How did you get on?

[sam vimes]

Another quick fire session of a couple of hours or so. The river surprised me by coming up 10cm or so. Fortunately, such a minimal and slow rise didn't put the fish off. Nine grayling, a trout and possibly the same lost dace that I had from the same swim last week.

 

[Pete Shears]

A trip to the larger reservoir this morning spinning for pike using the jerkbait rod/multiplier and a medium weight set up with a fixed spool.
Loads of people horse riding this morning, I always give them a wide berth,for such a large strong animal they can bolt at their own shadow,still a bit windier than I expected and only managed one small birds nest on the multiplier which is a result even though I ended up just weed clearing with both set ups. Not a sign of pike, over twenty cormorants working the far side as a group, three white egrets and spent a few minutes watching a red kite,

 

[seth49]

Just me and Neil today, to cold for Mick, he doesn’t like the cold anymore, decided to fish the same peg as last week as it was sheltered when I got there but not for long, the wind started gusting from different directions blowing hard as well, then dropping calm before blowing hard again.

So as last week sleeper rod in right hand margin, and pole fished maggots towards the island, fed a small amount of groundbait and maggots and fished over the top with either maggots or pinkies, a lot slower than last week just odd bites every now and then.

Finished with the fish in the photo below, a mixture of ide, roach, some small perch, and a few gudgeon, two of which were probably the biggest I’ve ever caught, you can see one in the top right of the photo, very fat as well, Neil had a few on his float rod, but pole was the method today, think I’ll wait till the river drops a bit and then have a go for the Grayling, the Stillwaters seem to be shutting down for winter now.

 

[chevin4]

Just returned home after another blank on a well known River Lea Weirpool. It was very pleasant today the rain stayed away and it was mild until the cold front came across with a temperature drop this evening not the best conditions for Barbel. It was busy some of the guys were fishing with their headlamps permanently switched on some were so bright they would put the floodlights at Old Trafford to same ?. Why guys fish like this goodness knows maybe the are afraid of the dark. Some time back I brought a ridge monkey rechargeable head torch the green light option is fantastic its bright enough to bait up bring fish to the net without annoying fellow anglers on the far bank. The only time I use the white light is when I pack up.

 

[rubio]

Had a wander along a favourite stretch hoping to spot some chub. Visibility was crystal. Every stone clear as down to 4foot. Just about maximum depth with the level so low.
20 minutes drive, essential obviously, to another river. Also low but I chose the deepest swim I know of. Usual bread approach prompted some interest. Slow compared with usual form and all roach except for one nice chub.

 

[mikench]

I could so easily have stayed at home but weather wise it was a nice day with some late autumn sunshine and no rain. It remained cold but at least the drain problem at the venue has been fixed and water levels are normal again and 2 .5 ' lower then a week ago. The trouble with receding water is it leaves something behind which I hate more that catfish- mud, glorious mud.

At least I wasn't sat in it but everywhere was water logged and my new 2 rod carrier got dirty but will clean easily enough. The fishing was poor with hardly any interest in any bait. I managed 5 small roach on maggot and a bream and a nice common on meat.

I t was just under 8lb and put a nice bend in the Sphere so one objective has been achieved. It's a lovely rod. I fished from 9.30 to 2.30 and wasn't really cold throughout but was dressed for it.

Poor fishing but I suspect my expectations are unrealistic for a cold late November day. At least I didn't catch a cat.

 

[sam vimes]

I couldn't get motivated to get out of the door today. However, I eventually managed when faced with the alternative of doing my accounts. That can wait for a rainy/windy day. First trot was at 1450 and resulted in a tiny grayling. By 1610 I was packing up after bagging four grayling, a trout and a dace. My little experiment in feeding far more heavily than normal wasn't a huge success. It was one way of whittling down the last of the three pints I bought just before lockdown started up again. As I'll be sticking to my very minimal feeding in the near future, I'll probably get at least another two sessions out of the bait I've got left.

 

[rubio]

Kind looking skies invited me back to on of my recently located roach spots. One other fishing. A young lad hurling a very attractive rapala marlin lure.
I kept it a bit more stealthy and sat a few yards upstream of a dying reedbed. Steady flow and a bit of greenish colour. All looks good I thought.
Certainly plenty of fish. Chublets a bite a chuck. All under a pound and crucially not roach. Well not many. I tried other lines and holding back, then fiddling repeatedly with shotting and possibly 10 other things with no change.
Luckily for me I discovered a double decker, chocolate variety, only partially squashed in coat pocket. I didn't put on the hook. Whilst chewing over that and how to catch a better roach I dumped the rig off the end of the rod. Serendipity smiles and this comes out.

I was fishing a 3no.4 stick, classic shotting and an 18 with punch on the hook. I tried laying on a bit more deliberately and suddenly it was all roach. 5 yards above where I was feeding. Why do they do that please?

 

[Keith M]

That’s a lovely clonking Roach you caught there, well done

Keith

 

[tigger]

I had a ride to the river today, I headed for the same spot i've fished for my last few sessions in order to give my 15 6 long rod a try as i've only used it once since I got it!
When I got there there were two cars and one of the owners was sat above my spot and casting feeders down to were I stand out in the river, so my plans were scuppered .
I walked back to the car and drove to another stretch of river. Anyhow, at the other stretch I had a good mile or more to walk to get to my intended spot. The water felt icy cold but in reality I reckon it was about 8 degrees, same as the air temp. Fishing wasn't brilliant and all I had was a grayling and two chub, all pretty decent sized fish though. Before I knew it it was going dark and a thick mist started rising from the river as the air temps dropped rapidly. My stomach had started to send alarm signals to my brain anyhow and i'm just about to tuck into some sticky toffee pudding and custard .

 

[Pete Shears]

A long drive with a mate on yet another piking trip,tis time to the North Level - very frosty,patchy fog,a change of scenery and some impressive houses in the small villages we passed through. Racked up yet another blank but a pleasant day to be out watching buzzards and kestrels to pass the time - no sign of pike. Two other rather surly pikers further along also blanked so it wasn't our joint expertise failing us.

 

[Sean89]

Managed to get a few hours feeding fishing done down at the local Embankment in Bedford. Excuse the no unhooking mat left it at home by mistake. Had these 2 and got snapped up on my 4lb hook length possibly a carp or bigger Chub.

 

[markcw]

I went on the Thames at Sandford today,
This stretch can be static or a slight flow,
Set up on the EA stretch which is day ticket, and was politely told I would not have to buy one, My mate was made up as well because if we had gone 50 yards to start of the club stretch we would have been looking for a good peg to fish and would have had to go further along the stretch.
Anyway we set up, my mate with his shimano waggler rod and 506 closed faced reel, 3bb waggler and 20 hook.
Me my Daiwa Lightning canal wand, Shimano Nasci reel, 4lbs mainline to 3lbs hook length, 18 guru hook and a 20g square lead.
And 4.5 metre Shakespeare whip ,0.4 drennan lake float ,shotted with Olivette 3 droppers to a 20 hook.
Both the rod and whip were over 30 years old.
We started at around 10.30am, he started picking a few fins with eyes up plus a few roach around 4oz.
I had a couple of knocks on the straight lead cast across to the far side, bait was worm.There was to much weed to make this method viable, so I packed that in.
On the whip I had the float dotted right down, it seemed as if it was surface tension holding it up. Somehow i missed a bite, the maggot was stretched and drained.
I tried feeding a few maggots every 5 minutes then changing to around 10 maggots every 5 minutes, It was hard going,
I managed to catch my one and only roach at 2pm.
I suppose if i had set my pole up i would have had more odds of catching,but the size of fish my friend was catching made me think was it worth sitting holding between 8 metres and 14.5 metres of carbon. So the pole stayed in the holdall.
Even though it was a struggle, I enjoyed being out on the bank after a few weeks of not fishing, I could have gone to Newlands and more thank likely had a couple of bream and a couple of margin carp. But I wanted to give the Thames a try.
I will be back on again soon.

 

[108831]

Managed to get a few hours feeding fishing done down at the local Embankment in Bedford. Excuse the no unhooking mat left it at home by mistake. Had these 2 and got snapped up on my 4lb hook length possibly a carp or bigger Chub.

Sean,how busy is it,as i've stayed away during covid,not for safety reasons,purely amounts of anglers being out.Also how did you catch those fish,did you join the E.European lure fishing club there,very unusual to catch a decent chub on the river there...

 

[peterjg]

Monday: fished the Thames, caught 28 roach (all smallish) and one small perch on either legered or trotted dead maggots or flake. There were obviously loads of fish in the area, lots of fish activity and rises, the river had that nice greeny tinge of colour to it. Water temperature 47F.

Yesterday: fished a different stretch of the Thames to get out of the cold north wind. All day had only two bites, one missed and with the second bite had a roach of about 10ozs on legered flake. Only saw one rise. Tried three swims. The water had lost the greeny tinge but the water temperature was almost the same at 46F. Bloody cold!

No other anglers both days.

 

[markcw]

My first Thames roach from yesterday, it's in my hand somewhere ?

 

[peter crabtree]

Are you allowed to fish between the bollards so close to what looks like a lock, Mark?

 

[markcw]

It's the EA day ticket stretch, day tickets from lock keepers on the day, the one who was on yesterday doesnt bother issuing them, they also have a stretch just past the lock keepers cottage and below the lock.
The Littlemore stretch is about 50 yards to my left, in summer there are too many boats near the bollards, its ideal in the winter,
Someone was further down river towards the weir fly fishing with pike fly/lure and had one of 12lb 10oz,

 

[no-one in particular]

It's the EA day ticket stretch, day tickets from lock keepers on the day, the one who was on yesterday doesnt bother issuing them, they also have a stretch just past the lock keepers cottage and below the lock.
The Littlemore stretch is about 50 yards to my left, in summer there are too many boats near the bollards, its ideal in the winter,
Someone was further down river towards the weir fly fishing with pike fly/lure and had one of 12lb 10oz,

I thought I heard somewhere that there is a standard EA or Thames water authority distance from locks where fishing is not allowed but maybe I have that wrong given your allowed here. I once fished a similar position to you on the Blackwell canal Thames Wey conjunction, I was catching well and then a barge turned up and the bloke give me a right earful even though I had pulled my line out of the water, maybe it was him who told me but cannot be sure, a few years ago that was.

 

[markcw]

I walked that stretch in summer, there was no way you could have fished the bollards then, boats moored up all along.
You can fish directly below lock gates as well.