CREATING FISHING MAGIC
Fifty one years ago, a wonderful and peaceful estate in rural Dorset dug two fishing lakes and ever since those halcyon days, they have provided many magical days for thousands of happy anglers.The lakes nestle in the valley of the little River Crane near Edmondsham and soon after the lakes were created, the Wimborne and
District Angling Club negotiated a lease from the estate and this spring fed river and it’s crystal clear water has created a rich haven for fish, with rainbow trout stocked into the top lake and a wide variety in the larger lake below, including roach, perch, tench, bream and carp. The club have provided the lakes with tender loving care ever since and by way of reward, the members have enjoyed many years of enjoyable fishing.
Ancient carp, ancient tackle, ancient angler, plus Dan, a guest for a special charity day to support the Angling Trust, guided while stalking carp by Chris Yates. And Dan wasn't alone in finding that just to be sat there surrounded by the rich and varied wildlife and bird song was more than enough, though the fishing was so good at times that he missed the colourful kingfishers and a passing peregrine as they decorated the day.
Inevitably, nature and the passing seasons filled the top lake with silt and weed, so in 2018 we sought the help of the crucian godfather Peter Rolfe to ensure we made the best of a golden opportunity to create a dedicated tench and crucian carp fishery.The lake was drained down and luckily the club bailiff Nick Lawrie is a creative genius with a dredger.
The job required a big investment in hired dredgers and man power but it wasn’t long before a dry crater of mud was transformed
into a beautiful traditional fishery.
The club stocked with lots of plump tench along with little crucians from the EA’s Calverton Fish Farm. Fishing magic followed.
The Angling Trust’s CEO Jamie Cook came to celebrate the lakes opening and enjoyed some very rewarding fishing with Chris Yates and Hugh Miles.
The stocked tench grew on well and were soon providing some exciting battles as they tried to bury themselves in the prolific weed.
The tench bred prolifically, the crucians too and they teased us with those classical, tentative bites.
Meanwhile, the lower lake, named Julia’s to honour the estate’s ‘guardian angel' was rapidly becoming so shallow and lily suffocated that our club had to act.
So our star operator, Nick Lawrie set to work to create some magic again with the largest ‘long-arm’ excavator he could manoeuvre around the banks without it becoming a submarine.The lakes had never been excavated since their creation in 1974, so there was an awful lot of silt! Where to put it all? Undaunted, Nick and his assistant Jamie created a temporary storage area with hay bales to ensure that no mud could leach
into the River Crane. Many hours and days of hard labour followed.
As the lake was full of fish, we couldn’t drain down the water, so it was to be a ‘wet dredge’, very wet, and the ‘corral’ soon became rather full - and treacherous!
Fortunately, we didn’t damage or catch any fish in the
bucket, but we searched diligently for the numerous swan mussels because
they siphon impurities from the water and keep it healthy.
Our chairman Mike Hirsh saved a total of one hundred and eleven and after the dredging was complete, he carefully returned them to the areas from which they had been rescued.
Mike and Nick were the first to admit that we were only scratching the surface when it came to clearing all the silt from the lake, but I think you’ll agree that these ‘before and after’pics of disabled swims no's One and Two show what Nick has achieved to make each peg fishable.
... and the fourth platform before and after dredging.
Other dredged swims up the lake show that all twenty three pegs are a lot more ‘fisherman friendly’ and they also provide new feeding opportunities for the fish. Better still, the extensive weed beds that remain will provide lots of food and vital cover for our precious carp, tench, roach and bream.By the time we had finished, the silt storage area was full up. Since they were created fifty years ago, the lakes have produced crucian carp to 1lb7ozs, roach to much the same weight, tench to nearly five pounds, a monster club record perch a while back of 4lb10ozs, bream to seven pounds [allegedly!] and carp to a little over twenty pounds. So the rich water can certainly grow fish on to a good size and this recent dredging will surely give the lakes the chance to fulfil their potential once again.
Maintenance of our fisheries is an ongoing task and luckily for us members, the Wimborne Club management are very persistent in insuring our fisheries are in tip top condition.This in turn allows us to enjoy the magic, excitement and relaxation that fishing provides and while trying to catch, I suggest you keep your 'eyes to the skies' because those graceful red kites drift past the lakes every day. What beautiful birds.What was even more rewarding last year, Chris Wild and I were enjoying catching tench when we were stunned by a white-tailed eagle that drifted past us over the lakes. They’re BIG! The eagles are radio tagged so scientsts can track each birds' travels and this very same eagle was also circling over our Corfe Mullen garden only four weeks ago. Happy days.
I’ve been lucky to be a member of our club for over forty years, so I hope to see you at Julia’s lake or the lovely River Stour at Wimborne before I finally peg out!But before then, I’d better get out there and catch a few of those elusive beauties from Julia's. I hope you enjoy your fishing too.
