Cast Nets

[Guest Newt]

Originally posted by Salar:

The advantage of boilies is that they are light enough to mail - I had to have lead weighted cast nets airmailed from Memphis - not a low cost exercise! Worth it though.

salarBoilies - light enough to mail? Well, maybe. But only if you want a small taste. If you plan on using some for ground bait and the like, you are then getting into needing kilos and kilos of the things. Woooo. Not cheap at that point. At least your cast net doesn't get eaten so you have to buy another.

 

Cranfield - I normally try to stay away from making value judgements about things UK but I gotta make a comment here. If the commercial folks over there are allowed to fish a species to destruction and a pleasure angler can't use a small cast net for getting bait, something is badly out of whack.

 

[This message has been edited by Newt (edited 05 December 2001).]

[Guest Cranfield]

Newt, We could move this to the Non Fishing Chat forum and have a flaming thread in minutes.

The subject "Whats out of wack in the UK and Europe".

 

My point on the cast nets is serious.

The event stated is true.

 

I feel that ,if there isn,t some restriction,more people would be using them.

In 50 years of taking notice of things,I have not seen them anywhere in the UK.

[Guest Salar]

I have checked with DEFRA (used to be MAFF) and restrictions apply to commercial fishermen and fixed nets. There appears to no universal rules applying to the use of hand nets from the shore although there may be local rules (I have a call in at the Portsmouth Sea Fisheries Committee just to make sure for my area). However, minumim fish sizes DO apply, i.e. if you are seining for sand eels and fish out at 6 inch plaice, you must chuck it back. Well, obviously. There are plenty of rules aimed at the commercial boys about what you can catch which are designed to protect stocks, but smelt do not figure highly in EU fish quotas! So cast nets and sand-eel seines seem to be in the clear. So why don't more of use use them? You could ask why we don't try a lot of new methods from overseas - habit, inertia, lack of awareness, tradition or all of them. We have only just started fly fishing for sea fish in any numbers so maybe more people will try new methods. I for one love to research new methods and ideas - I must try the Danish filled bubble float and fly method next Summer....

[Guest Cranfield]

Salar, I would be interested to know if you find out any more information.

I have spoken to the Enviroment Agency, "Not us".

I have spoken to Dover Harbour Board, "Don,t know, but you can,t do it in our area".

Same response from Folkestone.

I would have thought harbours were the most productive areas.

A lot of us will try anything and have open minds, perhaps this trait is honed by travelling.

[Guest spasor]

Hello guys.

The point about requiring a license to use a net to catch any fish from a boat, is to stop illegal netters having a loop-hole to justify their actions? The fact that it also stops the use of a cast-net is unfortunate, but what the hell? Us anglers are asking for commercial fishers to be restricted in their catches?

Paul Compton

[Guest Salar]

I looked up DEFRA on the web (there's a link from the defunct MAFF address), and followed the site map down to sea fishing controls and spoke to both the Head Office in London and the main South Coast office. The Fisheries Officer was unaware of any restrictions that apply to hand nets, or to private individuals as opposed to commercial fishermen. He referred me to Portsmouth for local rules, but they have a part time office so I am waiting for a call-back. I can't see the problem - nobody has stopped me using a shrimp net on a beach as a kid, and loads of fishing clubs have seine nets to catch sand-eels, which must fall into the same category as throwing a cast net for bait fish. My local marina forbids fishing of any kind because of the risk of fouling propellers, which is reasonable, and I guess the same logic applies to harbour boards. Let's set a new precedent for trying foreign methods in UK waters!

[Guest Newt]

Salar - what we need now is a couple of pictures from you. Maybe one of the net spread out and one of you making a cast. And, of course, one of the net with a good haul of bait.

 

Even better if you live reasonably close would be you and RobT both casting at the same time.

[Guest Salar]

Newt, I would like to see a picture of me with a good spread of net as well! Still workin' on it. I'll see what can be done. The good news for UK cast netters is that the Southern Sea Fisheries Committee have confirmed that there are no restrictions on either cast nets or seine nets for use by private individuals, just the usual fish size limits.

And hello Spasor - welcome to the forum. Your point about boats was valid, I may have caused confusion earlier because I use the net from the shore, reference to previous comment by skippers obviously applied to boats. As far as controlling illegal fishing is concerned, I think it would be better to designate certain areas as no-fish zones - that would be far easier to control than checking individual boats to see if they have licences, undersized fish, illegal nets etc. But that could be a whole other debate!

[Guest Scott]

I saw these cast nets when holidaying in Florida and still regreting not buying one can someone point my in the direction of a website or 2, thanks,

Scott

[Guest Salar]

See "How to" at http://www.fishingnoosa.com.au/Page32.htm

(Thanks Newt)

Buy from http://www.memphisnet.net/FishCatalog/CastNets.html, but you'll have to phone them. Ask for George in International Sales, some of the other folk there are not sure where Europe is. They are among the cheapest, but expect to pay 50% of the cost to ship it back, and airmail is only a bit more expensive than by sea. Parcelforce will collect VAT and import duty from you when they deliver, which is a few quid more. They also sell hooks and swivels by the hundred,very low cost, and a range of low cost seine nets for occasional use. Plenty more sites on the WWW if you search for "cast nets" with Copernic or webferret.