The Traditional Fisherman's Forum

On this wet Wednesday morning, I was just flicking through an old copy of Bernard Venables Freshwater fishing, and noted the maggot ban on the Wye back in the day. This was to protect young salmon parr from being hooked and injured.
It made me think of the only time I fell foul of a said bait ban.

It would have been mid 70s probably when on holiday with my parents and sister.
I’d have been aged 10 or so and Dad and I pulled into a lay-by somewhere on the Avon near Ringwood in Hants for a spot of fishing one hot day - with the permission of mum obviously who would have been back at the campsite entertains my younger sister.
I can see it now, as clear as the water was that day - fast flowing , green weed streaming... my Dad was doubtful, more used to the slow flowing murky River Mole in Surrey where we caught Perch and Pope.

Still we fished and although hadn’t a clue how to hold position caught some of the fattest Dace we’d ever seen from the inside edge.

Another angler came by some hours later and on enquiry, I was only too pleased to relay the events of the day.
“Wow! .. did you get them on sweetcorn?”

“No maggot...”
Well, he put several fleas in our ears and we duly called it a day.
He told us maggots were banned as it was too easy to catch fish with...

Only now do I reflect and consider maybe the same protection was being afforded Salmon Parr there at that time.

Maggots were banned on the Royalty for a time, I'm not sure if it spread river wide. It is usually caused by the game fraternity wanting to protect their fish from nasty, common coarse anglers.

The Wye had a maggot ban for similar reasons but, local clubs could apply for permission and it was usually granted. Then the Wye and Usk opened up more sections and the rule was swept aside. Being cynical, it's almost as though those game fishermen wanted some money back from the river and were suddenly prepared to welcome the 'welly brigade' with open arms.

Unfortunately salmon parr are suckers for maggots!

Dave Burr wrote: ↑Wed Oct 21, 2020 11:21 am Maggots were banned on the Royalty for a time, I'm not sure if it spread river wide. It is usually caused by the game fraternity wanting to protect their fish from nasty, common coarse anglers.

The Wye had a maggot ban for similar reasons but, local clubs could apply for permission and it was usually granted. Then the Wye and Usk opened up more sections and the rule was swept aside. Being cynical, it's almost as though those game fishermen wanted some money back from the river and were suddenly prepared to welcome the 'welly brigade' with open arms.

Yes they were. I think only 4 baits were allowed at the time - bread, worms, luncheon meat and one I forget. Seems perverse. Not sure of the reason for the ban, something about fish being fixated on them I think because anglers used gallons of them.

Having a foot firmly in both camps I hate to hear the old 'game anglers are snobs' vs 'coarse anglers are just that' chat! We are all brothers of the angle and indeed it is the all-rounder who makes the better angler and country man in almost all cases. Some traditions like the gaff, gorge hooks, pike gag, removing pike and chub etc etc are gladly long gone and so they bloody well should be! To those that think in that bigoted way I always give my thoroughly modern reply - get a grip you idiot! Salmon parr require our protection as do every other native species and indeed our entire environment. Rant over

Liphook wrote: ↑Wed Oct 21, 2020 3:24 pm Having a foot firmly in both camps I hate to hear the old 'game anglers are snobs' vs 'coarse anglers are just that' chat! We are all brothers of the angle and indeed it is the all-rounder who makes the better angler and country man in almost all cases. Some traditions like the gaff, gorge hooks, pike gag, removing pike and chub etc etc are gladly long gone and so they bloody well should be! To those that think in that bigoted way I always give my thoroughly modern reply - get a grip you idiot! Salmon parr require our protection as do every other native species and indeed our entire environment. Rant over

I have spent a lot of my time in the pursuit of trout and have many friends that are game anglers. I also know that there have been divisions between the two factions of the sport historically, and, when a water is shared, this has overflowed onto the rule book. There are still divisions on the Wye and if the salmon were to return en mass, then followed by a flood of salmon anglers, we coarse anglers would be given short shrift on many beats. I don't blame them, people are still paying huge syndicate fees on beats that they have not fished for years. They are an optimistic bunch for sure. I hope they get their wish.

Don't think for one minute that some of those old practices are lost in history. Pike especially, are still suffering due to primitive thinking.

Please don't imply that such observation is bigotry .

I do agree that salmon parr need protection but, if that is such a priority, why has the maggot ban been so readily lifted?

Moving on, Luncheon meat was, for a time, banned on the Avon, due to the lobbying by the likes of Ray Walton and Fred Crouch. On barbel rivers that were getting heavily fished with meat, extra barbels were found growing on the resident fish. It is a phenomenon that I've seen myself on several rivers but the Avon had little Ray and he and Fred did a TV bit about the 'pollution'. See here - just after a young Carol Vorderman - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BvB3mjLcppg

Observation is not bigotry but statement of those old views is. Nothing I have said is aimed at you Dave but is aimed squarely at the hard of thinking that seek to maintain such archaic nonsense As for lifting a bait ban then that is not of my doing or concern as parr can be just as easily caught on other methods, baits flies or small lures. It's the angler that continues to catch parr having mistakenly caught one or two that would trouble me. Just as it does the angler that targets out of season fish, trout on bait where rules preclude it etc etc. As anglers we should all be good sports AND brothers of the angle.

Back in the 1970s I seem to recall wasp grubs being banned in a lot of rivers and still waters in the north west. I’ve never considered myself crazy enough to collect them but then I never found out why they were banned either.

As an aside, my grandfather, who worked as a local authority gardener and green keeper and also kept an allotment, had no truck with destroying wasps nests. I recall as a nipper that his potting shed had a perfectly formed nest most years and that he was never stung and neither were my brother and I. We seemed to respect each other’s space and movement.

This reminds me of a former club water I fished, where they couldn't ban carp anglers, so they banned boilies, and leads > 1oz. There was talk of a maggot ban in revenge.

The first time I fished the Royalty, mid 1970s, there was a maggot ban. Plenty of nice dace taken trotting small pieces of meat