Thames: River Thames - is it fishing for anyone else?

[peter crabtree]

Re: River Thames - is it fishing for anyone else?

My club (uracs) fished our annual tidal match at Kew bridge yesterday.
We were a little apprehensive about it after the big sewage spill earlier
in the year . As usual we waited until the level was low enough to get down onto the first bit of exposed beach. Once all of us were on the beach the match started.
The water was it's usual muddy brown colour and flowing right to left.
Most used groundbait feeder and maggot tactics. Being tidal it involves moving forward every 10 or so minutes so minimum gear is essential .
out of 14 pegs there were a few blanks but the rest caught bream to 4lb, dace, roach and eels. The small dab we normally catch were not to be seen and only 1 basslet showed.
It was a very sunny hot day but fish were caught but most anglers only getting one or 2 fish. I caught a nice dace around 6oz (which escaped my keepnet when it fell over) and a skimmer of 1lb 06oz.
This match is usually won with 20 to 30lb and the top weight yesterday was 6lb odd. Difficult to decide whether this was due to lack of fish or the bright sunny conditions.

 

[peter crabtree]

Re: River Thames - is it fishing for anyone else?

Strictly pleasure angling today at Walton on Thames.
Fished just downstream from the bridge.
Pole at 11m in 12ft of water. 1gr body up polefloat to a 1gr olivette and 3 no10 droppers , size 20 Drennan red maggot hook with single red maggot on a top4 rig 10ft deep.
Balled in 6 tangerine size balls of River ace groundbait and 6 big pouches of hemp. Started fishing at 9:30 and by 1pm had not had a bite.
then the bright sun was blocked by the bridge and my swim was in shade.
First came some small perch followed by some plump dace.
Towards dusk the roach appeared and it was 1 a chuck.
My keepnet was a real autumn treat of colours to behold when I finally packed up around 4:30 . Guesstimate 8 to 10lb ...
happy days....

 

[Alan Campbell]

Re: River Thames - is it fishing for anyone else?

Nice one Peter. Looks like we are all fishing at the wrong times. I could do with a lie in on a Sunday

 

[peter crabtree]

Re: River Thames - is it fishing for anyone else?

Where were you Alan?
btw good to see you posting again....

 

[Alan Campbell]

Re: River Thames - is it fishing for anyone else?

All around Oxford is fishing patchy. Fish are all shoaled up and the bream and chub have gone into hiding. I think the Thames has got one of it's moods again

 

[Jeff Woodhouse]

Re: River Thames - is it fishing for anyone else?

My club (uracs)

Ah, so you're one of my members too, the TVAA. TIP: forget the Jubilee RIver for now, needs colour and rain. Wey Nav might be better.

All around Oxford is fishing patchy.

I took note of what you said about my little stretch, Alan, thanks. I reckon the whole area needs rain, gentle stuff that wouldn't cause a flood, but enough to bring the river up a bit and give it some flow.

 

[murraybank]

Re: River Thames - is it fishing for anyone else?

Walton on thames..

After speaking to Simon(Peter crabtree) a few times over the last week my self and a friend fished at Walton yesterday..

At one stange there was going to be five of us all having at small knock up match but as usual people dropped out preferring to fish a commercial..

We got there for first light and both set up on the first pegs down from the bridge.

Both set up to fish the pole at 11 m (put out 6 balls of groundbait) and the waggler..

Using and feeding maggot,caster and hemp we did not have a bite between us for the first 3 hours

Then I had 4 1/2lb perch on the waggler but once again not another bite for 2 hours..

Every now and then we noticed some large fish turning under the bridge so my mate moved right up to it and set up a feeder to fish towards the second stantion..

What happend next is a bit of a blur but at the end of the day he had 25 Bream all between 5 and 7 pound.

Brillant fishing, I also set up a feeder and and a few casts towards the area and had 5 bream with the biggest at 7lb 10oz..

just as it was getting to dark to fish i tried the pole again and had 6 good dace and a perch just over 2 pound in as many runs through..

Disappointed not to see any Roach and the fishing on the pole and waggler was rubbish in the day but cant complain with fishing the feeder for those slabs..

Thank Simon..

Chris..

 

[bigcol]

Evening Gents,

Apologies if this in the wrong place.

Last summer I got back into fishing after a 25 or so year holiday. Fished a few commercials, which were nice but it all seems, seemed a bit artificial.

This leads me onto writing this post.

When I was young I fished the Thames a lot as it was near and get-to-able by pushbike! Main areas were the Odney at Cookham, Boulters Lock at Maidenhead, Eton Wick, Bray, Bray Lock, the backwater at Brayby the motorway bridge (lots of Pike there).

Fast forward 25 years and I'd like to return, obvious questions are;

Where is good

Where needs a permit, and from whom, how much (what clubs in around Maidenhead?)

Where is free

And most importantly, what methods and baits? Being at the height of sophistication back in the day, coffin lead legdering and or waggler float fishing with either punched bread or maggot were what I used with reasonable success. Have things changed?

Many thanks in advance.

 

[jay e dillon]

You have to ween the fish off their natural food.
I think jeff is right.

 

[peter crabtree]

I was only thinking today of this thread and intended to make a new post, Jay must have read my mind...
So far this season I haven't fished the Thames but Wednesday will be my first go. Unfortunately those lovely swims below the old bridge at Walton on Thames are no more. Now the foundations of a new bridge.
This Wednesday will be my first Thames encounter, a match on the Old Windsor stretch in the Queens back garden..
I've heard it's up and down with the recent rain but still coloured..
Anyone fished the Lower River recently?

 

[peter crabtree]

Fished the Thames at Old Windsor today, breakfast in the castle was lovely..
The river was coloured but pushing. I set up my pole but a 2gram bolo type float was not heavy enough, even overshot by about a gram.
2gr is the biggest I have, but it really needed 4 or even 6gr to fish effectively.
Set up a waggler (5BB Drennan peacock quill, the old green ones) couldn't buy a bite. Changed to stick float( 5BB) and winkled out some small roach and a big dace closer in. It really fished hard for all 15 of us today, My 14oz net after 5 hours didn't come last, so that's some consolation...
Winner had 5lb+ and there were a couple of 4's and 3's but overall it was frustratingly hard.

 

[peter crabtree]

A mate and I fished at Walton on Thames today. The blustery upstream wind made the pole too tricky. We both plumped for long rods instead. I set up a 15ft and mate set up a 20ft. Trotting single red maggot in 12ft of water I used a 5bb Drennan big stick while mate used a 3gr pole float set with bait tripping the bottom.
Bit early for the better fishing but we managed to catch some nice (6/8oz) dace and a few roach and perch.
Had a heart stopping moment when my rod bowed down and a fight ensued. I was hoping for one of the monster perch that show occasionally down there. Finally got it to the surface and it was a big pike....mg:

 

[bigdog78]

Had a good session with a couple of fishing buddies on sunday down at sunbury... Between us we had around 40 skimmers to 8oz ,some nice dace slightly smaller than the skimmers and my first roach bream hybrid which for a moment made me think i had broken my roach pb Oh and the usual perch shoals all on maggot feeder and small groundbait balls. Nothing enormous but nice to continually catch all day.

 

[marlow mark]

Just moved to Marlow and thinking about Joining Marlow AC.
Any advice or tips for the new season anyone

 

[theartist]

Just moved to Marlow and thinking about Joining Marlow AC.
Any advice or tips for the new season anyone

Early season try getting on the weirs or as close as possible, other than that fish early morns or late evenings to avoid most the boat traffic

 

[Jeff Woodhouse]

If you join Marlow A.C., try evening/night fishing opposite Bisham Church (off "the Boards" as they call it.) Feeder fishing with maggot or worm, but ball in a load of groundbait first, about 50-60 yards across. Bags of bream over 100lbs can be had just after midnight.

Forget Riverwoods. The fishing is good, but you'll have difficulty finding a swim you can get into, it's all overgrown with trees and scrub. The point is good, but the bank has collapsed in places and it should all be fenced off before someone breaks a leg. Three years, the EA has know about it. All along the free stretch can be good with new swims down there being built.

 

[markluker]

I am looking to fish the Thames, anywhere between Hampton Court and Wandsworth, when the season opens up.

Anyone got any hot spots or tips they can pass on?

 

[Graham Elliott 1]

I'd head to desborough cut if it's barbel you are after.

Be aware, popular with unusual walkers.... looking to engage in conversation.

 

[markluker]

I had a wander around Canbury Gardens this morning. The river is looking lovely and clean. Lots of small fry darting around the margins. Ive never fished this stretch before (only fished Staines Bridge, Chertsey Meadow and Sunbury). Anyone else looking forward to getting back on the Thames?