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The Close Season

S

Steve Prince

Senior Member
It's that time of year again and I'm intrested to hear what other anglers thoughts are regarding the close season. Personally I think it's out dated and needs to be reviewed , anglers are the eyes and ears ,and especially theses days with otters cormorants , poachers and pollution. Years ago it was a very special moment as a young angler waiting for the glorious June 16th to come round and everyone waiting in antisipation ready to cast their first line, but now things need to change IMO, even our weather has changed so fish can spawn even later in the year, surely the Angling Trust , and the EA could put it to consultation and review the outcome, this law was brought in in 1847 I think so it really does need to be brought up, and besides for the next few months the misses will have a huge list of jobs to do:(
 
Steve Prince said:
It's that time of year again and I'm intrested to hear what other anglers thoughts are regarding the close season. Personally I think it's out dated and needs to be reviewed , anglers are the eyes and ears ,and especially theses days with otters cormorants , poachers and pollution. Years ago it was a very special moment as a young angler waiting for the glorious June 16th to come round and everyone waiting in antisipation ready to cast their first line, but now things need to change IMO, even our weather has changed so fish can spawn even later in the year, surely the Angling Trust , and the EA could put it to consultation and review the outcome, this law was brought in in 1847 I think so it really does need to be brought up, and besides for the next few months the misses will have a huge list of jobs to do:(
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Steve, i drive a hackney cab, and by law, i'm supposed to carry a bale of hay in the boot for the horse. :D And legally, i'm still allowed to pee on my back wheel. ( i do get some funny looks during rush hour ) :D:D:D

All as mad/crazy/antiquated as each other. :D
 
Time was, not so long ago, that I was a strong advocate of keeping the close season on both lakes and rivers, but it had nothing to do with spawning (as we all know, even before the changes in weather, the fish never read the rules and spawned whenever the hell they felt like it), it was more to do with giving everything a rest for a few weeks - let the fish mooch around without fear of grabbing a hook, let the plants and bankside vegetation recover, let any of the previous season's bait clear through properly, etc etc etc. And, also, to have a little break from it all yourself. It just made the 16th that much more special and gave you time to sort out your tackle, clean your rods and reels, and all that jazz.

But I see so few people on the river banks now, I don't think it's necessary - most of them (except your Royaltys and Ouses and the like) get plenty of little breaks all throughout the year, and some rivers are pretty much ignored completely.

Most lakes seem to be quite busy still, and I think they would benefit from having a few weeks of no fishing for the reasons stated above, and it's nice to see that some places do observe some sort of, rather than close season shall we say "no fishing period".

But the EA's reasons for keeping it are ridiculous and it is out-dated.
 
Outdated, isn't used for what it was originally brought in for and depending where you live its easy to get around quite legally making it even more ridiculous, lots of anglers? ignore it and continue fishing rivers safe in the knowledge that the chances of being held to account even if reported are so slim as to not warrant a second thought.

There is no close season for dog walkers, picnickers or even worse paddlers that paddle illegally where there is no PRN with a good chance of destroying spawning redds (something the EA refuse to do anything about) so why when its very obvious that other waters have not suffered from the abolition of the closed season we still have it on rivers beats me.
 
Personally I'd move it forward a month, from a spawning point of view. That said fish spawn at different times and in still waters so it is farcical really.
Gives me a chance to get the fly rods out.
 
This country is full of antiquated silly traditions...the vast majority of which I am very fond of (for no rational reason I might add), the closed season is no exception. I would hate to see the 16th consigned to the history books and nostalgic old comic strips. For me the reasons have never been so much about the biology with which it was originally introduced, but more to do with the culture and heritage of angling in England (That being said I wouldn't mind it being moved a month later...but it still has to be the 16th!).
 
The Dace i have caught over the last 2 weeks are ready for spawning in the next few weeks,well the males are,they have that rough body.
 
Keep the close season. I understand all the arguments regarding spawning times varying for different species and the effect of weather and water temperatures etc but when we leave the banks next week they will get a chance to regenerate.

The vegetation that is just showing above ground will be fully grown and providing cover and food for all manner of animals whose breeding won't have been disturbed by anglers.

It is tough when we have some very pleasant spring and early summer days but if we feel the need that badly there are plenty of species that can be pursued in waters not covered by the close season.
 
John Newman said:
Keep the close season. I understand all the arguments regarding spawning times varying for different species and the effect of weather and water temperatures etc but when we leave the banks next week they will get a chance to regenerate.

The vegetation that is just showing above ground will be fully grown and providing cover and food for all manner of animals whose breeding won't have been disturbed by anglers.

It is tough when we have some very pleasant spring and early summer days but if we feel the need that badly there are plenty of species that can be pursued in waters not covered by the close season.
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Yes I agree, but don't really think the blanket ban on all Rivers is necessary. Sensitive areas such as spawning areas should have a no fishing rule, and also no canoeing and wading.
Can't see any need for the ban on Lower systems such as the Severn and Trent... mind you there is always Barbeeling for some :rolleyes:
 
First, I should state that I am in favour of keeping the close season as I believe that it provides a valuable opportunity for all the flora and fauna on our riverbanks to regenerate and for the wildlife to breed undisturbed. Do we really want our rivers to become devastated wastelands like some stillwaters where fishing is allowed all year round.

Second, it is not so simple as changing the dates or scrapping the close season completely. That will make it possible to fish on public or club owned venues but private waters which are held under lease or licence will be governed by the terms of that document, which would have to be renegotiated if fishing is to be allowed for the full year. This would, necessarily, result in a 33% increase in the rent as the land owner will expect to be paid for 12 months rather than the current 9.

We should also not forget that some stretches are also fished by game anglers, who tend to pay a lot more for their fishing than we do, and may still be unavailable for coarse fishing because the game anglers have priority. Also, there are SSSEs in some areas, which preclude fishing in the close season while some owners may just not allow fishing all year round.

It is not a simple matter of scrapping the current regime and is far more complicated than many think...


Dave
 
Absolutely keep the close season.
Here at Throop we have a game permit, that keeps one or two eyes and ears on the riverbank, although there are not a great amount of members that hold this permit.
The close season here at Throop is the time when vast amounts of work are undertaken, footpaths to keep clear, many tree branches that have fallen across the swims and paths have to be cleared, swims and fences to repair.

Then we have the river weed to deal with, last year the growth of weed was excessive along with the grass on the 2.5 mile stretch on both banks, 5 miles is a long way to push mowers.

IF there was NO close season can you imagine trying to do this work whilst members were on the bank trying to fish.......chain saws and hedge trimmers going most of the day, weed floating through the swims disturbing very irate anglers.
So for us a close season is absolutely necessary.

Brian.
 
It never ceases to amaze me that clubs choose the closed season to carry out work parties, its just the time when as others have said creatures other than fish are breeding. This is not a dig at previous posts mentioning work being carried out its just a generalisation.

I suppose it depends on what work is being carried out whether it affects wildlife or not mind the way the EA have been going about tree cutting and bank clearing there will soon be nothing left to do any work on :(
 
I'm in favour of keeping it, although I think there is an argument for moving the date back a week or two, perhaps on a localised basis.

I think every water (stillwater or river) should be closed for period each year, and have areas that aren't fished.
 
Graham Young said:
It never ceases to amaze me that clubs choose the closed season to carry out work parties, its just the time when as others have said creatures other than fish are breeding. This is not a dig at previous posts mentioning work being carried out its just a generalisation.

I suppose it depends on what work is being carried out whether it affects wildlife or not mind the way the EA have been going about tree cutting and bank clearing there will soon be nothing left to do any work on :(
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Hi Graham,
I forgot to mention that work is carried out on THROOP throughout the season.
It's the major work that is carried out during the close season as not to disturb our members and visiting anglers.
Brian.
 
I like the tradition of it. There have to be positives as well environmentally, maybe the fluff checkers should be booted off too? Close Season means Tench fishing for me.
To be honest as well, we've all fished club still waters in close season only to pack up early because the fish are too busy to feed. One day last year it was like the carp where trying to climb the banks, waste of bait when they are like that.
 
Joe Winstanley said:
I'm in favour of keeping it, although I think there is an argument for moving the date back a week or two, perhaps on a localised basis.

I think every water (stillwater or river) should be closed for period each year, and have areas that aren't fished.
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Varies every year though doesn't it. I was catching Chub I late June last year that where literally spilling roe everywhere.
 
Stephen Crowhurst said:
I like the tradition of it. There have to be positives as well environmentally, maybe the fluff checkers should be booted off too? Close Season means Tench fishing for me.
To be honest as well, we've all fished club still waters in close season only to pack up early because the fish are too busy to feed. One day last year it was like the carp where trying to climb the banks, waste of bait when they are like that.
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Fluff chuckers already have close seasons for when their quarry are breeding, they don't need another 4 months!
 
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