Netsmen who fish Devon's River Exe have agreed to a conservation deal aimed at restoring the stocks of what was one of England’s best salmon rivers. The river has long been a favourite for anglers but its most famous salmon was caught in the estuary by a netsman called Richard Voysey in 1924. It weighed 64 lb.

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Great to hear of the Exe restoration and conservation deal Editor.

I should however point out that the Exe salmon refered to only weighed 611/4 lb. Taken 18th March 1924 at Counterfeit Sands, Starcross - some 3 miles downstream of Exeter.
When I return I'll post a nicely posed photo of the fish with the three Voysey brothers.
Scales from the fish were sent to J.A. Hutton, for reading, who pronounced it a rare 5 sea winter fish, having spent 2 years in the river previously.

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Save the softmouth trout

Thanks for correction and additional details Ephemerella - we will all look forward to seeing the pictures later.

Why don't we produce leviathan fish any more? We could look to the feeding at sea but why are the Scandinavian/Nordic countries still recording huge fish?

These fish are feeding under the polar ice cape and safe from netting.
The more a species is targeted the quicker the average weight drops. Our salmon have been over exploited for generations.

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It is in truth not glory,nor riches, nor honours that we are fighting,but for freedom - for that alone, which no honest man gives up but with his life.(Declaration of Arbroath, 1320)

Yes, i think it could. (as could any salmon river) I strongly believe these fish still run the rivers, but in very very small numbers. Look at the beast that came out of the Ness a few years ago, and several kelts have been seen that would have pushed 60lb in condition. That's what i love most about salmon fishing, the knowledge that every time your line draws through your fingers it could be a 3lb grilse, or a 64 pounder...

Probabaly not. The fish in question was so much bigger than anything else the Exe has ever produced (even in those days) that you have to wonder whether it was an Exe fish at all. Just as likely that it was a chalkstream fish that nosed up the Exe estuary for a look as it went up the English channel, it was after all taken 3 miles below Exeter in tidal water.
Of all the rivers of the southwest I should think the Exe is the one least likely to turn up a monster. Such a fish today would really struggle to get over the numerous weirs other than in big floods and the summer level of the Exe (thanks to abstraction and drainage) would leave it nowhere to hide. In over twenty years on the upper river I've not seen a fish over 12lb and wild storied of bigger ones are to be taken with a large pinch of salt!

However things are on the up. Habitat works on the upper river have increased juvenile numbers greatly in some areas, notably the Haddeo below Wimbleball dam where salmon had all but died out. There is also a project to restore the bogs high on Exmoor (Exmoor mires project) that should improve summer flows a bit. Even so a fish of 30lb is beyond the wildest dreams of any Exe rod let alone one of 60lb.


Andy

its a great river the last time i fished ti was 1989 and i caught a 11 pounder.ive not been there since.i was training down there at the time.i stayed at the black horse in tiverton on my days leave.what a lovely part of the world.i welcome the new work on the exe. its one of the best we have.

bigphil

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stop buying bottled water we have,nt got enuff to fish in now so stop it get the water companies to do there job and clean the water every where!!!!

I'll go with that - a March portmanteaux - my best guess would be Hants Avon, although there is always mainland Europe to consider. Richard Voysey is wearing the flat cap; they all look chuffed don't they?

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Save the softmouth trout

One day, in all our wildest dreams, we might get to fish for a fish of that calibre, someone will get lucky, maybe, hook it and if the fishing gods are smilling, land it. Would make stepping in rocking horse pooh seem quite normal, but you can never totally dismiss the possibility, not every river, but just a few, Avon, Wye, Tyne, some north of the border, Tay, Spey, tweed, probably more offer that once in a lifetime opportunity, whether its in ours or other generations, who knows? But isn,t that part of the reason why we spend vast amounts of time, and money trying, thats what I find the best part of my fishing, being unable to predict the size of the next fish, might be a grilse, might not!!!!!!!
peter