My battle with cow parsley

 

Dear Simon, It is April so it must be my month to reengage in the annual battle with the cow parsley that lives (thrives?) in the water meadows here in Nether Wallop. Now, there is nothing intrinsically bad about cow parsley as compared to its poisonous non-native cousin the giant hogweed, originally imported from Russia and also a member of the carrot family. But cow parsley, though pretty in itself, is a menace in many respects. First of all it is one of those first growth plants that crowds out the smaller meadow plants – given half a chance the field would become a cow parsley monoculture. Secondly, alongside the river it looks lovely in May but by June it will become woody, outgrowing itself, to collapse across the width of the Brook. It is, as every fly fisher will know, a wicked magnet for a miscast fly. Enlisted help on the cow parsley cull

So, to head off all these eventualities I spend my early April evenings, with enlisted help, going to war on the cow parsley with my trusty long-handled rip hook. There is a definitive art to cow parsley slashing. Go too low and the blade jams into the thick stems at the base. Go too high and the lack of resistance allows the fast travelling blade to whip dangerously behind you. Get it just right and it is the proverbial hot knife through butter satisfyingly decapitating the carrot-like tops that fall to the ground in a pleasing open symmetry. As I move from one hated clump to the next, a carrotine smell wafts over the scene of this vegetable massacre. It is really quite hard work, so I measure out the war over a series of evenings. As you will see from some of the before and after photos, the effect is instantaneous. I guess, it is a sort of gardening writ large for the easily gratified. Anyway, it is a long war but I am winning. Give it another five years!

Clockwise: Before the cull. The far bank which is never culled. After the cull. A job well done.

The Madison I am beginning to feel like a TV critic what with Dirty Business last time and The Madison this time. For those of you who have not yet seen The Madison it is the latest series from Sheridan Taylor, the slayer of all things woke who has clipped into the Maga vibe with Yellowstone, Landman, 1883 and Tulsa King  to name just four of his recent hits. This time the plot centres around a wealthy New York family where the father retreats a few weeks each year to Montana to refresh his soul trout fishing with his fishing guide brother on the Madison River.

I will not bore you with more of the plot and, in truth, The Madison has been panned by the critics (The Guardian called it ‘yawnsome’ but they would …), which is a shame because, in the first two episodes especially, there is so much fly fishing and much of it impressively shot- including fishing in the very spot that the iconic scene from A River Runs Through It was filmed. For once we have actors that can actually fly fish and it shows. The two brothers, played by Kurt Russell and Matthew Fox, do a great job though things get a bit weird when they have to play and net fish for the camera that clearly do not exist. You will see what I mean. However, aside from that anorak comment from me, it is a joy to see a filmmaker trying to express the beauty of fishing in beautiful places and for those of us who fish, we are even treated to a bit of the nymph vs. dry debate. Who knew Hollywood cared that much? I did try to find out who was the angling consultant on the show but the best I could find was an Animal Coordinator. You may watch the show trailer here (BEWARE: contains scenes of fly fishing) and watch the series on Paramount+, Amazon Prime and YouTube.  A River Runs Through It

New season. New hatches I have finally given in. After years of my makeshift hatch on the stream by the mill, which I made from oak offcuts at least two decades ago, I called in Derek Janes, who is of a profession you will not often see listed on LinkedIn – millwright. I have known Derek for a long while as he first worked with me in the early years of this century when I was restoring the mill and, in particular, the mill wheel which had three apparently terminal problems. Firstly, the giant cast iron spindle had fallen off its supports, the wheel leaning at a drunken angle against the wall of the wheel room. Secondly, someone had nicked the bronze wheel bearings and thirdly the steel gate and lifting mechanism, which controlled the water flow, had rusted away to the point of being useless. Read more about Derek’s successful restoration in Tales from The Mill. This time, the task was a little simpler. It was not, modesty aside, that my makeshift hatch did not work it was just that it was both hard, and sometimes a bit perilous, to make it work. The concept of the makeshift hatch is pretty simple: it slides up and down in the steel grooves held in position at the correct height to regulate the flow by a nail placed through one of the holes in the centre upright into a cross member across over the opening. So far, so simple. However, the flaw in my hatch is the pressure of the water which jams it tight making raising it next to impossible by simple lifting. This can only be done by grabbing a 6ft steel crow bar, donning waders and levering the hatch from below. Prepare to get wet and swept away by the sudden rush of water. Anyway, such antics are for those younger than me so I have given into the passage of the years with Derek’s masterful creation which, I think you will agree, is a thing of great beauty.

Old & new

More Dirty Business Not everyone was happy with my assessment of the impact of Channel 4’s Dirty Business; others think it is significant. I am told Windrush Against Sewage Pollution (WASP) have received 1,200 emails since the series went out and £50,000 in donations. I still remain to be convinced but if history proves me wrong, I will be happy to be wrong. One reader, Dave from Oxford as we will call him for reasons of discretion, was sufficiently empowered by Dirty Business to write, “Enjoying your newsletters as always. A good review of Dirty Business. As I watched the final episode I checked my local area on GOVAQUA Welcome to the Oxford Rivers Portal! to see my nearest treatment plant, South Moreton, was actually discharging at the time [29 March 2026]. And as it is right now as I write. [4 April 2026].”

Upstream of discharge 29 March

Downstream of discharge 29 March

I do not know whether to be shocked, enraged or despairing. To misquote King Henry II, will no one rid us of these pestilent polluters?

Chalkstream Conservation Day Have you ever wondered exactly how the weed cut happens? Wanted to try your hand at some river restoration? Get down ‘n dirty river keeping? Well, in July why not join us for Make Waves: Chalkstream Conservation Day led by our Head River Keeper, Si Fields.  Join us at Bullington Manor on the Upper Test for a river conservation and restoration day in support of Sportfish Rivers Month on Friday 17 July. Along with Si, you will have the chance to get involved in: Invasive species removal with a focus on monkeyflower Kick sampling to discover river life Practical river restoration work And watch the famous weed cut in action! You will need to dress for the outdoors - bring your own waders and gloves. Be prepared for uneven and potentially wet ground. All tools and equipment will be provided. Light refreshments will be available but please bring a picnic to enjoy by the water. No prior experience needed- just enthusiasm! To register for this free event, click here. Si Fields

Quiz The usual random collection of questions this week inspired by the date and the Newsletter topics. 1)      What fruit went on sale for the first time on this day in 1633 in a London apothecary? 2)     Which two time Oscar winner played rancher John Dutton in the TV series Yellowstone? 3)     The herb Parsley (Petroselinum crispum), now common around the world, is native to which European country? A) Balkans  B) Italy   C) Spain The answers are below.

As you read this I will be heading to a sound recording studio in Soho for day two of narrating Tales from The Mill as an audio book. Wish me luck .... not something I have ever done. More on that next time. Have a good weekend.  Best wishes,

Check & book dates here

Simon Cooper simon@fishingbreaks.co.uk Founder & Managing Directorwww.fishingbreaks.co.uk

1)     Bananas 2)     Kevin Costner 3)     Balkans

Catching the social media wave

 

Dear Simon, Over the years I have often felt the pain of Lord Leverhulme, 19th century founder of the present day home products colossus Unilever, who famously said, "Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted; the trouble is I don't know which half". When you have a small business such as Fishing Breaks the concept of a ‘marketing budget’ is largely for the birds. You do, essentially, as much as you can at as little cost as possible which has made the arrival of social media a godsend. But only up to a point. Posting on social media, unless you are doing something really fancy, is to all intents and purposes free but for the time, you expend creating and uploading the content. However, for all the warm glow you might feel from clicks, likes and shares the basic question Leverhulme posed more than a century ago remains the same: which bit of it makes a difference? And if so, as my supplementary question, why? Go viral with Si & Charley

I have been pondering this in the past week as, out of the blue, after a decade or more of postings that garnered no more than a few hundred views, we finally have one that has officially gone viral, which is to say over 100,000 views in the space of a few days. What is the content of this video you might ask. Some amazing fishing action? A monster trout? Sublime casting? Extraordinary scenery? No, our cabin angel Livvy simply chanced upon Si and Charley doing the April weed cut at Bullington Manor, filmed them for a few minutes on her phone, took it home, edited it down, set it to music and posted it on TikTok. In a day it hit 10K views which is no bad number so it went on Fishing Breaks Facebook and voila it is now 115K and counting. Quite why this has caught the social media wave I do not know but it is fascinating to see the comments that often show a true interest in this strange thing we do called weed cutting with people asking about its purpose, methodology and even where to buy an aluminium scythe! Anyway, judge for yourself.

Win a bottle of Mayfly wine An old friend of Fishing Breaks, wine merchant Pete Goss at the Mayfly Wine Co. recently sent me a bottle of this lovely red 2022 Saint-Chinian to try. But I thought why not go one better and have one of you try it by way of making the Quiz a Prize Quiz. But then I thought, how do you make the quiz Google-proof without making it impossible? The answer is a wine glass of Mayflies. Guess the number in the glass to win the bottle. Entries close 8am Monday 27 April.

Enter the competition here!

If you would like to buy the wine, of which Pete writes, “I've recently been working on a project with a biodynamic estate in the South of France and it is a Mayfly Limited Edition label. The wine is superb it looks very smart as well. It is unoaked and totally organic, medium bodied, excellent fruit - essentially the perfect riverbank red!” Click here for Mayfly Wine Co. website or email pete@mayflywine.co.uk. £126 for six bottles delivered. Artisan winery, Domaine La Lauzeta

The Great British River Talking of old friends of Fishing Breaks, Jack Perks, has just published his third book The Great British River which is a truly excellent book. I got to know Jack, an underwater cameraman and photographer by profession when he was in the throes of his slightly eccentric ambition to film all 54 British native fish in their native habitat that earnt him the monicker of the ‘fish twitcher’. With that seven year odyssey behind him, Jack has been working on two new books for the prestigious publishers Bloomsbury, the first of which is the The Great British River. It is the sort of book you buy as a gift but end up buying two, the second for yourself. It is packed with information describing the many types of British rivers from source to estuary, tracing their evolution, special characteristics, plus all the fish and creatures that depend on them for life. The Great British River is available from Amazon, Waterstones and bookshops.

The Secret Garden David Attenborough, despite fast approaching his 100th birthday, is still at it with a new series on the BBC that focusses on the secret lives of gardens, the first of six episodes based around the year in the life of a water mill in Oxfordshire. It is, in many respects, the perfect visualisation of my books Life of a Chalkstream and Tales from The Mill bringing to TV life what words cannot convey. There is some simply stunning cinematography, not least of the mayfly from nymph to adulthood. It also captures, and I never knew of this let alone having seen it, damselflies attacking mayfly mid-flight and eating them. Likewise the film crew spent ten man days in watery hides to film a few minutes of amazing otter action. All that said, and I know I am now bordering on the sacrilegious by critiquing anything Attenborough, the hour long script was a bit heavy on drama and jeopardy. You also suspected, in your heart of hearts, that extended sections had been recreated in a studio for our benefit. But for all that, it is most definitely worth an hour of your life.

Watch the trailer

My summer weather prediction If that old bit of country lore that goes, "Ash before oak, in for a soak; Oak before ash, in for a splash" is anywhere near accurate we are in for a dry summer as this spring the oak is in leaf long before the ash has even budded. In fact, things already seem to be heading in the dry direction. By the end of February, with some close to record wet winter months behind us, my mind was already turning to mitigation measures we may have to put in place for beats still flooded, or at least too wet to walk, on the opening day as was the case two seasons ago. However, none of that has occurred with a March that only recorded two thirds of normal rainfall in the chalkstream region and an April that looks headed in the same direction. Oddly, for all the sunny, dry days it has been, for the most part bitterly cold with morning after morning of frosts which is in contradiction to last year that was an almost frost-free spring but such is the ever changing nature of English weather.  A frosty morning on the River Itchen

Insects for the most part, bar a few hardy species who have adapted, suffer high mortality in times of frost which may explain why fish activity has been, from most of the reports I have seen, relatively retarded in the opening weeks despite ideal water levels and river clarity for the time of year. I did a bit of research on frost dates; here in Nether Wallop the algorithm based on Met Office data since 1960 predicts that the last date for a frost here in the valley will be 5/May with 168 frost free days to follow until frosts return on 20/October. You may check your own area at the web site Last Frost Date.

Quiz In The Great British River Jack lists the Modern Names and Meanings of some of our best known rivers. Match the Names to the Meanings for one English, Scottish and Welsh river. Names: Avon Tay Wye Meanings: Flowing Powerful River or water The answers are below.

Have a good weekend. PS The capybara by the name of Samba lives … but who knows where? The media frenzy about the capybara that escaped from Marwell Zoo over a month ago, at large on the River Itchen, has faded of late with no sightings and many fearing the worst. However, all might not be lost as our river keeper Si Fields spotted recent footprints at Breach Farm earlier in the week and there was local sighting the following day. Might make for an interesting fishing companion if you are at Breach Farm, Kanara or Qing Ya Xi …….  Best wishes,

Check & book dates here

Simon Cooper simon@fishingbreaks.co.uk Founder & Managing Directorwww.fishingbreaks.co.uk

Avon:  River or water Tay:     Powerful Wye:    Flowing