another fishing spot gone.(Childhood Memories of the River Hundred).

The regular pre fishing visits to my local angling shop often produces reports on the local scene. Match weights don’t interest me at all it is the specimen fishing I enjoy. I am an all round angler as much as I am an all round countryside sports writer and Naturalist. My publications are varied as is my angling and planning my next trip is just as exciting as tracking Otters on the upper river Waveney or following the wildfowlers in the middle of a winter storm for those column inches that pay the bills. The information of Chub being caught in the mid reaches of my local river really gets the rods out as does reports of big Pike further downstream. There really is nothing better than your local tackle shop even if you just spend a quid on hooks the chat and the chat is second to none. (you don’t get that from online shops)
Now let’s go back to 1982. Now did my father purposely buy me a fishing set three weeks before the river season opened on June 16th yes readers all! Rivers and still waters, club or private were closed from 15th March to 16th June.
To an almost 13 year old boy the mounting excitement of that magical day was prepared for by reading the angling weeklies and walking the river banks fired with so much enthusiasm for my new sport I would spend hours there. Would the keenness have been there if I went to the river the day I received his lifetime gift. Yes of course but the anticipation of the 16th June was so stimulating I loved it (and still do.) There was nobody to teach me I was alone and as soon as that day arrived I was on my bike, new rod ste up for immediate fishing in hand and straight down to the River Hundred. The Kessingland Angling Club rented that stretch and here I cut my teeth on the fishing. It was my training ground and I landed some nice Rudd, Roach and Tench often by early morning or late evening visits sometimes I would be there all day.
Come the winter months I would fish for Pike catching a 15lb 6oz Pike in the autumn of 1985 with my late best mate Charlie. Soon into adult hood I moved away but the River Hundred never left me. I returned season after season catching a great number of species of many baits often trying out new rigs on the stretch.
Jump to 2010 and while waxing about the River Hundred in the tackle shop I was disappointed to hear that the club stretch has been given up. No more will village kids go down there and fish in safety but may be attracted to those terrible Carp puddles and the commercial angling waters.
These fish may be safe from sporting folk but it was so sad to hear one of my favourite waters was laying fallow for all time.
I have some good news, my nephew, the first in my family has taken up the sport of angling and I hope he will follow in my footsteps as an all rounder. I have witnessed the growth of easy angling in the shape of these holes in the ground and now although another stretch of wild river has been laid low there are still some Rivers and even ponds where monsters lurk.
Although I cannot write about contemporary visits I have enough in the cupboard for anecdotal stories. I hope these will be of interest and remind these Hundred anglers what they are now missing.
Colin.