are asking anglers to report any barbel they catch from the river by tagging their catch photos on social media site Twitter. Simply post it on your twitter page and tag @PeteTurnerEA. The fish should have a small coloured tag on their heads to help you identify them.
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1,000 miles for amazing brace of rudd and roach
Daniel Woolcott proved his dedication to the sport when he racked up almost 1,000 miles travelling the length of the country to land a brace of new personal bests.
Roach was the first species on the Kent-based all-rounder’s hit list, so he embarked on a 20-hour roundtrip to target the famous Lochnaw Loch in Stranraer, Scotland.
After completing the mammoth journey he got the session underway by feeding a mixture of 10mm boilies and groundbait laced with maggots and hemp at 70yds range out before casting helicopter-style feeder rigs over the top.
With only a few small redfins to show for his efforts by the end of the first night his confidence began to wane. But he received a much-needed boost on the second evening.
“My alarm emitted a series of bleeps and when I lifted in to the bite I could feel a solid resistance on the other end,” said Daniel.
“My angling companion for the session James Champkin thought it may have been one of the trout that inhabit the water but once we got it closer we could clearly see it was a massive roach.
“My previous best weighed in at 2lb but this obliterated it as the dial swung round to 2lb 11oz,” he added.
The action didn’t end there, though, with the building surveyor taking another specimen of 2lb 6oz before he setting off on the long journey home.
With a new roach best under his belt he then set his sights on beating his rudd pb of 2lb 6oz 8dr, with a less daunting trip to Buckland Lake Reserve Fishery in Rochester, Kent.
Using identical tactics to those at Lochnaw he presented his plastic corn hookbait 10yds out. He said: “My only run of the session came at around 4am and I instantly knew that if it was a rudd, it was likely to be a new personal best.
“It stayed deep but once I’d netted it my suspicions were confirmed as my scales registered a weight of 3lb 8oz.”
He added: “These two trips have provided me with the most remarkable period of my angling career to date,” he concluded.
Both fish were beaten with 5lb fluorocarbon mainline tied to size 12 Drennan Super Specialist hooks.
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Five perch over 3lb from Grafham Water
Andy Loble finally struck the jackpot with the big perch of Grafham Water, landing five fish over the 3lb mark, including a 4lb 4oz cracker.
The impressive predator equalled his personal best for the species and was backed up with fish of 3lb 10oz, 3lb 6oz, 3lb 5oz and 3lb 2oz during a frantic couple of hours late in afternoon. Following two blank sessions on the Cambridgeshire venue, Andy once again took to one of its boats during a trip with Gordon Howes of Waterland Predator Guiding, despite strong winds.
“The fishing had been really slow and we decided to head to the tower for the last few hours of light,” he told Angling Times. “Within a couple of casts I was into my first fish and my jaw hit the bottom when I saw it was a 3lb perch. The bites and the fights were epic on an 8ft Sonik SK4 spinning rod and I used Fox Rage Shads on drop shot tactics. It was my best perch session ever,” he added.
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Could you be the BBC's new face of fishing?
Have you ever wanted the opportunity to be the star of an angling TV Show?
If so, the BBC are offering passionate anglers the chance to take part in a new television series which will see participants fishing some of the most exotic destinations across the globe.
With a working title of ‘The Big Fish’, the programme is currently in the early planning stages but producers are on the lookout for anglers from differing disciplines of the sport to come forward and apply to take part in what is thought to be the first ever reality angling programme to be paid for by TV licence money.
The series is hoped to educate viewers about a huge variety of fish from all manner of destinations from Africa to Southern America and the ways local people catch them. Each week participants will be challenged to test their skills in their new environment, combining their own talents with new techniques learnt from the indigenous population and international experts to outwit the environment they find themselves in.
The new show will become part of a growing list of angling based programmes which have appeared on terrestrial television in recent years including the likes of Robson Green’s Extreme Fishing and Jeremy Wade’s River Monsters which attracted as many as 3.4m viewers during particular episodes.
The talent search is open to non-professional anglers aged 18 and over and resident in the UK. Anyone interested in finding out more or downloading an application form should contact thebigfish@bbc.co.uk or call the team on 0117 974 2349.
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A 34lb Royalty pike on first cast
The first cast into a day-ticket stretch of river has produced one of the biggest running water pike of all time.
Darren Smith acted on a ‘hunch’ to fish the famous Royalty Fishery on the Hampshire Avon and not only doubled his personal best with the 34lb specimen but also set a new record for Ringwood & District Angling Club.
Due to rising water levels the local angler predicted that the predators would follow the small silverfish into the slack areas to find sanctuary out of the main flow.
“I knew the conditions weren’t ideal for lure fishing, but I had a feeling that I had to be in one particular swim on the Royalty. I couldn’t ignore it,” Darren told Angling Times.
“My lure had only been in the water for a few seconds and I’d just started to retrieve it when the huge fish hammered my bait. All hell then broke loose.”
The specialist from New Milton, Hampshire, used a 10-inch Reaction Strike Bass Harasser Lure in conjunction with 50lb braid mainline to beat the specimen that measured 4ft in length.
“I’m not one to exaggerate, but the only way to describe this fish was a crocodile without legs!” Darren continued.
“When it started to come towards me I knew that there was going to be around two-and-a-half feet of fish hanging out of the back of the net. After a few hairy moments I managed to hoist it onto the bank and it was only then when I saw the mind-blowing proportions of this incredible and awe-inspiring predator.”
He added: “Even now it still doesn’t seem real. My goal was to catch a 20lb-plus fish from a river and I’ve now upped my personal best from 17lb to 34lb.”
Darren’s incredible run of form continued as he returned to the fishery a few days later to land another specimen pike of 21lb 10oz.
Day-tickets to fish the Royalty Fishery can be purchased from Davis Tackle and for more information call: 01202 485169 or visit: www.davistackle.co.uk.
Top 10 Biggest River Pike
45lb 8oz, John Goble, River Thurne, 2009
42lb 2oz, Derrick Amies, River Thurne, 1985
42lb, Mervyn Watkins, River Barrow, 1964
41lb 6oz, Neville Fickling, River Thurne, 1985
41lb 4oz, Jeff Mills, River Thurne, 1986
41lb, Alan Underhill, River Suck, 1980
39lb 12oz, Karl Gidney, Thurne system, 2008
38lb 5oz, Simon Webber, Hampshire Avon, 1992
38lb 3oz, Dennis Madigan, River Shannon, 1980
38lb 3oz, George Dillon, River Suck, 1996
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Anglers lose count of 2lb-plus perch at Blithfield Reservoir
“It was some of the best perch fishing I’ve ever experienced, but is still just the tip of the iceberg.”
These are the words of well-known specimen hunter Gary Knowles who was one of the lucky anglers to take part in the first ever perch trials at Blithfield Reservoir which saw over 900 fish landed.
Eight boats, each carrying two anglers, took part in the two-day lure fishing event and not only did each vessel average 50 perch per day, but event organisers admitted to loosing count of the number of perch over 2lb that were caught from the 790-acre venue.
The lion’s share of the fish boated were caught by those using the ever-popular drop shotting tactics and Korum Tackle-backed Gary along with John Davey, who co-manage the predator fishing at the venue on behalf of Blithfield Anglers, are adamant that this is just a taste of what’s to come.
“The fishing was nothing short of incredible,” Gary told Angling Times. “We were all left shaking our heads as none of us had ever caught perch in these numbers before.
“It wasn’t as if we were just catching perch from one area either, there were unbelievable amounts of fish coming from many different parts of the lake. It proves the sheer numbers of fish the venue holds and it’s only a matter of time before a truly enormous perch is caught from Blithfield.”
Another angler that was totally blown away by the fishing on offer was Korum Tackle and Preston Innovations’ media co-ordinator Adam Firth.
“It was an incredible experience just to perch fish an awe-inspiring venue like this for the first time. But to have two days where my boat partner and I lost track of how many fish we’d caught was really special,” said Adam.
“We boated fish to 2lb 4oz, but it’s so exciting to think what might lurk beneath the surface.”
Perch fishing fanatics still have their chance of further proving the potential of this incredible venue as there are still boat fishing days available on Saturday, November 29 and Sunday, November 30.
It costs £25 per-person per-day and for more information contact John Davey on: 07766 880718 or e-mail: john.davey46@ntlworld.com
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18lb 6oz barbel is a record on the River Dove
The seemingly endless run of huge barbel from rivers nation-wide has continued this week with a series of personal best fish hitting the bank topped by new River Dove record of 18lb 6oz.
Jim Ufton landed the specimen, which beat his old pb of 17lb 6oz and upped the venue best by 2oz, during a short evening session on the waterway.
The Staffordshire-based rod, who has held the river record on four different occasions, used a home-made boilie in conjunction with a simple feeder rig.
“I’m convinced that these pressured fish are spooked by constant casting so I literally pick the perfect spot, make one cast and leave it in the water for long as possible,” Jim told Angling Times.
“A lot of anglers on this stretch pile the bait in, but I had this fish by squeezing a few broken boilies into my feeder.”
Another angler to beat his personal best was Luke Ayling who slipped the net under a 16lb 10oz specimen from the River Thames.
Despite having to use a 4oz grippa lead in order to hold bottom and combat the constant stream of debris being flushed down the river, the Oxfordshire specialist put his faith in a paste-wrapped boilie alongside a PVA bag filled with pellets and crushed baits.
“I had to recast every 45 minutes as the lead was being dragged out of position, but the back lead I was using kept the hookbait free of rubbish and the paste that I moulded around the lead produced a strong scent trail in the water,” said Luke.
A home-made boilie lowered into the edge of a club stretch of the Dorset Stour proved the downfall of a 16lb 10oz specimen for Bob Edwards.
The fish set a new personal best the Lovedean, Hampshire-based rod who got his prize to the bank with a rig constructed from 12lb mainline and a size 8 Drennan Barbel hook.
Finally, Stewart Moss certainly had every reason to smile when he smashed his barbel pb by 13oz when he netted a superb 16lb 5oz fish from a midlands river.
The Drennan International employee used no free offerings and opted for a legered CC Moore Meteor boilie along with a PVA bag filled with pellets and 10mm boilies.
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British dace record shaker from the River Test
The River Test comes in to its silverfish peak at this time of year and Bryan Jarrett made the most of it when he caught this 1lb 2oz specimen.
Fishing the waterway under the guidance of big fish enthusiast Andy Little, the Hinders of Swindon boss used a maggot feeder attack with an 0.13mm hooklength to a size 18 hook.
Roach, grayling and even the occasional sea trout fell foul to the tactic before dace of just over 1lb and the biggest of the session invaded the swim.
“The current British record stands at 1lb 5oz and I think this fish could break that later this winter,” explained Bryan.
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Brace of 3lb-plus perch from Southampton venue
This cracking brace of perch weighing 3lb 14oz and 3lb 10oz were caught by Andy Cribb during a six hour session at a venue in Sholing near Southampton.
The local rod used groundbait feeders filled with Van Den Eynde Expo groundbait mixed with lake water and Predator Plus liquid and laced with maggots, casters, chopped worm and CC Moore frozen bloodworm.
This was cast out in conjunction with a lobworm hookbait and he also landed a further eight specimens over the 2lb-barrier.
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Grafham yields personal-best 3lb perch
A first time visit to Cambridgeshire’s Grafham Water resulted in this stunning 3lb 11oz personal best perch for young specimen angler Ollie Jenkinson.
Fishing with his boat partner Tom Finney, the pair anchored up close to one of the towers on the 1,500 acre Cambridgeshire venue and started off jigging for perch and zander.
With no action by midday, the Bedfordshire-based rod decided to switch to a drop shotted Berkley Power Bait Minnow and completed the set-up with a 4ft Fox Rage Illusion fluorocarbon leader and 14lb braided mainline.
He said: “On my third drop down I hooked into a hefty weight that dived down towards the bottom. After an exciting scrap I watched as a huge dorsal broke the surface and a pb perch was netted. I can’t wait to get back out there for another go now.”
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Big week for barbel topped by new Severn record
A huge 16lb 11oz River Severn record barbel has been caught this week by Kevin Gittins during an evening session.
It smashed the previous river record by 6oz and took over 25 minutes to land after picking up Kevin’s double boilie hookbait.
“It ripped 40 metres off braid off my reel and then fought like a big carp for around 15 minutes until everything went solid as it found a snag,” Kevin told Angling Times.
“I put the rod back in the rest and thankfully after a few minutes the fish started to take line again, and gave me a second chance. After what felt like an age I flicked the head torch on as I felt the fish was about to break the surface and that’s when the adrenaline really kicked in.
“When it went into the net I let out an almighty gasp and slumped back into my old chair - I couldn’t believe that the fish that I’d been after for over 14 years was sitting in the bottom of my landing net.”
Patience also paid off for Ian Grant who had to endure several blank sessions before slipping the net under a 16lb 8oz River Loddon barbel.
The Twyford and District Angling Club head bailiff tempted the huge fish using his own homemade bait after pre-baiting a swim every other night for over a week.
A jubilant Ian said: “I'd been blanking for several sessions in a swim a few hundred yards upstream of where I caught it as this is where they usually are but luckily I had been baiting another swim which I moved to and it paid off.”
Ian beat his prize with a running leger setup comprising 18ins of Sufix Black Silt tied to 12lb Berkley Big Game mainline.
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Shock 40lb park lake pike
A £2.50 a day park lake has thrown up a shock 40lb pike for a novice predator angler.
In a classic case of beginner’s luck, Rob Hall landed the massive specimen from Ringwood Lake in Chesterfield, having only fished for the species a handful of times before. The 28-year-old local man was targeting the council-owned venue for the first time in over a decade, having previously fished there for silverfish as a teenager.
He told Angling Times that the needle of his scales wouldn’t settle between 42lb and 43lb, with a 2lb 8oz net in place, so he settled on an intermediate weight of 40lb exactly.
“I was in total shock as the best pike I’d had before was about 5lb, this is the biggest fish I’ve ever caught and probably ever will! It had a massive head in relation to its body and I was physically shaking as I removed the hooks. I’m a bit gutted I didn’t get a better picture as I had to take it myself using the self-timer setting on my phone. I usually fish with my mate at weekends but I had a day free midweek and decided to go fishing, it’s typical I catch a fish of a lifetime while he wasn’t there to help,” he said.
Rob reported that he had heard of pike between 20lb and 30lb being caught from the venue, but nothing of this size.
Legering a hand-sized roach tight to a bed of lilies over a few pieces of chopped mackeral he received a positive take at about 12.30pm, with his bite alarm registering two bleeps before line started steadily peeling off the spool. But when he set his size 10 treble hooks he had no idea how big the fish he was attached to was.
He added: “I’ve had 10lb carp go off better than this but I suppose I’m not really used to pike yet. It took 10 minutes to get her towards the bank and then another five minutes to get her in the net because she kept making runs in the margins. My rig was a basic leger rig with 25lb braid and a strong wire trace. I’m genuinely still in shock!”
**Please note, day tickets for the venue can only be purchased in advance from local tackle shops, not on the bank.**
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450 miles for a new barbel personal best
Marcus Weaver broke his personal best barbel twice in the space of six weeks after making a second 450-mile round trip to the River Trent.
Weighing 15lb 4oz, the Three Foot Twitch consultant’s latest fish beat his previous best of 14lb 4oz which was landed from the same venue the last time he visited back in September. The South Wales rod tempted the fish using a 3FT 14mm dubby boilie baited on a size 10 Fox Ssc Arma point hook after feeding his swim with loose dubby boilies as an attractant. His setup consisted of Diawa sensor 15lb line with a 15lb Kryston Incognito fluorocarbon combi rig with 15lb ESP camo sink link braid.
“I drive over the Wye, Taff and Severn during my journey, but I have tunnel vision when it comes to the Trent because it’s just an incredible fishery that has so much potential,” said Marcus.
“My jaw hit the floor when the dial of my scales swug around to 15lb 4oz and it makes the 450-mile round trip like a walk in the park.”
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New personal best pike for comedian
Comedian Paul Whitehouse took part in a charity event on Dorset’s Royalty Fishery where he landed this personal best 26lb pike.
Star of TV sitcoms such as Harry Enfield & Chums and The Fast Show, Paul was fishing as part of a ‘win a day’s angling with a celebrity’ competition in order to help raise money for Guilford based, Cherry Trees Childrens Care Home. A keen angler, the 56-year-old, whose previous best pike weighed 17lb, started the day trotting for silverfish before switching to a small dace livebait, using 30lb braided mainline and a 28lb wire trace and it wasn’t long before he was playing the huge fish.
If you’d like to enjoy some terrific pike sport at the Royalty, contact Davis Tackle on 01202 485169.
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Trent barbel rattles venue record at 19lb 1oz
Two chunks of luncheon meat and a blade of grass is all Daniel Jamson required to land the fish of a lifetime in the form of this record-shaking 19lb 1oz barbel.
The monster specimen, caught from an undisclosed stretch of the River Trent, is the biggest landed this season for the species and is just three ounces short of the current venue record. The 25-year-old Nottingham rod, who landed an 18lb 6oz fish from the same stretch three weeks earlier, was into the last hour of a short evening session when two pieces of plain luncheon meat on a size 8 hook with a piece of grass resulted in the take he had been waiting for.
“I know the stretch very well as I’ve fished here for ten years and had nearly 50 doubles this season alone so I knew there were fish of this size in here but I’m just so happy that ive managed to land what is possibly the biggest.”
The successful rig was a straight bomb setup with 12lb mainline cast just 15 yards out onto a gravel run which Daniel had fed with around 1kg of both halibut and krill flavoured pellets.
Another angler enjoying the fantastic barbel sport on offer at the inform venue is John Mott who visited the river and landed seven double figure barbel, topped by a 16lb 2oz personal best specimen.
He used Three Foot Twitch Canadian Bounty 18mm boilies that were hair-rigged on to a size 10 hook.
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New venue record for Fryerning Fisheries
The prolific Fryerning Fisheries has hit top winter form producing a string of huge fish topped by a new venue record at 53lb 6oz.
Essex carper Paul Palmer headed to a spot on the Main Lake at his local complex that had produced the goods for the venue in the past and after scouring the water for an hour spotted a number of large fish topping.
A scattering of boilies were soon introduced over an area at around 50 yards out with an 18mm Mainline Cell his choice of hookbait.
Shortly after 8pm line started to slowly pull off his left hand rod, which he thought might have been a ‘liner’, but the pace of the bite soon picked up and a firm strike saw him connect with the new personal best.
“It was an immensely powerful fish, which gave me an epic battle. Another member came round to help me net it and when it surfaced we instantly noticed it as the lakes biggest resident – a mirror known as The Gurm.”
“I spoke to one of the locals and incredibly he had taken The Gurm from the same swim on the very same day last year!”
“I can’t imagine that carp fishing gets any better than this as I obliterated my personal best of 45lb 12oz in the process,” he added.
He wasn’t the only one to experience the magic of the complex, with Joe Morgan banking a brace of 40lb specimens within 20-minutes of setting up.
The Colchester-based angler made a rare visit and set his stall out in a swim that had been void of anglers for several days.
With the wind off his back and sun beaming down in to the peg, he was confident of giving his alarms a workout and targeted a shallow area around 30 yards out, presenting a single Mainline Hybrid boilie on a stiff hinge rig.
Sport couldn’t have got off to a better start with a 43lb 8oz specimen known as Charlie picking up the bait within minutes of the rig settling.
Moments after the fish – his biggest from the fishery – had slid over the net the line on his other rod tightened up, this time the culprit being an immaculate 46lb 4oz common.
“I fish the venue a couple of times a year and decided to put single baits out while I was setting up,” explained Joe.
“To get one 40lb fish in the net quickly was fantastic but to do it again moments later was beyond my wildest dreams. It’s an amazing fishery and this is a session I will never forget.”
For more details on Joe’s angling adventures visit www.carp-tv.com
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Meet the River Trent task force
The war on illegal anglers gathered further momentum this week after the Environment Agency launched their latest crime fighting assault on the banks of UK’s most popular river.
Angling Times joined the team from Operation Mercury - an initiative which has been setup to crackdown on illegal fish removal and rod licence evasion on the River Trent in response to an increase in fish related crime on the waterway.
The action is part of the agency’s nationwide initiative called ‘Project Trespass’ which has seen similar crackdowns on other UK rivers such as the revolutionary ‘Operation Stone’ on the River Severn.
Both teams have already been dubbed a huge success with dozens of anglers already reported and awaiting prosecution including at least six anglers caught fishing illegally during our visit.
Joel Rawlinson, an Environment Agency, Fisheries Technical Specialist who has been working with the patrol unit on the Trent in Nottinghamshire, is well aware of the importance of the project: “Fishing on the Trent is booming at the moment with fish stocks at an all-time high so it makes it all the more important to protect what we have.
“It also has a deterrent aspect as anglers see us and know that in the future they can’t get away with fishing without a licence; in fact we have already seen an increase in licence sales since we began the operation” he said.
NIGHT RAIDS
Patrols have been running up to four times a week on the river including night raids to catch out poachers operating under the cover of darkness.
The boat used by officers is a powerful 150 BHP rib which can reach speeds up to 60 knots, giving the crew the ability to cover large areas quickly as well as providing the element of surprise. It is manned by three of the EA’s enforcement officers who receive the same training as the police and are fully loaded with cuffs, batons and protective clothing. All the men are connected up so they can communicate with not only each other but other EA officers elsewhere as well as their base: “By being connected we can work far more efficiently and increase time spent actually checking licences,” Joel continued.
“We have a code so we can call the police and receive an instant response when required, for example if someone threatens us with a weapon and we also have a 24 hour translator service so we can communicate with any non-English speaking foreign anglers more effectively. “
INTELLIGENCE
So far anglers on the bank have taken the patrols positively with clubs and individuals even helping out with operations by providing intelligence and reporting sightings of any anglers taking fish.
Environment Agency officers have been working with clubs around the area to help us determine when and who is committing offences and what areas have the higher concentration of possible illegal anglers.
It’s not just the EA ramping up efforts to stop illegal angling though, as Nottinghamshire Police are also helping the agency to clamp down by posting messages on their social media pages after officers received an increase in the number of calls from the public about fish crime this year. DCI Caroline Racher, Rural Crime Lead Nottinghamshire Police said: “It is important to appreciate that fish theft is not simply victimless wildlife crime. Many fish that are stolen are worth thousands of pounds this impacts negatively on local businesses, livelihoods, and the angling community as a whole, as well as causing endless environmental damage.”
2014 on the Trent
River Trent Enforcement Figures 2014 (from April to date)
400 - the number of licence checks
50 - the amount of illegal anglers caught
12.5 - the percentage of anglers caught fishing illegally
EA enforcement nationwide in numbers
40,000 - licence checks this year to August
4.7% - evasion rate this year
80,000 - checks last year
3000 - prosecutions for illegal angling in 2013
£600,000 - the amount in fines paid by offenders in 2013
Anyone who suspects illegal fishing to be taking place should report the matter to the Environment Agency’s incident hotline, on 0800 807060.
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Epic Grafham Water perch session
One of the biggest catches of specimen perch of all time has been landed by species expert Paul Elt after banking five specimens over 4lb topped by a 4lb 14oz personal best.
His incredible session unfolded while adrift during a stormy day on the daunting Grafham Water reservoir in Cambridgeshire where his biggest-ever perch, along with fish weighing 4lb 11oz, a brace at 4lb 1oz and a 4lb specimen came to the net.
The Drennan, Dynamite Baits-backed specialist used the devastating method known as ‘dropshotting’ close to an underwater feature where he found over 24 feet of water and then expertly worked a selection of his favourite lures including a new variety of baits that are soon to be released by Drennan.
His rig comprised an 8lb braided mainline, four feet of fluorocarbon and a size 1 hook, which also fooled also a string of eight other fish that ran to 3lb 12oz.
“I will never experience a session like this for as long as I live and it really has left me in a true state of shock,” Paul exclusively told Angling Times.
“The perch in this venue remain largely neglected because most predator anglers concentrate on the pike and zander with large lures, but over the last few years ‘dropshotting’ has completely revolutionised this kind of fishing.”
“I’ve fished this venue for 25 years now and it’s always been a really hard venue to crack, a real test, but this method is now helping anglers discover the true perch potential of reservoirs like this.”
John Marshall is the Fisheries and recreation manager for Anglian Water, who run Grafham Water and he’s been blow away by Paul’s huge haul of perch.
“This catch is perfect proof of why perch fishing is getting more and more popular at all of our venues,” he said.
“I’ve been involved in the fishing here for over 30 years and feel that until now visitors have only scratched the surface as regards to the perch potential of our waters.
“ But now anglers like Paul, who are using tactics like ‘dropshotting,’are proving why many believe that it’s venues like this that will throw up a record.”
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First 40lb pike of the season banked
The biggest pike of the predator season has been banked topping the scales at 40 lb 4oz.
It’s a specimen that was landed by Mike Heyes from Whiston, Merseyside, while fishing from the bank at ‘Nunnery Point’ during a two-day session at the famous Chew Valley reservoir in Somerset.
Mike was fishing alongside his nephew Paul Millar, who set a new fishery record back in February this year with a predator of 44lb 6oz, but this time the tables were turned and it was Paul who slipped the net under the 59-year-old’s new personal best and ‘Chew’s’ biggest fish so far of the 2014 predator season.
“We’d only been fishing for a few hours when Mike had a proper screaming run at 8.30am and he didn’t say much as he was playing the fish as it didn’t seem to be anything spectacular,” Paul told Angling Times.
“I waded out and when I scooped it up I told him it was a ‘thirty’, but when I started taking up the bank to the mat I couldn’t believe how heavy it was and I suspected it might be another forty and sure enough It was” he said.
“It’s incredible to think that we’ve been both netsmen and the captors of 40lb pike.”
Mike’s successful tackle was 18lb line, a 40lb wire trace, two size 2 trebles and a 4oz lead, which was cast around 50 yards out into 10ft of water.
Paul also confirmed that it’s a fish that was definitely a different pike to the 44lb 6oz giant he banked earlier this year.
“When you get a fish like this all the difficulty getting tickets and all the travelling and early starts are suddenly worthwhile,” Paul continued.
“Chew is a very special place as it’s the only venue to go to for a realistic chance of a pike like this and it just keeps throwing up more and surprises.
“Mike and I have been fishing together for 18 years so it’s fantastic that we have both been there to witness the other catch a fish of a lifetime!” he said.
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3lb 3oz 8dr roach best fish ever
“I can’t believe that this 3lb 3oz 8dr giant is the first ‘proper’ roach I’ve ever caught from a river.”
These are the words of big fish ace Alan Stagg after he joined an elite group of anglers who have banked 3lb-plus roach from both still and running water.
This incredible fish was caught by the Gardner Tackle employee after he spent three weeks walking the banks of a southern chalk stream searching for what is regarded as one of the UK’s rarest and most sought-after specimens.
After locating a small pocket of fish, he visited the stretch three times without a sign of his intended quarry, but his latest visit was a different story as he had to wait only 20 minutes after casting out a simple feeder rig before the personal best took his double maggot hookbait mounted on a size 18 Drennan Super Specialist hook.
“There’s no doubt that this fish ranks as the best fish I’ve ever caught and I feel so privileged because I know how rare these fish are,” Alan told Angling Times.
“A big river roach was going to be my winter campaign, but to catch something like this so early on is kind of hard to get my head around, especially when it’s the first river roach I’ve ever caught…that’s just mad.
“I hate to think how many miles I walked just with a pair of polarising glasses looking for signs of fish before I actually got round to casting a line. This is what you have to do because there are so few pockets of big fish not only in this venue, but many other rivers throughout the UK.”
Alan beat the fish with a short 3lb fluorocarbon hooklink that sat below a 30 gram maggot feeder that was fished just a couple of rodlengths out from the bank and was presented over a bed of maggots introduced via a small bait dropper.
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