LATE RAMBLINGS

Hello to all

Readers of this blog may have started to think I have given up fishing?...... Oh no! I have still been on the chase, and catching a few but in my personal life I ain't been top of the pops so finding the motivation to write rather than capping fools on GTA has been a bit of a non starter. I cant imagine life devoid of angling, It has become far more than a hobby to me and more like a way of life. There are so many great things about angling but one that stands out for me is the fact that anyone can have a go. People from all different walks of life and classes participate in the sport, making the angler a very diverse creature indeed.

Unlike the fish we are all trying to catch humans are a very complicated species, some seem friendly and very approachable and others......well lets just say,don't. I have fished many waters which has led to me encountering all sorts of folk.One such that sits in my mind was a summers evening spin fishing on my local canal, I was roving the banks generally minding my own business,and catching bugger all when I walked past a father son duo that were float fishing ( badly ) and enjoying the weather,I said hello and asked if they minded me making a few casts to a over hang that wasn't really even in there swim, shiiit I was just being polite, the lad said no problems and father made a grunt so I proceeded to chuck the lure about when the lad asked if I could help them a bit? why not I thought.I gave them some advice and set up his float correctly and went on up the toe path feeling that my good deed may yield a fish or two....Wrong!

Ten or so minutes passed before a car came screeching up behind me,the lads father proceeded to flop out the vehicle clucthing a flippin crow bar. He was slumping his way towards me literally foaming at the mouth, the bemused look on my face sparked a pleasant response."gimme my lads fackin phone back or I'll open your head up". I tried to reason with the guy as obviously I hadn't taken the phone but he was having non of it.Yeah I'm a Mersey-sider but this took the piss! I could see this dude was fuming and the possibility of coppin an unfortunate one led me to make a quick decision to ditch the landing net,dodge fatty and proceed to do my best impression of Husein Bolt  in a bid to get to the main road. Did I make it? of course I did lol, he even drove past me shouting out the window that I'm dead the next time he See's me.

Any way the point I'm trying to make is that through angling I have met some pretty colourful characters,the like minded-ness and love for the sport has also formed some good friendships.I,ll stop spouting now and talk some fishing, as you may have seen in my last blog post I have been doing a spot of Barbel fishing.I finished my short stint as a Barbel angler with an absolute corker of a fish.

At 11lb 13oz I had struck gold,here in Devon these creatures are as rare as rocking horse droppings.Needless to say I was very chuffed.On other exploits we have been targeting predators from a number of waters.

Its Pike time now so watch this space.

Til next time

Wrap up warm and good luck

ALL THINGS GREAT AND SMALL

Hello to all

Sorry for the lack of posts folks, life outside of fishing has been very complicated as of late. So as you may have noticed? the blogging has been on hold. On a positive note my time spent water-side has been a complete contrast and the fish have been very kind to me.

I know a fella that had the idea of getting a small 14ft rib dinghy to use as a vessel to go Shark fishing....... yes I did just say Shark fishing! the man in question is none other than my ol mate and big fish magnet Julian Chidgey,when Jules has an idea; it will happen and be done with precision and in an organised manner that I'm yet to get my head around......Mans a fishing machine!
I can't thank Jules enough for inviting me to join him on the small but mighty Lamna nasus for a weekends shark fishing off the Cornish coast.

I can tell you now that this was some straight up extreme shit.10 miles off-shore in a tiny rubber boat with sharks swimming round it may sound like a scary prospect and quite stupid really? Nah....this was angling at its finest in my eye's.

My first take was nothing short of breath-taking, a group of sea gulls had clocked us chumming and throwing in fish scraps to draw the sharks to the boat.They settled next to us watching our every move in anticipation of snatching a quick snack, the birds then seemed agitated and quickly made a hasty exit  from the water, sparking up a right row. Then a big blue fin broke the surface, quickly followed by the tail as the shark dipped back under.I turned to Jules and was just about to say something when the bait-runner on the close in rod went into melt down. The adrenaline was flowing as I made a quick strike; she replied with the most aggressive run I have ever felt literally flat rodding me on a clutch one click from being on lock!.The fight these creatures posses is nothing short of arm aching,especially when your using a 3lb tc 10 ft spinning rod ( Fox Terminator ) with a 10,000 size bait runner ( Stratos ) Over the course of our trip we landed a number of blues to over the ton up mark.We also captured the action on video, so rather than going into any more detail you can expect to see a short film in the near future.

Back on dry land I have been back on the running water and have concentrated my efforts towards catching a few Barbel. Ahhh it felt good to be back on the river's, after-all most of my summer has been spent pursuing Carp and Cats on still water's. I didn't realise just how much I had missed the charm and uncertainty of wild river angling until I was actually on the bank, back in the game.
My approach has been to keep mobile, using only one rod and carrying nothing but the bare essentials.This makes for very pleasant fishing and allows the angler to cover ground with minimum fuss, it always amazes me how varied the sport can be when roving a river, there's nout like a mixed bag on a light feeder outfit,
Pleasure fishing at its finest I would say.

I also nabbed a beautiful Common Carp of 25lb 14oz during a quick over nighter on the Main at Anglers paradise....... Which was nice.

Til next time

Good luck

ANOTHER DAY IN PARADISE

Hello to all

You may have already guessed it by the title of this piece?..... yep back at Zyggy's , since joining the 5c's I can hardly tear myself away from the place. I have been some what side tracked from my usual tradition of spending the bulk summer chasing river fish; and to be honest I'm having so much fun at Zygs I'm not really missing the sound of running water at all.

Fun and enjoyment is what its all about; learning and making improvements is also a big part of angling. During my short time at Anglers paradise I feel I have learnt more about catching Carp than I have in years.Spending time on the main lake has given me the oppertunity to experiment with lots of different presentations and methods and most importantly really understand the reasons for using them, thus enabling the angler (in this case me) to tackle each situation with the most effective way of catching the fish.

My latest session on the Main proved to be very fruitful, After a bit of exploration with the trusty marker float I located a good sized hard patch situated a few rod lengths of an island. This seemed like a good spot to lay on a nice spread of boiley and pellet, and at around 30 yards baiting up with the catty and a few cheeky spombs was an easy task. I decided to spice things up a bit and use solid bags on one rod and small sticks on tutha,both rods where fished on the baited patch and before I could even get the kettle on the right hand rod with the stick on it was away with a proper one toner! the fish had instantly responded to my offering and whilst playing what felt like a reasonable Carp I could still see bubbling over the baited patch. After a dogged fight in the margins I slipped the net under a pristine Mirror of 20lb 2oz, a good start indeed.

The morning continued to produce on both presentations,but by around lunch time the action dipped as the fish took a break to sun themselves in the upper layers. I don't blame them really and to be honest I felt a bit lazy myself, a floater set up may have yielded a few but I was quite content to remain planted on my arse soaking up the atmosphere and enjoying the fact I was'nt at work toshin plaster around.The lake was devoid of anglers other than myself and pal Dan Price, who's initiation into the 5c's will be coming up soon, I look forward to being a spectator this time ( lol ).Dan also enjoyed some sport and caught a few Carp and a plump Golden Tench.

After cooking us up a typically shoddy anglers dinner I set about topping my spot up with fresh batch of bait in the hopes of having multiple visitor's during the night.The evening was very warm and muggy,it felt like a heavy downpour was on its way.I hoped this wasn't going to be the case as I wasn't really kitted up for a wet one,any way getting wet aside these are often good conditions for a decent hit.The Wels catfish (more often than not) will go bang on the munch during such conditions and didn't I just know it. At around 3am the solid bag rod had snared me a fish that couldn't possibly be a Carp! Crunch crunch crunch went the heavily set clutch as the fish powered off into the darkness and frankly where ever the hell it wanted, I felt pretty powerless during the opening round.After ten or so minutes I started to get the upper hand and shouted for Dan to grab my head torch and shoes.We lit up the lake revealing the fish was close. Get the net mate I nervously said as I piled full pressure on to try and get its head up and sneek a glimpse of its size.The fish was having none of it and in a rage suddenly ripped off leaving me no choice but to slaken  the clutch and let her get it out of her system.This process repeated a few times and my wrist was aching but with a last gasp walking backwards locked up heave and some bloody good netting from Danny boy the donkey was in the sack.

Pheeew, with a deep breath I could finally relax.There lay a huge Cat that would surely smash my pb of 47lb 8oz and after just about getting her into the sling the scales proved exactly that, she turned the needle round to an impressive 62lbs. I was standing under the moon feeling well over it. I love Catfish,there bloody brilliant!

Til next time

Good luck

HEAT WAVE HAULING

Hello to all

I hope you have all been enjoying the sunshine and catching plenty of fishes, I for one certainly have. Sorry for the lack of posts but my flippin computer went loopy,Whilst unable to write a blog I have fished quite a few sessions targeting Carp. Mostly quick over-nighter's on the main lake at Anglers paradise and a small pressured water closer to home. I'm pleased to report that I have been catching steadily whilst experimenting with all sorts of methods and presentations. Aside from Carp I ventured way out to sea with my pal Julian Chidgey in search of my first Shark; but that's a whole different story so we will leave it for now.

Fishing just off the pads ( locked up ) with little solid bags has proved very effective at Anglers paradise, not a method for the faint hearted tho; takes are like giant Barbel Hits and the first few seconds of the fight are crucial in that you must not give the carp an inch (until it is clear from danger) when snag fishing.The mainline I am currently using is 20lb breaking strain which is perfect for this method of angling, after all we don't fish to lose em or potentially leave the poor old Mr carp trailing a rig do we?

on my last session I found myself in a rather tight little swim with the perfect opportunity to use the washing line technique. To my left ran a very thick weed bed which consumed 10 or so metres of the margin.On the end of the weed there was a over hanging tree, which had blocked the suns rays leaving a lovely little hole in the snot as a result of this. After dropping the rig in by hand I fed 5 good hand fulls of pellet and chops and felt very confident that I would not have to wait long for a diner to arrive at my stealthy little Carp restaurant.The trap looked perfect as was the weather,I slept under the stars that night which is always nice I find. At around 3am the washing line shot out the clip as the trap was sprung, the fish shot straight out of the margin into the open water.Immediately I could tell it was only a small fish and after a lot of plopping around I had a lovely little black common of around 2lbs at a push.Oh well at least the trap had worked.On another session I caught my first Grass Carp and a lovely Golden Tench of 5lbs 2oz.

I have also netted some stunning fish for mates, Dan Price joined me for a session at Anglers Paradise where he landed 3 pristine Mirrors. Myself and Ty enjoyed a 6 fish catch on a quick 12 hour night session, for a proper write up on that session please visit www. adriotangler.blogspot 

The shark fishing trip was awesome! We set out of a small harbour near Falmouth at around 6am and spent the whole day drifting at around 10 miles off shore, I loved the whole process of Shark fishing and cant wait to get back out. Any way I hooked and landed a Decent 80lb plus Blue Shark on a heavy 10ft 3lbtc spinning rod and a Stratos 10000 bait runner loaded with 30lb Horizon braid,The fight ( which was filmed on deck and under water) was electric and really tested myself and the tackle in a very painfully pleasing manner.

There is more Sharking in the pipe line, myself and Jules hope to capture enough footage to put together a short film so wish us luck.

Here is a little teaser 

Til next time

Good luck and don't forget the sun cream !

UP IN DA CLUB

Hello to all

First of all let me offer a warm welcome to our new manager Roberto Martinez, I have a real buzz for the new season and cant wait to see a bit of a re-shuffle and change in tactics at Goodison. Yes we may have to wave goodbye to mans like Felli and Bainsy but 40 million notes will do nicely; unless that cheef Kenwright pockets it that is!

Good luck Roberto, lets bring excitement and European footy back to the park!

Fishing time now folks, as I wrote last time about my new found love of Carp fishing, I followed this up by joining a Carp fishing club. I had received an invite from the ever eccentric angling legend that is Zyg Gregorek to join his syndicate the 5C's. I decided to take him up on the offer and soon found myself heading up to Anglers Paradise to meet some of the other members and take part in a rather strange initiation ritual. All the members have done it said Zyg as I had a bin load of fresh pond weed ( bugs n all ) tipped over my head. If that wasn't enough I then had a bag of ice stuffed down the front of me keks and had to sit there in silence for an hour or so while the rest of the members went about the monthly meeting. I looked a right wally an me thingy had basically inverted its-self to escape the harsh touch of the ice, but I survived the ordeal and went on to part 2 of the process. Next we headed down to Zygs Boat house on the Main carp lake where I would have to walk the plank then take a swim round an island to collect an item than swim back to the boat house were the initiation would be completed with a shot of fine malt. That bit was a piece of cake for a part time ninja such as myself but the ice down the pants......ooooooh! would'nt wanna do that again lol.

The following weekend I returned for a 24 hour session on the main lake in search of Carp, I was joined by fellow 5C's member an good pal Dom Garnett. After a quick walk round the lake we discovered we had the

whole place to our selves,( which was nice ) we set up in the sun bathed shallows and spent the day supping cider in the sun whilst attempting to catch one off the surface.The carp proved to be very cunning when it came to the floaters but I did have one clear chance, but fluffed it to my dismay.

The light was quickly fading as the day drew to an end so I decided to pack the floater fishing in and get my rigs in place for the oncoming darkness.I fished both rods at around ten yards amongst the weedy pads on a patch around the size of a snooker table.The area then took a bombardment of chopped boiley and a mixed selection of pellet which all took a good soaking in tutti fruity glug, both rods were fished on 2oz in line leads with short hook links comprising of size 8 Arma points tied up on 20lb Cortex with a small piece of shrink tube steamed over the eye of the hook to give it that extra bit of sting.

With that all sorted it was then just a case of playing the waiting game, to say the evening was nice would be an under statement.The sky looked amazing, I haven't seen that many stars since I camped out in the Andes. A strangely warm but cooling breeze drifted over the lake setting a lovely scene for a fish or two. Dom was first off the mark with a cracking zip linear of 19lb 8oz's, what a start we both agreed! After a few quick pictures she was slipped back to go about her daily ambles,We sat back in victory only to interrupted by the sound of a screaming buzzer, I was thankful that it was one of mine disturbing the peace; as I picked up my rod which instantly crunched into submission. As I connected to the fish my spool started to melt, Cat on! I yelled! an unstoppable run saw the fish get round what felt like a  proper snag which I thought would end my fun. I could feel the line grating as I piled on a serious amount of pressure testing the tackle to its limit, eventually I persuaded the fish into open water but I still had the chore of getting it through the pads and into my landing net.I was beginning to worry about the state of my line after extracting the cat out of the snag but it seemed lady luck was on my side as a lengthy Cat was just about bundled into the net.

Not what I was after but a 35lb 7oz Cat was a great consolation prize and a good first fish.I inspected my line and just as I thought it was shredded above the leader splaying off tears in the mono filament.Good job I was using 20lb main line, I reset the trap after removing all the damaged line and re rigging etc. Then gave the swim a good top up before changing clothes and retiring to the comfort of my sleeping bag. At 2 30am I had another flat liner of a run but this time on my other rod. After a good fight I dipped the net to scoop up a common (which looked to be a good twenty) only to spook the fish back into the pads where my barbless hook proceeded lose contact.I soon had a fresh bait back out and drifted off for a while before I was woken up the alarm alerting me of another take, this time I had my way with the fish that was again a lump of a Carp.

This beautiful 22lb 4oz fully scaled was my prize and the action didn't stop there, The whole initiation seemed worthwhile and I can't wait to get back down!

Til next time

Good luck

ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL

Hello to all

Regular reader's of this blog may have picked up on the fact I'm a mad keen Everton fan, you may have also noticed that in past blogs I,ve given David Moyes a bit of a hard time and often pointed towards him buggering off in favour of a new manager and fresh tactics.....Well its happened now and I know David reads this blog as he has often used my tactics so I would like to apologise for my derogatory jibes and wish you luck in your new job.

Come on Martinez! hurry up and get yourself over the to the Park ladd.

Anyway lets talk fishing

I don't know why or where it came from but I have recently found myself turning into a bit of a Carp nut? the underwater world that ticks in my brain mostly contained thoughts of big ol catfish swimming round but they have moved on for the time being, and carp have replaced them.The majority of my carping revolves around wild venues such as rivers and canals, I have enjoyed some great adventures and tangled with lots of big carp on such venues but now I have opted for a big change.

Devon and the south west are home to some stunning still waters that contain huge carp, with some even reaching weights of 40lbs plus! I have decided to take the time to learn the finer arts of the trade and try to trip up a real lump or two, fishing rivers and canals etc may seem a very daunting idea for some but from what I have gathered from years of fishing them is that wild fish are fairly easy to catch once located,I have found the opposite in similar situations whilst fishing still waters for heavily pressured fish so that's that, its time to improve my skills.

Myself and Ty had our eyes on two venues not far from home, both very different to one and other in looks and stocking levels, but both fishery's boasted Carp to over 30 lbs. Another thing that they had in common was the fact that they take a proper hammering 24 7 365. with that in mind we turned up for a quick over nighter in the evening of bank holiday Monday, surely most would have gone home we hoped? yes but the lake bed is probably littered with munga and all sorts of crap from the week-enders I was thinking. Anyway negativity aside we got there to find a decent looking area (which would put the pair of us up) free of other anglers, a gusty wind was pushing hard into the deeper area of the lake which was free of lines so we wasted no time getting settled in and the rods out.Well that's a slight white lie really,I was moving at the pace of a snail as I had attended  a Music festival in Bristol the previous day,by the time It took me to get a rod in the water Ty had banked two decent doubles in the form of a 16lb 1oz Common and a 18lb 7oz Mirror ( good angling mate )

Not to make my self sound even more foolish but Ty also lent me one of his rigs, you could say I was about as prepared for the session as George Michele was for that impromptu stunt he pulled on the M1 the other day.I finally got my act together and got the rods out,I was fishing simple bolt rigs with pop ups on both rods which where punched out into the teeth of the wind on the far margin,meanwhile Ty was on a flyer landing doubles left right and centre from a sheltered shallower area in a long island channel. at around midnight I decided I was sick of hearing Tys Delkims screaming so I moped of to my bivvy to get some well needed kip. At around 5am I finally had a take and swiftly landed a plump Mirror of 14lb 5oz,Ty was up and had already banked a fish, enough was enough. it was obvious that the majority of the fish were held up out of the wind,well away from where I had set stall, a move was a must.I decided to leave Ty to hold fought whilst I went to collect the dog,whilst driving I was thinking tactics and where I would move my rods so I could get it done quickly on my return.Me and Pepe arrived back at the fishery to find Ty had landed another two and had a nice Common in the sack to show me what a Carp looked like, Anyway; rods moved and the dogs actually behaving in a mildly social manner......that's before he gets sight of a little black Moore hen and breaks free from my grasp in a mad dash for an early lunch. Splash, there he go's, over my rods and straight in the water briefly disappearing before he popped up with a sour look on his face.Right that's it! I said, in the car with ya! after getting rid of the little rascal I tied up two little micro bags and sent the rigs back out.An hour later I had an absolute screamer of take and lifted into what felt like a good fish,moments later my heart sank as the hook pulled.dismay and disappointment were just some of the feelings I experienced before I calmed myself and set about tying a fresh rig,the carp gods smiled down on me and granted me another chance on the remaining rod. It was almost like a reward for containing my anger,this felt like an even better fish and was plodding around powerfully almost hugging bottom.After a while I managed to get the fishes head up and guided it towards Ty who was stood there withe the net waiting.Ahhhh a huge sense of relief was enjoyed as a lump of a Common wallowed in the net.

Bingo! my first still water 20 and a new pb. At 27lb 14oz I was pretty chuffed with that one and I went home feeling a whole lot better.

The next day myself and Ty were out fishing another busy Carp fishery, when we arrived mid afternoon the whole place was rammo. But I had sneaked in early and set our bivvy's up in two prime swims then payed for our tickets and gone home to do chores and what not. A cheeky move yes and i,m surprised our bivvys weren't thrown in the water as I had been informed by a lad on the lake that a few disgruntled anglers had turned up looking for a peg. Never mind ay? I soon had my rods clipped up to a couple of Carpy looking spots that I had previously ran a lead over and discovered some lovely hard patches of gravel.The rigs both hit the clips and landed with a satisfying donk.I kept  the lines super slack and baiting to a minimum as I had heard alot of the fish are suspicious around large baited area's,plus the fact I was only on a quick session so it seemed a sensible option to fish for a bite at a time. the night past without as much as a bleep,I wound in to check my rigs which came back clean an dandy.the rod I had fished towards an island over hang could be any tighter,however the other rod that I had cast over towards a similar feature had a little room for improvement.Ty suggested that I removed the hook link an chong it over to the far margin and put the rig right under the tree by hand. A cunning plan my friend, ten minutes later the spool was melting as a fish bolted off out the bay to seek sanctuary of the snags.not on your Nelly i said as I put my hand over the spool to briefly lock everything up.The fish turned and started to head towards me and the net, A small crowd gathered  and not long after a beautiful Mirror with large apple slice scales glistening on its large flank was expertly scooped up by Ty.

Another still water 20 was my prize, 22lb 6oz this time.Could I be getting the hang of this carping? we,ll soon see.

Til next time

Be lucky

CAT NAPS

Hello to all

Ahhhh... the sun is here! well it is now at least, as I write this piece I cant help looking out the window and thinking I should be out enjoying such a rarity with a couple of baits in the drink but hey ho needs must and all that jazz. most people I can see have smiles on there face's and are donning summer wear and sunglasses.Its amazing what a bit of sun can do, even the most miserable of cranks in my town seem to be in remotely good spirits, its as if the warmth has awoken them from there usual state of anti social grumpy-ness. Myself and Tyrone were hoping the same applied with the Catfish as we headed up to Zygs place.The car was full to the brim with bait and heavy tackle to go with the heavy drum n bass we had booming on our way  up the A30.

Upon arrival we were greeted by Zyg  who proceeded to crack the usual pussy jokes with a big smile on his face, he also modestly ( lol ) informed us that he had recently broken another world record with a 1000lb plus Shark some where off Norway. Any-way to the dismay of the other fish Zyg has literally hundreds of Wels Catfish lurking in many of his many waters, we decided to target a water with around a dozen Wels in it, yes there are other lakes containing higher numbers but we decided to gamble and go for a biggy.

Its still early for the Cats so we decided not to feed to much on the first night and see what happened, heavy carp tackle was used to present simple running rigs with a 22mm halibut pellet tipped with a pop up hanging of a size 1 Fox arma point.After casting the baits out we used a Spomb to introduce a small amount of pellet and fishy mix for added attraction.

It was then just a case of playing the old waiting game,we were both very excited at the prospect of a big fat catfish.The day went very quickly and I soon found myself settling in for the night; which we all know is prime time for the trap to be sprung.Will I be called to burst out of my sleeping bag as if I had woken up sharing it with an Conger eel?

The answer to that was yes! at 5am I had a slow stuttery take, I lept to attention and was on the rods like a flash.The alarm fell silent for a few seconds before the spool started to rip off again.Catfish on!!! the fish bent  my 3.25lb tc rod into full submission the trouble was after around a minute or so the hook pulled, I re-set and cast the rod back out feeling a little bit annoyed, no more chances came our way that night but we still had another day in our favour and conditions were looking spot on for a bite with a very warm night with lots of cloud cover blocking the light of the moon completely.

The day past uneventfully, (as it usually does when targeting Cats)  with no visible signs of fish movement and a blank first night we again kept the baiting very light. Fresh hook-baits and small top up of pellet was all we felt were needed to coax a bite if the fish got moving, the night was very warm and had an almost stormy feel to it, the light levels were also good with no sign of the moon which is just the way I like it.Confidence was high;all that was missing was a smelly wet net. I was happy to be rudely awoken by the sound of a delkim screaming off, a second chance had been granted and this time I had a good firm hook hold which didn't let me down during a 20 minute guided tour of the lake.

Bingo! my first Cat of the season, at 27lb she turned out to be the baby of the lake.Ugly as sin but my god they don't arf pull back.Unfortunately Ty didn't make it onto the score board but I'm sure we'll be back to sort that one out.

Til next time

Good luck

MIXING IT UP

Hello to all

Lets just stand back a moment and appreciate the fact we are anglers.....what the hell is he on about some may be thinking? well; in my eyes being an angler is a privilege, having a passion for something so simple and accessible is a gift, and the diversity of our sport is simply huge.Think about all the different styles and methods there are in the modern scene, then all the tackle, bait and locations to fish and most importantly the fish themselves. For those willing to travel; potential adventures are limitless. I don't think I could catch all the species I want in ten life-times,unless channel 5 sack off that total twot Robson Green and let me use the thousands of wasted pounds to make a decent fishing show, but some how I cant see that happening any time soon.

I have been mixing my fishing up lately,usually my angling will be what is termed specimen fishing,targeting specific fish can often be a slow affair and with the horrendous easterly winds we,ve been having; playing the waiting game hasn't been pleasant. A trip to a commercial with my pals Dom Garnett and Dan Price was a real refreshing bit of fishing, we set about on a small silver-fish pond with the idea of the most colourful bag wins the match. A light hearted affair it was, also a light tackle occasion as it was a very cold day and bites were finicky.Dom lent me his 15ft match rod coupled with a quality centre pin which made for a lovely outfit, the tackle was as light as I have ever fished in my life. A small pole float down to a 2lb bottom with a size 20 hook seemed like micro tackle compared to the big hooks and rope I'm accustom to.After plumbing the depth and getting the tackle correct I was sat comfortably with all my bait and bits next to me doing what I thought was a pretty good impression of a competent match angler ( looks can be deceiving ).I kept my feeding to a minimal kick starting the session with a nugget of ground bait and a dozon red maggots, I lowered the sensitive rig over the offerings just of the rod tip and it wasn't long before I was playing a plump skimmer to the net. A few more cute skimmers and some small Roach were added to the net before I had a big lift bite seeing me strike into a fish which put a lovely bend in the rod, I played the fish carefully as it felt like a goodun! we laughed when a tench of around a pound broke the surface,this light tackle lark is brilliant I said;I was having a right blast!

The boys were also having a good time of it gettin amongst the action, Dom had been using  pole to good effect catching a lovely mixed bag and fish of the day in the shape of a cracking still-water Perch just short of the 3lb mark! Dan caught lots of tench on the waggler including a cracking banana tench of around 2.5lbs

 

After enjoying that trip so much I went to my local tackle shop to stock up on some micro tackle, pole floats and a selection of hooks to nylon.I  then took my new toys along with 2 pints of maggots and a bag of 2mm pellet to a local commercial t see if i could replicate the fun I had enjoyed on my last silver fish session.I tackled up the same as last time but this time on a 12ft match rod with a fixed spool reel loaded with 3lb line, the pond I chose was a tiny water of around an acre at a push. Skimmers were my target and I set about fishing the dam end in the deepest part of the pool (all 4ft of it) after feeding a couple of stingey balls of ground bait my float began to dip and wobble as a shoal of skimmers brushed my line whilst lapping up my feeble offering.I started to catch them and increased the feeding considerably,the skimmers along with some clonking roach to over the pound mark came thick and fast and I finished my quick session with around 20lb of fish.

 

 

Back to the waiting game fishing, Perch are still a target before I get the the big bats out for the Cats and Carp. At this time of year the Perch are often at their peek weight and full of spawn, I have done a few sessions on a water I targeted with little success a couple seasons back. Allot can change in two years so a return visit was in order to see if I had been missing  trick or two, Prawns are now a commonly used Perch bait and until recently I have always turned my nose up to the big pink buggers in favour of a livey or dead bait.Some big Perch waters are so packed with small prey fish that a Perch only has to breath to fill her belly,it is on these waters where livey fishing doesn't always bring the answers were looking for.Prawns can be a real treat to a Perch that's spoilt for choice when it comes to food fish,a big old  lazy fish doesn't have to bother chasing a prawn either.

 

 

 

 

Prawns fished over a bed of maggots has proved to be deadly for me over the last few sessions, here's the pick of the bunch at 3lb 6oz ad 3lb 8oz.

 

 

Til next time

 

 

Good luck

PREDATOR PREVIEWS

Hello to all

As I write this piece I am watching the rain pour down my wafer thin windows, the weather fluctuation is typical of this time of year. My old man keeps moaning about it and to be honest I don't blame him, a couple of weeks ago I was fishing for Perch with my friend Julian on a commercial that has recently done a 5lb er. Any way the point is that we were wearing t shirts as the sun was shining with a temperature of 15 degrees, ahhhh spring is on its way....or so I thought. Days later we took a trip to the glorious Emperor lakes to film a Pike fishing DVD demonstrating basic methods and handling for an up and coming free supplement from Fox. A reschedule looked like a good idea when we met at Exeter services at 5 30 am, the temperature was -3 with a gale force easterly blowing the shit out of everything that caught its path. As we drove up to higher ground the snow was falling and actually settling,what a massive contrast  to the lazy perch fishing we enjoyed the previous week.Without giving to much away it turned out that we made the right decision in ignoring the bad weather.

The Perch trip I spoke of earlier was no walk in the park. The weather was pleasant but the perch seemed to be in a bit of a mood and very unwilling to show themselves.The pond was only about 1 acre at a push, but what it lacked in size it made up for with features and lots of  perchy looking hideouts. Prey fish were also plentiful; and what I deducted from a days float fishing with maggot was that it contained little to no small perch.This is a good thing when targeting a big Perch in a small pond for a number of reasons.The main one being that little perch are notoriously greedy little scamps and of often make a habit of snatching baits intended for their grandparents. Another one being that the less predators there are in a water means the less competition there is for food, which generally is the perfect ingredient for a donkey commercial Perch.This doesn't make for easy fishing tho, far from it.

As you can see I managed to winkle out a lovely plump old warrior, to read the full story and see what others we caught pick up a copy of next months Improve your course fishing magazine which will also explain all the methods and tactics we used to catch a few cracking stripey's..

Til next time

good luck

TESTING TIMES

Hello to all

As the days turn into weeks and so forth it seems time is flying by me at an alarming rate, the routine of grafting all week and only being limited to a spot of angling on the weekends has become the norm as of late; after all mans gotta earn a crust right? January ended with a lovely 19lb 6oz fish from the Hampshie Avon on a quick dawn raid with Steve'o Moor and Moxy,we had a great day trying a number of methods roving aound fishng a number of swims. I love fishing new rivers and the pike were in a quite playful mood seeing us all catch a few fish each.

To some up February's results  in a word, my Pike fishing this month has been nothing short of LITTER, a bit like Everton's woeful displays at the moment, I wont bother starting to express my anguish on that matter  but here's a few quick thoughts- Moyes is boring and negative and I think my dad should be the next Everton manger, like I said I'm not going to gone on about it so lets talk fishing.

Time is ticking away on the old Pike front, it will soon be time to dust of the tench and carp gear but I,m hoping for some hefty Pike and Perch before Moving on to the more friendly species. As I mentioned earlier my fishing hasn't been exactly what you'd call electric lately,in fact is been pretty expensive and a test of endurance and will. A trip to the Pike fishing mecca that is Chew valley reservoir always brings intense anticipation to the mind of any Pike angler that casts a bait into its expansive depths.

Through a couple of good mates ( Mox and Jules ) I managed to wangle myself a weekend trip with one day on the bank and the next from boat, cheers lads. Unfortunately neither day produced a Pike for me nor my fishing partner's, The first day was spent on the bank in the company of Moxy. The weather was fairly kind to us but the fish however were playing somewhat hard to tempt,other than two dropped runs to my rods the day was very long and relaxingly uneventful.I had to make the trip back to Exeter as I had been booked to bust my thang at a Drum n Bass rave that night,The contrast in environments being somewhat huge.With ringing ears the job had been done, I left the club in the early hours to get my stuff together and get back up to Chew.We arrived at the venue at around 7am greeted by a harsh wind and horrible looking lake resembling the Atlantic sea,still he boats got the go ahead and Jules wanted to skip breakfast  to make the most of our time.It turned out be one of those days were in the back of your mind your thinking; why am I doing this? I must be mad. A complete shit storm had set upon the lake and by around lunch time I was wet to the under cracker's, boats were flooding back in retreat but me and Jules agreed that the chance of a Pike of a life time was well worth sitting there like a pair of drowned rats.

I spent the remainder of my spare time chasing a big river Pike, I maneged a couple of jack pike and a scraggy low double but I was very disappointed as the conditions looked spot on for a big girl, perhaps they had spawning on their minds or maybe not? any way that's the way it goes in the game of Pike fishing so there's no love lost there.

Til next time

Good luck

COLD SHOTS

Hello to all

Our country is turning whiter by the day, no the bnp has not had its way, I'm talking about all the snow that is covering old Blighty. Such cold conditions can make for tough fishing, (especially when you cant reach your chosen venue because of all the snow) however lots of great snow shots are popping up on the net and the weekly's which is nice to see. No snow shot for me tho; more like soggy cold shots but I must not complain as to get a shot you must first catch a fish.Talking of shots I watched Everton take on Southampton tutha night,our so called star striker Jelavic looked like he had never played before.The man couldn't hit a cows arse with a banjo these days, Moyes needs to sort out his team selection and start dropping these floppers to the bench. I mean whats the idea behind starting that useless slug Naysmith week in week out? In fact what does he do for Moyes to get on that team sheet?... he certainly cant play football.

Back to the fishing now folks, as you know Pike are my number one target and really one of the only species that is viably worth targeting in such cold condition.I know a man who ignores such theory's and puts him self in some pretty un inhabitable cold places searching for winter Carp and Bream.Neil did a spot of river night fishing on his lonesome during sub zero temperatures, Such exploits arnt for the faint hearted and the fact that he doesn't use a bed chair makes the whole ordeal sound a bit savage to me?.Neils madness payed dividends as he landed a Bream of 10lb 7oz and a Common Carp of 24lb 5oz.

 Crackin bit of fishing from Neil there, I have landed some lovely Pike this week. Sport has,nt been easy to come by but a bit of venue knowledge, and the will to stand in the cold whilst its pissing down, has earnt me a few bites. It is always a good idea to try a variaty of methods to see what the Pike are really going for on the day.My last few sessions have really proved the importance of this,on a cold and genrally misrable day I was sat behind two dead bait rods genrally feeling pretty confident of them being munched.After trying a number of spots that I fancied a fish from I was fish less.Lure fishing was also proving to be a waste of time but I did have the option of catching a few livebaits.After snatching a few dace I returned to fish the swim I started the morning in,the first dunk on a free roving float rig got smashed in a matter of seconds,a plump low double being the culprit.The next unlucky dace took slightly longer to meet its maker but again the float buried as the livey was enthusieasticlly lapped up.

Pike can be fickle creatures,of course you will get days when every method scores but other times they are very fussy in what they eat and how it is presented to them.taking time to catch the bait can often be harder than catching the Pike them selves, not to disrespect the Pike but i'm sure alot of experienced Pike anglers would agree with me on that one.

I made myself some more luck on another trip, it was a mild morning of -1, I had all the options available in that I had already caught some live baits from the venue and had a nice selection of fresh deads at my disposal.again I felt confident that a dead would suffice and bring me some action from ol Esox,but it proved that the Pike wanted a moving bait on the day if this lump is anything to go by.

I thnk the picture says it all really?

one very happy Pike angler indeed, go out and make your self some luck this season.

Til next time

Tight lines