commercial fisheries

Hi to all, i`ve just got back into coarse fishing purely for pleasure, after a twelve year long break, and after trying out the regular local haunts of my youth, which was much the same as when i used to fish there other than the introduction of the new fangled F1`s which to be honest provided me with a good day and renewed my zeal to take up the sport again, so i`ve tackled up did a few more trips to my local well established ponds of old and did well some days drew blanks on others, "they are large fickle waters" so i thought i`d try out one of these new breed of smaller well stocked commercial fisheries, wow non stop catches all day, carp(commons,mirrors,ghosts and crucians),bream,roach,rudd and unfortunatley chubb an barbel (these being stocked into ponds i do not agree with) but with easy parking all mod con`s even tackle and bait for sale on sight, 6 decent ponds to choose from 2 for trout only, and all close together, now i realize this is a totally unnatural environment but i thoroughly enjoyed my day out, for myself i can fish the local more natural ponds where its more than possible to blank or a commercial with at least garanteed bites i think it`ll be the commercial nearly everytime, as i only get a few hours here an there so it suits me, basically my question is this are commercial fisheries good/bad or the future of coarse fishing? incidently the one i tried an will go back to again is cefn mably in south wales which looks to be well managed even offering lessons for the inexpierenced, what are forum members thoughts in regards to these commercials love em/hate em...

Andrew,

If it floats yer boat then go for it.............

If not, get blanking on the rivers, but the rewards are massive when you get it right /forum/smilies/wink_smiley.gif

p.s. Welcome to FM /forum/smilies/wink_smiley.gif

I'm quite lucky, my local commercial can be great fishing, but it's also very easy to blank, and many do. Best of both worlds.

Hi Steve,

Yes i definately will get out on a river at some point, i`m still re-learning the basic`s for now and acquiring the relevent tackle. and confidence, surprising how much i`ve forgotten over the last 12 years. i do look forward to trying a river, i`ll need to learn a lot beforehand tho as i`ve only ever fished lakes,ponds and canals, any advice re tackle and methods would be a great help, i`ve waggler and feeder rods using 6lb main line on both, and a 12.5m carp pole(unused so far)if i get out to a river (closest being the wye) would it be a good idea to get a stronger rod?

thanks for the welcome /forum/smilies/smile_smiley.gif

I`m a bit like you in that I`d had a very long absence from fishing since I was a lad and got back into it having spent lots of early weekend mornings listening to keith Arthur or his show on Talksport. I then heard a promotion sponsored by Premier Fisheries meaning I got a days fishing at a local fishery and got a free 4m whip, all the bait i needed, a couple of rigs and a brief tutorial from one of the guys there. His patience was greatly appreciated and he didnt rush. I was most impressed. I had a great days fishing, catching with almost every cast. It only cost £9 for the day plus all the gear I was givne was free also.It rekindled my love of the sport and I`m now addicted to it. The only thing I would say though was that by the end of the day I`d started to feel it was all a bit too easy in the end. I dont think I`d want to fish somewhere like this on a regular basis as it took a bit of the sport out of it. But for getting back into it or for a good days catching (if you`ve had a few blank sessions) they`re ideal.

Well done and welcome back to the best sport in the world!

whats the differance between a well run commercial and a well stocked club water?

other then the fact the snobbs on the club water look down on a commerical.

Alan D, thanks mate its good to be back, you`ve hit the nail on the head with your post, made a valid point mate, i remember sitting for hours even days in some cases in the depths of winter waiting for bites and it made it all the more special when you finally do get that tench you`ve been after. that feeling could be lost if continully catching there does after all have to be some form of challenge to the get to the elation of a good catch, i`m out tomorrow on a club water could be good sport or it may be quiet i`ll enjoy it either way , but your right it does seem to be a bit too easy on a commercial pond,(well on the one i`ve tried) i will still be using them regulary for now, but in the main as i find my feet again i`ll be on my local club waters far more often they`ve a few good ponds some canal fishing and a stretch on the river wye all for £45 a year cant be bad, and all on my doorstep.

just a re-evaluation of my 1st post, even tho i will still use commercials, i`ve had a few more trips to my local club water`s after learning a bit more of the successfull tactics used at them i find i`ve been much more successfull myself, so i`ll be using them far more often than i originally thought that i would, its not the bagging sessions that the commercial ponds offer, it`s far more challenging and therefore i`m find its a more rewarding expierence, tight lines all

I prefer to fish the rivers. My local rivers have been fishing really really hard this season and on the odd occasion just to put some fish in the net i do go to a local commercial that all though not overstocked does hold a good head of quality Roach,Rudd,Perch,Carp and the odd Bream and Tench. I do enjoy relaxing here with the waggler for a few hours catching a good few fish.

I was a commercial angler....then one day the penny dropped, there i was, having fed three cans of corn and with my top three - pulling out F1's small commons and Mirrors...with the ocassional Skimmer and obligatory Perch, but not really enjoying my fishing...i wondered why, was it the fact the lake was seeming more and more like a muddy puddle, was it the fact that i wasnt applying any great degree of watercraft or having to think hard about my approach, could it be, that week in week out i was fishing with such varied baits as pellets, flavoured pellets, coloured pellets, and sometimes sweetcorn orcatmeat. May it have been the feeling my Angling wasn't requiring finesse in tackle, or could it be it was the realisation that it was a COMMERCIAL.....a money making business, and therfore stuffed to the brim with reared fish for easy catching! Dont get me wrong, they are great for those that fish occasionally and want a good day, but to my own mind, hardly challenging to the experienced Angler. Before you bite my head off, i DO think they arevery good for youngsters, if, they can learn the sports other disciplines such as waggler, feeder, and in particular river fishing. I do feel we are in danger of having a lot (not all)of the younger anglers being limited in ability with "poleitis"setting in. My own preference is what is now deemed "Traditional Fishing" fine line, sensitive tackle, ideally a flowing water, or, a natural lake where wild fish are the quarry. I read with interest in an above post about sitting in the depths of winter and waiting, and waiting for the bites to come....fantastic stuff. However, each to their own, whatever your preference may be, it is, and always will be about enjoyment.

I had some friend who fished the same fishery which was a carp a chuck and to me thats no fun. If l need a boost or fun day catching silvers, tench, bream and crucians then i'll go to a commercial but l've moved on to club waters lakes ,canals and rivers.