How did you get on?

[edsurf]

15 foot Drennan match pro ultralight and Berkley fire line smoke 3lb

 

[mikench]

Returned to the same venue today and float fished with maggot . Caught dozens of roach and Rudd but none as big as yesterday. It was cold and the roads and grass were white. I took the opportunity to use some of the new kit I received for Christmas .

I wore the Nash waterproof jacket and trousers my wife bought me . They were very comfortable and warm. The trousers do not have a bib but came with braces and have a gusset at the side; there was never any danger of builders ***! they look and feel,good quality but only time will tell. I kept nice and warm except for my hands which after the umpteenth roach were numb

The right kit does make a difference and without it I would have stayed home.

I must get out my old camping gear so I can emulate some of Binka's culinary tasty offerings!

Happy new year to everyone

 

[skov]

Quick piking session on the river today.
Had a single run which turned out to be a small black waterfowl nicking my deadbait.
How he got it off the trebles without getting hooked I don't know, but he looked well pleased with himself.

 

[bullet]

Chubbing yesterday and messing about with the gopro.
Did a bit of prebaiting and when i got to a good spot i thought i would set up the camera to film the quiver and hopefully get a bite and fight shot.
Anyhow, flicked the bait in and started recording. After a couple of mins camera makes a beep, which means its stopped recording, within about 3 seconds of this I get the Mr Chub knock and then the slow pull round which i hit.
Turns out to be a nice fish which really gives it some beans, thrashing on top initially then boring hard to try and get in under the trees. Would have had some nice "bendo" shots if the bloody thing had still been recording!
After returning the Chub, i turned the camera off and on again and it was fine.
Bloody technology!

Taken with phone.....

View image in gallery​

 

[sam vimes]

For one reason or another, it's been a while since I last posted a catch in this thread. One of the reasons is that I've been struggling with sciatica for a few weeks. After a couple of aborted trips in the last few days, today was the first time in a while that I've really felt up to it. The problem was that I needed a short walk and couldn't risk staying for too long.

I managed a couple of hours this afternoon without my back grumbling too much. Surprisingly, it wasn't my knackered back that drove me off, it was the inability to complete a steady trot due to icing. Fortunately, I managed to test the new rod on four grayling and a stupid spotted hooligan before the ice and fog got the better of me

The rod is pretty much as expected, a lighter weight version of my previously favoured Shimano Fast Action match rods. It's probably got a bit too much in it for grayling fishing, but it's spot on for the bigger ones and I'm certain it'll be perfect for chub and all but the biggest barbel.

I enjoyed myself, but I just know that I'm going to pay for it tomorrow.

 

[mikench]

I suspect that the spotted hooligan you refer to is is a trout of some kind rather than a local oik

 

[S-Kippy]

Chubbing on the Wey for me today. Cage feeder, rough cut liccy and flake on the hook. M25 very well behaved if a little foggy in places.

I had one tap tap at 3-30 and that was it. Strangely enjoyable though as I've not deliberately fished for chub for years and I love fishing bread and a feeder. Bloody cold but I expected that and was suitably attired including a brand new woolly titfer which is remarkably cosy. Mrs S who does not do hats thinks it looks stupid but I pointed out that she would change her position pretty damned quick if she cared to join me bankside. She declined.

I'm having a bit of a shocker this year but such is life. Nobody got hurt.

 

[bullet]

Nymphing and trotting for Grayling again today. Few fish about, they seemed to come on a bit just as it was getting dimpsey.
Good few Grayling on the nymph, then a silver hooligan, to coin Sam's phrase, in the shape of a Rainbow Trout took the fly and proceeded to crash about, eventually coming to hand and buggering up my leader in the process, so that was it.

 

[tigger]

A quick session on the river produced about eight or nine rubber lips and one of Chris's spotted hooligans. Again nothing of any size but I went home feeling a little more fulfilled having had my string tugged ...

 

[john step]

Did a couple of hours on the steak on the Trent. Bitterly cold and foggy all day.
One bite, a 3+ chub saved the day. Funny how steak is a cheaper bait than maggots.

Then I switched to trying my newly acquired circle hooks to deadbait for the zander. There doesn't seem to be any difficulty in getting takes but I am still getting them drop off. 2 takes 2 drop offs GRRRmg:

I must be doing it wrong. I will get there though

 

[thecrow]

Funny how steak is a cheaper bait than maggots.

Goes better with chips as well

 

[Aussie Bob]

Yet more hot weather ...the water temperature has not dropped below 25c and was pushing 27c the other night. There is a cool change coming through tonight so maybe tomorrow when i come off night shift it might get the fish feeding again.Had a few futile sessions but didn't persevere there were no signs of fish and it has been very humid ...

 

[john step]

Yet more hot weather ...the water temperature has not dropped below 25c and was pushing 27c the other night. There is a cool change coming through tonight so maybe tomorrow when i come off night shift it might get the fish feeding again.Had a few futile sessions but didn't persevere there were no signs of fish and it has been very humid ...

Send some of that heat over here will you Bob.Happy New to all you down under.:w

 

[peter crabtree]

A nice gloomy damp day today and a bit warmer than last week, mother dispatched to my sister in Norfolk and my cabin fever reaching desperate lows I was out like a shot this morning.
Box of liquy and a white sliced loaf in the bag and off to the GUC near Hemel.



I recently swapped my 20 year old 15' Tricast float rod for a brand new Match pro ultra light 15' so I thought I'd give it a waggle..
Set up with a pole float down to a 16 b611, quite big for me but I wanted to try a bigger punch for the better roach...



This pound on the canal is canalised river Gade and flows gently from right to left in the pic, slowly trotting it down the middle, bait just tripping bottom I caught roach after roach but no size. It was surprising how even the small roach were having the big punch...



By 3pm it got too dark to see my float so I reluctantly packed up but happy with about 40 roach, a 10" chublet and a stray perch.
It's turning cold again for the next few days just as my club have acquired the rights to one of the best canal stretches in the Colne valley

 

[Hugh Bailey]

Another Wey blank for me today. Tried the more static approach with maggot feeder & floatfished lob in the slacks. Not a touch on the lob, but 2 bites on the maggot, one of which I hooked a decent fish - I 'd guess chub, as after a short fight, it snagged me under the near bank. Should have done better with it probably but wife had just that second phoned so was not really concentrating. Bit of choker as it felt decent and was the only chance i had over the 2 sessions - ******!

 

[mikench]

No fishing for me today but I have made a rather good coq au vin for dinner!

 

[maggot_dangler]

Quick trip to the local canal for me this afternoon but the water was Gin Clear and very cold with a stiff cold wind blowing along as well so result 1 Roach about 5 oz , 1 skimmer similar size both on single red maggot 2 hours that was it too cold packed up off home .

Hope it is somewhat better tomorrow was thinking of hitting the Mease or the Salwarpe but will see what it is like when i get up in the morning .

No parties for me tonight fancy a quite one .


Happy new year to all .. may 2017 be a vast improvement on the wreck that was 2016

PG ...

 

[103841]

The last day of 2016 turned out to be a red letter day. Not a pb, not even a bag full of fish, just two infact. I visited my usual local stretch of the Stour that runs through Canterbury and deliberately avoided the Sainsbury section where I've landed the same four pound chub on several occasions over the past few weeks, instead I chose another section that has not yielded any of the large mouthed beasts of late and true to form after two hours and getting cold it looked like another blank was on the cards.

The trouble with getting old is forgetting exactly what you've brought with you in the tackle bag, luckily I did find the liquidised bread I had made only a few hours earliermg: a switch from straight lead to a feeder with the newly found bread paid instant dividends with a handsome chub just under four pounds. Thirty minutes later a slightly smaller one graced the net giving what I thought was to be the perfect end to a year, but there was something special to follow, a strange noise overhead, a swooshing noise, on the river it looked like it had started to rain, looking up I gasped in awe at the spectacle of a starling murmuration over the city centre of Canterbury. Seen this amazing phenomenon on tv and its long been on my bucket list to see in person, maybe not the magnitude with a smaller swarm of birds but still an amazing sight to behold.

It wasn't raining by the way and I'm glad I had a hat on!

Happy New Year to all on FM amd here's to many more tales of success and disappointment on this wonderful thread.

---------- Post added at 20:40 ---------- Previous post was at 20:16 ----------

I think I've managed to upload the event.

https://youtu.be/SwXmCoTK-RE

 

[flightliner]

The last day of 2016 turned out to be a red letter day. Not a pb, not even a bag full of fish, just two infact. I visited my usual local stretch of the Stour that runs through Canterbury and deliberately avoided the Sainsbury section where I've landed the same four pound chub on several occasions over the past few weeks, instead I chose another section that has not yielded any of the large mouthed beasts of late and true to form after two hours and getting cold it looked like another blank was on the cards.

The trouble with getting old is forgetting exactly what you've brought with you in the tackle bag, luckily I did find the liquidised bread I had made only a few hours earliermg: a switch from straight lead to a feeder with the newly found bread paid instant dividends with a handsome chub just under four pounds. Thirty minutes later a slightly smaller one graced the net giving what I thought was to be the perfect end to a year, but there was something special to follow, a strange noise overhead, a swooshing noise, on the river it looked like it had started to rain, looking up I gasped in awe at the spectacle of a starling murmuration over the city centre of Canterbury. Seen this amazing phenomenon on tv and its long been on my bucket list to see in person, maybe not the magnitude with a smaller swarm of birds but still an amazing sight to behold.

It wasn't raining by the way and I'm glad I had a hat on!

Happy New Year to all on FM amd here's to many more tales of success and disappointment on this wonderful thread.



---------- Post added at 20:40 ---------- Previous post was at 20:16 ----------

I think I've managed to upload the event.

https://youtu.be/SwXmCoTK-RE

s63, true, this thread beats anything in the comics, wether read at face value or between the lines all thats best in angling is there to enjoy, and may I echo your sentiments and wish all on fm a very happy new year !.

 

[joshluke19]

Saw a group of about 500 starlings at night outside the cinemas a few week ago, absolutely stunning sight, was better than the film. Then again at 50 quid a ticket...:wh