Devonshire Oct to Dec 17

will that happen this year? If so,
soon after arriving they will find all
the dropped apples in the orchards
which are an important winter
food source for these migrating
thrushes.
Friday morning (19 September)
saw our first grass frost in the
valley and almost the same day
I was told the red stags were
roaring and thus the rut had
started! Another natural autumn
occurrence, but again a week or
10 days earlier than normal. I was
slightly sceptical about this but by
September 22nd I heard a very
vocal stag claiming his territorial
rights to some hinds. The onset of
the rut is thought to be triggered
by cold weather so this early start
is explainable.
salmon at sea all take their toll on
our salmon stocks to some degree.
As well as global warming.
I personally try my damnedest
to release every fish back to the
river to spawn but it is not always
possible. Somewhere deep inside
me is a hunter gatherer, instinct is
part of why I fish. I fish to catch
a fish to eat. At the time of this
writing, the Environment Agency
has a consultation paper out and
associated survey for the rod and
and Torridge estuary by netsman,
that is now somewhere closer to
50 and in 1920s rods caught a
couple of thousand. Salmon were
commonly caught into 30lbs and
even one of 61lbs was recorded.
We unfortunately have to say those
days have gone and probably will
never return but the salmon is a
resilient species and with help will
hopefully recover.
I agree wholeheartedly with
voluntary catch and release as
Countryman's Diary
Late October to December
1. Listen close to any North Devon
woodland at dusk or dawn to hear
the stags roar.
2. See large number of winter migrants
on the Taw and Torridge Estuaries.
3. Golden plover and lapwings often in
large numbers away from the Coast.
4. This is the best time of year for
walking, spotting wildlife and taking
in our great landscapes.
Much of the content of these
articles revolves around fishing the
River Taw and its main tributary
the river Mole. The season has just
finished for salmon, sea trout and
brown trout which are really the
only quarry species. It has been an
encouraging year, though the final
rod catch has not been calculated,
the Mole has fished well. Hopefully
this is the result of many years of
conservation work on the rivers.
One of the main conservation
measures is that anglers are now
encouraged to return all salmon.
All salmon have to be returned
before the 16th June by law! and
all over 70 cms have to be returned
after 31st July. Many instream
projects have been undertaken
to remove weirs which impede
the passage of migratory fish, as
well as debris dams which have the
same adverse effect. However, all
these and hundreds more projects
still haven't stopped the decline
in salmon numbers. We anglers
must to do our part to ensure
there are fish in the rivers but
99% of salmon survival is outside
our control. High seas netting,
coastal netting, land use changes
over decades, pollution, siltation
of spawning gravels, sewage and
chemical pollution and farming
Otter approaching - orange thingy's a fishing rod!
net fisherman about the future of
all rivers in England. The result of
this will not be known for several
months and this will be the basis
for future regulations in 2018.
There are way too many proposals
to discuss here but, in essence,
the idea is to reduce exploitation
of this natural resource. There
is not a fisherman, netsman or
rod angler, who wishes to see the
salmon disappear from our rivers.
Groups of anglers like the River
Taw Fisheries Association, work
hard to persuade their members
and other anglers who fish the
rivers to return fish to the river
to spawn. In recent years 80%
of all salmon caught have been
returned to spawn.
I may have mentioned before
that back in the 1920s 5,000
salmon were caught on the Taw
the end result and this has been
encouraged on the Taw system
since the mid 1990s and may well
have helped this river be one of
the most stable salmon and sea
trout rivers in the West Country.
Any more stringent regulations
enforced upon fisherman could
be counter productive.
There are many organisations and
individuals who put time, effort
and often large sums of money
into protecting the river habitat for
the benefit of the river. All this is
a result of the love of being on the
river and fishing. These fisherman
are now the eyes and ears of the
Environment Agency and they
are the only ones regularly on
the river. It is possible that too
much regulation will put some
off fishing. If fisherman were to
go, the salmon and sea trout will
soon follow. Fisherman are part
of this environment and it is fair
to say have the least effect on the
dwindling salmon stock.
There is one 5 lb salmon in the
freezer which will be enjoyed
shortly with friends, the texture
and flavour so different to the
farmed variety, with almost no
continued on page 62
Chopping apples for pressing
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