Really?

[Northantslad]

There does seem to be a tendency from some well known and higher profile anglers, who should know better in their position, writing in magazines and who are out there, who seem to start every piece with a dig at people, one article recently i read, berated some constantly throughout the piece, this wasn't a piece on area of angling where something needed saying, more justifying their approach by knocking that of others.

In a time where people get miffed about things, you realise that actually, there are some who couldn't care less about other anglers, in fact they would seem happier if the 'others' weren't angling.

Most recent example i have seen
An editor of a magazine asked his team what their plans are for the next month, one response essentially read- take advantage of the of places quietening down when only the 'genuine' angling enthusiasts are on the bank.

I get what is meant by his comment and yes if you are a year rounder, then it is nice to have a bit more water to go at, but it (and other examples you read every week), in how they are said doesn't half seem to put down alot of fellow anglers. The first bit of the comment i have no issue with, but it is, and often is, the bit added that isn't needed.

Is it me, or does the latter part of comment suggest that someone who doesn't fish year round can't be a genuine angler? I think perhaps of an older person, who may have put in more years than any of some of these people put together, but is at the time of life where the cold and damp is now a struggle?

 

[Nunachuk]

Maybe he said it 'off the cuff', without really thinking, who knows?

 

[Northantslad]

That's the thing, so much thought needs to go into the written word, especially to an article. One week potentially insult a group of anglers, next week plug some gear and expect people to buy it.

 

[Dave]

I would like to have thought the editor saw it as it was meant, not as a dig re others

 

[160642fishing]

From Northants post

take advantage of the of places quietening down when only the 'genuine' angling enthusiasts are on the bank.

I don't know about other parts of the country but there are thousands of pegs available in the Fens all year round,apart from the close season of course because most of them are on the rivers and drains and very few people want fish them.

 

[Dave]

Do the 'genuine' angling enthusiasts only fish commercials ?

 

[Lee Richards]

No different to fishing forums where there is always someone all to willing to dismiss how others are fishing.
Instead of helping others improve it seems quite a few would rather gloat and mock.

 

[Total]

Do the 'genuine' angling enthusiasts only fish commercials ?

Ouch! .......Only when I'm having trouble with Excel, it helps me figure my programming problems out!

 

[Sam Vimes]

I suspect that most will understand exactly what was meant. However, it may have been more politic to replace "genuine" with something like "hard core" or "dedicated". There are plenty of anglers that don't go fishing at all outside of June, July and August. A second tier might start at Easter, provided the weather is decent. Once the first frosts arrive, their kit doesn't see the light of day until spring.

This kind of sniping has always been part and parcel of angling. Many older anglers are incredibly dismissive of anyone younger than them. I hear the standard "I've been fishing X years" trotted out frequently enough. What some of those that do this fail to mention is how frequently they actually fish. I know of a few older anglers that would claim to have been fishing for 50(+) years. What they neglect to say is that they've never gone much more than twice a year in all that time. There are actually kids out there that are better, and more experienced, anglers. That doesn't stop the old gits being a bit sneery at the youngsters.

 

[Ken the Pacman]

Anglers are the most fragmented and the least united of any sport I can think of and its been this way for many years which is why we have so little political clout.
Many people resent that the influx of new anglers has had an effect on them be it having to book a place on a commercial fishery or being unable to buy their favourite tackle but suddenly adding 500,000 new faces on the bank is going to take sometime to adjust to and the people who earn a wage from the sport in any way should welcome them not try and put them off.

 

[Lee Richards]

Has there really been an influx of new anglers or is it just mainly those who have had another go at the sport because there was nothing else to do?
I have been out more this year than the past 5/6 and can honestly say I have not seen any difference .

 

[Silverfisher]

Has there really been an influx of new anglers or is it just mainly those who have had another go at the sport because there was nothing else to do?
I have been out more this year than the past 5/6 and can honestly say I have not seen any difference .

Yeah I've fished more sessions in the last 4 months than I normally would in a year and have to say I've not noticed a huge difference in numbers either. A bit of an increase for sure but certainly not floods of people.

Was a bit busier than usual around here when angling first opened up again with the novelty factor but since then it's been pretty much as standard. I guess fishing through the week whilst furloughed there were more anglers than there'd probably normally be in the week but no more than you average weekend. Tbh I thought weekends would be packed but since I've been back fishing them they've not been much different either. Also any increase in bank activity was probably as much down to existing anglers fishing more often as it was new people. For example I was fishing 2-4 times a week whilst furloughed yet am now back down to 1 or occasionally 2 times a week.

As for year round fishing proper fishing season for me is start of May through to the end of October. I do fish the rest of the year but nothing like as much as the aforementioned months as it's such a lottery with the weather.

 

[Ken the Pacman]

The new faces are a mixture of returning previous anglers total newcomers and some family of existing anglers.
You may not notice the difference on natural venues or rivers so much as they have mostly headed to the commercial fisheries several of which require you to book in advance to get a peg allocated to you unlike pre covid when you just turned up and took your pick of what was not being used for matches.
It will vary area to area of course but sea fishing is also going through a mini boom in my area.

 

[Lee Richards]

"The new faces are a mixture of returning previous anglers total newcomers and some family of existing anglers."

How do they know?

 

[Silverfisher]

Fairly safe presumption as that’s a fairly catch all list lol

 

[davej1981]

Ive returned after 20 years but it was nothing to do with covid , id been planning it long before.. I would say i am a “genuine” angler but because of family life i dont get out very often and probably wont at all once the good weather disappears,so i dont know where i fall into this ??

 

[Northantslad]

I would say you fall squarely into a chunk of the anglers who could be offended by not being classed as 'genuine', not based on age, but also in amount of time that you can dedicate to your fishing, but don't let me get offended on your behalf, up to you, but you have highlighted another factor of why people don't have to be on the bank year round but can be classed as genuine anglers in my book.

I would even add, that i bet some of these names can drop in anywhere they like too if it gets some publicity for a fishery, so plenty of fishing available to them regardless of where all the mere non-genuine angling mortals are heading.

 

[Ken the Pacman]

"The new faces are a mixture of returning previous anglers total newcomers and some family of existing anglers."

How do they know?

I am basing that statement on the new customers that have appeared at our door who fall into the groups above.
A good example was a gent who had fished with his dad in his youth now in his 40s had decided to start up again with no idea at all what had changed over 30 years so he finished up buying a complete kit for float and feeder fishing.A week later he comes back for a pole 13metre Daiwa PCX sorted but he had his younger brother with him who had never fished or shown any interest in fishing but tagged along with with the elder brother for something to do, had a dabble with his gear and loved it so another pole sale and a complete feeder kit.
They are out two or three times a week and loving it for all the benefits we already know Angling can give.
This has been repeated in various ways with the only disappointing part being the amount of carp starter kits so people are not learning to fish before they jump in at the deep end with buzzers and boilies then complain they are not catching much.

 

[BarryS]

Has there really been an influx of new anglers or is it just mainly those who have had another go at the sport because there was nothing else to do?
I have been out more this year than the past 5/6 and can honestly say I have not seen any difference .

When we were "allowed" to fish my local day ticket fishery was packed........and there must be over 100 swims on 3 lakes.. Lots of people who were obviously not very experienced. Which is fine ..we all have to start somewhere.

My favourite was the two ladies who turned up and spent 50 minutes putting up bivvies ...one each. on a day when you really didn't need a bivvy. Then spent another 45 minutes using a brightly striped windbreak to create a small square .......the pounding away with a mallet getting the stakes in the hard ground could be heard from a quarter of a mile away..you could almost feel the ground vibrate. It turns out they created this for their portable potty. Every time they went in they took a stakeout and hammered it back in when they came out. You had to smile. Which is more than the fishery owner did when he found 2 double figure carp in the bag of some eastern Europeans on the same day.

 

[Northantslad]

Fairplay to them, one of the complaints at our local pit, is people using the bank as a toilet. The rule put in place to stop it....................'no cycling'????? Ok for some to leave the dog poop bags on the floor or hanging on gates or in trees.

Had been biking the pit for a good year or so, and not once did i think i need i need to dismount and take one in a fishing swim.
I would think that it boils down to the usual thing on which rules are based, chairman dislikes cyclists to a point of thinking it is they whom must be pooing everywhere and is a dog owner themselves.