Anglers Compass

Hi folks,

Well here we are, the first post on your new favourite blog lol, in the midst of a media and political storm, the air waves and tv screens awash with chatter and theories over  hackergate, yaaaaaaawn!

All the waffle over our societies supposed lost moral compass did get me a wondering about the morality of fishing and fishermen in the UK, is there a place for morality in the art of the angle and if so where are we at and where are we heading ?

Most importantly for me is the way we catch and the treatment of the fish we catch and the way we treat the flora and fauna around us, basically what kind of condition we leave our pegs, shore line etc, It shocks me still the state some anglers leave pegs in, litter left is an eyesore and a danger to wild life, I always take a bin bag and clear what I can, it only takes minutes to pick up and dump into a dustbin.

When I was a yoof there was no such thing as barbless hooks, now of course they`re all the rage, the belief being that less damage is done to fish mouths without a barb, there are theories mind that the opposite is actually the case, people like John H have concerns, I`m sure there are others I`m not sure either way, general opinion deems them a good thing so I use them in the hope this is true.

I think we fishermen have come a long way in how we treat our captures, fish friendly nets are standard although I don`t use a keep net , I admit to              having an issue with keep nets which is not going to make me popular with     the match  fishing brigade, when I see large nets of fish being hauled around the bank I can`t help thinking about the fish at the bottom of that pile.                                                                                                                          

Unhooking matts are now standard kit and not using one is frowned upon which works for me, Korda produce a carp specific medical kit so we can now treat fish we catch with various ready made medications, however it is important to properly clean the wounds etc before applying meds.


So much I could say but too little time for now, to sum up, I think anglers are in a good place right now, fish care and their habitat protection have never been more in anglers minds, of course there are still some who need to get with the program.What the future holds for our sport here in the UK I don`t know but we as anglers must be vigilant and progressive.

Thats it for now folks, work beckons, I`d be interested to read your thoughts on the subjects I`ve touched on in the comments so go ahead and have your say, tata for now.

                                                        Nice fish