How did you get on?

[nottskev]

The river continues to shrink and I had to walk past a favourite swim because my landing net - a 3m Drennan Specialist - won't reach the water any more, and look for a bit of pace near the bank. Still, we're getting these beautiful autumn days, and no doubt it will rain and blow for a week soon enough. I had small amounts of hookbait - punched meat, 8mm pellets and a pack of mussels - and a tub of groundbait with hemp and bits of meat. Small balls of groundbait can get a trace of food in less obtrusively than feeders or bait droppers.

I tried float in the first swim but with a downstream breeze it took most of the short swim to trim it up straight before the trees, so I swapped to a light bomb and eventually the rod whipped around

The mussels attracted a bit of interest, but this batch were fragile, and even when banded you couldn't be sure a couple of knocks hadn't left you with a bare hook. They suit float fishing better, imo.

A change of swim - after years of trying, I've finally got the gear down to a small packed seat, a two rod sleeve and a bucket - threw up another decent fish

I noticed the pic's of barbel in situ in John Bailey's article, and I get the point they don't look, as mat pic's do, like a fish out of water. But I don't think I'll be winning any prizes. It's unedited, so the colour is a surprise

prise

I moved a second time, and one more bite threw up quite a rarity these days - a barbel small enough to pick up to unhook.

 

[nottskev]

That was yesterday's, but I forgot to press Post Reply. Today, I literally couldn't get out til 1.00 thanks to road closures - half-marathon round the city. You never get a bite at the woodland pond before about 3pm, so I wasn't champing at the bit. But I did have a score to settle after catching one bream last time. I went for a corner swim so I could fish pole to the rush bed 12m to my left, a little pellet feeder further up the rush bed bank where it bulges out and the scum starts, and pole into open water to my right.

But this is the feast or famine woodland pond, and despite giving it my best shot(s) with two sets of gear and some lovely bait, this was the result after 4 hours. It didn't help that the overcast and breezy afternoon turned out bright and flat calm.

I caught the best fish of the day on the way home. I stopped off at another lake on the estate and chatted to a bloke who was catching an 8lb barbel as I walked up. While he was dealing with his fish, his other rod went off and he asked if I'd kindly pick it up, so I finished the day with a 5lb barbel and a three ounce perch.

 

[no-one in particular]

The mackerel seem to have gone, none caught on the pier yesterday or on the groynes, some foreigners were fishing and it was interesting in that some of them were using these micro rods with just a rubber lure, no weight and those small bait-caster reels. Never seen that before, one had a had a small bass, I cannot imagine how they would cope with a big one. Weather change now so maybe back to a bit of coarse fishing for me.

 

[John Aston]

What felt like the last days of too long a summer on my local beck. It's a long cast from where I am sitting , and I fished two 2hour afternoon sessions a mile downstream . Not too much fuel used ... The beck runs about 10-15 feet below the surrounding pastures , and its banks are dense with alder , willow and sycamore , meaning that very little wind ruffles the surface and the only sound you hear is the buzzards overhead and the clatter of wood pigeons as you wade upstream . That and the hum of bees and wasps on the balsam .

I fished long ,almost current free glides punctuated by fallen trees , some huge , and last winter's flood debris . And the odd Red Bull can and road cone - it isn't entirely a bucolic idyll , sadly. No fly , apart from the odd daddy long legs and just the occasional subsurface swirl . It's stealthy fishing , wading on tiptoe to avoid the tell-tale bow wave and trying to ensure every cast was as unobtrusive as possible - it's hold your breath fishing .

I fished my much loved 7' 6" Hardy Sovereign # 3/4 with a 6lb leader and small lures (12 and 14 ) fished upstream and retrieved slowly . Casting needs to be inch perfect , as you are fishing under a canopy of trees and often having to cast through a tight gap between tree and water surface . When I started this game I could hardly even do an overhead cast in a field , but it's amazing how easy it eventually became to cast into the tightest corners .

Sport was steady on both days , and I had 13 chub (from little ones to netters of 1-18/1-12 ish) , a half pound grayling (they take lures too ) , a little wild brown and a very aggressive brown which I measured at 15 " - I'd guess about 1-6 ? Some of the chub came from glides less than 8" deep and even a pounder bolts like a bonefish .

I came home happy .

 

[silvers]

three matches to report on this week.

Last Wednesday I fished the second ABC midlands river masters qualifier at Barford on the Warks Avon (yet again). I drew a peg that I caught my last double figure Barbel from a couple of years ago, where some fast shallows open up in to a Deeper pool (approx 10 ft deep). this time I caught a few better dace in what little (surface) flow there was, along with a few 2-3 oz hemp roach In the slack at 4m - nearly all in the middle hour of a five hour match. But mostly I struggled, with the bottom being clearly visible in 7ft plus of water. I weighed 7 pounds 9 ounces and won a default section.

On saturday it was back to Barford again for round five of their summer league. I drew peg 71 again, first one below the bypass bridge, which I had won from a few weeks back. But this peg, being very shallow, tails off by the end of summer, as evidenced by 5 and 4 pounds weighed from it in the preceding matches. I fished hard for 7 pounds eight ounces of micro dace on a little wire stemmed stick float. As it was cloudy, the river fished a little better than previously and that was only good enough for fourth in section. Harry Malin did really well to catch 15 pounds of better stamp dace to win the section.

On sunday it was first trip of the season the the Wye For the annual Charity Shield. The Hereford waters seem to be stuffed full of dace and pup size chub this year ... so much so that Only one weight included better size chub (third place off the same peg that I won from last year). but it does make for a more even match length.
I drew the vineyard stream at Eign ... a rather intimidating peg!
2 and a half foot deep at the deepest point ... in a gulley of rapids just below a cataract that the canoeists enjoyed a lot! Shallowing up on to rocks across and stopper waves all the way down the rapid flow.
Basically one line that I could fish (IMO), just beyond the waves, before it got too shallow again.
I had just shy of 30 pounds of dace and very small chub to win my six peg section. Every fish I caught was surfing across the waves on the retrieve!
Second place (Joe holloway again!) was next peg above the rapids but that was 200 yards away and a different world! he caught a lot of better stamp chublets up to a pound in his 62 pounds.

 

[peter crabtree]

Fished this morning on the canal at Rickmansworth behind tescos . 22 b511 buried inside a caster laid on over hemp caught me plenty of nice roach,. Best one today 15oz.

 

[108831]

Lovely roach Simon...

 

[wetthrough]

With the weather set to pretty dire for the rest of the week I couldn't see my caster going to waste so decided to spend yesterday afternoon at Dunham Fisheries. The afternoon forecast was for sunny periods. What they didn't say was that between the sunny periods there might be torrential rain which there was though thankfully quite brief. Arrived around 1pm expecting it to be rammed but not another soul there. Feeding maggot and caster it was slow, a few more of the tiny Carp, the odd Rudd and a few hybrids. Eventually got into a Carp which slipped the hook when I was trying to stop it going under the peg, bgr. Still slow, scratching for bites but did manage three Crucians to around 9 oz, a Mirror at around 8lb to an 8mm bread punch,

losing my float in the process, the swivel on the snap swivel parted company It was too far out to reach and the wind was behind me and to the left so it drifted out and away. Apart from the brief downpour, a very relaxed and pleasant day. Finished up with just 12 on the clicker the last being an Ide of around 8oz.

 

[hooferinsane]

Back to my normal haunt and I really felt the two degree drop in temperature. Extreme windy conditions made float fishing and even ledgering difficult to see bites. I gave up totally on the swing tip , even using a float for windy/rough conditions I was having trouble seeing the bites. I eventually found a thick stemmed NGT antenna waggler that I could at least see the bites! The fish were only interested in sweetcorn but it did bring in some nice roach. The tench and rudd seemed to have totally disappeared at present though now. I also caught the carp below on sweetcorn . Amusingly a lady passer by watched me unhooking it and returning it. She told me that she had seen a boy catch that fish in my swim the other day. I did advise her that there were other carp in the lake and this one wasn’t the only one. She looked a little confused and said ‘Oh, there are more?’
Having heard that though, it was almost and identical length to the carp I caught in the same swim last week……

 

[108831]

Turned up yesterday morning to find the river up and water over the swims,sat(behind) in a peg which had a bit of a a swirly slack,fed hemp and maggot with a small dropper,well it opens your eyes as to what fish are in the water(as you can see every stone in normal conditions)as I caught at least 40 dace up to 8 or 9ozs,a lot more than that of gudgeon,some pongos,more than a few barbel to around 7lbs,three roach(which I thought would have fed in the extra water and loads of chublets from ounces to just over the pound,returned home aching from head to foot....

 

[peter crabtree]

Went down the town at 4pm this afternoon to fish the tiny river Chess. A swim I’ve fished many times over the years. The river rins alongside the canal towpath and at this swim it runs off under the road and round some gardens before running back under the road and into the Colne.
Single maggot on. a 20 to 1lb4oz line on a light stick float. Chub, roach, bleak and a spotty thing which bit my hook off in the net.

 

[terry m]

It is some time since I beat a significant PB, but this afternoon I did just that.

A wander down the Hants Avon with a lure rod found no takes whatsoever, but a deep pool with overhanging trees- real Crabtree swim- brought a vicious take on a spinnerbait. Very apparent that it was a decent chub, and when finally in the net it was clear that it was big.

My almost 20 year chub PB of 6lb 4oz was eclipsed by this behemoth of 7lb 1oz. In perfectly mint condition. Incredibly pleased.

 

[108831]

Well done Terry a true wopper...

 

[no-one in particular]

Same here Terry, that must have made you very happy.

 

[mikench]

Well done!

 

[terry m]

Thanks guys. Still like a dog with two dinners today!,

 

[peter crabtree]

Thames match today, Windsor home park. Fished 15 ‘ rod and sliding waggler. Single maggot. 10-1pm few bits small roach..

2pm -4 fed heavily with groundbait and caster the roach arrived and 2 hours later weighed in 9 lb 4 for 2nd place.

Angler next tome bagged up all day on the pole had 20lb.

 

[Pete Shears]

A few hours on the big reservoir yesterday morning saw me spinning off the dam as it was dry to start with and easy to walk on.
Managed to get six perch to just short of a pound on white curly tail grubs,water very clear and saw two fish actually grab the lure then the rain started which makes the dam wall a little bit slippery so time to go.

 

[chevin4]

Went on Thursday to a club water with a friend it was a lovely autumnal day. Unfortunately that was as good as it got the cold rain we had the night before and subsequent temperature drop was a factor in us struggling. Small perch could be caught every cast on worm or maggot. However corn or a mini boilie would remain untouched. The margins of the lake are deep so elected to float fish with a slider but it was a day to forget fishing wise.

 

[Badgerale]

Blanked on the river.

Starting to feel a bit like winter and i get the sense I need to lower my expectations from now on.