Monday 21 February 2011

Get A Grip?

Interest is building in the Clean Angler Pledge and thanks to the World Wide Fred French Web my mutterings have gone out to a much wider audience!

It was nice to see the Angling Trust make reference to ERT's call to ban felt wading boots. I hope this organisation with its significant resources and contacts will pick-up the baton from herein. I will make contact with them in the near future.

I have had a few questions regarding the tendency of non felt soles to slip and slide on the river bed. This is an interesting issue. I have been using Simms Aquatstealth Soles for about five years and have never felt 'slippage' to be a problem. I spend an awful lot of time in waders and fish and work on some pretty spatey rivers.

Having just received a new pair of Orvis Eco-Trax boots I took the opportunity to test them out yesterday on the main Eden and they performed very well indeed. The boots are studded which I think helps.

Dare I say it, but I think sometimes slippage can be exacerbated by poor wading technique. If you try to 'walk' a river I think there is a higher risk of skidding! On spate rivers I find that you are best off 'feeling' the bed of the river and that slower measured progress is the best approach (it doesn't scare the fish either). Obviously it goes without saying that you should never attempt to go against the flow (in all but the shallowest of water) but use it to your advantage. Wading staffs can be a real aid...but I've yet to find a good one that isn't stupidly expensive.

Inspect - Clean - Dry - Spread The Word....... Not The Problem!