Dunk Fairley

john, sad to hear of your committee dust-up. I agree with the others about going fishing. The trouble is, after you've been involved in something like that for a long time, it's hard to forget that you actually WANT to be involved at more than a "sit by the bank and let others do it" sort of way. have you thought about joining and working with some other sort of angling body? such as the ACA, NFA or any of the others. My own work with the Specialist Anglers Alliance (formerly SACG) kept me oyt of bisness for a few years (I'm on a temporary layoff at the moment, due to waiting for an OP). I don't know what area you are in, but I'm sure I can put you in touch with an angling body, who would need a pair of hands, or a good brain such as yours. Apart from that, how about becoming an EA bailiff, or an NFA or PAA angling coach?

apparently, if you rub an injury along the side of a tench, it gets better quicker. get well soon matey!

i get your point there steve, but i'm not sure you could describe all clubs as democratic. my own club (you may know which one, it's local to both of us) seems to be run by some of the bailiffs (un-elected), not by the committee (elected)who seem to be scared of them. to be honest, i prefer to know what the rules are before i turn up at a venue, rather than find out that the bailiffs hve made new ones up, to suit themselves. if a syndicate leader is THE one in charge, it doesn't seem to happen so much. if you've forked out a lot of money to fish a syndicate, it doesn't matter what the rules are. you know them before you lay out the cash and often have more to lose.

graet postings from all concerned. full marks to trent barbler and long may his campaigns continue. now, i'm in a club which has stretches of the medway. i've never seen a bailiff on any of the stretches, as they only seem to want to bailiff the lakes. if you are a bailiff, you don't pay membership, therefoe it's a cheap way of fishing some excellent lakes. the other day, two anglers night fishing, lit a fire in a cattle field, then left all their crap (and i do mean crap!) for me to clear up when they left. if i was the farmer who had that field, i wouoldn't want a club who couldn't keep scum like that away from the water, to fish my stretch of river. obviously, syndicates can also have idiots, but it is my experience that as most syndicates carry out a vetting or nomination system, most prats are kept out. for the record, i fish the windrush atr linear, which is a new "syndicate". but as it's got fifty members, the only thing that makes it that way is the vetting process.

hugh is a friend of a friend and i'm reliably informed he is a fan of angling. i know he really likes to live off the land amnd use crops for what they are intended. most fish were only introduced to this country for the table anyway. it's only us silly coarse anglers who put them back! it's not that long ago that all fish were taken for the table anyway, during the war soldiers home on leave were known to throw hand grenades into waters, to provide a bit of grub for their family, my uncle did! perhaps he should try that!!

all pike above about 5lbs taste bad. (I don't eat fish but it's what i've heard) apparently "Quinelles of Pike" used to be a favourite dish in royal circles. please though, i implore you, don't take pike (especially over 10lbs) unless you have express permission from the water owner.

i've caught eels on almost everything as well. i do remember though, that i once read that in any water, the eels will prefer just one type of bait. i think the writer said that he thought he would catch eels from any water, on either meaty baits such as worm or luncheon meat, or fishy baits like boilies or deadbaits. i once made up a bait for carp that was thus: 50% mollassed rabbit meal, ground in a coffee grinder (winter food for rabbits, most pet shops have it)25% EMP bird food (most pet shops), 25% sluis CLO (most pet shops). all ground up fine, you need to experiment. i didn't catch eels on this bait, and i know they were there. i did catch fish (carp & tench) on the bait, but it needed quite a bit of baiting. no other attractors are required.

what a great thread. as someone who had a head to head battle with the anti's few years ago, i reckon i'm pretty well placed to comment. since the campaign i was involved with, i've described angling's position as thus (i'll tell it the way i'm sure all will understand, in story form)I'm sorry if it's a little long. once upon a time, there were three million anglers. each angler, decided to build a monument to the sport they loved, so each one supplied a brick. three million bricks were then gathered together and someone said "lets build a tower". this was agreed and all the bricks were piled up. as it was happening, someone said "how are we going to stick all the bricks together?". someone else piped up and said "ah, can't you see, there are so many bricks, the tower will be so tall that it'll hold itself up". well not everybody agreed with this, but the tower went up anyway. when it was built, the anglers stood back to admire their work. just then, someone else came over and said "take that tower down!". the anglers then said,"no way, there are three million of us and only one of you". so feeling a bit peeved, the anti angler went up and started pushing the tower. the anglers watched and said "ha ha, he'll never push that over, it's too tall". they then carried on watching. the anti kept on pushing and guess what? the tower came crashing down. moral? well, if you can't spot it, then i'll explain. if all of the anglers had listened to the people who wanted to stick the bricks together, it wouldn't have been pushed over! for many years, there have been people who have tried to get anglers together. they have received little or no support from the people they are trying to help (i.e litter, general rule breaking and ignorance). now, as we see angling threatened, a lot of them are wondering what to do.!!!!!!!!! :mad:

electronic wizardry can never replace angling skill. i use bite alarms, but that's about as far as i would ever go. fancy gizmo's in reels would be an incentive for me NOT to buy them. I'm currently on the lookout for some reels WITHOUT baitrunners, to try and save a few bob. I use baitruners for my carping, but i don't like them for pike. i'm not sure how far reel technology can go now, but if you reckon you can take it further, then i wish you luck. all the main manufacturers seem to want to do, is cram more ball bearings inside, to make the reels "smoother" (whatever that means).

csmaster, you're very wise not to fish somewhere that you think is too deep or dangerous. stay like that and you'll probably live longer! If you do get to go to the Trent sometime, I reckon Slugs are an excellent bait (no doubt confirmed by Trent Barbler) Don't forget though, that Slugs are only one option as far as baits go. There are lots of others around and as I said at the start, they don't ALWAYS work. As far as using 16s goes, i time you'll learn to use bigger hooks, which suit biger baits. I say again, you are doing the right thing, this time by learning properly. If you go for huge fish straight away, you'll miss half the fun and develop half the skill. Anyway, I'll have a go with the Cabbage leaf and sugar method, so thanks Trent Barbler. In answer to your question about my Hip, er it's not very good. Still waiting for an operation date, probably around Xmas. Then I suppose I'll have to sit out the rest of the season or something boring. perhaps I'll write a book about how slugs took over my house or something!!!

jamie, for the record, I wasn't having a pop at you either. You didn't put the fish there, so I'd be out of order if I was. The trouble is, there are some out there, who have no regard for unspoilt, or "wild" fisheries. Add those to the people who are just ignorant of the law and what damage that ignorance can do, then we get in all sorts of trouble. The fact is, ornamental fish can cause problems, especially in rivers. In enclosed lakes, or ponds, Koi are an attractive addition (if you like that sort of thing). They also make an interesting adversary when fished for. As they are so streamilined in shape, they go like the clappers when hooked (like true "Wild" carp). If you can get permission to fish for them in your local river, good luck and post up some pics if you have success. If you get the chance, I would also suggest that you try and have a word with the chap who put them there and remind him that it's not just his river and he could cause problems. I quite like Lions, but he would probably moan a bit if I let one go where it could eat his livestock! cheers

All, I'd have thought everyone should know by now that stocking of any fish into any water is ILLEGAL, without EA consent. It doesn't matter if it was people rescuing Goldfish, Koi, Trout, Salmon or even Minnows or Roach, it is still illegal. The introduction of Goldfish into wild lakes and rivers, has caused the depreciation of the natural stocks of Crucian Carp, to the extent that they are probably going to become extinct in this country. The same applies to wild stocks of Salmon, where on three rivers in Scotland, NONE of the original strain are left, due to captive stocks getting out. In my local river Beult, you are more likely to catch a goldfish than a chub, more likely to catch a Golden Tench, than a Green natural fish. Any colour of carp is there, so is SVC and probably Carp Herpes. The defence of tose who knowingly release exotics, or even native species (such as Carp) but not indigenous species, is totally out of order. OK, they might be nice to catch, but at what cost? If you want to catch foreign fish, fish, get a passport!!!

sadly, the rhubarb wine has all gone now. I've one bottle of Chery left, which I'm saving for some reason I haven't decided on yet (?) I'll let you know how I get on with damp patches and melons etc (??)Hopefully my life will soon be full of fresh slug trails!

the link is from the the anglers net home page, look for Specialist Anglers' Alliance.There is s section "Contact Us Here". if you do that, someone will let you know where to get to the British Record Fish Committee list. I'll have a go for you by another route, but if you beat me to it, no prob.

I've actually got quite a lot of mint already, but thanks for the tip, I'll have a look. I seem to be able to find the slugs alright, but seldom when I actually want to use them, they must know I'm going fishing, the same way as my dog does. on a slightly different tack. I think I can beat your mint story. Mine's about Rhubard. My grandparents grew Rhubarb (planted during the war), when they lived in Bromley. They moved to Maine, in the USA, in 1959 and took some roots with them. When they came back in 1970ish, they brought some back to Glocestershire. When they had both died (not at the same time), my brothers and I were clearing out their house 6 yrs ago and we took a few cuttings etc from the garden. I brought some of the Rhubarb home to Croydon, where it made the best Rhubarb wine you have ever tasted, until I moved to Maidstone. Sadly, I forgot to bring the Rhubarb root with me! In actual fact, the Rhubarb patch was the best place for slugs I ever knew!!! Oh Bugger!

in short, the best places to fish the Len, is where you can get to it! Swims are tiny, but you can expect decent fish. short sessions are really the only option. First, find a bit where no-one else is fishing, then try a cast or two. It's a very small river, so really if you want to fish it, you have to search for swims of your own. The big fish don't like people very much!! MVAS have a stretch in Mote Park, but I really don't think the specimen fishing is going to last, due to angling pressure. But the good fish are right up the river, so they'll only move. Good luck, If you see me on the bank, it probably isn't me, I hide!!

oops!! sorry, slight "bum steer" there jamie. you can get the ADDRESS of where the list can be obtained. I'll send a mail to someone who should be able to get me the right info, unless someone else can help perhaps?

if you go to the SAA site, (linked from the anglers net home page) you get the official british record fish committee list. it carries the "current" record for each species, which is set at the most recent meeting of the committee. "pending" records, are ratified at the next meeting.

Best way to get ypour own fishery? get a large scale O/S mapand an Aviation Navigation Map and start travelling. In Kent for instance, there are hundreds of small lakes and ponds, which were dug for Marble mines by the Romans. These can be very deep, up to 30'. When the sides collapse, they level out to about 5' deep, but the surface area expands accordingly. A lot are totally invisible from the road, but can be seen from the air and are used for navigation purposes (ergo the Aviation Map) Go to the nearest Farmhouse FIRST, ask politely if you can either see the pond now, or who you can write to to explain what you want to do. Either that or ask in the local pub, as there are probably some of the farm workers there, then you're on your way. Start small and don't expect it to happen overnight.

I refuse to eat prunes on the grounds that they taste horrible. Before anyone asks, yes I have eaten slugs, not too bad!

We all know that slugs are a brilliant bait for Chub, but why do they just not work on some rivers? I'll always catch on rivers like the Darenth, Colne and Kentish Stour, but on the Medway and Len, they don't seem to work. Strange. Also, has anyone found a really good way of keeping them?

steve, Pick up the latest ABU catalogue, Tightlines, Edition 54. In the front is an article by Leif Erixon about the 50th anniversary of the Ambassadeur. It's quite good, but doesn't mention the reel you have. Still worth a read. I seem to remember there's an Ambassadeur Owners Club somewhere (US?). I think that's taking things a bit far, but if you do a net search using the right keywords, you may find it. It really depends on how far you want to go I suppose. If I find anything on my travels, I'll pass it on.

The JW avon, is OK in most barbel fishing situations. The line rating is a guide only, I'd use 8lb out of choice. If the Barbel are only small, you could get away with 6lb, but no less. I'd only use 8lb or up, if the water was at all snaggy, or the fish large. If in doubt 8lb every time. As the rod is only 1.25 TC, expect some hairy moments when hook and hold. In open water,use the reel clutch, set properly. When the rod goes to full TC, ideally the clutch should start to slip a bit. If the fish runs for snags, clamp down and cross your fingers!!

not too long ago, I was on a bridge over the clone near uxbridge. a match was just finishing with a weigh-in taking place. when done, the anglers didn't take much care over the fish when they went back. quiet sad to see in the very least. lack of patience, added to the risk of losing valuable seconds, sometimes makes anglers forget fish care totally. add that to frustration when they lose, and their forgetfullness increases. I don't own a keepnet, maybe i've failed to catch a few times when fish have gone back and spooked others, such as when chub fishing, but then why not just chalk that one up the fish? if I owned a fishery, there'd be no keepnets. anyone who moaned, wouldn't fish there.

any line can be made to float, there are quite a lot of proprietry line floatants around. these are usually like vaseline, which can also be used. one trick i've used in the past, is to pour a little bit of cooking oil into the line on the spool at the start of each session. it's not permanent but can make the line float for a few hours.