Accessible River

THE RIVER LARK
The River Lark rises south of Bury St. Edmunds and flows north-west across Suffolk and into Cambridgeshire, where it joins the Great Ouse near Prickwillow. In its upper and middle reaches the Lark is a lowland chalk stream, supporting a diverse array of plant and animal life. The water quality in the river is generally very good and as a result , it is teeming with life, with everthing from tiny invertebrates up to mammals such as otters. Over 20 different species of fish are found in the river.

FISHING ON THE RIVER
The Lark Angling and Preservation Society controls the fishing on approximately twelve miles of river, from Lackford near Bury St. Edmunds out into the Fens. The first five miles or so operates as a fly only trout fishery; from Barton Mills downstream it becomes a mixed coarse fishery. The Lark is a diverse little river that varies in character around almost every bend, and with such a wide range of fish species present it allows the angler to fish just about every conceivable method, from stalking chub and grayling on fly fishing gear to specimen carp tactics.

Peter Morton from Maggotdrowning.com reports:
Barton Mills is a prolific stretch of river, a bite a chuck on maggot from Roach, Gudgeon, skimmers and Chub, with some better Bream further down the stretch where it gets deeper. Pike can be a problem though, quite a few jacks.

Platforms

Membership of the Lark Angling & Preservation Society is open to all, provided they hold a valid Environment Agency rod licence. Club membership books are available from the following retail outlets: Stebbing Sports, Mildenhall - Tackle Up, Bury St. Edmunds - Hooked, Newmarket - Soham Pets & Leisure - Matthews Garden Centre, Lakenheath - and from Barton Mills Post Office

WHAT DOES IT COST
Current membership prices are as follows:
Full Membership - £20.00
Concessionary (OAP, disabled) - £10.00
Junior 12-16 - £7.00
Junior under 12 - FREE

Membership of the Fly Fishing Section costs £125.00 per season, and permits are only available direct from the Society. Telephone 01842 815421 for more details..
The above prices are for 12 months, and also grant members access to Harben's Lake at Barton Mills during the river close season. Day tickets are availble for the stretch of river at Barton Mills costing £4.00 in advance from Barton Mills Post Office or £5.00 on the bank.

Car parking is available behind the Little Chef in a tarmac car park some 25mtrs from the River