Peter Waller

In truth, have reels really come that far since the 1980's? Some tweaking, I don't doubt, but a good 80's reel is still a good reel. Mind you, I did buy a little Maver reel a couple of years ago, just for the sheer pleasure of owning and beholding it, not because it was 'better'.

It's been fishing its socks off for whatever reason. The 'sludge' as you call it is dependent on the winter weather, there one year and gone the next. Things aren't perfect but the bream and the rudd are back in large numbers. The perch are also doing well but the pike fishing is a shadow of what it was, seals, ignorance and poor handling practices.

It is quiet, sadly. .

Down on the Broads we have had the usual saltwater surges driving the fish off the main rivers. The salt also sours the water and the fish go off the feed. However, if you know where to look the fish will hold up away from the salt, they will also get hungry! A good time to be out fishing but success is not guaranteed, at least not on the Waveney. My neighbour went out for the day, just one fish, a three-pound roach, jammy sod!

Re mullet, a fly fished piece of crust works for me. If I were really serious about it I suspect I might make use of a suitable, white bit of fluff. It's a great fun way of fishing for mullet.

My immediate reaction is to yet more John Bailey, a serial writer of increasingly bland 'how-to' books, churning out yet more of the same. On the other hand, I have enjoyed Paul's previous outpourings. I shall wait and see but JB's predictable input doesn't exactly excite me,

Newt's Facebook page and profile are both seemingly dormant. No response to my message. I faer the worst.

Sod the deer, the nubile young ladies in black lycra, out for a spot of wild water swimming, that more than compensate!

Standards were sought after by atlaest one person, me! When mine finally wore up, to be replaced by a resplendent ABU 505, the bits lay in a box of bits for far too long. Many years later I picked a Standard up at a car boot sale. Then my 'sought after' days really took off and I finally re-discovered E-bay. Finally, from three used and clearly abused old bangers I rebuilt a Standard to factory finish, save for being well run in. Gone was the history and life-defining dings and scrapes but the memories were rekindled, and I have two spare spools and a box of vital spares! As for the lines of the days, the names 'Luron' and 'Platil' both ring bells, by today's standards, horrific stuff! Now only 978 pre 1973 rods and I'll catch up with Chesters tally of vintage rods! Actually, using this old crap has brought a new dimension to my angling, seriously. Yesterday it was stunted rudd from a farm pond on a circa 1870's dog's hind leg of a rod. That the surely dried-out tip section did not snap was the cause of some amazement Now, I just need the hi-viz jacket to complete the image!

I just drifted away, seemed to me that we were just going round in circles, answering the same old how-to questions. That said, I miss the friendships and the odd fish-ins and heartfelt discussions with Jerry Castles for example. Having signed up to the the ancient order of boring old fartdom I now browse vintage and traditional angling face-book groups, remembering when Capta Leads, Intrepid Standards and Model Perfects were must-have gear!

I remember Newt well, last saw him on Face Book, must check him out, he was a good friend. Kept him well supplied with real Ultra-Lite gear, size 22's and 1 lb line!

I haven't been on AN for a long time, only just stumbled on this topic. I met Dave when he parked his dormobile in my driveway. He'd driven up to The Broads to take part in a pike fish-in starring that all-American friend of AN, the indomitable Newt & his wife who had flown to the UK for a fishing holiday. Dave was also something of a bird-watcher, and was suitably impressed by what he saw from the end of my garden. A wonderfully interesting man, I'm glad I met him.

Cheap reels can be good, I recently bought a 5 1/2" Lewtham Leeds centre-pin for a mere £20.01. Used it yesterday, brilliant, already promoted it to my first choice reel when out on the river!

https://www.edp24.co.uk/news/local-council/cromer-crabs-lobsters-sentience-humane-methods-killing-8577022

A crap investment then! Re Intrepids, I recently inherited a box load of the things, most in good order and complete with their clamshell boxes. In recent years I suspect that I would have sold them for rather more than I did. Seems that what is collectable now is 70's carp tackle and that as far as Intrpid is concerned I have obviously missed the boat. Judging by the turnout at my local carboot sales people have turned their back on junk and stuff.