Fears for Broads Pike

[Dick Dastardly]

Yes ,during my time with European Catfish Trips I guided in Spain ,France and Italy.

[Neil G]

Must have been good fun.....something I may build up to doing one day and when funds allow!

 

Lot of conteroversy concerning guided pike fishing....lots of threads/aggro over it on the pike and predators forum at the mo. where most of the big names hang out.

[Peter Waller]

Bet dear ol' Charlie is shouting his big mouth off over there then!! Number One parasitic pike guide!!

[Neil G]

Yep...that chap sure does take some abuse on there.

 

I always stay out of it.....don't know the full picture

[Peter Waller]

Best stay out of it, I no longer even bother taking a look over there. Dear old Charlie deserves everything that is thrown at him!

[Dick Dastardly]

Must have been good fun.....something I may build up to doing one day and when funds allow!

 

Lot of conteroversy concerning guided pike fishing....lots of threads/aggro over it on the pike and predators forum at the mo. where most of the big names hang out.

 

I dont know what P&P is like now but it wasnt for me! and I like a good lively discussion! trouble is most didnt really know what they were on about and despite having very outspoken veiws had no experience to back it up.Strange bunch of "regulars" on it as well who couldnt make their minds up if they wanted to suck "known" anglers arse's or just slag them off! Forums are for fun surely not that sort of thing?

 

Whenever you get the urge to travell abroad for cats let me know Neil as I can gladly put you on a few fish.

[Mark Crame]

I had a look there last week. 4 pages worth and I found FA about fishing.

[mark barrett]

I had a look there last week. 4 pages worth and I found FA about fishing.

 

 

As opposed to anglers net where eeryone seems to have the same views and there are no deabtes/ arguments whatever you want to call them.

 

take this thread for instance.

 

Whilst I accept that there may be issues at the moment with the broads pike, theres plenty of other problems that the broads are experiencing asides from guides.Saltwater incursions etc.

 

I seriously doubt that the guides are causing this problem directly (as in its not them killing the fish), the pressure aspect is a possibility, but then they are an easy target, after all its hardly as if the braods were ever a secretive venue or it wasnt known that they regularly produce big pike as they hae been written about for years. In fact the first ever pike fishing book that i read was Denis Pye's and i would say that just about every single pike book since has featured the broads to a greater or lesser extent.

 

Peter's comments I find particularly interesting as the guides that he chooses to slate, to my knowledge rarely, if ever fish his waters. I find it all the more interesting because I know guys that fish his local patch and are doing very well. Perhaps its the parochial attitude common amongst Norfolk pike anglers meaning that you are looking in the same old tired spots not producing whilst a fresh outlook is doing better?

 

Dont think that they are parochial? well only a couple of days ago I got labelled as an "outsider" by a Norfolk piker, which caused me much merriment as I live ten miles from the Norfolk/ cambridgeshire border and fish in Norfolk as much, if not more, than I do in Cambs! In fact I was out lat night for an evening zander session and that was in Norfolk, but you see to these people, "Norfolk" means the broads, not the county.

 

As regards guides and who uses them. Well I have had a day out with John Watson, primarily as an 18th Birthday present for a mate, but also to learn how to float troll, as a day spent watching and asking questions of someone who knows what they are doing, is worth many days of trying it yourself and failing. Some may consider that a shortcut, I dont really care.

the guys that come out with me, almost without fail want to catch a zander for the first time, mainly because they are just fascinated with the fish and have read a lot of disinformation about them in the press which makes out that they are very hard fish to catch, I try to show them the reality. We go to different venues, dependant upon the weather and sometimes i see them back there, but not very often, as most will go off with imformation (from me), of venues to try.

 

The thing that i find highly amusing though is that guides are looked upon as new. the terminoligy most certainly is, but ghillies will tell you that its anything but new. Get over it

[Peter Waller]

We must remember that Mark offers himself up as a guide. As to that guide, he does fish the Broads, as I do, and did long before he inflicted himself on the area.

[Guest flempike]

I followed all of this with great interest over the last few days. What is the solution? No more pike guides? Limited access to the water in terms of days per angler and equally limited days for guides? Limited catches? No treble hooks, no barbs, ban certain productive fishing methods? For sure, the salt water pouring in is unstoppable. Who has any suggestions or ideas?

 

Seems a bit to me as a hostile environment among fishermen ... which surprises me. Anger towards guides, outsiders, etc. You are considered an outsider, even if from the region. I'll definately will not go there, ever.