Unfished rivers

[Steve the Bream]

Hi I am lucky enough to live on the Fermanagh/Cavan boarder (Ireland) Lough Erne and tributaries, We recently went to a smallish river which the farmer told us hadn't been fished for over 10 years , After cutting a couple of pegs from the vegetation we started to fish and boy was it good , lovely stamp roach 1lb + and nice Highbrids, and for 2 hours we both filled our nets , then just like someone had flicked a switch both pegs died, we've been back with 2 different approaches, but same again , it's unbelievable fishing then nothing on 2 pegs a good distance apart, any thoughts anyone,

 

[theartist]

If the river is a clear drain/canal type water then it can be hard to keep fish from moving on, alternatively if it is a small river you could have emptied the swim more or less as most small rivers need a roving approach after a hour.

Or could be you be drawing pike in? Maybe try without the nets and you'll either get a take or see some chases under the rod tip, they may be sitting around your nets drawn by all the commotion.

 

[no-one in particular]

2 hours of filling a net with prime roach and your complaining, some people are never happy. Only joking, its a good question. I think there must be some point in any swim where you have fished it out, could be several reasons, fed them all out, they have become wary or you have drawn pike in as Artist said. I would just set up a few more swims as far apart as you can if the farmer allows it and change swims once one has fished out.
On the bits of river I fish I have several swims quite far apart, sometimes the river changes between them, wide, narrow, bankside features, weed or no weed, shallow deep etc. And I have got to know them fairly well, although I often change swim because of lack of fish, I often debate with myself If I should stick to one swim and fish it until it comes on but the nagging worry that it might not come on all day makes me move. I always fish very light these days so moving swim takes little effort.

 

[peterjg]

I am amazed that the rivers are so little fished. I very regularly fish the Kennet, the Loddon, the Blackwater and the Thames, it is rare to see another angler - long may it continue! Although the fishing can be excellent I think anglers are put off by the long walks and the signal crayfish?

 

[nottskev]

What a great area for fishing you live in. I've had a few holidays in that region, mainly fishing the Erne but visiting several small tributaries. Some were of the deep canal type, others more stream-and-pool types. The fishing on the smaller waters always seemed to be either full on or full off. We'd often stop at bridges before deciding where to fish to check whether the fish were there or not. We tended to go in spring/early summer, so fish moving around in big shoals was typical. I'm not sure why fish would vanish in the way you describe in late summer, though.

As to the fish switching off in two distant swims at the same time, you're not the first to note strange coincidences of the sort. I was just reading a book by a well-known barbel angler, Trefor West. He recounts being amazed to find, one day in October, what looked like the entire barbel population - estimate 150 - of a stretch of the r|iver Teme congregated in one swim. It transpired that another angler discovered, on the same day, what looked like all the barbel from a stretch of a river 100 miles away, the Great Ouse, under a bridge there. More mundanely, I sat bream fishing without a bite for several hours on a lake. When I eventually caught and netted one, I looked over the far side, 80 yards away, and another angler who'd not moved all morning was netting one as well. Fish can do some stuff we can't explain.

 

[S-Kippy]

Although the fishing can be excellent I think anglers are put off by the long walks and the signal crayfish?

Damn right they are. I loved the Kennet but I've not fished it for years for those reasons plus the worry that my car wouldn't be there when I got back....not all of it anyway.

 

[xenon]

What a great area for fishing you live in. I've had a few holidays in that region, mainly fishing the Erne but visiting several small tributaries. Some were of the deep canal type, others more stream-and-pool types. The fishing on the smaller waters always seemed to be either full on or full off. We'd often stop at bridges before deciding where to fish to check whether the fish were there or not. We tended to go in spring/early summer, so fish moving around in big shoals was typical. I'm not sure why fish would vanish in the way you describe in late summer, though.

As to the fish switching off in two distant swims at the same time, you're not the first to note strange coincidences of the sort. I was just reading a book by a well-known barbel angler, Trefor West. He recounts being amazed to find, one day in October, what looked like the entire barbel population - estimate 150 - of a stretch of the r|iver Teme congregated in one swim. It transpired that another angler discovered, on the same day, what looked like all the barbel from a stretch of a river 100 miles away, the Great Ouse, under a bridge there. More mundanely, I sat bream fishing without a bite for several hours on a lake. When I eventually caught and netted one, I looked over the far side, 80 yards away, and another angler who'd not moved all morning was netting one as well. Fish can do some stuff we can't explain.

Sounds like the fishy equivalent of quantum entanglement.Check it out on wiki-you might need a stiff drink afterwards.

 

[nottskev]

Sounds like the fishy equivalent of quantum entanglement.Check it out on wiki-you might need a stiff drink afterwards.

You were right about that. Stuff like this reminds me of Rupert Sheldrake "Dogs who know when their owners are coming home", and all that. I'd like to see that documentary again.

 

[steve2]

I use to fish a lake for bream many years ago you would catch some then you could put your rods away for a few hours. They would then return you could almost set your watch by their patrol route timing. On small stream it was always catch a few and move on.

 

[no-one in particular]

Some fish are time control. I used to fish a day ticket water where the carp used to stay all day in a no fish area, at 4pm they moved out across the lake to feed, you could see them start to fan out at almost 4pm on the dot, then you would catch a few but not before. Another day ticket water, the tench always came on about 4pm as well. nearly always caught one or two at this time in the summer. Light may have something to do with it sometimes, I was fishing on a river with a mate when a eclipse occurred about mid day, it went very dark and all the birds started flying about as if they were going to their roosting places and we started to catch fish after not having a bite all morning, very odd it was, a bit spooky, once the sun came back out the birds were a bit confused and the bites dried up again.

 

[John Aston]

I rented a stretch of stream a few years ago which hadn't been fished for at least 40 years . It was very overgrown - literally , as it varied between 4- 15 feet wide and was lined by alders and willow . A few days with a saw and secateurs made it fishable and it was great fun. Fly was the obvious technique (non fly fishermen might be amazed where you cast a fly in tight cover ) and the trout were lovely. Very , very spooky - one clumsy footstep or clumsy bow wave when wading put a whole pool down - but were easy enough to catch on usual nymphs and dry fly . No monsters- but an 11 inch trout on a six foot #3 rod feels like a marlin in a tiny pool.

But after two years I moved on to other forgotten streams - I felt I knew every fish by name and had nothing much left to learn. But it was lovely to enjoy such a voyage of discovery in an unspoiled environment in complete solitude . Which isn't an experience available to those poor souls condemned to fish the (very well known )commercial just down the road from home. Shudder. .

 

[no-one in particular]

I rented a stretch of stream a few years ago which hadn't been fished for at least 40 years . It was very overgrown - literally , as it varied between 4- 15 feet wide and was lined by alders and willow . A few days with a saw and secateurs made it fishable and it was great fun. Fly was the obvious technique (non fly fishermen might be amazed where you cast a fly in tight cover ) and the trout were lovely. Very , very spooky - one clumsy footstep or clumsy bow wave when wading put a whole pool down - but were easy enough to catch on usual nymphs and dry fly . No monsters- but an 11 inch trout on a six foot #3 rod feels like a marlin in a tiny pool.

But after two years I moved on to other forgotten streams - I felt I knew every fish by name and had nothing much left to learn. But it was lovely to enjoy such a voyage of discovery in an unspoiled environment in complete solitude . Which isn't an experience available to those poor souls condemned to fish the (very well known )commercial just down the road from home. Shudder. .

I wouldn't shudder, they are probably just as happy as you are, but I know what you mean about learning a stretch well, I have done that on a few stretches, one was a river, upper part, narrow, bends, one small waterfall, long glides etc., it was spate and it could change quite quickly. Anyway, I learned every nook and cranny of about 1/2 mile stretch of it, where all the fish were, the chub particularly, the likely few big roach that were present, in fact it was my first chub on a fly there. It's a good thing to do, to properly learn a bit of river..

 

[steve2]

Both my clubs rent river sections and could be classed as unfished. Most of the time I would 2 miles of small stream to myself. The lakes mean while are full most of the time.

 

[Steve the Bream]

Thanks for the feedback very much appreciated, i have revisited the river with the information on board, we've come to the conclusion that theres a large shoal of fish that move together . So its moving with the fish that keeps them coming. We cut out 2 additional pegs to the right and the left, we fished the original pegs and sport was a bit slow but then they showed up on my pals peg first and then mine shortly after we had 90 minutes of excellent fishing. Then it started to slow down and eventually faded to the odd fish, and same for my mate. We both moved i went down stream and he went up, and i started catching again and he struggled for bites . So the conclusion is they moved on mass on this occasion down stream, so lots of correct answers. The Roach are in absolutely pristine condition, a beautiful goldy bronze colour biggest 1.12 llb, and a few highbrids up to the 2 llb mark, and none had seen a hook before, Lovely wild Angling,

 

[Steve the Bream]

What a great area for fishing you live in. I've had a few holidays in that region, mainly fishing the Erne but visiting several small tributaries. Some were of the deep canal type, others more stream-and-pool types. The fishing on the smaller waters always seemed to be either full on or full off. We'd often stop at bridges before deciding where to fish to check whether the fish were there or not. We tended to go in spring/early summer, so fish moving around in big shoals was typical. I'm not sure why fish would vanish in the way you describe in late summer, though.

As to the fish switching off in two distant swims at the same time, you're not the first to note strange coincidences of the sort. I was just reading a book by a well-known barbel angler, Trefor West. He recounts being amazed to find, one day in October, what looked like the entire barbel population - estimate 150 - of a stretch of the r|iver Teme congregated in one swim. It transpired that another angler discovered, on the same day, what looked like all the barbel from a stretch of a river 100 miles away, the Great Ouse, under a bridge there. More mundanely, I sat bream fishing without a bite for several hours on a lake. When I eventually caught and netted one, I looked over the far side, 80 yards away, and another angler who'd not moved all morning was netting one as well. Fish can do some stuff we can't explain.

There are some strange phenomenon's associated with Angling aren't there, i believe theres a lot to the moon phases thing and so do a lot of top anglers ,Darren Cox and Keith Arthur are big believers in the theory . As for where i live and fish i know i am very lucky with such fantastic places , as you know from visiting, There are a lot of Anglers over from England at the moment enjoying the place ,