Thread: If you were me - honest opinions please!

Yes thanks to absolutely everyone that has contributed to this thread.

It does look like most people want to go to a nice mixed fishery - so that is what I am going to base my plans on initially. Obviously I will keep everyone up to date with the progress. I am going to start a new thread now about the actual lake design.

Just got your PM, might be an old one mind!
Anyhow, i would have a lake 30m wide, so your long pole line is down the middle, and you can chuck a wagler or feeder over.
If there was no island, i would have it 8 foot deep all round the outside, (on the pole line) and 4 foot the rest. So the fish are on your pole line in the winter. And not all chucking to the middle!
Stocking, you must have carp, they can take high stocking, they can get caught over and over, and EVERY angler will ask what the biggest fish is, and EVERY match angler will ask what weights are winning the matches. So you need the carp to bump the weights.
F1s dont breed, some do get dropsy, but they dont die from KHV. They were desighed by the Israil goverment, to be imune from KHV.
I would have carp, F1s, Barbel, and skimmers.
Chub are a waste of time, as are tench, and roach and rudd are fine, but i would rather go with the skimmers for your silvers.
All the fish have good potential for growth, just one tip, somone needs to be there EVERY day to keep off the predators, evrey animal wants to eat your fish.
Not just Cormorants, Herons, Grebes, but the seagulls are about the worst, we dont notice them so much, but what do seagulls eat? fish! And apart from your Otters and Mink, you still have the crows and magpies trying to nick the fish off the gulls, oh and the imigrants too, lol.
Good luck Simon, it will all be worth it mate.
Best wishes, Nigel.

The ide situation was also born out at little john lakes at ollerton, steve put in a large quantity hoping to improve fishing in winter but after an initial burst they just havn't shown. The biggest problem with an island is the shape of it, it msut follow the shape of the lake itself otherwise there will be lots of arguments and even with a regular shape this can still happen, one way around this is to have marker boards on the island showing the limits of each peg. White posts to show the limit of each peg and a number in the middle. Moon lake fishery as a lake with plenty of big fish in it and its great for pleasure fishing, however i will not match fish it due to the lake being round and the island pear shape, this means when sat on a peg you are all looking at the same features and this causes lots bof arguments.

I have been told, that with KHV being a wordwide threat, and Israil being the second biggest exporter of ornamental fish behind Japan, the goverment got involved when KHV hit Israil, and as the British govermnet did when we had foot and mouth, they paid all the fish farmers comensation. They were forced to drain and start from scratch, and as the goverment officials were involved, they were looking to design a fish that would be imune from KHV, and came accross the goldfish carp cross that is imune, but they do get dropsy.
I have freind, who owns Shirley aquitics, and he visits both Japan amd Israil, and is very knowedgable on KHV, with having 3 million quids worth of stock on his books he needs to be!
He tells me that Israil are now the world leaders in export now, as KHV hasent been in the Japan fish, so tells me they could be risky, so buys all from Israil now.
I am also told these F1s are identical to the Carrsio in Italy, so they may well be the same fish!

Fish farmer, your post is very interesting, i couldent find your name and details from your profile, who are you and where are you from?

Nigel,

The first pond is finished now and VERY similar to what you have said shape and depth wise! Great minds think alike eh! Anyway whenever you are up this way please pop over and cast your expert eye over it!