My UK Fishing Adventures Part 1

[007]

Hi folks,

 

Well, I’ve finally got a fishing report for you from England. When I left Toronto in December I promised that I would try to post some fishing reports from back in the UK and I’m a man of my word so here’s my first three trips of the season rolled into one report.

 

Since arriving back in London, life has been pretty hectic what with working and trying to find a house to buy. Therefore after six months of being back I still hadn’t had the chance to go fishing. However, having now bought a house in the small country-town of Chesham to the northwest of London my attention turned to finding some local waters to fish.

 

Fishing in the UK is completely different from my fishing experiences in Canada. The main difference here is that the majority of waters – lakes, rivers, and canals – and access to them is private and therefore fishing is either prohibited or controlled by a fishing club/fishery owner. In the case of the latter, not only do you need to buy the annual fishing licence (about $50) but you either have to become a member of the club (which can cost about $100-200 a year) or need to buy a day-ticket (typically $10-20) to fish for the day. Oh how I miss days of public access and cheap fishing in Ontario.

 

So, a couple of weeks ago I visited my local fishing tackle shop to ask them for advice on places to fish. To my surprise they told me of a couple of small lakes just five minutes from my new house that I didn’t know existed that I could fish on a day-ticket. The ‘lakes’ or should I say ponds by Canadian standards are old gravel pits excavated 40-50 years ago. They’re in a nice wooded setting with the local River Chess flowing past them. I was told that the lakes are home to a number of species, many of which you don’t get in Canada so I was looking forward to seeing what I could catch and show you guys on OFC. The species I might catch there include Roach, Perch (up to 4lbs), Common/Mirror Carp (up to 40lbs), Crucian Carp, Tench (up to 6lbs), Pike, Gudgeon and Rainbow Trout.

 

The last time I went fishing in the UK was about 12 years ago so I needed some new gear. Though my three years in Canada had rekindled my passion for angling the equipment I had bought in Ontario wasn’t all appropriate for ‘finesse’ fishing on the heavily pressured small waters of England. As an example, the lakes I would be fishing don’t allow lure fishing in the summer months, in order to reduce the chance of snagging their prize carp! So no chance of using my 7ft rods and boxes of rapalas just yet. So I bought myself a 13ft float rod, some fine lines, delicate ‘waggler’ floats, and small hooks – down to size 18 and 20. I also invested in a cheap 8 metre pole to try my hand at European style pole fishing – which doesn’t use a reel just line and elastic to cushion the fighting fish.

 

So to the fishing…..

 

Trip 1:

 

My first day of fishing was a horrible day weather-wise – typical English Autumn/Winter weather rather than spring/summer. It was windy and poured with rain all day. It was to be a day of highs and lows. I set up in a nice looking swim and sat under my umbrella waiting for the first bite and hopefully fish of the day and season.

 

 

 

I started fishing using the 8m pole with maggots for bait on a size 18 hook. Maggots are the most popular fishing bait in England as you can catch anything that swims with them from a tiny 2oz Gudgeon to a 40lb Carp.

 

 

 

 

I didn’t have to wait too long before the float went under and a fish was hooked. The elastic tied to the pole was designed for carp fishing so when the fish didn’t pull much elastic out I new it wasn’t a big fish but a fish nonetheless. The fish in question was a roach, together with perch these are the species that everybody over here probably first catches. I guess they fill the same niche as sunfish – common, usually easy to catch, a bait fish for pike and don’t grow very big, typically 8oz to 1lb (the record roach is just over 4lb).

 

 

I managed to catch a few of these in between heavy rain showers before a more feisty fish pulled the float under. Much to my surprise it was a small trout. I had been told that Rainbow Trout had been stocked a long time ago but this wasn’t a rainbow, it was a small Brownie – my first ever! They must have escaped from the river running close by during recent floods.

 

 

 

By mid afternoon I was thinking of packing it in when a fish took the bait next to an overhanging tree. This fish put up quite a fight on the fairly light line and I was happy when I slipped the landing net underneath it and pulled it to the shore. This was a big roach – probably just over 2lbs – not bad considering a typical Roach is half a pound to a pound and a specimen roach is considered over 2lbs. It may not look much but a big Roach is a rare thing so I was over the moon. Unfortunately in the excitement I stepped back on to one of the 6 sections that make up the 8m pole and smashed the carbon fibre! After five minutes of cursing I decided it was time to leave - I was soaked to the skin and my pole was broken but on the bright side I had caught a new species and had a new PB.

 

 

 

 

 

Trip 2:

 

The second trip to the local ponds was last weekend. Fortunately, the weather was now more summer like and I didn’t need to sit under an umbrella for hours. I decided to try a different swim by some reeds in slightly shallower water at about 5ft. As the pole was still broken I fished with my new 13ft float rod. The day started with me catching a few more Roach and some Gudgeon. The Gudgeon is a small bottom feeding fish which when in large numbers can be a real pest to keep off the hook.

 

 

 

 

After a while I started to target the reeds themselves to see what fish were in there. I knew there were some carp in there as I had seen a few 8-10lbers cruising through the reeds. To begin with the only fish that seemed interested in feeding were not surprisingly my old friend the Perch. Nothing very big unfortunately though I am told that there are perch in these ponds that reach 4lbs! As I unhooked the little European Perch I couldn’t help but think back to the days I spent at Lake Simcoe catching hundreds of its Yellow Perch cousins.

 

 

 

After a while I noticed that the fish were moving up in the water to take the maggots I was throwing in as loosefeed. I guessed that this would be either Rudd or Crucian Carp that feed near the surface, so I shallowed up the float and targeted a different species. Sure enough it wasn’t long before I managed to catch a few Rudd. As some of you may know the Rudd is a fish that has been introduced into US and Canadian waters. Ironically, this native European fish is actually becoming much rarer and these days a 3lb Rudd is seen as a decent fish. As you can see from the pics they are very similar to the roach but more golden in colour and have an upturned mouth for feeding near the surface.

 

 

After having fished for the small fish for most of the day I decided that all the bait I had thrown in must have attracted a carp or tench into the area as there were bubbles rising all over the swim. So I started to fish with sweetcorn on the bottom. Half an hour passed by with nothing so I started to get impatient, then typically while I was busy munching away on a snack the float shot under and I struck into a big fish which headed straight into the reeds. As I tried in vain to pull the fish out of the reeds the line snapped and my big fish for the day was lost.

 

Trip 3:

 

My third trip was on Friday. It was my birthday the day before so I decided to take a day off work and try some tench fishing. I got to the ponds in the morning to find no one else fishing so I had a choice of places to fish. I decided to fish near some lily pads – a favourite hiding place for tench. I threw lots of bait (sweetcorn, maggots and hemp) in to the area to attract the fish and waited. It wasn’t long before I was hooking decent sized roach, perch and the odd gudgeon but no tench.

 

 

 

As the day wore on it became clear that one of the other residents of the ponds was in my swim eating all the bait. I have been told that for many years the ponds were used to farm American Signal crayfish for restaurants and for the first class cabins of Virgin Atlantic and British Airways and many of these critters still remain. I managed to hook a couple of this alien species including this feisty guy…..

 

 

 

I hope you have enjoyed this first instalment of my fishing adventures in England. Hopefully it won’t be too long before I can post another report with some bigger fish and a few new species for you to enjoy.

 

Cheers

007

[kickingfrog]

Great to see a report from you again.

 

Rain in England??? Pity.

[mattyk]

great report and pics, thanks for sharing.

[MJL]

AMAZING report Gavin. Absolutely love the pics.

 

Congrats on finding a nearby lake to fish. I've always wanted to try my hand at some of the fish in the UK like tench, barbel and roach. I would also love to browse some of the tackle shops over there for some new carp gear too. In the future I'd like to visit the UK. It seems like a cool place. There's the guards with the furry hats, deep fried mars bars, people who drive on the wrong side of the road (which I find totally cool), Harry Potter and the list goes on

[fatherof3]

great report,congrats

[Guest Johnny Bass]

Interesting report with a wide variety of fish!! Is it true most lakes are private and you have to pay to fish them in England?

[007]

There's lots of big carp over here for you Mike but they're harder to catch than those 'wild' ones in Ontario.

 

To get back in the mood of English fishing I bought and watched all the Matt Hayes and Mick Brown series on DVD - The Great Rod Race, Record Breaking Fish and the Greater Rod Race. I remember you saying you had watched some of these shows. They really got me in the mood and maked me realise what diverse fishing opportunities there are here - problem is you've got to know where you can fish and have lots of money! Free public fishing is a rarity I'm afraid.

 

Following my Ontario quest last year I guess I will have to start a new quest to catch as many fish species in England as possible in a year to show you guys.

 

G.

[007]

Hey Johnny Bass - it's true. Most lakes are privately owned and charge you to fish on top of your fishing licence. You are often charged to fish rivers too, which technically are not privately owned, but because they go through private land access is restricted and fishery rights held by the owner who then charges you to fish! There are some very good fishing clubs that own the rights to fish lots of lakes and stretches of rivers but the membership of these clubs is often 50-100 pounds at least ($100-200 a year), and some of these are difficult to join as you have to know a member. I miss the free access you enjoy in Ontario.

 

007

[limeyangler]

Great report, thanks for sharing....reminded me why i moved...lol....darn the weather!!!! just as a PS...you dont need a licence to sea fish....i was living in Devon till i moved here last year...awesome seafishing in the south west of England.

[JohnF]

Maggots!!!! At least we can snack on the boilies here.

 

JF

[Greencoachdog]

Great report and pics Double "O"!!!

[Hooked]

Very enjoyable report. Definately nice seeing species caught I've never heard of, and how to catch em. Nice going and glad you finally got out. Was looking forward to a report from you.

[wolfville]

A very nice read. I visited one of those "lakes" in my business trip to a town near Winchester (about an hour outside of London). I don't mind getting a chance to fish the "lakes". And you're right, they would be called "small ponds" here in Ontario ;-)

 

Having to drive on the "wrong side" of the road is okay with me, but those runabouts sure almost got me killed. Imaging you have to drive on the other side of the rod, in the dark, don't forget you are sitting on the "passenger side"...and all of a sudden you are sucked in a whirlpool with cars coming in and out, in a direction that seems very wrong, and this all happens after an 8 hours flight .... total craziness...

 

 

I watched those DVDs you mentioned... looking forward to your next report, and don't let me wait for too long ;-)

[b2kptbo]

Beauty report, looking foward too more...

[Victor]

Real nice to see some fish that's not found in Ontario ... looks like some amazing water to fish and you've got all the gear already !

 

Can't wait for the next one, keep us updated!

[ccmtcanada]

Fantastic report 007! Good to see reports again. Congrats on the trout...must have been a nice surprise for you. After reading what it's like to fish there, we here in in Ontario are very fortunate that we don't have to pay just to fish a certain area.

 

Looking foward to the next report already!

[Rattletrap2]

Very interesting report 007! Thanks for posting and sharing some pictures of species we don't see.

Man, it should make each and every one of us appreciate the opportunities we have here in Canada!

 

Can you tell me why it is that only these species seem to exist there? Is it an issue with water quality? Don't take this the wrong way, but all of these species are considered "coarse" fish here. The water does look pretty murky in the pictures.

 

I think the Roach looks like a pretty decent species. Is it part of the Shad family?

[John]

Great report Gavin. It has been many years since I wet a line over there. Makes me very thankful for the resources that we have here.

 

Nice area that you have relocated to. I have cousins who have places not too far from you in Bucks. They are the from the rich side of the family...

[007]

Thanks for all the kind words guys.

 

limeyangler - true... sea fishing is free and can be great fun - when I was a kid I used to fish down at the Isle of Wight for flounder, plaice, whiting, pouting, pollack and sea bass.

 

John F - lots of people over here use boilies and have done for decades but these guys sit in their tents for days waiting for their bite alarms to go off - I need some more action than that and therefore tend to use baits that will catch me multiple species - variety is the spice of life and all that.

 

Wolfville - yeah roundabouts can be difficult just ask my wife and she has grown up driving round them! LOL You should definitely avoid a place called Hemel Hempstead - it is infamous over here as it has one big roundabout with I think 6 mini-roundabouts circling it - man is it confusing!

 

Ccmt - the trout was a really nice surprise - didn't expect to catch one from a small lake - though it probably had escaped from the local river.

 

John - Bucks is a nice place to live and you're right you are very lucky over there.

 

Rattletrap - You pose some interesting questions. There are three types of fishing in the UK - course, sport and sea. I was taught that course fishing covered all freshwater species with the exception of trout and salmon which are considered sport fish. Therefore all the freshwater predatory fish were also considered course fish - eg Pike, Perch and Zander (an imported European mainland species similar to Walleye). The majority of fish in England are not 'predatory' as such but that doesn't mean they are not worth catching, there are some impressive and hard fighting 'course' fish to catch including chub, barbel and of course carp. Sport fishing on the other hand has long been associated with those with money as to fish for salmon and trout often meant fishing exclusive rivers with fly-fishing tactics only. Lure fishing for 'Sport' fish (inc. pike and perch) is getting more popular but this probably only accounts for about 5% of fishing over here compared with what 80-90% in Canada?

 

You also made a point about water quality. There are a couple of issues here - England has a long history of industrial development and there are places where the water quality is not that good (urban canals and rivers) but even these have vastly improved from what it would have been 50-100 years ago. The main issue though is that England's geology is different from much of Canada - much of the low-lying country has soft soil or clay soil and therefore the lakes and rivers often have silty bottoms and what with all the rain we get this creates murky water like the ponds I am fishing which on a good day have visibility of about a foot! There are of course exceptions - the lake district in the northwest of England has very clear deep glacial lakes like in Ontario's Canadian shield and even locally near me there are a few small rivers that because they are on a chalk rock they have very clean water - in fact my local River Chess is one of the few places close to London that has clean enough water to support a wild population of trout - there are other such chalk rivers near the south coast of England such as the River Test or Stour.

 

The Roach is not related to the Shad - I don't think it has any close relatives in Canada - the most similar fish in appearance I caught in Canada would probably be a golden shiner but roach grow much bigger.

 

I hope the above info is helpful and answers your questions...

 

cheers

 

007

Edited June 9, 2008 by OO7

[Spiel]

....Ah, Great report though I think I'll plan to do all my angling on this side of the pond.