Recently in Country sports Category

You know I was talking the other day about pike having come back into fashion, well there is also a mention of them in Country Life's Countryman's Diary this week.

I rather like this quote: "Like many anglers, the pike man is obsessed with catching the monster, the freshwater shark that lives in the boating lake, attacking ducks, swans, nudists, bathers, swimming dogs, drinking donkeys, cows' tails and assorted animals and human extremities, together with toy yachts, picnic baskets and handbags..."

One of the first fish I ever caught was a pike.

It only weighed three or four pounds, but I was nine so it seemed like a monster. I can still remember the sense of pride I got when, that night, we eat it. I don't remember it being particularly nice, but I'm told pike has come back into fashion these days and is enjoyed by such respected chefs as Clarissa Dickson Wright and Hugh Fearnley-Eat-it-all.

Bad news for many, then, because the Environment Agency is planning new byelaws which would make it illegal to keep coarse fish - such as pike, perch and carp - kept by rod and impose a maximum penalty of £50,000.

This nice picture of a boy with some hounds is in The Times today. More interesting, though, is the explanation from the photographer as to why she took it...

A harris hawk called Sin is settling in alongside 600 Freshers at Harper Adams.

Sin belongs to 18-year-old Merlin Becker who's come to the Shropshire campus from County Wicklow to study Countryside and Environmental Management and could not bear to leave his beloved bird behind.

Merlin has had the five-year-old bird since he was 17 weeks old. "I fly him regularly at home, going out every two to three days to see if there's anything around to be caught."

This is Harper's first official avian resident, with the estates team building a special accommodation block for Sin.

"He's got his bird bath and everything he needs in there, so he's well happy and he has settled in now," says Merlin.

He has to earn his keep by assisting with pest control on the campus. "I'm going to be flying him around the Bamford Library which has to be protected from pigeons on top of the roof," says Merlin. "We won't actually be hunting, but if I fly him around that area it should act as a deterrent.

Watch a video of Merlin and Sin in action.

Forget the monster carp, Benson. He's dead in the water (literally).

Have a look at this 6ft perch...

Lots more on Benson in the press today - including this piece in the Daily Mail featuring lots and lots of photos of men clutching said fish and smiling.

Is it just me, or does anyone else think Tony Ashworth looks a bit like Benson?

More about Benson, the giant carp (including a short video), on the BBC.

This is all getting a bit silly now. I've seen headlines saying the angling world is "in mourning" and others referring to it as "the people's fish". It all feels a bit Princess Diana-ish.

As for his future, well, he's been bunged in a freezer before being stuffed. Maybe all the grieving anglers could, guinea pig-style, eat Benson.

There's something terribly idiosyncratic - very British, somehow - about this: how an obituary of a fish can make it onto the front page of a national newspaper.

But that's what's happened today: a fabulous picture of Benson, Britain's best-loved carp (1984-2009) adorns the front page of The Times. More on the iconic creature here.

These are the objects that, if money were no object, we'd have gone home from the Game Fair with...

My colleague Emily (who I reckon could be the next Julia Bradbury) has made a short video from the CLA Game Fair. Watch it here.

See more from the Game Fair here.

Picture just in of Julia Bradbury at the Game Fair. She obviously heard something she approved of (sadly, it wasn't something I said).

And do you remember this guy, too? He used to present One Man and His Dog.

Well, I've had a fantastic first two days at the CLA Game Fair 2009. Here are 10 of my impressions of it:

1 It feels a bit like the now-dead Royal Show used to. It's so busy you keep bumping into people. Bumping into them as in seeing people you know; but also bumping into as in literally. It can be that busy.

 2 There is a huge mix of people who go. Anyone who says it's exclusively toffs is wrong. Yes, there might be a quite a few toffs there - but for every toff, there's a tattoo!

3 It was a pretty good first two days as regards the weather. There were a couple of sudden, big storms on Friday, but they passed quite quickly (I saw one standholder lose a big umbrella). Saturday was suntan weather.

Going to the Game Fair? Looking for some romance?

Well those nice ladies at Muddy Matches are holding some events which could spread some luuuurrrvee...

Angling is more popular than football, according to a new poll commissioned by the Countryside Alliance.

The survey, which coincided with the start of the coarse fishing season, revealed that more people have participated in angling (38%) than in organised football (36%) or birdwatching (22%), although rambling was even more popular at 42%.

I used to keep ferrets as a kid - but I think fewer people have them nowadays than years ago.

There must still be quite a lot of interest in them, however, if there's a market for books like this. It's published by Quiller.

I'd rather read it than the camping book.

I presume the author's middle name isn't Luther, incidentally...

More calendar news. Not the semi-naked variety this time (sadly), but two more photos from the Lord, Ladies & Gamekeepers 2009/10 monthly calendar.

Each page shows a keeper going about his daily routine, but with the addition of a prominent female figure, well known as a supporter of sporting and countryside issues.

Funds raised will be divided between the Gamekeeper Welfare Network (GWN) and Macmillan Cancer Support.

The photos are also taken by my friend, super snapper John Eveson (and he'd never forgive me if I didn't give the calendar a mention on Field Day!)

I've mentioned Casting for Recovery before - they do great work.

They recently held their first-ever fly fishing retreat in Ireland took place at Brookhall Trout Fishery near Lisburn.

Fourteen women from all over Ireland came together to take part in this unique outdoor-based programme specifically designed for women who have, or have had, breast cancer.

Here's what I'll be doing this weekend. Not actually up the mast, but on the deck. Clinging on for dear life.

A boat. A stag do. Oh dear...

Today's The Glorious 12th - the first day, in other words, of the grouse shooting season.

The day has seen, as it does every year, a rekindling of the arguments over the merits and morality of the pursuit.

Fans (and you need deep pockets to take part) have been enjoying a day out on the moors and talking about the benefits grouse shooting brings to the countryside.

Opponents, meanwhile, have criticised them, with the League Against Cruel Sports claiming "barbaric and immoral" would be more suitable terms for the day than 'glorious'.

The arguments rumble on. The guns go off. I wish I had enough money for it to be something I could at least consider doing.