1 OUSE ANGLING PRESERVATION SOCIETY Ltd Company Number 5381556 Registered in England www.ouseaps.co.uk

Chairman: D. Scott, “Mandeville”, Nether Lane, Nutley, E Sussex TN22 3LA Secretary: D.Brown, 20 Bishop Butt Close, Orpington, Kent, BR6 9UF Tel: 0771 0458653 (mobile), email: [email protected] **********************************************************************************************

NEWSLETTER - 2014/2015 SEASON June 2015

Secretary’s report

Compared with the exceptional weather which adversely affected the 2013/14 season, with the seemingly never ending succession of storms, bringing gales, torrential rain and numerous high spates, and much of the winter sport being lost to high and muddy water, the 2014/15 season was a much more benign one. There were relatively few days when floods made the Ouse unfishable, and no snow covered banks to contend with. Nevertheless, although there were not the extremes of the previous year, 2014, was the hottest year on record. By the start of the sea trout season on May 1st the last of the winter storms was several months in the past and the river was at a good spring level. While there were some lowish summer and early autumn spates, and a few bigger ones from mid-October and throughout the winter, the river was, apart from during the intermittent spates, more often than not in a fishable condition throughout the entire sea trout and coarse seasons.

As always, excellent specimen fish were reported, the best pike was over 30lb, followed by a 20lb+ fish on the next cast; a truly remarkable catch, the largest sea trout was a 12 pounder and the inevitable 20lb + carp were banked with a 30 pound plus common thought to be the largest. The OAPS fishery has thus maintained its position as one of very few which has, in the same season, produced a 30lb plus carp and pike along with a double figure sea trout.

Although famed for the size of its sea trout, the Ouse does not have an early run and, while the very occasional fish will enter the river during April, it is usually not until towards the end of May that the season really gets under way and the first sea trout are seen and taken. The 2014 season was no exception and, although it started with a normal spring flow, there was a succession of rises and small spates (and a single much higher one, in mid-October) which kept the fish running the river from late May through to the end of the season and the catch steadily built, with about 90 fish being reported, the best total for over a decade. While the fluctuating water level kept the sea trout running, it resulted in carp only being on the top intermittently, making surface fishing rather hit and miss, and the larger fish fell to ledgered baits. There was low water and warm conditions around the start of the coarse season and large tench and rudd, the classic summer species, featured in mixed catches in the slow water at Barcombe Mills. As the season progressed, rain brought the river up regularly and as the water dropped back after the low summer and autumn spates, and still carried some colour, perch (along with the occasional barbel) in particular often came on the feed. While there were some fairly high spates from November to mid-January, they were minor compared to those of the previous winter and, particularly during the final two months of the season there were extended periods of low, very clear water, which have been unusual over the past few years. The chub, roach and other coarse fish were notably cautious and seemed reluctant to feed in such conditions and very fine tackle was often needed to get bites, although they were less wary when the water was carrying a little colour, but not too high. Winter pike fishing was, compared to the previous winter, which was close to a wash-out, much improved and some excellent fish were caught, including during the periods of low and clear water towards the seasons end when other species seemed reluctant to feed. Consequently, for those willing to vary their tactics and target species, there was normally something to be caught.

The Society’s website (www.ouseaps.co.uk ) maintained by Andrew Woolley, the Society’s Permit Secretary, gives up to date news of recent catches of specimen fish, and is the quickest way to find out about these and what else is happening with respect to the fishery. If you catch a memorable fish which you are happy to see publicised, send Andrew the details and a photo, this can be included on the website.

A notable event for the Society last year was the retirement from the Committee, and as OAPS’s Treasurer, of John Goodrick. When I joined the Committee in 2002 John already had many years of dedicated service behind him as the Society’s Honorary Secretary, and when I took on that position in 2007 he maintained a very active involvement as our Treasurer. We wish John all the very best for the future and are delighted to welcome his successor, Ian Womersley, to the Committee as our new Treasurer. 2

Coarse Fishing 2013/14 Season

In spite of it being the warmest year on record, carp were not on the surface as much as would have been expected and when they were they seemed to stay closer to cover than usual, possibly because the often very clear water made them particularly cautious. While very wary of surface baits in the open water (they would often approach, closely inspect, but then reject a piece of crust), carp would often take a floating bait positioned tight to overhanging branches, or dense weed, but very strong tackle and hook and hold tactics were needed to prevent the fish making it to a snag in its initial surge. There seemed to be fewer large carp on the top in the Anchor to Goldbridge reach and the largest I am aware of falling to a floating bait here was less than 20lb. This may reflect some of the larger carp having been displaced downstream during the extreme winter spates of 2013/14, as some very big fish, which were previously unknown, were seen both in the non-tidal reach immediately upstream of Barcombe Mills, and in the tidal section further downstream. There were reports of a 30lb common carp having being taken in the vicinity of Barcombe Mills, but limited information was received. Plenty of carp were, as usual, taken on the lower tidal fishery; a good number of fish to just short of 20lb were reported from this area (nearly all on ledgered baits) and it is understood that larger fish were taken by anglers not seeking any publicity. There was some fishing of the upper non-tidal reaches by experienced carp anglers and fish to around 15lb were taken here. This is an area which has very seldom been targeted for carp and some exceptionally large fish have been sighted here over the years. However, with them potentially roving over long distances, and with several miles of river to explore, this is a challenging stretch to fish. It does however have the potential to produce an enormous fish – a few years ago I saw, in this stretch, at very close range, the largest river carp I have ever seen. It was seen by others and there was agreement that it was well in excess of 40lb. As far as is known, it remains uncaught.

30lb+ pike are not taken every year on the OAPS fishery, but those encountered almost invariable fall to deadbaits. That a 30lb fish was taken last year was not exceptional, but the circumstances were, in that it fell not to a deadbait but to a relatively small lure, taking it within seconds of it hitting the water. What made it even more remarkable is that the angler (who is not seeking any publicity, although the catch is well documented) took a fish of well over 20lb on his very next cast, the fish again taking the lure almost immediately. Both fish were lying tight to bushes overhanging the far bank, no doubt because the dappled shade they cast helped camouflage the pike from their potential prey. This exceptional brace of fish was taken (from the upper tidal river) earlier during the season than large pike are normally encountered and was followed over the winter months and right up to the last few days of the season by further 20lb+ fish, at least one of which was from the non-tidal river. That the Ouse above the tidal limit can produce such large pike (it has produced 30lb plus fish in recent years) is an indication of the healthy stocks of coarse fish which they depend on. The early winter (November to mid-January) pike fishing saw the highest water, with a number of spates, although these were short lived and there were periods between them when the river dropped and, for those who could be on the bank at the right time, there was some good sport. During this period, nearly all the fish reported fell to deadbaits, and there was, even between the spates, often a fair degree of colour in the water, which is not conducive to lure fishing (although one angler did well with large rapala type lures in very coloured water, taking fish to low double figures). The final two months of the season, while there were some lowish spates, saw more settled conditions and at times, low, clear water and some particularly good pike were taken during the final fortnight of the season.

While winter pike fishing was fairly reliable, general coarse fishing was a little patchy during the colder months. There were very good days when float or ledger would produce plenty of bites, but then unproductive periods when the fish seemed to have disappeared. It is not clear why these lean periods occur – it could be that the fish have moved, or possibly that they are still there, but just not feeding. Unstable weather conditions, and temperature did fluctuate a lot last winter, with very warm weeks followed by cold ones, can make the fish disinclined to feed and small but dirty winter spates, may have a similar effect. But at times, there seems to be no obvious reason and sometimes the fish will feed strongly one day and then, in seemingly identical conditions, apparently not at all for a few days. A few winters ago I made a good catch of chub, with a few perch thrown in and returned to the same spot for the next two days, without getting a single bite. The fish were still there – they could be clearly seen in the clear water of a relatively shallow swim – but were completely indifferent not just to hook baits, but to free samples of maggots and worms drifting right past their mouths. Under such conditions fish may be extremely difficult to tempt, but even on productive days, very fine hook lengths and tiny hooks (20 or even smaller) and baits may be needed to secure bites. Whatever did make the Ouse fish disinclined to feed at times during the winter also affected fish on neighbouring rivers, and of course many fish normally feed less during the winter months.

But, rewinding to June 16th, large tench are regularly encountered in the first few days of the season, particularly in the deep, slow water above Barcombe Mills Pool and 2014 was no exception, with fish to 5lb – a very big tench for a river – falling, especially just after sunrise, to bread, sweetcorn and maggots. Tench, while often sizeable, are not present in large numbers, and normally only one or two will be taken in a session. While the deep water at Barcombe is the most reliable spot on the OAPS fishery for a tench, they are also found further downstream in the tidal river and some very large ones are present there; a 7 pounder was reported from the Hamsey Cut. Very few tench have, over the years, been reported above the Anchor and for the angler targeting them, the deep water in very lowest non-tidal section is the most consistent area for them. They can however turn up elsewhere and I was surprised in 3 July to take a pair, each around 3lb, in quick succession in a fast, shallow swim on the Andrews Stream while fishing (with worm) for chub.

Some very good roach were also taken during the first few days of the season, although less frequently thereafter - a large roach is, at best, an elusive fish and once the season is underway becomes an even more difficult target. However, as was the case during the past two seasons, the occasional very big (around 2lb) roach was taken by carp anglers on the lower tidal river around Hamsey and it would be interesting to see what dedicated fishing for them with more appropriate tackle and baits would produce. Smaller, but still sizeable (over a pound) roach were also encountered on the entire non-tidal fishery, both in the weir pools and in swims where there is moderate paced flow over or near weed, including on the Browns stretch below the Anchor, and a few hundred yards below Sutton Hall weir.

Like roach, bream are present throughout the entire fishery from Goldbridge down to Hamsey. Over the past decade there has been a gradual change in bream catches; 10 years ago, while substantial bags could be taken from the tidal section, they often averaged a little less than 3 pounds, with only the occasional fish over 4lb, whereas in recent years, while the number of fish taken in a session may be less, the average weight is often significantly higher. Good sized bream also turn up more frequently in the non-tidal fishery, including in surprisingly shallow and fast water (including Goldbridge weir pool) as well as in the deeper, slower flowing sections which look more “breamy”. Last season a good number of fish in the 4-5lb were reported from various locations, along with the occasional much bigger one, including a double figure fish from Hamsey. Bream of this calibre, an exceptional fish for any river, are rarely encountered but are known to be present in small numbers in the tidal section; a double figure fish was also taken at Hamsey last year. There is a possibility that equally large big bream may also be present in the non-tidal river; a 12 pounder was once (admittedly over a decade ago) caught above Barcombe Mills and perhaps fish of that calibre may still be present. Last year an interesting development was the capture of a few what seemed to be silver bream (a completely different species from the common or bronze bream usually encountered on the fishery). These turned up on the tidal fishery and, while identification of silver bream can be a little tricky – roach-bream hybrids can appear very similar – the photos I saw did appear to be genuine silver bream. I understand that Environment Agency surveys last year also turned up a few silver bream in the lower Ouse catchment, so it seems that they can be added to the list of species which anglers can potentially catch on the OAPS fishery. While there are records of silver bream going back to the 1960’s, due to the potential to confuse silver bream with small common bream, or roach-bream hybrids, these old records have been considered inconclusive, but it may be that some of them were correct.

Like bream, barbel are another species that seldom reach double figures on the OAPS fishery and the best of the season is normally around the 9lb mark – this was the case again last season, with a fish of just below that weight being taken in the Anchor weir pool. However, they are widely distributed and present in much greater numbers than a decade ago and smaller fish were taken throughout the fishery, usually as “accidental” rather than targeted catches. The weir pools are hot spots, but they can turn up anywhere and fishing specifically for them may well produce interesting results – there are almost certainly a number of so far uncaught double figure fish present with, as reported in previous Newsletters, a 10 pounder having been found dead at Barcombe Mills and even larger fish having been sighted alive during the close season in the same area.

As was the case last year, some good chub were taken, both as incidental catches by carp anglers on the tidal stretch, and as targeted captures on the non-tidal fishery, including some lovely, very deep bodied, fish of over 5lb from the weir pools in particular. As well as these specimens, chub of around the 3lb mark are increasingly regular catches. They are slow growing fish but the average weight of them has crept up over the years and the numerous small (a few ounces to a pound or so) chub of 5 years and more ago have now reached more substantial proportions and are still growing. However, small chub are still present in good numbers and the species does seem to be breeding well and building a stronger population. Interestingly the Society’s old records (going back to its creation in 1875) make little reference to chub and they seem to be now much more abundant than in the past – until relatively recently, chub were not as widespread in many Sussex rivers as were roach and dace and were entirely absent from the neighbouring Adur until introduced to that river in the 1960’s. They have slowly expanded their range and are now found in many of the Adur’s tributaries, as well as the main river. Conversely, the chub’s closest relative, dace, have not fared as well and in some reaches of Sussex rivers where they were once common, dace are now only encountered rarely. Whilst not found in the same numbers in the Ouse as they once were, there is still a relatively strong population of dace around Barcombe Mills in particular and if anything this seems to have increased recently with, last season, some good dace turning up on the Browns stretch and up to the Anchor weir. Dace can often be targeted in gaps in the weed in this area (loose feeding with maggots will draw them into the open water) and it is well worth exploring these gaps not just for dace but for other species too. While the weedy sections may be dismissed as too difficult to fish and passed over in favour of more open swims, the shelter provided by weed beds, and the food within them, attracts perch, tench, roach and many other species and with a thoughtful approach good fish can be extracted from them. A surface bait floated over the beds will also often draw unseen carp and chub to the surface and close inspection will often show large enough gaps in the weed where a bait can be fished on the bottom – it would be interesting to see whether a large chunk of meat fished in this way would produce a big barbel. Although the weed looks dense, to the extent that it would make playing and landing a sizeable fish problematical, by using strong tackle and getting downstream of a fish when hooked, even large fish can be extracted and even if a fish seems immovable in the weed, steady pressure from downstream will often free it. As well as weed in the river 4 attracting fish, bankside cover, including overhanging and fallen trees has the same effect and, while it may not always make for the easiest of fishing, such cover is often the best place to seek a specimen fish. The OAPS fishery is, for the most part, managed as a wild fishery and there is deliberately little trimming of bankside vegetation. However, in some sections, including the Andrews Stream, the Society has recently cleared short sections of the bank to allow access to productive swims which would otherwise be very difficult to fish.

Perch are a fish which are often found in the vicinity of weed and tree cover and fish of a pound plus are now regularly encountered. Much bigger fish are certainly present; sea trout anglers sometimes take them on lures and some exceptionally large perch (well over 4lb) have been seen, but as far as is known, not yet captured, as none much over 3lb have been reported. Targeted fishing for them in likely swims with lobworms, or plastic lures could produce interesting results – large perch respond to large baits.

An attraction of the OAPS fishery is that it offers opportunities for both the specimen hunter targeting a particular species and the angler seeking a mixed bag and the many anglers seeking the latter enjoyed some good sport last season. As noted above, the winter coarse fishing was patchy, with the unusually clear water at times probably not helping, but from the opening of the season until the first high spates in October there was consistently good fishing, with smaller baits such as maggots producing mixed catches of roach, perch, and chub in particular. While smaller baits usually mean a catch comprised mostly of small to medium sized fish, it was not at all unusual for a session to also produce a big bream or two. Perch to over a pound are not infrequent and, in the deep water above Barcombe Mills and the Andrews Cut, rudd add to the interest and with the possibility of dace and even a barbel a mixed bag including 6 or 7 different species is on the cards and was achieved by some anglers last summer.

The Copthorne and District Angling Society’s lakes (including Piltdown Pond), to which OAPS permit holders have access, all provided consistently good sport during summer and autumn of the 2014/15 season, with Piltdown continuing to produce some excellent fish during the winter. Although a shallow and relatively small water, Piltdown does hold specimen fish of a number of species; last season it produced carp to 25lb, pike to 17lb, bream to over 7lb, 5lb tench, 2lb perch and a 4lb8oz eel. The huge decline, throughout Europe, in eel numbers is well documented and 4lb plus eels are increasingly rare catches anywhere. Really large eels of this size usually comes from stillwaters rather than rivers and are old, sometimes very old (decades) fish; the young elvers migrating upstream can find their way into lakes and ponds throughout a river catchments, reaching them by climbing high weirs and dams with only a trickle of water over them, but the adult eels may find it much harder to find the pond exit and their way back to the river, and ultimately to the Atlantic, which they cross in their final journey to their spawning grounds in the Sargasso sea. It is because of their difficulty in locating the exit to a pond that they may spend more time there than they intended, or ultimately may never find the exit. Eels in small stillwaters, while often few in numbers, are often of a high average size. However, it is not just a question of eels not finding the exit to a pond which results in small waters often producing very large eels; small shallow ponds are often highly productive with much suitable food (including small fish) and as they often warm up significantly during the summer months, this again encourages fast growth, so even very large eels may be relatively young. By contrast eels in relatively unproductive and cooler waters may grow only very slowly; I have in previous Newsletters noted that I fish for salmon mostly on the East Lyn river in Devon; eels, like everywhere else, are much rarer there now but the occasional one does take a worm intended for salmon. They are small eels, one of 18 inches would be exceptional, but that could be a 50 year old fish – I always treat them with great care and as the few I have caught have been very lightly hooked I have been relieved to quickly unhook and return then. Back to the Ouse, while numbers are greatly reduced throughout the catchment, and the largest specimens are likely to be encountered in stillwaters such as Piltdown Pond, the main river historically has produced large numbers of good eels of 2lb or more; the area around the Anchor used to be exceptionally productive in the 1970’s and into the 1980’s, when a single session could produce a number of this size. Electric fishing surveys showed that, even further upstream, around Sharpsbridge, an area the young eels would have had to migrate over a series of large weirs to reach, around 70% by weight of the total fish population consisted of eels. While now at a greatly reduced level, eels are still present throughout the fishery and are encountered from time to time; the largest I am aware of last year was about a pound and a half, although most were well under a pound. If you do catch one, please treat it with care and quickly return it; they are now an endangered species, although there have been some positive signs, with elver numbers picking up in recent years. As you may have noticed, special elver passes have been installed on most of the weirs, to help their upstream migration.

It is not only eels which can put on weight quickly in productive ponds such as Piltdown; the Copthorne Society’s other lakes also provide the conditions for fish to grow fast, for example in the Wilderness Pool at Little Rowfant carp are really packing on weight and now average 7-8lb, with much bigger fish present. The Rowfant lakes are really excellent fisheries and, whilst Piltdown perhaps gets more publicity, they are very much worth fishing. Please note however that the Mount Lake at Ifield is no longer available. There is now no close season on any of the Copthorne Society’s lakes, OAPS permit holders now have access to a variety of stillwaters on a year round basis. They may however be booked for matches occasionally; a list of match dates is available on the Copthorne and District Angling Society’s website (www.copthorneangling.co.uk ). 5

Sea Trout Fishing 2014 Season

The Society’s annual allocation of Sea Trout Permits was again fully subscribed, and, while the river was often low during the sea trout season, there were regular rises and small spates at the right time which kept the fish coming in. The flow was sufficient for the fish to run quickly past the Barcombe weirs and make their way upstream and a reasonable number were taken in the non-tidal fishery (although, as always, the majority of the catch was from the tidal section). The catch gradually built, and by the end of the season around 90 fish were known to have been caught, with September and October being particularly productive. The Ouse almost invariable produces double figure sea trout and last year was no exception, the best reported being a 12 pounder. The majority of fish fell to smallish (size 2 or 3) Mepps type spinners, with many anglers finding black ones effective (although others find silver equally good), but small Rapala types can also work well. So the season was a good one, with specimen fish and yet again an increase in the total catch, which has now increased year by year for the past five years. However, while the average size of the fish was still exceptionally high compared to other UK rivers, there was a greater proportion of “small” fish in the 3-5lb category and relatively fewer in the 6-8lb category. Why this has happened is uncertain; it may reflect an actual change in the size of fish, perhaps due to different feeding conditions at sea, or a greater proportion than usual of one sea winter compared to the larger two sea winter fish. However, an alternative explanation is that the larger fish were still there in normal numbers, but that the frequent rises in water level resulted in them running upstream quickly, rather than waiting in the tidal reaches, as they are more likely to do when the river is low for prolonged periods. Observations of large fish well upstream of Barcombe Mills early in the season suggest that this may well have been the case. It will be interesting to see if this pattern is repeated during the 2015 season; early indications are that it will not be, as already this year some exceptionally large early fish, to around 15lb have been seen (and one hooked and lost at the net) and a number of fish in the 7-8lb size have been caught. There have been similar years in the past, when the very big fish for which the Ouse is famed seem slightly scarcer that usual, but the following season has seen a return to a higher proportion of them, and if early indications are anything to go by, it seems likely that this will happen in 2015.

Returning to last season, once the first fish had entered the river they were taken regularly all through the tidal fishery, including Barcombe Mills Pool. Fishing was most productive on the tail end of the regular small rises and spates, when there was a bit of colour in the water, especially if this coincided with a spring tide, although some fish also came in on high tides when the water was low. Since the fish pass works were undertaken on the inflow to the Pool a few years ago the Pool seems “quieter” in that fewer fish are seen jumping there. In previous years, jumping sea trout were a regular feature and, while they certainly engaged the angler’s attention, these fish, many of which may have been in the Pool for weeks or even months, being unable to continue their upstream journey until there was a very high spate, would seldom take a lure. Since fish passage was improved, sea trout tend to run through the Pool quickly and it does not have the same build-up of sometimes stressed fish in it. However, while it may not hold the same numbers of fish at any given time as in years past, the fish in the Pool now, usually being fresh run and perhaps only pausing briefly before carrying on upstream, are often very susceptible to a well presented lure and it remains an excellent place to target sea trout. However, with fish being able to run past Barcombe Mills with greater ease, this does open up opportunities for intercepting them further upstream. The deep water immediately above Barcombe Mills can be productive for sea trout, after this section opens on June 16 th (only the Pool and tidal river are open until then) but it is also, from July onwards, worth investigating up to the Anchor weir; some very fresh fish were taken here in 2014, which, from their condition, had obviously very quickly made their way this far upstream. An indication of the effectiveness of the fish pass on the Pool is that, prior to its construction, in some hot summers with very low water, there was sadly some mortality of fish in the Pool, with the fish effectively trapped there and unable to continue upstream. This has not happened since the pass was completed.

The year on year steadily increasing catch is most encouraging and in contrast to the situation affecting many other migratory fish rivers. I have mentioned previously that much of my salmon fishing is on the East Lyn river in North Devon where, due to concern about declining stocks, fishing for salmon and sea trout is, for 2015 for the first time ever, on a catch and release basis only throughout the season and the use of natural baits (most Lyn salmon fall to worm) prohibited. A number of famous sea trout rivers in Wales, including the Towy have also seen declining sea trout catches in recent years. A range of factors may have contributed to the Ouse bucking the trend and a welcome upturn in its sea trout population; new fish passes and habitat improvement works are almost certainly a factor and, as noted in last year’s Newsletter, with Buxted Weir on the Uck having been removed, a very significant area of prime sea trout spawning and juvenile habitat is now accessible for the first time in over 40 years, which promises even more fish for the future. It would be wrong however to be complacent as there are still many factors which could adversely affect the Ouse sea trout population – for example the extreme spates of 2013/14 may have caused a significant wash-out of redds and an associated loss of eggs and fry. If this did occur, it will be by no means a problem specific to the Ouse – current low salmon parr numbers in the Chalk streams in Hampshire and Dorset for example have been linked to the severe spates of two winters ago. However, with sea trout often spawning in even the tiniest headwater streams, smaller than those usually used by salmon, our fish may hopefully have managed to spawn in locations which avoided the worst of the winter spates.

While the floods may possibly have adversely affected the 2013/14 spawning season, the indications are that the 2014/15 was a good one; just as the right amount of water at the right time allowed fish to run in during the season, a 6 similar pattern continued after the seasons end which seems to have allowed fish to readily access their upstream spawning grounds. There were some extremely late spawners and a few kelts were seen dropping downstream at Barcombe Mills as late as mid-April, and some were still around on the tidal river when the season started, with Jim Smith taking (and of course returning) one on a Mepps in the second week of May. These late kelts will have passed the first of the season’s fresh run fish, with the first fish of the 2015 season being caught in the third week of May. Late spawning also occurred in other Sussex rivers, with some unusual sightings such as large kelts being seen during April in the river Ems, which flows into Chichester Harbour.

While the ongoing habitat improvement and fish pass work has significantly benefited the Ouse sea trout stock, it remains vulnerable and subject to a whole range of pressures and for that reason, while the Society’s rules still have the provision for anglers who wish to retain a few fish to be able to do so, OAPS continues to strongly recommend catch and release fishing at all times. A condition of purchasing a Sea Trout Permit is that a catch return is made on the form provided with the Permit. Unfortunately, as Jim notes in his report, the number of completed forms being sent in is very low, with the majority of anglers not making a return. We seek to manage the fishery in a scientifically based and sustainable manner and to achieve this, accurate information on the number of fish being caught (and whether returned or taken) is important. With a majority of sea trout anglers not submitting a catch return, the reported catch may well be significantly less than the actual catch, which has implications for the management of the fishery. Please do submit your catch return this year – the information they provide is really important.

Invasive species – signal crayfish in particular

A few years ago a section of the Newsletter was devoted to invasive species and, with there having been some developments since then, this is an issue worth returning to. First, it is worth emphasising the difference between non-native species and non-native invasive species. Many non-native species (of which carp are an example, they are not native to the UK), whilst they may establish breeding populations, do not generally proliferate to the extent that they can out-compete our native species with potentially very damaging effects. Invasive non-native species however, can reach such numbers that they can fundamentally alter the ecology, often for the worse, of where they have become established (including in, or on the banks of, a river). A number of non-native invasive species are found on OAPS fishery, of which the most immediately obvious are two plants found on the banks of many sections of the Ouse; Japanese knotweed and Himalayan balsam, with its distinctive dark pink flowers. Japanese knotweed (introduced to England as an ornamental garden plant in Victorian times) is now widely recognised as a problem plant (not least because of publicity around the fact that it’s presence around a property could make it unmortgageable – it’s shoots can grow through concrete), but both it and Himalayan balsam are most likely to be encountered on river banks where they are now very common and may out-compete native river bank plants. Himalayan balsam in particular can completely overgrow a river bank to the extent that virtually nothing else can grow there, and when it dies back in the winter it leaves bare earth exposed, which is washed away by rain and spates and ends up in the river as silt, which can have very damaging effects, including clogging up the gravel beds, used by many species, including dace, barbel and sea trout to spawn in, and potentially affecting fish populations. To date, manually removing, and using herbicides, has been the way to fight back against knotweed and balsam, although they do not offer any guarantee of a permanent solution, given how prevalent the plants are. We are however edging closer to effective biological controls (releasing insects and fungi which will selectively target them) which may bring them under control and, while they are currently very widespread along the Ouse, a solution may be not be far away. Potentially far more damaging, although far less visible than the invasive plants, is the signal crayfish, a species native to North America – its name comes from a coloured patch on its claws, reminiscent of the flags carried by railway signalmen. They were introduced to Europe in the 1960’s and to the UK in the 1970’s where they were deliberately released at various locations, with the intention of establishing populations which could support commercial trapping for them as a luxury food. From their initial introduction sites, they colonised nearby rivers and are already very widespread throughout the South East, with an expanding distribution – in 20 years’ time there will probably be few rivers or streams where they are not found. When I first wrote about them some years ago, within the Ouse catchment, signal crayfish were known to be firmly established only in a single tributary of the Uck, and there were no records of any being found in the OAPS fishery, or indeed anywhere on the main Ouse. However, with no means to control their spread, it was recognised that it was only a matter of time before they reached the OAPS fishery and this now seems to have happened, with, so far, isolated reports of them having been seen at various locations from Barcombe up to Goldbridge and also on the Bevern Stream. While there is only the occasional record now, and they are only present in small numbers, if the pattern seen elsewhere is repeated on the Ouse (and there is no reason to suspect that it won’t be) a signal crayfish population explosion over the next few years seems inevitable. Typically they will be present in low – sometimes almost undetectable – numbers in a river stretch for a number of years once they have reached it, and then suddenly, over a couple of years they are everywhere. Unlike the invasive plant species, there is no feasible method, and non on the horizon, of eradicating signal crayfish. Trapping them is often suggested as the solution, but there is no instance of trapping ever having successfully eliminated a signal crayfish population and it can make the situation worse by selectively removing the larger individuals, giving more scope for the numerous smaller ones to grow on, resulting in an a worse situation than there initially was. 7 Signal crayfish pose two main threats in the UK – the first, a very specific one, is that they carry a fungal disease –“crayfish plague” – which is lethal to our native (white clawed) crayfish, which is now extinct through much of its former range and faces complete extinction in the relatively near future. In some rivers in the South East not far from to the Ouse, the last remaining native crayfish are being removed and transferred to isolated waters free from signals to establish so called “Ark” (as in the biblical Noah’s) populations. However, there is no evidence that the Ouse ever held native crayfish – their distribution in the South East is in fact rather patchy, and may partly reflect where they were introduced – possibly by monks in medieval times – to provide a food source, just as signals were introduced more recently. With native crayfish absent from the Ouse, the issue of their being eradicated by crayfish plague carried by signals does not arise on our river. However, that does not put signals in the clear on the Ouse, as, in addition to their effect on native crayfish, they have a much wider ranging impact in that, once established, their numbers increase to such an extent – it is likely that there could eventually be millions of them within the OAPS fishery – that they fundamentally alter the ecology of a river. They are omnivores and as such compete with fish for food and may also prey on fish eggs. However, conversely, fish also prey on them; stories of huge chub from the Kennet so full of crayfish that they rattle when caught are not entirely without foundation. Many fish species eat very small signal crayfish and some species – chub, barbel and perch in particular – will eat, and grow large on, adult crayfish. As other rivers have experienced an explosion in signal crayfish there has been an attendant increase in the growth rate and size of the fish that can eat them and there is no reason to expect that the Ouse will be different – there may well be a rapid increase in the growth of, and maximum size reached, by chub and perch in particular on the OAPS fishery over the next few years, and some exceptional specimens may start turning up. So, for the specimen hunter, the story will not necessarily be one of bad news – although another downside to a huge signal crayfish population is that they may be present in such large numbers that they will quickly locate ledgered baits, before fish have a chance to, and even if they do not eat the bait, their fiddling with it may lead to false bites. One of the greatest threats which signal crayfish could pose within the Ouse catchment is that, if they become established in the often tiny streams used by our sea trout for spawning, they could feed both on sea trout eggs while still in the redds and on newly hatched fry, as well as eating the invertebrates which sea trout parr feed on, and competing with them for food. However, while there is no known effective means of eradicating signal crayfish, they do not usually establish very strong populations in very acidic streams. Some of the Ouse headwaters, including those rising on the Ashdown Forest, are strongly acidic and there is a realistic hope that crayfish will not do well here, leaving the streams largely to the young sea trout. It is very fortunate that, with the weirs at Buxted and Hempstead on the Uck now fully passable to sea trout, the fish now have access to excellent – and often very acidic – spawning streams in the upper Uck catchment which were until a few years ago inaccessible. The massive decline in eel numbers mentioned earlier in the Newsletter has a number of implications, but one is that that there will be less predation on signal crayfish – while many species of fish will eat crayfish, they are particularly preyed upon by eels. It has been suggested that one reason there were no native white clawed crayfish in the Ouse (and some other rivers in the South East, including the Adur) was that there used to be so many eels, that crayfish could not survive there. In the past, when eels were, by weight, the most abundant fish on the OAPS fishery, they would possibly have limited a signal crayfish population by eating huge numbers of them. However, with eel numbers now greatly reduced, while the eels which remain will certainly prey on the expanding signal crayfish population, their numbers are probably too low to have any real impact. However, if eel numbers do recover, they may start making at least some inroads into the likely enormous numbers of crayfish which will become established. Even with elver numbers very low as they are now compared to historical runs, the elver passes recently installed on the weirs throughout the catchments mean that any young eels entering the river have the best opportunity to disperse through the catchment, hopefully eating crayfish as they go! There has been a lot of concern in the angling press about the potential impact of otters on fish stocks, as the otter population recovers (although there is still no otter population on the Ouse) but otters eat many other things as well as fish (they will even eat slugs) and are very partial to crayfish. Indeed, research on the diet of otters on some upland Welsh rivers showed that around 70% of their diet consisted of crayfish (native white clawed crayfish in that instance). As and when otters naturally return to the Ouse, if, as is anticipated, signal crayfish are firmly established by then, it is very likely that a similar situation may develop, and that signal crayfish may be their primary food. The Society would like to monitor the, seemingly inevitable, spread of signal crayfish throughout the fishery – if you do see any crayfish while you are fishing, I would be grateful if you would let me know. Please however take the greatest care not to spread them to other waters, within or outside the Ouse catchment; small ones could for example be inadvertently transferred from one site to another via wet nets. One non-native species present on the OAPS fishery is the wels (catfish); this is a non-native (it comes from continental Europe), rather than a non-native invasive species, as it does not establish large populations in the UK. The majority of wels in England are in specialist stillwater fisheries and in most cases where it is present in a fishery, only a small number of deliberated stocked individuals, which do not breed, are present. It is an unusual fish to find in a river in the UK, and where wels are found in one, this will be as a result of either illegal introductions or as a result of fish escaping from adjacent stillwaters. Over the past 6 years or so, the occasional wels has turned up on the tidal Ouse, both on the OAPS fishery and further downstream, including in Lewes. While there is hopefully little possibility of them becoming established as a breeding population in the Ouse, their presence is undesirable and if one it is caught it is illegal (and contrary to the Society’s rules) to return one. A few may still be present in the tidal river, if you do catch one it must not be returned to the river; it must be killed or the EA phoned and asked to attend to remove it. 8

The EU Water Framework Directive, The Catchment Based Approach, and habitat and fish pass projects

Since 2007 the Society’s Newsletters have provided a commentary on the Water Framework Directive (WFD), and associated issues. With the previous Newsletters being online on the Society’s website I will not attempt to review all that has happened over this time and will only report on significant developments over the past year, and what the future may hold. However, it is worth restating that WFD is of relevance to all anglers as potentially the most powerful piece of legislation ever introduced for the purposes of protecting the aquatic environment, in that all rivers within the EU should ultimately (between 2015 & 2027) achieve what is termed Good Ecological Status (or if a river is classed as heavily modified, an alternative end point called “Good Ecological Potential”). For many rivers in the South East, a major reason (although one of many) why rivers currently fail to reach Good Status is because their fish populations fall short of the required standard, so the achievement of WFD targets, in part by increasing fish populations, will bring obvious benefits for anglers. This year is significant in that 2015 is the end of the first of the three six year cycles of the Directive, which came into effect in 2009 and it is a time to take stock. In reality, the national picture has been of limited progress towards Good Ecological Status. In part this reflects a more accurate classification of rivers and streams; better and more information has led to a realisation that some were not at as high a status as they were first thought to be, and a reclassification has led to some waters being downgraded, even though they have not in reality declined. However there are other reasons why Good Status has yet to be achieved across the board, including that it is simply a huge task and will take many years and huge investment to complete – the 2027 end date for the Directive being implemented is a realistic one – and also because, even when significant on the ground progress has been made, it may take many years for the results of this to be seen by anglers and others with an interest in rivers. However, looking at the Ouse in particular, since the WFD came into force, there has been much more river restoration and fish pass work than on many other rivers, and the situation is more encouraging than the national trend of limited progress. The last 5 years have seen a year on year increase in the sea trout catch. A number of factors may have contributed to this, but almost certainly the habitat and fish pass work funded ultimately by Defra to achieve WFD goals has been a significant factor. The Ouse is fortunate in that it has an active river trust (the Ouse and Adur Rivers Trust, OART) which has been able to access funding and deliver projects which have significantly improved the lot of the Ouse sea trout. Although large fish, Ouse sea trout are fast growing; many of the large adult fish encountered by OAPS anglers may be as little as 3 years old. Because of this, the sea trout population can quickly respond to habitat and fish passage projects, and it may only take a few years for a significant increase to become apparent. Coarse fish however take much longer to reach specimen (or even moderate) size and because of this, the benefits of even significant habitat improvements may not be fully apparent for a decade or so. The weather can also greatly affect coarse fish spawning success in a given year – many species need fairly high water temperature for successful spawning, and a warm spring, with low and stable flows, will encourage early spawning, giving the young fish a good head start, while a cold spring followed by a wet summer with frequent spates may lead both to a poor spawning season and reduced survival of fry, which will grow more slowly and may be washed downstream (or even out to sea) by spates. So while much of the habitat work undertaken on the Ouse over the past seven years or so can certainly be expected to improve the coarse fish stock, it will be some time yet before the full benefits of it are realised.

A major development reported last year was the introduction by Defra and the EA of the Catchment Based Approach and “Catchment Hosting” as a means to involve local communities and stakeholders in delivering the requirements of the Water Framework Directive. The stages leading up to this have been documented in the past few Newsletters, starting with the designation by Government of ten Pilot catchments, effectively to locally “fast forward” WFD implementation, in March 2011. These included the Ouse-Adur catchment (for the purposes of WFD, the two rivers are treated as a single catchment). The EA initially led the Ouse-Adur Pilot, but to take it forward, in October 2011 the Ouse and Adur Partnership was established, bringing together a range of organisations, including conservation based ones and water companies, which all have a role in the management of the rivers so that the goal of Good Ecological Status is ultimately realised. OART played a major role in the new Partnership for which two primary focuses were improving fisheries and recreating a natural river environment. After an evaluation of all the Catchment Pilots, in June 2013 Government announced the national launch of the Catchment Based Approach. This set out a formal approach for establishing catchment partnerships for every river catchment in the country, bringing together key organisations with an interest in achieving WFD objectives and established the role of a “Catchment Host” to lead the process locally.

Essentially, to be eligible as a Catchment Host, an organisation had to be a charity, but there was a provision for a charity to co-host a catchment with the Environment Agency, so, with the support of the Ouse and Adur Partnership, OART successfully applied to co-host the Ouse and Adur Catchment. The initial round of catchment hosting, which went very well, came to an end in April 2014, with the existing hosts being invited to continue their role. It was agreed that OART should apply to be the sole host for the Catchment for 2015-16, leading the Partnership. This was confirmed, and recently there has been a further application round for 2015-16 and OART is again confirmed as the Catchment Host. This means that in addition to its strong track record of obtaining funding for and delivering river improvement projects on the Ouse, OART is continuing its more formal role in the Ouse catchment. For the first time, the current (2015-16) year of operation for the Catchment Based Approach has some, albeit limited, funding (the Catchment Partnership Action Fund) attached to it for Catchment Partnerships to select and deliver a practical 9 project – the Ouse and Adur Partnership chose to bid (successfully) for a fish passage project on one of the main weirs on the Ouse, to be delivered this year – full details will be provided in next year’s Newsletter. It will also be clearer by then what the future holds for the Catchment Based Approach, particularly in relation to what funding there may be for work to continue to improve the Ouse (and other rivers). At the Catchment Based Approach conference in London on 8th June, the Defra speaker made it clear that the new Government’s future stance towards the Catchment Based Approach, approach, and what funding may be allocated for it, is still very much under discussion. It will probably be some months until the situation is clearer. However, across the country, Catchment Partnerships are proving their worth and starting to deliver actions to improve rivers and in the meantime, while the Government decides how to take things forward, there is a website – www.catchmentbasedapproach.org – which clearly sets out the basics of what is a complex and evolving situation and is well worth looking at.

While the Catchment Based Approach is now becoming well established, it follows on from previous funding rounds through which Defra has provided substantial sums which have allowed river trusts in particular to deliver projects to improve rivers and meet WFD requirements (including good fish populations). Over the past 7 or so years OART has been very successful in accessing funds to undertake fish passage and habitat improvement projects on the Ouse; as these have been reported extensively in previous Newsletters they are not mentioned again here other than an update on the fish refuge project on the lower Bevern which was just underway when last year’s Newsletter was written. The refuges are situated on the left bank (facing downstream) of the Bevern between Redbridge weir and the track following the old railway line; they are what is termed off-line refuges as, while connected to the main channel, they are essentially excavated backwaters without any flow through them. They provide a spring spawning habitat for species which seek shallow weedy water (such as bream and perch); a summer habitat for the newly hatched young fry of many species to shelter in and winter refuges where fish of all sizes can avoid the force of powerful spates. Although located on the Bevern, the fish population of the main Ouse will also benefit – many coarse fish move out of the main river into the lower sections of the tributaries to spawn and, during the spawning season the Bevern is visited by often very large carp, tench, bream, chub, perch and other species. After their early life in the Bevern, many of the young fish drop back into the main Ouse. The Bevern refuges have already demonstrated their worth, with monitoring showing them full of fry in the late spring and summer – fry using such habitats get a real head start; the water is then is often warmer than in the main channel, encouraging faster growth, and they are out of the way of many predators. It is intended that they are the first of a series of such refuges to be constructed on the OAPS fishery, on the main river as well as the tributaries such as the Bevern. An indication of the value of them on a main Sussex river is provided by a fairly large scale one on the Western Rother at Shopham in West Sussex, constructed recently by the Arun and Rother Rivers Trust, which is proving very effective.

While the current financial climate is a difficult one, there is no getting away from the fact that the UK is legally bound to meet its obligations under the Water Framework Directive, including good fish populations, and work to achieve this needs to continue (assuming of course that the forthcoming in/out referendum on UK membership of the EU does not result in a UK exit). Nevertheless, difficult choices about what to fund have to be made and the UK faces many other pressing environmental challenges, such as a need to comply with EU Directives on air quality, and exactly how the new Government will continue to tackle river (and fish) related issues to meet EU WFD requirements should become clearer over the next few months. Looking back since the Directive came into force six years ago, as a direct result of it, and through funding it unlocked, ago much has been achieved on the Ouse – to give just a few examples, there is much improved fish passage at the Barcombe Mills and Sutton Hall weirs and at Sharpsbridge; the removal of weirs on the Uck means its upper reaches are now accessible to sea trout for the first time in decades, the restoration of the Andrew’s Stream, with gravel having being introduced means there are now areas where barbel can now spawn in the lower river and newly created fish refuges provide spawning habitat and shelter for many coarse fish species.

The Ouse is already a highly productive and improving mixed fishery, yielding sea trout of the largest average weight of any English river, 30lb plus carp and pike, bream into double figures, excellent chub, perch, tench and roach and a growing head of barbel. A huge amount of work has been undertaken over the past few years to improve the river as a fishery, possibly more than on any other river in the South East, much of it driven by the WFD, and with more projects planned, while it may take some years for their full benefits to be seen, things continue to move in the right direction and anglers can look forward to a river which will support even more fish

Rule changes

There are no changes to the Society’s rules this year, however the combination number for the padlocks on the Society’s car parks and access gates has been changed – the new combination number is included in the information provided to anglers when a permit is purchased. The access gates to the Andrews Stream and Andrews Cut now have combination padlocks.

Please note that the Mount Lake at Ifield, one of the Copthorne Society waters to which OAPS Permit holders have had access, is no longer controlled by the Copthorne Society and is hence no longer available. This is a very recent development and information about this change was received too late to be included in the documentation provided with OAPS Permits. 10 Outlets for Permits

Our allocation of annual Sea Trout Permits (Adult, Senior and Under 19s), which are available only from our Permit Secretary Andrew Woolley, is now sold out; if you wish to join the waiting list for next season please contact Andrew.

Annual Permits, Winter Permits, Day Tickets and Coarse Guest Permits are available direct from the Society or from our usual outlets as detailed below...

Barcombe - Barcombe Post Office, High Street, Barcombe Cross, East Sussex, BN8 5DH (P.O. hours only) East Grinstead - M.A.Wickham, 4 Middle Row, East Grinstead, West Sussex, RH19 3AX Haywards Heath – Joe Raczkowski, 40 Bentwood Crescent, Haywards Heath, RH16 3PW – please call Joe first on 01444 455580 to confirm that he will be available. Hove – Lagoon Bait & Tackle, 327, Kingsway, Hove, BN3 4LD Lewes – Percy’s, 9, Cliffe High Street, Lewes, East Sussex, BN7 2AH Uckfield – Barnes Angling and Game Centre, 212a, High Street, Uckfield, TN22 1RD

Please note that permits are no longer available from Crowborough Tackle at the Frant Lakes fishery.

Annual, Winter and Guest permits are also available by post (or please phone if you need one urgently) from: Permit Secretary Andrew Woolley, 14 The Martlets, Mill Lane, S. Chailey, E Sussex BN8 4QG (01273 891312) Head Bailiff Jim Smith, 15 North Fields, Isfield, Uckfield, E Sussex TN22 5XN (01825 750366)

When purchasing permits you will be issued with maps giving full details of our waters and a list of our rules. Annual permit holders will also receive a parking sticker.

Prices

Prices for some Permit categories have been increased slightly; there has however been no increase for Under 19’s The Society’s costs increase over time, and we do need to charge a small additional sum to reflect this. Sea Trout Permit applicants who do not possess a Sea Trout permit for the preceding year pay a £25 administration charge in addition to the Sea Trout Permit price shown below. (Please note that Sea Trout permits also allow coarse fishing on our waters.)

Annual Permits Adults (aged 19 – 64years): Sea trout and coarse fish: £110 Coarse fish only: £80

Senior Citizens (aged 65+): Sea trout and coarse fish: £77 Coarse fish only: £50

Under 19s (aged 14-18 years): Sea Trout and coarse fish: £43 Coarse fish only: £18

Sea Trout Permits are only be available from Andrew Woolley, the Society’s Permit Secretary and the 2015 Permit allocation is fully subscribed at the time of circulation of the Newsletter. To enquire joining the waiting list for 2016, please check on our website or contact Andrew.

Winter Permits Valid from November 1st to March 14th: £46 (and until April 30th on Piltdown Pond)

Day Tickets Adults and senior citizens: £10 per day, under 19’s £5 per day These are for coarse fishing only, on specified stretches of the river and must be purchased before fishing.

Anglers under the age of 14 years Young anglers, who have yet to reach their 14th Birthday, may fish free of charge, provided that an adult, or senior citizen permit or day ticket holder, accompanies them.

Sea Trout Guest Permits 11 Sea Trout Guest Permits, available ONLY to Full and Senior Annual Sea Trout permit holders (who may purchase 2 permits per day), cover sea trout fishing on the tidal stretch of the river only. Full details of these permits, which are ONLY available from the Society’s Permit Secretary, Andrew Woolley, and cost £20 each (adults) and £10 (14-18 years) are included in the Sea Trout Supplement provided with the Information Pack when an Annual Sea Trout permit is purchased.

Pool Permits Barcombe Mills Pool may be reserved in advance by annual Sea Trout Permit holders, for two rods only per day, at a cost of £15 per rod. Pool Permits are available ONLY from the Society's Permit Secretary, Andrew Woolley. Details are in the information pack provided when buying your Sea Trout permit.

Coarse Guest Permits These are available to annual and winter adult and senior permit holders only and cost £10 per day (under 19’s £5). They cover coarse fishing only and NOT sea trout fishing.

At this point, I will, as always, hand over to Jim for his Bailiff’s report. I do hope to meet you on the river during 2015.

D.B. June 2015 Bailiff’s Report

Sea Trout Season 2014

The 2014 season was a very reasonable one, with some 90 fish reported, the best being a fish of 12lb, although unfortunately I did not receive a proper catch return for it, or for a number of other fish. The river maintained a decent flow throughout the season, although abstraction above Barcombe Mills does at times influence the flow downstream of the Mills and throughout the tidal fishery, However there was enough water, coupled with the fish pass works at the Mills which allow the sea trout to run through the Mills more easily now, for them to make their way upstream, on their journey towards their spawning grounds on the tributaries which have now been much improved via gravel introduction, and can now be accessed more easily due to obstructions having been removed.

In general, runs came in on high tides from mid-June onwards, comprising mostly fish in the 4-5 pound range, though with some bigger fish of 6lb to double figures and, in August and September, quite a few small finnock. While many fish are now returned (something the Society strongly encourages) a number were retained, and scales from them sent to Dr Clive Fetter for scale reading; thank you to the rods who submitted scales, while the scale reading based research has now been ongoing for many years there still remains much to learn about the Ouse sea trout and each scale set sent in adds to our understanding of our fish and is very much for the good of the river. A run of sea trout is a wondrous thing to see, as the late Gordon Vinell, who had fished the river for decades before passing away recently, would say they are the jewel in the crown of the Sussex Ouse.

The reasonable water levels, with a number of small spates and rises during the season, meant that the fish were not unduly delayed or stressed during their upstream migration and only the very odd dead one was reported, unlike some previous years when low flow and high temperatures had caused some mortality. As well as there being enough water for fish to come in and run upstream during the season, there was high water right at the end of the season and beyond it and this allowed them to continuing their run upstream to their spawning grounds and the 2014/15 spawning season was an excellent one with over 40 redds counted by myself on one tributary and most of the spawning tributaries had plenty of fish in them. There was also enough water for the spawned fish to make their way back to sea and quite a few kelts were seen, between the winter spates, in the Ouse above Barcombe Mills.

When you purchase an annual Sea Trout Permit, along with the Permit itself and other information, a catch return form is enclosed. Some anglers did send their returns to me, many thanks to those who did, but many more did not bother to. It is a condition of purchasing a permit that a catch return is made, detailing the size of any fish caught, this is essential for the proper management of the fishery and the scales sent in from any fish retained are essential for continuing scientific studies. Please though only send in scales from retained fish, and not from returned fish, removing scales from these may cause damage and leave them open to infection. Please do make sure to send in your catch returns, it only takes a short time to complete the form and to do to so is very much in your interest, as an Ouse sea trout angler, and for the fish and the river. Catch returns are due by 15 th November each year, I very much hope that 2015 will see a higher rate of returns sent to me.

While the Society’s rules do allow for a few fish to be kept we strongly recommend catch and return for all fish and please return all large sea trout over 10lb as the future stocks will come from these and large fish spawn a large number of eggs. While the season was a relatively good one, all the good habitat and fish pass work done by OART has undoubtedly helped our sea trout, they are still under pressure and there is still much that can be done to help them, if you are interested in becoming involved in this work please take a look at the OART website at www.oart.org.uk , I am OART’s Field Officer. 12

Please also note that no night fishing for sea trout is allowed other than in the Mill Pool, when in procession of a Pool Permit. Thank you and let’s hope that the 2015 season will be another good one, and please remember those catch returns.

Coarse fishing 2014/15 season

The coarse season was a mixed one but with at times some very good fishing, with all points from Goldbridge down to Hamsey being productive at times. Roach fishing in particular seems to be really picking up, with good fish of well over a pound being reported from many areas, including the deep water upstream of the Anchor, an area which also produced good carp into double figures. The best fishing in this area was early in the morning, before the rowing boats were on the water. Perch are also continuing their comeback in this section with the stretch below Sutton Hall weir productive for them, if you select your swims carefully. Further upstream, in Goldbridge weir pool and the reach below it down to Sharpsbridge, there was sport with chub and the odd barbel; it is not the easiest fishing here but by walking the river and fishing the deep holes it is possible to build up a good bag.

The lowest non-tidal reach, from Barcombe Mills up to the Anchor weir pool, including the Browns fishery, provided good sport from summer tench (some good ones fell to worm) to winter pike. The best barbel reported was a near 9 pounder which fell to meat presented by a day ticket angler fishing the Anchor weir. There were plenty of roach and quite a few rudd and perch, including from the weedy areas. Some good dace turned up and also a fair number of eels, which are now nationally becoming rare. The deep water immediately above Barcombe Mills produced some decent bream to around 5lb and carp to 18lb, early morning and late evening usually being the most productive, with many fish being taken by casting to under the far bank trees. The fish do move around in this area and if you don’t get bites it can be worth trying different spots until you find them.

In the Andrews Cut there were plenty of carp amongst the lilies and they were taken to over 16lb here, a very good carp for such a small water. There are some ghost carp here amongst the mirrors and commons. There were a lot of good rudd here too with fish to over a pound and a half falling to paste and maggots and tench to over 5lb were taken on the backwater at the end of the Andrews Cut, past the weir feeding the Andrews Stream. The backwater was dredged out some years ago to create a refuge for fish in times of high water and is always a good place to try when the river is up as fish do move into it then. The Andrews Stream as always produced plenty of fish, with some barbel amongst the chub and perch.

Turning to the tidal fishery from Barcombe Mills down to Hamsey, this section holds some good carp to well over 25lb; carp anglers are rather secretive about their catches but it is known that some good carp were taken all through this section, with the Cowlease Farm area being productive. Some very good tench were also reported, falling to worm and sweetcorn, from the Cowlease to Hamsey reach, the best being a 7 pounder from the Hamsey Cut, a very good tench for a river. Some good perch also turned up here, mostly to bait, although the odd one was taken by sea trout anglers on spinners. Dace seem to be making a comeback and were caught in reasonable numbers. The tidal Ouse is well known for its bream and, while they move around and you may have to try various swims before you connect with them, there are some very good ones and the best last season was a 10lb fish from the Hamsey area. The autumn and winter pike fishing was good, with fish to over 20lb falling to various sea fish deadbaits from the lower river between the spates.

Unfortunately there were some plastic dead bait bags left on the bank; please take your litter home and do not leave it by the river; the Committee will take very seriously any cases of anglers leaving litter. I have again spent many hours clearing it up around the Mills and the Anchor weir especially; much of this is from day trippers and not anglers but unfortunately some of it is angling related. Another rule I would ask you to remember is that no night fishing for coarse fishing is allowed on the river.

As always, if you do see anything suspicious such as poaching or other illegal activities or pollution, please contact me or the EA hotline on 0800 807060.

Tight lines and happy fishing and I look forward to seeing you on the banks again during the coming season.

J.S. June 2015

We both look forward to seeing you along the river in 2015/16,

Dave Brown Hon. Secretary Jim Smith Head Bailiff