In the circumstances you mention Icky, one thing that might happen would be big and well funded fishing clubs, societies and syndicates muscling in and outbidding the current lessees of fishing rights on wild trout holding rivers and lakes, perhaps miles away from their home base and even in other countries. Think about the buying power of the BAA in the Midlands, Christchurch Angling Club on the Hampshire Avon and Dorset Stour, and some others.

Local enthusiasts would then either have to dance to the big organisations' tunes, find bits and bobs of second best fishing elsewhere, or take up golf.

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"In wine there is wisdom. In beer there is strength. In water there is bacteria." - German proverb
JH based near Southampton

thanks for the reply stevel, nice to see that someone had the conviction to stand by what they want... however the key phrase in your post for me was

The fabric of this thread has take a little detour and become a moralistic spat between the wild fish purist and the stocked water fisherman.

We, all of us, fish for fun... gone are the day that if father didnt come back with a brace of fish it would be bread and butter for supper. we do it to satisfy a primitive urge we have, there is a thrill we all get as an angler in catching a fish, in my case in lashing fur and feathers onto a hook to imitate natural food and fooling a fish into trying to eat it.

Now for the wildies to take a condescending stance over the stockies is madness because if the target fish and the location do hold the interest of the stocked water fisherman then what is it to do with anyone else.

it is like carp fishing... i just dont get it... sitting in a tent drinking stella for 3 days until some stocked eating machine decides to chow down on your fluro pink mackerel and strawberry betaine soaked pop up boiley and you get awoken from your alcohol induced tauper by a rod rest going beep... only to skull drag the animal that comes in like a wet bin liner on tackle that could stop a leir jet taking off. i saw many lovely mixed coarse waters in yorkshire raped in the name of carp fishing (cos that what the members wanted)

as you can guess not my cup of tea BUT i would defend the right of the bivvy divvys to fish as they want.

at the end of the day we all pull pieces of metal through an animals face by tricking them with the promise of a feed for our own pleasure and satisfaction, the whens wheres and hows are just semantics, its fishing leave the holier than thou morals at the door pull up a chair and enjoy the fact that fishing is what brought us all together here in the fist place.

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All fish should be respected as each are of value to those who fish.Individually responsibility rests with us all and our own morals.

Moving on to the wild v stocked again,Why is it that it is always those who fish for wild fish always start to preach the upper crust card and better than you all the time.

I quote from a certain site:

I tried to explain to him that farmed fish in these wee ponds are pretty stupid and 9 times out of 10 they are pretty easy to catch and also that farmed fish equate humans with feeding time while wild fish equate humans with danger in exactly the same way a domestic cat doesn’t and a wild cat does, so any fish that had been in the spot he was thrashing would be long gone.

and another reply

more likely that todays youngsters require a more instant gratification than they get down their local burn, the expectation now is to be dropped off at a paid entertainment facility and something to happen before they get bored,

it would appear from the expectation of the adults, that fishing for rainbows isnt really that much different, wild fishing demands a leap of independance that doesnt always bring instant results, they prefer 'assisted' catching as it were.

Where do you ever see those who are happy fishing for stocked rainbows slating those who enjoy fishing for wild.As for rainbows being easier to catch than wild fish as per the quote above,both can be easy and both can be hard depending on conditions.Your living in dreamland,

Just because you choose to fish for wild stock doesnt make you any better than anyone else, just rather fortunate that you have it available to you where as others dont.

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Kevin

As far as i can see its the stocked guys that have the grudge on this thread about wild fish.

I respect all fish the same regardless if they are stocked or not.

I know which i prefer to fish for but thats my choice, i moved house to make it easier, thats how much it matters to me.

If you want a argument here is a question, does pulling lures in a muddy 1 acre puddle constitute fishing? Or fishing a stocked river with manacured paths that looks like someones garden?

If you want a argument here is a question, does pulling lures in a muddy 1 acre puddle constitute fishing? Or fishing a stocked river with manacured paths that looks like someones garden?

Not all who fish for stocked fish Pull lures and if they are not fishing they certainly are not canoeing.

It doesnt really matter where or what we are fishing for as long as those who are doing it are happy and respect their quarry in my view.Not everyone can be lucky enough to choose.

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Kevin

Threads like this have a depressing predictability about the way they turn, I'm going to have to stop reading them. Its a shame that all anglers aren't as free from biggotory and snobbery as the fish we fish for. All threads like this really show is that some anglers seem more concerned about reasons to argue than fishing. The rest of us just get on with it, enjoy our fishing and leave others to do likewise. Personally I can't see why anyone would deliberately want to limit their fishing to wild fish only, or even trout only, but thats up to them.

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Kevin, the bit you cut and paste makes a lot of sense its not about the fish being harder or easier to catch, this varies whether the fish are stocked or wild, but if you think walking a mile over moorland is just as easy as parking in a car park and walking to a man made platform you are deluded,

the hard part is knowing where to go, when to go and what to do when faced with something unknown, fisheries supply instant convenient solutions to these things, that takes alot of fun out of it for some and i think its unfair to just assume they think they are somehow better....smarter perhaps

personally i do it cos its cheaper, the fish are better, if often smaller, and i have 30'000 to choose from, Loch Watten is 5 quid per day to fish from the bank, i dont think stocked fishing can compete.

Testify to that my friend! At it's core this forum is UK based obviously...
A small island in the Atlantic with a population density bursting at the seams.
Within the suburban sprawl you have manicured waterways that thrive with manufactured fish swimming within them, with their thalidomide fins bless (I'm... joking!) P&T's have their place but as anglers outgrow this introduction to a domesticated quarry maybe they look more towards the coast and course fisheries - fly fishing for Pike, Bass, Perch... as you see in our ranks this facet of our sport is the fastest growing trend - I wonder why?...

(By the way this statement doesn't include the big reseviours like Graftam... etc.)

Maybe pike, bass, mackerel, chub, perch, roach with their wild genes are seen now as a prime sporting target on the fly and not the working man's option for the weekend...
These species still offer prime angling in parts of the UK and are a wild alternative for the angler happy to diversify past wild salmonids (within finite fisheries) and an angling culture fragmented by victorian overtones and land rights... just a thought.

I count my blessings every day that I live on the shores of Corrib and grew up with the largest wild rainbows in the world on Taupo and have never fished a stocked lake in my life for a processed rainbow...

By the way in certain angling cultures wild browns are seen as a poor cousin to their American magenta brethren.

I understand what you say ohanzee and for those healthy enough to be able to walk a mile or more over moorland it s perfect.Im not knocking it at all and appreciate both sides.Wild or stocked ,its fishing and we can choose what we fish for.Im quite happy with a fly in the water,any water.

Watten ,shin,migdale all great lochs to fish and many more,if it was right on my doorstep I would be there aswell, every day.But myself I respect all fish be they wild or stocked and most of the people who fish for them.I just cant see why those who fish for wild browns always seem to attack stocked fish and fishers for them.We are anglers fishing for what we choose and is available to each of us.I understand costs etc.

Your a lucky man Joey and your right what your saying there,wish I could be the same.A friend of mine fishes there each year ,(who you know aswell) and loves it,maybe one day.

Everyday I get to fish I enjoy(unless its phishing down and freezing and blowing a hooly) and a running river is as enjoyable to me as is a stillwater.They give something different and I enjoy both.My best memories are of the devon rivers and many hours spent on them aswell as others and it was only when I coming to Scotland did I take up stillwaters due to lack of availability access to rivers in the area,
I fish Im happy.

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Kevin

Here here, I don't decry stocked fish and do fish for them, but I prefer chasing wild fish, coarse or game. Most places I have lived have had virtually no wild brown trout within, say, an hours drive, but plenty of wild coarse fish (rivers, canals, some stillwaters). I suppose that raises another debate about what actually is a "wild" fish? native genetic species naturally spawned in that water? That actually rules out quite a lot...

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