2008 News
02 December
The season on the Till ended on a quiet note with committee member Fred Richardson catching a grilse on Friday and member Barry Gibson catching a sea trout on the last day. So that is the rivers well and truly closed till next year. Members that have not returned their catch returns are requested to send them in to secretary Dave Wilson.
The web site will be theoretically closing down over the next couple of weeks as there will be very little to report on. The Committee however will be busy as usual seeing if any waters are available and also renewing leases which is why it is so important for members to submit their catch returns. The committee also begin to prepare for the AGM that will be held at Birtley Golf Club on Wednesday 4th February 2009 commencing at 8.00 pm. Members will be issued with the agenda and full details by post early in the new year. If we don't have any reason to update the site for the remainder of the year then on behalf of the Committee I would like to wish all our members and their families and readers of our site a Merry Christmas and a happy New Year and even tighter lines next year.
27 November
Only two days fishing left on the river Till and that is the season over on the clubs waters on the rivers. Member Steve Kettlewell caught a salmon of around 8lbs yesterday whilst fellow angler Dave Cave caught two salmon of 7lb and 8lb. A lot of sea trout were caught and carefully returned yesterday as they had already spawned so members who have booked for the last two days are asked to be careful with the sea trout.
We have had several calls regarding the fish counts on the river Coquet. Whilst it is fair to say that the figures for September were low, 141, this is due to the counters being out of action for the last 26 days of the month following the very severe flooding that the area suffered at the beginning of September. Nonetheless the overall figures for the year can not really be described in words and the club have written to the EA today to voice our serious concerns. A weekly fishing article in our local newspaper has heralded the same views and mentions re-stocking by using the Kielder hatchery. This would go some way to help the river but the real crux of the matter is how drastically the figures have fallen and trying to ascertain the reason/s behind this and to remedy it/them.
We are approaching that time of the year when anglers look at whether or not they continue with their membership of their respective angling club and our club is no different. Our membership level remains very good and though we have had a few resignations over the last couple of weeks none of them have left because of the fishing on offer. We ask that those members that do intend to leave contact us asap as we do have a waiting list in double figures.
Thornton Steward reservoir is open all through the winter for members only and will be stocked a week on Saturday with fish in the 1.5lb range. If you prefer to fish the rivers then you can always try the Wear for its grayling.
20 November
The latest fish count figures released by the EA to the end of October for the Tyne , Wear and Coquet are now on the fish count web page. The Tyne shows a drop of some 15% from 2008 figures, the Wear shows an increase of just over 25% whilst the Coquet shows an astonishing drop of some 75%. The term "catastrophic" comes to mind, not only for the anglers, but for the future conservation of the river itself. Shall we get any answers from the EA? We will write and find out.
Members are still catching fish on the Till with Jack Aynsley catching a grilse on Tuesday whilst another member was also successful on the same day. Only eight days fishing to the end of the season on this river then it will be time to clean all our equipment. Unless members might like to try some grayling fishing on the river Wear with fish up to 2.5lbs.
09 November
The main season is now over and early indications are that we have had our best season for catches of salmon and sea trout. Those members that have yet to return their catch returns are requested to do so asap and are asked to put their membership number on their form.
Those members continuing with their fishing on the Till to the end of the month are requested to send their return upon completion of the season.
Members wishing to fish the Till must pre book their fishing by contacting Jim Irving either though our email site or by phone. Last known success on this beat was last Tuesday when member Steve Kettlewell caught three salmon all on a small tube fly. One was safely returned and two retained.
29 October
The Kielder releases have been increased to a whopping 50 cubic metres per second with effect from 26th October. The reason given is to stop the reservoir filling which we take is for safety reasons. This will have a major impact on the fishing on the North Tyne for members but safety must come first. The release will continue for the foreseeable future which could mean the end of the season for members fishing our beats but also other anglers visiting from around the country. Luckily our members have other rivers to fish with the Coquet, Rede and the Till plus the under fished River Wear. Member Mark Douglas caught a lovely salmon of 8lbs from the Till on 27th October.
I had my first days fishing on 27th October for over a year when I decided to fish the River Wear and unlucky for me as it was in spate and unfishable. Ever the optomist I went back on Tuesday and returned with a lovely 5lb grilse, a bar of silver and covered in sea lice. My thanks go to Dave Cave for presenting me with his fish caught on a rapala and expertly landed by Paul Farnell. On the same day member Paul Farnell had already caught and returned a hen fish of 14lb. Only three days left and as the Tyne appears to be off limits with the releases I am now going back to the Wear and hopefully catch my own fish.
23 October
The seasons end is approaching and members are still reporting catching excellent fish and two to mention are head bailiff Dave Cave again in the fish on the Wear with a superb 17lb salmon caught just ten minutes after losing one of around 15lb on Monday 20th October and yesterday 22nd October member Geoff Horrrill caught and released a beautiful 21lb hen salmon on the Eels beat at Bellingham caught on a red,white and black shrimp fly.
Still no reports from the EA about fish runs through the fish passes for the Wear and the Coquet. The Coquet is still a major concern as the figures for this year are some 75 - 80% down on 2007. No comment from the EA as yet which is worrying but we will endeavour to try and find out what is wrong with this beautiful river.
Local news yesterday reported about the River Tweed and the dreaded Gyrodactylus Solarus parasite and the care to be taken. How interesting that we mentioned this in 2007 and again in March 2008.
Catch returns were sent out in the post today and we again request that members return them as soon as the season is over.
15 October
Latest News
All rivers are producing plenty of fish being caught by members with Barry Gibson catching a lovely 10lb sea trout on a Ally Shrimp on the Till on 13 October.
With only just over two weeks before the end of the season members will be out trying to get their last adrenalin rush of the year and with adequate spells of rain keeping the rivers in good flow then they will be in with a chance. We request that members are selective with the fish they keep for the table and ask that any hen fish caught are returned unharmed. For latest news of releases from Kielder members can call 01434 - 240463.
A brief newsletter will be sent out next week to members with a catch return sheet that MUST be completed and returned to secretary Dave Wilson asap. Leases need to be kept with owners and it is essential that we provide the correct figures to them for the honesty and reputation of the club
We are awaiting the final decision from a riparian owner for our bid of 1.5 miles of fishing on a local river but the signs do not look to good at the moment and the indications are that they will remain with the current incumbents, pity.
We obtained the fishing for a small stretch on the Wear earlier this year at Croxdale. The owner has advised that the lease will not be renewed in future years for personal reasons. He has advised that it has nothing to do with the club and if he decides to let in the future then he will give us first option.
As always the committee are seeking additional waters for the membership and if you become aware of any fishing that may be available then please contact us.
The parking for the Keepershield beat has been done by the owner so hopefully members will not get their vehicles stuck or damaged. The beat downstream have placed a sign some 20 to 25 yards upstream form the bottom of our beat and again we request that members be polite in their dealings with the anglers from down stream but hold your ground as the owner is aware of the situation.
I hope that following over twelve months of inaction for myself on the rivers with a back injury that I may have the opportunity to see members new and old during the last week of the season.
Fish Counts
The latest figures for September for the Tyne have been added to the counter but as yet there are no figures for the Coquet or the Wear.
02 October
River Till
Following the tragic floods that affected large parts of the region a lot of livestock were drowned and swept away. Unfortunately this has resulted in dead sheep being left up in trees and alongside the riverbanks of our beat and they are starting to decay. The result of this leaves a lot of rather unpleasant aromas on the Till beat and anglers need to be strong willed when fishing the beat. The clean up operation is a complicated affair and may take some time so we ask that members who fish this stretch bear this in mind when looking to book the beat. This said, the river is at good height and a lot of fish are there to be caught and members are again reminded that it is fly only for the rest of the season.
30September
Fish Counts
At last we have the fish counts for the Wear for August, it is after all only the 30th September. The figures have been placed on the fish count page. The Wear is just about running parallel with the Tyne at the moment. The Coquet, well, what can we say.
25 September
River Wear
The heaviest fish reported, as yet, by any member this year is a superb 23lb salmon caught by head bailiff Dave Cave using a rapala on Wednesday 24th. He had returned a 14lb salmon earlier in the day.
River Coquet
What on earth is going on here. A blocked fish pass has stopped a lot of fish from running the river and they are amassed in very high numbers in the area known as the goldfish bowl. Reports say divers have been down to examine the fish pass, heavily damaged by the recent floods, whilst other reports say the divers are not going to look at the pass until tomorrow. This needs to be resolved as quickly as possible, not for the anglers but for the fish at this very important time of the year. Fish count figures, supplied by the EA, show that the number of fish taking the river this year is the lowest for a lot years so it is important that every effort is made to rectify this problem for this and future years.
River Till
Members are reminded that fishing for the last six weeks of the season is with fly only. This was the successful method for member Barry Gibson when he caught a lovely 7lb 12 oz sea trout on a cascade on Tuesday.
Parking - Keepershield
The hard core has been delivered to enable the owner to affect repairs to the car parking area and we await for this to be carried in the owners time so again we ask members to be patient.
19 September
Additional Waters
The club have submitted an offer for a stretch of fishing for a three year lease on one of our local rivers. We await the response from the owner.
We are aware of a stretch of fishing for sale and having talked to the agents to see if they will discuss a lease but they have advised that the fishing rights are for sale only. We are aware of the offers they are seeking and if every member donates £2K each to the club we may be in with a shout. Sadly we will not be pursuing this beat, unless?
General
Members are continuing to be successful with their prowess on the rivers with plenty of fish being caught. There are too many to mention but two members have caught their first salmon. This week Dave Charlton caught a 12lb salmon on Keepershield using a mepps whilst Shaun, sorry I dont have his surname, caught a beautiful bar of silver salmon at 15lb on the Wear using a silver toby.
We wrote to the EA regarding the number of fish taking the Coquet and their reply, in general terms, is that they are aware of this and are monitoring the situation especially regarding the number of sea trout. Figures out today show only 316 fish took the river in August. The figures for the Coquet this year are really down on previous years and appears to be in a downward spiral. To make matters slightly worse for the EA, having just repaired the south fish pass we now have the north pass out of operation and signs are it will be out of operation for the rest of the year.
Parking - Keepershield Beat
We understand the members frustration over the state of the parking for this beat but please be reminded that this beat came up very quickly and the committee had to act just as quickly to secure the fishing. It is turning out to be a very good beat in terms of fish being caught but please understand that we have approached the owner, a farmer, about the parking and he will get round to it in his own time. This time of the year is a very busy period for all farmers so we ask for your tolerance for the the time being if not for the remainder of the season.
Fish Counts
The latest fish count for the Coquet for August has been updated on the website today. There is still no figure for the Wear for August.
Thornton Steward Reservoir
The reservoir continues to fish very well with members, as expected, catching more than the day tickets. Current catch per rod per day stands at 3.4 for members and 2.5 for day tickets. Latest heaviest fish is an 8lb rainbow caught and safely returned by Ina Wilkinson.
11 September
The committee had hoped to get a brief newsletter out to reaffirm the fishing on the north Tyne over the last six weeks but we have been working away on other important projects on behalf of the membership and this, along with holidays, has prevented the club from the preparation and distribution of the same. We therefore remind members that they are not allowed to fish the Hesleyside pool as this is retained for the house from the 15th September. Members are also not allowed to fish the Mill pool after the 10 October. As previously stated we are dealing with other projects and this includes looking at acquiring additional water for the members. These vary from being at an advanced stage or to just getting off the ground. As is committee practice we will not disclose any details until they are concluded either for or against the club.
They say it never rains but it pours. Well they got it spot on last week with all our rivers becoming totally unfishable from late Friday afternoon and things are just starting to settle down as we write. More rain is expected this Saturday and Sunday and depending on the severity of the rain could put the rivers out of action again. This is a great pity as members had continued to enjoy excellent sport with numerous salmon and sea trout being caught on all our waters.
24 August
Fishing reports continue to arrive and member Trevor Harrison from Pudsey in West Yorkshire had a successful week on the Tyne at Bellingham last week catching three salmon to 20lb and one sea trout at 5.5lb. All the salmon were caught on the fly using his favourite cone head patterns.
Whilst most of our rivers are fishing well especially following all the rain over the last two weeks one point that seems to be concerning members is the shortage of fish taking the Coquet especially the number of sea trout. We can only see how the season continues to see if there is a problem with this particular river.
17 August
The good news continues. On Friday 15 August, a very junior member aged 6¾, Sam Kettlewell caught his first ever salmon, a 5½ lb. grilse, on the Till at Fenton. His father, Steve, and head bailliff Dave Cave also managed a couple of sea trout. Congratulations Sam.
The Club is always pleased to encourage young people to take up fishing and join the junior section. It is pleasing to hear that they are catching nice fish. All the rivers have plenty of water and a glance at the fish count page shows that in July more than double the number of fish went through the counter this year compared with last.
Jamie Patterson |
Aiden Currie |
Sam Kettlewell |
|
Click image to enlarge 14 August In the last fortnight two members have submitted evidence of their prowess. On August 2, Jamie Patterson, a 14yr old Junior Member, fishing with his father on the top Mill Pool caught and returned a salmon of about 8lb., lost another but also landed 4 Brownies. On 6 August, fishing the tail of the same pool, he caught and returned another 11/12 lb. salmon. He was fishing a Black Flying C on a rising river. This morning Aiden Currie sent email (with picture) - "Hi all. Just to drop you a line and let you know I fished the Keepershield area on 12/8/08 and caught my first ever salmon of 10lb and a nice sea trout of 5.5lb, as well as losing another salmon! As you can imagine I am over the moon! Congratulations to both. Keepershield Beat We have placed some pictures of this beat on the website under the video and pictures section for members to have a look at. Membership secretary Brian Tindle has fished the beat on Monday 04 August and caught a lovely silver sea trout of 6.5lbs on the fly using a cascade. Member Graeme Young fished the beat today and caught a lovely sea trout of 3lbs, method unknown. As we advised in the newsletter there will be and has been some contention about the bottom pool from the syndicate below. Members are advised to be polite but to hold their ground as the owner has assured us as late as tonight that the syndicate should not be fishing upstream of the fence into this pool. We believe they may have been fishing this pool in the past but as stated, members should be polite in any discussions with the syndicate members and if necessary pass on any details to the club. 03 August First Day Success The newsletter with details and the map for the new beat at Keepershields on the North Tyne was posted to members on 31 July. Most if not all members should have received it by now but two members have definitely received it as they fished the beat on Saturday 02 August. Members Bob Crook and Malcolm Peden decided to try the beat and ended up with three sea trout landed and another ten lost. They were delighted to be first on the beat and to have had a successful day which we hope will be the first of many for the members. Thornton Steward Reservoir In order to try and combat the "Dog days" of the summer we have carried out additional stockings of rainbow trout this year. Though slightly smaller than our normal weight of 2lb plus these extra fish are in the 1.5 to 2.0 lb range and it was hoped that members and day tickets would continue to have a successful day/s fishing on the reservoir. We are pleased to report that our endeavours appear to have been successful in that the daily rod average this year is still above three per member and day ticket per rod day. Member Bill Limon caught a superb rainbow of 7lb 12ozs whilst member Ina Wilkinson caught a rainbow of 6lb 10ozs. Are there bigger fish in the reservoir to be caught? That would be telling. 23 July New Water We have now reached agreement for the new stretch on the North Tyne. The beat is know as Keepershield and is 1.8miles north of Chollerford. Members will be receiving a map and instructions with the next newsletter that will be posted on Thursday 31 July. 22 July New Club Record Members are starting to catch numerous fish with one member catching 5 sea trout up to 5lb on Saturday 12 July and a further 2 on Sunday 13 July on the Wear, Frankland Farm beat. We are pleased to report that we have a new record sea trout for club waters with head Bailiff Dave Cave catching a superb sea trout of 12 lb 10oz on the Wear again on the Frankland beat. Whilst Dave is an expert trout fisherman with the fly he believes that the spinner is the best method on the Frankland beat. It could be beaten though this year as there have been excellent runs of sea trout over the last two weeks so good luck. The Wear has been the most under fished of club waters over the years but we are now starting to see more members fishing this river and we expect that more fish will be caught this season and hopefully this will be shown by the catch returns at the end of the season. New Water We are now some 95% near to concluding an agreement for a stretch on the North Tyne. Although it is a small stretch of about 500 yards it is opposite the Chipchase beat, below the Nunwick beat and above the Haughton Castle beat which are all highly sought after for fishing. Members from round the area will know of these three famous beats very well. We will inform the members of the hopefully successful conclusion next week 15 July New Water Discussions are at an advanced stage for a short stretch of fishing on the North Tyne. It is a beat that has rarely if ever been fished. It is hoped that we will be able to announce something to the members within the next two weeks. Red Letter days? Lady member Hilary Gostelgow - Drury was fishing the North Tyne on Saturday and Sunday 12th and 13th July with husband Stephen. Hilary was delighted to catch her first ever sea trout of 2lbs on the Saturday. Hilary had even better success on the Sunday when she landed her first ever salmon on the fly. The fish at 9.5lbs was, according to Hilary, expertly netted by husband Stephen. 13 July 2008 Fish Counts All fish counts for our three main rivers have been updated and are on our web site. Figures show more fish have taken the Wear than the Tyne so far this year. The June figures for the Coquet from the E.A, are the same for May which gives the impression that they may have placed the wrong figure on their web site. 11 July 2008 Well it never rains but it pours. The last week has seen some very heavy rain in the North East which is good news for river anglers but bad news for people on holiday. All our rivers are currently in spate which will help bring the big summer runs into the rivers. The north Tyne up at Bellingham is some two foot six inches above summer level, the Rede is some two foot nine inches up, the Coquet some three foot up, the Wear some three foot three inches up and the Till up at three foot four inches. The weekend is due to be dry so this should allow the rivers to drop off and become fishable by Sunday or Monday at the latest. Two members fishing the Till on Tuesday before the real heavy rains came were head bailiff Dave Cave who caught three sea trout up to 5lbs despite still having a cast on his broken right wrist and member Steven Kettlewell who caught one sea trout at 3lbs all caught on a spinner. 03 July 2008 Fish Counts The latest fish pass figures for the Tyne for June have been released and can be found on the fish counts page. There are no figures for June at the moment for the Coquet and the Wear has not had a single fish for 2008 according to the E.A . We know differently as fish have been seen and caught above the fish counter at Framwellgate at Durham. 29 June Latest Reports Some heavy runs of salmon have entered the Coquet over the last week. Some fish have been hooked and lost by members and the only reported catch that we are aware of is one of 8lbs by Mick Moffatt on a home made fly on Friday 27 June. Further large runs of sea trout have entered the Wear so the current good fishing should continue for the foreseeable future There are still no reports of the number of fish that have taken the fish pass on the Wear as the E.A fish counter is not up and running on their web site and by the amount of debris covering the fish pass who knows if there will be any counts in the near future. 27 June Latest Catches The rains over the last few days have set the fish running with the odd fish being caught. Member Geoff Horrill caught his first ever Tyne salmon on 24 June. Fishing the Hesleyside pool using a floating line with a cascade he tempted a salmon of 14lbs. The fish was safely returned to the water. The Wear has had a good run of sea trout with one member catching 7 over two days, committee member Jerry Macbeth had one of 4lb last week but had an even better fish of 11lb 2oz on 23 June with a spinner. Member Steven Kettlewell who was being shown the Wear stretch by head bailiff Dave Cave caught his first sea trout on club waters a beautiful fresh fish of 4lbs on 25 June. Committee member Fred Richardson , not to be out done by Jerry, had a 1.5lb sea trout from the river Rede. With further rain expected it is hoped that more fish will enter the rivers. 10 June Fish Counts The fish count register has been updated with the latest fish to have taken the fish passes on the Coquet at Warkworth. 06 June Bad Break Head bailiff Dave Cave and committee member Jerry Macbeth were carrying out some minor improvements to the fishing on the new beat on the Wear on 5th June when Dave slipped and fell into the river. Unfortunately when Jerry helped him out of the river Dave complained about a severe pain above his right wrist. Jerry took Dave to hospital and Dave has broken his arm just above the wrist. This will keep Dave from fishing for some 8 weeks but we know he is a very resiliant character and he will be back sooner if not later. River Till Local member and expert Mick Moffat had three sea trout to 5.5lbs to fly on Wednesday evening. Again Mick is secretive about his flies except that he says they are all home made and are variations of normal flies like teal blue and silver, stoats tail and ally shrimp. Additional Fishing It is very early days but we are trying to secure further fishing for the members. It is only a short stretch but it would be something to add to our portfolio. We have only spoken to the owner twice over the phone and we are hopeful that he will come back to us on this subject. As stated it is very early days and it may be a couple of months before we know one way or the other. 04 June River Rede Members are advised that the Rede has had its annual stocking of brown trout with fish in the 12 to 13 inch range. Members are reminded about the total number of fish that they are entitled to take per week and this includes any fish killed on Thornton Steward Reservoir. Fish Counts The fish count register has been updated for the Tyne for May with 691 fish taking the fish pass. Again no figures are available for both the Wear and Coquet and we have have emailed the respective agency officers for those rivers asking why there has been no update since 2007. Hopefully we will receive a reply this time. 01 June Videos The videos of the club beats on the North Tyne appear to be proving a hit with visitors to the website as we have had over 100 visits since their introduction. As the year goes on we will post more videos of other river beats. Thornton Steward Reservoir Members and the general public have voiced their concern that the reservoir has not been at its full height for some time now. Yorkshire Water have advised last week that their repairs and improvements are ongoing but are not expected to be complete until the end of June and this will have an effect on the levels of the reservoir. having said this it has not stopped anglers fishing and some excellent returns being supplied. Latest top angler was day ticket rod Tony Hoggarth on 24th May catching 18 fish, returning 15, and taking his limit of 3 fish, whilst membership secretary Brian Tindle had 15 fish with all being returned. Rainbow continue to be be the main type of fish caught but both brown trout and blue trout are also being caught. Next Saturday sees our singles competition for both senior and junior members and members are required to be at the reservoir for 9.30am. Fish Counters The figures from the Environmental Agency that we use to update our website have been missing for some two months. They have now got their site back to normal but appears to be well out of date as they state no fish have taken the Wear or Coquet fish passes. Whilst our fishing on the Wear is below the fish counter and we cannot be certain 100% that fish have taken the counter we would believe that some fish have taken the fish pass by now. On the Coquet we have had reports from two members that have caught salmon on our beat that is above the fish counters at Warkworth. We await to see what figures come from their June statement. 23 May Latest known catches. Paul Edwards from Huddersfield has had three sea trout from the Till, one on Wednesday 21st on worm safely returned and two on Thursday 22nd the first on worm and the second on a fly a size 14 stoats tail. One was kept and the other returned. Two members have had some success on the Coquet with local expert John Anderson losing two and catching one salmon, 7lb, which were fresh run on the last spate just under two weeks ago. Member Mick Moffatt also had a fresh run salmon at 8lb caught on one of his favourite flies the stoats tail. Both fish were safely returned unharmed to the water. Newsletter The latest newsletter has been issued to the members on 22 May and includes a map and details of the short new stretch that we have acquired on the river Wear at Croxdale. This beat has to be booked and we have high expectations for the coming year. Website Videos To inform both members and the general public who view our website, we are in the process of placing short video clips on the site of some of the beats of club waters in the hope of bringing us in to the 21st century. Our webmaster who places our videos on the site is a total novice at video streaming, and is trying to cater for those people who use either dial up or broadband. We ask for your patience when streaming the videos and if you do have a problem then please contact us on our email address and we will try to assist you. As an example we had a person from Tasmania who could not access the River Garry video and contacted us and we the think the problem has now been resolved, 14 May New member Colin Morrison on his first visit to the river Till last evening caught a beautiful 8lb salmon on the fly. So impressed was he with his prowess that Colin will be fishing tonight and tomorrow in search of more excitement. Wait for the results, if any. We generally communicate with our members on a regular basis through a newsletter and through the website and the next newsletter will be issued within the next two week. Members do contact the committee on various topics very regularly via the telephone but members should also note that they are able to contact us through the link on the website. If you are unable to contact us by phone then leave a message on the website and you will generally receive a reply within 24 hours. 13 May River Garry Member Aiden Currie has informed us that he and fellow angler Alan Tait thoroughly enjoyed their 3 days on the Garry from 26th to 26th April. Aiden was pleased to inform us that he caught his first ever salmon of 5lb. Member George Teasdale fishing with David Pattinson from 5th to 9th May had every salmon fisherman's nightmare. Baking hot sunshine every day with no fresh water to get the fish running and even the weekly release on the Thursday only lasted some 8 hours. George states he only had one take on the dangle but was unable to keep it on the hook. Nevertheless they both thoroughly enjoyed their visit and will be visiting again and certainly recommend the beat to the members. 11 May River Till Our local expert Mick Moffat had a lovely 6lb salmon to fly on 3rd May. Suffice to say Mick only confirmed that it was caught on a home made fly but what type he is to keep to himself, but I bet it had a bit of black in it knowing Mick so I will hazard a guess that it was a stoats tail variant. On May 9th Member Paul Edwards from Huddersfield caught a beautiful 6lb sea trout. Though Paul would have liked to say he caught it on the fly he advised it was caught on the worm. If it works for you then why change. Thornton Steward Reservoir Both members and day ticket anglers are having very good days out at the reservoir with the current weekly rod average standing at 4.19. Some notable catches are Paul Farnell 20 fish, all returned, David Hild 11 fish, 10 returned and David offers his thanks to head bailiff Dave Cave for his success, Andy Bell with 10 fish, again all returned, committee member Jerry Macbeth 9 fish, all returned, Paul Moore 9 fish, all returned, Ian Cruttenden 12 fish, 10 returned and Stephen Masters 10 fish with 8 returned. A superb 6.5lb brown trout was caught and safely returned. The brown trout that we had to stock into the reservoir two years ago due to the problems with Cragside and the River Rede being in spate are really putting on weight as the biggest stocked were between 2.5 and 3lb. Blue trout are also starting to show and are being caught regularly. We have been concerned with the low level of the reservoir over the last two weeks and the problem has been identified as a broken outlet pipe which Yorkshire Water have now repaired. It is expected that at the rate they will fill the reservoir it should be back to summer level within the next two weeks. Fish Counters According to the Environmental Agency records no fish appear to have taken the counters on both the Wear and the Coquet. We know they have been updating/repairing the south fish pass on the Coquet so we have to take it that no fish have gone through the north pass. Somehow I do not think so. River Wear We have just about completed negotiations for a small stretch of some 300 yards on the Wear above Durham city. Though a small beat his is a stretch that we believe has never been fished by any other angling club so we are proud that we have been able to come to an agreement with the owner to allow us this fishing. Due to the small size of the beat it is expected that a two rod limit will be placed on the beat. We hope to inform members of the details in a newsletter within the next couple of weeks. 17 April Working Party. Many thanks to the members that attended the working party on 12 April. Though I was unable to attend due to suffering from the working party in August 2007 which is still affecting me I have been advised by other committee members that the amount of work carried out by the 15 members was unbelievable. Some of the members had not visited the Wear stretch before but having seen the potential of the river they intend to fish the stretch this year. The committee fully appreciate the work the members put in and hope they receive their rewards in their fishing this season. It is understood that all members are not able to attend these working parties but when they fish the rivers it is hoped they appreciate the work put in by so few for so many. Thornton Steward has started to fish now that the Global warming has arrived, someone must be joking in our region, however the fishing has taken off with day ticket visitor Harold Rowland having a good day with twelve fish, and other day tickets and members catching 6, 7 or 8 fish. Two more beautifully over wintered brown trout, both weighing 4.5lbs, were caught and safely returned. Blue trout are also being caught by anglers and current rod average is 3.9 fish. Rod License, don't forget that you should have renewed your license on 01 April. 08 April REMINDER - Working Party A working party has been arranged for the river Wear for Saturday 12 April 2008. Members have been advised of this in the newsletter but we are also posting this information on the website. Please meet at the car park below the sewage works for 10.00a.m. We have a lot of equipment but please bring any of your own that you may feel will be of use. We will bring equipment for a barbeque and members are requested to bring their own food for cooking. 27 March 2008 GYRODACTYLUS SOLARUS (GS) (re-visited) For members and anglers in general if you have fished abroad lately for salmon, especially in Norway, you are reminded about the dangers of bringing GS into this country. Great care should be taken with cleaning your angling equipment before fishing in the United Kingdom. For full details on how to clean you equipment please read the full article below. (10 May 2007.) PROTECT YOUR FISHING Thornton Steward Reservoir The season has got off to a reasonable start in spite of global warming, freezing temperatures, gale force winds and snow, - still it is only March. Visiting angler Mr Morgan landed a superb 5lb rainbow on 19 March, member Phil Robinson landed a rainbow of 5.5lb on 20 March and member Tom Artley caught and returned a lovely 4lb brown trout on the 19 March. Rod Licence Rod licences are due to be renewed from 01 April 2008, please see the link at the top of the page. Where possible we hope that you support your rural post office and renew your licence there. Our agent at Finghall would appreciate your business but like many other rural post office is waiting to hear this week if they will continue to operate. Website It is appreciated that a lot of websites can be pretty boring by looking at still photographs that can be deceiving. We as a club are looking to improve our website by placing video clips of various fishing beats that we offer to the membership and the first video clip can been seen in the Photo Gallery and Video Show. This video shows the bottom of the river Garry beat and shows the river flowing past the fishing lodge and running into Loch Oich. 11 March 2008 The latest figures for the fish counters has been updated with the latest news about the South fish pass on the river Coquet. There are no figures for the Coquet or the Wear so far and the figures for the Tyne are still low. 06 March 2008 Member Aiden Currie has advised he thoroughly enjoyed his two days fishing the river Garry last week. Though he did not catch any fish he was so impressed with the river and the area that he is going back for a further three days in April with fellow member Alan Tait. Aiden stopped in a lodge that he hired for the few days he was there, the lodge being owned by one of the river bailiffs and had pine martins around the lodge every night he was there. The owner of the lodges has advised that he will offer a reduction in the costs for members of the club and a link will be placed on the River Garry fishing web page. This stretch also offers fishing on Loch Oich for ferrox trout and pike should the river be un-fishable. We only have two rods per day for this beat and it needs to be booked well in advance to avoid disappointment. The following dates are already fully booked, the 24th to the 30th April, dates inclusive. The committee as always are continually looking for additional fishing for members and we are exploring new areas that we have not tried earlier, fingers crossed. 01 March 2008 The first reported migratory fish of the season have been caught on the river Till on Thursday 28 February. Head Bailiff Dave Cave caught 3 sea trout and 1 salmon between 4lb and 6lb. One sea trout was kept and the other fish were safely returned unharmed to the river. 28 February 2008 Working Party A working party has been arranged for the river Wear for Saturday 12 April 2008. Members have been advised of this in the newsletter this week but we are also posting this information on the website. Please meet at the car park below the sewage works for 10.00a.m. We have a lot of equipment but please bring any of your own that you may feel will be of use. We will bring equipment for a barbeque and members are requested to bring their own food for cooking. Membership We have received a lot of enquiries for membership over the last few weeks and these enquiries are turning into membership of the club. Like most clubs we lose members throughout the close season but this has not been the case for us this year. This has resulted in fewer vacancies this year and we are approaching the point where we anticipate that we will cease to enrol new members within the next few weeks and will refer all other applications onto a waiting list should the applicant require this. As/if vacancies become available throughout the season then we will contact the applicants in the order they applied. Thornton Steward Reservoir The reservoir has been closed to all members for the last week following the large stocking last week. The reservoir will re-open on Saturday 1st March to both members and the general public. River Garry Having just secured two rods on this stretch again, we are pleased to have had so many enquiries from members wanting to fish this beat. New member Aiden Currie will be fishing this week and we hope he has some success. The fishing needs to be booked well in advance to avoid disappointment and members wishing to fish the beat should contact Jim Irving. 10 February 2008 We have started the fish count register for the year 2008. The only fish reported to have entered any river so far is the Tyne with one fish being caught so far on the Bywell section.. The south fish pass on the Coquet is out of action following a lot of debris hitting the pass and damaging the electrodes. Work to repair this will be carried out in the near future. Though no fish have ran the river so far the first fish has been caught on the tidal stretch. 08 February 2008 The club held its 24th Annual general Meeting on 06 February 2008 with a good attendance from the membership. The members were advised that the club is in a very healthy position in terms of fishing availability, membership and finance. All current waters remain within the club with a new ten year agreement with Yorkshire Water for Thornton Steward Reservoir. We were able to advise the members that we have reached agreement with the owner for the fishing on the River Garry on the west coast of Scotland. This was lost in 2005 due to circumstances out with the control of the committee and we are delighted to have this fishing back in the club. Other main points were a) Fees to remain unchanged. b) Membership has increased but vacancies still exist within the club. c) Existing committee re-elected. d) Further stocking to be carried out during the "Dog days" of summer on Thornton Steward. Our normal stocking policy of a minimum size of 2lb fish for the reservoir will continue with larger fish throughout the season but the additional stockings in the summer will be fish weighing between 1.5lb and 1.75lb. 07 January 2008 Members will be sent details of the forthcoming Annual General Meeting within the next week to be held at Birtley Golf Club on Wednesday 06 February 2008 commencing at 8.00pm. Any member wishing to submit any motion for discussion must submit this in writing to the secretary before the end of January. The committee have been very active throughout the close season endeavouring to maintain current waters and trying to locate new waters for the members. As most members will hopefully appreciate, new water is very hard to come by as most, if not all, of the waters on our three main rivers is already secured one way or another. This means looking further a field within what the committee feel is a reasonable travelling distance.
|
19 August To make the fish count data more accessible, a new page has been created - Fish Counts |
River Liddel - 02 August
Thanks to those who assisted on the bank clearing exercise on the river on Saturday 21st July. Sadly not enough members turned out to complete the exercise so another date has been arranged for Saturday 08 September at 10.30am. Whilst the committee accept that members join the club to fish the waters we do expect some assistance to improve the facilities for all our benefits.
River Reports 02 August
We are now getting regular reports of members catching salmon and sea trout on all beats with the exception of the Liddel which has only just been opened to the membership.
Thornton Steward Reservoir - 02 August
We are now able to report that anglers have caught over two thousand fish on the reservoir this year to date (15 July 2007). In comparison to a commercial fishery we believe this to be excellent progress for a club that also has heavy financial commitments with riparian owners on all our river beats. We are closely monitoring the "Dog Days" with the view of increasing stocking levels in future years to assist all anglers over this period.
09 July 2007 - New Water - River Liddel
We are pleased to announce that we have secured the lease on a single bank stretch of river fishing on the River Liddel. This tributary of the Border Esk is renowned for its fabulous runs of sea trout from June onwards to the season's end on 30th September. There is also a good run of salmon from July onwards to the season's end on 31st October. Excellent brown trout fishing is also available. Members have already been advised of this new stretch and in order that we can make it a better fishing area for the members a working party has been arranged for Saturday 21st July. Members are asked to meet at the river for 10.30am. As always the committee endeavour to provide quality fishing for its members.
Congratulations to junior member David Limon who caught his first ever brown trout fishing the reservoir on the 10th June.
Kielder Water Release - From 09.00hr Thursday 05 Julythe release will be 15.4 cumex until 13.30hr on Saturday 07 July when the flow will be reduced to 12.0 cumex. Updates on the release pattern can be obtained from the usual number. (01434 240463)From Friday 29th June 2007, until further notice, the release from the reservoir will be 50 cumex (FIFTY cubic metres per second).
There is a report that salmon have been caught at Hesleyside but I have no details.
It is 4 years today since the "Web Counter" went live. Over 18450 "hits" have been recorded - no great surges but a steady stream of people who are interested in what we are doing and a steady trickle of prospective members of the Club.
RIVER REDE - 31 MAY 2007
The stocking of brown trout, 11" to 13", has been successfully carried out . Members will hopefully enjoy some excellent river fishing over the coming months with these quality fully finned fish. Members are reminded of the number of fish that they are allowed to kill in any one week.
FIRST MIGRATORY FISH - 24 MAY 2007
We are only able to announce any migratory fish catches on the site if members contact the committee. The first reported fish is a sea trout caught by Head Bailiff Dave Cave fishing the Till last Friday. So members, if you have caught any fish then let us know.
RIVER REDE - 24 MAY 2007
Our annual stocking of brown trout, 11" to 13", will be taking place in the next few weeks which will give the river anglers, hopefully, some really good fishing. It is hoped that the stocking will not be cancelled like last year with the river being in spate and not being able to find an alternative date for the stocking.
THORNTON STEWARD RESERVOIR - 24 May 2007
The good fishing at Thornton Steward continues with over a thousand trout caught since the start of the season. This is encouraging news for the club to be able to state these figures following last years trouble with not being able to stock due to the VHS disease really affecting stocking levels. It is also very encouraging to see both day tickets and members taking no fish home due to exercising catch and release at their own behest. Thank you from the committee.
|
GYRODACTYLUS SALARIS (GS) - 10 May 2007 "Home and Dry" The GS parasite is a highly contagious bug that has devastated freshwater salmon stocks in a number of countries within Europe. Countries affected include Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Russia, Norway and Sweden. The United Kingdom remains officially parasite free and it is essential that we keep our British rivers free from this parasite. It is capable of surviving for several days in damp and/or wet conditions on our fishing equipment such as waders, lines and bags etc. If you have fished in any of the above countries then it is essential that you go "Home and Dry". This means that it is important that you take one of the following measures with your fishing gear. Dry equipment at a minimum of 20 degrees C for at least 2 days. Heat for at least 1 hour at temperatures of above 60 degrees C. Deep freeze for at least one day. Immerse in a suitable solution for at least ten minutes. Keep Home and Dry and preserve our fishing. For information regarding suitable disinfecting solutions download SEERAD or DEFRA leaflets from http://www.infoscotland.com/gsbug/contact.html or http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/commondata/acrobat/gs_leaflet_690244.pdf |
From SEERAD leaflet (Scottish Executive Environment and Rural Affairs Department) |
Where are the Fish? - 10 May 2007
Many anglers in the North East are wandering where the migratory fish are at this time of the season on our major rivers like the Tyne, Wear and Coquet. We are unable to provide the exact answer but a major factor could be the lack of rain so far this year. What releases there are from Kielder appear to be having no effect. From today, until further notice, the release will be 1.8 cumex. (Call Northumbrian Water on 01434 240463 for the latest information throughout the season). We will endeavour to publish on a regular if not monthly basis the number of fish running our 3 major rivers throughout the season. These figures are supplied by the Environmental Agency.
River Tyne. The number of fish running through the Riding mill fish pass stand at 42 at the end of March. This is made up of 4 in January, 18 in February and 20 in March.
River Coquet. Both the north and south fish pass at Warkworth are in operation and the total for the year is 101. 30 in January, 15 in February and 56 in March.
River Wear. The total through the Framwellgate fish pass stands at 42. All of these fish went through the fish pass in March.
Main Tyne Fishing - 22 April 2007
On the 31 March we announced that we were to submit an offer to buy a stretch of fishing on the main Tyne. We are able to report that the club submitted an offer above the guide price of £85,000.00 for this stretch of fishing at Mickley near Eltringham. The closing date for offers was 16 April 2007. Though we have not had official communication from the agents dealing with the sale we have taken it that our bid has been unsuccessful. An article in the local paper on 17 April reported that the fishing rights had been sold for over £200,000.00. We can report however that we did not offer that price for the water.
Thornton Steward Reservoir - 22 April 2007
Members are continuing to have good fishing at the reservoir with the rod average currently standing at six fish per rod day. Members and day ticket holders are reminded that any brown trout caught are to be returned to the water unharmed as this is part of the agreement with our lease with Yorkshire Water.
Membership - 22 April 2007
Though we have a very good membership level we still have vacancies and any person interested should contact us via our email on the contacts page of the website. If you go fishing with a junior then we have a very attractive option for them joining the club also.
New Committee Member - 05 April 2007
The committee are pleased to announce that Fred Richardson has been co-opted onto the committee for the remainder of the year. This takes the committee up to its agreed level of seven. Fred has attended the last five committee meetings and has already come up with some plans for the future and is the pro-active type of person required by the committee.
Main Tyne Fishing - 31 March 2007
A stretch of fishing has come onto the open market on the main Tyne at Mickley near Eltringham. The fishing is 2600m ( approx 1.5 miles) of single bank fishing on the south bank. It is seldom that a stretch of fishing of this type comes onto the open market and this is believed to be the first of its type in this region for some 30 years and comes with a guide price of £85,000.00. Since the committee became aware of the water we have viewed the stretch and over the last four weeks have agreed to submit an offer for the fishing and will do so before the closing date of 16 April 2007. When we are advised of the outcome of our offer the website will be updated.
Thornton Steward Reservoir - 31 March 2007
Since the initial heavy stocking of rainbows before the start of the season which saw excellent catches and plenty of bag limits we have now commenced our regular stocking programme for the year which will be of the normal 2lb weight with bigger fish of 5lb plus going in throughout the season. Both members and day tickets are still enjoying very good sport with a day ticket catching 9 fish, returning 6 and retaining his bag limit of 3 fish on 22 March. A member has caught a beautifully over wintered blue trout of 3lb which was safely returned.
Thornton Steward Reservoir 10 March 2007
Following a heavy stocking of rainbows a week before the start of the season with fish ranging from 2lb to 5lb plus members and day tickets have got off to a cracking start with plenty limit bags being caught. Fish of the season so far is a beautifully over wintered brown trout of 5lb caught and safely returned unharmed by member Joe Salt. Best rainbow to date is 4lb caught by a day ticket rod on 3rd March who had his bag limit as well as returning 8 other fish.
Annual General Meeting 07 February 2007
Many Members awoke to snow on the morning of the AGM but it melted during the day and the well attended meeting went ahead as scheduled.
The various Reports indicated that the Club is in a strong position both in membership levels and financially. In a club like ours, financial strength it is very important in order to be able to take advantage of any new water that comes available. In this regard, the club has signed a new lease with the National Trust for a stretch on the River Wear (known by the Trust as Moorhouse Woods) but shown as Rainton Park Wood on O.S. maps and Durham Council's website. Hopefully, this will give members earlier spring fishing on the river.
The Committee did not propose any changes to subscription levels, the cost of Day Tickets or bag limit on Thornton Steward Reservoir. The members agreed the proposals for stocking of TSR and a stocking of 11"- 13" brown trout in the River Rede.
As usual, an excellent buffet was enjoyed by the members during the evening.
Thornton Steward Reservoir
The Reservoir re-opens on Thursday 1 March 2007 for Members and Day Ticket holders for Rainbow Trout. As a result of the problem with VHS restrictions last summer, Brown Trout were stocked in the reservoir and the Close Season for them does not end until 22 March 2007.
It does not seem possible that this is the start of the FIFTH season that the Club has run the fishery - there have been difficult moments over the years but there seems to be general agreement that the venture has been an overall success - we are looking forward to the new season and wish all anglers who fish there "tight lines" and enjoyable days' fishing.