The Teign Book

The Teign Book – the story of the River Teign Restoration Project and other aspects of the catchment, is a wonderfully interesting book, launched recently in Bovey Tracey as part of the River Teign Restoration Project (RTRP) which will conclude next year. The author, Neil Yeandle, writes in a humorously self-deprecating way and tells the story not only of the project and its aims, but also the history, of both man and nature, of the area. Each chapter is prefaced with a beautiful illustration by Mike Langman and a paragraph about the lifecycle of the Atlantic salmon – the creature for which the project was created. Who knew one fish went through so many cycles and is rewarded with a different name for each bit?!

Neil explains how the figures support the very worrying classification of the Atlantic salmon in Britain as Endangered on the IUCN Red List of threatened species. He provides the reasons for this in sensible, easy to understand language; in fact the whole book is written so. Throughout the book, the project to improve the River Teign for enhanced survival chances of this magical fish is the undercurrent. But Neil, alongside some wonderfully illustrative photos by Mike Rego, also weaves a wonderful tale of the fishing and fishermen on this river, it's flora and fauna, its geology, its treasures which have been exploited by man and how that work has shaped the river and valley into what we see today. This is not just a book about fishing; the history, starting with the Precambrian period, is fascinating and made relevant with this statement: “I am not aware that the 62km (38 mile) length of the Teign from its source at Teign Head to the end of the pier at Teignmouth has ever been used before [as an analogy for geological time]. However, if Teign Head represents the formation of the Earth 4,600 million years ago and the end of the pier at Teignmouth the present day, our first human ancestors appeared some 80 metres from the end of the pier and still not on dry land, with modern Homo sapiens about 2m from the end of the pier.”

Neil walks with us through the valley at various times of the year, with Mike's photos pointing our eyes in the right direction. Even the chapter dedicated to fishing is written in such a way as to make those who have no interest in the sport at all smile. A full page photo with the caption, “The author in his best hat trying to look like he knows what he's doing, dry fly fishing for brown trout on the Teign,” is a good example of the humour present throughout the book.

It is packed full of facts and I'm ashamed that I knew so little about the area where I live. Did you know that the pattern on a custard cream is actually a fern? I have been inspired to visit many of the places spoken about and photographed, to hunt for Goshawks and horsehair lichen.

This coffee table book is for anyone who lives in and around the Teign Valley, fish enthusiast or no. The plight of the Atlantic salmon is laid out in stark terms for all to read about and the rest of the book tells us why whole ecosystems are so important to support all lifeforms within it. Neil's wonderfully descriptive writing invites us to join him on the riverbank where he revels in the sight of a kingfisher and the soaring buzzard overhead. He even gives helpful advice on what to do if you stay out after dark and come across “a rare beast indeed, identifiable by its stealth, drab plumage and often solitary nature” (this would be a nighttime sea trout angler!).

With anecdotes from other fishermen and a few secrets revealed, this book even contains a ghost story so there is definitely something that will interest everyone. And as Neil says: “It is often said that a picture is worth a thousand words – I totally agree, but in this case probably a lot more than a thousand, and if you don't like my ramblings, just enjoy the excellent photographs.”