Hadley Angling & Preservation Society

JACKS LAKE

Jack's Lake is the bottom of three lakes that were originally created some time in the 1880s as estate lakes for Squire Charles Jack, who owned Beech Hill House, although it is thought there has been some form of lake since the late seventeenth century. Today, the top two lakes are inaccessible and along with the house, are part of Hadley Wood Golf Club. From Victorian times until the sixties, Jack's Lake had been used as a boating lake, then as a day ticket water, but was left to decline and became very overgrown until Hadley APS was formed in 1982. The lake was drained and de-silted, the vegetation cut back, the banks made safe and it was then stocked with fish. see photos

The lake now provides 44 pegs, 27 of which are fishable on a day ticket, the remainder being available only to club members. The main species are carp (to 26lb), bream (to 7lb), and roach. There are also tench (6lb), chub (4lb), pike (14lb), rudd, gudgeon and very occasional eels and barbel. Matches are generally won with over 10lbs, but pleasure sessions usually produce much higher weights of mixed fish and those targeting carp generally have multiple catches.

The price of a day ticket is £6 per rod, or £3 for concessionary tickets.

It is also possible to book the lake for organised matches, there are no dates available for weekends this year, but enquiries about mid-week bookings this year or weekend bookings for 2006/7 can be made to the club secretary via barry@haps.org.uk