< Zeal Monachorum fishing club
fishing rod

zeal monachorum fishing club

fishing rod

Our Club

We are a small club with a private fishing lake in beautiful and peaceful surroundings with a friendly and enthusiastic membership. New members are especially welcome. Our full membership fee is £45 for adults and £16 for juniors, while £5 is the price of a day's fishing at the lake.

Club Events

At this time of year we are visiting rivers and canals in pursuit of the elusive pike. Zeal Monachorum is 5 miles from Copplestone, 2nd turning left off the B3220 to Winkleigh.

Fishing Memorabilia

I collect and restore historic fishing memorabilia. If you have any unwanted such, please email or phone me.

Anglers Welcome

We are looking for people who could attend our meetings and talk about fishing. Do get in touch if you'd like to come and participate.

Selwyn Johnson Cup

In memory of Selwyn Johnson, a much valued resident of Zeal Monachorum, a countryside lover, a great sportsman and a true Englishman, we have established the Selwyn Johnson Memorial Cup. For details about this, or anything else, please send an email to Ken - or telehone Ken on 07749329832.

Spare Gear

It would help our younger fishers if anyone has any fishing gear they no longer require and wish to donate.

Other Websites

I have linked to other fishing websites. These are mostly in Devon. If you have a fishing site and would like it added, do contact Ken.

April News

Hi All

We have now purchased the ends for Trevor's bench and David Bowyer, when he has time, is going to going to do the construction and finishing touches. Graham Vincent has kindly agreed to build a cover to protect the bench from bad weather and it will be positioned near a fishing swim allowing anglers to take shelter when the weather is bad so that they can continue to fish. It can also be used by anyone visiting the lake and wanting to take advantage of viewing the wildlife and maybe get a photograph of our kingfisher.

Weather is up and down at the moment, we seem to get 4 seasons in one week. During the better weather the lake was fishing well, large carp moving on the surface, but with this sudden drop in temperature they will probably go down to the bottom again. Rupert Dodge and his boys have kindly offered their services to carry out repairs on our fishing platforms. Work will start as soon as the weather improves.

Tight lines

Ken and Jane

  • Earlier News

    • March News

      Hi All

      Not a great deal to report this month mainly because the Covid restrictions have prevented our normal day ticket anglers we would be seeing this time of the year, due to the distance people can travel. We would normally see our Welsh anglers. John Lethbridge has replaced the post on the main gate and also the handrail across the cattle grid. Hoping now that the water will begin to warm up and we can enjoy this month with some good fishing. We are also hoping to start some refurbishing of the fishing swims. Please be careful as they are quite slippery at the moment. We intend to do a chicken wire covering over the surface of the wood.

      Tight lines

    • February News

      Hi All, I would like to start this month by thanking all the club members and villagers who have donated money for the remembrance bench for Trevor Rounsley, who will be sadly missed by all. If anyone else wishes to donate money, please make cheques payable to Zeal Monachorum Fishing Club. The other news is we have carried out a substantial amount of coppicing of willows and alders surrounding the lake. As soon as the rain stops and we have a long period of sunshine we intend to refurbish all the fishing platforms. One other thing I need to mention is, if people wish to go and walk around the lake, please do not park your car in front of the main gate as this prevents access for anglers and farmers alike. The last thing is we are reorganising our members list and if you haven''t paid the fees by the end of March, you will now just have to fish on a day ticket £5 per day.

      Tight lines

    • January News

      Hi All, It has been a strange year in more ways than one. We start this month with some words about the sad loss of one of the nicest men in the village, Trevor Rounsley, who will be much missed by all. We have contacted the family about the idea of installing a commemorative bench at the fishing lake with a plaque in remembrance of Trevor. I have spoken to David Bowyer of the Village Workshop, who has agreed to make a bench.

      The Fishing Club will start a fund with a donation of £50. If anyone would like to contribute, cheques can be made payable to Zeal Monachorum Fishing Club. After covering the cost or the bench any remaining monies will be passeed to the family. Because or the difficulties over funeral arrangements with the COVID restrictions in place we thought this would be a good way to remember Trevor and what he did for our community.

      Some other news: we have just received 500 small tench from the Environment Agency, which have now gone into the lake. I'm afraid it will be some time before they are of any size, but meanwhile they will help to keep the lake clear because they are bottom feeders.

      Please continue to contact us if you intend to fish, as we still need to self-isolate within the lake area, and please use the hand gel provided in the portaloo.

      Tight lines, stay safe.

      Ken and Jane Hogg

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    • Aerial view of our fishing lake. Photo © Mike Bostock