Keith Arthur’s views on the news
Have the Avon fish gone, or it it down to angling pressure?
T HE Evesham Festival is over for another year but, as a pure angling event, I wonder what the future holds? The quality of the fishing rarely matches the quality of the anglers, to be honest.
When the late Dick Derrington ran the event and its popularity grew he spread the qualifiers around the country to reduce pressure on the Town and Ferry waters on the Avon. Fishing was still not good – I won the Wychavon Champs in 1997 with 8-11-8, a single barbel and a handful of roach, and the John Smith’s in 1999 with 12lb-odd of chub from just downstream of where Dean Barlow had his win this year.
When bloodworm was introduced, roach bags and average weights rose, following anglers complaining the roach had all been eaten by pike, zander and cormorants. They were there after all.
This year bloodworm was only allowed on the team event due, I believe, to a supply problem. Results were terrible, and once again anglers are complaining that the fish have gone, with otters now joining the other three predators in the blame game.
The Avon produces good sport on other sections, so is the river to blame, or is it angling, with the huge pressure of qualifiers from the opening of the season right up to the weekend before?
Let’s be blunt here – the Evesham Festival is a commercial venture with angling as an attraction, drawing customers to the many retail stands who pay to be there over the weekend.
It runs to make money. Are the organisers and those who benefit prepared to put their hand in their pocket and pay for research and any remedial work? If angling pressure is the cause, as I and many others who know far more about the Avon than me believe, surely they should pay for it.