EA rod licences must be renewed, insist EA

Have you got your rod licence for the new season? The old one expired on 31st March.

So if you are planning to fish in England or Wales over the coming season, you will now require a new one.

Anyone aged 12 or over who wishes to fish for salmon, trout, freshwater fish or eels must have an Environmental Agency rod fishing licence.

Fishing without a rod licence is not only illegal, but deprives other anglers of valuable revenue to help protect and improve resources.

As such, licence evasion is taken seriously and can carry fines of up to £2,500. The EA carries out routine patrols as well as blitzes to deter people from fishing without a licence.

In 2002/3 there were 184,000 rod licences sold in the Anglian region alone which generated more than £2.5 million to be spent on protecting and improving fish stocks and fishing opportunities.

EA Principal fisheries officer, Nigel Tomlinson said: “Rod licence fees are crucial in helping us to achieve and maintain high standards in fisheries. All the income from licence sales is re-invested directly into the fisheries service.”

Rod licences are available from:
Every post office in England and Wales;
By telephone (for full and junior concessionary licences only);
On-line (for full, junior concessionary, eight-day and one-day only) at www.environment-agency.gov.uk/rodlicence;
Through direct debit (for full and concessionary licence only).
You are eligible for a concessionary licence if:
You are aged 12 to 16 inclusive (junior)
You are aged 65 years or over (senior)
You receive long-term or short-term incapacity benefit, severe disablement allowance or a war pension, which includes unemployability supplement.
Prices for 2004/05 - valid from 1st April to 31st March 2005 are £23 for a full season non-migratory trout and coarse fish, and £62 for migratory salmon and trout.
Juniors are £5 and £31 respectively, eight-day licences are £8 and £19.50 and the one-day licence £3 and £6.50. A concessionary licence is £11.50.
If you have any queries relating to the issue of rod fishing licences, you can contact the National Rod Licence Admin Centre on 01925 653999 or visit the EA website (as above).

Lakeside Fishery, Ranskill

I had an overwhelming response with my offer of flyfishing help for local anglers.

I was surprised with the numbers of game anglers in the area, most of whom are from coarse fishing backgrounds.

Some wanted some basic information on how to get started and how to tackle the odd venue they were planning to visit.

One or two, on the other hand needed practical help and Creswell angler, Derek Ryles, was one of these.

He decided on his 50th birthday he would take up flyfishing and purchased a number of rods and other items of gear and wanted my opinion with a little casting help etc.

We made arrangements to meet at Lakeside fishery, a large complex of coarse fishing ponds, which includes a small trout lake.

Apart from two sticks of rhubarb, his selection of Flyrods were adequate enough to do the job, including the various flylines and reels that he purchased quite cheaply.

I explained the need to balance the rods with the line (aftm ratings) and set him up.

A four-hour crash course in flyfishing ensued. Derek could cast (in a fashion) reasonably far enough to catch, but needed some supplementary technical help in this area.

A frustrating couple of hours passed but my promise of not only helping with his casting but helping with his catching was the result.

After a couple of hours, I went off and eventually caught and released over 30 fish to 4lb-plus (using the Black Tadpole I mentioned in an earlier column).

I also observed Derek putting into practice what he had learned with trout to 2lb-plus.

He went home a ‘happy chappy’, much the wiser and more than capable of extracting the odd trout on future outings.

Fancy Lakeside Fishery? (telephone 01777 818524). Day tickets are £11 for two fish, £18.50 for four fish or £7 C and R (catch and release).

Plenty of sport to be had either coarse or game - if you can stand the noise of the passing trains all day.

Notice Board

Stewart Goulding of Go Baits Angling is hosting a series of Open matches at Langold Lake every Sunday.

The entry fee is £15 all-in with the draw at 9am and fishing from 10am to 4pm. Telephone 01909 540105 for further information.

The Chesterfield Canal Trust’s Norwood Packet Canal cruise is this Easter weekend, 9th to 12th April (Fri, Sat, Sun, Mon).

Starting and finishing at the Chequers Inn, Ranby, times are from 11am and 2.30pm.

The cruise duration is two-and-a-half to three hours long. Fares are £5 for adults and £3.50 for children. Contact Ken Clark on 01909 472791 for more information.

Ken Stevenson’s new angling course starts upstairs at the Miners Welfare, Gateford Road, Worksop on Monday 26th April from 7pm to 9pm. It is an opportunity for you to gain valuable skills at what is a great social gathering.

WDAA Needs Sponsors

With the continued success of the WDAA team, they tell me they are on the lookout for new sponsors.

I can’t believe a top tackle company hasn’t already snapped them up yet - especially now with them fishing the showpiece Angling Times Final on 4th July!

Round-Up

Go Baits held their latest open match on Sunday where 37 fished and Ian Madley was first with 16lb 12oz 3drm.

He was followed by Steve Whitfield (16lb 10oz 2drm), Mark Turner (16lb 10oz), Ian Turner (16lb 7oz 7drm) and Gary Davenport (16lb 7oz 6drm).

The winner had three tench and four skimmer bream using a groundbait feeder and caster/worm combination.

If you want to get in contact with Martin to give him any results, stories or information, you can e-mail him at martintrona@aol.com

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