BW and Anglers

[Janet S]

I had forgotten all about it, wouldn't go back on a single word mind in fact I think it is rather good

 

I have to admit it that I recognised in your statement descriptions of some of the anglers we've passed whilst boating, and it did raise a wry smile! However, now I've started angling myself, I can see both sides. Anglers aren't a miserable bunch - far from it!

 

Some boaters don't help! I fish the canals regularly, and although most people who pass me are lovely and friendly, there are a certain few who aren't even civil enough to acknowledge my friendly smile and wave. From where I sit in my favourite spot by a disused swing bridge on the L&L, they are no more than four feet away from me as they pass, but they choose to pretend I don't exist. It's not pleasant to be ignored like that! A wave or a nod would be most welcome. If someone greeted you in the street with a cheery "Good morning", you'd respond, wouldn't you? It's just good old common courtesy.

 

I take my line out of the water in plenty of time, so they can plainly see that their route is clear, laying my rod down on the bank and taking the opportunity to pour a brew from my flask. As they approach, I smile and nod a greeting, but there are an unfortunate few who choose to pretend that I'm not there.

 

Then again, there are the lovely ones, by far the majority, who slow down for a chat and pass the time of day with me, mainly because they're surprised to find a woman fishing! I've even been offered (and gratefully accepted!) a bacon butty and a chance to use their facilities to save me having to dive behind the nearest bush!

 

 

Janet

[chris w]

Then again, there are the lovely ones, by far the majority, who slow down for a chat and pass the time of day with me, mainly because they're surprised to find a woman fishing! I've even been offered (and gratefully accepted!) a bacon butty and a chance to use their facilities to save me having to dive behind the nearest bush!

I can't believe that any but a tiny number of the angling community would want us to slow down for a chat and to pass the time of day with them, philanthropic though it may be!

 

I suspect they'd rather see the back of us as soon as possible so they can carry on fishing.

 

Chris

[DHutch]

...they are no more than four feet away from me as they pass, but they choose to pretend I don't exist. It's not pleasant to be ignored like that! A wave or a nod would be most welcome...

I often give fishermen a nod or a wave, but more often than not i find that there response is such that i get the feeling they would rather i wasnt there. So to that end, i also frequently dont bother.

- Simuarly, i dont think i can ever recall an incedent where a fisherman has noded/waved at us passing prior to me waving at them.

 

Maybe im just horrably baised. But thats the feeling i get.

- I personly think of myself as a fairly cheerfull talkative type, if rather shy. But again, maybe im just making that up, lol!

- If we ever pass a woman fishing by a disused L&L swing bridge i will be sure to give you a hearty wave, and offer you a bacon butty!!! (regardless of if we have bacon onboard or not...)

 

 

Daniel

[Janet S]

I can't believe that any but a tiny number of the angling community would want us to slow down for a chat and to pass the time of day with them, philanthropic though it may be!

 

You're probably right there.

 

However, I like to fish by a disused swing bridge. Very narrow, so most boaters choose to slow down. Quite a few of them, having exchanged a polite "hello", stop in the bridge hole for a short time to carry on nattering, which is very nice.

 

I'm not one of your deadly serious anglers. I love it, but I don't mind my fishing being interrupted by boats. I love to see boats using my canal.

 

Janet

[ChrisPy]

you'd all probably be surly miserable gits if you left home before dawn on a wet blowy day, drove for miles, set up on the river bank with cold feet, hands and heart, and rain driving down the back of your neck, got no bites, and then had to suffer the final indignity of bl**dy great steel objects pushing past you on a regular basis, driven by happy care-free souls carrying a hot mug of tea, smoking a pipe and singing along with the beat of the engine.

 

I used to fish. I stopped when I realised it gave me no joy whatsoever.

[alant]

 

...always try and be nice, you only live once........oh yes, and well done fishermen, I hardly ever see angler's rubbish (the dreaded plastic bags etc) on the towpaths these days. I used to see it everywhere.

[Sir Nibble]

I hardly ever see angler's rubbish (the dreaded plastic bags etc) on the towpaths these days. I used to see it everywhere

It still does happen, I have disposed of a few things like an open tin still half full of sweetcorn abandened to see if it will catch and injure or kill any waterfowl. By and large anglers are by the nature of what they do conservationists and we probably don't know how much they do for the canals by their very presence.

[1972eccles]

This thread is great

 

I too have been moaned at by one of these sour faced, strange individuals for using a winding hole. He didnt take his rod out of the water and his line got snared up in my prop and snapped. I suggested he do like most other fisherman and lift his rod out of the water when a boat comes past. Swearing followed, not at me, but as if he was talking to someone else. eg "E's only taken me ******* line, aint he?"

I enjoy fishing too by the way, my rod is always set up and ready to go. I would much rather go to a lake or something, but the cut is right on my doorstep. These canalside fisherman who think they have more right to be there than a Narrowboat with a Gold Licence, should have their dole money stopped.

In the angling times we are called water pikeys,to the auther Philip Pullman we are gyptians,to city folk we are just undesirables.The canal is there for everyone to use and if you have the correct licences,do what you like.

PS I hope you have your rod licence and fishing permits and cycle permits.Life gets easier when your legal.

I don't have a gold licence.Is that for when you reach a certain age.

[chris w]

I don't have a gold licence.Is that for when you reach a certain age.

 

No, it allows you to pan the cut for gold

 

Chris

[1972eccles]

I have always understood that you are permitted to fish off your boat anywhere on the canal system, provided your boat is fully licensed etc. I have seen it in in official BW documents but I can't remember where.

 

Before you start you must practise and perfect the angling techniques, not the casting and worm impaling thats easy, but the surley expression in response to a greeting and the more advanced skill off displaying intense concentration on your hook as a boat passes to such a degree that you cannot commumicate in any way.

 

There are many more things to master, I am sure other members will update you on some of them.

 

John Squeers

 

"A fishing rod is a stick with a hook at one end and a fool at the other".

Oscar Wilde (I think)

 

The fishing club will rent a stretch of canal from BW for a few thousand pound a year.What percentage do you think BW puts back into that stretch of canal?Thats the fishermans arguement,just like boaters.If you fish their canal then you have to pay for the right to.Welcome to this beautiful country!!!!!

 

No, it allows you to pan the cut for gold

 

Chris

 

Gold,gold, you said gold.I think it could be a morrisons trolley!!!!!!!

[Keeping Up]

I think it's lovely to see the way they spend hours trying to teach the maggots to swim, even fitting them up with little snorkels (although I think there's a design fault with them because the air-hole up the middle always seems to be blocked) and attaching a lifeline to pull them out of the way if a big dangerous fish comes along.

 

[1972eccles]

I think it's lovely to see the way they spend hours trying to teach the maggots to swim, even fitting them up with little snorkels (although I think there's a design fault with them because the air-hole up the middle always seems to be blocked) and attaching a lifeline to pull them out of the way if a big dangerous fish comes along.

 

I'm hoping to get enough countries together so we can have maggot olympics.

[Dr Bradley]

 

...always try and be nice, you only live once........oh yes, and well done fishermen, I hardly ever see angler's rubbish (the dreaded plastic bags etc) on the towpaths these days. I used to see it everywhere.

 

See Maffi's blog. As a canoeist, and I am going back several years, I found discarded gear all the time, sometimes with dead birds hanging from lost line and hooks - never will I forgive them.

[bramley]

well yesterday i went for a litle cruise through milton keynes as it was a lovely day.

 

there was a huge match going on, and it made me feel like i was doing somthing wrong, nobody said anything to me, i diddnt know if i should go slow or fast theres was about 3 miles worth of them..

 

 

 

was like that for so long, then i turnt round and came back, that was quite funny, so i made sure i had a nice brew on the side and was just happyly taking pictures.

 

im sure canals were built for boats?

 

p.s i can boat straght, but i was trying to take pictures lol

Edited February 4, 2007 by bramley

[Maffi]

well yesterday i went for a litle cruise through milton keynes as it was a lovely day.

 

there was a huge match going on, and it made me feel like i was doing somthing wrong, nobody said anything to me, i diddnt know if i should go slow or fast theres was about 3 miles worth of them..

 

was like that for so long, then i turnt round and came back, that was quite funny, so i made sure i had a nice brew on the side and was just happyly taking pictures.

 

im sure canals were built for boats?

 

p.s i can boat straght, but i was trying to take pictures lol

 

 

I have seen many anglers on my travels some are miserable sods but most are friendly.

 

Many have said why can't all you boaters do it like that?

 

What do I do?

 

Keep close to them but no so close as to wipe out the keepnets.

 

If there are only a few a quick burst of power should enable you to go into nuetral and coast past.

 

If there are many just go as slow as possible.

 

If they are using long poles they are fishing on the off side, Stay Away.

 

They have paid to fish there give them a fighting chance.

 

Yes canals were made for boats, but let's not forget many angling clubs kept the weed down when canals fell into disuse and so made it easier to open up the canals again.

[John Orentas]

I don't recall any angling clubs making any kind of contribution to restoration other than some building staging from old pallets and other junk. They didn't bother clearing anything away when they finished with them.

 

On the Rochdale they actively opposed the restoration.

'They have paid to fish there', yes about 1% of what you are paying, and they expect someone else to clear away their rubbish.

[StoneHenge]

I don't actually mind anglers as long as they don't mind me. I always (where possible) over and slow down, but there are occasions when it's not always possible to stay on the other side of them when you are passing moored boats and one moving coming the other way too.

 

I've not had any adverse comments yet.

 

I feel sorry for the ones that fish opposite the marina and they catapult quantities of goodies out to try and tempt the carp out of the marina (who are well fed inside by left overs).

 

Given the poor folks spend all that time, money and effort trying to catch something, when I only need a chunk of bread and a net to get myself a nice 6-10 pounds carp without much effort at all. the little darlings will feed out of your hand if you wait a little while.

 

The ones I don't like are the ones who do night fishing, or do very early or late fishing and bring with them a very loud radio to pass the time. I don't mind them entertaining themselves, but not at 3 am with music I can hear across the marina. A tad unsociable, but fortunately, a rarity as well.

[tomsk]

I have no issues with anglers, its miserable narrowboat owners that get me down

[saltyseadog]

I have no issues with anglers, its miserable narrowboat owners that get me down

 

I always make it a point to get eye contact with these anglers & try to get them to smile & if they do manage a smile I say to them "now thats a rare sight a smiling fisherman" it usually works.

[CanalWalker]

I have had nice conversations with fishermen on the towpath while out walking. Some are better than others. Some move their stuff out of the way and apologise others cover the path in gear. The same can be said for boaters.

Fishermen have just as much right to enjoy the canal and leisure boaters or walkers. I have heard people in brand new narrowboats say that the canals were built for boats not fish, but the sort of boat they say it in has about as much in common with a working boat as the fisherman does with a deep sea trawler.

[anhar]

I have had nice conversations with fishermen on the towpath while out walking. Some are better than others. Some move their stuff out of the way and apologise others cover the path in gear. The same can be said for boaters.

Fishermen have just as much right to enjoy the canal and leisure boaters or walkers. I have heard people in brand new narrowboats say that the canals were built for boats not fish, but the sort of boat they say it in has about as much in common with a working boat as the fisherman does with a deep sea trawler.

They don't have anywhere near as much right. The canals would not exist any more if not for boaters. The same cannot be said for anglers. It is boaters who keep the canals alive.

 

Moreover they sometimes fish in places where they shouldn't and thus obstruct boaters. The same cannot be said about boaters simply because there aren't any places where they shouldn't boat.

 

As a boater, and not also an angler, I've nothing in general against those fishing the canals, good luck to them. But they take second place to boaters. Most realise this and are decent about it and accommodate boaters by not fishing in awkward places, being polite and friendly when they have to move rods out of the way and so on. A significant minority of anglers though are troublemakers.

 

Recently I approached a lock single handed and needed to moor up at the bollards to set it. A bunch of anglers were at all the bollards and refused to move, making it impossible to moor. When I suggested politely that they shouldn't be there and move a few yards away, all I got was a mouthful of abuse, claiming that they had paid their licence as if they gave them the right to fish there, which it didn't.

 

I know nothing about fishing but when discussing this incident later with a boater who also fished, I learned that locks are good places for it because of the flow which I is what I had suspected. But he said that if anglers, quite against the rules, fish there, they should give way to boaters who need to moor for a few minutes to set locks. As he put it, that spot was not busy with boats so 90% of the time they aren't disturbed anyway. But when a boat comes they should graciously give way. This lot though were arseholes. Many other boaters have similar disturbing angler stories.

 

That was some way from my home but on the GUPA near where I live, there is a lot of angling especially on weekends. Fine as far as it goes on the face of it. But after they've left, the volume of rubbish left behind is quite shocking. Beer cans, plastic bags and so on. Pigs.

 

regards

Steve

Edited August 10, 2007 by anhar

[Sir Nibble]

You know how they pull in those massive poles and "break" them? well approaching an angler once, as usual at the last possible moment he starts hauling his pole in and stuffed the butt right into the front wheel of a bike passing behind him. The cyclist bit the dust and the pole was broken.

 

I DID NOT LAUGH.

[CanalWalker]

They don't have anywhere near as much right. The canals would not exist any more if not for boaters.

 

Absolute rubbish, they have just as much right as anyone to use the canal and there are plenty of canals and waterways that exist without boaters. People fishing in bridge holes or at locks are no different or worse than boaters mooring there. And yes, shock horror, some boaters leave rubbish behind them!

[John Orentas]

"They don't have anywhere near as much right. The canals would not exist any more if not for boaters".

 

Not sure I agree with all that but it would be nice if they could contribute a bit more to the up-keep of the system. Speaking to one chap, he was moaning that he was being ripped off for about 12 quid a year. The legitimate ones are also sent a booklet every year with a few do's and don'ts for the canals, I saw one once. Don't fish at lock entrances or lock flights, boat moorings close to bridges, don't obstruct the tow-path and quite a few more.

 

It should also not be beyond the wit of man to find ways of getting cyclists, walkers and dog owners to part with a few bob now and again. Though from the point of view of BW why bother when you can just hike up the cost to the users who are already captive.

[SteveE]

well yesterday i went for a litle cruise through milton keynes as it was a lovely day.

 

there was a huge match going on, and it made me feel like i was doing somthing wrong, nobody said anything to me, i diddnt know if i should go slow or fast theres was about 3 miles worth of them..

 

 

 

was like that for so long, then i turnt round and came back, that was quite funny, so i made sure i had a nice brew on the side and was just happyly taking pictures.

 

im sure canals were built for boats?

 

 

p.s i can boat straght, but i was trying to take pictures lol

 

What a nice clean roof - ours never looks like that!

We moored south of bridge 108 on the GU about 2 weeks ago, on a straight bit. Slightly late up on Sunday (good towpath barby and a few drinks previous evening) and emerged to find our boat in the middle of a fishing match. The fishers were amused and everyone had a laugh, including several passing boaters.

A bit further on a dopey-looking lad was dozing by his rod. We had to pass another boat as we passed him and, in going a bit close, his line snagged the front of the boat. Much to my amusement, an alarm went off, causing him to nearly fall off his chair. Bite alarms - new to me!

SteveE