River Stalking

[Graham Marsden]

This is a dedicated thread for discussing article: River Stalking

 

[Mark Wintle]

More tips

I'd like to add a couple of tips:

I've fished the Windrush and other small Oxfordshire streams as well as ones closer to home. I think a light float approach (standard match rod + small fixed spool) would easily outscore the leger approach. The chub are small and easily handled on standard match gear - I'd have no qualms about using a 2lb main line with a 0.12 hook link with size 20 or 18 Drennan Carbon Chub hooks with casters. For floats I'd use small alloy stem sticks (4 no 4 but shotted with no 8 or 10 shot), or very small wagglers or Trent Trotters. I'd feed until I had the chub confident and competing for the bait then would hope to catch ALL of the chub in a swim. These 2lb-sized chub are easy meat in relatively snag free water. To give an example my best bag on an Oxfordshire stream early season was 34 from the same swim and repeated it the next day on the main river Thames. They're hungry and far from wary at the start of the season.

Second tip is to simplify the leger approach if that is your preferred method. Does the boom add anything? Apart from a cumbersome bit of unnecessary kit that prevents bite detection, scares fish and could get snagged? A very simple link leger with shots pinched on the link line will do the trick.

 

[Paul H]

I have used the John Roberts ledger booms but only with large, heavy feeders on big rivers like the Trent and Severn and with fairly long hooklengths.

If the flow will allow you to hold bottom with SSG shot then I'd just tie a weaker link of line onto my mainline for the shot and fish straight through with no seperate hooklength.

Some nice looking bits of river there though and you managed to take much less kit than I ever do!

 

[preston96]

Well done Specy, a real honest article.........i could reduce your gear even more, get a fly fishing jacket and a couple of small tackle boxes.........and try to collect a few slugs......they can be a devastating bait for chub, even in low water conditions, and freeline them, leave the boom rig for other situations.

 

[Specihunter]

Mark the boom helps to keep the shot in place and if I need let line out and the bites i had where big takes. the swims I was fishing were no more than 6" deep so float fishing was out of the question but i will keep it in mind as there are a few spots I think trotting will work. You will have to show me paul. I know my rigs aren't perfect and need improving so I'm open to critisim.

 

[slime monster]

Nice little article Speci, Re float fishing really shallow water a method used by the Stafford lads was to use a very bouyant ultra short dumpy waggler shaped like the bottom of a spring onion 50 mm long 12mm wide at the "bulb" end and about 8mm at the tip made of balsa wood with a mini swivel glued in the base this float should take a couple of heavy shot to lock it to the line and it is fished well over depth and run down the far bank at river speed with no other shot on the line. Credit for this superb float goes to my old mate Bertie Bunker .

In 6 " of water 2 -3 foot depth would be right and really fast broken water can be tackled with it
Dave

 

[Paul H]

Not so much a criticism, more of a suggestion.

Straight through rig.

Just replace the lead with your SSG pinched onto the link of weaker line.
The rig is safe as if the mainline breaks the link with the shot on will slide off easily or the shot will come free as it does occasionaly anyhow.

 

[Robert Woods]

Wasn't the dumpy float one of Billy Lanes ie: Trent Trotter. Peter Drennan made them with polystyrine bodies. Used them on shallow River Dane swims.

 

[slime monster]

Wasn't the dumpy float one of Billy Lanes ie: Trent Trotter. Peter Drennan made them with polystyrine bodies. Used them on shallow River Dane swims.

I have no idea ,all I know is Bert made these floats in the 70s and they where spot on for the Blythe and as said rivers such as the Dane ,

 

[Alan Tyler]

Another point worth making is that on clear waters, time spent watching fish is seldom wasted.
The way a roach shoal moves, the way six excited chub will rummage around above and below a bait, looking for potential trouble, until one picks it up gently in the tip of his lips and slowly reverses away... loads more, and all pieces in the great jigsaw.

 

[Specihunter]

nice rig paul I will change the knot with a float stop

 

[Neneman Nick]

A good read mate.....
like alan says,it`s a jigsaw with loads of pieces.
Without doubt this style of backbrook type fishing has to be my favourite,especially on the Ise (a little sister of the Nene).
The use of a stalking jacket was mentioned....i have a ron thompson one,with loads of pockets and zip on/off arms and a foldaway (in the collar) hood.I picked mine up for less than £20 on line last year.
My only complaint about these jackets is that you tend to rattle and clank a bit when walking up and down the bank because of your hooks and shots and bits and bobs being packed away in little plastic boxes etc.... not so much of a problem though when carefully placing your feet when watching/stalking your quarry.

 

[preston96]

A good read mate.....
like alan says,it`s a jigsaw with loads of pieces.
Without doubt this style of backbrook type fishing has to be my favourite,especially on the Ise (a little sister of the Nene).
The use of a stalking jacket was mentioned....i have a ron thompson one,with loads of pockets and zip on/off arms and a foldaway (in the collar) hood.I picked mine up for less than £20 on line last year.
My only complaint about these jackets is that you tend to rattle and clank a bit when walking up and down the bank because of your hooks and shots and bits and bobs being packed away in little plastic boxes etc.... not so much of a problem though when carefully placing your feet when watching/stalking your quarry.

Nick....with a little thought you can make yourself rattle and clunk free........but to me the biggest threat is footsteps and putting things down on the bank......even skylining if done very slowly has less effect than noise transmitted from the bank itself.

 

[Specihunter]

nick get a magnetic box for your hooks and 2 hooklink cases 1 for hooklinks the other for your shots plus a box for odds .

 

[preston96]

nick get a magnetic box for your hooks and 2 hooklink cases 1 for hooklinks the other for your shots plus a box for odds .

And sponge in the boxes prone to rattle.....