Idle Valley Reserve - Retford (Formerly Bellmoor Lakes)

Many thanks to all local anglers who have contacted me regarding the Idle Valley Reserve at Retford and it's 'no fishing' policy. I am already aware of this situation and am working with the Notts Wildlife Trust to try and resolve this issue. I appreciate your concerns and the strong feelings towards their policy and the way it was implemented and these have all been noted.

However, I would appeal to all anglers to consider NOT fishing on the reserve as this may impede negotiations and any future prospect of ligitimate fishing at the site. Notts PAC members are already aware of  this request and your support would be most appreciated.

We must bear in mind that the NWT contributes considerably to the conservation of wildlife and the environment and we should concentrate our efforts in working with them to establish good relations with anglers as a way forward to combine our efforts in conserving the environment for future generations.

Please feel free to contact me regarding any of the above: Tel: 07815 308463

Alan (RO)

Nature and Wildlife Trusts

As highlighted in the recent members meeting, there is a growing network of Trusts being setup throughout the UK, consisting of large areas of wetlands, lakes and rivers. A very small minority of which are implementing a 'no fishing' policy.

The excluding of fishing is rare, as most reserves realise the importance of properly managed pike fishing and it's contribution to the environment through understanding the ecology of waters and it's relationship to conservation of the wildlife above. It is unlikely that some Trusts will be able to justify such policies if challenged, as the following organisations welcome angling and the PAC:

RSPB - Peter Green (Wakefield RO) has been successfully running a PAC piking club on a major reserve owned by the RSPB. This is a great success and an absolute credit to Peter and all the PAC lads involved. It may be of interest, that the RSPB was formed in 1901 when fishermen and farmers were being paid to look after rare bird species so it's not surprising that they welcome our contribution today.

National Trust - As the largest of the country's Trusts, they allow angling on all of their major venues and have done for many years.

These are but a few examples of organisations which support angling and in particular, pike angling and the PAC.

I need to hear from all members, regarding any organisations in the Nottinghamshire area which allow or disallow fishing.

This information can be used along side scientific and social reports which I am collating in order to challenge these organisations if necessary. These Trusts are publicly funded charities but exclude the most participated sport in the country without prior consultation with the local communities during planning and the inception of such projects and without any explanation or justification.

We must remember that in certain reserves, angling may not be feasable and that these organisations contribute considerably to wildlife and the evironment and in all cases we should concentrate our efforts in working with the Trusts to establish good relations with anglers as a way forward to combine our efforts in conserving the environment for future generations.

In the near future I intend to write an article on behalf of local anglers relating to the above concerns which I intend to have published in all angling press, local papers, National press and all major Countryside and Sports magazines. Contributions to this from all anglers would be very much appreciated. I will be consulting with any relevant Trusts to establish their concerns to ensure that a balanced view of the situation is reported.

Please contact me regarding any of the above; alan@piketrace.co.uk

Alan (RO)

You'll be pleased to know that the weather appears to be allowing us to fish the river this weekend. The lake has still got a lid on it but the Trent is looking good. Hopefully the water wont be too high when the snow has finished thawing out - but ok at moment so we might be in for a few fish.

If you're wanting to fish, make sure I've got your contact number so I can ring you in the morning if there are any problems.

Rules

- No rules, just common sense

- Max 4 rods (Anything goes - live bait / dead bait / lure)

- no trawler nets

- no harpoons or dynamite unless for throwing at passing boats or cormorants

Important

- Have fun and catch as many pike as you can

Tips

The river is tidal and fishes best when tide in and turning. At most pegs you'll find the river bed drops off in 2 seperate places, the 2nd being about a 3rd of the way across. Tight up to these drop-offs is the usual tactics as the pike tend to patrol these when feeding. If you find any deeper holes you are in danger of finding a hotspot and bagging up. Live baits usually best but large sea baits and lamprey have accounted for some good catches.

The bank side is formed of rocks and in some pegs these rocks go out about 6-10 ft before changing to silt/mud. Obviously this increases the rick of snagging up in the edge so you may want to use a weak link for the lead. Don't let this put you off too much because most fish are caught very close in.

Depending on the flow, it's usual to use leads up to 3 or 4 oz. Some anglers go heavier but they belong on the beach.

The swims we will be fishing are on the match stretch which produces good barbel, bream and perch catches during the warmer months and good roach and perch hauls for those who brave the winter- this has seldom seen a pike bait but they are not shy at taking just about anything they find.

The record fish for this stretch is 26.08 (held by yours truly). Any visiting angler who beats this will be banned!!

Alan (RO)

Tel: 07815 308463

Thanks to all

Thanks to everyone for coming along to the meeting to see Watto. Great to see so many there, makes it all worth while for me and Bazz. Good to see so many new faces too, it's a really good sign for the region. Apologies if we didn't get to have a chat with everyone but we look forward to seeing you again at the next meeting.

Thanks to everyone for making John so welcome, something we Notts lads are getting an excellent reputation for. The great respect for John was evident throughout the night. Special thanks to Ivan Cooke and Andrew Cooper for having John stay over and for taking him fishing for the day, which I know he thoroughly enjoyed.

John Watto's Book

When John comes over to do his talk on Tue 12th Jan be sure to bring some dosh with you to grab a copy of his latest book. I bought a copy some time ago and must say, this is probably one of the best piking books I've read for years. It's a unique opportunity to get a signed copy.

At £30 odd, it's not cheap but I can assure you, this book is well worth every penny, it's quality throughout and that's more than I can say for some of the books I've bought over the years for a similar price.

This is a 'must have' book for anyone who didn't get a copy of John's earlier book 'A Piker's Progress'. This is the revised copy which brings the book bang up to date. Oh, and for those humming and rrrr-ing about the price - his previous book is now worth a small fortune - a good investment as well as a good read.

Alan (RO)

Recent fish-in

Our last fish-in which was planned for Sun 3rd Jan 2010 had to be cancelled. The lake was frozen over and although the Trent looked good I thought it best to cancel due to dangerous road conditions. Sorry to those who wanted to take part but safety has to come first.

Just to rub salt in the wounds, I fished the Trent and bagged a 16lb in my first half hour and had 3 further dropped runs (zander I think). It was a little cold though and I had to pack up at 3 cos I was frosting to my chair, my unhooking mat was a rigid block of ice and my rods were freezing to my Delkins.

Plenty of other fish-ins to be had when the cold snap fu_ks off.

Alan (RO)

Fishing with Jon Neafcy

 When Jon comes over for his talk on Tue 9th March 2010 he will be fishing with me at a local venue (yet to be decided). Anyone who wants to join us, let me know and we'll sort a venue.

Alan (RO)

Sponsorship

Please can we have any remaining sponsorship monies handed in at our next meeting so we can total it up and arrange for a cheque to be presented to the Air Ambulance.

Chico's lads have raised a massive £800 or so for the hospice - not bad for a day's fishing

Alan (RO)

Region in Focus article

 This article, along with the regional report have been sent to Pikelines. Hopefully our main article will be published in the Feb issue but due to their 'tribute to Barrie rickards' there is a chance that it could be put off til May's issue. Apologies for that but i think you'll agree that it's a worthy cause so I've agreed to delay our main article if necessary.

Alan (RO)

John Watto Watson coming soon

Just to remind everyone that John will be guest speaker on Tuesday 12th January 2010 so bring all your mates, we need a full house for this one lads - full member support very much appreciated.

Ads have been placed in local papers but be sure to post details on your forums and bloggs

Bring some dosh too if you want to grab a copy of john's book.

There will be the usual 'guess the weight' competition and a mega raffle with prizes donated by Open Water Angling centre, Pikemaster Traces and waterwolf lures.

Alan (RO) 

Jon Neafcy added to our list of Guest Speakers

Guest Speakers Mark Andrews & Pete Healey have been moved to April's meeting at their request and so will be doing us a talk after the trophy and annual awards presentation by Alan & Barry.

We are very pleased to announce that the Guest Speaker in March will be Jon Neafcy. Jon has agreed to take time out and travel to Notts for us to give us his account of almost 30yrs of pike fishing. He is one of the leading figures in the PAC and renouned for his regional support - full member support for Jon would be very much appreciated.

Alan (RO)

Next year's Fish-Ins

It may seem a long way off but the RO's are in the process of securing a variety of waters for our fish-in events next year.

We expect to join forces with Lincoln again in November for our annual charity event - and inter-region challenge with the Lincs drain bashers!!! Mick has agreed to give up his water for the day again.

There will be a total of around 4 competition fish-ins and we will be looking at rivers, canals and large stillwaters in the area.

Some of the venues we are looking at:

Chesterfield Canal

Clumber park

Fosdyke Canal

River Witham

Cottam Main lake

Trent

Warping Drain

River Torn

Girton (November 2010)

A full list will be published once bookings confirmed. Any members who have a water in mind or can give us access to their local waters please contact Alan alan@piketrace.co.uk

Alan (RO)

Club Finances

 Just to let members know that the club finances are looking very healthy. We should have enough spare cash at the end of the season to pay for the digital projector, leaving enough left over to setup events, etc  for next year.

The accounts will be published to members at our last meeting of the season in April 2010. Anyone wishing to see the accounts before then, please let me know and we'll arrange this with Mick.

Alan (RO)

Region in Focus

 We're in the process of preparing an article about the region for Pikelines. All members are very welcome to contribute to the article which will be published in the February issue of the mag. Closing date for article is 8th January 2010 so any info would have to get to me by 6th January at the latest to be included.

Alan (RO)

Charity fund raising

 Many thanks to all those who attended the Girton charity event and those who sponsored an angler. We are still waiting to collect all funds in but we hope to have raised in the region of £400.00 for the Lincs and Notts Air Ambulance Service. As soon as all funds are in we'll be arranging to present a cheque, probably at a members meeting.

Thanks again to all who helped to support this very worthy cause.

Alan (RO)

Fish-ins

The cold snap is upon us and most still have an icy lid. Depending on the weather we will move fish-ins from the lakes to the Trent. Watch this space for any updates.

Next fish-in is planned for sunday 3rd January 2010 - details / confirmation prior to the event contact Alan 07815 308463

Alan (RO)

You may have noticed that we've added more pages to the web site. Please have a look through and feel free to send us any information or pics you may have to contribute to the site.

Alan (RO)

Notts victory over the Lincs Mighty 48

Yes lads, we kicked their asses in the Girton fish-in. Chico's confidence was short-lived after we showed the Lincs 'drain bashers' how to catch pike in a man's water where the banks are more than 3 yards apart. We slaughtered em!! Well we beat em!!!

More importantly, a great day was had by all with plenty of fish caught and Lincs and Notts raised loads of dosh for our nominated charities.

Full details on the 'events report' page.

Thanks to all the lads who turned up to brave the weather and all those who sponsored the event.

Alan (RO)

Pikelines Articles continued:

It's your chance for fame (but can't promise fortune)!!

Pikelines mag is always on the look out for new material and we're very lucky in Notts to have the experience of members to call on.

If you can provide anything on the following areas, please send us a few words & pics and we'll arrange to have your stuff published:

• Technical / rigs / methods - this could be a new rig you've designed or an old one which you've modified or maybe a method you've found to be the most successful or simply a helpful tip for beginners
• Biography - anything about your angling history, inspirations, etc
• Conservation issues - you may have concerns on a local or national level regarding pike removal, contaminated water, etc
• Pike handling - you may have witnessed poor pike handling or methods and stepped in to offer advice to a junior or inexperienced angler. A story about what you did to help in any way with pike welfare or conservation is always welcomed by the PAC

The topics above are only a guide - Pikelines is your magazine for you to offer your advice, experience, stories and opinions.

If you need any help to put your article together, the ROs will help in any way we can.

Any members with articles or features they wish to have published, sent to ROs or pikelines before the 1st week in January for publishing in the February Issue. 

Alan (RO)

Fish-In venues

The ROs are in the process of securing new venues for next season's fish-ins (and maybe one for this season too). Any ideas or suggestions more than welcome. These could also include free or day ticket waters in your area.

Anyone who can get us on to waters in the area, let us know and we'll book the pegs. We are particularly interested in the River Till, Trent, Witham, Torn, Warping drain or still waters.

Alan (RO)

Pics of interest

Take a look at the new section 'pics of interest' added to the site. 

Thanks to all members who've submitted pics for our web site. We are always on the look out for more so please send us your pics. These could be of pike, scenery, wildlife or funny stuff, so get wading through your old pics and send us some in.

Alan (RO)

Pikelines Articles

All members are urged to put articles forward for publication in Pikelines. This could be anything to do with piking, a personal story, pike pics, experiences, anything you feel strongly about or anything you like to do with piking. We all have a few stories to tell and in Notts we've got the advantage of having some very experienced anglers. Put pen to paper and share your experiences and knowledge with other members.

Send your articles to Steve Ormrod, Pikelines Editor or contact Alan to discus your ideas 07815 308463.

Steve is always on the look out for new and interesting stuff for the mag and particularly anything which demonstrates members efforts in educating others with regard to pike handling, techniques and welfare. We have all done something which promotes the club and it's values so get writing and pass on your experiences for the mag and others.

Alan (RO)   

Congratulations to Phil Kirk

Once again our local grand master Phil has achieved fame but not fortune. Well done Phil for your excellent article published in the November issue of Pikelines. Covering Trent piking, a very interesting and informative article throughout. Write a book Phil, we'll buy it.

Alan (RO)

Girton Charity Fish-In 29th Nov 2009

Meeting at the fishery at 07:30 am. Once registered with the Steward, choose your own swim and fish till 4:00 pm.

Drections: From the A57 Lincoln Rd, turn off near Dunham Bridge on the A1133 towards South Clifton/Girton. Follow the road for a few miles and turn right down Meadow Lane - Sign posted 'Girton Sailing Club'. The fishery is on your left, meeting inside last gateway on the left.

Sat Nav users: NG23 7 (this postcode will take you directly to the fishery)

Any probs contact Alan: 07815 308463

John 'Watto' Watson coming soon

 Just to remind all members that John will be guest speaker on Tuesday 12th January 2010 - bring all your mates we need to fill the meeting venue for this one - not to be missed !!

Ads have been placed in all local papers but keep pushing this one lads, post details to your forums, etc. Full member support would be very much appreciated.

Alan (RO)