How did you get on?

[seth49]

Favourite club water again, arrived at 7am still dark and raining and windy as well, so after a walk round I decided to fish the sheltered part of the pond, as the peg I fancied had the rain and wind blowing straight into it , so chair and brolly set up first, minimum bait etc on side tray, and sheeted the rest on the barrow, just fished with tip rod for a start, and method feeder with a yellow chocolate wafter.

as usual I poured the water of the 2mm pellets I soaked into the margin in front of me, it’s a really good attractor, plenty of smell but no feed, within ten minutes I’d two carp searching for the feed which wasn’t there, so tip rod on rests and alarm, and rigged my dwarf rod up with a pole rig for these, adding a few pellets to the swim to keep them interested.

it was hard going though, even the bunch of maggots on the hook was ignored, as they ate the the rest of the feed, they are getting very cagey after being caught in the margins for months, did get a small barbel and an F1, but the carp were proving difficult, so by now the rain had stopped and Neale had arrived, so bit of feed in and made a brew and went for a natter to see if they would settle in my absence.

came back to see four or five busy feeding in the swim, so tried a few different baits to no avail, so back to the maggots fished over some loose fed ones to see if they would hoover the bait up with the loose feed, which did work occasionally and I managed to catch four carp, not the large common though I only managed to foul hook that one, as when it came of I was left with just a scale on the hook.

just a couple of scenic photos today, one of the swim and one of the far bank when it was lit up for a few minutes by the low afternoon sun, an interesting day on a swim near the car park which gets fished a lot, nice and warm later, very mild for late October.

 

[mikench]

Well done to you both. That is a stunning carp. The river looks as nice as ever.

 

[john step]

Difficult day on a club lake. I needed to fish near the car but the rafts of dead leaves made things impossible at times.
In the end I sneaked 4 carp out on the top on bread with the line hidden by the leaves. Nothing large.

 

[Steve Arnold]

Yesterday afternoon I sneaked down the river to try out my new Korum Big Water 13' 2.75 lb rod. Quite the wrong conditions for this rod as the river is so low and lacking flow!

But I picked a swim where a long cast upstream (60-80 metres) was required and there is a good chance of big carp. Well, the carp did not play! Though a 3 pound barbel and two bream around 4 - 5 pounds found my baits, bites showing surprisingly well on this sturdy rod. Double boilies with a hefty paste wrap were finally swallowed by the relatively small-mouthed fish. Give them something tasty and sufficient time and the hook finds a home!

The bream were in particularly good nick - these river Lot fish are always thick bodied and healthy!

 

[Roger Johnson 2]

Adjusting to beach life!

I can’t say boat fishing floated my boat!? But hey right now nearly every fish is a PB!


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[mikench]

Nice one Roger. At least the sea looked relatively calm. I avoid boats now because of chronic sea sickness.

 

[Notts Michael.]

Decided to take minimum gear and the 8ft Darent Valley rod with about 1/2 pint of red maggots and a few 10g blacktop maggot mini-feeders to the day ticket/club stretch of disused canal near me for a few hours this afternoon, I don't know why I don't use a maggot feeder set up more often, plenty of bites, a 4lb common carp, some nice perch up to about a pound, a 1.5lb tench, lots of small stuff and what I assume was a bigger carp which powered off into snags and expertly transfered the hook into a snag and got away. a very enjoyable afternoon in the pleasant autumn sun.

 

[Roger Johnson 2]

Nice one Roger. At least the sea looked relatively calm. I avoid boats now because of chronic sea sickness.

Ah!, the 3 stages of seasickness!
1) You think you’re going to die
2) You KNOW you’re going to die
3) You’re scared you might live!


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[Neil Maidment]

Had a social couple of days with three mates recently. One of which saw us fish the lower tidal Dorset Stour. We had plenty of small roach, dace, rudd, juvenile bass and a spirited thick lipped mullet. But the stars of the show were the specimen perch.

Late on in the afternoon I had two crackers on double maggot under a peacock insert waggler. They went 2lbs 09oz and 3lbs 01oz and were the biggest perch I've had for many a decade.

I returned to the area last Monday armed with a pot of lobworms. Fishing double lobworms with their tails nipped off under a float, I had two more - 2lbs 10oz and 2lbs 14oz.

Now planning my next trip but need to buy some prawns first!

 

[john step]

Had a social couple of days with three mates recently. One of which saw us fish the lower tidal Dorset Stour. We had plenty of small roach, dace, rudd, juvenile bass and a spirited thick lipped mullet. But the stars of the show were the specimen perch.

Late on in the afternoon I had two crackers on double maggot under a peacock insert waggler. They went 2lbs 09oz and 3lbs 01oz and were the biggest perch I've had for many a decade.

View attachment 24439 View attachment 24441

I returned to the area last Monday armed with a pot of lobworms. Fishing double lobworms with their tails nipped off under a float, I had two more - 2lbs 10oz and 2lbs 14oz.

View attachment 24443 View attachment 24445

Now planning my next trip but need to buy some prawns first!

Make sure you put them on the Big Perch challenge?

 

[Ray Roberts]

I mentioned on the morning thread that I was taking my granddaughter Lexi (12) lure fishing today and I wasn’t overly optimistic on our chances. I’ve had a stinking cold and to be honest, if I hadn’t promised her I would have cried off.

I was delighted that she managed to catch her first fish on the lure. We had a pike just under six pounds each.

I had taken Lexi a few times previously. Initially I started her with a whip and the last two times on a float rod. Her casting came on leaps and bounds with the lure fishing. I would say that every one of her casts with the lure rod was better by far than any of Bob Mortimer’s in his tv series and she holds the rod properly, unlike Bob, who always looks like he’s wrestling with a python.

She is definitely hooked.


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[Ray Roberts]

Another day lure fishing for pike. I took Richard an old friend and a guy who used to be my partner in crime until he lost his fishing mojo over a decade ago.

I’m still suffering from an awful cold, but as I had promised to take him I didn’t want to let him down. Not far from the lake I took Lexi my granddaughter is another lake called Hayden lake. I hadn’t fished there before, but it is visible as you head towards London on the A21 near the Tonbridge turn off. I had a quick recce on the way home after the last trip. It looked okay, except when we arrived the water was very coloured. We gave it an hour fishing and I took a good look around for future reference. I also helped Richard to learn to cast with a multiplier and showed him how to tie the flouro leader to the braid etc. Richard isn’t a bad angler, but he is unbelievably unlucky. He could fall into the proverbial bucket of t*ts and still come out sucking his thumb. He tagged along with a few of us who used to beach fish and in over two years failed to ever catch a fish.

As the conditions were so poor we slung our gear in the car and headed off to Bardens lake where I took Lexi on the previous trip, as it’s only about half a mile away.

Well it didn’t fish very well, I used a very large rubber roach lure that I should have caught on. I had two ferocious takes, but didn’t get a hook up, although the lure was absolutely shredded. I think it must have hit it from the side and the hooks somehow missed the mark.

Oh and Richard not only had his first lure caught fish, he caught his largest ever fish and he was totally made up over it. Although I blanked, I would rather he caught than myself. I couldn’t weigh the fish as I had stupidly left the scales In Lexi’s bag.

He looks well chuffed and I hope he has his mojo back.


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[no-one in particular]

This was the river Rother at Bodiam today Ray, it's normally about 10ft across and 3 ft. deep in the summer - I think you sometimes fish here or elsewhere on the river. I chucked a half of pint of maggots in a couple of slack areas but I forgot to take some bread or maybe some worms. The maggots would have just disappeared in the grass. A bucketful of mashed bread might have got some response or chopped worms, something with a lot of scent anyway. I did detect one little bob of the float, might have been a gudgeon or something but that was it so, I packed up after an 1 1/2. Lots more rain forecast for the next 7 days, Some major flooding on the way I would think. I don't think I will be freshwater fishing for a while.

 

[John Aston]

That's what I call a nice bit of colour. Barbel nirvana - are there barbel in the Rother? Sorry , I should know, but it's a long way from home .

 

[no-one in particular]

No Barbel

That's what I call a nice bit of colour. Barbel nirvana - are there barbel in the Rother? Sorry , I should know, but it's a long way from home .

No barbal Grayson, I heard that one of the clubs tried a couple of attempts to introducing them back in the 60's or 70's but no one ever saw them again. Lots of chub, in fact I caught a few fly fishing in the summer on a red tag fly. I could see them in the summer as it is shallow here normally, only about 2-4ft deep so, not hard to locate but were are they when the river is like that! Here is a picture of what it normally looks like.

 

[Ray Roberts]

This was the river Rother at Bodiam today Ray, it's normally about 10ft across and 3 ft. deep in the summer - I think you sometimes fish here or elsewhere on the river. I chucked a half of pint of maggots in a couple of slack areas but I forgot to take some bread or maybe some worms. The maggots would have just disappeared in the grass. A bucketful of mashed bread might have got some response or chopped worms, something with a lot of scent anyway. I did detect one little bob of the float, might have been a gudgeon or something but that was it so, I packed up after an 1 1/2. Lots more rain forecast for the next 7 days, Some major flooding on the way I would think. I don't think I will be freshwater fishing for a while.
View attachment 24477View attachment 24479

I honestly would have left the rods in the boot if I was faced with that. It’s a bit of a trek from my home to the Rother and that’s why I went to still waters on the last two trips. The Medway flows past the lakes I fished, it was chundering through and the colour of cocoa. The last time I fished the Rother in flood a dead sheep came sailing past. My cue to pack up.

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[no-one in particular]

Ha, I had exactly the same thing once just a bit further up, it was not quite as flooded but I was float fishing when it was swollen and ripping through and actually hooked the dead sheep; its head came to the surface and then broke my line. I don't mind fishing when its like that but where do the fish go!?. I found a couple of slack areas but they were not there or just were not feeding although as i said I did not have a suitable bait with me. It actually turned out a nice-ish afternoon weather wise. Anyway, I just thought I would show you if you were thinking of fishing this river, I think you have tried piking further down in the past but probably best to avoid for a while.

I honestly would have left the rods in the boot if I was faced with that. It’s a bit of a trek from my home to the Rother and that’s why I went to still waters on the last two trips. The Medway flows past the lakes I fished, it was chundering through and the colour of cocoa. The last time I fished the Rother in flood a dead sheep came sailing past. My cue to pack up.


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[markcw]

I honestly would have left the rods in the boot if I was faced with that. It’s a bit of a trek from my home to the Rother and that’s why I went to still waters on the last two trips. The Medway flows past the lakes I fished, it was chundering through and the colour of cocoa. The last time I fished the Rother in flood a dead sheep came sailing past. My cue to pack up.

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Ray there is a small river that flows through Altrincham and Lymm @wetthrough and @mikench will know it . It's the River Bollin ,
I have fished it in flood conditions and caught well . Also seen a couple pigs stuck in the slack parts and the odd one floating past to the direction of the Manchester Ship Canal .
Otter prints were found on the banks around 18 years ago ,but the fishing wasn't affected .

 

[wetthrough]

Not sure you can fish it now. WA used to have a stretch but not any more.

 

[flightliner]

Sorry the late reply.
Wednesday I met a friend beside the river Don in Sheffield for a few hours Greyling fishing.
The river was up in the trees and bombing thro but we both found a swim with a little less pace and decided to share it at twenty minute intervals.
The end result was (memory jog here) maybe five Greyling and a pound plus Brown Trout to me and one lost Greyling one landed and a similar Brownie for my friend.
We then decided to jump from swim to swim till we got down to the bridge on the main road where we struggled for a bite until the last swim before the bridge.
Here my friend had another Trout and a few more Greyling so equelling both catches in what can only be described as "challenging conditions".
His first visit and one he's keen to do again sometime when things improve later on.