Friends of the Fowey Estuary

The Annual General Meeting was held in Lerryn Village Hall on 28th March 2008. The Chairman, George Cussans, gave an account of the events held during the previous twelve months, most of them successful and enjoyable, but some, like the trip to Looe Island, scuppered by the weather. The members re-elected the existing committee en bloc.

After the business of the meeting had been concluded, Nancy Jolliff of Pelynt gave us a fascinating slide presentation showing historical features in and around Fowey of the kind that we all overlook for decades until they are pointed out to us.

We were especially indebted to Nancy because she stood in with only a few hours notice when Sally Porter, who was to have talked to us about the environmental management of Pool Harbour, rang to say she was too unwell to come.

Though not great compositions, these photographs convey the feeling of the occasion. When it was all over people we all seemed reluctant to leave - often an indicator of an enjoyable evening.

On Sunday 9th March 2008 the Environment Agency was using loudspeakers to warn the residents of Lostwithiel that there was a risk of flooding at 7 am next morning, and encouraging those living in vulnerable properties to take precautions. This photo was taken at about 0655 on 10th March. If you look carefully were the larger red car is you will see that the water in the river is only about six inches from the top of the flood wall.

Here is the Coastguard Landrover. The coastguard is looking at his watch, doubtless relieved that high water had been reached without serious inundation.

The cause was a high spring tide coinciding with a severe southerly gale during the night which veered to the southwest causing a surge up the English Channel.

Fortunately although there was plenty of rain, I wasn't a major downpour. The river was running fast and was slightly brown, but it was not in full spate. If it had been there would undoubtedly have been damage to the lowest lying properties.

The water in the river was about a foot higher that in the road. The motor boat that you see was later left perched beside the wall on the grass - unfortunately I didn't take a photo when I could have done and when I thought of it she was back at her usual mooring - the owner must have re-launched her on the next tide.

Here is the wall taken from the road close to where the smaller red car was parked. The pressure difference between the river water and the road can be seen from the way the water is squirting out of the masonry. The drain holes in the wall had been blocked before the surge so that the level in the road was rising very slowly.

Coulson Park inundated. From the tidemark on the road this was taken about half an hour past high tide.

The water had been creeping upstream from the vicinity of Milltown round the backs of the houses.

The road under the China clay railway was flooded to a depth of over two feet. The headroom is shown as 6' 6".

The water is quite close to the front gate here.

This was taken from the second floor in Brunel Quays. A neighbour looking down from the safety of his hilltop abode said that Brunel Quays looked like a small strip of an island on the encroaching sea.

Looe Fish Market has a reputation for handling fish all of which has been caught within the last twenty-four hours. It thus has the freshest and priciest fish in the UK. Because we Brits don't reckon to pay for good food and turn our noses up at cuttlefish and squid, and because it costs more to get fish to Bristol than to France, nearly all the fish landed at Looe ends up in France, Spain and Italy.

Looe Fish Market changed over to the "Moby Clock" electronic fish auction system in 2003, a system widely used in small ports around the western region of Brittany.

As guests of Bluesail Fish, who are the wholesalers running the market, thirteen of us turned up at the market at 6.35am on a dark, dry morning with the temperature only just above freezing.

The Looe Fish Market is housed in a long building both sides of which are made up of many large doors, each of which has 15 transparent panels, that slide up and down as the movement of goods and the weather dictate. One side of the building opens onto the harbour wall the harbour wall where fishing boats come alongside to land their catch, or, as here, their nets.

The other side opens onto an access road where buyers collect their fish after the auction.

In between is the market which has a smooth concrete floor with a very slight fall to a drain covered by a grid that runs along the centre of the building. Plastic boxes slide easily and can be kicked along or dragged with a hooked rod. Heavier loads are moved with a pallet truck.

The focal point of the auction is an electronic scoreboard akin to that used in an athletics stadium. Beneath the scoreboard there is a ticket printer. All the participants were friendly, cheerful and relaxed in the near freezing temperature.

The auctioneer (in navy blue with woollen hat extreme right) sits on the back of a small and manoeuvrable three-wheeled electric trolley that carries the scoreboard and ticket printer. His driving seat is also his office desk, with room for his thermos of coffee, writing implements, fish knife and a computer with a flat screen display and keyboard that interfaces with the scoreboard.

The auctioneer drives to a pile of fish boxes landed from a particular boat and the details of the catch (species, grade, weight, name of boat) are displayed. The bidder has a remote control and can bid by pressing a button.

The auctioneer occasionally gives a few words of encouragement, otherwise the whole process is carried out with quiet efficiency with everyone knowing what they are doing. Stewards take tickets from the ticket machine and drop them in the appropriate fish boxes.

On Thursday 14th February the market handled only three-and-a-half tonnes of fish, whereas on Monday there had been twenty tonnes. As a result the Auctioneer had time to give us a wide ranging twenty minute talk about the workings of the Fish Market, the fishing industry in the UK and Europe, quotas and plans for developing fishing at Looe.

The sliding doors, each with fifteen transparent panels, can be seen, here closed against the chilly breeze!

After that it was 8.25 am - time to go to an upper room in the bar opposite for a warm welcome with a steaming cup of coffee and a cooked breakfast. All in all a very interesting and most enjoyable morning, for which hearty thanks to all at Bluesail Fish.