A nice Common and Baitboats!

Very occasionally 'things' happen at Cherry Lakes which make us sit back and reflect on how we run our business. As a result we have updated Terms and Conditions which can be found on the Prices pages of our website.We have also had to look again about our procedures for the hire of a Bait Boat.

As our guests are aware, we rent out Angling Technics Bait Boats and have done so since we opened. The reason we do this is to help anglers get the most from their visit, and in particular on Cherry Lake to ensure the far banks don't become safe zones out of reach of 90% of anglers. During this 6 year period we have never 'lost' a Bait Boat and have not needed to apply a retrospective charge against the Credit Card details which are provided when the Boat is hired out. The occasional minor damage by an angler has been 'sucked-up' by ourselves. We have also cleaned the Boats when they have been returned dirty and not applied the £25 cleaning charge.

However, and despite the fact that we try to show all anglers how to use and treat the Bait Boats properly, we have had increasing number of Boats being left by departed guests in a poor condition or broken. This includes Boats with broken handsets (which have obviously been dropped) and hand sets which are soaked having been left out in the rain, plus the regular stream of Boats which are very dirty etc. I do not want to get myself into a position of arguing with a departed angler about the 'condition' of a Bait Boat after they have left. Hence we need to make a change to our hiring out and return of the Bait Boat procedures.

We aim to ensure all of our Bait Boats are ready for guests in good working order and clean. We expect (and most guests do) the Boats to be treated with respect and returned in a similar condition (good working order and clean). In future all hired Boats need to be returned/collected prior to departure. This will enable us to check them and ensure they are 'fit' for the next hiring guest.

From 19 September anyone hiring a Boat will need to both provide a £50 cash deposit as well as completing the Bait Boat Hire Agreement which includes their credit card details. These cash deposits will be returned when the Boat is returned in good working order and clean.

If a Bait Boat breaks down through no fault of the angler, there will of course not be any charge and we will swap the broken boat for a new one asap.

I have been reluctant to move to this new process and apologise because it is going to be a drag for our guests and a real pain for us......but needs must! I hope you understand!

I will do my normal update at the end of the week, but I could not resist using the lead photo above of a very smart Common of 27-08 which was landed last night by Alex Arkless who has been staying in Grebe Lodge on Cherry Lake on his first visit to us. A small bait over a lot of pellets did the trick. Given how much the Carp love pellets it seems a first choice tactic, at least on one rod, to me! Nice one Alex.