canoeist and angler

I agree that there will always be areas that individual groups within any such coalition would disagree there are so many merits that surely it makes sense to work together. How many political parties have never had any internal differences of opinion? but when presenting a united front are occasionally quite effective. (ps please no debate on politcal parties etc please....)

quote: How does a canoeist on a river differ from a walker or hiker on a path, a rock climber on a crag, a horse rider on a bridle way, a surfer on a wave, cyclist on a cycle route? If you keep an eye on the News you will see that all these sports do have access issues relating to them. Perhaps it is time to all work together under a unified banner of outdoor sports rather than bickering over particular areas of problems. Should we be suggesting that groups such as the BCU (canoe), CTC (cycling), BMC (hill sports) etc should form strong alliances to encourage more open access for us all? Should angling not have a governing or advisory body that could work with these parties?

Sorry again just to clarify, as my name suggests I am both an angler and a canoeist, I am tending to put forward a canoe biased opinion because it is likely that Anglers will be much more able to defend themselves on these pages than canoeists.

www.sharedrivers.org.uk This has links to most of the science work. It is canoe biased but with a bit of reading it should give you most of the info that you need.

Sorry just to clarify the above, the groups were in no particular order, but river running is by far the biggest of the White water disciples hence the need for access debate

In Answer to the last point. Just as there are game anglers, pike anglers, etc there are different canoeists and types of boat that they paddle. Playboating - doing daft tricks on a wave often made by a weir or by a drop in the river bed. This takes only limited access to specific sites. River Running - Testing yourself against the harder White water rivers. These guys often want more access, but are generally quite responsible and willing to work with anglers. Slalom - If you want to go to the Olympics then this is canoeing for you. Against the clock on white water and against each other. This is what I do and love it. Again this needs limited lenghts of river as the courses are 90 -120 seconds long but do require lines accross the river for gates etc meaning that angling on that section is really not advisable. There are only a small number of truly excellent sites for slalom in the UK so co-operation from anglers is very much valued. BTW we got a silver in the last Olyimpic games in this so think of the good of the nation on this one. Marathon /Sprint - This is mostly concentrated on the south of England, fast V shaped boats on flat water, tend to stay near their clubs, you'll know if you have a club near you... touring canoeists / Scout groups etc - likely to be very occasional boaters, this makes them very hard to educate in how to co-exist happily with anglers and they are less likely than others to hold the correct permits, or be members of the BCU etc. Like the "child anglers" mentioned in another thread hard they are potentially hard to keep control of. All I suggest is to try and be tactful if you meet one of these, respect will breed respect in most people... we all hope!

The site that I use for the vast majority of my canoeing training is a weir site that I do pay the EA to use through both my club membership and unpowered river boat licence. It seems odd that on a small piece of this vast and fairly easy to fish river I frequently find discarded hooks, swimfeeders and line littering the banks of the canoeing site. Now of course when I do find these bits and pieces around, usually snagged in the slalom lines, I pick them up (it actually saves me quite a bit on tackle over the year), but it seems that there is a little lack of common sense shown by many anglers in the area. If I go canoeing when there are angelrs about then I would avoid crossing the River on the far side (where most of the sensible anglers go)and messing up a fishing session that someone was engaged in. If I was fishing and somebody paddled over my swim I would find it annoying. However I find it more serious that someone can fish in an area with so many snags and other potetial problems where it would be obvious to anybody who thought it through would know leaving a hook has the potential to cause injury to another person. What are people's thought on this?

I hope that I am going to try to promote a balanced view on canoeist/angler debate as I enjoy both canoeing and angling. 1. All the scientific work that I have read (and I admit that this is by no means all that has been published) shows that canoeing has no significant impact on fishing. OK, the fish may be spooked by the shape of a boat overhead for a moment but this could equally be caused by a fisherman on the bank or wading or a passing car on a road etc. 2. Canoeists do have idiots in their midst who don't care if they upset anglers... but the same is equally true in reverse. When angling I have on occasions come across aggressive canoeists and certainly the same is true vice versa. Moral: treat others as you would wish to be treated? 3. When I am canoeing and I come across an angler (a very rare occurance) I will try to paddle in such a way as to avoid their swim and tackle. If I were fishing I would try to indicate by pointing or if possible verbally the area I would prefer that they avoid. 99% of canoeists do not want to upset anglers, our lifes are much easier if we cooperate. 4. There is no need to worry about lakes or most rivers being disturbed by canoes if more freedom to access the river is given. Most rivers hold little interest to most canoeists. Those rivers that are used by canoes are usually featured in the online guidebook (www.ukriversguidebook.co.uk) and the editor does post notes from anglers in the river guides if there are particular areas of concern. If you are concerned take the time to express your concerns so that they can be dealt with in a sensible way.

When I started coarse fishing at the age of ten I joined the local fishing club. Before I was allowed get my permit I had to pass a simple introductory course on behaving in a responsible manner and simple care of fish. There was then a couple of weeks during which I was supposed to read and remember the club rules before being issued the permit after a short verbal test. I also recall a quick check was made of my kit to ensure that it met the club standards. This was not an intimidating off putting examination but more a friendly adivce session from a more experienced member which really helped my enjoyment. This common sense approach meant that I have never seen any really anti-social behaivour on the club waters and kids have no excuse if caught not obeying the byelaws.