• You need to be a registered member of Barbel Fishing World to post on these forums. Some of the forums are hidden from non-members. Please refer to the instructions on the ‘Register’ page for details of how to join the new incarnation of BFW...

River Cherwell

Very informative post Jason,.. thanks.
I think the Cherwell story has been replicated on quite a few other rivers where recreational and commercial usage often seems to override a river's wellbeing.
 
Interesting points Jason, and it's obvious you and Colin have exhausted every avenue available for which you deserve great credit. From all the posts, both past and present on the river, it seems to be a mixture of different things that have caused the problems with lack of water being the critical issue. This would tie in with the river looking fine in winter with the increased flow and decreased boat traffic. So I suppose the river itself is still acceptable to the fish though the constant blocking of summer sun can't be a good thing for any aquatic life. As to the crays, who knows? Is it regularly trapped? I haven't seen any traps where I fish but I do find crayfish remains on the bank so maybe the otters find them easier to catch than trying to see a fish in the murky water! Interesting you have managed a couple of barbel Jason, I think you're right about them being stockies. They certainly used to spawn successfully both at Somerton and Shipton, back in the 80s and 90s anyway. I doubt we'll ever see the river back to what it was then. You could walk the first field at Browns meadow in Somerton and it was thick streamer weed, gin clear water and clean gravel for the first couple of hundred yards, same as Heyford. Now it's a not very big, murky ditch. Those responsible, because someone is, should be ashamed
 
certain stretches seem to be affected in worst ways than others, the inter linking of the canal can suck water out of the river at one point and leave it running almost dry like what happens at the crossing at nell bridge. But water can be be dumped back in in other areas wher there are mini weir's on the canal putting it back into the river like at thrupp.

Down my way there is a stark contrast between shipton and thrupp. Shipton looks terrible nowadays as the farmer pulls all the water down the back stream leaving no water going over shipton weir, so the river runs almost dry until it meets back up at the church. It's a shame but shipton as pretty much gone now as a fishery with no one controlling it and I s nearly all unfishable due to willows falling.

Thrupp down to the a34 and Bransons as fished very well the last couple of years with roach and dace making a massive come back and with weeed growth particularly ranunculus narrowing the channels and keeping the flow rate up.

I think we just have to get used to it being to rivers, almost spate like with the weather we have nowadays.
 
Afternoon all, first time I've looked in here for years.

Jason - How are you mate? It's been ages!

As for the Cherwell, I can only agree with everything you've said. The canal has a lot to answer for IMO, and you should be congratulated for fighting the new marina, the river needs people fighting it's corner.

I always remember the first time I saw the point at which the river flows into the canal just below the Aynho Road, and exits again over a weir - above the junction it looked fine and as it should, but after passing through the canal it immediately picked up a horrible brown colour. This was over 10 years ago, and by the time it got down to Clifton it used to run pretty clear again, clear enough to spot fish even. Now however that colour seems to be throughout the entire river, and we basically stopped bothering to fish at Clifton as catches dropped off so noticeably. The flow still seems to be ok, and maybe the fish are still there, but the otter can't have helped and the colour really does put me off.

I fished the wides at the start of the season this year having not been up there for years, and walking down to the weir at Shipton was a terrible shock - I know the rivers been in decline but that was something else. Two ducks standing knee deep in a puddle of stagnant water was not what I wanted to see :(
 
Maybe the response on this topic qualifies the Cherwell to be included in 'river reports' where this important feedback can be archived?
It sounds so familiar to my experience on the Wey and Kennet where the natural non-navigable loops in the river are starved of water in the summer months. The navigation being the biggest abstracter of the rivers lifeblood and responsible for dumping silt downstream of wherever the next confluence happens to be.
 
Jason Bean said:
Shipton looks terrible nowadays as the farmer pulls all the water down the back stream leaving no water going over shipton weir, so the river runs almost dry until it meets back up at the church.
Jason, that really upsets me,as a Ruislip member in the 80's i used to sneak under the railway bridge and fish the pool where the backwater comes back in.It was my banker swim for big Roach.I had my first 2lb roach from that swim fishing from the backstream side.I caught 3 x 2lb roach that day from that swim,I had found paradise,how things change. I think that day i also had 18 Chub trotting Bread along the fishery.A few years later we found the Barbel in good numbers.They say never go back,i think that's right in this case.
Click to expand...
 
Alex Gowney said:
As to the crays, who knows? Is it regularly trapped? I haven't seen any traps where I fish but I do find crayfish remains on the bank so maybe the otters find them easier to catch than trying to see a fish in the murky water! Interesting you have managed a couple of barbel Jason, I think you're right about them being stockies. They certainly used to spawn successfully both at Somerton and Shipton, back in the 80s and 90s anyway. I doubt we'll ever see the river back to what it was then. You could walk the first field at Browns meadow in Somerton and it was thick streamer weed, gin clear water and clean gravel for the first couple of hundred yards, same as Heyford. Now it's a not very big, murky ditch. Those responsible, because someone is, should be ashamed
Click to expand...

there's very little trapping going on I think its just regional, like I said its the same on the thames...whatever is happening hopefully its permanent.

also the barbel population even at its peak was very precariously balanced, the impounding and limited access to spawning sites left the pockets of fish that were around susceptible to even small scale habitat degradation.

the years following the floods of 2007 seriously damaged the ranunculis beds, rushes and cabbages..but now around kidlington its all back in a big way narrowing the channels again.
 
Nick Franklin said:
Afternoon all, first time I've looked in here for years.

Jason - How are you mate? It's been ages!

As for the Cherwell, I can only agree with everything you've said. The canal has a lot to answer for IMO, and you should be congratulated for fighting the new marina, the river needs people fighting it's corner.

I always remember the first time I saw the point at which the river flows into the canal just below the Aynho Road, and exits again over a weir - above the junction it looked fine and as it should, but after passing through the canal it immediately picked up a horrible brown colour. This was over 10 years ago, and by the time it got down to Clifton it used to run pretty clear again, clear enough to spot fish even. Now however that colour seems to be throughout the entire river, and we basically stopped bothering to fish at Clifton as catches dropped off so noticeably. The flow still seems to be ok, and maybe the fish are still there, but the otter can't have helped and the colour really does put me off.

I fished the wides at the start of the season this year having not been up there for years, and walking down to the weir at Shipton was a terrible shock - I know the rivers been in decline but that was something else. Two ducks standing knee deep in a puddle of stagnant water was not what I wanted to see :(
Click to expand...

good to see your still about Nick, hows Tom...been tc lately.
 
Dave Taylor said:
Maybe the response on this topic qualifies the Cherwell to be included in 'river reports' where this important feedback can be archived?
It sounds so familiar to my experience on the Wey and Kennet where the natural non-navigable loops in the river are starved of water in the summer months. The navigation being the biggest abstracter of the rivers lifeblood and responsible for dumping silt downstream of wherever the next confluence happens to be.
Click to expand...

the Cherwell pretty much done now as a barbel river, common problems to other rivers were showing on the Cherwell well before the others that are suffering now. I always remember when I first joined bfw thinking you wait when you get a small rivers mink, otters, signal crayfish, low summer flow and poor farming practices mixed together... your barbel won't be around for long!

I think the Cherwell thread died for a reason...
 
Mark Swaby said:
Jason, that really upsets me,as a Ruislip member in the 80's i used to sneak under the railway bridge and fish the pool where the backwater comes back in.It was my banker swim for big Roach.I had my first 2lb roach from that swim fishing from the backstream side.I caught 3 x 2lb roach that day from that swim,I had found paradise,how things change. I think that day i also had 18 Chub trotting Bread along the fishery.A few years later we found the Barbel in good numbers.They say never go back,i think that's right in this case.
Click to expand...

I know the pool well...when I first moved to oxford saw my first and only ever shoal of Cherwell barbel there in the close season, never saw on again.

its still looks nice above the bridge just in front of the cattle drink, very very over grown now...free fishing though.
 
That was a great little pool! I had perch over two pounds, five pound chub, five pound tench, nine pound barbel and five pound bream from it.
 
Jason Bean said:
I think the Cherwell thread died for a reason...
Click to expand...

Well, I see your point Jason,.. but archived river threads, no matter how negative and depressing serve as as historical record of the failings of those whose responsibility it is or was to allow it all to occur. This thread will get lost in time unless it's part of river reports.
I think many of our " peers" have a blind spot, I put this link up a couple of years ago just to aggravate Alex!!

http://myparliament.info/Debates/commons/2015-1-26/8336

:rolleyes::eek:
 
Jason, you mentioned free fishing,do you mean what used to be the Ruislip side or the Canal side,sorry cannot remember which club ran that.
 
Well I'm pretty sure Banbury no longer control the shipton stretch and Ruislip no longer have there water on the opposite L/H bank past Thrupp.

I used to speak to a couple of the Ruislip guys at the odaa meetings and they did ask if kidlington could share the rent as they were considering giving it up...never seen any of there guys on the river for years since.
 
Jason, the barbel in that pool, were probably the most pressurised on the the Cherwell, they got hammered for a good 10 years years before you came across them, probaly explains why they didn’t hang around after the close season! A friend did have one a couple of seasons ago, 9lb 8oz, and it wasn’t a stockie, I weighed it for him, it was in lovely condition.

Mark, the canal side is now free fishing, it use to be run by Banbury (BDAA), they have now dropped it. I use to be a member of Ruislip myself (very handy for fishing the spit on Savay Lake!!) As far as I know, the Ruislip side is free now, as long as you don’t bump into the farmer. Had some superb barbel fishing along the whole length, from Shipton railway bridge right down to Millers Hook. It is still accessible over the old rickety wooden bridge at Shipton. Or if you were too lazy to walk that far, a couple of us use to put the waders on and wade across at Thrupp.

Alex, I had a look at the Cherwell at three different locations on Tuesday before the rain came. By Banbury reservoir it was crystal clear, a few miles downstream at Sommerton and Heyford it was that horrible brown colour again and very low, it has been like that at these two spots since April! Who knows, but i know what is between these two locations!!
 
Caught a lot of Barbel there from mid 80's,the high bank just below the railway was always good for a fish.I think i have met you Michael,long time ago,at a fishing meeting,were you a Gerrards x member, did you fish for Cats? .The last time i fished it i caught a lot of roach,none big but almost 30lb from one swim and was wondering if they had got bigger with being left alone.Might be worth a look.
 
Mark Swaby said:
Caught a lot of Barbel there from mid 80's,the high bank just below the railway was always good for a fish.I think i have met you Michael,long time ago,at a fishing meeting,were you a Gerrards x member, did you fish for Cats? .The last time i fished it i caught a lot of roach,none big but almost 30lb from one swim and was wondering if they had got bigger with being left alone.Might be worth a look.
Click to expand...

Mark, i was a member of Gerrards X but left about 94, too many restrictions, no night fishing, and banning fishing on the left hand bank facing downstream, apparently it interfered with the occasional match on the opposite bank! I think I dropped the Ruislip ticket in 96. Not too happy, as were a couple of us that lived by the river having to pay those prices to clubs that were located in London. Acquired the Cherwell Stealth Ticket, which was free and allowed nightfishing on any stretch and either bank!! Never fished for Cats though. Were you on the selection panel for Ruislip, always remember driving down there and being interrogated before being allowed to join!!
A friend did have a nice roach one evening about 200yds downstream of Thrupp railway brigde, think it was about 1.8 if I remember correctly, think that was 2013. Not too sure if specimen roach are a viable prospect, but the chub certainly are.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top