Secretary Tim Wood 07800 705547 (Founded 1951) Chairman David Kent 01622 890215 Treasurer Mark Lindsell 07973 383952 WINTER NEWSLETTER 2012 Dear Member, Not long until CHRISTMAS! Just because it is wet and cold out there doesn’t mean the fish stop biting. There are some cracking specimens to be caught in our waters, so be brave and get out there; you never know your Christmas wish could come true! 2013 AGM and proposed Rule Changes Our AGM date is on Friday 22nd February 2013 - 8.00pm start. As usual it will be at the British Legion Hall, Hawkhurst, Kent TN18 4AG. The venue is in the centre of the Hawkhurst village on the Flimwell side of the main High Street crossroads. Parking is limited at the venue but parking is also available in the large Budgens supermarket car park on the Rye Road or the car park in Northgrove Road opposite and walk the short distance to the British Legion Hall. Rule change – 20. No fishing further than the middle of the water (if the opposite swim is occupied). Change to wording required to make it more robust. All members have the right to propose an item for debate but these can only be heard if sent to the Club Secretary in writing (PO Box 560, Staplehurst, Tonbridge, Kent. TN9 9LH) or via the club’s email ([email protected]), four weeks prior to the AGM. The Committee will again be on the scrounge for prizes for our raffle but if any of you have anything you could donate as a prize then please bring along on the night or give it to a Committee member beforehand. For a bit of fun, we are thinking about holding an auction of unwanted fishing gear. So if you have any new or used gear that is kicking about that you want to get rid of and don’t mind donating to the club auction, as with the raffle prizes, bring your stuff along on the night or give it to a Committee member beforehand. Kent Angling Show - Detling Thankyou to everyone who turned up at our stand to say hello and also to the Committee members and Dave Skinner who stayed on their feet all day to answer the many questions from interested anglers. Around 10, 000 people came through the doors over the weekend and everyone thought it was a huge success. If you missed the show, it will be back next year, bigger and better by all accounts and we will of course be part of it. New club Merchandise We have had some additions to our club clothing. We now have Hoodies and Wooly Hats as well as more Polo Shirts. Sizes range from Medium to XXXL, green and black, so if you are stuck for Christmas present ideas, these would be ideal. We have included an order form for you, get them in quick and we will deliver these in time for Xmas. Did someone mention Christmas? Stuck for ideas for your wish list this Christmas? How about a membership voucher for next season? A voucher, in the form of a card, can be bought now, by either you, a friend or a member of your family, which we will send out before Christmas and can be given to you or whoever as a present. An extra benefit is that the recipient will beat any possible rise to the fees in February’s AGM. Send in an application in the normal way and mark it “CHRISTMAS GIFT” please make sure you provide the details of the recipient and if a new member a photo for the ID Card. Catch reports Don’t forget to keep your catch reports coming in. It helps the club to keep an eye on how places are fishing, how much venues get used and can also help other members if they ask what venues are fishing well at the time. And remember to send Bill Mitchell any prize specimens you have caught this season for entry for the trophies. Water Specific Rules As well as our general rules, each of our waters have their own specific rules which are either requested by the owner or have been set because of the venue’s environment. Please make sure you know these rules before you go to any venue. It will save you and the bailiffs a lot of hassle. There is no excuse for not knowing the rules as you have been supplied the maps with brief rules on, a rule book and of course our website has them on there too. If you are unsure about anything at all, either ring a bailiff or email us on [email protected] Changes to match venue All the matches that were due to take place at Pattenden Lane have been relocated to Rosemary Lakes.  25th November 2012  23rd December 2012 For more details on all our matches please go to our Competitions page on  10th February 2013 our website or see the reverse of your membership card.  10th March 2013 1 Park Farm Many of you will have noticed that the reeds have slowly taken over Park Farm and swims are disappearing. Over the years we have tried to keep the reeds under control but they don’t seem to be taking the hint, so this winter we are bringing the big boys in. We don’t have any dates set yet but at some point over the winter a contractor is coming in with machines to remove the reeds up in the shallows and open up the swims again. We will of course put up notices at the venue and on the website when we know the exact dates. Rats! We have been placing rat poison in rat bait stations around Springwood and Burnt Wood all year and we will continue to do so to try and cut down the population, particularly at Springwood. The stations do contain poison and must not be touched under any circumstance; big thanks to Mark Punyer for doing the weekly checks and topping up the poison when necessary. Pattenden Lane Since April we have been regularly testing the water to back up the results the EA reported and to monitor the venues progress. We are pleased to say that all the results are excellent, particularly the Dissolved Oxygen levels which have been well above average. There is lots of weed growth and even lilies have appeared, so this will help to sustain a healthy environment when we re-stock. Recent catch reports include Perch, Tench and Carp, sadly no silver fish though. Darwell After years of trying different methods of launching the boats, our latest idea should hopefully make things a hell of a lot easier. We now have two trailers which the boats sit on making launching and recovering so simple, no more dragging the boats up and down the bank on scaffold poles! We are still after two more cheap trailers for our remaining two 18ft boats, so if you know of any going for around £50-£100 then let us know. Hopefully following our training day for Darwell key holders, we shouldn’t have any issues with damaged to our motors anymore. As a reminder and for those that did not make it, the handle MUST be in the Off/Stow position and the release button under the handle joint pressed in before the handle is folded down. Do this gently, DON’T FORCE IT. We will be taking one boat away in December to get it serviced and reconditioned so don’t be alarmed if you turn up to find only three boats down there. Catch reports – Lots of Pike around the 10lb mark, some quality Perch and also quality Roach. A fish survey carried out in September reported a big rise in fry numbers so next season should see bigger Roach shoals and maybe bigger Pike! Rosemary Lakes A lovely new venue with 3 pools in close proximity to each other which offer a mixed bag of Rudd, Perch, Carp and Tench. It’s full of fish apparently, not a specimen venue, something for the pleasure and match angler really. Please park sensibly on the road if it is wet. When it’s dry, you may park close to the lakes at the bottom of the track but only go down there in your car if it is dry, and will remain dry. If it is wet or it rains whilst you are fishing, you WILL get stuck. All three pools can be night fished but ONLY if booked with Wayne Ellis (07951 090735) prior to your trip. Included with this newsletter are the map/directions with some brief rules. And please try to keep this one litter free, it’s always at the night fishing venues where we get problems. Keep an eye out for any litter bugs and report them immediately so we can catch them and cancel their membership. And if you see any litter, pick it up, don’t just walk passed it expecting someone else to do it. Windsurf stocking We stocked 30 x 15lb Carp into Windsurf pit on 17th November 2012. These quality fish were supplied by Paul Middleton who has stocked Medway Valley’s Brooklands in the past and they have grown extremely well. We are expecting these to do the same, so we will have a few more lumps roaming around in there in years to come. Pictures of all the fish are in our secure gallery on our website, contact the club for the login details. Help us to keep you informed If you have changed your email address since joining, let us know. From time to time we do send out notices and reminders plus these newsletters, so if we don’t have your address, you won’t get the information. Remember, if you have any queries or suggestions then just drop us an email [email protected] and we will respond surprisingly quickly. Dave checks the clubs emails just as much as he does his work ones! Shopping Online? Are you using our eStore to do ALL your online shopping? Make sure you and everyone else you know does ALL their online shopping through here http://www.spendandraise.com/cranbrookanglingclub/ It is such an easy way for you to shop and to help us raise a little extra cash. You will find almost every retailer, including Amazon, John Lewis, Asda, FishTec, B&Q, BHS, Halfords and hundreds more. Put the link in your favorites and instead of clicking straight to Amazon or Halfords, go through our portal instead and then to Amazon etc. and it will automatically register that the club is due some commission when you buy something. We hope you all enjoy your Xmas and New Year and keep at it through the winter. The CADAC Committee 2