“Winter on the Way is an exciting prospect. For me that’s all about big river roach and massive pike. I love both species equally and both pose their own problems and demand their own skill set. For roach, you can’t beat trotting a tiny stick float down river, hooking a big fish at perhaps 20 or 30 yards away.

For pike, the great challenge is fishing a lure down a weed-free channel, watching and waiting for a monster to intercept. Short days, yes, but packed with action and excitement.

One of my many business hats is Fishery Director at the Kingfisher Lakes and Apartments in mid-Norfolk. I love the job because, in reality, I’m dealing with four wonderful lakes and several miles of the River Wensum every day. But there is a problem.

Wensum roach stocks have been on the back foot now for thirty years, largely because of river mismanagement (no thankfully a thing of the past) and over predation by cormorants and, latterly, otters.

Everyone loves river roach and the Wensum is an iconic river. There’s a feeling that if we can put the Wensum back to rights, anything can be done in the roach fishing world. I’m hoping that Dr. Mark Everard (Dr. Roach to his fans) is going to visit in November and together we’ll walk the river, do some fishing and discuss how we might help the Environment Agency reinstate the River Wensum once again as the country’s premier venue.

Watch this space.”