How did you get on?

[ian g]

Met up with a couple of mates yesterday on the Severn . We were targeting perch and my mate had caught 8 including 4 over 2lb before I arrived . I was on taxi duty dropping my wife off for lunch with friends . I managed a couple of decent perch around a pound and a half each when I hooked a better fish which I initially thought was a big perch , before a salmon jumped right in front of me , snagged me in a nearside willow . Ended up pulling for a break . Managed a nice roach around a pound but no more perch.

 

[terry m]

I opted for an early morning stroll down the Avon today, still searching for the elusive behemoth Esox. Dropped into a regular swim which only threw up a small Jack that fell off at the net. Upped sticks and wandered downstream to a new spot, the heavy flow meant fishing under the near bank was the obvious choice. Just as the rain arrived my lift method mackerel was off, and a lean but fit 11lb 1oz pike was banked. No behemoth, but very welcome. The rain worsened, so called it a day and was back home by midday.

 

[nottskev]

I wasted the morning eating an extended breakfast and mooching around til, at around midday, I thought the mild, still day was too nice to waste any further. Since the light's going after 4 now, it had to be the local canal or the nearest place on the river. I went for the river, thinking dace on the whip, a decision I started to regret when I found the only swims I could get down to were short ones boxed in by overhanging trees; definitely feeder pegs.

Dace on the feeder are a recipe for frustration. You can have bite after bite and catch hardly any. Fortunately, there are a couple of tweaks that help, but even so no dace were interested and the little feeder was coming back full of maggots. It can happen when the water's a lot colder than the air, and I had to cut the holes bigger to let the feed do its job

After half an hour I was getting a dace most casts and forgetting that I don't really enjoy feeder fishing

But it was the couple of unexpected fish that turned up just before the end that pleased me most. I've had one of these before from this stretch, but this one was a bit bigger and looked so incongruous with its urban middle Trent environment

I was thinking that rounds the afternoon off nicely when the tip bounced and something pulled back a bit and another pristine fish finished off a lucky, last minute, casual few hours

 

[chevin4]

There were no dramas this time so I was able to drive over the level crossing to gain access to the syndicate stretch of the Lea. I was accompanied by my mate Tim who i took as a guest. Omens were good as a fellow angler who was packing up had caught a 17lb barbel the previous evening. The plan was to use natural baits ie lobworms in the day and switch to boillies or in Tim's case meat at dusk. Dispite our best efforts only one small perch was caught. It was a surprisingly warm and bright day we decided to call it a day at 7pm. But as Arnie would say "I will be back" indeed I will be there again on Thursday. Last Tuesday I went with another friend to our local small stream. It was almost spring like we got there early by 10am the place was rammed. I fished in the darkness with my Torrix 1.5tc 11ft with barbel in mind bait was maggot and small running feeder. It was obvious that roach and chub were dropping the bait. I switched over to my Harrison 1.2 11ft 6 with 2oz tip. This is a light actioned rod and a pleasure to play fish on. I finished up with 7 barbel up to 5lb 14oz a few chublets and a couple of nice roach approx 12oz. It was an enjoyable days fishing but the brightness and clarity of the water worked against us

 

[Steve Arnold]

I have had two short afternoon sessions on my local stretch of the Lot. Despite the weather having been dry this last week the flow is enormous and it is only possible to fish close to the bank or where canal sections join the river. Usually this swim will bring barbel, but not this time!

Whilst I pondered my fishless situation I watched hundreds of tiny fish grazing the flooded grass under my feet. Such brave little creatures, but quick to take advantage of fresh feeding areas. Look for the eyes, you might just make out three of these tiny fish.......

So after a couple of biteless hours I moved a few yards to fish the main river, impossible to hold more than 10 metres out even with a 115gr weight fished almost directly downstream!

But the barbel were there, ambitious little fish that attacked the bait with vigour until eventually one found the hook point......

The next three were a little bigger, probably about 1lb.

The last time I fished here I dropped a couple of small barbel at the surface, I suspected they were holding the bait in their mouths but not actually hooked. This was confirmed this time when I reeled in a fish that did not fight the usual way, got the net under and lifted, to find two barbel.

........ one hooked and the other must have been hanging on to the spat out boilie!

I caught three more, one bearing the marks of a recent cormorant attack.

This is quite the barbel nursery, I will give it a break until winter as it is rapidly bringing down the size of my seasonal average fish!

Good to see that the recent barbel spawning years have been so good. All this extra flow definitely suits this species!

 

[ian g]

Fished a local stretch of the Dee today , 9.30 until 3 o'clock . Trotted maggots and after a slow start I managed to find a few . Catching around 20 grayling a few trout ,a dace and a chub around 2 lb . Grayling ranged from a couple of ounces to around a pound with most 8 0z or so . I am getting a bit of a taste for trotting this lovely river , nice to just be doing something all the time , though I think about 5 hours does me . I had a go on the Dove on Monday and really struggled , one grayling and a few minnows for around 8 hours hard fishing so was glad to get a few today.

 

[peterjg]

This month (October) I have been fishing 11 times. Had 2 trips to the Kennet and did ok both times catching some roach and 1 bream on legered bread, I lost a very big roach which hit the surface and twisted off - blast! (or something similar). I tried trotting wheat which is normally so good but without success. Funny how some baits lose their appeal with the seasons?
A trip on the K&A was a bit of a struggle, eventually managed 6 smallish roach on dead maggots. The boats are normally a pain but at least they colour up the water, none passed today.
A few trips on local lakes. The decent roach there have switched off and are now feeding only in darkness though did catch a carp of about 10lbs on legered dead maggots - pellets, bread, sweetcorn untouched!
Fished the Thames twice, the roach were not in the edge but in the faster water. Legered sweetcorn was best producing some very decent roach, a bream and a chub. Twice had roach grabbed by pike. On both trips saw an otter, one was much bigger than the other, also cormorants - too many predators!
The leaves seem to be falling later this year?

 

[Steve Arnold]

My last two visits to the river Lot brought me over a dozen small barbel. It's nice to get a bite, but fish under 1kg bring down my seasonal average. I told myself this wasn't acceptable! So I went down the river before dawn this morning, looking for a carp. Only one hit, but a nice 24lb carp, a good result to raise my average. Mission accomplished!

Bit of a smug smile, not often a plan actually does work out!

 

[Philip]

Now thats a classic looking river Carp. No doubt to my mind that fish has spent all its life in a moving enviroment.

Well done Steve great catch