Where did you start

[Guest Mike_pk_Waters]

A long time ago I started fishing, the place Keston ponds, near Bromley. Went back 3 weeks ago and its still the same, less kids put other than that it was like a time warp. What fun I had skiving of school and fishing there. I suppose where you start has some effect on your future angling tastes. Keston had some loverly tench, I never caught them but saw the big boys catch. Since then its been tench for me above all others. So where did the rest of you start, and have you been back since you 'grew up' (I use that in the most liberal sense).

[Guest carljh]

I started in an old sand sand quarry pit. It is now under a housing estate.

[Guest Steve Burke]

Hi, Carl, welcome to Angler's Net. It's nice to have another piker on board.

 

I too fished Keston Ponds as a lad. In fact it was the first place I night fished, but what a disaster! We missed a bus connection so had to get a taxi. Then the weather forecast was wrong and we got soaked, especially as we unwisely pitched our brollies on a slope. And we both blanked! It was years before I night fished again!

 

My first trip was to the Wey Navigation canal in Surrey when I was very small and visiting an uncle. It was gin clear and I watched a dace pinch the bread paste from my hook about twenty times. On the twenty first I caught it and ran along the bank shouting to Dad, "I've got one, I've got one!". Funny, the row of matchmen I passed didn't seem too pleased with the disturbance!

 

The next several trips were to nearby Christchurch and we fished almost from the steps of the Priory. We had a bite a cast each time from dace and loved it. If only wed had known about the roach, chub and barbel, species that the Hampshire Avon was then famous for almost worldwide!

 

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Wingham Fisheries

http://www.anglersnet.co.uk/fisheries/wingham.htm

[Guest doc_tench]

Hi

What a small world it is!!

I too fished Keston as a lad and now only live about 20 minutes away, have not fished it for years but its got some monster Tench in it!

I wet a line for the first time when i bought a Woolworths fishing kit (did anyone else buy one) on holiday on the broads with my parents, put one maggot on the hook that the kit supplied(i think it was a size 16) and caught "bootlaces" all day long! and then last cast i caught a 1lb perch, i was "hooked" and have loved Perch ever since

Good luck :

[Guest Elton]

I started in a saltwater river in Rowhedge, just outside Colchester, fishing for flatties and eels using a 9ft glass Daiwa spinning rod, size 8 hooks and garden worms for bait. Caught loads!

 

I still think that more research should be done into lobworms as a sea bait!!

 

Tight lines,

 

Elton

 

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[This message has been edited by Elton (edited 21 July 2001).]

[Guest Casper]

I started on the shropshire union in Ellesmere Port. I used to fish the Boat Museum mainly but me and a friend started fishing the 'Basin' and people laughed at us. Those same people are probably fishing there now since its become in vogue to fish there.

 

Ahhh the memories and tho many wont and dont believe me its the place I saw the biggest Barbel I have ever seen pulled out, all 8 1/2lb of her. I regularly caught bream to 5, tench to 4, carp to 10, roach to 2.

 

Not bad for the end of the canal. I think thats why there are so many fish, they cant climb the end loch (lock?) so its Manchester Ship Canal or stay, the ones that leave I guess live oooh 4 minutes.

[Guest poledark]

Well well well, Keston has got a lot to answer for! It was the second or third place that I fished , but once discovered I practically lived there for several years.

This was the summer of 1950 and I caught a golden rudd and spoke to a bloke nearly twice as old as me. I was 13, he was 20. He was standing like a statue with his rod propped up on a forkended rodrest and he was fishing floating crust for the big carp.

It turned out that he lived near me and we became lifelong friends, until he died suddenly at the age of 50. He has a mention in "The History of Carp Fishing" C A Stone, or "Lob" to his mates.

Keston was a different place then, it has silted up quite a lot due to erosion, I have caught carp where it is now dry land,and used to stalk carp where the rush beds grow up by the well.

There never were many carp in there but Charlie and I used to transport fish from wherever we could catch them and it became quite a prolific fishery, some of the 6pounders that we lovingly transported all the way from Sussex and Hampshire became 30+ so it was all worthwhile. By the way in case you don't know Keston was and still is Free fishing.

I dread to think how many young men went down the primrose path to carp fishing because of our stocking.

There was also the bonus of the local girls, one of whom I eventually married.

 

Ahh yes they were good days, being chased by the school inspector for persistent truancy, he never caught me, he was responsible for the Bromley area and I used to cycle over from Croydon.

We used to practise our skiffle group there as well, the sound of a plaintiff Harmonica across the water could make you tingle, it was very moving.

It never seemed to rain then, all we ever had for quite a long time were gas capes and a blanket, and I think we must have gone without food and drink every Saturday night.

There were also some clonking great eels there,which provided a welcome break to the long waits for the carp.

As I said, good days, days which I miss terribly if I get to thinking about them.

 

Old poledark

[Guest Mike_pk_Waters]

My god, do all anglers start at keston, me thinks we need a AN reunion and fish-in. Those carp were the bane of my school days, physics or Carp - no contest really Carp every time. Good job I have a good memory, cause I still got my 'o' levels.

[Guest kelvin wood]

trent and mersey canal was my first ever experience.When my parents moved to wales i discovered llandrindod wells lake(still fish there now and again)but my first serious attempt was a lake at Titley went back there a month ago and it is a carp syndicate water,which is a shame as it holds some BIG rudd,Eels and Pike

 

 

 

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chub,chub and more chub

[Guest tony jolley]

Sorry I havent fished Keston,

I started on the Leeds and Liverpool canal when I was 4 with my dad and brother (Jimmy)

29 years on and I still spend most of my fishing time on the L+L but only for its big eels now, although it carries some big fish of all species now adays.

 

 

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Tony B.T Jolley