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New Comments
All looks a bit fishy to me
Hey Dad! I love your webpage! It has much improved and grown since I last visited! I love all the pictures! Especially the ones of June 16th at Beccles. How beautiful! :0) I also love all the little fish cartoons! What a cool website!!!
Ahh thanks for those kind words we must go fishing soon hey!
Mark I introduced myself to you as a new (but former, relapsed) member at Ditchingham a few weeks ago and your camper van was very similar to my boat ie chaotic but cosy! You gave me a map of the waters, most of which I fished many years ago. On Tuesday I left Geldeston Dyke in "Bobalong" and moored up at Dunburgh and set up my Drennan IM9 stick float rod which unbelievably I paid £250 for 10? years ago (yes, I'm single!!!) with a 6 x no. 6 wire-stemmed stick with the wind upstream and behind and a pint of red maggots. I didn't empty the peg but a few dace (lovely to see them again) and perch to 8 oz. made for a very enjoyable session. Last time I fished Dunburgh was probably 20 years ago in an Inter-Club match, Fram v Sax v Woodbridge in flood conditions and as memory serves, Simon Abbott won it with 3 or 4 lbs on the then unusual river tactic of the pole!! It also brought back memories of my first ever match win with Fram in Xmas Fair 1977? with 5lbs of roach on the waggler. I also remember a Sax club match where we had to delay the start by an hour to let the ice melt!! Harry Tovell, (now dead) won it with 3lbs and I was second. SCAAA match where Roy Foster won with 20lb mixed bag....Oh the memories!!! SO if your members see BOBALONG moored up on the bank, I AM fishing legally!! I shall confine my trips to midweek so as not to take up valuable bank space. I loved your last Dunburgh blog, what fishing is all about. Best wishes John Byer
Hi John and thanks for sharing your memories with us its good to know that my blog is appreciated and read by anglers like yourself. We will keep an eye out for BOBALONG and hopefully see you at Dunburgh sometime. The access at Dunburgh is a bit restricted but its was well worth the walk. I recall about 18 years ago walking along the river at Dunburgh (I was living in Bristol at the time and feeling a bit homesick) I asked the man upstairs if he would grant me my wish to return here one day. Little did I know that I would remarry and return to settle in Bungay and become the secretary of Bungay Cherry Tree AC and be running matches there. Well the happy memories are all still there and hopefully we can make some more, welcome back to the club John and tight lines. Mark.
I will buy you a pint one day I promise -- Kev
Preferably after a good days fishing mate, its on the guest book for all to see so your not getting out of it this time!
Mark
Hi Mark, Really enjoyed the work party on 14th June but apologies for not making it last Saturday as........was asleep til 11 o'clock!! I fished the club pit last Thursday night on Peg 6 & not a bleep all night, despite giving the swim a good weed raking alongside the lily pads when I arrived. About an hour after Lloyd passed me on his way to the river Friday morning I got my only run of the session & a gorgeous dark male tench of 6lbs was soon in the net, & according to my records my new pb from the club pit. Later, I raked out peg 5, again alongside the lilies (hope this aided your match?). With 2 other night sessions during last week, things (& sleep deprivation) caught up with me. Apologies for this coming Saturday as fishing a memorial match @ Martham. Gary @ Norwich
Nice one Gary I too am suffering sleep deprivation after several night sessions but I love night fishing too much to be sensible lol. Well done with the tench there are several coming out of the club pit I love tench. Hopefully see you down there some time.
All the best Mark.
A very nice gesture of thanks from Dave Gladwell,(Thank you very much for your kind words Dave) but as mark rightly says, the credit must go to all the helpers , including you Dave (glad you liked my barbecued sausages you supplied!!) Come on guys, be a vital part of restoring this, as Dave says, "our paramount attraction", give us as much help as you can, we don't need everyone every Saturday, just several stonking good turnouts, and we will have this cracked sooner rather than later, weed, etc the whole thing!! (stuff the otters!!! I'd like to !!!) Well done to all that have kindly given up a bit of their time on a Saturday to assist ( you get fed as well, for a small contribution towards tea, coffee, burgers etc!!) and most of all, a good laugh is had by all and we get nearer to making the club pit something special! What do you think Mark? Lloyd
Yes its really all down to the members of the club them self's to take part in improving the club pit for us all. Remember the club started way back in 1946 and has been run by people giving up there time for the club and there love of angling, and that's why we do it because we love going fishing. So by coming along and helping out you can spend time with other club members, talk about fishing, have a laugh, share ideas and work together. Anglers tend to be solitary creatures a lot of the time but meeting with your fellow club members and working together can help us to share our love of fishing with each other and develop friendships and loyalty among us. I will be 50 this year and if life has taught me anything it is that friendships are forged when we work together for the common good. The club pit will one day be gone and so will I but the friends and good times we have all shared will stick with us, of that I am sure. So fire up the barbecue Lloyd, Sam get the tea on the go and I will see you at the club pit Saturday for another go at the weed! I love it. See you there, Mark.
CONGRATULATIONS from Dave Gladwell - Life-Vice President
Well, Mark Casto will not be thanking himself for all the efforts he has
spearheaded down at the Ditchingham Club Pit - but it is worthy of world-wide
web publication of our united expression of thanks for his unstinting efforts
which will create the best possible fishing under current conditions there and
the Club are well on the way to restoring this as one of their paramount
attractions - who on earth wants to go and fish expensive distant commercials
when there is all that river available too for the price equivalent to just half
a dozen day ticket visits; for often just six paces apart and innumerable
restrictions, - and that is without the travel costs involved. JOIN NOW AND
MAXIMIZE THE VALUE ! !
Thanks for that David but all credit must go to those hard working volunteers like Jamie Buck Eric and his son John Lloyd Sam Frank Alex and all the others who have really helped us out down there a big thank you everyone. Still much to do though so if you want to come down on Saturdays please do everyone Cheers Mark
Comments
Hi Mark A mixed start to the season for me, I had a disappointing day down at Ship meadow on Monday (no sign of the Tench from last year!) then I managed to leave a few bungee cords on the ground near the water abstraction car park (did any kind person pick them up by any chance?) I then decided to go down to the club pit to have a look around. WOW, All I can say is congratulations to all those who helped, the place has taken on a totally different feel! still lots of the dreaded blanket weed at the far end but overall it looks fantastic! I don't get a chance to fish on a Saturday, never mind help out! It looks so appealing, I just need to get around to actually fishing it! All the best Tight lines Kevin Andrews.
Hi Kevin yes me too not too many fish on my first night but its early days yet. No signs of bungee cords if any one found them let me know please and I can get them back to Kevin.
Hi Mark, Re the burger theft incident, I'm still innocent until proven guilty, but I did remove large amounts of weed at the work party !( and sneaked in another cuppa!!) Be nice to see a few more faces at the work parties, we have a great laugh( hence the burger theft sketch!!) Come on you guys, join in and have some fun and help out YOUR CLUB!! Well done Mark for your great organising with the club pit works! Lloyd ( Accused burger thief and work party catering manager!)
And there was I thinking no one was paying attention lol I hereby declare you not guilty and the best catering team on the club!
Hi Mark I was sorry to learn that the match at Barford was cancelled for lack of support and would put forward the following comments for discussion at committee meeting. 1.Why were the matches not advertised in the paper as previous years at least 50% of attendances came from this source. 2.Why did so many "loyal "club members choose to fish elsewhere when these matches are to subsidise their national teams costs. 3.Why did we advertise the other match at Marsh Trail on our website in direct competition to our own match. These comments are not criticisms aimed at individuals or wanting to lay blame but merely to see this does not happen again. Keep up the good work. Regards Eddie Alcock.
All good points Eddie, the advertising of the matches at Marsh trail where for the benefit of those within the club who may want to fish those series of matches, however if the club members vote that we book these venues to fish at our fixture meeting then I believe it is counter productive of them to go and fish other matches, this will only mean that the club suffers a loss as we have done in this case.
These points will be discussed at our committee meeting this month and hopefully we can resolve them to insure this does not happen again.
And thank you Eddie for all your hard work as our previous match secretary you did a brilliant job and we are still learning the ropes.
Tight lines Mark.
Hi Mark, It was great to meet you at the NFA conference last week, looking at your club site proves how dedicated you are not only to your club but to angling as a whole. It's great to see someone with your enthusiasm work with a angling club, they should be indebted to you. As you know Mark I am also a Level 2 Angling coach and a personal friend of Derek Potter. I think that I am booked for an event down in Kent on the same day as your coaching event. If it turns out that I am not then I will certainly try and make it to your event. I will keep in touch with yourself and Derek and let you both know near to the date. Tight Lines & keep up the slog Clubs need blokes like you M8ty Regards Kevin Pestell London & South NFA Level 2 Coach
Hi Kevin good to hear from you again glad you liked the website and it would be great to see you at the go fishing event in June if you could make it. There's always lots to do in the club but I love my fishing so my enthusiasm is fuelled by that I guess. Right now though I am suffering the most chronic tooth ach so if you hear some one screaming in the dentist chair it will be me ouch!
Mark What a wonderful surprise to stumble across your site. It is really interesting and a credit to the club. I was searching for angling for beginners as I am chairman of a group providing fishing and instruction to youngsters, so your Junior section page was particularly interesting. The Kingfisher Pool project is described at: www.start-fishing.co.uk I have produced a booklet and DVD for youngsters asking about trying fishing and also to help their non fishing adult mentors. Information on these and other fishing articles are also on the site. More power to your elbow! Alan Jones
Hi Alan and thank you for your kind comments about the site. The club has been going for a long time now so we must be doing something right and the junior section of the club is going to be given a booster as we apply for club mark status this year. It all means a bit more work then normal but should hopefully make our junior section much stronger and safer for the youngsters.
All the best Mark
Could you please tell me what the cost of this yrs membership and season ticket will cost if you know please Phil Gorleston
Same as last year Phil unless it gets changed at the AGM but that is very unlikely. All prices are on the membership page of the website for you.
Hi, think the web site is good and very informative and I am looking to re-join the club. Could you tell me if there are still carp and Tench in the club pit as I had heard there is a problem with otters? Regards Steve
Hi Steve, I'm happy to say yes there are still carp in the club pit in the 20lb bracket and one nudging 30lb plenty of Tench in there and we are making good progress in putting up a fence to keep the otters at bay so yes. We are working hard to improve the whole place this year and will be adding more fish stocks to replace those that have been got at by the otters but from what we have seen so far the otters have not beaten us and by the time we have finished they will have to go back to the river and leave our stock fish alone. If you want to come down and see what were up to the work party meets every Saturday from 10-3 and your welcome to join us. Here's a shot of the some of the carp taken a few days ago.
happy fishing Mark.
Hello my name is Terry
just took a look at your site and was imprested with the available information
and friendly feel to it, having recently retired I am just coming back to
fishing and am looking to see what is around and most sites aren’t as good as
yours. If the club is run as well it should be a good one to belong to. Cheers
Terry
Hi Terry the club has been around for over 63 years now so we must be doing something right I guess, I hope you can join us this year and blow the dust of the old rods and reels. We are mainly a river club for those who enjoy a more traditional way of fishing, peace and solitude and lovely country side rivers to wander around and explore. We have an active match section and junior section to the club with many new event coming this year. Glad you like the website and hope to see you on the bank this year.
All the best Mark.
Hi guys I wonder if you can remember me I was in the club in 2000 until I had to move to Holland. Just wondering how the club is going on? everyone still catching on the waters? finding out how Eddie Dave Gladwell John etc are doing? Still don't know, it's John Black
Hi John Yes were all still going strong Chris Kelly and John remember you well and send there regards David is still very active in the match section and Chris is match man of the year for the second year running. Hope you are well and if your ever down this way again be sure to give us a look up.
Tight Lines Mark.
Hi Mark, Last few weeks of the season pike sessions on the stretch above Ellingham Mill & Broome Bank in the run up to the close season, taking numerous pike to 17-04. I was disappointed on 13th March at Shipmeadow to catch only a small jack on a lure, I think the biggies were thinking of breeding duties!! Next season I intend to invest in a digital camera & I'll send in pics of my upper Waveney pike. I still can't believe I'm often the only angler on some stretches of BCTAC waters; generally only ever see pikers on Shipmeadow & chubbers/pikers around Quantrills. I don't think some people like the exercise!! Apologies again for not making the the work parties @ the club pit, due to work commitments. Gary, Norwich
Hi Gary good to hear from you and that your catching some nice pike I was down at the lay-by pit having a go for some today but no luck to coloured up but had 8 out of there 2 weeks ago when it was sunny and bright. Work on the club pit takes place every Saturday from 10-3 so your always welcome to come along when ever you have time. Don't forget our AGM on the 25th of April we have a new water to vote in and lots of exciting stuff to bring to the members.
Your right mate most of us are too lazy to leave the comfort of the car these days but all good anglers now that to catch those big fish you have to get some exercise and seek out the better swims.
Tight lines mate and lets see a 20 from you next time!
Hi Mark great website
Glad you like it Happy fishing Mark
Just a note to say thanks to the working party, the pit is looking good - and even better for the first time in several months my walk around failed to spot an otter. there is usually a family of 3 feeding up! I see there is still plenty to do, so after Easter I hope to be able to join you.
Thanks for your support, we will meet down there every Saturday 10-3pm from now on until the job is done but we still need more club members to help us so spread the word. Like they say many hands make light work. I really want to see the club pit back to its former glory and I know we can achieve this if we all commit ourselves to the task in hand. Click here to find out more or just email to join the work party contact list the more we have on the work party list the more work we can get done in the club and the club pit is just one of many areas we can improve if we all muck in it doesn't take long for a club of over 250 members to get things done if your willing to spare a few hours a week.
Mark.
Mark the Gorleston tackle shop has no day ticket books left so please could you send some many thanks
Will do thanks for letting me know.
Re day tickets Gorleston forgot to mention the broome bank and Quantrill sections look great but no one fishing them today. I looked at them for next season as joining your club is my best option by far!!!! if there's any work I can help with this year if I can help I will do Phil.
Hi Phil no worries, and yes there is lots of work to be done if you want to help us we are down the club pit on Saturdays from 10-3pm every weekend from now until we finish the work being carried out any one who is a club member may come and lend a hand full details can be found on the work party link here
Tight Lines Mark.
Don't Worry, Be Happy! =)
I am I'm going fishing Sunday. Mark
Hello BCTAC Just wanted to say how friendly all your anglers were in the Super Cup match at Eye Ponds on Sunday. I drew next to John Oatkins and we had a chat and a laugh all day which is what these competitions are all about. Unfortunately the fishing was crap but I still enjoyed the day. Perhaps Bungay and Harleston can arrange an inter-club match for next season. Regards Chris Knights Harleston A.C
Hi Chris, sounds like a great idea send me an email and we will see if we can get one sorted out mate.
Tight lines Mark.
Hi Mark, Enjoyed the day Saturday at the club pit as we started "operation out ski otters!". Hope we get a few more willing hands on deck and get this sorted quickly. My trusty two burner and grill cooker will be attending the work parties, so lets hope the prospect of bacon rolls etc ,will urge more members along. Keep up the great work mate. Regards Lloyd
Thanks for you support Lloyd, yes lets hope more members come on board and help us shape up the club pit would be good if the Environment Agency would get involved as well wouldn't it, but not sure if they would be willing to bring bacon rolls :-) See you Saturday Mate.
Mark
Had a quick look at the site today, my 11 yr old daughter will love reading all the info in the junior section. I surf the net for fishing info all the time, and you have become the latest addition to MY FAVOURITES ...... well done regards Jon,
Glad you like the site Jon were having lots of junior events in the summer time so check back often Tight lines Mark.
Hi Mark I will gladly lend a hand, my health isn't what it use to be but let me know what I can do and when. Paul.
Hi Paul just check out the news page all you need to know is on there mate. Thanks that's very good of you.
All the best Mark