 Walker’s hut on the Ouse |
Ron Clay recalls the glorious days he spent in the company of angling legend Dick Walker in the famous fishing hut on the banks of the Upper Ouse
During 1960 Dick Walker acquired the fishing rights to a short stretch of The Upper Great Ouse just above Thornton Bridge between the towns of Buckingham and Stony Stratford in Buckinghamshire at ‘Little Hill Farm’.
It was an interesting piece of river in that it was small and overgrown. In most spots the swims were obstructed with bulrushes and sedge. Lilies grew in profusion in the deeper slower areas. The river however held big fish, most notably being chub, chub of a quality that few ever believed existed in such a tiny stream.
Dick decided that it would be nice if both he and other anglers fishing the water could have a place to spend the night. Certainly Dick loathed traveling too far for his fishing and this resulted in him purchasing a second hand wooden pre-fabricated hut which was taken to the downstream end of the stretch and erected.
The farmer, a Mr Marchant, was extremely generous in allowing Dick to put up the hut, especially considering the very nominal amount Dick paid him for the fishing rights. However, many anglers at that time thought that this part of the Ouse was not worth fishing. “Too weedy and overgrown” they said. “Can’t get them out on match tackle,” they said. Walker and the Taylor brothers, however, had caught, some very good chub and indeed had seen some monstrous chub along this bit of the river.
During the close season of 1960, Walker and some of his friends spent virtually every weekend getting that hut ready for the new season. Walker, as was is want, spent most of his time supervising, or so I have been told. The hut was equipped with a gas cooker, gas lighting, bunk beds and a chemical toilet.
On the first weekend of the new season Walker went there to scrub the floor, so he tells us in his book ‘No Need to Lie’. In actual fact he spent most of the time fishing, and what fish he caught. Several chub over 5 pounds, including a 6 pounder!
During the next two years that stretch of river became famous, in fact so famous that virtually every aspiring specimen hunter knew the names of all the swims along the stretch even though they had never fished there.
One would have thought that Walker and his few friends would have kept this little bit of river to themselves. Not so. Walker was one of the most generous anglers I have ever met. Many anglers received invitations to fish this water and to stay at the hut, including myself.
In 1962 I began a long period of correspondence with Walker regarding my efforts to set up The Northern Specimen Group. This also resulted in Walker inviting myself and a few other members of our group to spend a week there.
I accepted the offer immediately.
On June 15th 1963, myself and Roy Jordan arrived at Little Hill Farm.
After collecting the keys from the farmhouse, we drove down the track to the hut. What was most interesting was the sight of an old cooking pot full of the remnants of crayfish. Someone had been having a feast, obviously. The river crawled with crayfish. Inside the hut was a note which told us to empty and bury the contents of the Elsan chemical toilet.
UUuuurrrgh!!
Also inside the hut was a log book where past catches were recorded. Some of the names in that book were of angling legend. Bernard Venables, Jack Hilton, Frank Guttfield, Anthony Sheperdson, Jack Thorndyke, Billy Lane, Peter Stone and the Taylor Brothers of course. I wonder where that book is today?
There was also an ACA collection box and a book of Great Ouse River Board Licences which you were expected to fill in and leave the money in a ‘honesty box’ in the desk drawer. I made out licences for Roy and myself, and believe or not for Dick, when he arrived.
The only fee for using the hut was to leave a generous amount in the ACA collection box.
The walls of the hut were adorned with two pictures. One, the photograph of Peter Thomas holding Clarissa and two, the famous painting of the Monks fishing in the stewpond. One particular cupboard was full of bottles of stout and several 6 packs of Long Life canned beer – one of Walker’s favourite tipples. All you had to do was replace what you used.
We made ourselves comfortable and prepared our tackle in ready for a midnight start. Shortly afterwards we spotted a big black mud spattered Austin Princess driving up the track. It was Walker. What I remember most about that car was the hatch of bluebottles in the boot together with many 200 cartons of Consulate that Walker smoked incessantly.
 The Two Willows Swim |
We jumped into the back of the car and Walker gave us a conducted tour of the river. Driving through the field he pointed out the various swims. By this time the swims had become famous. Names like: White Bottom, Two Willows, Rook Run, The Dead Swim, The Sally Bush Swim, The Straight Stretch, The Going Away Swim, The Small Cabbage Patch, The Large Cabbage Patch, and The Bridge Pool.
He told us that we would be lucky to get a chub that week as June was not the best month; and that we should rather catch some roach. He pulled out a huge sack of wheat from the boot, chucked it at my feet and told me to stew up some of that.
Then he left us after wishing us good luck and saying that he would call in and see us on Thursday.
The chub indeed were most difficult. During the past few years they had been hunted and caught by some very fine anglers and obviously had learned a thing or two. During the next few days, Roy and myself had to be content with a brace each up to just on 4 lbs. But I did manage to catch some superb roach to 1½ lbs by laying-on with wheat from the Small Cabbage Patch. I caught some of those roach on an old cane roach pole Dick kept under the hut.
Then early on the Thursday, I caught a decent chub, just short of 5lbs, from White Bottom on crayfish. It was one of those pretty Ouse chub with silvery flanks and bright orange fins. I decided to keep this fish in a keepnet to prove to Walker that we Yorkies could catch fish.
 “Hello my cock” |
Later that day, Walker arrived. When I showed him the chub and reported what we had caught, Walker told me that we were dead jammy, or much better anglers than himself and that there was not much chance of us being the latter. And that the fish wasn’t a ‘five’ so it didn’t count!
It wasn’t a five either. It weighed 4lbs 14 oz.
Then he started issuing instructions left, right and centre. He produced a large biscuit tin full of maggots and told me to rig an 18 hook to 1 lb bottom. He then would show me how to catch minnows.
“What do you want minnows for Dick?”
“Burbot bait my cock”, he replied “And where’s that mate of yours?”
(A few of you may remember that Walker wanted to try and prove that burbot were not yet extinct in England at this time. A burbot was supposedly taken by an angler from the Ouse. Walker discovered from where and wanted to try to catch one. He was not successful).
Roy, who had been fishing a couple of fields away, arrived a little later to the sight of me and Dick pulling out a minnow a chuck in White Bottom and depositing them into a large water filled canvas bucket. Roy had added a couple more decent chub to his tally and I think by this time Dick had had to make a complete re-appraisal of the competency of these young northern upstarts.
Dick then decided to go roach fishing in the Small Cabbage Patch. I followed him and watched. He caught some very pretty roach by laying-on with wheat and taught me a lot about how big roach come-on at the last hour of daylight. Later that evening we sat in the hut and talked for hours. The subjects we covered were many any varied, from rod design to mathematics, from chub fishing to fly casting. He even corrected a couple of faults I had with my fly casting. At 2.00 am Walker told us he had to leave, he had to demonstrate a lawnmower to a prospective customer next morning.
I don’t remember much about the next few days. I did manage another chub and some roach. All I do remember is having the most enjoyable and stimulating fishing holiday I have ever spent in my life.
And of course I went back to fish the stretch on a number of occasions. I spent a week there in 1978 with my late wife and 2 year old son. But by that time the dredger had done its worst. The river was only a shadow of its sixties glory, the big chub had all gone and the roach fishing was abysmal.
Why on earth were these little rivers vandalised in the 70s and 80s? The same thing happened to the River Leam.
I last fished Dick Walker’s stretch in 1997. I spent some time in Two Willows and caught a 4 lb chub. How the memories came back, but those two willows have been pollarded now and somehow it didn’t seem the same. Yet I was glad that the chub were back. I did see a couple that looked every bit of 5 pounds.
And what of the hut? – just a few depressions in the ground I’m afraid. It was vandalised and burnt down ca 1996 I was told. I picked up a remnant of wood. I still have it.
Before I left, I sat overlooking White Bottom. I drank my flask of tea and ate my sandwiches. It was a still warm autumn day.
Yet did I hear voices? Were my ears playing tricks? And did I see that familiar figure with the old trilby hat, walking with a slight stoop as he always did on a river bank, come down next to me and say in low tones – “Hello my Cock – Had anything yet?”
The stretch is still called Dick Walker’s and the fishing is held by The Buckingham and District AC. One day I shall return. In fact I still have a standing invite from Tony Miles to spend a day with him on that stretch. I just might take him up on it before too long. What a fine photo feature that would make, especially if we catch something.
Footnote:
This article is dedicated to the memory of Peter Stone, who also loved this little bit of river.
Photographs by kind permission of Tony Miles and Angling Times
