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www.twaps.co.uk Kent Fishing Club |
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www.twaps.co.uk Kent Fishing Club |
Consists of 2 lakes – Steps Lake and Long Lake:
Steps Lake... is the first lake you see as you approach from the car park. This is approximately 61m long and 33m wide. (0.5 acres) There are 14 swims with reeds either side. Pegs 10 and 11 have a large lily pad as an added feature. There is a bed of reeds approximately 2m(6.5ft) wide running down the middle of the lake. These reeds hide a hidden secret – a sunken conveyor belt. The depth of the lake varies from 1m to approximately 2.5m(8.5ft) in the middle with pegs 1 – 7 being slightly shallower than the opposite side. Peg 8 on both lakes is a disabled swim. All the pegs are good, but pegs 1, 10, 11 and 14 tend to be the most popular (authors opinion).
Long Lake... is to the left of Steps Lake and the first peg you arrive at is peg 9. Long lake is approximately 30m long and 20m wide (0.65 acres) There is one smallish island to fish to which can be reached comfortably from peg 7 and peg 10. There are also a lot of features alongside the edge of the lake on every swim. The depth of long lake varies considerably from as little as 0.5m to over 3m in the middle. Careful plumbing is therefore necessary to find the shelves and any undulations if you are to maximise the potential of your swim. Hot pegs are 1, 7, 9, 10, 13, 15 and 16. There are a total of 17 pegs on the lake. Peg 13 is known as the “threepenny (pronounced thrupp-nee) bit” swim and pegs 14 – 17 are “up the cut”. The fishing on both lakes is fantastic and if you get it right, weights of up to 85lb (top weight in a match) can be had. [The threepence was a denomination of currency used by various jurisdictions in England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales, until decimalisation of the pound sterling and Irish pound in 1971.]
Fish species in both lakes are well stocked and consist of the following: tench, roach, rudd, goldfish, perch, crucians, mirror carp, common carp (Wildies), fantails and hybrids of the aforementioned. The carp when caught put up an incredible fight and many a rod and reel or pole top has been lost to the deep (the author has pictures to prove this point!).
The lakes are run on either a membership basis or a day ticket available on the bank from the Bailiff. The price is £6 for adults [2 rods] and £3 for juniors [2 rods]. The lakes are open all year round. Fishing is permitted from dawn to dusk. NO NIGHT FISHING ALLOWED AT ANY TIME.
Certain rules apply like most other fisheries i.e. Everybody over the age of 12, fishing, must have a rod licence, rubbish must be taken home etc. One of the main requirements of fishing the lakes is the use of a proper landing net, minimum one per swim. This should be a minimum of 16" (450mm) Dia. and of fish friendly material. A Dipping net or anything similar is not acceptable and you will be asked to leave the fishery. There are also certain bait bans at Shorne namely the use of nuts of any description, peas, beans and any/all floating free offeringS. You are allowed to use crust,dog biscuits etc on the hook, but you are not allowed to throw in loads of spare floating offerings.
The best way to catch the smaller fish i.e. Roach, Rudd, Crucians and small Tench is with light gear and by that I mean 2lb line and size 16/18 hook (which must be barbless). You want to be a shallow (6"- 12" for the Rudd and Roach) or hard on the bottom for the Crucians and Tench For the larger fish i.e. Carp and Tench, you need to step up your gear to say 8lb with up to size 8 hook. There is a line strength limit of 12lB. A lot of youngsters and some adults fish too heavy at Shorne with 15lb+ line and wonder why they catch very little. Popular baits alongside maggots, luncheon meat and sweet corn tend to be floating bread in the summer for the Carp, or prawns for the Tench. Cockles and mussels can also work well on the day. (Note from Author: I personally prefer to use homemade paste made from ground down pellets, fished over a bed of 2/3mm pellets. This works very well.).
In the winter the water goes very clear and the fishing becomes a lot harder but you can still catch if you scale down your tackle accordingly.
In addition at Shorne Country Park, there is a Visitor Centre, where there are toilet facilities and a cafe where you can buy food and drink etc. Some tackle can be purchased at the visitor centre such as landing nets, unhooking mats, hooks, floats, etc.
Shorne Wood Country Park covers some 288 acres and is in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The area has been designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest for its wildlife value. Shorne Wood Country Park is signposted off the A2 between Gravesend and Rochester at the Cobham/Shorne/Higham junction.
The Park lies on what was originally Cobham Hall Estate, the main entrance and carriage rides of which ran through the park. From the 1920s to the early 1970s clay extraction (for cement) took place throughout an area of the park. In 1987 the park was opened to the public, and is owned and managed by Kent County Council. Shorne Wood consists mainly of ancient woodland with some heathland, and the old claypit, which is returning naturally to woodland, with meadows and wetlands. The Great Storm of 1987 affected large areas of the park with thousands of trees now replanted.
The ponds and lakes are rich with reeds, rush and willow. A sensory garden has been developed for everyone to enjoy. The planting and tactile sculptures provide colour, scent, texture, shape and sound. Nearby, the arboretum contains almost every species of native tree found in Kent. There are many rare and protected species at Shorne Wood, and it is particularly well known for its dragonflies, which can be seen throughout the summer and breed in the many attractive ponds.
A number of facilities are available to less mobile visitors including an easy access trail featured in our Walks For All Pack, sensory gardens, electro-scooters (free loan), and guide tapes (free loan). It is advisable to book the free loan facilities in advance to avoid disappointment. Visitors Centre and refreshments. The cafe is open from 10am to 5 pm in the summer and from 11am to 4pm in the winter. Exhibition and information. Play Area. Free entry to to the park but there is a car park fee of £2.00 on weekdays and £2.50 at weekends and bank holidays. Alternatively, an annual parking permit can be obtained at the shop.
NOTE: Information on Shorne Country Park last updated January 2010