Free stretch closed ???

[marty31]

The free stretch in durham city is to be closed for fishing for 2016 and beyond conservationists have condemned this area as "salmon and seatrout poaching on a industrial scale" a new bylaw is being sought that will ban all types of fishing in this area? no fishing signs to be erected to give EA bailiffs and police power to arrest anyone still fishing, reports of so called fishers bringing refrigerated vehicles to take their haul away come on wear anglers, whats been going on? is this not happening in the middle of the city? what a way for free fishing to have to end! sounds the same fate as what happened the peebles anglers association, why has this not been stopped before this?

 

[keirstream]

The free stretch in durham city is to be closed for fishing for 2016 and beyond

Is that the beat Bushwhacker fishes???

 

[Hemmy]

The Wear lads are a bit quiet at moment......someone wake them up please

 

[Chester]

Think so. Some decent water now being denied to honest anglers!

Read the same report in the latest T&S. No doubt that area suffers from poaching but this report definitely appears to have been dramatised.

I've heard local complaints that even when poaching is reported the police and EA often fail to respond. Question has to be asked, how this measure will prevent poaching? If someone is prepared to poach, would a ban on legal fishing stop them, considering there will less honest anglers on the bankside?

Surely they could have considered handing management of this stretch to one of the local clubs, who could have policed it rather than a whole section of river being lost to anglers,

 

[Grassy_Knollington]

Based on what he posts here yes it is one of the stretches he fishes.

There are frequent reports of foul hooking and bad practice, It is also a bit of a bottleneck in low flows. Personally I've never seen the snagging myself but I was never a frequent visitor and I've not been there for 4 years. Have seen a couple of young lads take 4 or 5 in a morning on the stretch opposite the Radisdon but they were fishing normally- well done them!

It is a real shame that instead of enforcing the rules or improving passage through the weirs, the EA and Police appear to be taking the easy way out.

Just going on the letters to the Angling press there may also be just a bit of resentment at the catches on the free stretch, as well as the methods sometimes employed. Hopefully that isn't the case.

 

[Bushwhacker]

I would love to know where they get the reports of "industrial scale" poaching from??.And as for people turning up with refrigerated vans,thats just ********.
I have fished this stretch for 45 years now and have seen it all.
Over the last 2 years there has been the odd snatching going on,but nothing like it used to be.There has been (and still is) probably just as much snatching gone on on some club waters over the years.
Its more "Sour grapes" from some of the local clubs than anything else that the fishing is to be stopped.
A couple of clubs have been trying to get there hands on this stretch since I started fishing there because it has some of the best holding pools on the river.This is because of the dam just above it.
Rather than close it,,why couldn,t they let a club (or clubs) take it over then we could still fish it and it could be policed by members as well as the EA and the Police.
I have heard that they are not closing the full stretch,but leaving just 2 pools worth fishing.
I will definitely not be doing as much fishing next year now as I can,t afford the money the clubs and syndicates are now asking,unless my lottery numbers come up(fingers crossed).Plus I can,t walk and climb as much as I used to with me having a bad heart,back and now my lungs.
I will probably mostly now be fishing the tidal pools as its cheap and in most places free.
The trouble with most of the estuary is its a canny walk from any transport to the best spots,plus they only fish when the river is low for some time.Which,looking at the last 2 seasons may be the norm in the future.

 

[Hemmy]

I would love to know where they get the reports of "industrial scale" poaching from??.And as for people turning up with refrigerated vans,thats just ********.
I have fished this stretch for 45 years now and have seen it all.
Over the last 2 years there has been the odd snatching going on,but nothing like it used to be.There has been (and still is) probably just as much snatching gone on on some club waters over the years.
Its more "Sour grapes" from some of the local clubs than anything else that the fishing is to be stopped.
A couple of clubs have been trying to get there hands on this stretch since I started fishing there because it has some of the best holding pools on the river.This is because of the dam just above it.
Rather than close it,,why couldn,t they let a club (or clubs) take it over then we could still fish it and it could be policed by members as well as the EA and the Police.
I have heard that they are not closing the full stretch,but leaving just 2 pools worth fishing.
I will definitely not be doing as much fishing next year now as I can,t afford the money the clubs and syndicates are now asking,unless my lottery numbers come up(fingers crossed).Plus I can,t walk and climb as much as I used to with me having a bad heart,back and now my lungs.
I will probably mostly now be fishing the tidal pools as its cheap and in most places free.
The trouble with most of the estuary is its a canny walk from any transport to the best spots,plus they only fish when the river is low for some time.Which,looking at the last 2 seasons may be the norm in the future.

I sympathise with you BW........looks as though you and others have been well and truly shafted.
Hope you manage to get something sorted

 

[TonyPrior]

I'm very sorry to hear this Bushwhacker. I've always enjoyed looking at your remarkable catches on water where most of us would struggle and fail, and IMO you're one of the best anglers on this forum. It's doubly anoying to know that financially and health-wise this policy is going to curtail your fishing.
I hope that somehow you'll have many more seasons and excellent catches, and keep some of us wondering..."how does he do that?"

 

[Occasional salmon fisher]

Seems like a real shame. Everyone is making noises about getting youngsters and newcomers into fishing but then a free stretch which they can easily fish is closed down. Maybe that is part of the EA's agenda ?! Less fisherman = less potential hassle for them ?

 

[Hemmy]

I remember as a boy in the mid sixties getting the bus to Durham to fish the Wear.....happy days....

 

[greenlaner2009]

free stretch

if any one would like to send an email to the chairman of the freeman of durham city to express their concerns about this he can be contacted at hezza@talktalk.net something along the lines of poaching should be policed correctly and for there not to be a loss of a public amenity to the total community because of the few. the perceived bottle neck to the migratory fish has been sorted with the new fish pass installed and running this last season the counters show fish moving through every day. this proposal was brought about by group of guys who banded together and called themselves wear anglers association. a previous poster said wear anglers are quiet wake them up, the reason for the hushed voices is people making any public noises of disagreement are having their names passed about and are going to find it hard to get club memberships. I have already had a heated discussion with the wear anglers association who told me my name is known among their association so I am expecting problems myself time will tell, I am only putting this up here as I have anonymity. kind regards

 

[Hemmy]

if any one would like to send an email to the chairman of the freeman of durham city to express their concerns about this he can be contacted at hezza@talktalk.net something along the lines of poaching should be policed correctly and for there not to be a loss of a public amenity to the total community because of the few. the perceived bottle neck to the migratory fish has been sorted with the new fish pass installed and running this last season the counters show fish moving through every day. this proposal was brought about by group of guys who banded together and called themselves wear anglers association. a previous poster said wear anglers are quiet wake them up, the reason for the hushed voices is people making any public noises of disagreement are having their names passed about and are going to find it hard to get club memberships. I have already had a heated discussion with the chairman of wear anglers who told me my name is dirt among their association so I am expecting problems myself time will tell, I am only putting this up here as I have anonymity. kind regards

Unbelievable......best of luck to you

 

[Heero]

What a sham this sounds like.

 

[Aled]

That's really bad news, for honest anglers.
Aled

 

[Rennie]

My heart bleeds for the honest angler who fished there!.Its quite simple really,no one wants to take on the job of balifing or policing the stretch in an effective manner.,by the sounds of previous posts there has been opportunity aplenty to sort something.Simply ban fishing there,easiest way!.Another fine example of a river being "managed" into oblivion!.
Pedro.

 

[Chester]

if any one would like to send an email to the chairman of the freeman of durham city to express their concerns about this he can be contacted at hezza@talktalk.net something along the lines of poaching should be policed correctly and for there not to be a loss of a public amenity to the total community because of the few. the perceived bottle neck to the migratory fish has been sorted with the new fish pass installed and running this last season the counters show fish moving through every day. this proposal was brought about by group of guys who banded together and called themselves wear anglers association. a previous poster said wear anglers are quiet wake them up, the reason for the hushed voices is people making any public noises of disagreement are having their names passed about and are going to find it hard to get club memberships. I have already had a heated discussion with the chairman of wear anglers who told me my name is dirt among their association so I am expecting problems myself time will tell, I am only putting this up here as I have anonymity. kind regards

Strange how we've never had a single post supporting this ban as a good idea!!

 

[scotsmac1]

Would some private beats above it applied pressure in the closing of the fishery. More fish for them and there paying clients.
Not my local fishery, so this is just a thought.

 

[seeking]

Strange how we've never had a single post supporting this ban as a good idea!!

That's because this is SFF home of many rational salmon anglers.

Who probably all see this as a despicable sham.

Which it is.

EndEx.

IMHO there's about as much logic spoken about salmon poaching as there is salmon netting. A number of folk allege "industrial-scale" poaching on the Wear as they did on the Tweed. Yet look how those rivers have performed, with their population of salmon exploding the last decades, whereas un-poached rivers like the Fyne have collapsed. "Go figure" indeed.

That's not to condone poaching at all of course, in case anyone gets the wrong end of the stick.

 

[severnfisher]

Bans like this can be beaten

The council tried to ban fishing on the free stretch of the River Severn in Bewdley Worcestershire. We were blamed for lead poisoning in swans.

So what we did was:

1. set up a club to represent people who fished the free water.
2. organised a protest march with 200 people turning up from around the country.
3. lobbied councillors
4. got our side of the story on the telly and in the papers.

Mark Lloyd now of the Angling Trust was a great help.

The ban was scrapped and the EA now accept that the lead poisoning comes from the ancient drains....

 

[river watcher]

free stretch closure

having read the replies to the closure of the free stretch,let me correct some of the posts,
1.more than two thirds of the stretch,will be left open for free fishing.
2.the top third below the weir will be the fish conservation area
3.the EA will still be responsible for all of the stretch for illegal poaching.
4.the top third ,the conservation area will also be the responsibility of Durham police to enforce a bye-law.
5.The two thirds left open will not be the responsibility of Durham police.
6.the object of the conservation area is to protect vulnerable fish from illegal snatching,and from unscrupulous so called anglers.
7.protect future stocks.
Some of the posts have read seem to of a very negative nature,however i am sure that all fishermen who have read this will have a more informed
picture.
I care about the future of our fishing,protect it from the fishmongers,or lose it.
NB. i am not involved with the partial closure,but fully support the conservation measures.

 

[Dave.charlton]

As requested by "Chester" here is my voice with support FOR the area to be turned into a conservation area and not be fished by either the free anglers or a club.

The free stretch in Durham City Centre,for those who are unfamiliar with this part of the river, is situated just below Framwellgate weir, a formidable obstruction to any migratory fish, especially in low water. For about 150 yards downstream salmon and sea trout congregate, waiting to run the river. For years it has been a magnet for poachers, the Environment Agency have battled the snatchers and have achieved many convictions.

This stretch is also plagued by many dubious anglers, who although fishing legitimately, using spinners, worm, shrimp, and fly, hound the poor salmon and sea trout day and night. I have witnessed this happen over many years,and it makes me ashamed.

I for one welcome this conservation area giving some respite to dwindling numbers of migratory fish, plus as "Bushwacker" says there is still a considerable area to be left free, just not the pool(s) where the fish lie in their hundreds waiting for fresh water. Instead of complaining we should be applauding, and I am sure this goes for all conservation minded and caring anglers.

I am not a member of the Wear Anglers Association but I do fish the Wear below the free stretch, so can not be accused of wanting the fish to clear the hurdle of the Weir so I can have a crack at them myself. But in all reality do we not all want the fish to be able to get through the Weir and do their business in the top parts of the river?

 

[greenlaner2009]

durham

As requested by "Chester" here is my voice with support FOR the area to be turned into a conservation area and not be fished by either the free anglers or a club.

The free stretch in Durham City Centre,for those who are unfamiliar with this part of the river, is situated just below Framwellgate weir, a formidable obstruction to any migratory fish, especially in low water. For about 150 yards downstream salmon and sea trout congregate, waiting to run the river. For years it has been a magnet for poachers, the Environment Agency have battled the snatchers and have achieved many convictions.

This stretch is also plagued by many dubious anglers, who although fishing legitimately, using spinners, worm, shrimp, and fly, hound the poor salmon and sea trout day and night. I have witnessed this happen over many years,and it makes me ashamed.

I for one welcome this conservation area giving some respite to dwindling numbers of migratory fish, plus as "Bushwacker" says there is still a considerable area to be left free, just not the pool(s) where the fish lie in their hundreds waiting for fresh water. Instead of complaining we should be applauding, and I am sure this goes for all conservation minded and caring anglers.

I am not a member of the Wear Anglers Association but I do fish the Wear below the free stretch, so can not be accused of wanting the fish to clear the hurdle of the Weir so I can have a crack at them myself. But in all reality do we not all want the fish to be able to get through the Weir and do their business in the top parts of the river?

just a few points for you dave, there are already restrictions on fishing below weirs of one hundred yards so on your thoughts every weir should be no fishing for about 1000 meters. how can the free stretch anglers be in your words dubious if their fishing legally, how else do you catch a fish if not spinning or shrimping or fly fishing. whats wrong with people fishing night or day all legal, im sure your angling club allow all methods and no time restrictions on felling fly fishers water. and could you show me from the new counter daily figures that fish can not negotiate the new pass at low flows that we had all summer. I can see from that information that they moved on every night.

 

[Waltham and Dritness]

I can't help but scratch my head at the arguments for closing the stretch.

This stretch is also plagued by many dubious anglers, who although fishing legitimately, using spinners, worm, shrimp, and fly, hound the poor salmon and sea trout day and night. I have witnessed this happen over many years,and it makes me ashamed.

How can an angler who is fishing legitimately be labelled dubious? Almost all club water is over fished. (at least when it's holding good numbers)

I care about the future of our fishing,protect it from the fishmongers,or lose it.

Protect it or lose it?!? But to protect it your saying they have to lose it? Eh?

 

[Chester]

"This stretch is also plagued by many dubious anglers, who although fishing legitimately, using spinners, worm, shrimp, and fly, hound the poor salmon and sea trout day and night. I have witnessed this happen over many years,and it makes me ashamed"

Really!! Hope everyone takes care not to hound the fish next time they are lucky enough to fish a pool that happens to have fish in it

I fish the Wear regularly and this section occasionally but for everyone to lose this stretch of fishing forever, based on the facts presented, just seems wrong!

 

[Loxie]

I know nothing of the Wear but it seems a bit silly to me. If the EA et al can't control poaching on a stretch why does anyone think it will be easier with no legitimate anglers to keep an eye on it? As to fish building up below an obstruction, if we ban fishing for them some pretty famous beats will close, not least Junction on the Tweed. As to "hounding" fish that does not seem to stand much scrutiny either. If I get the chance to go fishing I like to make the most of a day rather than sit around eating or drinking, maybe I should be banned as a "hounder"? To me it is another example of the rights of ordinary anglers being eroded by stupid legislation with the connivance of other anglers more fortunate in their opportunities.