Hampshire Avon Roach Fishing

[Lea Dweller]

Welcome to the forum Trevor, I am not in a position to comment on the book as I have not yet read it. I have commented favourably on what I have learned of the Avon Roach Project, like many others I think it is a wonderful thing to have done, by yourself Budgie and others.

[Keston]

Just watched it , great project

[Trevor Harrop]

Welcome Trevor and thank you for all your work on roach. As you say, a passion for roach is almost unexplainable. The species continues to confound, confuse and fascinate many of us.
On the Herefordshire Wye in September and October I fished my fifteen foot Acolyte with a Purist pin in more than a dozen swims on some two miles radius of the city. I was using hemp, tare and corn and I caught one or more, usually a bag (12) of roach in every single swim.
Then in November some serious matches took place including a three day festival. Heavy bags of roach were caught and there were many 80 to 100 pounds plus weights (inc chub, dace, perch and so on) caught up and down the river.
As usual at this ime of year I switch to worm, maggot, caster and flake in pursuit of winter roach.
In those same dozen or so swims, I have not caught one single Redfin in November or December, and nor have most of the locals either.
This mass, thousands of roach, must still be in the river, but where are they?……answers on a postcard please….

Well, one of the fascinating things we discovered through our Avon Roach Project exploits is that not only do the roach spawn on the same day each year, and in the same places, but also spend different times of the year in different places, same times and places – and even if you find them, there’s no guarantee you’ll catch one.
The mob of big roach underwater in the film are there right out in the open in a stream at the same time at the end of each summer. A few weeks later and they are gone. Also, while we were filming, we tried to feed them a few maggots for the camera, but they ignored every one. It was as if the maggots weren’t even seen as food. They were literally bouncing off the roach.
Trevor Harrop

[Fredline]

Thank you Trevor a great film and an even better project. Please carry on. I love the fact you change float to eek out 10 more minutes fishing. Personally I have always squinted, your system appears a little more successful.

[Mark]

Oh dear, due to the controversial posts in this thread it has been tidied up and locked, I have better things to do than sort out members personal differences.

You can still watch this great film from the link in the first post.