The postman rattled my letterbox and with a solid thump the signed fishery lease landed on my doormat this morning. And with that the club took control of its first fishery, the lake on Cannon Hill Common.
This is a small coarse fishery on the edge of a public park and it comes with a bundle of problems caused by a lack of active management during the last 30 years. It is also probably the only still water in Merton that ticks all the boxes as a training water for novice and junior anglers: loads of small hungry fish, easy access and a relatively open, stable bank.
This is also the last chance for angling at the lake, if we don’t make it work the council will remove the fish and ban fishing.
So we are going to do what we can to turn it around and keep the fishery open. We will kick off our recovery plan with an open day by the lake on Sunday 29 July. We will use this to recruit local anglers and to present the responsible face of fishing to the general public.
Our open day will be
supported by Catch21 and the Angling Development Board and their coaches will be running taster sessions for anyone who is interested in learning to coarse fish.
We will also have our usual demonstrations of float making, fly tying and trays of pond bugs to entertain the kids.
So, please put the date in your diary and bring the family any time between 11am and 4pm to meet your fellow Wands and dip a line in our new lake.