I mentioned that I was now using two new fisheries for coaching - the second is near Arborfield Garrison near Wokingham. The garrison has many memories for me as at the tender age of sixteen years I left home and joined the Army to start an engineering apprenticeship at the Apprentice College there. This monstrosity has since been torn down but the scars are still in my memory. I completed my training next door at the School of Electronic Engineering and revisited there on two more postings for courses during my thirteen years service. It was during one of these courses that I first fished my beloved river Kennet.

The new fishery is called Longmoor Farm and is located on the Nine Mile Ride. It is a small lake set in a woodland setting and is stocked with small tench and carp and when I say stocked I mean STOCKED! It’s fish soup.

Longmoor tench

Longmoor mirror carp

Everyone I have taken there has caught lots of fish and they take almost anything you put on the hook. One of the lads even caught a tench with no bait, just a bare hook!

Longmoor rudd

AnotherLongmoor mirror carp

AnotherLongmoor tench

You are not going to trouble the angling press with your specimens from this venue and I don’t expect to bump into Terry Hearn or Chris Yates there any time soon but if you need to catch fish all day then this is the place for you. I usually set my students up with a short pole with a number eight elastic or a five metre whip with no elastic (preferably the latter) and a three pound hook length. They all love it!

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