A couple of weeks ago I gave a survey of the waters of the Diss & District Angling Club. This week we take a quick look at the Bury St. Edmunds Angling Association’s fisheries. There is also a report on the results of local games.
Water Lane Reservoir: About four miles southeast of Bury St. Edmunds in the village of Little Whelnetham, this lake is about three acres with a large central island and depths of up to 10 feet. The lake contains carp up to about 24 pounds, bream, perch, roach, tench, and the occasional chub. The club added 250 tench to this lake last November. The banks are very steep and fishing is only done from platforms.
The sun was shining last Thursday morning so I made a quick visit to the Water Lane Reservoir to snap some photos for this fishing column and came across Andy Flight. It must have been more than 20 years since we last met and it was good to see he is still fishing after a period of poor health. We’ve gone back in time – Bury AA games, Norfolk / Suffolk Winter League, National Team Champs, River Cam games, Eric Bolton’s Superstar Juniors at Rushbrooke – you can’t beat a huge helping of fishing nostalgia !! We both worked at Vintens for many years, as did our two fathers. Who knows where the time is going
This is what the Water Lane Reservoir looked like in 1991. Image: Chris Boughton
Andy told me he especially liked the quiet of the Water Lane Reservoir. It definitely looked good when the grass on the lakeshore was cut and only leaves appeared on the trees.
I have an old photo of the reservoir before the platforms were installed and it sure looks very different now. Andy had just arrived like me and was planning a boilee-baited carp session. But on a visit here a few weeks ago, he caught roach fishing up to 1 pound.
Barrow Lake: This picturesque lake is seven miles west of Bury St. Edmunds on the outskirts of the village of Barrow. The lake is an acre and has depths up to 10 feet.
Water Lane Reservoir, one of the Bury St. Edmunds Angling Association’s waters, was seen earlier this month. Image: Chris Boughton
The lake contains crucian carp, perch, tench, rudd, bream, roach and carp up to 15 pounds. Fishing is only done on platforms, some of which are suitable for disabled anglers. Banksticks must be placed in the sand pails provided, as the lake has a plastic sheet. The club added 250 tench to the lake in November, averaging three-quarters in size.
Former Bury AA chairman Grant Humphries, who recently returned to fishing, was recently spotted in Barrow catching some of the new tench as well as some roach.
Middle Reservoir: About five miles southeast of Bury on the outskirts of the village of Bradfield Combust, this lake is about four acres and gradually descends to about 14 feet. This is predominantly a specimen lake with carp up to 26 pounds, roach up to 1 pound, bream up to 6 pounds and pike up to 20 pounds. In addition to annual club membership, day passes for this lake can be purchased in advance at Tackle Up in Bury.
Badwell Ash: This lake is an old gravel quarry right on the Badwell Ash to Hunston road and a well-stocked mixed fishery of about an acre. Small and medium-sized carp are the dominant species, but the lake also holds roach, rudd, tench, and bream at varying depths of up to eight feet. Fishing is only permitted from marked pegs.
River Little Ouse: It’s closed season for rivers so I’ll be covering this venue right before the new season starts on June 16.
Membership of the Bury St. Edmunds Angling Association is open to all and can be purchased at Tackle Up in Bury, Hooked in Newmarket and Just Fishin in Sudbury.
Inquiries can also be directed to the club’s treasurer, Steve Bull, on 07831 494001 or by email at stevebully@hotmail.co.uk. For more information, visit the club’s website burystedmundsangling.org. The club’s membership year began on April 1.
Heron AC hosts 10 weekend club games a year in different locations and has been at Creeting for the past 57 years (except for 2020!) And their first game of 2021 this past weekend. Two of the original members still fish with them (Jack Wetherill and Tony Boughton). The 10 game results will be used to determine the club’s Mike Brown Champion Angler Shield winner, which Tony and Jack have both won multiple times. The first game of this year was specially for the impressive and prestigious Vinten Challenge Cup. On a difficult, cold, windy, and wet day, Mark Palfrey prevailed at 29 pounds. Jack, who runs the club, finished second at £ 25 and Dennis Vaughan came third at £ 19.
Thursday’s game at Hinderclay last week was a windy, cool affair, but at least the sun was out. After a sharp night frost, the weights were lower than expected but still good for April. Phil Alexander first came out at 56 pounds. Alan Rodgers was in second place at £ 39 and Simon Smith was third at £ 29.
The recent night frosts also affected the results of the last Open game last Wednesday at Suffolk Water Park. The leading weights were similar to Hinderclay’s: 1. Rob Holding 56lb, 2. Doug Botley 44lb, and 3. Jack Damant at 30lb.