How did you get on?

[nottskev]

There's a tiny brook that winds around the course of a derelict canal and a disused railway line in one of many post-industrial (mining, generally) corridors on the Nottinghamshire/Derbyshire border. A few canal pounds hold water, some are dry ditches and some are long thin marshes. I followed the brook for a mile last weekend and didn't find enough water anywhere to cover a fish's back. But where brook and canal intersect there's a short section where the brook is held up by a little weir and Mr Crabtree meets Fred Dibnah. I didn't see any fish, but at least I couldn't see the bottom.

The fishery facilities are limited. Parking behind pegs is not available. You need a short rod to poke under the trees.

I had some dendra's that were still alive after a trip to the Derwent so I thought I'd have an hour using them up. I can throw maggots away without a second thought but I don't like to waste worms, for some reason. The rod is made up on a fly rod blank with a very short handle, The reel has a short handle too - I sawed half of the horrible double-sided thing off. I dropped a worm in the 4 spots I could actually get the rod in and got two bites

No sign of a chub, but I've caught them here up to a massive 3lbs. It beats me how fish get by in such unlikely places, but it's cheering when they do, and I do like this offbeat kind of fishing.

 

[riverman]

There's a tiny brook that winds around the course of a derelict canal and a disused railway line in one of many post-industrial (mining, generally) corridors on the Nottinghamshire/Derbyshire border. A few canal pounds hold water, some are dry ditches and some are long thin marshes. I followed the brook for a mile last weekend and didn't find enough water anywhere to cover a fish's back. But where brook and canal intersect there's a short section where the brook is held up by a little weir and Mr Crabtree meets Fred Dibnah. I didn't see any fish, but at least I couldn't see the bottom.

View attachment 26178

The fishery facilities are limited. Parking behind pegs is not available. You need a short rod to poke under the trees.

View attachment 26179

I had some dendra's that were still alive after a trip to the Derwent so I thought I'd have an hour using them up. I can throw maggots away without a second thought but I don't like to waste worms, for some reason. The rod is made up on a fly rod blank with a very short handle, The reel has a short handle too - I sawed half of the horrible double-sided thing off. I dropped a worm in the 4 spots I could actually get the rod in and got two bites

View attachment 26180

View attachment 26181

No sign of a chub, but I've caught them here up to a massive 3lbs. It beats me how fish get by in such unlikely places, but it's cheering when they do, and I do like this offbeat kind of fishing.

some nice perch there kev.

 

[John Aston]

That is proper fishing. Delighted to note that no totally unnecessary but virtue signalling unhooking mat is in evidence .

 

[mikench]

Excellent fishing Kev and 2 cracking perch.

 

[peterjg]

Knottskev, I don't like reels with double handles either. Can I ask, did sawing off one of the handles unbalance the reel and cause it to wobble when winding in? If not then I might copy you?

 

[nottskev]

Knottskev, I don't like reels with double handles either. Can I ask, did sawing off one of the handles unbalance the reel and cause it to wobble when winding in? If not then I might copy you?

Peter, it in no way affected the feel/performance of the reel, except to get rid of the annoying extra handle. It looks a little ugly, but it's still better. I think that the idea, originally, was to balance things so that when you tighten up to just the right tension on a quivertip, the reel didn't want to rock back at all as the handle dropped down and spoil your mm perfect tension . Tbh, I never found that a problem anyway, plus I use these for floatfishing, too, where the issue doesn't arise. Saw away! I have a bunch of these Shimano reels, and I bought a bunch of single handles to fit from Felindre at Swansea, but not enough to do all my GTM 3010's, so this one remains sawn-off. The handles cost about £8 iirc, but your reel may be some other make.

 

[Keith M]

I actually quite like using double handles on my reels; now that I have got used to them.

Us humans are a funny species; we seem to hate anything new and different to what we’ve got used to and used for years; like double handles, ready made up rods etc. and even if they have advantages our brains still tell us that the old ways must be better.

Keith

 

[flightliner]

It would seem that My season will continue up to the end with my attempts to catch a few zander and today was no exception with another trip to the tidal Trent. Up with the lark at 6am, away by 7am and casting out at 8-45 saw me sat back back with a nice cup of coffee hoping for a run.
It came at 11-15 and was a slightly bigger pike than last weeks fish of 11-5 at 12-10.
A long wait followed, some 3 and3/4hours tb exact when feeling tge need to recast I opted to twitch the bait instead.
In little time at all the indicator lifted and striking was party to enduring a long struggle to subdue a near 20 lb fish of 19-01lbs.
Rebaited and recast the lead never hit the deck before line was running thro my fingers and after another struggle lost a decant pike in the margins.
Rebaited again and positioned I replaced the indicator, turned my back to sit down and the tiny 4"roach was taken seconds later!
This time after another long hard struggle I finally netted another near mid double pike of 14-6.
It appeared the pike had simply switched on in those few minutes, a very long time since it happened to me last.
Here's the 19-01! 12-10 and 14-6

 

[john step]

Cracking pike fishing Mick. Days like that dont come along very often.

 

[Alan Whitty]

Well,woke at 2am with an acid reflux,so downstairs,in with the gaviscon and prepared my flask and grub,arrived at the rivers car park,two of us there,didn't want the flyers again,so fished a swim that is good in the warmer weather but now the bankside cover has died back it is more difficult,fished the float and was surprised to catch around 10 gudgeon so it must the rising water temperature woke them up,next four dace when suddenly two nice chub arrived scoffing my loose feed,I had them both in 10 minutes,both between 3.8-4lbs spooking everything in the swim and I had to work hard for four hours to catch 7 roach between 6ozs and a pound,another chub came in,I had it a 3lber,then a while later a mirror carp snuck in I had it almost straight away on double maggot on an 18 hook 9lb 1oz,now this fish was in perfect condition apart from having only one eye(thats why it took my bait),looks as though it was born this way,I ended the session with two barbel around 6lbs,this session was odd,its so unusual to have fish in the swim and catch them almost straight away and also unusual to fish an entire session without having to change a hook or hooklength,brilliant...

 

[@Clive]

Today Matthew I am going back to the 1970's. The decade when we had the Austin Allegro, tank tops and brown fibreglass rods. The long dead Laurel & Hardy were still on the Trail of the Loneseome Pine whilst the other Hardy were fighting sabotage in their rod making department from disgruntled cane rod makers. Across the North Sea ABBA met their Waterloo and the other Swedish super group, ABU launched their high speed and short lived Cardinal Express 44. Further south on the Franco-Swiss border Mitchell introduced their new 'A' reels including the legendary 440A Match. And today, all this became relevant.

I went to one of the two 110 hectare lakes near where I live. Started out fishing a loaded waggler (we used to call them zoomers in the 70s) about 20 metres (they were yards) or so out where the bottom levelled out to 2.2 metres. It was just as far as the catapulted maggots would reach. I had all but a no. 4 and no. 8 right under the float so the bait sunk slowly. Eventually a suicidal roach stopped the float settling and ended up in the keepnet. It was hard going and eventually I swapped to a swing tip and put a sweetcorn bait on the bottom. That didn't work so back to the float and a few more roach were added to the meagre net.

After three hours I packed up and drove to the other lake. Being Saturday they were both rammed full of anglers, one on each as well as me. This time I set up at the deep end and put the swing tip and a maggot feeder rig out without adding to the tally. Just shows that nostalgia ain't what it used to be.

 

[nottskev]

Look at those lovely cork handles!

Never mind the 70's. Sandy Shaw got it right in 1968

Monsieur Duplon (la la la la)
I know it's wrong (la la la la)
............

 

[Steve Arnold]

Look at those lovely cork handles!

Never mind the 70's. Sandy Shaw got it right in 1968

Monsieur Duplon (la la la la)
I know it's wrong (la la la la)
............

Definitely stick to the cork 'andles!

 

[Alan Whitty]

Recognise the matchmaker Clive,but what is the other Hardy??? Not a Swing Tip is it?

 

[@Clive]

It is a Hardy Richard Walker Avon. There is a screw in adaper on the top guide to take a swing tip.

I got the Matchmaker free with a mint, boxed 'as new' Youngs Superlite centrepin that was advertised as a fly reel on the French free ads.

 

[Alan Whitty]

I still have one and a Fred J Taylor trotter...used to have two matchmakers,sold many,many years past....

 

[peterjg]

Clive, in your photo you have what looks like an ABU Cardinal 66? I have two, one of which I bought new in 1975 for the astronomical sum of £27. I occasionally still use them for pike fishing.

 

[@Clive]

Its a 44 Express Peter.

I also have a 55 and two 506 reels, one I've had new bought with my paper round and Saturday job money and a minter picked for next to nothing last year.

 

[riverman]

fishing was hard today and only managed the 1 tench (targeted fish) around the 1lb mark 3 ide biggest also around the 1lb mark and 2 bream biggest around the 1.5lb mark.the tench fell to prawn and the ide and bream to luncheon meat.hard going with the bites few and far between to say the least.fished the waggler and didn't bother with leger rod.28 peg lake and only 5 anglers on it today so nice and quiet.

 

[Pete Shears]

Managed a pike at 7lb 4oz yesterday at the local canal feeder reservoir which broke a run of blanks, 3 at various venues.
Cold,blustery NE wind with a lashing of hail mixed in, going out tomorrow for some more.