Finger Lake Priory Marina

Has anyone fished the small Finger Lake in Bedford at Priory?

I walked past it yesterday and didn’t even know that lake was there!

Mate,out used to be good tench fishing,but the lake seems to be much harder,due to otter predation,or EU fish stealing,also the lake suffers with a heavy weed problem,so to fish it properly dragging is a must,rules of priory state that damaging weed and bank side vegetation is not allowed,so basically finger lakes are unfishable,in reality the council don't want anglers on their waters,that's why they've made it season ticket only.

I had an email this morning from the Ranger who had sent me a map of the area including the river and the cut. I know that river the fishes well in certain areas but that lake does look attractive, something about it that makes me want to fish it. But now you’ve said that I might ask them if they would rake it themselves for it to be fished. It’s a conservation area as well so I doubt they will. They were raking the boating lake yesterday but I’ve heard the fishing is awful there now.

Hello ,I had a look at that little lake last year,it did look proper tenchy,but I heard that the ee's had been over there and I have seen them on the little river there loads of times,I pike fished a big deep lake up that way,I had about 20 trips winter just gone for 2 pike ,a 12lb and a 8lb,I saw ee's over there EVERY single time I went and when i asked if they had a permit not once did they, only once did I see one of them with a landing net and none of them had unhooking mats but most of them had plenty of beer cans with them,I found plenty of carrier bags full of rubbish and on the bags it said..The polish bakery.I also found 2 pike heads in the bush's,I told the club ,the bailiffs and the people that we shared the lake with,no one was interested,not been back since.Just telling it as I saw it.

The boating lake used to be full of tench,bream and roach,all to reasonable sizes,considering it was only eighteen inches deep and that is the issue today,being council owned,they used to Dr-silt the lake,now due to cut back they haven't done it for years and the depth is less than a foot in most places and fish stocks have plummeted sadly.

whitty said:

rules of priory state that damaging weed and backside vegetation is not allowed

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And a good thing too Alan, I know there's a lot of emphasis on male grooming these days but we have to draw the line somewhere :laugh:

The boating lake was raked last Wednesday. I was there when they were doing it. Quite interesting to see it being done.

Only for the boating though,ought to spend some money dredging or removal of silt...