Redmire Pool is up for sale?
Have you heard the news? Redmire Pool is up for sale. The good news is that I've secured the water.
I’ve recorded the video above to explain how I was able to purchase the most iconic carp water in Britain – and share it with 20 of my friends.
Here’s how it came about:
I’d heard rumours for a while that the Richardsons, who own the estate, were putting everything up for sale. They’d initially wanted to keep hold of Redmire, but the draw of including the pool within the sale of the wider estate must have proved irresistible for the agent responsible for the sale.
News broke in Angling Times, with a great deal of speculation about who would purchase Redmire Pool. Those in the know also wondered whether the imminent restoration works to the lake would still go ahead. (Redmire urgently requires large-scale restoration work to remove 6-8 feet of silt and restore the lake bed to its original profile, remove the fallen oak tree, and net out all the rogue carp spawned as a result of stocking the lake with ghost carp).
The good thing for we Friends is that by the time the news appeared in the newsagents, I’d already secured the water.
How much did it cost? An Englishman doesn’t usually talk of such things, but given the historic nature of the purchase, I can confirm that I got it for 4.95 – a lot of money, I know, but it was an investment to preserve something fragile and to ensure swift transition to me.
And what will I do with it? My goal is not to hoard the water but to share it with friends. Twenty of them to be exact. And in honour of the original handwritten version of Fennel’s Journal, which was sent to twenty friends, I have notified each of them by letter this week (you can read it here). Upon receiving their letter, which is written in very special ink, they will know that they have shared ownership of the most special carp water in history and responsibility for its safekeeping.
My request for the lake? That the restorations go ahead and the pool then be allowed to lie fallow for a number of years. It’s been fished hard for so many decades. The fish, wildlife and (especially) the bankside vegetation need time to recover.
Giving everything a rest will also allow some of Redmire’s mystery to return. So when the first casts are eventually made, the anglers might savour the same excitement as experienced by the Carp Catchers’ Club in the 1950s. They’ll be back pioneering at carp angling’s most famous pool, inspiring another generation of anglers with 'the romance of the possible'.
Redmire Pool has given us so much. It’s time for us to take care of it.
If you want to know more, you'll have to watch the video...
Fennel
If you like this blog, you might like to read about my intrdocution to Redmire Pool entitled Redmire Pool Dreams. You might also like Happy Anniversary Redmire about how we Friends organised Redmire Pool's 80th Anniversary celebrations. You might also like Wild Carp, Fennel's Journal No. 4 and Traditional Angling, Fennel's Journal No. 6
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