Mid-July, down here in Devon, on the Exe where temperatures hit 30 degrees plus most of yesterday afternoon. The whole country, we know, is wilting under a cloudless sky, and though it might have been so-called ‘freedom day’, there was no respite from the sun. Of course, there was barely any water, James in Dulverton’s […]
Books, John Bailey's feature articles, Thomas Turner blog
Passion For… ‘Poles Apart: The History of the London Roach Pole’ by Michael Nadell
19
Jul
Jul
Poles Apart is published by Coch-y-Bonddu Books, and hit our shelves back in 2013. In our view, it remains one of the greatest books for tackle collectors this century for a wide variety of reasons. Above all, absolutely everything anyone would need to know about the London roach pole is written here. This is the […]
16
Jul
Jul
We all think we know Marina Gibson from her TV appearances, her social media presence and her written words, but here we try to get to the real person, the true fly fisher who has burst on the scene so dramatically these past three years. We increasingly lose our knowledge of history, so it’s worth […]
12
Jul
Jul
PW knows how to cheer me up!!! Just the other day I talked about fishing for asp around Europe and the fringes of Asia even, and then as ever moved the conversation on to more weighty conservation issues. Perhaps you can be just too bloody serious. Great mate Paul Whitehouse tuned into the conversation, and […]
11
Jul
Jul
Since my recent piece on the Exe I’ve been made aware of RETA, and many thanks for that Godfrey! The fact that seventeen major barriers exist on the Exe seems to be one of the major reasons that 70% of returning salmon are not making it back to their spawning sites. RETA is raising money […]
10
Jul
Jul
A few days ago I returned from a recce down the M5 to Exmoor, and I’m off to the Exe in earnest in a week or so. It’s great to be back. There was a time when the Tarr Steps hotel on the Barle was my halcyon river, deep in that wonderful ‘Dingley Dell of […]
10
Jul
Jul
I don’t know if you have fished for asp, but if the chance arises, take it for sure. You ‘Aspers’ look away while I try to describe the species to those not in the know… asp are rather like very large, very predatorial chub that hammer shoals of small fish, and can be caught on […]
09
Jul
Jul
We do love variety! A call to sell tackle had me driving up the M6 to the northwest coast. Warm and scenic with a surprise in store. Passing by the opportunity to indulge in an ice cream on the prom, I arrive at the house. Initially, the call was about a Farlow line drier and […]
06
Jul
Jul
It’s not unusual for such a little piece of angling ephemera to hide a massive story. The Warner of Redditch little hook paper fold measures a diminutive 2.5” long. It was hiding in the base of a willow creel and is worthy of examination. The famous Warner fish and cross sword logo is displayed over […]
24
Jun
Jun
It’s a fair bet if I asked you what was the telephonic address of William Bartleet of Redditch c.1910 few would come up with “Penelope-Redditch”. This lovely Zephyr style wood and alloy Nottingham reel was part of the huge reel and gadget collection we bought last week was, as were a variety of others. It […]