Farming the medieval way for the stock of the bay

Michael Prestage finds hauls may be meagre but there is real satisfacti on in working a weir

The haul may be worth less than pounds 10, but that reflects decline of stocks in Minehead Bay rather than the efficiency of the medieval trap used to catch the fish and prawns.

Mike Martin owns and uses one of the two fish weirs on the mud flats off Minehead, Somerset, that are the last working example of their type in Britain. Reference exists to five such weirs in 1299 and of the number increasing to 10, with dues paid on each to the lord of the manor. Through centuries the traps have withstood tide, wind and weather, taking fish.

Mr Martin's father, John, researched the traps' history and battled for their survival when plans were afoot to demolish them to make way for a sewer outfall in the Seventies.

Now listed as ancient monuments, the weirs' future is safe. But a decline in fish numbers means their value for commercial fishing is over. Mike Martin continues to use them to keep the tradition alive and provide a meagre supplement to his wages as a painter and decorator.

At low water, the two 380-metre irregular-shaped walls, made up of thousands of tonnes of stone, look like farm walls. In a way they are. As tidal waters rise and fall by 10ft, a lake is left trapped and ready for harvest. Water races through a 1.8-metre gap at the apex of the walls and a net, slung across, catches anything from fish and prawns to seaweed and plastic cups.

Repairs to replace stone blocks dislodged by powerful tides must be done at low tide and is a backbreaking job for Mr Martin. And, because the weirs are only really productive on spring tides, only two weekends in every month are suitable for fishing.

Mr Martin, 44, said: "My late father did most of the work to reveal their history and ensure their survival. In ancient times the weirs would have provided an important supplement to people's diet and income with no outlay on nets or other equipment. They are ingeniously designed and still work, though I only fish occasionally."

Tourists visiting Minehead often walk the half-mile out to the fish weirs at low tide, but rarely appreciate what they are looking at. In contrast, many locals enviously believe catches are better than they really are.

"Keeping the trap together is one of those jobs that could keep you in work all year round," Mr Martin said. "I only hope that after me people will be interested enough to see the tradition survives."