|
Of the various rivers which flow into the Thames, the river Lea is the most valuable to the London Angler. It joins the main river opposite the Greenwich marshes, below the Blackwall Railway, but Jack are very rarely taken below
Lea bridge where some good Perch are occasionally taken with the paternoster. This water, together with The White House water and Temple Mills, are now rented by Mr. Beresford of The White House, and the annual subscription to the three is fifteen shillings, or without trolling, one shilling per day. Above Lea Bridge, and about 5 miles from town, we come to
Tyler's water, Tottenham. The fishing here is very good; the subscription is one guinea per annum including trolling, or without trolling, one shilling per day. The angler will find good accommodation at The Firry House, kept by Mr. Noakes. Next to Tyler's, is
Ford's water the extent of which, is less than a mile; the subscription is the same as at Tyler's. This water belongs to what i« called The Blue House; beyond this, we come to
bleak hall or, Cooke's Ferry, Edmonton. Upwards of two miles of the Lea, and one mile of the mill-stream are preserved, and the angler may make sure of good sport in favourable weather. There are some good Trout taken occasionally with the spinning-bait. The annual subscription to this water is one guinea, including trolling, which commences July 1st, and ends March 1st. Live-bait fishing is allowed from October 1st to March 1st. The inn is kept by Mr. Wicks. Next to Bleak Hall, is Mr. Digby's water, at
Chingford There is excellent Pike, Chub, and Perch-fishing in this part of the Lea; the subscription for the season being one guinea. There is good accommodation for anglers at Mrs. Bullin's cottage at Chingford, close to the water. The next fishery is at
Ponder's end belonging to The Anchor and Pike, rented by Mr. Keid. The length of this water is about two miles and a half, extending as far as Enfield Lock. There is plenty of good Jack fishing in this water as well as some capital fishing for Perch. The subscription is half a guinea per annum. The next we come to are the
Enfield and sewardstone-mill Fisheries; these are in length about three miles, and have plenty of Pike and Perch, with occasionally Trout. The annual subscription is one guinea. Mr. Metcalfe, of The Swan and Pike, is the proprietor of the water. The Lea, for the space of about two miles from these fisheries belongs to Government, and bears the name of the
Ordnance waters permission to fish must be obtained from the Ordnance Office. Large Trout, Pike, and Perch, are taken here, but orders to fish are rather scarce. Above the Government waters, is Mr. Clark's fishery at
Waltham abbey This is by rail 14¾ miles from London, and about 12 miles by road. This fishery includes the Corn-mill stream, the Straits, the Cob-mead, and the Broad-water, together about four miles and a half, and containing plenty of good fish. Two or three seasons since, a Pike was taken in this water, weighing nineteen pounds. The annual subscription is a guinea and a half, and Sunday fishing is not allowed. The water at
Cheshunt is rented by Captain Saunders, the subscription being two guineas per annum. In this part of the Lea some very good Trout, Pike and Barbel are taken. Above this water is King's Weir, part of the
Broxbourne fishery where there is some first rate fishing for Trout, Pike, and Perch. One of the subscribers took with the spinning-bait a fine Trout weighing eight pounds, May 20th, 1859, in the null stream; Mr. H. J. Alfred took a very fine Barbel, weighing seven pounds and a half, June 4th, 1859, with a worm; and I have this season taken three brace of Trout in the day, from this part of the water. The whole of this portion of the Lea, as far as Nazing Marsh, beyond Carthagena Weir, is rented by Mr. J. Beningtield of the Crown Inn, Broxbourne Bridge, who stocks the water every year with upwards of a hundred brace of Jack, besides a great number of fine Trout. The annual subscription is One Guinea including trolling, or Two Guineas with Trout-fishing; (subscribers residing near the fishery pay an extra subscription for Trout). Day ticket s for Jack-fishing, Two Shillings,
The angler who visits this part of the Lea in the hollyhock and dahlia season, should not leave without visiting the Crown, Mr. Beningfield being as justly celebrated for his cultivation and care of those splendid flowers, as for his polite attention to visitors.
In the upper part of the Broxbourne fishery, in what is termed the Gull, there are some heavy Pike, but they are not often taken. Beyond here is
Page's water where the fishing is similar to that at Broxbourne The inn is The Fish and Eell, and the subscription is One Guinea per annum.
The Rye house Fishery extends from Black Pool to and including Field's Weir on both sides of the river Lea, and from Field's Weir to a point opposite Nazing Mead on the west side; also from Roydon Road to Field's Weir, in the Old Stort River; and is, altogether, upwards of three miles in extent. Mr. W. H. Teale, of the Rye House, is the proprietor. The subscription per annum, is One Guinea, including Jack fishing; and One Guinea extra for Trout (if the member resides beyond rive miles from the fishery; if within five miles the subscription is Two Guineas for Trout). The Jack season begins August 1st, and ends the first Sunday in March, and the fish are remarkably fine. I was Pike-fishing in this water a year or two since, with one of the subscribers, and at the close of the day our take showed one of nearly fourteen pounds, one of seven, and several smaller ones, from two to five pounds each.
Beyond the Rye House is the
Amwell magna Fishery, one of the best subscription waters on t he Lea. The club is very limited in number, the subscription at present being eight guineas per annum, which will be increased: the future entrance fee, which is rather heavy, is regulated from time to time by the committee. The water is under the able management of Henry Wix, Esq., the Solicitor to the Fishery being Charles Rivington, Esq.
Permission to fish is very rarely obtained by non-members, as the subscribers' tickets for friends are very limited in number. Although it can hardly be called a close borough, still it is the closest water on the Lea. The members of the Amwell Club have the exclusive right of fishing from Black Pool above the Rye House to Hertford; also in the New River near Amwell, there a short time since one of the members took a very fine Trout, weighing six pounds, with the spinning bait.
A short distance above Hertford the Lea is joined by the river Maran, a little stream which has its source a few miles from King's Waiden, and passes through Panshanger Park before its union with the Lea; which before receiving this addition to its waters, runs through Hatfield Park, the seat of the Marquis of Salisbury'. The river here assumes the appearance of a lake, and is full of Pike and Perch, with a very fair quantity of Trout. Above Hatfield is Brocket Hall and Park. Here again the Lea spreads out into a spacious lake, and abounds with large fish. Large Pike have been taken in these waters with the flies mentioned in Chap. IV., especially at Hatfield Park.
At Wheathampstead, near the paper mills, there is very good fishing. Above here the Lea flows through Luton Park, where there is good Trout and Pike-fishing, in the lakes supplied by the stream which flows past the little town of Luton from Houghton Regis in Bedfordshire, near which village is the source of the Lea.
|