Tee-Cee
Senior Member
Thumbing through a copy of John Baileys's book 'ROACH - The gentle Giants' I came across a chapter entitled Yorkshire Roaching, Past and Present. In this chapter, written by Kevin Clifford, he talks about the amazing catches of big roach, specifically around the 1915/ 20 period and then what the water period produces at the time the book was written (around 1987).
Some of the catches made during the earlier period are simply staggering with people such as Wilf Cutting; Eight fish with an average weight of 2lb 5oz, eighteen fish for 43lbs and then J H R Bazley; three fish over 3lbs, fifty fish over 2lbs in a single month, then Mr Kempsey; nineteen fish for 44lbs 8ozsand his friend Mr Tether; 63 fish for 126lbs and on and on and on....
Also in the book is a postcard of the catch made by MR Field/Mr Tether of the 63 fish for 126lbs caught and all retained.
The water eventually went down hill until in the 1960's a Mr Merritt fished it for 6 years in search of big fish yet never managed to catch one over 10ozs.
He talks of other Yorkshire waters such as the Ure where Steve Hall had 80lbs of big roach with eleven over 2lbs with the biggest at 2lbs 9ozs in a sitting in 1979..............
But it is the mere which 'rings my bell' and that catch of 63 roach.....Why did such a massive amount of roach breed in that particular water? Yes, it's big at 470 acres but the numbers of roach caught, and kept, is still staggering...
Does anyone fish it now or over the last 10 years or so, or can anyone throw any light on these massive catches, or have any idea if the water itself was chemically different in some way??
Obviously not the water it once was but are big roach still caught??
Some of the catches made during the earlier period are simply staggering with people such as Wilf Cutting; Eight fish with an average weight of 2lb 5oz, eighteen fish for 43lbs and then J H R Bazley; three fish over 3lbs, fifty fish over 2lbs in a single month, then Mr Kempsey; nineteen fish for 44lbs 8ozsand his friend Mr Tether; 63 fish for 126lbs and on and on and on....
Also in the book is a postcard of the catch made by MR Field/Mr Tether of the 63 fish for 126lbs caught and all retained.
The water eventually went down hill until in the 1960's a Mr Merritt fished it for 6 years in search of big fish yet never managed to catch one over 10ozs.
He talks of other Yorkshire waters such as the Ure where Steve Hall had 80lbs of big roach with eleven over 2lbs with the biggest at 2lbs 9ozs in a sitting in 1979..............
But it is the mere which 'rings my bell' and that catch of 63 roach.....Why did such a massive amount of roach breed in that particular water? Yes, it's big at 470 acres but the numbers of roach caught, and kept, is still staggering...
Does anyone fish it now or over the last 10 years or so, or can anyone throw any light on these massive catches, or have any idea if the water itself was chemically different in some way??
Obviously not the water it once was but are big roach still caught??