News

August 2010

RIVER LEVELS

http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/homeandleisure/floods/riverlevels/120538.aspx

24 August

For those members wishing to book Crag Lough, we can advise that Jerry Macbeth has returned for his holiday and is again available to take future bookings.

The release from Kielder has assisted members in their quest for salmon and sea trout and our beats on the North Tyne have been producing quite a few fish over the last couple of days with Keepershield being fairly productive on the 23 August. Heavy rain on the 23 August put an extra foot in the river today and the fish I saw at the top pool on Keepershield were running through in high numbers.  Not to be deterred my brother and I set off  to the beats above Bellingham where the water was not as high. Second cast in the boat pool and into a lovely salmon about 12 to 13lb, safely returned as it escaped. Brother fishing the Ridings and he too returned a 10lb salmon, same method. Met two of my fellow committee members fishing the Charlton pool and one had safely landed a 7lb salmon caught on a cascade double, lost another, but caught a beautiful 3.5lb sea trout, on an Ally shrimp, described as a bar of silver. No further rain today so the river should fish really well tomorrow. My last fishing for a few weeks as I am off on my summer jols to France for a couple of weeks so no updates will be posted until my return.

22 August

We can confirm that the old club constitution, 2005, has been updated, 2010, and has been sent to members at the back end of last week via Royal Mail. We know some members have already received their copies having had emails and verbal confirmation of receipt. We do not expect any problems with members receiving their copy though some may have to collect from their respective sorting office.

On the fishing scene we can report that members are catching migratory fish on all our local rivers from the Till down to the Wear.

On Thornton Steward Reservoir both members and day ticket anglers are having some excellent days trout fishing and we can only put this down to good anglers and hopefully a little help of additional stockings throughout the dog days of summer. Current rod average for the whole of the season stands at 3.35 fish per rod per day. It is again pleasing to report that both members and day ticket anglers are operating catch and release.

17 August

Crag Lough

Committee member Jerry Macbeth is on a well deserved holiday this week and any member wishing to book Crag Lough should either contact Jim Irving or send an email to  the clubs address.

13 August

Newsletter

Due to a slight delay with the printers the newsletter and club constitution will not be issued until next week, better late than never.

River levels

Heavy rain throughout the day has started to filter its way into the rivers and levels have started to increase from around tea time today. It is possible that the rivers may end up in a spate condition and in order to avoid a wasted journey over the weekend please check the link at the top of the page to obtain information of  river heights for our fishing.

08 August

Newsletter

A  brief members newsletter will be issued on Thursday this week together with the new club constitution in A5 folder format. Members should not have problems with their post like they had in 2009 when the anniversary club badge was issued. Members may have to collect it from their respective sorting office if is is not placed through their letterbox but you should receive a card stating there is a package to be collected. If any member does not receive their constitution a replacement will not be issued until/if it is returned to the club by the post office. Should you have moved address lately then please contact us with new details.

General news

The fish counts have been updated as well as possible with the data from the EA. The counts for July for the Tyne show a very good count of 9240 fish entering the system.

Members are still enticing fish from the rivers despite the low levels. The Tyne has had a high  release from Kielder of late and this has certainly helped the fish move through the system. One local member had a 9lb salmon and 4 sea trout from the Keepershield then later in the week he had a 14lb salmon from the Wear beat at Frankland farm despite a low river level.

The clubs website is fully up to date with  some new pictures added so please take some time to view.

28 July

River levels are starting to drop again but members are still catching fish on all local rivers with one member having 4 sea trout last Thursday, returning 2, on the Wear. The latest fish counts for the Tyne and Wear have been updated with much improved figures than previous months. It looks like the counts for the Coquet are, shall we say, out for the count.

22 July

Poaching

We are able to report that the potential poaching incident at the Keepershield beat has been resolved and confirm that it was a current members who was fishing. It is pleasing to know however that members do report these items to  the committee.

21 July

Poaching?

A female member has reported talking to an angler on the Keepershield beat last week who stated they were a member of the club. The angler in question had caught 3 sea trout. It may be that this angler is not a current member but an ex-member. We do ask that if you have any doubts about any angler that, if you feel comfortable with it, ask the person to produce their membership card. We believe that if they are a genuine member then they will have no problem producing their card.

River Levels

We have contacted the EA about the link for the River levels not operating and can report that the link is now fully operational having tried it before this report was published.

20 July

The heavy rains needed for our local rivers eventually arrived last week and sent the rivers into spate. The good news was that it started the fish running and reports have been received from members showing their prowess on the Tyne, Wear and the Till, nothing heard for the Coquet as yet. Both salmon and sea trout, bearing sea lice, have been caught on our stretches so hopefully the season has started at last.

The EA site for river levels is still "undergoing maintenance" as I write, and has been, since the link was put on so we will contact them for an update. This is essential for members that travel a fair distance to fish club waters and as we have again had some very heavy rain yesterday and are receiving severe weather warnings tonight then trips could be wasted.

11 July

River Levels

http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/homeandleisure/floods/riverlevels/120538.aspx

The Environmental Agency have provided the link above show levels for our local rivers to be updated daily . Hopefully this will assist members in planning their fishing journeys. Tried it today it only to find the site is undergoing maintenance, would you believe it?

09July

Keepershield Beat

The problem with the access to the parking on this stretch has now been resolved and members should have free access to the parking. Some members have mentioned to the committee about some blue pipes suspended in the air and crossing the river on the Long rack pool. We are aware of this problem and it is associated with a major burst water main at Keepershield Farm. The water company have said it should not take long to rectify the problem so we are in their hands. The latest report about this came in yesterday from a member trying out a new fly rod, must be pretty good as he caught a lovely 6lb sea trout after half a dozen casts.

Thornton Steward Reservoir

The committee, wherever possible, runs the club for its members but from time to time we do need the members assistance in various things like bank clearing, stockings etc. With the sudden departure of Billy Dees from the club for purely personal reasons we are asking if members that live in the area Thornton Steward would be prepared to assist in future stockings on the reservoir. Billy, who has left, and Andy generally did this work for the committee but Andy has advised us that work commitments may affect his assistance to the committee and the members for future stockings. Should you think that you may be able to assist us then please contact me or Dave Wilson.

Fishing report

Well, I suppose the whole of the country is being affected in the same way with very little rain around. This is keeping the salmon off the river mouths and prone to nets and predators alike. Members are catching sea trout though even though it is hard work, but there are plenty of them about on our stretches on the Tyne, Coquet, Wear and Till. When we get a spate we expect the rivers to be full of salmon  and sea  trout. The problem being how heavy a spate and how far do the fish run?

02 July

Well we are into our driest start to any year for 82 years and it is having a major impact on the salmon running the local rivers. We have had some fairly heavy rain through a couple of nights this week but it has had little impact on the low rivers. This is reflected in the fish counts supplied by the EA. Members though are catching quite a few sea trout on the Wear and the Till with the odd  salmon being caught.

River Rede

The river was stocked in May with some excellent brown trout, which we kept quiet about, and when it rains we may be able to find them. Members may have seen an article in the July issue of the Trout and Salmon that our main stretch on this beat along with the Lodge has been put up for sale by the owner.  Doug has found living in the area very difficult following the death of his wife Christine  and has decided it is time to move on. This beat was the very first stretch of fishing that the club secured in August 1984 and is very much thought of by us older members and we know that new members are equally impressed with the beat. We have contacted Doug and he has informed us that the club is very much in his thoughts about the fishing rights. When any developments happen we will let you know.

Bailiffs Course

Our thanks go to the EA for presenting the course which was well presented and very informative for our bailiffs who attended the evenings presentation. If you are fishing and are approached by a club bailiff, or indeed an EA bailiff, then please be polite to them. They are after all only looking after your interests.

Crag Lough

Our thanks to the six members who attended the stocking today on our behalf. Again we have stocked with some beautifully fully finned brown trout so the lough should continue to fish well as it has done since the start of the season.

Thornton Steward Reservoir

One of our regular bailiffs at the reservoir, Billy Dees, has regretfully had to leave the club for purely personal reasons. We offer our thanks for the effort and time he has taken in looking after the reservoir for the members and general public alike and  also for supervising most of our stockings over recent years.

We are continuing with our policy of additional stockings through the "dog days" of summer, never more so than now,  with rainbow trout in the smaller average size of 1.5lbs. Like Crag Lough the reservoir is continuing to fish very well and both still waters are offering members the opportunity of catching a fish or two.

Guest Permits

Unlike a lot of other clubs we do allow members to bring a guest onto various beats and stretches of club waters. We know that the members appreciate this gesture but  we do ask that members give Dave Wilson , wherever possible, 8 days notice about any request to bring a guest onto club water. This allows Dave the time to prepare and send off the necessary permit for the guest. This will hopefully avoid any disappointment to both the member and the guest.

20 June

River Till

We have received notification from the River Tweed Commission that the Total Catch and Release for spring salmon until the end of June 2010 on the river Tweed and all its tributaries brought in on 22nd April 2010 has been extended for a further 5 years running until the year 2015. This is to bring it line with the whole of England and many other rivers in Scotland. It is not known at this time if they intend to alter the date to the 16th June to fall in line with England or remain at the end of June. A further meeting of the commission will be held in September where they will discuss among other things "fishing methods".  We believe this to be the total ban of spinning in the spring and therefore making it fly only. Pity the poor aged and disabled anglers who can hardly cast a spinner out never mind use a salmon fly rod.

We have to supply the Commission with our half yearly catches for the Till and ask that all members that have had success of any salmon or sea trout catches supply details to secretary Dave Wilson asap.

Bailiffs Course

Club bailiffs and members are reminded that the bailiffs course run by the Environmental Agency takes place this Wednesday, 23 June. at Birtley Golf Club commencing at 8.00pm prompt.

River Scene

Members are managing to entice some nice sea trout from both the Till and the Wear though no reports of any salmon have been received. Rivers are really at the worst levels that I can remember and the current forecast does not look promising for any prospects of rain in the immediate future.

Crag Lough

The next stocking of the Lough takes place on Friday 2nd July and we ask that if any members can assist with the stocking could they please contact the committee.

06 June

Weather Conditions

The current warm weather and lack of rain is resulting in very few salmon entering our local rivers. There have been reports of several fish deaths on the Tyne system that seem to be due to the lack of oxygen in the system again due to lack of rain. As I write it has been drizzling for the last six hours and this will have no impact on the rivers whatsoever. More warm weather is expected which will only make matters worse.  A member out fishing the Federation waters on the Tyne today and speaking to another angler has stated this is the lowest he has seen the river in some 30 years of fishing. The odd salmon are entering onto our beats with a member reporting seeing the largest fish he has ever seen in his life in the Wear. Sea trout are still entering the rivers with some spasmodic catches being made.

This is leaving most members fishing Thornton Steward Reservoir or Crag Lough. Both still waters are fishing very well with the rod per day averages running at 3.1 for TSR  with Crag Lough at an impressive 6.9.

Lost Fly Boxes

A member has reported losing three Leeda fly boxes, either all red in colour or two red and one blue, with over 150 salmon flies in. These were lost either on the North Tyne or at Fenton on the Till. If you find, or have found, them could you please send them to any committee member and we will pass them on to the owner.

27 May

Departed Member

We are sorry to announce the death of member Colin Sterling. Colin has suffered ill health for some years now with heart problems that seriously curtailed his fishing with the club and we have only been informed today of his death of Tuesday last week. Colin joined the club in the mid 80s and was very instrumental in the club acquiring the fishing at Hesleyside. What he didn't know about fishing was not worth knowing. Regularly attending meetings and always present at our AGM.s he was well known within the fishing fraternity in the northeast and also back in his native country of Scotland. Along with most of the current committee and some long standing members he will always be remembered for his art of fly tying using his finger and thumb as the vice and his wooden clothes peg. He tied a size 14 black pennell  one night using this method and, with all the fly tying equipment I have, could never match the quality that he produced. Our thoughts are with his wife and family at this sad time.

Crag Lough

A further stocking has been carried out with brown trout of late but the committee were disappointed with the assistance, or lack of it, from the membership. Two members who were fishing on the day were rudely interrupted during their sport and asked to give some assistance which they greatly did. We know members join the club to fish club waters but some little assistance at times does help the committee. As I keep saying, so many enjoy the benefits of so few. Members may have some difficulty in getting hold of Jerry Macbeth to book the fishing as he is busy at college between 9.00am and 4.30 pm so ask if you wish to book the fishing then please call in the evening. If you are unable to contact Jerry then alternatively please contact Fred Richardson. One of the boats is missing a rowlock at the moment but this will be replaced and locking pins placed on all rowlocks to prevent future loss.

River Levels

The river levels at present are seriously low and some much needed rain is required in order to get them into some kind of fishing order. I visited the Coquet, Rede and North Tyne last week and they were in desperate need of water and over a week has passed without any rain so they will be at an even lower level at the time of writing.

13 May

Shortage of rain over the last few weeks has prevented any significant movement of fish into our local rivers with only the Tyne showing any significant numbers of fish in the lower beats. Sea trout are moving in quietly on all rivers with the Till probably the best bet at this moment  likely to bring any chance of success.

Crag Lough is proving to be very popular with the membership with bookings being taken on a very regular basis thus leaving some members disappointed. The committee believed this venue would be very popular with the members and it is proving to be the case. Members are reminded that they must  pre book this venue with Jerry Macbeth. A further stocking of brown trout has been carried out today, again with some excellent fish at the 2lb plus mark.

Thornton Steward is still fishing very well and rods are currently averaging 3.89 fish per rod per day. As we approach the summer months we are able to confirm that additional stockings will be carried out during the months of June and July to hopefully alleviate the "dog days" for members and visitors alike.

Membership level is currently at its maximum and regretfully we are having to operate a waiting list for prospective new members. The committee know this is down to the quality and diversity of the fishing we offer for a very reasonable annual sum hence very few vacancies become available and most if not all are down to the recession.

Vacancies still exist for the bailiffs course we are holding through the Environmental Agency on 23 June at Birtley Golf Club commencing at 8.00pm and any member is welcome to attend and should contact secretary Dave Wilson with their intentions.

29 April

River Till - Fenton and Ford Beat

We have been informed by the River Tweed Commissioners that as of the 22 April until 30 June, dates inclusive, that all salmon and grilse caught on the Tweed system between these dates must be returned to the water unharmed. Any fish that are killed due to prevent suffering or dying from excessive bleeding must be handed into the estate department. This is a conservation programme for spring salmon. Whilst this is disappointing news for the club and the membership we have already signed up for the Tweed conservation programme. It would be unfair of the club to make any comments about this. However the indications are that there is a good head of sea trout around so some sport is available.

Working Party - Tyne

Thanks to the members who attended the working party last Saturday on the Mill beat. As usual a lot of work was done by the few for the benefit of us all. Our appreciation to all who attended. By all accounts, Dave, the Naked Chef, Wilson did well with the BBQ again which was followed by a lovely cake brought by our member Hilary from Worksop in Nottingham.

Bailiffs Course

We have finally managed to arrange a bailiffs course with Defra for club bailiffs. Details will be sent individually to all current club bailiffs but if any other member wishes to partake then the date is 23 June at Birtley Golf Club with a start time of 8.00 pm and should last around two hours. Should you be interested in attending then please contact secretary Dave Wilson.

22 April

Newsletter

The latest newsletter has been posted today and will arrive asap depending upon the post. There are various items for members not least the map and fishing rules for the new stretch on the Till known as the Ford Beat.

Working Party

Members are reminded that we have a working party this Saturday on the Tyne and members are asked to meet at the Mill pool for 10.00 am.

Thornton Steward Reservoir

Our thanks to club bailiffs and members who attended the reservoir last Saturday and provided their assistance for the visit of the Hirst Park Trout Ticklers. Excerpt from our local paper "Juniors enjoy a grand day out". John Whitehall from the trout ticklers extends his thanks to the club on behalf of all the juniors who attended the stocking and days fishing. A great day was had by all but the sight of seeing the reservoir being stocked with such quality fish was one of the main talking points. Apparently the juniors never stopped talking all the way home on their coach about how much they had enjoyed the day.

Committee meeting 21 April

At last nights meeting we had Mick Donkin from the EA with us to discuss a topic that is high on the agenda of all the agency staff throughout the country and Mick covers our region from below the Tweed to above the Yorkshire Esk. Through the Multi Agency of Europe Mick has asked if the club members will assist in taking and supplying scale samples from sea trout that members catch and send them to the agency. We did not have the time or space to place this item in our latest newsletter but we will be sending full details in the next edition. Members that partake will also be invited to attend visits to the smolt traps on the Tyne system and also the catching of brood stock for future breeding and stocking of our local rivers as well as receiving monthly updates. Following six to seven months of non stop work by the committee, what with bringing 4 new venues on line in 2010, we hope to be able to enjoy a few relaxing evenings just having a quiet pint and talking about our fishing prowess.

Just a final word of encouragement is that some excellent sea trout, up to 7lbs, are being caught on the Till at the moment. One member however was devastated last week when he lost a salmon on the Till that would have been his personal best fish. Lost after a fifteen minute battle he estimated the fish to be close to 30lb. Totally gutted, him not the fish that is.

15 April

River Till Ford Beat

We are able to confirm that the lease for this beat has been concluded with Ford and Etal Estates department. A newsletter will be issued next week with the map and fishing rules along with some other news items. With the cancellation of the working party this Saturday on the Fenton Beat head Bailiff Dave Cave will be at this new stretch this Saturday, 17th, at 10.00am to show members the beat. Should you be interested in attending then also bring your fishing gear as you will be allowed to fish the beat. There are two parking areas, follow the A697 and then take a right hand turn onto the B6354 to Ford. The first parking area is on your right hand side just opposite the turn off on your left for the B6353. For the second parking area continue along the B6354 and just before you cross the river the parking is again on your right hand side. We will not have any club bailiff/s on this beat as the estate have their own river watchers and if you do not display your car badge and do not have you membership card with you then you WILL be escorted from the water so be warned.

Crag Lough

Thanks to the members that turned up and assisted with the stocking. As always membership assistance in anything like this is always appreciated and as the saying goes, many hands make light work. The brown trout are as usual of excellent quality and are easily identified as they will have a pan jet mark on the underside of the fish. The lough is now ready for fishing from the 1st May and members are again reminded that it MUST be pre booked before fishing. Access to the boats will require the use of thigh waders.

Working Party - North Tyne

A working party is arranged for the the 24th April for the Mill beat. This I can assure you will not be cancelled. Please meet at the Mill pool at 10.00am. Head Chef Dave Wilson will have the BBQ on hand so don't forget to bring your tucker and Dave will do his best to cook it to your request.

Thornton Steward Reservoir

The reservoir has now had several stocking of rainbows and is starting to fish well now that the weather is starting to warm up. On the 17th April the club has invited the Hirst Park Trout Ticklers to the reservoir for the day. This will involve juniors coming to the reservoir, all fully supervised, to see how we stock the reservoir and then have a competition for a few hours. The club has donated a couple of prizes for them and our fish suppliers Whelham ParkTrout Farm courtesy of Bob Booth has donated a fly rod for which we are very appreciative of. There will also be a BBQ so please bring your own tucker and hopefully you will enjoy the day.

13 April

River Till - Fenton Beat Working Party

The working party for this Saturday 17th April has regretfully had to be cancelled. Whilst we apologise for the lateness in posting this item it only came to the attention of the committee late today. It has something to do with English Nature but we hope to arrange an alternative date in the future. On the fishing scene we are able to report that several sea trout have been caught from this beat.

River Till - Ford Beat

This beat will be available to members in the very near future and we hope to have the map and fishing rules out to the membership within 7 to 10 days. The delay, whilst frustrating for the committee and the members, has now been resolved with the estate so get your flies ready for this beat as it has twelve pools.

25 March

The committee are able to announce that the bid submitted for a new stretch of river fishing on the river Till has been accepted. This is the Ford beat from the Ford and Etal Estates and is 1 mile of double bank fishing with 12 pools and has excellent parking and access. Members will be able to enjoy this beat that will again give fishing to the end of November for salmon and sea trout plus grayling fishing during December and January. We are waiting for written confirmation and the lease from the estates department and once all is concluded we will issue the full details to the membership hopefully within two to three weeks.

Delivery of the new boats for Crag Lough is expected on the 8th or 9th April and arrangements are in hand to ensure that we have all the necessary moorings in place in time for delivery. If you have the time on either of these dates and wish to attend to assist the committee then please drop us an email and we will contact you nearer the date/s. Fishing will commence on Crag Lough from 1st May and must be booked in advance through committee member Jerry Macbeth.

Please remember that your rod licence expires at the end of the month and needs to be renewed before fishing club waters or indeed any waters.

11 March

Whilst the committee apologise for the lateness in sending out the membership stickers for 2010 it has all been down to  a very heavy work load for all of the committee at this time of the year but we are able to advise members that the latest newsletter has been posted today with the membership sticker attached. Also in the newsletter are the maps and fishing rules for the three new venues that are coming on line in the next few weeks. It is hoped that the maps and rules are self explanatory for the membership.

There are also two dates for working parties for the Till and the Tyne and we look forward to seeing the members out on these dates and it also gives new members the opportunity to meet other members and to view the respective beats. We will not be having a BBQ on the Till due to the location from  the parking to the river but head Chef Dave Wilson will be available for the meeting on the Tyne.

The committee have really been heavily involved in the acquisition of the three new waters as they do take a long time to finalise the last minor details and with also having to do the planning of the AGM we have not had any spare time at our weekly meetings to sit and just have a quiet pint for several months now.

We are still very busy with the new constitution as we need to ensure that it is correct before going to print at we are some way close to having our draft ready for the full committee to endorse before printing is arranged and then issued to the membership.

Having just posted the details to the membership of the three new venues today the club have been invited to submit a bid for some more river fishing and committee members Brian Tindle, Jerry Macbeth and Dave Cave have visited the water this week for viewing and they submitted their report on the fishing at last nights committee meeting.  The committee have taken the decision this year that we will only look at waters now that will offer the membership the opportunity of good fly fishing water with the opportunity of providing the members with fishing that has good parking, good access and very good potential for salmon and sea trout. It was agreed at last nights meeting that we will submit a bid but as there were a few points that were raised last night that needed further clarification  Dave Wilson will speak to the owner today and report back to the committee with the results before our final bid is submitted next week. Should we be successful, which the committee hope we are, then we will have to decide if we need to send out  a further newsletter with the details or place them in the constitution. Watch this space.

24 February

The leases for all the three new waters for 2010, Crag Lough - Rothley Lake East - Low Grange Farm, have now been completed. The four new boats and associated equipment to be used on Crag Lough have been ordered and delivery should be some time in April. We were due to open Crag Lough to the membership on April 15th but having examined the local bye laws for brown trout fisheries with the Environmental Agency it appears that the season will commence on the 1st May and the season will end on 31st October so we lose at the start but gain at the end of the season.

Rothley Lake will also come on line for members within a few weeks as will Low Grange Farm but as we are still in the process of preparing the maps and fishing rules then there may be a delay in supplying the details to the membership although we do hope to have a newsletter issued within the next two weeks. With the current weather we are experiencing we can advise that Crag Lough and Rothley Lake are actually frozen over so there is no rush at the moment.

The first stocking of Thornton Steward Reservoir (TSR) takes place this Saturday and we usually close the reservoir for the first week in order to let the fish settle in a bit. As we do not have time at present to send out the newsletter to advise mmbers we will keep it open for the membership this year. We have been informed by our agent for TSR, Joan Hainsworth, that due to family commitments she will not be available to sell day tickets on our behalf in the future. We are very sorry that Joan has taken this decision but fully accept her reasons as she has been a real stalwart for the club in promoting the reservoir on the clubs behalf. Club Secretary Dave Wilson and Committee member Fred Richardson presented Joan with  a bouquet of flowers on behalf of the club on Monday the 22nd February. Alternative arrangements for selling day tickets are alread in hand.

The first salmon of the season have been caught on both the Tyne and Coquet on the 1st February. Whilst this is not earth shattering news for the Tyne it is hoped that this is a good omen for the Coquet as the first fish of the season on 2009 was not caught until May. "Hope Springs Eternal" comes to mind.

There is only one rod available now out of our two for members wishing to fish the river Garry for week commencing 12th June.

04 February

On the 3rd February, the night of the AGM, I was having a light tea as we were having a buffet at the meeting. In comes my darling wife at ten past six to say "have you seen the snow"?, no I said. Two minutes later in comes my loving daughter "dad have you seen the snow"? again I said no. What are we going to do if it continues to snow and we have to cancel the meeting for the first time in our history. Not to worry thankfully as the snow stopped and it only left a light covering. Off to the meeting expecting only a handful of the members having already taken some calls that evening from some members to put in apologies because of the snow. Come 8.00 pm and the start of the meeting and low and behold we had 40 members present. The committee were, to say the least, gob smacked at such an excellent turn out considering the forecast. That to us is real membership. The following is a brief synopsis of the meeting

Previous minutes from 2009 AGM accepted and no matters arising. Report from myself, rather boring probably, but it has to be done. Reports from Brian, membership secretary, Dave, head bailiff, and the financial report from Jerry, assistant treasurer. Membership is at a very good level and we only have a few vacancies available but these could be filled within a few days as Brian already has some prospective members in the pipe line. It is expected that a waiting list will have to be created. Nothing serious to mention from Dave on the bailiffing side but he did ask that members, as always, be vigilant when out and about on club waters and when visiting any club water would they ensure that they place their club sticker on display in their vehicle. If it is not displayed then Dave can end up walking the full beat to find that it is a members car and not a potential poacher.  Financially we are in a very healthy position for this time of the year and wait to see what, if any, water/s become available in 2010. It was therefore proposed by the committee and unanimously accepted by the members that there will no increase in fees for 2010.

Members present were supplied with a copy of the 2010 catch returns and although down on last year it seemed what everybody was expecting with the low river levels throughout the summer and fewer fish entering the rivers. The fish runs were down some 23% on the Tyne and 37% down on the Wear. Sadly due to the problems with the fish counters on the Coquet at Warkworth we do not have any comparison for the previous year which in itself was bad enough. Stocking levels will be the same for 2010 on Thornton Steward Reservoir which had a very good 3.97 fish per rod per day throughout the season. A stocking of brown trout will also be carried out on the river Rede at a date yet to be agreed.

All bailiffs have agreed to continue this year with several more members willing to assist the club.  We had a bailiffing course for members to attend last year and three times it was cancelled. We are looking to see if we can have our own course for our own members but don't hold your breath. Gerald Farnell has agreed to be club auditor again for 2010 and was pleased to agree our financial report put to the members.

The Doug Handyside award for the heaviest sea trout caught on the fly went to Geoff Horrill for a 10.5lb fish caught on the Tyne and the Jim Irving trophy for the heaviest salmon caught by any legal method went to Alan Horner for his superb fish of 26lb caught and safely returned on the river Wear.

There were no nominations for a place on the committee and all current 7 members of the committee were re-elected in their current positions.

There were 6 recommendations from the membership for working parties that included the Till, The Hauxty and Peters Hole beats on the Bellingham water, the top of the Keepershield beat, a stretch on the Coquet and a stretch on the Wear. The committee will look at all the requests from the membership and venues and dates for the the working parties will be provided  to the membership in the near future.

Under Any Other Business the members were informed that on the 17th April we will be hosting a visit from the Hirst Park Trout Ticklers at Thornton Steward Reservoir. This is a club that tries to encourage youngsters into the sport and we have offered them the opportunity to visit the reservoir on this date so they can see how we stock the reservoir and then for them to hold a short competition. As well the stocking on this date there will also be  BBQ so bring your own and we will cook it for you.

The clubs constitution is now outdated what with the new venues below to be added and several changes to the constitution about guest permits to be amended. The committee are in the process of renewing the constitution into a new version in the form of a loose leaf folder. This will in future allow any new amendments or additions to be supplied to the membership and they in turn will be able to simply add or replace the page in the folder.

This leaves me to end up the evenings meeting by announcing the three  new venues that had been announced to the members earlier in the evening.

Venue 1 - Low Grange Farm. This is a one mile stretch on the river Wear which is on the opposite bank to the lower end of our current Frankland Farm Beat. It offers excellent fly fishing for the salmon and sea trout angler as well as excellent parking and location to the river.

Venue 2 - Rothley Lake East. This is a 5 acre lake near Scots Gap in Northumberland. In the past this has been used as a coarse fishery and along with the owner we are looking to turn this lake into a rainbow trout fishery. This is a long term venture and the first year will be to carry out fishing trips to the lake to try and ascertain the type and numbers of coarse fish in the lake. Then it is intended to have the coarse fish removed, legally, and hopefully sold on to a coarse fishing club. Then onto year two when it is intended to start stocking with rainbow trout. Discussions about a new car park and the provision of a fishing hut are ongoing.

Venue 3 - Crag Lough. This is an excellent 18 acre Lough, again in Northumberland, being leased from the National Trust. This again is a long term venture in co-operation with the NT. Situated in the shadow of Hadrians Wall it is located in stunning country side. It has been stocked in the past with rainbow trout but no further rainbow trout will be allowed to be stocked. This will become a brown trout fishery with the intention, over a ten year period between the NT and the club, to turn the lake into a natural wild brown trout fishery. We have been granted permission to stock with brown trout by the NT and the first stocking will take place on the 14th April with members allowed access to the Lough from the 15th April 2010. Fishing will be by boat only and will need to be booked in advance through secretary Dave Wilson. We are currently in discussions with several companies for the provision of new boats for this venue and do expect everything to be ready for opening day.

Full details will be issued to members in the near future.

On other venues we could not come to agreement with a riparian owner over two syndicate rods for the river Eden, we declined to put in an offer for a lake in Northumberland and lost out to a higher bid for a 1.5 mile stretch on the river Wear. Whilst disappointed at these results we are more than happy at the three new additions to our port folio for the membership.

Discussions are ongoing with a riparian owner over two day ticket rods for a stretch on the Coquet and hopefully we will be able to announce the result shortly.

Members can expect more full details of the above in a newsletter in the very near future.

We know the river Garry is another venue that members love to fish on holiday and it does need to be booked in advanced. The following dates have already been booked by two members, 24th April to 1st May 2010, and are closed to other members.

29 January

Are any members interested in a weeks fishing on the river Gaula in Norway this year. Member Steve Kettlewell is organising a couple of trips, as in previous years, and has asked us to let the membership know of the trips. Dates currently available are 20th to 27th June or 25th July to 01st August. Cost per rod per week is £1600 and covers all transfers, flights, rental, licenses, food and fishing. If you are interested then let us know via the website and we will put you in touch with Steve

28 January

The season gets underway on all our rivers next Monday 1st February. Probably the river to start the season off will be the Till where sea trout should be around although in small numbers. Members are reminded that this river is fly only until the 15th February.

A brief newsletter has been sent, correctly, to all members to advise of the AGM next Wednesday 3rd February at Birtley Golf Club commencing at 8.00 pm. and the club house will be open from 7.30 pm. At the AGM members will be advised of three new venues for the coming season. A buffet will be provided as usual so please make every effort to attend.

Discussions are ongoing with the Post Office over the problems of the first newsletter that included the badge to mark our 25th anniversary. We have several households where we have more than one member residing and one member has received the first letter without any problem and the other member at the same household has had to pay extra postage, unbelievable really.

11 January

Following the posting of the newsletter we have received calls from some members stating they have had to go to their Post Office collection office and pay a surcharge to collect their newsletter. The committee apologise for this error on the cost of the postage and state that it was purely an administration error. We do recommend  that you you pay the surcharge, approx £1, as not only does it have the details of the AGM but it also has your lapel badge marking the 25th anniversary of the club.

08January

Following the very adverse weather conditions we have suffered in the northeast since 18th December the committee for the first time in the 26 year history  of the club failed to have an organised meeting on the 6th January. This has not prevented us issuing the latest newsletter to the membership with the details of the upcoming AGM in February and depending on the weather and the post you should have all details in the next day or two. Details were posted on the 7th January and all letters included a 25th anniversary badge for the members. It is hoped the weather will eventually improve as we head towards the AGM and look for as many members as possible to attend because it is after all your club and the committee only run it on your behalf.

Once again we wish all our Members and visitors a Happy and Peaceful New Year as we start a fresh NEWS page for our 26th season.

Hopefully conditions will offer good sport for all our members throughout 2010. Please remember we want to hear from you, whether it be text, still photos or video clips - please send them in or bring them to the AGM on 3rd February 2010 in Birtley Golf Club.

We are gradually building an archive of the Club's development on the site and your help will be appreciated.

The next update on this page is most likely to be a résumé of the AGM (unless there is something extra special to report).