Unveiled: Your complete guide to the trent...
Trent legend Bob Roberts has produced a comprehensive online guide to his favourite river for anglers to visit before they set out to fish... and it’s free!
With more than half a century’s experience of fishing the award-winning waterway, Bob has spent several months working on the groundbreaking guide which features 30 fishable areas – each one with an overhead map – starting downstream in Gainsborough, North Lincs, and finishing at Shardlow, in Derbyshire.
Each map highlights which banks can be fished and who controls them. There’s also a detailed description of each location from Bob himself, with advice on tactics, baits and the best swims to target.
Bob explained his reasoning behind the guide and the challenges he’s faced in its creation along the way:
He said: “I’ve been featuring in Angling Times Trent articles for more than 25 years and I’ve pretty much been the Times’ ‘go-to’ man for Trent-based info.
“Consequently I found myself receiving countless requests from angler for day-ticket information on a level that was pretty overwhelming.
“I was answering emails on a daily basis!
“Of course, there’s a risk of sending everyone to the same venue – same pegs even – so I decided quite a while ago that a definitive guide was required.
“It had to be free or I’d still get all those requests!
“I know a lot of the stretches and have fished most of them at one time or another during the past 50 years, but actual boundaries took a bit of pinning down – I know a few of the ‘secret squirrel’ mobs want to keep it that way.
“The thing is, if everything is put out there, everyone benefits – the anglers, clubs, tackle shops and syndicates.
“Most responsible anglers just want to know where they can buy a ticket, what the rules are regarding night fishing and the best access points, things like that.
“Give them the full picture, allow them choices and poaching will be reduced dramatically.”
Now Bob is asking Angling Times readers to help complete the mammoth task.
“I’ve had fantastic help and support from many people who know the river well, including Tim Aplin, Mark Perkins, Nev Fickling, Simon Bettis and Simon Matheson, to name just a few, but there are still some gaps that need to be filled,” Bob said.
“ I would love Angling Times readers to help – just drop me a message on the website or via my Facebook site so that I can refine the guide.”
Bob has decided not to publish day-ticket or club prices as these always change, but the individual club websites are included in the guide and will cover these.
“When you add the essential rigs and essential baits articles from my website to the guide, you pretty much have the complete Trent visitor guide in one location. It’s been a labour of love.”
To view the full Ultimate Trent Guide, please visit Bob’s website at www.bobrobertsonline.co.uk