Many people suggest that the popularity if Commercial Fisheries – waters carefully managed and stocked specifically for angling – is a sad reflection of our modern Society. We are impatient, and have gotten too used to convenience. We don’t want to work hard and wait – to be forced to creep through dense undergrowth or have our casts hindered by overhanging branches. Instead, give us a nice lawned bankside where we can stroll to our wooden platforms without getting our trainers wet – and then, let us cast for fish that do not have sufficient natural food to sustain them.
The thing is, many of us have little choice but to fish such waters. Less mobile anglers simply cannot pick a path down the steep banks of the Wye or Teme – or wade between the weedbeds of the Itchen or Test. Here is a chance to fish safely and often quite cheaply.
And now that many of the once ‘muddy puddles’ have matured, so their allure has deepened. There are 30 foot alders and overhanging brambles, extensive reed beds and lily pads the size of dinner plates. And beneath the surface, there now swim one or two surprises.
Perch have grown unnoticed in many pools, and now offer anglers the chance of specimen fish throughout the winter. And as many anglers concentrate upon the carp, other species like tench and bream have fattened up on neglect.
Don’t overlook the ‘Commercial’ – it might just surprise you.