Robbies Brief Fishing Reports: February 2004

So when the second Kelt came along I was more confused about whether I was still technically blank. Mind you well mended Sea Trout Kelts at about 5lbs do pull the string a bit and I didn't feel blank.

Not that I mind you know. Fresh air and scenery you know.

String pulls again.

Thank the lord this ones a grayling.

45 cm. and in absolutely mint condition. A male.

Seems to be mostly males just lately.

Maybe they are just starting to think about spawning and are getting slightly more aggressive.

The next ones a female!

Thank goodness I am not a Theoretical Physicist.

I would have come up with the Big Whimper instead of Bang or something.....

A load of old rope...... instead of string theory....

Now, I had been recommended this stretch I was fishing in by the Bailiff.

Well I think he was the Bailiff. He had a 4WD and he knew my name and he looked like a bailiff. Nice chap. I bumped into about lunchtime. Actually I think he was looking for me.

I much prefer to have my permit checked. Shows someone cares about the water.

Go upstream about 150 yards and climb over the fence where the Blue Pipe is he said.

Reminded me a bit of Rutland. Where the Three Oak Trees are he said.

There are four of them!?

Mind you at Rutland the Blue Pipes are just along from Three Trees and there are only two of them!

So I must be in the right place.

I think.

The pool is made for Bugging. The wading is to die for.

No I mean dead easy on small gravel.

Dead is not a good word to use about wading is it? (Touch Wood)

And a 100-yard long deep glide .

Funny enough I had walked past this pool last week but I was on the other bank going down stream. When I came back I had crossed over but I was going home and did not give it a second glance. Pay attention Bell!

So one fish on the first run down. Then changed to a heavier control bug and two each on the next two runs through. All in different places.

Game Fair Flyfishing Berwick on Tweed. Nice Stream on the River Teviot I know where I am heading next week.

Oh no! Margaret is off to Tenerife for a week so I am working six days.

Well the week after then. Twice.

The Teviot was running at just about 1 foot above summer level with just a hint of colour.

There was not a breath of wind. It felt mild (No Wind chill I suspect) and there had only been a very slight touch of frost in the morning.

Now this was not what THAT Weather Girl had said on Border TeeVeee the night before.

Never mind though, wonderful headlights.

Oh yes...... 45cm. 45cm. 43cm. 43cm. 41cm. Remarkable really.

All returned.

50cm. Grayling! Yes!!!

Game Fair. The larger Grayling is the same size as the one I caught on the River Teviot February 2004

I am not a big fish man.

I would rather catch two small ones than one big one.

Honest. I really am not into big fish.

In fact in some cases I am passionately against them.

Fisheries stocked with Aqua Pigs really get up my nose.

I don't mind when they are in a small pond and you get exactly what it says on the tin.

If that's your game, fine.

I personally don't fish these.

But when it is a decent sized fishery where I am looking to fish on the drift I hate them.

Why? Well for the price of a slab they could get a good number of "normal" fish of about one and a half pounds and then lots of people could have a good day.

Or I could have a really good day! Hopefully.

Anyway give me more small fish than fewer big ones.

However if you are only going to catch one Grayling in a day it may as well be your biggest. Ever.

I was on the Teviot on Thursday fishing a bit of water that was new to me. It's the stretch of water that is overlooked by the Monument.

Any way just a few minutes after starting I found myself being pushed into deep water by a heavy current. There was a willow on the bank and the fast water had gouged a deep undercut channel.

Towards the middle of the river though, the current was lighter and shallower.

I carefully edged out until I was comfortable again and turning to face my own bank I lobbed in the Bugs. Bang. Obviously a big fish. Damn. It must be a Kelt.

It stayed deep in the heavy flow and I could not do a lot with it.

The water was carrying a reasonable amount of colour and at 1 and 1/2' feet above Summer Level I had a fair job on my hands. After a few minutes I had had enough.

(I fish for the Take not the Fight)

I really bent in to the fish in order to get it over with. A flash of steely grey colour looked as if it just had the hint of a Grayling about it. Or a kelt.

Give it some more stick and bloody hell a Grayling fin breaks the surface.

Panic Panic!!!

It's the Daddy!!!!

Must be Four Pounds!!!!!

Get the net ready!!!!!!

Take it Easy!!!!!!!

Well it wasn't Four Pounds but it was 50cm.

I managed to slowly edge out into the middle of the river where there was a spit and some slow water and after a few more minutes I got it. Out with the new mini Digital Camera.

Only the size of a match box and at £19.99 a snip at Dixon's. Took about 6 quick Photo's and then out with the tape measure. One of those Draper's job's that just slips in the pocket.

50cm. Yes! A great start to the day. Drop everything on the spit. The hooks fallen out. Hold it in the water for a few seconds but its a strong fish and it soon powers away. Magic.

And not another touch all day....

I caught the fish about 11 o'clock and I fished until after 4.

I did do a lot of walking to check out the beat but not even another definite take.

It was still a good day. A nice Grayling. Explored a new bit of water.

Lovely weather and the new Chemical Toe Warmers worked a treat. Only £1.20 a pair.

Game Fair Flyfishing Berwick on Tweed. River Teviot, Home of Large Grayling Where's the Photo's!!!

The damn camera has eaten it's own battery and there was nothing there when I got back to the shop to pick up Margaret! S H one T.

Well the fish was the same size as the biggest one in the photo of Ronnie Glass's fish above.

So at least you have some idea. From memory Ronnie said it was about 2lb.10 oz.

I will have to check with him.

2lb. 8 oz. he say's

Oh well....

Tweedmouth and Spittal Private Angling Club

Game Fair. Berwick on Tweed. Taken from Halidon Hill which lies to the North West of Town

Tweedmouth and Spittal are "Suburbs" of Berwick on Tweed.

Spittal is in the centre of the picture on the south side of the River. Tweedmouth is on the right of the photo on the same side of the River.

The photo is taken from the Northwest of the Town.

The main part of Berwick is on the left which is the North side of the River Tweed.

Below is a summary of the above club. It was written by the current secretary.

I have only slightly tinkered with the text to suit the website.

Obviously I understand it may be of limited interest to those who are not local.

However it may have some merit in informing some of the younger generation who may never have imagined the delights of going fishing by train. It may also remind the older generation (me included) of the convenience of the modern age......

A BRIEF RECORD OF TWEEDMOUTH & SPITTAL PRIVATE ANGLING CLUB

FROM 1926 TO 1990.

The first recorded meeting of the Tweedmouth and Spittal Private Angling Club was on Wed. the 27th of January 1926 in St. Cuthbert's hall in Tweedmouth with a proposal that such a club be formed - this was by a group of keen anglers. The name was agreed - officers elected, and a set of rules drawn up. These rules are basically the same today.

An annual competition on Good Friday - usually on Cornhill and Lennel water was arranged - travel was by train or bus with baskets to be weighed in at Tweedmouth railway station - the fish caught were handed in to Berwick Infirmary.

Members were handicapped at some later competitions - it appears that 8ozs was deducted in some cases and a 1lb start given in others. The prizes were often 5/-, 3/-, & 2/-. Night fishing really was night fishing; starting at 9pm and finishing at 6am , usually with a game of quoits before the start. And so the club continued with credit balances of £7-13/- and £6-18/- considered to be very satisfactory.

The annual subscription was 10/- with 1/- entry fee.

The names on some of our trophies are those of members from early days of the club e.g. J. Russell - 1926 ; J.Whitlie - 1926 ; T.Yourston - 1944 etc. The A.G.M. meetings had been held in St. Cuthbert's Hall, Tweedmouth, or in St. Johns church old school but during the war they were held in a house at St. Helens Terrace in Spittal.

There is very little mention of the war except to say that in 1940 due to difficulty in obtaining transport the annual competition would be held in Norham and men serving in H. M. Forces would be excused payment of the annual subscription.

In 1947 membership was 13 - this was thought to be sufficient and it was decided not to accept new members. One of the club rules at this time was - One member cannot take 1st prize twice in succession and this rule was applied in 1950 when the 1st prize was awarded to the second best basket.

Dr. James Mitchell joined the club in 1952 and in his 1st competition he had fourteen trout thereby winning the 1st. prize of 10/-, the Whitlie challenge cup and the clubs 25 years Jubilee Medal. In 1953 four anglers were proposed to join the club - unfortunately there was only one vacancy and a name had to be drawn from the hat.

In 1956 the secretary mentions with regret the passing of two of the founder members - J. Watson and J.Whitlie In the following year it was decided that the members - of whom there were now fourteen - could fish the Tweed or the Whiteadder during club competitions.

At the 1958 A.G.M. the Secy./Treas. was ill and Albert Piercy was asked to take on the job. He drew up a rota system for V/president and Committee which was in use by the club until recently. Albert carried on as Secy./Treas. for 22yrs followed by 17yrs as club President.

One outstanding competition mentioned in the minutes is the Good Friday competition of 1962 when 12 members fished and 126 fish were weighed in at the Red Lion, Allanton. The total weight was recorded as 42 lbs.

In 1965 the membership limit was raised to 18 but the clubs funds were getting low -£1:14/-; 15/6 ; & 10/6 in previous years being typical examples and that year there was a deficit of £1:4/3. A contribution of 5/- per member was asked for to create a favourable balance which gradually crept up again and by 1973 cash in hand (now in decimal currency) was £6:17p. That year the J. Menzies Trophy was gifted to the club and funds were boosted again by the raffle of a half bottle of whisky and a box of flies - both donated.

The clubs 50th anniversary was in 1976 and discussions as how to celebrate took place. It was agreed to wait until more members were present at the Good Friday competition but prizes were to remain at 50p ; 37p ; & 25p. - Catches recently had been poor and this competition was no exception as only four fish were weighed in.

Photographs of members and friends were taken then tea was enjoyed at the Red Lion Allanton. The T.Yourston trophy was gifted to the club at this time, to be fished for at the night competition and it was agreed to have a small celebration at the Bridge Hotel at Tweedmouth. The secretary thanked the President Jack Russell for all his work over many years - sadly Jack died the following year and was the last of the clubs founder members. The age limit was reduced to 16, membership limit to 25, subscriptions increased to £1 and trophy winners to pay to have their names inscribed. A sing song with refreshments was enjoyed after business was completed.

When new membership cards were needed in 1978 the rules were gone over very carefully and amended where required. Fishing was again very poor at the competitions with e.g. only 1 fish at the Good Friday competition.

The club president went into hospital and had to resign the following year on health grounds

A.G.M.s were now being held in the Tweed View Hotel and in 1982 the Meadow House was chosen for the weigh in and tea - then the A.G.M. was switched to the Highwayman in 1983 and following the death of T.Hutson, Albert Piercy was elected President.

Catches were going up again - 24 members fished and caught 63 fish at the Good Friday competition and payment for members attending the Hirsel Game Fair over the last few years had enabled the club to cover members subscriptions.

In 1986 minimum fish size had to be 9ins and in the same year Dexters paid £800 each to Berwick and Duns associations as a gesture of goodwill to help restock the river although there were no grounds to blame them for pollution. The Mike Hearne trophy was gifted to the club in this year.

Game Fair Flyfishing The Lifeboat Station at Spittal which lies at the mouth of the River Tweed The minutes for 1988 mention a £1000 restocking programme by the Berwick Association to which our club contributed £50. In 1990 the club membership limit was raised to 30 and a proposal that fly only be used at Good Friday competitions was agreed unanimously - this has since been extended to cover all river competitions. There was a long discussion about proposals to move the tidal limit to well below Cantys Bridge - it was decided to resist this strongly.

Since 1990 the club has continued to function well with members looking forward to the clubs 75th anniversary year in 2001.

Frank Robertson--Secy./ Treas.

Year 2000.

Ellem Club Annual General Meeting

Game Fair Flyfishing. The famous Three Bridges of Berwick on Tweed The Ellem Club is the Oldest Fishing Club in the world. If that comes as a surprise to you it can be verified in the Guinness Book of Records.

This year the club is celebrating its 175th Anniversary. To mark the occasion we are holding a Celebration Dinner in Paxton House.

This is a local Stately Home which is owned by the National Trust.

The club is also planning an exhibition in the same place.

This will consist of two Mannequins in a Display Case.

One will depict the Dress of Member attending the Annual Dinner in the 1830's.

The second will depict a Modern Day Fly-Fisher with Breathable Waders, Carbon Rods etc.

Game Fair Flyfishing will be sponsoring the Second Mannequin and are very proud to do so.

The display will also house some of the Clubs Memorabilia and the whole exhibition is being organized by a sub-committee chaired by Dr. Jimmy Mitchell. A booklet charting the Club's History will be on sale at the exhibition and any profits will go to Charity.

Paxton House receives about Forty Thousand Visitors each year and this should be good for the profile of Fly-Fishing in General

The Club is in a very healthy position with a full membership and assets in six figures.

The club was of course founded in 1829. It is sometimes unkindly said that a good proportion of the members seem to be original!

What is true is that it does have a rather Elderly Membership. But maybe that befits its status. When the Club was around a hundred years old the members decided to invest in some Royal Bank of Scotland Shares. Today these provide the Club's financial stability.

Hopefully the Exhibition will provide a springboard for the Club to engage the wider community as a whole. I for one would dearly like to see the Club take a local lead in Habitat Improvement. Particularly if this could involve Local Schools in Educational Projects.

The Ellem Club however is a bit of a Supertanker and quite rightly so. Changes of Course or Stopping take quite a while but they can be achieved.

Below is an extract from the local paper the Berwick Advertiser.

Oldest angling club celebrates its 175th anniversary
THE ELLEM Fishing Club, the oldest in the world, held a commemorative dinner in the Picture Gallery at Paxton House to mark the Club's 175th anniversary on Friday.
Forty members were welcomed by the Chairman of Council, Mr Peter Cowe.
The President of the Club, Mr Henry G McCreath, after proposing the toast to the Ellem Fishing Club, welcomed the guest speaker, Mr Andrew Douglas-Home, Chairman of the River Tweed Commissioners.
His topic was the remit of the Tweed Commissioners which, in conjunction with the Tweed Foundation has done, and is doing much for the welfare of the River Tweed and all its tributaries.
There is particular emphasis on the improvement of salmon, trout and grayling fishing throughout the Tweed system which will be to the ultimate benefit of the local community in particular and the whole community in general.
The Ellem Fishing Club is the oldest trout angling club in the world and is recorded in the Guinness Book of Records as such.
It was founded in 1829 at the Ellem Fishing Tavern, Ellemford, Duns (which is now demolished) by a small group of men, the majority of whom were domiciled in Edinburgh and who had been in the habit of enjoying fishing holidays on the River Whiteadder and Dye and residing either at the Ellem Fishing Tavern or Ellem Cottage which was owned by one of the party.
Two of the members , Mr Henry McCreath and Mr Adam Calder - who was unable to attend on Friday - have been with the Club for 72 years, a remarkable record. Two others, Mr Bill McCreath and Mr Allan Herriott joined 67 years ago.
It is hoped there will be an exhibition of memorabilia of the Ellem Club beginning from the opening of (Paxton House in 2005 and the exhibition is likely to become a permanent feature.
Dr James H Mitchell is busy working on a history which promises to become an outstanding record of a unique club which still retains its original championship medal.
Original members were John Patterson, Jas. Stuart, James Renton, William Alexander, Alexander Low, James R Patterson, James Marshall, John Patterson jun., Thomas Trotter, W G Watson and Andrew Girvan.
There was, in the early days, a strict dress code for members attending the dinner. They wore long, green frockcoats, buff coloured waistcoats, black trousers and long, white silk stockings. It is hoped that a model of an early Club member in the uniform, together with another of a modern angler will be on display at the exhibition.
The Club had its own chaplains, assessors and even a Medical Officer, Dr Stuart from Duns.
The first winner of the massive championship medallion which was gifted by Mr James Marshall, was Mr George Trotter.
Ellem Fishing Club is not a charity but it has played a major part in helping others. During the first World War it gave great assistance from its funds to war charities, and it has always been very helpful to other clubs, notably the Berwick Angling Association. They gained substantial benefit from the Ellem Club during their efforts to improve the waters of the Whiteadder from Canty's Bridge to Allanton.
As far back as 1833, the Club minuted their concern at the 'destructive practice of net fishing". The main offenders at the time were tradesmen from Duns and district.
The Club exists not just for the pleasure its members derive from the sport. Its primary object is to assist in fostering the gentle art and preserving and promoting it in the district.
21 October 2004

See also my Brief Fishing Reports section on the news section.

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