CFFun
Author: Matt Rand • Photographs: Tom Legge • Location: Fenland Fisheries
Hooked On Fishing
Get Some Friends
Hooked!
‘Take A Friend Fishing’ was a popular slogan of a 1990s campaign
aimed at getting existing anglers to introduce newcomers to this
great sport of ours. Matt Rand is an almost evangelical believer
in this ethos – and that goes for the fairer sex too!
F
ishing is one of those pastimes where most
onlookers instantly class the participant as being
totally mad.
The fact that us fishermen can sit outside in
all conditions waiting for something wet and scaly to
take our bait, only for us to then return it back to the
water, is hard for some to understand. All I ever seem to
hear from non-anglers is: “Surely all you do is stare at a
motionless float for hours?”
This is where introducing people to angling has to be
done very carefully in my opinion; fishing can be like
they expect it to be, but it doesn’t have to be. Without
doubt the most important thing is to make sure their
first experience is a good one.
Can’t Kick, Will Fish!
I was first introduced to angling when I was nine years
old by my dad. At that age I had no other hobbies.
Most of my mates were into football, but being born
(or should I say blessed as it’s turned out!) with two
left feet meant I was never going to be much good on a
pitch.
I remember my first fishing session so clearly, which
is a miracle to be honest as I don’t tend to remember
much else! Dad had been into a local tackle shop and
bought a second-hand match rod and reel for himself,
plus one of those little starter kits with rope as mainline
for me. Our first session was spent sitting, legs dangling
over a jetty, float fishing maggots on a sunny summer
afternoon. The weather was perfect, the fishing was
good and come the end of the session I was nagging
him to take me again.
During the session I caught many small rudd, roach,
perch and gudgeon. Dad had most definitely created a
new angler. The good thing was that I wasn’t spoiled
with big fish straightaway, and because I was only nine
I didn’t get bored with the fact most of these were no
more than a couple of inches long.
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July 2006 Coarse Fisherman 51
CFFun
Hooked On Fishing
Bad Weather Blues
Nearly there - nobody forgets their first fish.
It’s not exactly Chanel - is it?
At this point in time, commercial fisheries were only just
starting to get popular so all my fishing was done locally
on small pits, rivers and drains. I am sure I may have
turned out a completely different type of angler had
I grown up solely on commercials. I’m in no way knocking
them; as many have said in the past they are indeed
the waters of the future. It’s just that personally I prefer
to target wilder waters, and this all stems from my
childhood angling.
Dad helped me a great deal along the way, always
making sure we never failed to catch and keeping things
interesting by making a big thing of trying to catch every
UK freshwater species local to us. Up until my teens I
fished solely with him, but once I was old enough to get
on my bike and go exploring by myself I just had to get at
least someone else interested.
With school holidays now being taken up with multiple
fishing trips I soon managed to blag a few mates to tag
along. But these more social sessions soon became a
waste of time, as we would make so much noise that we
may as well not have been fishing at all. I soon realised I
needed to convert people who actually wanted to catch
fish as well as having a laugh.
Ideals And Reality
In the ensuing years I have got quite a few people into
fishing, and several have stayed hooked. For me seeing
someone’s face when they catch their first fish is a
priceless moment. I know it certainly took a long to time to
wipe the smile off my face after my first!
Warm gear on bad days is a must for ‘new’ anglers
- even if it hasn’t been designed for fishing.
52 Coarse Fisherman July 2006
As already mentioned,
the problem we face when
introducing people to
angling is to make their first
impression a good one. For
youngsters who have yet
to enter their teens, I do
not think there is any better
way of introducing them
than float fishing for small
silver fish, before gradually
introducing them to bigger
species. Being younger,
attention spans aren’t great,
so the constant whipping
out of small silvers will
be enough to keep them
amused for ages.
In all honesty, I think
float fishing for small fish
is the way every angler
should start out. But with
the increased interest in
carp, most now learn how
to work a bite alarm long
before they learn how to
shot a float. This is a shame,
but it’s something that will
never change now. So let’s
just get on with making
the best of it rather than
bleating and wringing our
hands.
No matter what you feel
about them, carp play a
huge part in creating new
anglers. On near enough
every occasion I have taken
an older mate fishing for the
first time, these are the fish
I’ve staked out for them.
This is where commercial
fisheries come into their
own, being heavily stocked
with a great many species
but primarily carp. Being
a very hard fighting fish, I
can certainly see why many
people get addicted to
catching carp after they first
hook one, I know plenty of
my mates have.
Once they feel the pull of a fish pulling
back they’ll be hooked for life.
Raving Or Spodding?
During the winter of 2003, I was constantly nagged by a
couple of mates to go on a clubbing holiday, but having
done this the previous year, I fancied something different.
I proposed a week’s fishing in the south of France,
where we would have our own exclusive lake. To my
amazement eight friends were up for it straightaway. I
couldn’t believe it!
The lake had a six person limit, but luckily I managed to
blag us all on. It just meant yours truly didn’t get anywhere
to sleep in the chalet, but chalets are for wimps anyway.
My mate Rob had done a lot of fishing in the past, but
apart from him none of the others had ever caught a
carp over 10lb. I knew I was going to have to try my best
to make sure the guys had fun. There’s a big difference
between a hectic clubbing holiday and a possibly boring
fishing holiday to a non-angler.
One good thing was the fact that it only cost £1,000
to hire the lake. Split between eight of us, the only other
expenses were bait, travel and food. If £1,000 sounds like a
lot of money even between eight people, compare it to the
cost of an alcohol-fuelled week in Ibiza!
On arrival at the lake, we all sat around the picnic table
outside our chalet whilst Rob and I showed the others how
to tie up rigs. During our stay, we shared in the region of
220 fish including carp to 33lb, catfish to 46lb 8oz, a 26lb
8oz Grass carp and a 13lb sturgeon! The guys had had
a brilliant week, all landing fish to at least 25lb with the
majority getting a 30.
I had booked a couple of swims at Fenland Fisheries, a local
day ticket complex. I chose to fish Vermuyden Lake which
has a large head of carp ranging from a couple of pounds
up to mid-20s, alongside tench, bream, chub, barbel, rudd
and sturgeon. I felt it offered us a very good chance of a few
different species for the camera.
Rob and I set the girls up with six leger rigs on alarms, with
a couple of stalking rods at the ready too. Rigs were all in-line
bolt rigs with 3” hook-links, baits being either 8mm halibut
pellets or 10mm boilies. First port of call was to show them
exactly what to do when a take occurs, demonstrating how
to disengage the baitrunner on the strike being the most
important part.
Unfortunately, due to the session being pre-arranged to
avoid clashing with any of the girls’ shopping trips, I had
to break one of my golden rules for introducing people to
fishing. The weather was absolutely terrible, and it didn’t
actually stop raining until about 4pm!
Luckily the rain didn’t stop the fish from feeding. All the
girls put on a brave face despite the squelching underfoot,
and soaked trainers/jackets, and managed to land a good
number of fish between them. Gemma banked the biggest
of the day, a 12lb Mirror carp. Lisa managed carp to 8lb 8oz,
Katie chipped in with fish to 7lb, with Jess and Annabel
landing fish to 5lb. The day was a success, even if the
weather was a complete nightmare (Note to self: Must cover
up PVA!) and we were all very impressed with their efforts.
I’m pleased to announce not a single fish was handled in
rubber gloves, and screams were kept to a minimum.
What’s more, the bad weather experience hasn’t put any
of them off either. During a conversation with Gemma and
Anabel the other night they informed me that they would like
to go again! Jess has now taken an interest in stalking, whilst
Katie wouldn’t mind going again but would still prefer not to
touch them.
Lisa just doesn’t have a choice as she’s stuck with a fishing
mad-boyfriend who sneakily bought her a full year licence
when getting the rest of the girls one-day versions.
I had fished this water with Dad in 2001, so I knew it
would be a safe bet for some action. Had we tackled a
water where I had no background knowledge then I would
have spent a lot of time mapping out my own swim, let
alone seven others.
Not all of the guys have wanted to continue fishing back
home, but all are very keen on another holiday abroad.
As long as their fishing experiences have been good then
that’s enough for me. You can’t force people to get out on
the banks, but they may be well inclined to do so at a later
point in their lives.
Wet, Muddy But Happy
Angling needn’t be just a bloke thing. For this article’s
photo-shoot I gathered together five of my girlie mates; my
girlfriend Lisa Gregory, Rob’s girlfriend Jess Christiansson,
good friend Alex Burch’s girlfriend Anabel Wilson, plus
Gemma Trigwell and Katie Hammond. I’ve introduced girls
to fishing before, so why not on a larger scale?
Lisa has been fishing with me a few times over the years.
The first time I took her being a session that I’m constantly
reminded of. Well, I didn’t think pike fishing on Valentine’s
Day was a bad idea … at least it was memorable!
Since then Lisa has had a couple of casts around when
she’s been out with me, and caught carp to 10lb. Jess has
fished once before with Rob, and landed a couple of carp.
Katie, Gemma and Anabel, on the other hand, had never even
considered fishing before. And when Katie arrived on the day
with a pair of latex gloves I knew I had my work cut out!
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CFFun
Hooked On Fishing
Gemma with
12lb Mirror carp
Anabel
Rob and Jess
Here’s six golden guidelines
from the Rand rulebook…
>1
Want To Fish Fenland?
Make sure you have decided what the person you are taking
will be happy catching, and always try and work from the
smallest fish up. Being able to target bigger fish always makes
fishing more fun on return journeys.
Fenland Fisheries, Earith, Cambridgeshire, is a mature 16 acre
site comprising four well stocked lakes, plus an ornamental
fish/garden pond supplies business. The main lake, Willow, is
a syndicate water containing many different species, primarily
carp ranging from 8 to 40lb. The other three are day ticket
waters with a good stock of carp to 25lb, tench, rudd, chub,
barbel, sturgeon, and for anyone who fancies a challenge a
near-20lb albino Grass carp!
Day tickets are £10 on the bank, but a two minute walk to the
on-site shop cuts this to £6 (adult) or £5 (junior, disabled or OAP).
A modest range of end tackle and bait is also available here.
Summer opening hours are 8am until 6.30pm, automatic gate.
Rules: • No keepnets • Maximum two rods • No dogs
• Barbless or micro-barb hooks • No groundbait unless in feeder.
• Method feeders permitted • No unaccompanied children
• Strictly no litter – lifetime ban for offenders.
For further information contact Matt or Adrian on 01487 841858.
54 Coarse Fisherman July 2006
>2
Lisa and Katie
How To Create
An Angler
So far, when attempting to introduce
someone to our sport, I have yet to
suffer any serious failures. I’m sure as
long as it is done properly you’ll find
most people enjoy it. Do it wrong,
however, and you’re quite likely to put
someone off for life! CF
>3
>4
>5
>6
Take your newcomer to a water where bites are guaranteed,
not somewhere that involves hours watching a motionless
float or silent alarm.
Try and incorporate a bit of margin or surface stalking into the
session, as this is fishing at its best! Every non-angler I have
demonstrated this method to has watched fascinated as fish
approach the bait.
Make sure you take them to a water you have knowledge
of, that way you can put them on the fish from the off using
methods you just know will catch fish.
Go on a nice day. Weather makes all the difference to
someone having a good or bad experience. Okay, I broke this
rule this time – but got away with it due to the quality of sport
and company.
In the case of women, make sure there is a decent toilet
facility on-site!
A Family Holiday for ALL
Chestnut Lake France
For those of you who like a spot of ¿shing or are
dedicated anglers, this lake is the one for you.
Chestnut Lake is an exclusive ancient ¿ve and half
acre lake, abundant with smaller ¿sh such as roach,
perch, tench, rudd and pike with some of these
larger than average and some speceimens of perch
reaching to just over 4 pounds!
For the ¿sherman in the family - our lake is stocked with all sizes
of carp up to 40 pounds, and with a catsh well over this weight.
For the family - we are set in exclusive beautiful surroundings
with panoramic views, perfect for a relaxing holiday, but we also
have an exciting play area to keep children amused.
Our brand new static chalet sleeps up to six and includes all
the home comforts and utilities. The chalet is equipped with an
integrated dishwasher, a large fridge with freezer and there are
laundry facilities and an extra freezer/fridge should you require
this. The chalet has its own TV/DVD (with a selection of lms for
all the family) and satellite.
For more information and booking advice check our website
www.chestnutlakefrance.com or call Michael and Michelle
on 00 33 555 763 433
www.chestnutlakefrance.com
July 2006 Coarse Fisherman 55