Fears for Broads Pike

[Peter Waller]

I did well with over 20 jacks on Saturday, nothing over 5 pounds though, most nearer 2 or 3. Total blank on Sunday. I did hear of one reasonable fish being caught on Sunday.

[Mark Crame]

Blimey, I was ten miles away bagging up on silvers on saturday. Sounds like I'd have had a cracking time on the broad but I wouldn't swap it - I had a great time!

[Newt]

John - when Jan & I visited, we fished with guides every time we went to the water. Otherwise I doubt we would have caught any (or very many) fish even if we could have somehow obtained permission to fish the waters.

 

Part of the time our 'guide' even had to bait up for us since neither of us had a clue about using maggots or fishing for a number of totally new species.

 

If we lived there we would certainly have started going it alone but limited time, new species, and new tactics made the guiding pretty well essential.

 

Another factor that may enter in to using guides on the broads is the fear we read on here quite often of fishing any water larger than a puddle that seems common to quite a few newish UK anglers and even some old hands who are moving to large waters for the first time.

 

For instance, I would be quite comfortable using lures for preds on Windermere or any of the other Lake District waters as long as I could find a decent map (chart with depth contours would be even better) of the lake and had a boat equipped with a motor and fish finder. Would you? Would most of our members?

 

For me, that would be the closest to 'normal' fishing I could find in England but even there, if I only had a few days to work with, I'd hire a guide for the first day just to get a feel for the best areas to fish.

[Peter Waller]

Unfortunately, Newt, the U.K. pike guides have created a growing interest in the UK, and the Broads in particular, for pike fishing. Unfortunately these parasites, who have moved on to the Broads, have had to create a sustainable supply of clients. By and large their clients then go on to introduce friends and then those friends go onto introduce their friends and so on, it grows and grows. Newt, I appreciate that in the US guiding is very much the accepted norm. But you have thousands of mile of river where we only have hundreds. Unfortunately we have one or two guides on the Broads that hammer what used to be major pike fisheries day in and day out, even ignoring our close season as they fly fish for sea-trout, with pike flies, if you see what I mean. The US & the UK are different animals with regard to guides.

Edited February 12, 2008 by Peter Waller

[Newt]

Peter, I understand and was not endorsing guides for Broads pike.

 

I was simply tossing in a few comments in response to what seemed to be questions about why guides existed with no intent to say the practice as done on the Broads was a good thing or a bad thing.

 

If the waters are pressured or the guides are careless, then yes, it would be a very bad thing.

 

I suppose I should have made my thoughts and comments a bit clearer.

[gozzer]

Hi Newt,

I did say that I could understand the reasoning if it was a newcomer, either to angling, or a particular discipline. But as Peter says, on such a relatively small area, a "professional" guide, has to rely on numbers to make any money, and that's when it becomes a problem.

Anyway I think your 'guides' were just friends (or extended family) helping out, and making you welcome, hardly in a 'professional' capacity though.

Although I did hear that Jan had two gillies working for her at one time, I don't know if they were professionals though.

 

John.

[Neil G]

A number of factors at work here, I think:

 

Pressures of modern "money rich, time poor, instant results required, let's take a short-cut" society

 

Culture of "celebrity worship"

 

Possibly a desire on the part of some anglers for a "confidence booster" after being demoralised by a succession of blanks?

 

Spot on

 

The phrase 'trophy hunting' springs to mind

 

Also becoming a problem on trout waters as well....only a matter of time before prolific fisheries like Chew are screwed

[Dick Dastardly]

The phrase 'trophy hunting' springs to mind

 

Most of my customers had a genuine interest in Catfish most fishing for them regularly back in the UK. There were however a few that possibly fitted into your catagory Neil.They didnt have any interest in catching cats other than getting a photo of a ton plus fish.Once achieved they didnt bother anymore and moved on to the next target.Most of these guys (pleasant enough people mind you) had travelled all over fishing for unusual fish and the Cat was just another on the "list".But each to his own.

[Newt]

Although I did hear that Jan had two gillies working for her at one time, I don't know if they were professionals though.

 

Meybe not but they both did have experience and they both did work real cheap.

[Neil G]

Most of my customers had a genuine interest in Catfish most fishing for them regularly back in the UK. There were however a few that possibly fitted into your catagory Neil.They didnt have any interest in catching cats other than getting a photo of a ton plus fish.Once achieved they didnt bother anymore and moved on to the next target.Most of these guys (pleasant enough people mind you) had travelled all over fishing for unusual fish and the Cat was just another on the "list".But each to his own.

 

I take it we're talking about continental cats here from places like the Ebro?

 

Agree with what your saying here...there are a lot of anglers desperate to 'do' the list and seem to have the endless reserved of money and time needed!