North Devon Match Group Championship No. 2 Millpark Results
Many thanks to Martin once again for his report on the North Devon Match Groups match at Mill Pond. Some stunning nets of roach in this close run event. This has to be one of the best silver fish waters in the area! A venue I have many fond memories of as I caught my first coarse fish there almost fifty years ago!
1st Kevin Shears 29lb 6oz
2nd Pete Slade 27lb 4oz
3rd Martin Turner 27lb
4th Nathan Underwood 26lb 10oz
10 of our members enjoyed a rare mild early spring day on Millpark Berrynarbor, but try as we might we cannot put an end to Kevin’s remarkable run of wins!! He drew on the platform below the car park and amassed a super net of quality roach on caster on a short pole, Pete Slade drew on the stream side and took second spot with a 9lb carp and a nice net of skimmers and roach all on the pole and soft pellet, Martin came in third with an all roach net, Nathan’s bag included a nice chub.
(Above)Nathan Underwoods net included a fine chub a fish more often associated with running water!
Barnstaple Triple Hook Club – Windy Shield Trophy competition was won by Mark Hancock with a dogfish of 2lb 13/4oz. In runner up spot was Dennis Toleman with a dogfish of 2lb 3/4oz. Dennis also told me that he caught a tasty codling of around 3lb 8oz.
Bideford Angling Clubs 24 Hour Rover
1st Dick Talbot Thornback ray 9 lb 6oz 104.166%
2nd Nathan Clements small-eyed ray 9lb 5 103.472%
3rd kyle Blackmore spur 9lb 14oz 98.750%
Appledore Shipbuilders Winter League
Graham Snow specializes in catching grey mullet and proves that they are now an all round year round species to target.
Spring seems to be in the air today and thoughts are turning to running water, spring salmon and crimson spotted wild trout that thrive in Devon streams.
We must not take these delights for granted as there are threats to these vital arteries of the land brought home to me as I read through the latest emails from Chairman of the River Taw Fisheries Association Alex Gibson.
Open the below link to see what a badly managed dairy operation can do. The pollution here was on the Taw system, but fortunately did not affect the main stem of the river. Nevertheless the damage to fish stocks was extensive. If you come across anything of this kind when at or around the river please report it immediately to the EA Emergency Hotline – 0800 807060
The Pollution Threat from Sewage Treatment Works (STWs) on the Taw System
As we are all well aware, the importance of water quality in our river cannot be overstated.
The Committee has come across a new, to us, cause for concern in this area, namely the STWs on our system which are owned and managed by South West Water (SWW). Simply put – Are these STWs currently fit for purpose and will they be fit for purpose when all the planned house-building in our catchment’s towns and villages has been completed? For example, South Molton is planning over 1,200 homes and Chulmleigh over 90. Is the right amount of maintenance being carried out by SWW and is sufficient investment committed for the future?
There are at least 35 STWs on our system, all of which discharge into the main stem or its tributaries. SWW like other water companies runs STWs on the basis of “operator self-monitoring” which immediately raises an amber or even red warning light in our opinion. Also there is a question about how rigorous the Environment Agency is or indeed can be in this area given recent cut-backs.
This is not a Taw specific problem and we have raised it regionally with South West Rivers Association so that individual rivers in the south-west can take their own action. From discussions with Angling Trust we understand that they are aware that this is a national problem and are working with World Wildlife Fund.
As for the Taw specifically, we are working with Fish Legal to discover whether in relation to STWs the EA is fulfilling its role to protect and improve river quality under the Water Framework Directive and carrying out its duties towards fishermen. Other initiatives to raise awareness of this problem are being undertaken.
The Committee believes it is important that members are aware of this threat, particularly those who fish directly below STWs. Any obvious signs of pollution from STW sources should be reported to the EA emergency hot-line – 0800 807060. Also, as we understand more about the STW situation it may be that we will need to mount a campaign with the support of our membership.
I joined Combe Martin Sea Angling Club in 1973 at the age of 12 and have been an active member over the past 45 years and when I reflect on this time with the club it is the dimension of people that dominates. Those far off days in the mid seventies cemented my love of sea angling and the sea and those of us who fished in those times owe a great deal to the generation of the day. NIck Phillips and I are amongst an ever dwindling number of relics from that era and as a result were delighted to be invited to the 90th birthday of longstanding club member Brian Huntley.
I remember Brian and the senior club members of the day. I guess they would have been in their forties back then and they would pick us juniors up every Friday night and transport us to the rocky shoreline at Watermouth or to Ilfracombe Pier if it was too rough to fish the rocks. Looking back they were crazy days that I am so glad we enjoyed and survived. In today’s safety conscious world it would be considered irresponsible to drop a handful of teenagers on the the rocks and leave them to their own devices.
I took a look back through the clubs history on our website and found a mention of Brian who was MC at the clubs dinner at the Staghunters Inn at Brendon three years before I joined the club. If my maths serve me correct Brian would have been 42; so I would have met him first when he was 45.
Nick and I found ourselves surrounded by a diverse number of party goers who had come together to celebrate a surprise party to celebrate Brian’s 90 years, it was apparent speaking with his daughter Jayne that his time with Combe Martin SAC had been a period that held great memories. Recent years have seen Brian face a few challenges with his health and in spite of this his character shone through. It must have been truly daunting to have been wheeled out to a chorus of Happy Birthday in front of a room full of many faces.
As we chatted at the table memories of those formative years with the Combe Martin SAC flooded back. Brian Huntley a sprightly and humorous chap who drove a Robin Reliant – Three Wheeler and wore a distinctive Breton Cap. ( A hat with French origins worn by mariners and Fishermen). Brian Huntley, Barry HIll, Owen Knill, Ian Lawson, Tom Clark were regulars on our weekly excursions to the shoreline. A generation that gave us a lot and Brian is I guess one of the last of that generation. In 1982 a very proud Brian Huntley donated the Sarah Rachel Trophy to the Combe Martin Sea Angling Club in celebration of the birth of his daughter. When Nick and I met with Sarah it was slightly disconcerting to realise that this women with two young children is Brian’s daughter. It is alarming how life flies past and how we have become the old guys. I also realise looking back how rich our angling lives have been and that people are a very big part of the journey.
Extract from Combe Martin SAC Club history below :-
1970 The MC at this years Dinner at the Staghunters was Brian Huntley, ” who gave a very lively and worthwhile performance”. We fall out with the CM boat owners over £6, so all boat trips are booked from Lynmouth. Part of the path down to Sandy Cove is swept away, members bring along tools to clear the path and make it safe again to get down to the mark. Juniors are allowed to fish Friday night competitions as long as they pay the senior subscriptions, but cannot enter fish for the Burgess Trophy. Membership stands at 35 members. Poor attendance is reported in the Friday night competitions. Four fish are registered for the Shore Shield and the winner with a Wrasse of 5lb, reported “a good entry of specimen fish”. The Clubs balance stands at £33-2-6. No nomination is made for Secretary as Barry Hill stands down due to lack of support received. Laurie Wilson carries on the role of Chairman and Secretary. A Tankard is presented to Barry Hill for his work over the last eight years. An auction is held at the Club’s Dinner to raise monies for Club funds.
Sean Chater (Above) landed a brace of carp from swim 2 on lodge lake during a 24 hour session the best pulling the scales to 20lb 7oz. The fish were tempted fishing with Robins test bait tnt .
Darren Rundle (Above) fished a day ticket session and was rewarded with a brace of carp including this fine looking specimen from Lodge Lake tempted with Sticky Baits 16mm Manilla Boilies.
I received this notification from the River Taw Fishery Association. This long awaited bye-law will not only protect salmon and sea trout stocks but will also help protect valuable sporting sea fish like bass and grey mullet.
The new IFCA netting byelaws for Devon & Severn have finally been signed by the Minister. This means an end to the salmon and sea trout by-catch in the Taw/Torridge estuary by those netting for bass and mullet. The only netting permitted after 1 March this year will be by the 3 licensed salmon netsmen, who are themselves under the threat of a possible ban, and by those netting sand eels. This is a major step, the result of a long and difficult process.
Aaron Rundle (Below) who fished swim 4 on Lodge Lake this weekend and banked 6 carp on pink pop ups.
Jacob Bracken (Above) fished Beatties lake for the first time and used Sticky Baits Manilla and cell boilies to tempt three carp up to 23lb from end of the dam wall.
Here is John Atkins(Above) and son Adam Atkins who fished on Lodge Lake for 48 hours had 13 fish between them John had the biggest out which scaled 24lb 2oz. They used Sticky Baits Manilla 16mm boilies and also sticky baits Buchenberry pop ups on a Ronnie rig.
I occasionally receive emails from members of the public in relation to my weekly angling column and always try to answer in a polite and informative matter. I recently received the below email from Robert Durrant a non-angler who has undoubtedly taken an interest in my weekly column. His inquiry relates directly to sea angling and the killing of fish. I will let you read through the exchange of emails below and I will add a few comments at the end.
Wayne, Every week in the Journal you write about vast numbers of fine fish, targeted for sport and brought to weigh-ins. Many are species of shark which are endangered and protected. Are all of these fish bought dead to the scales, or have these anglers moved into the 21st century and found ways to weigh specimens at point of catch without harming them and then releasing them live and unhurt back to the sea? I wish you’d write more about such practices. Best wishes, Rob
Hi Rob,
Thank you for inquiry and prompting me to give more coverage on angling practices in relation to catch and release. Angling has progressed a long way in recent years and catch and release has become the predominate practice for all angling disciplines. In relation to shark the larger species are all returned alive to the water and in some instances are tagged to enable scientific research to track migration routes. Sadly many of the blue shark tagged are recaptured by long-liners in foreign countries where the fish are targeted for making sharks fin soup. Spurdog numbers have increased dramatically in recent seasons as a result of a commercial ban on the species and all of those caught by boat anglers are returned alive.
Fortunately the practice of bringing dead fish to the scales is becoming a thing of the past with most anglers happy to weigh and return fish after a quick photo. You will notice that the vast majority of pictures I use for the Journal are on location and the fish returned alive. There are sadly a few clubs that have weigh ins where fish are brought to the scales due to a lack of trust amongst members. I do not think this will continue for many more years.
Salmon anglers now return over 90% of salmon caught, with no fish retained before June 16th. Bass are now catch and release only for recreational anglers, though this may be reviewed later in the year if scientific data determines it is possible.
I have no problem with anglers retaining the occasional fish for the table if stocks are healthy. But I have no time for killing fish for competition purposes.
I will write about the changing practices in a future Journal column and on my website. I do not know if you are an angler or have ever fished but I would point out that angling does engage people with the countryside and many anglers are keen conservationists who have a deep love of nature.
Best Regards,
Wayne
Hi Wayne,
Thanks so much for your courteous, informative, and encouraging reply, greatly appreciated.
It would be great if you could give more coverage to the enlightened practices followed by ethical anglers these days, as so much emphasis is given to weights and trophy specimens that it often seems that conservation of species and fish welfare comes a very long way behind.
I’m delighted that we see eye to eye about avoiding killing fish except for table use where the stocks are healthy.
I’m not an angler, though of course I’ve enjoyed a little sea fishing in my earlier years; but my interest stems from a particular awareness of marine conservation issues, where I have some involvement, from recording marine species found from the shore, and from diving. I’m very much aware of tag and release practices involving sharks, but little is ever mentioned about this in the media regarding local practices, or indeed in the publicity put out by local sea fishing operators. Maybe it’s just taken for granted; but it would be good to see greater emphasis on conservation and environmental issues.
Yes, I have noticed that most of the photos you use in the Journal do show the fish displayed apparently close to place of capture, but without confirmation that these specimens are not later hauled away to the scales elsewhere, it was difficult to be confident. Certainly friends of mine who have been involved with sea fishing clubs in the past have been nauseated at the pointless waste and indeed cruelty involved in these inland weigh-ins which used to be standard practice. I’m so pleased that in recent years things have moved on.
I hope that an emphasis on decent practices will help make those benighted clubs which still insist on weighing dead fish at the club’s scales realise that they have become social pariahs, whatever happened in the past and too often still happens overseas.
I look forward to reading your comments in the Journal, and your website too.
Thanks again for your very positive response.
All the best, Rob
Hi again, Wayne,
Just been looking on the North Devon Angling News site. Lots of pics there of sea catches displayed on the beach or in the boat, but too many not good – one on top of the harbour wall at Clovelly, eg – particularly lots of sharks being dangled by their tails. Shark Trust handling guide very strongly emphasis that sharks must never be held up by their tails alone, and abdomen must always be supported. Otherwise, though the shark may be able to swim away after return it may very well die out of sight from internal injuries.
Maybe you could put out a warning that you will cease publishing pics showing bad practices? Would be a brilliant idea if boat skippers showed a bit more responsibility in guiding their clients correctly!!
All the best, Rob
Hi Robert,
Thank you for your reply. Following on from our exchange of letters would it be possible for me to post the letters on my website followed by a brief article on conservation practices and changing times. I think using the exchange of emails would give a good introduction to the feature and demonstrate to anglers how non anglers view what appears in the media, It might also make people think a little more deeply. This will have more impact than me simply stating my views.
Best Regards,
Wayne
Hi Wayne,
Certainly very happy for you to do that, sounds a good plan.
I look forward to it.
Cheers, Rob
I am an all round angler and fish for species in all disciplines of angling and I can understand Rob’s concerns to an extent as sea angling is to some degree less focused on fish welfare than Coarse and carp anglers. To some extent this is due to the fact that Coarse Fish and Carp are valuable commodities stocked into lakes that cost the fishery owners considerable sums of money. For this reason fisheries have strict rules to safeguard the welfare of the stocks. The use of unhooking mats, antiseptic solution to prevent infection, safe rigs, barb-less hooks and the sterilization of equipment prior to fishing is common practice.
Anglers also embrace good handling practice because they value the fish and have a respect for their quarry. I fish for pike and know a good number of pike anglers who are very passionate about the pikes welfare preaching the use of correct tackle and the care needed to safely remove hooks.
Game Fishers who fish for salmon and sea trout now return the majority of fish caught and get very involved in protection of river habitat and even run hatchery projects to attempt to halt the decline in stocks of wild salmon and sea trout. When I first fished for salmon over thirty years ago the majority of salmon were kept for the table and I delighted in feasting on a wild salmon caught from a local river. I always felt a tinge of sadness though after administering the last rites and seeing the vivid colours of life drain from the vibrant flanks. Today I take far greater pleasure in seeing the occasional salmon I manage to tempt swim strongly away to hopefully complete their Journey to the spawning grounds.
Sea angling I concede has been slower to move towards catch and release practice in part I suspect down to the vast and wild nature of the sea and the once misguided perception that fish stocks are not impacted upon by angling. There is only one reason to kill fish and that is to eat it. At this point I will confess that I used to fish in local angling competitions and dispatch fish to bring back to the weigh in. I also killed fish to submit for specimen trophies. As time passed I and many other anglers grew concerned at this unnecessary slaughter. The Sea Angling Club that I have fished with over the past forty years now practices catch and release for all competitions. In modern times with quality scales and modern digital cameras and phones there is no reason to kill fish except for the table. Images of live fish at the waters edge are far more rewarding than a dead corpse held aloft in the garden or in a club house.
A quick photo of a smiling angler and this bass is released back to the estuary
As a child I gazed in wonder at the corpses of dead blue shark at Looe in Cornwall brought ashore by members of the Shark Angling Club of Great Britain. This club is now 100% catch and release promoting responsible angling practice that minimizes mortality of these magnificent fish. I have fished for shark on numerous occasions and thrilled at the power of these fish on the line. I have enjoyed the privilege of interacting with the shark and delighted in seeing them swim away. In some instances shark are tagged and this has proved valuable in scientific research tracking the vast migration taken by sharks. Sadly many shark are recaptured by commercial long liners who target the fish for use in shark fin soup.
Wasted carcasses on the quay – Looe in the 1960’s
Whilst sea angling has moved towards conservation there is room for increased awareness of good handling practice. Thought can be given to tackle used with circle hooks sometimes beneficial in reducing deep hooking. Tackle used should always be strong enough to give a good chance of landing the fish hooked. Fish should be weighed in a suitable bag or weigh sling and not hung up by the gills. When holding the fish for a picture it should be handled firmly and supported to reduce risk of damage to internal organs.
Kevin Legge returns a British record tope to the water.
As anglers we have a responsibility to show respect for the fish we seek to catch and to always show the pastime in a positive light. We should not judge past generations by today’s standards. Perceptions change and as we realise the fragility of the natural world we adopt more enlightened practices. I have always been a passionate angler and believe interaction with nature via angling has given me a deep bond with the natural world and an appreciation of the great outdoors. Angling in general is a healthy sport, good for both mental and physical health and an important social pastime that also bring huge financial rewards to local business via angling tourism.
Footnote –
Hi Wayne,
Thanks for the reference in your article this week, linking to the great article in your blog, which I found very helpful; and I most grateful to you for the very positive way you have responded to my approach to you. I am sure that many readers will be encouraged by what you have written; and I hope that it will nudge angling practices a bit further in the right direction.
Monthly Coarse Section Match Results Lakeview Morchard Rd.
1st Martin Turner 42lb 8oz
2nd Steve Bailey 28lb 8oz
3rd John Lisle 27lb 12oz
4th David Bailey 13lb 7oz
5th Keith Copland 12lb 5oz
Sunday’s competitors were faced with a strong, and very cold North Westerly wind and flurry’s of sleet and snow .Martin Turner took the top weight on peg 5 ,using double red maggots on a 9 metre pole, his first bite came nearly 2 hours into the comp. Steve adopted similar tactics and a feeder on peg 4 to catch 17 small carp for second spot. John caught 11 carp on peg 11,late into the match for 3rd spot. Next Comp March 11th at Highampton Fishery.
Sean Chater (Above) landed a brace of carp from swim 2 on lodge lake during a 24 hour session the best pulling the scales to 20lb 7oz. The fish were tempted fishing with Robins test bait tnt .
