Home | News/Events | News | River Thames Roach Bonanza

River Thames Roach Bonanza

By FishingMagic 19/10/2012 09:39:00

Font size:

Could the River Thames become the UK's roach Mecca? This year's surveys suggest it is entirely possible.

Could the River Thames become THE Mecca for roach fishing in the UK? The most recent EA surveys suggest that it is entirely possible.

The Environment Agency Thames West region report that the annual River Thames electrofishing Boom Boat surveys produced some of the best fish numbers of recent years with 17 different fish species caught between Oxford and Hurley and nearly 8000 fish caught in total. The diversity of fish species on the Thames was shown to be excellent, but the one species that appeared to be ‘fin and tails’ above all of the other species was the roach!

There were just under 6000 roach caught on the surveys ranging from fish of a few ounces to fish of well over the pound mark, with the real hotspots around Caversham, Abingdon and Henley. There were no areas that were really poor and anglers could realistically expect to catch roach all the way from Oxford to Hurley, with some really nice quality fish showing.

The numbers of smaller roach were very encouraging and the EA say that anglers should expect excellent roach catches to continue over the next few years and go on to suggest that the mighty Thames could even become THE roach Mecca in the country!

So just what has produced this roach explosion?

The EA's Boom Boat in operation The EA explain that the Thames is very different in all its individual reaches, tributaries, islands, marinas, backwaters and floodplain connectivity all of which contribute to the Thames in their own way. This normally leads to different results from one reach to another, the common theme this year is the sheer number of roach that have been caught in all the reaches surveyed.

A good example of this is the Hambleden stretch. This is a stretch that normally produces a few larger fish, pike and carp are normally on the cards, with smaller silver fish few and far between. This year 738 roach were caught and the site produced the highest numbers of dace caught on the Thames surveys this year.

The low flows over the last few years are something that impacts all the reaches of the Thames though and this impacts different species in different ways. What it does mean is that the smaller fish born in the spring do not have to fight against high flows, food availability is much higher and the shallow areas of the river are much warmer. All this adds up to a much fitter healthier fish that can combat the rigors of their first winter that much better. This means that more fish born that year survive their first winter, which in turn means more fish to be caught!

By the Same Author

Rate this article

Share on:

Digg

Comments (7 posted):

Jeff Woodhouse on 19/10/2012 10:12:15

The boom boat never produces an accurate picture of what's in a river, just a picture of what is caught on that day. This year flow rates have been much higher than in previous years and there is a tendancy for slow water species such as roach to tuck themselves into the shallows where they are out of the main flow. This is also the area where the boom boat works and works well, because the electrodes have little/no effect below 5ft, so it's no great surprise that roach have shown more consitantly this year above other species. However, anyone fancying their chances of a 2lbs+ roach could do no better than to stick-fish the Thames with tares and feed with hemp. The roach are coming out all over the place but around the Donnington area of Oxford is doing exceedingly well (ODAA ticket).

Mark Wintle on 19/10/2012 17:00:38

I'd love a Thames '2' but due to the distance probably will never get one, not that that will stop me trying to get in a few trips each year, mainly in winter when I'll try a feedered bread approach; best this season 1-07 from the Thames. Funnily enough Bill Taylor mentioned swims around Donnington Bridge for good roach 50 years ago in The Competent Angler and his Guide to The Upper Thames.

jasonbean1 on 19/10/2012 19:44:28

My best roach from this country used to be from the natural welland 2lb 4oz, that was part of a 6 roach catch with all the fish over 1lb. that was more than 20 years ago. This season on the thames around oxford it's been amazing to say the least!...this summer we had a club match at donnington 17lb won it, I was 2nd with 16lb...at a guess 3 over a pound and 1 well over 2lb. Now for those that don't know what Donnington is like to fish... they need'nt go there if they want peace and quiet. On that match day you could barely fish, runners, joggers, spectators, cyclists, drunks, dogs peeing on your kit and the mass of families and push chairs with bread and ducks flying everywhere ....oh forgot the rowers:eek: if you can find a way of safely fishing on the bank you then have to contend with rowing boats every 30 seconds or so, if you can handle that and get a hook in the water you may start to catch a few fish!...well we did like i said , we all caught and the roach were all mainly big.....ummmm:D So for the most of this season me and a few others have been going up there on the quieter days in the week and been catching fish of a lifetime...i did say to a friend in the summer that there is something special going on here and as a life long thames angler he fully agreed and said i hope this doesn't catch on... well the odd little hint here, the odd little article there. is the cat out the bag? No not really..still hardly anyone fishes the best roach river in the coutnry. The roach have always been there, and the chaps that know the river really well have said this years flow is all the river needed. these fish are many years old but know only choose to show themselves. I've been very lucky this year and i'm really enjoying my barbel fishing on my travels....but give me a day fishing for those big Thames roach and it truley takes some beating Cheers Jason

Mark Wintle on 20/10/2012 10:29:56

cg74 on 20/10/2012 11:47:00

I don't think I could cope with Donnington on a bad day (Sunday) but I fish quieter stretches and know of others that are to all intents and purposes unfished and without the rowers, dogs and drunks. Must say that the joggers are occasionally distracting in the more central reaches... I reckon those roach are far more widespread than most realise with the majority virtually untapped. Add in that on some lightly fished reaches even those few anglers fishing are not targetting the roach and there's scope for a monster. The river HAS produced roach of 3-12 and 3-10 this year, both to an angler carp fishing but don't be blase about the weights - they were weighed correctly. But even if he broke the British record there wouldn't be a claim made, as he sees it; 20mm boilie, size 6 carp hook and 18lb line demonstrate no skill on his part.....

maceo on 21/10/2012 08:37:50

Those Oxford stretches certainly are very busy. I bought an ODAA ticket last year, but didn't bother this year for precisely the reasons mentioned. I'd rather fish a bit upriver (from Eynsham upwards) where you can get a bit more peace and quiet. I haven't noticed a huge improvement in roach this year I have to say. Pretty good as usual and plenty around the 1lb mark, but that's the same as previous seasons. Bleak seem to be fewer this year, but perhaps that's because I've had to fish a feeder most sessions because of the fast flow and high river levels after all the rain.

Philip on 21/10/2012 20:41:52

and there's scope for a monster. Exactly that. As for the crowds I have similar problems where I fish. Try early or late to avoid the boats and people. Last knockings can offer your best bet of a real whopper and I have no doubt whatsoever they exist in the Thames. Great to see some good press about the river for a change.

Add a comment