tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23648579952651128432024-03-06T19:04:43.028+00:00Danny's Angling BlogWelcome to my weekly blog following my Adventures on the bank, from rivers to ponds its all part of my angling yearDannyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01502479739807267682noreply@blogger.comBlogger291125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2364857995265112843.post-3824365626380736352018-10-08T16:15:00.004+01:002018-10-08T16:15:34.987+01:00A Pikers Autumn Morning Canal Session...A warm welcome to this week blog i hope i find well and your nets wet. Autumn has certainly arrived here in the UK and with it has come the blustery winds and intermittent rain which is slowly adding some much needed colour to our canals and rivers. If you are out on the bank i love hearing and seeing what you guys are catching so feel free to share your fishing trips on the blogs facebook and Twitter pages.<br />
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<span style="color: #b45f06;"><span style="font-size: large;"><u><b>Pike Behaviour..</b></u></span></span><br />
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After such a different summer temperature wise in the UK it was bound to have an effect on the pike fishing when the season arrived and from what i am seeing on the bank the pike are very very active feeding on this years fry. Sessions spent on the banks you can see the shoals of bait fish tightly packed together as they nervously pimple at the surface.<br />
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This week the first frosts arrived and hopefully this will see the pike slow down and settle to a more scavenger low effort high reward lifestyle and start picking up the dead with dexterity. A lot of jacks around at the moment it seems as well compared to last year so if you are finding this is your fishing then fear not we are all in same boat.<br />
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On to this weeks fishing<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u><b><span style="color: #b45f06;">A pikers Autumn Canal Session...</span></b></u></span><br />
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The front door opened to load the car my face was met with a cool freshness and walking through the puddles left form over night rain i began to load the bare minimum of tackle into the boot for the short morning session that lay ahead. Arriving at the canal there are few sights that beat that first glimpse of a venue in the early morning twilight as the creatures of the night return to their day time haunts almost like couples working different shifts they pass the ducks and the swans just starting their day time hunt for food. Both hunting the same goal of finding a meal but both on a very different timescale<br />
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The morning mist blanketing the canals glass like surface we walked that narrow grass lined tow path hoping to reach our destination without hitting a dog pooh shaped hot spot along the way. The area of canal we targeted had plenty of cover on offer with overhanging far bank features and for at least some of the length a healthy bank side cover in the form of the dying weed.<br />
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The baits for the session where both float fished on my simple float rig i showed in last weeks blog and on one rod went a smelt and the other the tail section of a herring. The unhooking area set up and the net ready all that remained was to sit back and take in the glorious surroundings.<br />
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The colours of autumn on this session where in full bloom as the mixtures of Browns, yellow ochres and red created a sensational far bank back drop and one that was only enhanced by the reflection of this on the canals surface. Autumn is by far my favourite season and when my time is done its coming and its colours will be the one thing i will miss.<br />
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In such clear conditions you need to be near cover as the pike sit tight under these dark lairs waiting to pounce as the shoal pass by them. Both my baits where fished over this far bank shelf one in the shadow of a vivid red tree, i think i placed it here more for the sight of it next to the tree, it almost completed the scene, than it being a place a pike would be. My second i placed to the left of an overhanging tree tight up against some far bank reeds that just screamed home for a pike on the hunt.<br />
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Sitting back it was time to warm the cockles with a morning cup of coffee and await the arrival of an esox. With pike there is certainly a feeding time around a hour after first light, whether they find it straight away and it takes that for them to move in i don't know but bite time does seem to be around a hour in.<br />
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No sooner had the words "it feels like bite time" left my mouth to my mate martin than a circle of ripples began to appear from one of my floats in its epicentre. A few violent tugs on the bait almost confirmed a jack was eyeing up my herring tail bait for its break fast. A bite that took an age to commit and move off but eventually the float began to trundle along the canal. Heading towards the far bank cover i wound down and set the hooks, instant splashing conformed it was a jack and i just hoped the hooks held their holds till it got into the net.<br />
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Thankfully a few seconds later we slipped the net under a lovely marked canal jack pike with its jet black back leading to olive green flanks that where so perfectly painted with lemon spots, what it lacked in size it made up for in beauty. <br />
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At 7.30am it was a great start to the session and with a good four and half hours to go i was optimistic of more action. The next hour passed with no sign of any fish in the area so we moved further along the canal to another likely looking area. The baits in place it felt right for a bite as it does when ever you move in piking i guess. It was not too long after casting in i heard the feint but repetitive thudding of a engine ticking over, its noise almost echoed along the canal by the trees lining each bank and like any approaching noise it got louder the closer it got before around the bank the bow of a large canal boat appeared.<br />
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The first boat of the day can be good it pushes the bait fish to the sides of the canal and is almost like a alarm clock going off as it wakes up the canals residents including the pike. So many takes have come just after the first boat i have lost count but alas there was no adding to that statistic today as behind that boat followed another 5 or 6.<br />
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We called it a day around 11.30 am and it was time to head off to my nephews 1st birthday party. One pike or chance of a pike is all i try to get on every pike session so it was mission accomplished.<br />
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A video of the session should be live this Friday at 6pm on the blogs youtube channel and i will post a link to the video on this post once it is live. but for now here is a link to the channel where you will find over 100 fishing videos<br />
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link: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCogqlnE3gK_Re7vdU5bv8sw">https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCogqlnE3gK_Re7vdU5bv8sw </a><br />
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Till next time i wish you all tight lines,<br />
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DannyDannyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01502479739807267682noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2364857995265112843.post-73967536764589695502018-10-04T17:04:00.000+01:002018-10-04T17:04:07.187+01:00Simple Float ledger Rig For Pike FishingHello and a warm welcome to this weeks angling blog i hope i find you all well and your nets wet. The first frosts have arrived and for some on social media they seem to think its the start of winter but in reality we have just left behind the first day of autumn.<br />
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When asked what my favourite season is i always reply with autumn. Yes spring brings the most drastic change of all with the brag browns replaced with such vivid and bright yellows of the daffs and the freshness that comes with the green grass and first leaves on the trees. That is in itself a magical season but for me Autumn is where its at.<br />
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The sycamores, always first leaves to go, start to turn that dark yellow and dry crispy brown tips appear on their leaves as they prepare to jettison their leaves before the strong autumn winds arrive to free them of their mahogany shiny fruits and amongst the vast lines of sycamores you always seem to get that one maple tree who's leaves turn the most magnificent shade of vibrant red, i love the colours of autumn as much as i love the exceptional fishing it offers.<br />
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The midway point in September and my mind definitely is on two species and that is roach and pike. The pike season is just within touching distance and you can almost imagine the biting cold on your face and the smell of the pike pro rotting leaves in your nostrils as you begin to prepare your pike gear for the season ahead.<br />
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For seasoned pikers its the start of the continuation of last years hard work, walking the same paths hoping to find them pike just a bit bigger but for others it can be a time where pictures of pike can inspire them to want to get out pike fishing for the first time and its these that this blog is really aimed at.<br />
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Last year i produced 19 pike and this year started off with the same gusto in this the first session of 2018 season<br />
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Some of us are fortunate that we have other people to take them and show them the ropes but that is not the case for many, for some its a case or trying to learn online and put that in practice on the bank so in this blog i will cover a simple float set up i use on Rivers, Canals and Stillwaters. The rig is sensitive enough to show early bite detection and versatile enough to use on many different venues and that rig is the Simple Float Ledger Rig<br />
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Simple Float Rig For Pike Fishing: <br />
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<span style="color: red;"><u><b>Components -</b></u></span> <br />
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Float Stop<br />
Beads<br />
Fox Inline 18 Gram Slider Float<br />
Fox Stubby 18gram Sinker<br />
Fox Kwik-Change Swivel<br />
18inch Wire Trace (link to how to make own traces video: )<br />
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<span style="color: red;"><u><b>Hardware</b></u></span><br />
- Just what i use for my piking, some go lighter some go heavier<br />
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- 2.75lb Test Curve Carp rod<br />
- Shimano 6000 Size Reel <br />
- 60lb Esox Piker Braid<br />
- 40lb Breaking strain wire trace<br />
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<span style="color: red;"><span style="font-size: large;"><u><b>Method - </b></u></span></span><br />
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Slide the float stop onto your braid and slid it up out of the way. Thread two beads onto your line and then thread your float onto the braid as well. Next is the Stubby sinker and finally i tie a Palomar knot to attach the swivel to the complete the rig. <br />
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For the next part we head off tot he bank to see how i use this rig in many situations and how i set it up for float fishing a dead bait on the bottom or suspended, so lets head over to the bank to see this rig in action.<br />
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So as you can see in that video blog above the rig can be used to suspend a bait off the bottom of fish a bait hard on the bottom of the venue. If you are fishing a river with more flow simply up the weights of the float and the weight you use as the basic mechanics of the rig will still work. <br />
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I hope this blog update helped you out if you are new to piking and tight lines for the coming season. If you do read this and put it in practice please feel free to follow the blog on facebook and post your catches on there. <br />
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tight lines and i will catch you soon<br />
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Danny<br />
<br />Dannyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01502479739807267682noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2364857995265112843.post-52264629865530937062018-06-19T12:25:00.001+01:002018-06-19T12:25:51.440+01:00Losing the Will, Time and Drive....Then a Fire is lit..A warm welcome to this weeks blog update i hope i find you well and your nets wet, to say i have tried this blog more than once would be a lie its more like 5 or 10 times. Many regular readers of the blog will remember most of them where wrote from my desk in work on my dinner hour and this one i no different.<br />
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So where have i been? Well simply put dragging myself out fishing is the truth, when its hard to get yourself motivated to get out on the bank then its even harder to get ti down on paper, today it came together in my head. This blog was always my place to put in words how i feel and as such i find myself needed the blog for my own release more than anything right now.<br />
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In a time where the fishing has never been better and opportunities arising from the youtube side of the blog greater than ever, what with people asking me to fish their lakes, ponds and cards and other bigger projects with magazines in the pipework its a time where if find my blog flourishing. You would then wonder why an angler would not have the wind in their sails and striding ahead into angling.<br />
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Truth be told i found myself struggling for motivation and a get up and go to go fishing, many mornings i found myself getting up looking at my fishing gear and umming and argghing as to what to do and in the end i did nothing and either went back to bed or made plans for the day away from fishing. Fishing has been my life week in week out for near on 10 years of blogging now i would say and in that time either through written or video format i have put something out on a weekly basis and i just think at that stage i had lost my way big time.<br />
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Waters i would visit where once before i was having fun i found myself catching fish i recognised, nice to say hello and know old friends are well but that adventure had run its course. Feeder fishing for roach sparked a rise in interest but for once in my fishing the blog ruled my fishing and you cant make a feeder fishing for roach video week in week out especially on the same venue, or can you, i doubt on youtube you can.<br />
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The nature of youtube means its very easy to get ahead with the videos, make two in one weekend and you are sorted for two weeks content as such so this did little to spark me to get out around this time i was about 3 or 4 videos ahead. It was about a month ago all this changed and fishing showed just how magical a passion it is and how it can grab you and take you places you never imagined.<br />
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My mate, Mark, was on the canal night fishing for carp and i nipped up to see him and chew the fat, he said in the night they got quite a few bream before they refined tactics to avoid them more and i should nip out next time they are out. Normally i would pass but i decided to take him up on the offer and next time they where put i did a few hours into dark and nabbed a few bream. <br />
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I really enjoyed it and after taking a taste of the apple i decided to take a full bite and the next time brought along my camera and blogged it. Little did i know it was the start of an adventure, i wont spoil the blog but a certain fish being caught took me right back to fishing the canal as a kid and a fire was lit to hunt an elusive canal carp of my own..<br />
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Part 1:<br />
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I will leave this short blog here but this session not only got me back into the swing of the adventure to catch a canal carp of my own its pushed me to try all manner of new things, hopefully the blog will see me fishing lures and chasing barbel in the coming months.<br />
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Thank you all for the nice messages i have received while not doing the written blog and lets get this blog back on the road again<br />
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till next time</div>
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Danny</div>
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Dannyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01502479739807267682noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2364857995265112843.post-9755347133039169212018-05-08T17:18:00.000+01:002018-05-08T17:18:38.741+01:00Woodfide Pool Lymm Anglers: Roach and Crucian Carp on FloatA session on woodside pool on the lymm anglers card, my first session on here learning this new water. <br />
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Roach and Crecian carp on the float<br />
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<br />Dannyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01502479739807267682noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2364857995265112843.post-11997327145264169322018-02-05T18:08:00.001+00:002018-02-05T18:08:46.969+00:00Canal Pike Fishing: Putting In The Time...A warm welcome to this weeks angling blog i hope i find you all well and your nets wet. Well not much to report from last weekend as Saturday the other half was in work so a day was spent in with the little lad and girl, playing shop, dinosaurs and telling fishing stories was the order of the day. Sunday morning i headed out with our Baz for a session on the feeder...<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u><b>Snow and Friendly Robin..</b></u></span><br />
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Setting up the weather was not so bad at all a sharp nip in the air but nothing to worry about. A mix of ground bait made up and settled into the peg i began making a few casts. It is always a case of patience in winter and building the swim up over time, this can take a good hour or so. A hour in we had our first fish on the tip and small ice cold roach.<br />
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Not long after returning this fish the sky turned that shade of grey, you know the one that says one word to you...Snow! Over the next half an hour the clouds built up and a slight rise and then drop in temperature saw the first white fluffs of winter fluff fall from the sky. Only the odd flake at first but before long we found ourselves sat in a full on snow flurry.<br />
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A few more fish came but the weather was slowly getting worse and worse and looking back at my tackle bag it was now covered in a layer of white. Baz sat behind me was feeling the cold a bit so we decided to call it a day and pack in and head home. Testament to the heavy fall the picture below shows how much fell in the time it took me to put my box down and bring my keep net in.<br />
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That short session out of the way we headed home and a good natter about the footie was had while we defrosted our baz.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u><b>Chub Video</b></u></span><br />
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With these written blogs beginning to develop some sense of organised and regular uploads it seems the written account of a session will go live earlier than the videos do so those who read the chub blog will be pleased to know that the video of that session is now available to view on the blogs Youtube channel on the link below.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u><b>Looking ahead...</b></u></span><br />
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Well its been a manic weekend just gone with three sessions on the bank, one a session for silvers where it doesn't go all to plan, a session for pike on Saturday and another estate lake trip for pike on the Sunday all of which will have videos made from them and also give me plenty of memories and content to transfer into written blogs. Having a backlog when it comes to blogging is always good and even more so when trying to create both written and video blogs. <br />
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Looking ahead to this weekend i am first hoping and praying the fish mobile passes its MOT and secondly that the rivers sort themselves out so we can get some decent stick float sessions and wet a line with our baz for those river pike. Catching pike is hard enough as it is on the river but having to make do with half hearted windows of opportunity it is very hard to build any type of campaign.<br />
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On to the session:<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u><b>DeadBait Fishing For Pike: Covering the ground</b></u></span></div>
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As most people will know with my blogs i don't really beat around the bush and i guess in life i am quite a black or white person, there is not much of that grey area. In fishing as it is now there is certainly a section of anglers who feed of the work of others and simply go from angler to angler trying to prise information for their own gain with then no shame of then going and fishing these spots. These "anglers" look at pictures people post and have Little interest for the beautiful fish in the frame in fact they almost certainly look past the angler to see the back ground with the only thought process of working out the where.<br />
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There is then the "anglers" who prefer the private message route where a flood of compliments is soon slowly and smoothly into a working out of where. In my blogs i try and help people as much as possible and thankfully over the years blogging i have managed to get a feel for the genuine anglers looking for help and some great fishing friendship's have been born from these conversations.<br />
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For those parasites who are too lazy to actually work stuff out for themselves then the session below is what us proper real fishermen do week in week out to work our venues out, try it sometime you might actually get to feel that special buzz from catching your own fish than holding up others work ;-)<br />
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Saturday morning and all week rain had battered the UK leaving the rivers again swollen with chocolate milkshake like waters any slight break in the weather was seeing them dropping fast but with the ground, natures sponge, saturated even small downpours where seeing the rivers rising. EA reports on Twitter all week had been awash with reports of officers clearing drains and debris to allow this water to get from land to see as soon as possible and reduce the risks of flooding.<br />
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Sat at the kitchen with a brew the arm on the clock struck 6am and before me lay a blank piece of paper upon which i began to jot down a few options for the day ahead. A few lakes and canals made up the list and all had their positives and negatives for sure whether that was hard conditions or poor reward for the effort needed. Grit and determination to understand a clear hard venue where a blank was a high possibility was my chosen destination. Today we would spread the rods out and cover the ground fishing a hour in each swim before moving and cover as many swims as possible to find the pike.<br />
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Tactics for the day was to fish a large herring jack on a running ledger rig in the hope of a big girl and then fanned either side of this would be my float rod on a skimmer bream and baz's on a smelt. Arriving at the venue there was a gently left to right breeze and intermittent cloud cover which i hoped would build and give us the dark conditions this session most certainly needed. <br />
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The baits in position the waiting game began and the clock was set for a hour alarm. In this type of scenario you have to be strict with yourself and have the mindset that an hour is more than long enough for any fish in the area to find and take the bait. When i am piking i think pike are on you every session you go and i feel there are few session where in the hours you spend on the bank are spent when you cast in and no pike at all sees or investigates your bait. The very splash is proven to attract the fish not scared them, just look at perch as a species they hear a plop the come to is as a signal food is there, its the nature of a predator and pike are no different.<br />
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The first swim passed by in no time and it was time for a move and swim two proved to be equally as quiet. Moving into swim 3 i cast out the ledger and then both float rods went out. The next action is of course to set the clock for the next hour move but so quick was the action we had no time. Minutes after casting in my rod was away and striking into the fish it felt like a small jack, until it came close in and i realised it had wrapped on the line and was actually quite a nice pike and worth a weigh to see if it was a double. <br />
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No sooner had i gone to lift the net than our harrys float was away a jagged take i knew it was a jack just by the violent turning, fishing a smelt any pike over 5lb would generally have no trouble in just eating the bait so i knew the violent turns probably meant it was a small fish. Giving it a few seconds to finish turning baz set the hooks and played a pike of around 2-3lb into the net. As i say on these trips, when you both catch it is the ultimate goal and two pike in the net we where made up.<br />
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So nothing in 2 swims in 2 hours fishing then 2 in minutes from swim number 3 shows just how little these pike are willing to move to find your bait and how tightly packed in they can be. Had we just stayed in swim 1 would we spent the day there and blanked? I guess we might well have landed a new PB but in fishing that is the fine line we tread and two pike on the bank, for me, justified the decision to keep moving.<br />
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I placed my pike on the scales and was made up to see the scaled settle on 10lb, another double to the tally although i will have to check the records to see what number double it is, i think 15. A lovely pike with nice markings.<br />
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The pike rested and returned we gave the swim a good hour and half before moving again and with the clock edging ever closer to that 1pm pack up time we knew this was our last chance of a fish. During the time in the last swim the weather really did change the wind got up and with it came a icy nip as a real hoolie began to build. With presentation not being great on the float ledgers i knew my best chance of a fish was on the ledger rod on the bottom and to try and tempt a bite i changed it over to a popped up herring. <br />
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Like two expectant herons we waited for the fish to come but unfortunately time passed by quietly with only the sound of the wind whistling through the trees to break up the silence on the rods. A tough final few hours on the bank but warmed by the fact we had caught two in very tough conditions we made our way home via the local Costa for a much needed warming hot chocolate.<br />
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A session that shows the value in getting out on the bank and covering the ground to find your fish and a few pieces of a jigsaw put together as next time we now have a good idea of where the pike are holding and who knows next time Mum and Son might be joined by their grandmother ;-)<br />
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A video of this session is live to view now below, please take a second to like the video and subscribe ti really does help the channel out<br />
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till next time tight lines<br />
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Danny <br />
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<br />Dannyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01502479739807267682noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2364857995265112843.post-79188075163684189922018-01-22T18:25:00.000+00:002018-01-22T18:25:00.806+00:00Pike Fishing With Deadbaits....Dreadfull start Comes GoodA warm welcome to this weeks blog update i hope i find you well and your nets wet. We are coming to the end of January 2018 and this will be the third written blog of the year as well as producing a Youtube blog video each Friday as well so so far so good on the blogging front and i must admit i am thoroughly enjoying getting back into the written one again and thank you too all who have emailed me saying how pleased you are its returned!<br />
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so straight into it...<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><u>1k Subscribers on Youtube Channel </u></b></span><br />
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Great start to 2018 with the Blogs Youtube Channel hitting 1,000 Subscribers, a huge milestone for the blog, one i hope will continue to build by following the principles of the written one. Good, honest and open accounts of an everyday angler documenting his fishing trips its the way i wrote the blog 7 years ago and it is the way it will continue.<br />
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My other half bought me a cracking gift for Christmas in a set of 3 Mark Houghton Pike deadbait pencil floats which look amazing. As the youtube channel hit the 1k subscriber mark i decided to do a bit of a give away and that is now live on the channel in the video below.<br />
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So dead simple be subscribed to the channel, like the video and comment what colour floats you would like to receive if you win. As in the video not a sponsored give away i will be buying the prize myself and i was well impressed with the gift for Christmas and thought would make a nice prize for the winner.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u><b>New Year New Card...</b></u></span><br />
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So this year i am a member of Lymm Angling Club and looking at the waters they do have a huge variety to go at. I have got some plans to do some more carp fishing this year like i did with the reservoir diaries last but i am hoping to again target this water. With the Lymm card i am thinking of using it to target a new species and one i have never really had a serious go for in the past, the Barbel. <br />
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The club seems to have waters large and small to target these fish on and with a lot of the waters seemingly being highly pressured carp waters i think the banks of the river is where i will find my type of fishing on this card. So yeah a little thing on the back burner at the moment but already thoughts of Summer and Autumn are in the mind.<br />
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On to The Fishing ....<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u><b>Pike Fishing - Dread Full Start Comes Good!</b></u></span></div>
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A afternoon battling Chub on the River the day before and holding a 17ft rod as high as possible saw me meeting no sorry hitting the 6am Sunday Alarm Clock with the half asleep slap it deserved, a couple of snoozes rightfully applied i eventually rose from my slumber around 6.30am. <br />
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I am normally very well prepared when it comes to my fishing and have everything ready the night before so i can get up the next day and go about my morning routine knowing all i have to do is load the car and be gone, this morning was far from my normal pre fishing routine. <br />
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Stick float rods left in the holdall needed replacing with the pike rods of which one would need setting up on a ledger from scratch on the bank whilst my pike terminal tackle remained spread on the downstairs table, left from last nights attempt to tie some traces. Its not often i am not in the mood for going fishing but this morning i could quite easily have stayed in my pit. My drive to go came from the fact i knew there was a window of opportunity on the river where the weather and levels where right and with rain forecast during the week and possible over time the following weekend in work i knew i would regret not going. <br />
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A strong coffee consumed i loaded the car and began the trundle to the river, out of my close and onto the main motorway my mind began to wander onto the session ahead. Where would i place my baits and what bait would i fish where the main thoughts and then, like most anglers, thoughts turn to the dreaded question "Have i forgot Anything?" It then hit me i had left my wire trace bin on the kitchen table, no pulling over to check i knew i had and without it i would be in a bit of a pickle having to make up traces. Half way to the venue a U-Turn back to the ranch and upon my return there it was proud as punch on the table a quick grab and back on the way, staying in bed was looking like a good option. <br />
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Back into the car and retracing my steps. I don't know about anyone else but i always feel like i have missed out on a huge part of the day if i am not on the bank on day break, its such a short period of time compared to the whole day but it can reveal so much, especially when it comes to pike. Making my way back i could see the faint glow of light blue on the horizon that told me day break was not far away bit i was making good time.<br />
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My head lamps still required to negotiate the dark roads i might just make it in time for day break. Pulling into the car park the birds where in full song and before me lay a river, its surface like a mirror reflecting the bare boned trees on the far bank and along the inside line, for only the shortest of distances the water danced with small fry topping in the dropping moons light. <br />
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There i stood just watching and staring at the venue taking in its mood and desperately trying to get into tune with the daily activities of the fish below its watery surface. You soon get that feeling inside of where you need to set up and one peg in particular was calling to me as it just seemed alive with silvers, a pike just had to be stalking that shoal. The frustrations inside from the mornings mishaps began to ebb away and in it's place came that warm glow of fishing excitement, time to grab the rods.<br />
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I knew i had one rod to set up from scratch so i quickly threw a few frozen dead baits into the net in the edge to thaw while I got the one rod that was all set to go ready to make a cast. I figured as long as i had one rod in i was fishing at least. The banks sticks with their lolly pop alarms on top slid easily into the saturated sodden slippery banks as did their back rests and in the early morning light a dead bait loaded with Sardine oil was cast out. The fox swinger keeping the line tight to the lead the trap was tightly set and ready for a hungry pike to spring it open. <br />
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Setting up the second rod i realised I had only had one more wire trace left in the rig bin, a trace i had made a while ago when an accidental purchase of some Barbless Fox trebles had taken place, total and utter nightmare as baits fly off the hooks all the time even with the bait flats. Even so needs must so out went the rod with the trebles on and i prayed they held the bait on while i made a new trace up.<br />
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The new Fox 49 Strand Anti Kink braid really is good stuff, pricey but good, one thing it does need is a lot more effort top make traces than the old carbo flex and why they stopped making it i will never know. Each cut of the wire you make requires you to burn the ends to stop it from fraying so a task that a year or two ago would take 5 minutes required the stove to be set up.<br />
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With the trace eventually made up i wound the second rod in and as i thought the last hook on the bottom treble was the only hook attached to the bait as the top set of trebles had come lose, Semi Barbed all the way guys. The trace replaced it went back out into the same spot and i grabbed the kettle to make a much needed brew. I don't actually think i made it back to my basket to grab the lighter to light the stove before i was stopped in my steps by one beep on the rod i had just replaced. <br />
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Like a statue my body remained still only my head turned back towards the rods direction. Another soft pull on the line brought another one beep on the old delkims, a third more violent tug and the line parted from the fox bite arm and that ever so satisfying clunk as the metal of the back alarm made contact with the bank stick as it completed its fall. A slip and a slide down the bank i grabbed the rod and set the camera to record, line was now peeling from the spool as the pike went on a confident run, a solid take.<br />
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I gave it a count down strike and set the hooks and felt that satisfying solid resistance of a strong winter pike with line pulling from the reel it was like the woes of a frustrating morning where peeling off with it. A solid fight that saw the pike go a bit mental under the rod tip as it made one final run along the bank and under my other rod but thankfully i eventually slid the net under a lovely marked and well fed pike. On the Scales she went 9lb and had been feeding very well, a good sign for the rest of the session. <br />
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The pike went a bit mental in the net to sat the least so i decided to put her in the edge to rest, upon doing so my morning went from ecstasy to complete and utter tosh as i slid on my backside top to bottom of the bank. Picking myself up i was caked all down my side and on such a cold day i was thank full of my thick thermal under layers i can tell you. A brush down and the pike released i set about casting the same rod back out and poured myself a much needed brew!<br />
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Sitting back on my Shakespeare green box i decided it best not to move a muscle, just stay put on the chair and you will be safe i thought that way nothing else can go wrong. Carefully sipping a warming cup of tea i took a moment to breathe and relax! It had been all go that morning on the bank what with the manic start, a pike and then going over on the bank so sitting back the rods out either side of the swim i watched the world around me go about their Sunday morning routines, joggers and bikers all enjoying the outside crisp morning weather whilst above them a pair of Buzzards circled the open fields looking for a free meal and in a complete contrast to all these subtle activities a flash of blue and orange zoomed past the swim as a kingfisher made its way to its favourite perch.<br />
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Sat on my own perch it was a good two brews later i recorded a piece for the youtube blogs on how a running ledger set up works as i had received a few questions on it recently. No sooner had i finished talking the other rod buzzed into life and there was no messing with this one the line pulled straight form the slip and, almost carp run like, line spooled from the rods tip. <br />
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No messing about with this one i wound down and set the hooks and immediately i knew i was into a better fish as the rod hooped over as the fish pulled hard in the deep water. Nervous, hook hold releasing, head shakes sent shivers up the line through the rod and through my whole body as a very tentative fight was played out. One of those fights where you feel at any moment you could lose the fish. A hard fight under the rod tip she came up and turned leaving a huge boil in her wake, i had seen the prize and knew i was attached to a double figure pike. Up she came again and this time there was no messing and into the deep net she went, first thoughts?? BARREL!!<br />
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She was a short fish and in normal conditions she would weigh about 1olb for her length i would say but in her winter condition she was fit to burst, broad across the shoulder and had been eating very well. Certainly a big fish in years to come she had the right mentality already, EAT EAT and EAT some more. On the scales she went just under 14lb and was one of the most beautiful fish i have ever caught with vibrant oranges tipped with deep red in her fins a dark green back with dots of yellow along her side perfectly placed, a real beautiful fish.<br />
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A fish like this called for more than a celebratory brew so i cracked open some cuppa soups my other half had picked up for me the previous day. Warm and satisfying i sat on my box with the mud on my clothes now caked dry i had not a care in the world. That pike had made my day and made all the effort worth while to push on through all the trials and tribulations of the session. I gave the session till 1pm before calling it a bay and i made the long journey back home with a irremovable smile on my face.<br />
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A session to show that its not always sun and roses on the bank but not giving in and pushing on through it can all come good in the end.<br />
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Till next time i wish you all<br />
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Tight Lines <br />
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Danny<br />
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<br />Dannyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01502479739807267682noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2364857995265112843.post-64664146010351660012018-01-15T21:43:00.001+00:002018-01-15T22:06:13.268+00:00Winter Chub Fishing on the Stick FloatA warm welcome to this weeks blog update i hope i find you well and your nets wet. After a drab Christmas period fishing wise the arrival of Double overtime at work to start 2018 did nothing to help me find time to hit the bank to rekindle my fishing spark. Fishing can be many things from addiction to part of a routine and for some like myself it is almost a necessity, a place where the hectic and sometimes frantic 9-5 week can be washed away. I needed to get out on the bank and have a good session, venue would be key in this, as it always is in winter, but with all the waterways finally fining down i knew of one such spot that might just see me scratching that itch.<br />
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<b><u><span style="font-size: large;">Winter Chub Fishing on The Stick Float...</span></u></b></div>
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Nothing quite scratches a fishing itch quite like the rod bending round into a chub and it was this species i hoped to find on the session. A few jobs to complete on Saturday morning i quickly set about completing these tasks and finally packed the car around 11am.<br />
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A cold over cast day with plenty of grey cloud cover greeted me as i loaded up the fish mobile who's skirts still sported the brown splatters of mud from the weekly commute the day before. The car loaded with the bare essentials a warm glow of excitement inside polarised the cold air nipping at my nose, i felt confident of a bite.<br />
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Meandering along the B-Roads to the river the car bounced as it emptied the winter pot holes of their overnight rainfall, a salute to the buzzard on street lamp number 3 as i passed his usual station. He looked as fed up of the weather as all us anglers of late but funny how this same bird sites on the same post every week. The fields adjacent to the roads bare of their autumn crops that lay wrapped up tightly in bales next to the farmers barns and the whole landscape just had the mid winter feel to it. A complete contrast to the greens and bright yellows of summer but none the less beautiful, fishing in all seasons is such a pleasure. <br />
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The river i was heading too was one we had not graced in a while but it still felt like i was heading to an old friend and the car, on auto pilot, knew the path to take. Arriving at the venue and opening the car door for the first time you could feel that cold wet breeze hit your face, not an unpleasant winter breeze but the cool refreshing clean air breeze that only comes when beside running water.<br />
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The river looked in fine fettle her margins clear but more akin to weak tea than Gin, the pace just faster than walking and not a breath of wind around it was a perfect day to be fishing a stick float. The calm nature of the river now certainly had not been the case weeks earlier as the rivers raging dark side during the floods had deposited a whole tree upstream that pushed the flow more into the middle of the river than before but did mean the flow now pushed into and alongside a far bank overhanging tree.<br />
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The overhanging tree looked similar to our Christmas tree that we let our 3 year old lad and 5 year old daughter decorate, a mess! Its overhanging branches festooned with twigs and branches held in place against the tree by the constant flow it created a nice raft that just said one thing, Mr chubs home. <br />
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Tackling the swim would not be easy as the flow down the middle had created some slack water on the inside and keeping the line out of this would be crucial to presenting the float as naturally as possible. I had my 14ft Drennan Acolyte in the holdall and i was aching to get some proper chub on it but i knew time was of the essence and every trot down had to count. It was a day where the functionality of my 17ft Preston Innovations Carbon active float rod would rule of the style of the acolyte. Its extra length would keep as much line as possible out of that slack.<br />
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My reel loaded with 4lb4oz Drennan Float fish on which sat a 6 number 4 dome top stick float and all this went down to a 1lb7oz Bayer Perlon hooklength and a size 18 micro barbed hook. As i have said before on the chub blogs you don't need big hooks or heavy lines to catch chub and when the video of this session goes live hopefully it will show just how much pressure this set up can take, balanced tackle and a correctly set drag are key.<br />
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Long term blog followers will know i have used Cheshire Particle products throughout last year and such is the quality of the hemp seed that will continue through 2018's adventures. As always with my blogging i wont be sat there head to toe in all the gear i will simply mention when i use the product and what i catch while using and if you like what you see head over to Cheshire Particle and try it out. You will not be disappointed, Marks puts a huge amount of time and effort in creating his particles and it shows in the final product and the fish it has help catch.<br />
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I knew the chub would be sat under the raft and ideally i did not want to have to go hunting them underneath the raft. My plan was to feed the swim heavily with maggot and hemp and create a baited area of hemp just up and to the side of the snag to lure them out and feed heavily with maggot to have a steady stream of maggots going past their door.<br />
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Chub by nature are as crafty and cautious as them come, almost like the carp of the river, but once you break that cautious barrier they can be quite easy to fool and catch and their main down fall is their greed. While setting up the gear i fed the swim heavily with 3 good pouches of hemp and the same of white maggot and at periods while setting up continued to feed well with the maggots.<br />
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By the time i come to make the first cast the swim had been primed for a good 20 to 30 minutes and as such it only took around 5 or 6 casts before the float buried and the rod arched round solid as a bold brassy chevin held station in the fast flow. As defiant as they come the drag on the reel gave line slowly as it ticked over as a battle of wills was played out. The key is remaining calm and making sure you do not lose the fish right in the zone you are fishing. Eventually the chub kicked into the slack and i knew, as long as the slack had no snags, it was a case of playing it out under my control and a few seconds later the first chub was in my palms.<br />
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Chub fishing is the ultimate game of chess and this chub a pawn in the early exchanges and one that gave me great confidence as i knew where there was one there was like a shoal. The key is not to be in too much of a hurry to cast back in. The shoal will have spooked and needed luring back into participating in the game again so rather than casting back in i fed the swim heavily for a good 5 minutes with hemp and maggot. The mindset early on is to pick off as many as you can preying on the sheer greed of the chub to feed.<br />
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The time for another cast came and after a few trots through the float again bolted under and a smaller chublet bundled its way through the flow. It lacked the brutality of its earlier brother but still had the cunning to bolt for a tree stump under my feet. This small chublet was followed by a small grayling that of course went straight back after its capture.<br />
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A close up of the small chub showing how small a hook you can use for chub.<br />
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Reading the swim is key but so is reading the captures and i knew the arrival of a grayling meant the shoal was still not in residence, simply put the chub would easily out bully this fish. Keeping the flow of maggots going through the swim and the odd pouch of hemp seed patience was key. Getting into a rhythm and inching the bait through the swim it took a good half an hour before the next fish and instantly i knew it was a better one as it swam up against the flow till level with my peg.<br />
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Solid on the bottom it lazily kicked its tail and moved over in the flow the rod bending in tandem with the fight and the clicks from the reels drag increased in frequency as the chub glided across the flow. I knew this was the best fish so far and this was confirmed when a big set of white rubber lips broke surface the only issue was it did so mid flow. Inching the chub closer in slowly it came into netting range and a proper chunk of a chub was mine.<br />
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After this fish a change of tactic was used, i went from feeding a huge amount of maggot to just 3 or 4 every trot through. I knew the shoal was there and all the chub had mouth fulls of feed so i knew the fish where hungry and on the bait the reduction in amount of feed had them fish now competing for just a few maggots.<br />
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Under the water the chub where sitting picking off the maggots and hemp at will now they would be searching out the maggots as they competed and this tactic worked a treat as a few more chublets came in quick succession as this game of chess was played over the next few hours.<br />
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3pm came round as quickly as the float was burying with a chub bite and before i knew it we where moving into the last hour of the session. The famous witching hour where i expected the chub to really come on. In that last hour they did just that as bites came on successive casts that culminated in a proper barrel of a chub showing up.<br />
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The final net went just under 16lb of fin perfect chub and capped of a very enjoyable few hours on the bank. The 17ft rod was really put through its paces and come through it still in only 3 pieces. joking aside hopefully this session and the video on the blogs youtube channel shortly shows how robust this set up can be.<br />
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Till next time i wish you all tight lines, please check out the blogs youtube page on the link below, over a years worth of weekly videos on there.<br />
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link: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCogqlnE3gK_Re7vdU5bv8sw">https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCogqlnE3gK_Re7vdU5bv8sw</a><br />
<br />
Danny<br />
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<br />Dannyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01502479739807267682noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2364857995265112843.post-46269697742213752892018-01-09T17:49:00.003+00:002018-01-09T17:49:34.888+00:002018 A New Start...Winter Pond Fishing For Silvers...A warm welcome to this weeks angling blog i hope i find you all well and your nets wet, wow its been too long since i wrote that line! Just over a year ago i made the huge step of beginning to document my adventures in video format on Youtube and when i did i never imagined that one i would enjoy creating the content this way so much and two that this page would continue to be so popular given the lack on content.<br />
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Over the past year i have had loads of emails asking if the written blog would be making a come back as they enjoyed the weekly blog. All through last year i tried and tired to put blogs together but lack of time to do so and also a lack of inspiration, the words just would not come if you get me. Over the new year a spark lit with me and this sudden urge to get back blogging kicked in, so here we are the first full week of the new year with a blank canvass so lets get this show back on the road.<br />
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<b><i><u><span style="font-size: large;">Changes - </span></u></i></b><br />
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These really come down to yourselves the readers and you getting your thoughts out there on social media and in the comments section below as to what you like and what you dont like about the blog. In the past it has had many identities and themes from me answering questions i receive in to me posting my thoughts on things i see in angling, rants and all, before getting into the main part of the blog the fishing.<br />
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As a content creator if none are forthcoming then i am thinking of the blog being more like a written diary, just the fishing sessions in written form trying to capture the sessions that i fish, the sights and the scene and the session as a whole. Either way i want it to be something that you yourselves want to read so let me know please.<br />
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So lets get straight into it:-<br />
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<b><u><span style="font-size: large;">Winter Pond Silvers on The Waggler...</span></u></b></div>
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Friday morning and with the incessant rain still tapping irritatingly at the window of the living room i sat, feet up, watching yet another repeat of Home Alone on the box. A great film no doubt but after a long Christmas period rocking around the Christmas Tree has just lost its appeal and truth be told the sound of rain incessantly falling had me feeling more like banging my head against the Tree than dancing round it.<br />
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Cabin fever well and truly set in i just had to get out and wet a line the next day so plans with my uncle where made and we made one promise, we would find somewhere to wet a line.<br />
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Saturday morning and a clear crisp morning met me as a loaded up the car for another adventure. The rain had meant silver fishing really had taken a back seat of late as the ease and versatility of conditions you can pike fish in had seen me targetting these camouflaged predators more often than not, it meant me delving right to the back of the fishing room for my box and drennan acolyte rod.<br />
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Our journey to the river my heart sank as we passed all the local ditches and run offs that where grey and carrying plenty of road run off. I knew then the river we where travelling too would also be "on the edge". You can look at the charts on the rivers all you want but the simple equation is, if the side streams and upper reaches are a mess then the main river is also going to be similar.<br />
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Arriving at the river as day light broke we could see straight away the over night rain had really come into the system in a big way, no way would we be float fishing today. A quick chat and a video of said waterway done for the blog we decided to drop back on a small pond. When picking winter venues to fish its never easy but one thing i would say is always looks for one with some depth and as small as possible. Simple physics then mean fishing the deepest but you are not too far away from any fish.<br />
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The pond surrounded by by old trees their forks bare from their summer foliage and the pond now also free from the chocking summer weed had a black tinge to its crystal clear depths. A tough day was in order for sure with such clear conditions but i set my sights on 10 to 20 fish. A solitary fishing topping right in the middle of the pool sparked some excitement as it meant the fish where at least on the move.<br />
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Tackle for the session was my 14ft Drennan Acolyte coupled with a shimano Techium reel loaded with 4lb drennan float fish line. A simple waggler was attached via a float rubber to the line and this all lead down to a 1.7lb Bayer Perlon hooklength and a size 18 micro barbed hook. The shotting pattern was strung out number 8 shots.<br />
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My bait choice was simple in the form of around a pint and half of white maggots that i planned to drip feed the swim with. The swim in front of me was like any pond, shallow margins dropping into a deep bowl, i plumbed up at rod tip just where the bowl levelled out and spent a good amount of time making sure the float was shotted down as much as i could to register even the faintest of bites. <br />
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The first cast and the float settled nicely with just the bristle breaking the glass surface of the pond. More fish began to top around the pool but my float remained stagnant in its position. I kept feeding the swim with two to three maggots and on every few feeds recast in the hope the fish where intercepting the feed on the drop.<br />
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Eventually the first bite came in the form of a small roach and despite the air being quite comfortable the roach stung my palms as it graced them such was the harsh coldness of the fish, bitter! I knew there and then bites would be at a premium and feeding had to be careful as these fish, although feeding, would not need much to be overfed. <br />
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It took around half an hour for the first bite but then like the kingfisher that past me so came a flurry of bites as the first fish was followed by two more. Many who will have watched the videos on youtube will see my thoughts on feeding and with a few bites like that it is easy to think they are having it but you have to be restrained and not go mad and over feed so i continued to drip feed the swim with 2-3 maggots at a time. <br />
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By midday a pattern had shown in the fish would move in, you would catch one or two and then would follow a period of quiet before their return, i was happy with this on the day as a good bit of banter was had with my uncle during the lean spells, i would say by midday i had around 10 plump roach like the one below in the net.<br />
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Into the afternoon and the swim completely died for a good hour and all signs of fish in the pool seemed to cease as an eerie silence came over the pool the birds seemed to have lost their voices and even dying reeds to my right ceased their whistle as the wind dropped. A solemn calm in a world crammed with impatient people clambering to get their mundane tasks completed, a moment of utter peace and tranquillity in the middle of an urban landscape, a world few of these people who partake in this modern rat race stop to even acknowledge.<br />
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The calmness was broken when my float slid away and likes its action the whole swim descended, into chaos that is, as the drennan acolyte bent smoothly into a better fish. The camera grabbed to capture this moment on film it was utter shock when up through the clear depths came the olive green flanks of a tench!!, The camera went down and all that mattered was sliding this fish into the waiting net. A winter Tinka a real surprise given the cold conditions.<br />
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<br />The tench was a real surprise on such a cold day and i guess goes to show that these species do not just sit there dormant all winter till spring comes, a nice addition to the days sport. The disturbance of this fish did kill the swim for a bit but eventually a few roach moved back in but in reality it was not until the sun sank down onto the horizon and its oily watery winter gaze jeweled through the trees that a few better roach started to top and out of the blue right on last knocking a real beauty of a roach made an appearance,<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The roach was a fitting end to a nice day on the bank with my uncle and hopefully the net below goes to show that you dont need 20lb nets of roach to have a good day on the bank, a few bites with a mate can lead to some of the best and most memorable days on the bank. A special session on a special water, see you in spring.<br />
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Till next time<br />
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tight lines<br />
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Danny<br /><br />You can watch a video of the session on the blogs youtube channel on this link below<br /><br />
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<br />Dannyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01502479739807267682noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2364857995265112843.post-591727111411791912017-12-12T07:47:00.002+00:002017-12-12T07:47:22.952+00:00FISHING FOR PIKE ON DEADBAITS: BAZS FIRST RIVER PIKEhttps://youtu.be/I-9jggk7mwUDannyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01502479739807267682noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2364857995265112843.post-91711941670979590962017-12-05T18:45:00.000+00:002017-12-05T18:45:48.998+00:00Pike Fishing: Estate Lake Magic....<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
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A week of heavy rain and at times hail stone had brought a
brunt and definite end to the River and Canal campaign that had been going so
well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The river running high and
chocolate was a no go and would be a needle in a haystack effort of landing
near a pike where as the canal had that horrible grey sheen that screamed cold
and dirty run off water form the local roads, both not good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It meant a day booked off work with my mate
Ste Daley saw us looking towards the still waters.<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A large old English Estate Lake was the destination of
choice and a venue we make a point of visiting once or twice a year for
pike.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A venue that, for me, holds that
sense of magic and mystery and a day where the saying “A Fish is a bonus” does
really ring true!<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The morning of the session and I stood in the kitchen
brimming with excitement, a kid on Christmas eve like, I peered out of the
window at the houses across the way with their roof tops glistening as the
moons light shone though their icy crystals, a proper winter morning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A quick coffee and it was time to delve into
the bait freezer to pick out some baits for the day, smelt and lamprey had always
done me well on there so <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>they went in and
then I threw in a few change baits in the form of sardines and herrings and I
swiftly closed the door on the freezer. I would be in the cold long enough
today and I wanted to make the most of the warmth, even if it was only for a
few minutes.<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The car loaded and jack frost melted from the wind screen it
was time to meet up with Ste and move all the gear into the van.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We began out journey to the bank down the
winding narrow creeping country roads of the North West the head lights illuminating
the path ahead with the occasional bunny hop as the van made contact with the
uneven surface below.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The farmers fields
either side studded with pools of white while the horizon glowed with that
light blue haze that consumed the night stars as its feint rays reached their
stubborn station in the night sky signalling the arrival of day break was not
too far away.<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We arrived at the cast iron gates held firm with their
sandstone pillars that I guess have been there for as long as the old stately
home situated within the grounds they protected.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The gates opened and unlike the black Friday
chaos that was no doubt about to begin around the country this was a far more
sedate and relaxed affair as we passed through the gates and down the dark path
to the lake.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The track was flanked
either side with all manner of variations of deer that stood alert and to
attention, a guard of honour like as we passed through their wooded domain.<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In the dark I made my way to the lake passing through the
herds of deer that rested by its banks during nigh time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The lake, huge and daunting, lay in front of
me. A lake that offers the angler a huge challenge with its gin clear water,
sandy and weedy bottom and bottomless depths off the shelf.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A place where your bait truly is a needle in
20 haystacks in comparison. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZiDlIT2BW11mYrNkflighqrKrLb-06zVQabpSD0giGZSEKQRZgLBpK4ckjUCZ8wlHLcxBZUA7n2Zlolc8PzsyufX1kX1HbD7Zzee4454I-NbTWjHpOkJsWP5CyWO1Unpen9vqu9waKG-l/s1600/24824682_1605869226126710_733200876_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZiDlIT2BW11mYrNkflighqrKrLb-06zVQabpSD0giGZSEKQRZgLBpK4ckjUCZ8wlHLcxBZUA7n2Zlolc8PzsyufX1kX1HbD7Zzee4454I-NbTWjHpOkJsWP5CyWO1Unpen9vqu9waKG-l/s320/24824682_1605869226126710_733200876_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A gentle breeze blowing over my shoulder onto the lake had
left a huge amount of calm flat water on my bank and in the dark pre sunrise
light an opera of fish topped, first one, then another and another before the
water almost danced with their activity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>On a water this huge location is huge and we knew being on these bait
fist was key so we set our stall out to cover the whole area they where
topping.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Your imagination just goes wild and you can almost imagine a
hungry old pike stalking those shoals<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>meandering slowly though the weed as it does so almost lioness like with
its belly hard on the bottom moving slowly as it keeps in touch with the herd
only this herd was probably silver and roach shaped.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A three rod rule and in possession of a EA three rod licence
it was time to take full advantage of it so out went a running ledger rig with
a Lamprey offering and another running ledger rig with a smelt<br />
and then a float
ledger rig with a smelt on also.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A set
up mirrored by Ste but with bigger baits on stes rods as we worked together to
find out what they wanted on the day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Normally
one bait does well so we all move over to that although more than one run
between us on the day would signal a good session. <br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
All rods cast out the far bank trees caught fire as the suns
inferno rose from behind the tree line, its orange wintery glow mottled through
the trunks and entwined branches.<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6HhIl4S6Tl9A0EhUWqIzwxiLz2rDci2KFJnNqOEWbUHXR7_fsbJDss6E6TCoZ2ag7ykKnEf-ThDmPuupzNjLI7sH3C774NCLoRqw9ymM0I9ueJur-nXNNudsRktNoCPkPWY_ZNdFGYvBG/s1600/24740706_1605867402793559_485963898_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="960" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6HhIl4S6Tl9A0EhUWqIzwxiLz2rDci2KFJnNqOEWbUHXR7_fsbJDss6E6TCoZ2ag7ykKnEf-ThDmPuupzNjLI7sH3C774NCLoRqw9ymM0I9ueJur-nXNNudsRktNoCPkPWY_ZNdFGYvBG/s320/24740706_1605867402793559_485963898_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We sat back and made a brew and awaited the pike to take up
their invitation to dine and true to form they stubbornly turned their noses up
at our offerings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A hole in my thermal
wellingtons did little to brighten the mood and in an attempt get the blood
going in my toes I went for a walk with the wobbling rod.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A few casts by the float rod and it must have
awoken a pike deep down in the depths as my smelt bait moved away. A countdown
and a hard sure strike to set the hooks was met with a violent volatile
headshakes from the pike below its distaste for its predicament prompting it to
go on long hard runs as it was coaxed up the shelf.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In a last ditch attempt to shed the hooks it
surprised us all as it took to the air to try and spit free the trebles to
which it was attached.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia-E3WdwAibzVWZGLqFIg0txkXfmDIO25FurdUWh89QlIQS0lYS0Hk2cRbsN8AL0Bh93So-biEbQFzBV9sTz8PNZGXpdYPHYKR7PXnVaepQysLE75FT5EYRcAcrqstyqrRYtMothWAzi3x/s1600/24740686_1605867409460225_1523318670_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="809" height="284" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia-E3WdwAibzVWZGLqFIg0txkXfmDIO25FurdUWh89QlIQS0lYS0Hk2cRbsN8AL0Bh93So-biEbQFzBV9sTz8PNZGXpdYPHYKR7PXnVaepQysLE75FT5EYRcAcrqstyqrRYtMothWAzi3x/s320/24740686_1605867409460225_1523318670_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A sure hook hold and a beautiful olive dark green plump esox
was on the bank, a little under 8lb her size was irrelevant as he flanks glowed
in the winter sunlight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A proper gem of
a pike and as always any pike from this venue is a prize.<br />
<br />
A pat on the back form Ste and we got the kettle on to make that all important
celebratory brew.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A recast was in order
on all our rods and we settled back in and had a good old fishing chat, setting
the world to rights.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a good 2
hours later while recasting one of my rods the next bite came.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A screaming take on the ledgered lamprey
section and boy did it go off taking line from the spool in an almost carp like
run. <br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Feeling the line for those plucks I could tell the pike was
well on its way, a short wind down and a hard strike to set to hook and my
2.75lb test curve rod arched over, a sign of a good fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In 20 foot of water it’s a fantastic fight
and this pike was no different.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It kept
deep and went on a series of long hard runs peeling braid from the spool as it
did so.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Side strain applied I attempted
to prevent it connecting with stes lines come 20 yards up the bank such was the
hard run it went on.<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Eventually she came up the shelf and in the gin clear water
I could see she was a nice double figure pike, short, green and like a barrel
she was a fit healthy pike.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On the
scales she went 11lb9oz and I was beaming from ear to ear, my first ever double
form the venue and it had been a day to remember!!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAc0qQAkBS6qpbPZXOvrHlzKvhp9JYBF1Duh7rbcprAUxN4NXeVNKpT8Gy22UjUzzIvnl56BbC_h3RoryqURVPdz8d9pS4vdOyghfJAiDYMhoNZZ_HSxbJl6z_JcAkqm8qL2Ffxmm6PJV3/s1600/24726596_1605867396126893_573108858_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="960" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAc0qQAkBS6qpbPZXOvrHlzKvhp9JYBF1Duh7rbcprAUxN4NXeVNKpT8Gy22UjUzzIvnl56BbC_h3RoryqURVPdz8d9pS4vdOyghfJAiDYMhoNZZ_HSxbJl6z_JcAkqm8qL2Ffxmm6PJV3/s320/24726596_1605867396126893_573108858_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The rest of the session passed by without incident from the
pike but for me the icing on the session was a group of stags we passed on the
way back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A session where I got to stand
among some of Englands greatest wildlife and got to hold in my hands of <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>the UK’s apex underwater predators in them two
pike.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
<br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIlHvY6e6WLOBPs-HIFMzp9OAvm3a-tnJTQHoOLsUayDgfN_Pif5YGXOGfA8TdWfIhnBUGfHFCTrceNUyF7II98Ahda0hA9dvCRK1TbqpatLbxyNYk7qEvLLbqzTrXSdy7ufU-9JlS0Iwe/s1600/24829147_1605867239460242_845192674_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="958" data-original-width="960" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIlHvY6e6WLOBPs-HIFMzp9OAvm3a-tnJTQHoOLsUayDgfN_Pif5YGXOGfA8TdWfIhnBUGfHFCTrceNUyF7II98Ahda0hA9dvCRK1TbqpatLbxyNYk7qEvLLbqzTrXSdy7ufU-9JlS0Iwe/s320/24829147_1605867239460242_845192674_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The Estate lake truly is natures theatre of dreams where
special moments happen in a split second and create memories that will last a
life time.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Till next time</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Tight lines </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Danny</div>
Dannyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01502479739807267682noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2364857995265112843.post-72767784787264503632017-11-13T23:00:00.001+00:002017-11-14T12:40:07.456+00:00Pike Fishing: A Session of Memories, A Session where Rumours of Monsters become reality....<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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Saturday, a day of the week I would normally be setting out
on another river adventure with my uncle chasing the elusive shoals of dace,
roach and chub that reside in the north west corner of England.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A phone call the night before and my uncle
sounded like death warmed up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fishing
was off the agenda and for my uncle Saturday morning, this week at least, the
heady smell of lemon from his lemsip’s would be replacing the usual fermented
unmistakable smell of the hempseed that lay beside his fishing box.<br />
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The past few weeks my uncles lad Harry had been on the bank
with me learning to pike fish so we agreed to another session chasing the
mysterious esox Luscious. To this point he had done fantastic in learning to
handle pike on the bank and what it involved in catching them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This learning curve had seen him bag a 3lb
and a 7lb pike in his last two trips.<br />
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5am and as I made my way downstairs for a strong brew to
wake me from my pre fishing trip restless slumber I could hear the rain tapping
onto the windowsill from a hole in the gutter, its repetitive rhythm of drips
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If possession is 9 tenths of the law then preparation is
certainly 9 tenths of the art of fishing and rightly so I had little to do with
the mornings prep bar choosing which fish to offer Mrs Esox from my bait freezer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A session earlier on that week had left me
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The old fish mobile loaded I began to make my journey to
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</span>dog that has just stood on a thorn I ambled and plodded my way to the
garage pleading with the fishing gods the Air Machine was still alive, to my
delight she was and then tyre was given a quenching boost! Such fine lines can
see sessions called off, only at the end of this fisherman’s tale will this
become important.<br />
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The journey to the venue with our Baz in tow the radio
politely alerted all normal people in the world to probably stay in doors as
storm Brian was due to hit the North West.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Like all fisherman the urge to keep going is much stronger than worrying
about such things as storms and further into the dark we plodded, the headlamps
on the car almost Hansel and Gretel like illuminating the bread crumbs to the
water. <br />
<br />
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The session was all about continuing our Harrys development, I had shown him
the basics of piking, it was now time for him to make decisions himself and
learn from decisions he would make.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A
float ledger rod had been set up for him and on this session he would be
baiting it up and deciding the placement of his bait in the swim.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was in super lazy mode so out went a ledger
rig on a bite alarm with a fox back bite arm, bait wise it was a whole herring
from one of the opened packs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yellow,
shriveled and still possessing the hook marks from a previous session where it
had been out for a few hours.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My other
rod was on a pencil float fished float ledger style and on this I would be
presenting the humble smelt.<br />
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The baits out and the dark angry skies over head we awaited
the arrival of a pike at the dinner table.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>An early few knocks on Harrys float alerted us to a pike in the area and
two dropped runs only went to confirm a pike was in the area.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A cast over the area and jagging the smelt
around the swim would either entice the pike to confidently take the bait or
spook it completely. <br />
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Thankfully the latter was not the case and a few minutes
later his float confidently sailed away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>A huge lesson in how cruel piking can be was played out as the pike spat
the bait after a few moments playing the fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We replaced the bait and an air of that float being the epicentre of all
our focus did follow as we eagerly anticipated the hungry pike return.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The vigil was soon broken by the piercing
sound of a delkim alarm and a pike that had come across my herring dead bait.<br />
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A countdown and a hard strike and I was connected with a
pike that was not happy at its meal being disturbed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Aggressive head shakes it was a relief to slide
the net under the first pike of the session, a nice upper single with a full
set of gnashers.<br />
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The pike blogged and released we sat back and put a brew on, an act that was
surly to entice a pike to dine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
steam rising from a whistling kettle was like music to my ears on a damp windy
morning. The calmness that comes with a pike on the bank is quite surreal as
the excitement and sense of anticipation before its capture almost lifts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A calmness that was soon broke by baz running
to his rod as his float trundled confidently across the surface before
disappearing into the gloomy depths.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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Learning from the mistakes on the previous take he set the
hooks and played the fish, a fish that angrily kept deep.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I knew inside he was into a PB and a potential
double figure pike and talking him through the fight we slipped the net under a
double figure pike.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The question now was
just how big his new PB would be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
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13lb on the scales and a beaming smile looking at them he
was proper made up, if a little cold.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
places the pike I the net to rest and so we could get prepared for a few
pictures for him to remember the day by.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Our celebrations where short lived as my delkim alarm broke up out
chatter, a screaming run so violent the rod tip was bouncing away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></div>
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With a fish in the keep net I decided there and then I would
have to hand in the pike.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A hard strike
and my 2.75lb test curve rod hooped over solid as a decent fish stayed
deep.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Plenty of head shaking I knew I
had a fragile hook hold at best, a thought that sent shivers down my spine the
longer the rod stayed bent over and the fish kept deep.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Long hard runs as the fish realised the
predicament it was in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I loosened the
drag and tried to coax the fish closer in and it worked as the fish glided in
under my feet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the semi clear water I
caught a glimpse of her, a big fish she was long with a huge head!<br />
<br />
I knew there and then I was in a bit of a predicament, I had a fish in the net
that under normal circumstance I would have just released to land this one but
that fish I knew held a special value, Harrys first double and a fish I knew we
had no pictures of for him to remember the day by.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A long hard battle was played out with the
fish going on long hard powerful runs that just ate line from the spool I
eventually got her up to the top and quickly I took my chance, sliding my hand
under her chin I had a solid grip and lifted out a huge fish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Lightly hooked she was soon unhooked and
placed in the net to rest before a quick weigh, 19lb on the nose!! A fish of a
lifetime from the venue I was on and braving storm Brian had paid off with over
30lb of pike in the net resting. <br />
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On the mat they looked amazing, both in fantastic condition and been feeding
well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The 19 had a huge head and was certainly
a fish that in February will be over 20lb mark.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>A quick photo and video for the blog and she was returned back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had heard many rumours of these fish, many
claiming to have caught them but no pictures to back them up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I knew there and then I had returned one of
the true ghostly monsters, a true fish of a lifetime.<br />
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The session was not over there with a first for me late on with me getting a
run on the wobble rod, a good 2 hours later and our harry’s 13 had recovered
and was back on the feed!! Madness and a first for me as I have never caught
the same pike twice in the same session, crazy.<br />
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The session coming to and end it was a pleasure to share
this session with our Harry, a session we will talk about for years to come no
doubt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It showed everything that is so
magical about fishing for pike, that float goes or that alarm starts ringing
you just never know what monster could be on the other end,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>a session of memories a session where stories and rumours of monster fish became reality.....<br />
<br />
till next time<br />
<br />
tight lines<br />
<br />
Danny<br />
<br />
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Dannyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01502479739807267682noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2364857995265112843.post-85771077589441815812017-10-24T10:07:00.002+01:002017-10-24T10:07:21.212+01:00Dead Bait Fishing for pike: The Rough With The SmoothAfter an amazing start to the season where the float would not keep still i hit session number 3 and with it came the first lost fish and dropped runs. Rain banging down i was sat fish less and reminiscing on the past sessions captures. <br />
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A simple but effective method of sink and draw or wobbling saves the day, watch the session unfold below:<br /><br />
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Thank yuou very much for watching,</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
till next time</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
tight lines</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Danny</div>
Dannyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01502479739807267682noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2364857995265112843.post-86076717797546802502017-10-17T11:58:00.000+01:002017-10-17T11:58:17.369+01:00Deadbait fishing for Pike - Double runs and a Double!!So the second session of the season and i headed out with my trusty float ledger rig i showed in the last video. In this one i cover my simple float ledger rig in more detail and its versatility. How to construct this simple pike rig and how to fish it effectively for pike.<br />
<br />
A manic session with double runs and and plenty of run!!<br /><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /><div style="text-align: left;">
<br />Till next time,</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Tight lines </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Danny</div>
</div>
Dannyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01502479739807267682noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2364857995265112843.post-23999674054821498542017-10-11T14:36:00.003+01:002017-10-11T14:36:58.448+01:00Deadbait Fishing For Pike - Simple Float RigThe first session of the season, tough conditions but could not have gone better..In this video i go over my simple but very versatile float set up for catching pike <br /><br />
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Dannyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01502479739807267682noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2364857995265112843.post-75761186609648135282017-09-24T15:38:00.004+01:002017-09-24T15:38:57.336+01:00Making Your Own Wire Traces Guide - Pike Season PrepSo we now sit on the cusp of my third full pike season and i have to admit i feel more like i do before the start of the closed season with the rivers as in the piking has lost that new feel it had in previous seasons, not to confuse that with a loss of passion or excitement for the forthcoming season, just a feel of wanting to enjoy that magical feeling of that first day of the new season come October 1st.<br />
<u><b><i><br />Subtle changes in approach for 2017 Season...</i></b></u><br />
<br />
The past few weeks have brought with them all manner of preparation for the new season ahead and some changes in my set up. I have upped my main line to 60lb braid this year and this is purely down to safety reasons as i am planning on doing a lot of river fishing this season and with the rivers i feel you need that extra strength in the set up to be as responsible as possible in doing the up most not to leave any tackle in the river that a pike could pick up.<br />
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<br />
New reels have come in and i have upgraded form 4000 size reels to 6000 size reels just to give me that extra casting ability when i tackle the bigger reservoirs and lakes on our socials. These reels are also the same size as my carp reels and as they come with extra spools it gives me the option, as i own a EA 3 rod licence, to load a spare spool with braid and attach it to my carp reels should the rules allow me to fish three rods. This season is all about giving myself more options.<br />
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<i><u><b>The Bait order...</b></u></i><br />
<br />
As in the past years we have again all chipped together to put in a big pike order of dead baits, if you know you are going to have a full season of dedicated trips then i highly recommend bulk ordering your dead baits as you really do save a fortune.<br />
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In past years i have experimented with all manner of dead boats ands i feel experience built up over the past two and half seasons has put me in the place i am now where i have confidence in a small number of baits that i know work on the venues i fish. The bait order this year reflects that with my purchases being spread over just a few species of dead baits.<br />
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<b><i><u>Venues</u></i></b><br />
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This season i feel will see me diversifying more in my pike fishing and although there will be no naming of venues in the pike fishing, for obvious reasons, i do feel this season will see me move more away from still waters and more towards running water. I have targets this year on rivers that the guys you see me fishing with on socials do not really fish so i can see times this year where i am spending sessions finding my way on rivers i have never pike fished on my own in search of truly wild river pike.<br />
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That is not to say there wont be socials sessions as there will and there are already a number planned in for October but as the season moves on i feel our own journeys and goals may take us all onto venues the others do not have either licences to fish or the inclination to fish.<br />
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These adventures will not involve dead baits all the time as the river i have in mind is a river where dead baits just do not work and this is sheerly down to the amount of prey in the area the pike live. These pike have no need to rely on dead fish so the magnitude of my dead bait pike order also takes this into account.<br />
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<u><i><b>Wire traces...</b></i></u><br />
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The month before the start of the pike season is a time where evenings are spent in front of the TV putting together my wire traces. There is no doubt about it making your own traces haves a huge amount of bonuses over shop bought. The number one is of course cost, you save a fortune making your own and secondly is the amount of customization making your own allows, fishing a mackerel then you can space the hooks accordingly as you can if you want a rig for a smaller bait like a smelt. You then have that massive feeling of achievement when you land that fish of the season on a rig you have tied yourself. <br />
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To make sure there is not a huge weak link in my set up this year i have upped my wire strength to 40lb wire.<br />
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Below is the first video i ever made on my youtube blog channel and it goes into detail on how to make your own wire traces.<br />
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<u><i><b>Looking ahead...</b></i></u></div>
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So the prep is done i have a weekend ahead of me chasing carp and then i feel it will be time to make that change over set ups on my carp rods and put them into pike mode for the coming season. Its a season i cannot wait to start and get out on that first morning. I hope we get some proper pike winter weather and a full season of settled low temperatures that make these pike sessions so memorable.</div>
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Its a season where achievements will not be measure on size of pike but on how well i put lessons learnt into practise as i tackle new waters on my own. Tight lines if you are also heading on the same pike journey come October 1st and thank you for reading</div>
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Danny</div>
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<br />Dannyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01502479739807267682noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2364857995265112843.post-7665716316130121362017-08-22T18:00:00.000+01:002017-08-22T18:00:17.070+01:00The Reservoir Diary Part 1 - A New Challenge...One of the aspects of fishing i love more than anything is the diversity of the adventures that can be created under the umbrella of the word "fishing". A man or lady mentions they are an avid angler and from that one sentence all manner of species, methods and locations can begin to sprout in all directions.<br />
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My journey, until around 2 years ago, never really involved the pursuit of carp but in the past two years i have slowly started to dip my tentative toes into the world of carp fishing. A few sessions on a small local water chasing carp on floating crust and on the method feeder allowed we to gain some confidence in catching carp to high upper doubles and allowed we to gain confidence and an identity within carp fishing of how i would want to approach this branch of the sport.<br />
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I soon discovered i was never going to be an angler who would be bivvied up for over night sessions, i found enjoyment in short morning and evening sessions adopting and developing the mentality of a little bit of bait in the right spot over sitting over a lot of bait and waiting for the carp to find me approach. I will never rule out the possibility of this journey winding with me delving deeper into carp fishing and the longer sessions but these short sessions on the small and intimate water and the lovely captures like the common below served the purpose of gaining confidence in my approach wetting the appetite for greater challenges.<br />
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Sometimes we set our sights on a venue and others we arrive on them by chance, this adventure began with the latter. Myself and my mate Garry where talking about new venues and we decided that we had nothing to lose in trying a local reservoir. Knowing the venue was quite a large one i scaled my gear right back for the trip taking only the bare essentials. A rod bag with two rods, a bucket containing rig bits bait and my licence and a large unhooking mat with a landing net.<br />
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We arrived at the venue around 4pm and we decided to give the more well worn pegs a miss and opted for the more uncomfortable, quieter and ultimately less fished peg. A steep slippery bank down to a flat bank of around a foot or so provided just enough room to get bank sticks in. The green untouched banks testament to the lack of occupation in the swim and i instantly liked the look of the place.<br />
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Its weird with fishing how you can instantly like or dislike a venue just by the feel and ambiance of the place and i instantly liked the look of this water. It of course had plenty of nice pegs with features galore where you could lay out a bed of bait and wait for the carp but it also had plenty of those uncomfortable out of the way quiet pegs where i knew the carp would be found at times of high pressure.<br />
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My tactics for the session was my trust method feeder filled with a mix of dampened micro and 2mm pellets with the added attraction of Cheshire Particle Hemp Oil. The hook bait the ever reliable Bait-Tech The juice dumbells, a combination that had done we well all spring and summer and i am know that confident in it i leave the rig out there knowing the only factor in getting a run is if a fish comes across the trap. I know if they do then they will eat the bait its that simple ion my head now such the results its produced.<br />
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Casting around to find the gaps in the weed i soon found a clear patch out in front of me and another to my right, you could tell instantly when you had hit the spot as taps on the feeder from the roach would be instant. I didn't mind these at all as a crowd attracts a crowd as such and i knew if the roach could find the bait then so could Mr carp.<br />
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After hooking into a few roach i began to feel the pellets where not hanging round long and this trap does reply on the carp fishing the pellets dispersed from the feeder and you bait and more importantly your line being covered by the pellets so regular and accurate casts where the order of the day.<br />
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The taps stopped and i remember watching the tip fall silent, a large line bite gave away the presence of a larger visitor to the swim, another long pluck and half way through the tip resetting it wrapped round and the delkim alarm screamed into life. Lifting into the fish it was all heavy as the fish dived straight for the nearest weed bank. A sustained pressure on the fish saw it come free and a wallowing almost bream like fight ensued until the fish was coming up the shelf and as it did panic stations began to kick in and the fish went on a number on long deep runs. It was a fantastic fight.<br />
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Thankfully it was a fight that went in my favour and with an aching and relieved arm the fish slip over the mesh, a lovely dark mirror carp of 16lb 10oz1!<br />
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Whilst playing the first fish the other rod screamed off and for some time both me and Carry where playing carp. Unfortunately a hook pull on Gary's fish put pay to a fantastic double fish brace shot that would have really set off the session. The rods back out the taps from the roach continued and the rod tips danced almost as to the beat of the lapping waves as they washed over the rod tips.<br />
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The clouds moved in and with them so did the light rain but this did not deter the carp as again the right hand rod pulled round as the fish was hooked and bolted for the nearest reed bed. Strong tackle and gentle pressure the fish was back on the move and it soon became apparent that these carp where fine wallowing in 10ft of water until you started to bring them up the shelf. That part of the fight the carp where going mad and making long hard runs pulling line from the reel but soon a nice upper single figure carp was gracing the net. Two fish on the first session i was made up.<br />
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The next hour or two passed by with nothing of any note on the carp front, roach still continued to come in spells , but it was not until right on last light that my rod again sparked into life. I am always a great believer that when on a social its always more enjoyable when you all catch and my mate Garry had sat through the rain and the roach with me for the passed few hours so i allowed him to take the last run of the evening.<br />
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It turned out to be another fantastic low double figure fish. The clear water giving the fish a lovely dark back that gave way to yellows as you scanned down its flank. They where lovely looking fish to catch and this one certainly put Garry through the mill as it came up the shelf with some long hard runs.<br />
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The gear packed away it was time to reflect on the session and what a first session it had been with 4 runs and 3 fish on the bank. We had arrived on the venue not really having any expectations but had left with the grit between our teeth for more. This venue certainly captured me and i could feel the start of another adventure taking hold.<br />
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The full session is available in video format the blogs you tube channel here: <br />
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<br />Dannyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01502479739807267682noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2364857995265112843.post-9414360859503378942017-06-20T21:56:00.000+01:002017-06-20T21:56:28.428+01:00Top Stick Float Tips, River Season Hopes and Reflections..A warm welcome to this weeks blog update i hope i find you well and your nets wet. Planning for the written blog is going well, i find myself on my dinner hour again putting together this written blog and so far so good, i am half way through the first paragraph and writers block has not set in yet. There is time.<br />
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So i thought it would be good in this blog update to have a look at my hopes and ambitions for the upcoming river season and at the same time a bit of reflection on the 3 month closed season. What went well and what i could have maybe done better. The blog update finishes with a session in search of tench, a species its been far too long since it featured on my blog.<br />
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<b><u><span style="font-size: large;">Top 5 Stick Float Tips...</span></u></b><br />
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So this week the second video in the midweek vlog series went live on the youtube channel. I had received a question in around my tips for stick float fishing for someone new to the rivers and as its my main type of fishing i thought i would devote on midweek blog to some basic river tips. Stick float, rod and line choices feature as does some tips on plumming up the depth and some basic watercraft at the end.<br />
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If you read this blog and like the river fishing but are a bit daunted by the thought of fishing a river then give this midweek vlog a watch and get yourself out on the bank, you will not regret it.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><u>A Closed Season With Cheshire Particle Hemp Oil..</u></b></span></div>
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So here we are at the end of our three month exile from running waters and the freedom and tranquillity they bring. I am far from anti social but at the same time i can only take so much shouting and "banter" when i am fishing and i have to say thet my listening to "banter with mates on the bank" from the anglers around me is just teetering on the edge of madness. That said though i have had to endure far worse closed seasons with regards dealing with idiots on the bank and this season they do only seem to have arose on the commercial scene.</div>
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"Cheshire Particle Hemp Oil The Find Of The Summer"</div>
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With the closing of the river season I normally move over to the canals for my fishing but as you have all read and witnessed on the youtube blogs fising has led me down a different path this closed season. The finding of my Drennan Puddle Chucker and my unexpected thirst for wanting to get to grips with commercial fishing has seen my canal fishing plans fall by the side.</div>
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This diversion onto commercials and method feeder fishing has seen my use of hemp seed in my fishing go with it too but what this change did do is highlight to me the fantastic Cheshire Particle Product that is Cheshire Particle Hemp Oil. When this oil is added to their fantastic hemp seed before a session it can be hard to judge how much impact the hemp oil is having, this last 3 months has shown me just how much fish pulling power this oil has.</div>
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Added the oil to my pellets after they have been prepared ready for the method feeder has provided me with a pungent heady hemp based pellet mix that when tested in the margins leaked for well over 50 minutes off one small nugget of pellet. This fantastic addition to the pellets along with watercraft in placing the bait in the right place has seen me cross paths with some fantastic fish this spring and early summer.</div>
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Below just a handful of fish i have had the joy in sharing a few special moments on the bank side with..</div>
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In short this summer has shown me how good this hemp oil is on its own so when the season arrives for the rivers and its added to the fresh hemp seed Cheshire Particle are famous for it will be done with 100% confidence. A little goes a long way and at just over 4 quid a bottle it will last you ages.</div>
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Grab a bottle here:<a href="https://cheshireparticle.com/collections/liquid-range/products/hemp-oil-250ml">https://cheshireparticle.com/collections/liquid-range/products/hemp-oil-250ml</a><br />
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<b><u><span style="font-size: large;">The Season To Come...</span></u></b><br />
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The season is now literally days away and the reels are loaded with new line and the tackle box has been given a nice tidy up and organised. The bag of hemp seed has been split down into pint session bags and i am all set for the season to come.<br />
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Early season will be all about getting back into the groove of river fishing with a few stick float sessions on the smaller rivers but this year i am alos going to try my best to devote time on the bank to targeting the barbel. The barbel is a fish that has featured very sparsely on the blog and i have tried on one or two occasions to change that but not being really close to a barbel holding river it can make finding time very hard.<br />
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So barbel are certainly on the agenda for sure and i am also hoping as the season goes on to also delve deeper into a bait that i have never fished before in tares. A lot of rivers i fish are abundant in roach so it would make sense for me to try and expand into this area to try and get the best from the river i fish.<br />
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Fishing for me is all about learning and trying the develop my knowledge of all aspects of fishing so i can try and be the best anger i can be and along the way share that learning journey with yourselves through the blog. This year has plenty of promise and i am excited to see what adventures lie along the way.<br />
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Summer is far from finished and i am hoping to also get out on the bank still for the tench and carp as i have really loved the adventures so far this year. On that front a 20lb carp would be a lovely milestone to achieve and is at least a possibility now with the waters i am fishing, so that might happen any time which is exciting.<br />
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With regards content on the blog i don't think the blog has ever been so diversified with regards species and content as well as formats to follow it on. I am hoping to introduce more live streaming on the blog on facebook so that's something else to look out for.<br />
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<b><u><span style="font-size: large;">A Tench Session On The Tip...</span></u></b>.<br />
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All spring and summer i had spent time on the bank targeting carp on method feeder tactics and over that time i had began to notice a few things that worked with regards my baiting approach. The hook bait aside for now and talking about the mix of pellets i had noticed that the micro pellets along brought bites but the addition of 4 mil pellets into this mix certainly brought the better carp onto the method.<br />
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Additives to the mix over this period have been stinky stuff sprays and Cheshire particle hemp seed oil and i have found both to be beneficial in attracting fish into the swim and are additives i certainly have confidence in when i cast them out.<br />
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The main feed sorted i now look to hook baits and one bait has been doing the business for me this season and it has been Bait Techs's the Juice dumbells. What can i say about this bait other than it has caught me so many fish it is untrue. It has caught me fish on commercials and natural waters. So in these two paragraphs lays the trap i have been setting up till about two weeks ago for all my carp fishing.<br />
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A new card and a chance to try new waters and early on Saturday morning i found myself on the banks of a new club water. Out went a method feeder and with it out went an approach i have so much confidence in. The bait presented in an area i seen as a patrol route for fish and where they would feed confident in feeding i was out to play the waiting game and leave the feeder there until the tip pulled round on my drennan puddle chucker.<br />
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The sun creeping over the horizon to my right and its rays just starting to illuminate the bank behind me i sat listening to the early morning bird song. A heron circling above out looking for its breakfast soon landed a few yards down the bank, good enough for him good enough for me. A tap on the feeder alerted me to something in the area and over excited i went to grab the rod. It can be hard to sit on your hands with this but you really have to wait for that wrap round.<br />
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Eventually it came and lifting the rod i was instantly locked into a battle of wills as a fish made hard for the reeds. Persistent pressure soon turned the fish that by now knew it was in trouble and made for the lillies. At a fair distance it was a tough battle but soon the power in the puddle chucker brought the fish into open water and then i knew, baring a hook pull, a fish would soon be on the bank.<br />
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Played out nicely a lovely tench was soon posing for the camera.<br />
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The fish returned i was straight back out and knowing how fast the bite had come i was optimistic of more. A passer by stopped by for a chat and he was lovely to speak to and was intrigued by how the method feeder works. The mechanics explained the wrap round on the tip soon showed him the results and what a fish to show someone how good a method feeder can be as though us both laughing at the battle this fish gave me as it went hard for any dark snags it could find.<br />
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A had said moments earlier if i hit a carp it would be interesting and so it proved as one hell of a tussle was played out in front of us both. A lovely dark common carp of 9lb was my prize.<br />
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It was a fantastic start to my first session on here and i was pleased my confidence in my set up had come through. Confidence in angling is huge i feel, it means you leave the bait longer in the good spots you find and you know that time is the only deciding factor in getting a bite. The time it takes a fish to find your trap.<br />
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Over the next few hours a few more tench and bream fell for the trap set, check out the video below for the full story and the end of this adventure.<br />
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Till next time,<br />
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Tight lines<br />
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Danny<br />
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Dannyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01502479739807267682noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2364857995265112843.post-73583064373592552682017-06-05T20:04:00.000+01:002017-06-05T20:04:32.367+01:00New River Season, Commercials fun and New youtube Series...A warm welcome to this weeks blog update i hope i find you all well and your nets wet. Sat at my desk in work and these very dinner hours will now be the time where i sit down and devote some time to the written blog, lets see how we get on! I must say it does feel good to be back at the screen putting my thoughts down on paper rather than worrying about lighting and if i have the shots needed for the video of the session.<br />
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So lets get right into it,<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u><b>The River Season Looms...</b></u></span><br />
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We are now in touching distance of the new river season and i have to say this closed season has flew by in the blink of an eye. A trip last week to the bait shop to pick up a new licence saw me sneakily nipping down to the river for a look, she looked low and very clear of course but boy did she look beautiful. The air was fresh and the banks willd from the 3 month exodous. The angler inside me knew where the swims where hidden, i made most of them after all, it was not long till i was stood in familiar swims throwing floating crust down to obliging chub.<br />
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The river alive with fish a few bits of bread threw in the margins soon attraced some attention as roach and chublets moved in on the free offerings. As you can see in the short clip below, a low and clear river but a river full of life.<br />
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I left excited for the river season to come and the trip to the bait shop saw me picking up some tackle for the coming season as the thoughts of casting a feeder and running a float through still flowed through my thoughts.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u><b>New Youtube Series..</b></u></span>.<br />
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So recently i sat down and thought about all the things i do with fishing away from the bank and got down on paper all the ideas i have got coming up. Future content for Warrington angling centre and Cheshire Particle and some ideas for the Youtube channel and for this written blog.<br />
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Some exciting stuff made the spider diagram of ideas and one such one was a new midweek series on Youtube. A short video each week containing all things fishing, my upcoming fishing that weekend, my thoughts on the previous weeks and some Question and Answers i have received on social media.<br />
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If you enjoy reading the channel and watching the content and have any questions on my fishing or anything in the fishing world you would like my views on then post them in the comments on here or on social media and i will answer them on the blogs.<br />
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The first one went live last week, check it out below, any feedback is welcome!!<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u><b>Closed Season Commercial...</b></u></span><br />
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So the closed season has flown by in a flash as said above and i have to say i have really enjoyed it. I started off hoping to fish the odd commercial and then move onto the canals but isn't it amazing how fishing has this habit of sending us on its own little adventure.<br />
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We start of down a path and like the very rivers we are missing fishing takes us down its own meandering route. This closed season has saw me splitting my time really between two ventures, firstly a series called "the hunt for the Gems of the Lake", a series where i target a water full of small carp but within its depths lies a few original carp that go up to around 18lb and are in fantastic condition. A quest to catch these gems was started and i think has nearly come to its close during this closed season, A link to the playlist is below.<br />
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The gems of the Lake Playlist: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vCdCawZSE3o">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vCdCawZSE3o</a><br />
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The rest of my time has been spent really on commercials and i decided very early on that this closed season i wanted to get better on commercial fishing and learning the different methods of catching fish on these venues. It was an area i felt i was turing up and catching the odd carp or silvers but i had very little understanding of the how and why i was catching and i really wanted to improve my knowledge on these.<br />
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I started of fishing for silvers and had some lovely nets of roach over 2olb and then as it warmed up so the carp moved into play and time was spent learning margin fishing, fishing on pellets and finally fishing the method feeder. All these areas i felt i was very weak in and although i am still learning i am certainly more confident now on going a commercial than i was before and feel i now can tackle these with a set game plan.<br />
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So really in that closed season i achieved what i wanted from my fishing and i now move onto the rivers and canals. The canals did not feature but i am hoping that will change over the coming weeks as i spend less time on the commercials and more on the canal.<br />
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So that pretty much covers some info on where i am at now with the fishing and a bit looking forward, lets get into some fishing...<br />
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<u><b>Puddle Chucker Fun....</b></u><br />
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So a few weeks ago i was back at my dads house and sorting out some of my old fishing gear and i came across a rod holdall that had a good thick layer of dust on it. Closer inspection revealed it to be my old Drennan 10ft Carp Puddle Chucker feeder rod, a rod that had now seen any use for a good 3 to 4 years at least.<br />
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I had recently been watching a guy on youtube called Jamie Harrison, a Bait Tech sponsored angler and a feeder fishing guy and watching his videos i thought hey why not get it out and give it a go, it proved to be one of the best decisions i have made and the sight of this became common place as this my laughing with excitement at some of the battles i had with fish using this rod..<br />
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The session below is one such session:<br />
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Arriving at the lake i was armed with only my seat box, a landing net and my puddle chucker. I had literally a few hours in the morning and i just wanted to get a bend in the carbon. Work had taken its toll during the week and i had put many of the household jobs on hold till the weekend, this meant a severe lack of fishing time!<br />
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The bait for the session would be simple, micro pellets with a few 4mm mixed in coated in stinky stuff with Bait Techs the juice dumbells as a hook bait. It had worked before and i hoped it would work now. Captures on this combo this summer have surely got me confident in this set ups ability to catch fish for sure.<br />
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<i><span style="font-size: large;"><b>"Small Margins Matter In Fishing"</b></span></i></div>
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The more i fish the more i am convinced that small margins in fishing make a huge difference. On this session i was fishing to some reeds and i took my time to clip up so the feeder was landing bang on in front of these reeds.<br /><br />The reeds moving violently ave the game away and i knew it was only a matter of time before one of the carp came across my carefully laid trap. Well that was the plan anyway at least in my head.</div>
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An early set back came as the tip wrapped round and a fish bolted hard for the base of the roots. It was a short battle but as soon as the line went slack i knew the hook had pulled. In a morning where i might only get one chance it was a real set back. I just had to hope the commotion had not ruined my chances.<br /><br />A fresh hook length put on, not that the previous one had snapped, but i always do this to put my mind at rest that the best rig possible is out there working for me. The feeder still clipped up i was soon back on the sweet spot and if another fish did turn up i would be ready.<br /><br />Like a coiled spring i waited for the tip to go round and when it did it was a lovely slow pull and i was onto the rod like a hawk, A huge boil off the reeds told me this was a better fish and i think the slow take ave me the early momentum to turn the fish and get it out in open water.<br /><br />A reed bed near by offered the fish a dark safe home to bolt for but again the puddle chucker shocked me as its power through our the rod kept the fish under control. Slipping the net under a beautiful dark common it was mission completed.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuW2WdgCy8fs_B7rTATFZpo4WMw_8x9NOK0WnOkliTuu38sXGASmo2xeBCU0SNfFlPhBlhYcyo5UygUYHoyZzcwU34IcH3VJlMZYnzf7mTmB8H1ke2sLxd277SPGaiOvMuvR154gxncG7R/s1600/18447082_1455530081135485_8255358549858440563_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="815" data-original-width="960" height="271" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuW2WdgCy8fs_B7rTATFZpo4WMw_8x9NOK0WnOkliTuu38sXGASmo2xeBCU0SNfFlPhBlhYcyo5UygUYHoyZzcwU34IcH3VJlMZYnzf7mTmB8H1ke2sLxd277SPGaiOvMuvR154gxncG7R/s320/18447082_1455530081135485_8255358549858440563_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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A perfect common of around 14lbs i think it was and it felt good in the palms, well rested i returned her to the lake and thanked her for her time with me.<br /><br />A short video of the session is here:<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Till next time<br /><br />tight lines all,<br /><br />Danny<br />
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<br />Dannyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01502479739807267682noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2364857995265112843.post-57557503263738897442017-06-03T11:38:00.000+01:002017-06-03T11:38:24.220+01:00Lloyds Meadow Fishery Badger Lake Pole Fishing<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Dannyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01502479739807267682noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2364857995265112843.post-44228312273958718402017-05-30T18:56:00.003+01:002017-05-30T19:05:13.191+01:00A Honest Update and Looking forward!!!A warm welcome to this blog post i hope i find you all well and your nets wet. I first of all need to apologise to all the people who regularly read this blog and enjoy the written content i have found it very hard to find the time to produce content for all the platforms that i now create content for and ultimately one has had to slip a little as a result.<br />
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I am very concious that this written blog is the very bread and butter that has allowed other doors to open and other ventures to have a little push start in their existence. I have no intentions of letting this page die and fall by the wayside and am constantly thinking of ways in which i can provide content that i can upload on here.<br />
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I do have a number of ideas for the written blog and they consist of producing a monthly written blog as a recap of all my fishing for that month, a fact filled break down of one session where i cover in detail one session in written form and then continue to discuss topics that i grab my attention.<br />
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Beginning in June i hope to find a formula and a schedule that allows me to get content regularly back on her in some form or another.<br />
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Over the passed month i have been getting out on the bank and recoding my sessions and uploading them, onto the blogs youtube pages and social media pages on the links below<br />
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Youtube: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCogqlnE3gK_Re7vdU5bv8sw?spfreload=5">https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCogqlnE3gK_Re7vdU5bv8sw?spfreload=5</a><br />
Facebook:<a href="https://www.facebook.com/DannysAnglingBlog/?ref=aymt_homepage_panel">https://www.facebook.com/DannysAnglingBlog/?ref=aymt_homepage_panel</a><br />
Twitter: <a href="https://www.blogger.com/%C2%A0https://twitter.com/satonmyperch"> https://twitter.com/satonmyperch</a><br />
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These links are a fantastic way to keep up with my fishing and please check them out for daily updates on all things i am up too.<br />
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So in short starting in June there will be more content on this blog, i have found a gap where i can produce content for it so keep your eyes peeled for regular content and hopefully it will be back to the old standard.<br />
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Till then here are a few pictures of recent captures on the bank.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxqWHRy7qB_V37aG0B-5rjiqz4XNdVR52D7k9QpmaoF3ye0DUzY0pN9DSQlDDl0dr02ootKOQAmqFwXps2J1he1BxcdzC1nk5iosiE7NFufRepMlVwdmeWfX-MG2pIMKZA3LpexC7s_QwT/s1600/18789577_1427380157308952_191273808_o+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxqWHRy7qB_V37aG0B-5rjiqz4XNdVR52D7k9QpmaoF3ye0DUzY0pN9DSQlDDl0dr02ootKOQAmqFwXps2J1he1BxcdzC1nk5iosiE7NFufRepMlVwdmeWfX-MG2pIMKZA3LpexC7s_QwT/s320/18789577_1427380157308952_191273808_o+%25281%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ2FQTlGjznGPurbANtX7lxPAspO9HRXasW16j3_Ed41a7WNJbAFqhevaVmX_ksskHqNJSGBZ-5X4G1DOBeK6RpoN9Tr3r6UnoA1aRdvO1-NxBXzj2xByA74tJCVudXmaRaeR9IH05Ctb7/s1600/18817665_1427380163975618_1899347082_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1359" data-original-width="1600" height="271" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ2FQTlGjznGPurbANtX7lxPAspO9HRXasW16j3_Ed41a7WNJbAFqhevaVmX_ksskHqNJSGBZ-5X4G1DOBeK6RpoN9Tr3r6UnoA1aRdvO1-NxBXzj2xByA74tJCVudXmaRaeR9IH05Ctb7/s320/18817665_1427380163975618_1899347082_o.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7-OH0nDpBUKSC7ZIW9FInvcCGsjhus9mPvt9sHR0WXtBM9yt-1y9CDVjT7SnqFkiVFy9wkBzLR0ZEp4X4yC4EM11ak83g8CmX7nzp1_kXo7HASffLm7ztpClD9n3UHelkKielLULPhfAD/s1600/18835309_1427391263974508_1349458369_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="960" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7-OH0nDpBUKSC7ZIW9FInvcCGsjhus9mPvt9sHR0WXtBM9yt-1y9CDVjT7SnqFkiVFy9wkBzLR0ZEp4X4yC4EM11ak83g8CmX7nzp1_kXo7HASffLm7ztpClD9n3UHelkKielLULPhfAD/s320/18835309_1427391263974508_1349458369_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnyefB1I6D0M_GFy2u_MTZPgnWJDkf0A7PYjLR_p6YpjgBJq7K6vd90HOZIR2v-GN_j53PWfOynCN5ECPWbHxdNCkCKivia4dRV2GTkzWtQKuRGnvBdrWXDb2WxkEImSehVhOnMWsK2I0X/s1600/18836189_1427380183975616_842375365_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1257" data-original-width="1600" height="251" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnyefB1I6D0M_GFy2u_MTZPgnWJDkf0A7PYjLR_p6YpjgBJq7K6vd90HOZIR2v-GN_j53PWfOynCN5ECPWbHxdNCkCKivia4dRV2GTkzWtQKuRGnvBdrWXDb2WxkEImSehVhOnMWsK2I0X/s320/18836189_1427380183975616_842375365_o.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Till next time<br />
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tight lines<br />
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danny</div>
Dannyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01502479739807267682noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2364857995265112843.post-25705388095059852432017-04-11T19:33:00.000+01:002017-04-11T19:33:51.668+01:00Fishing Republic Theseus Carp Cradle and Weigh Sling Review....Hello and and welcome to this product review of the Theseus Carp Cradle and Carp weigh sling currently on sale from Fishing Republic. These products where sent to me a few weeks ago for me to use and review on the blog. After extensive period of use across many different types of fishing please find the review below of both products and a review video i have posted on the blogs you tube channel.<br />
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Youtube video review:<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u><b>Theseus Carp Cradle and Carp Sling Review..</b></u></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_8pwkOfAl_SXcJ8m2GLz8rpzp3qAQr3IjpRC80RAH4OuJb1MLmzfXAzYwTcSHz6x7o-94maDq2fJ9QDNZVtiv7j7H_EqqpZrIOmU7bhjPdIm9f1GeoeZAIjl8HUbVxr9ApoDZ11h2U4LA/s1600/Z9BIQaKJ.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_8pwkOfAl_SXcJ8m2GLz8rpzp3qAQr3IjpRC80RAH4OuJb1MLmzfXAzYwTcSHz6x7o-94maDq2fJ9QDNZVtiv7j7H_EqqpZrIOmU7bhjPdIm9f1GeoeZAIjl8HUbVxr9ApoDZ11h2U4LA/s320/Z9BIQaKJ.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i><b>Product info</b></i>:<br />
Name: Theseus Carp Cradle<br />Dimensions: 115cm long x 55cm Wide x 26cm high<br />
Link to Product: <a href="https://www.fishingrepublic.net/theseus-carp-carp-cradle-tcc.html?gclid=CjwKEAjw_bHHBRD4qbKukMiVgU0SJADr08ZZzbwczMdkWnoale9fQ4bStPdBX4zqXwvAJQoW66GfIBoCV5Xw_wcB">THESEUS CARP CRADLE LINK</a><br />
Price: £25.00<br /><br />
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<i><b>Product Info:</b></i><br />
Name: Theseus Carp Sling<br />Dimensions: 125cm Long x 60cm Deep x 45cm Wide<br />
Link to product: <a href="https://www.fishingrepublic.net/theseus-carp-protector-weigh-sling-tpws.html">THESEUS CARP SLING LINK</a><br />
Price £25.00 <br /><br />
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<b><i>The Carp Cradle -</i></b></span><br />
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When the carp cradle first dropped on my doorstep and i opened it up i was genuinely shocked at two aspects of this product from the outset, one was how light the carp cradle was and two i was really impressed with how neatly it was all packed away. My expectations all week had been for a large heavy and quite bulky product.<br />
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The actual cradle comes in two parts, a padded base and then the cradle with a mesh bottom and both fold in half and are held securely in place by two straps at either end which wrap completely round both produces when placed side by side to hold them securely. I will go more into this feature later as this i found hugely beneficial when transporting both products together.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUG_Yzn6Vl9dejcSSfzxNMHZ7pU2__rzF9t4wS-VUPaWbMApPpcLpZQ7xu9GQBm9sSck3KHvhLO4TC8-qSIKpmKYZaCg3Wgm43i_ei_szwbWJW_WebKQNvKy8f2EgGVDI1iZ4jEvOXyaDP/s1600/download.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUG_Yzn6Vl9dejcSSfzxNMHZ7pU2__rzF9t4wS-VUPaWbMApPpcLpZQ7xu9GQBm9sSck3KHvhLO4TC8-qSIKpmKYZaCg3Wgm43i_ei_szwbWJW_WebKQNvKy8f2EgGVDI1iZ4jEvOXyaDP/s1600/download.jpg" /></a></div>
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The water i chose to put this item through its paces was a local pool with a good head of small carp and a few bigger originals into double figures. This pool i had fished for the past few years and i had used a small cheap unhooking mat during that time and i had found it really difficult from a blogging point of view to "process" the carp from catching them to unhooking them and then keeping them under control on a slippery mat with no side. at times it certainly made for a frustrating experience.<br />
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<b><i>"From a Blogging point of View the Cradle has been a God send"</i></b></div>
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The biggest compliment i can pay this product is how it has revolutionised my experience on the bank fishing for carp and blogging. The fact the fish can be placed inside this padded cradle and i feel confident the fish can come to no harm encased inside its sides. The fish has plenty of space to move and the well padded bottom and sides ensure no damage to the fish. As a blogger it makes the process of unhooking the fish and holding it up for a photo a very smooth process.<br />
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As regular blog readers will know i am not a angler who is going to catch a 20 to 30lb carp any time soon but i wanted to also show how this sling can be used in other ways and with that i went down the road of using it as a piece of apparatus that has its uses in match fishing. On a recent session on Cheshire Fishery i knew i was in for a decent net of carp so i brought the cradle along for the final net shots to show the catch.<i></i><br />
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<b><i>"My fishing might not see me put a 6olb carp in the cradle so i filled it with 60lb of carp"</i></b></div>
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Again from a blogging point of view this kit came up trumps again for me. Many times when i have large nets and a good days fishing i can find dealing with the net at the end very hard work and the true scale of how good a session i have had can be hard to capture. On this session i had over 60lb of carp and the cradle and the sling made light but quick work of the final nets.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5malZuI_77S6XRNF8ITeDkMTm00duUL60fsktYuBnemch3ldnA7rHdnV_CZ5vHP3-09w4irNDBYjneV7n-TLS_FTsnuYsgjTfE-VBw-KAQx6j7fqk-WqiiRyXiHe10W_KCDPMyJCo50rY/s1600/20170328_181429.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5malZuI_77S6XRNF8ITeDkMTm00duUL60fsktYuBnemch3ldnA7rHdnV_CZ5vHP3-09w4irNDBYjneV7n-TLS_FTsnuYsgjTfE-VBw-KAQx6j7fqk-WqiiRyXiHe10W_KCDPMyJCo50rY/s320/20170328_181429.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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The matt had more than enough room to fit all the carp and its high sides and fish friendly material ensured no damage to the carp when i took this quick photo. This certainly could have benefits for those anglers looking for good shots at the end of their commercial fishing sessions.<br />
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The final good point i found with this kit was the material it was made from. We all get it in the ear when our kit comes home smelling of fishing but this material meant a quick trip to the hose in the garden when i got home and it was easily cleaned and did dry quite quickly.<br />
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<i><b><span style="font-size: large;">The Carp Sling -</span></b></i><br />
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This piece of kit i feel completes the package and I do feel to get the most out of them you do require them both. The sling fits perfectly into the cradle so when i had a fish i knew i wanted to weigh the sling sat nicely over the edges of the cradle and the recess in the middle was created for the carp to sit in the middle.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjvd5Kd0RCAq-VoomboSOazWjHbewhbEe_dVTMQC__cNHKV7N0ajiWOJOlGwrBwWi_l-EDA0qrLPXwQY1A_9hPP8MrNF-yI5wup3_-FqM3zrlViZqsibQN-Q2O-XJBYMf4v-OVn8mf1fPF/s1600/theseus-carp-protector-weigh-sling-tpws-409.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjvd5Kd0RCAq-VoomboSOazWjHbewhbEe_dVTMQC__cNHKV7N0ajiWOJOlGwrBwWi_l-EDA0qrLPXwQY1A_9hPP8MrNF-yI5wup3_-FqM3zrlViZqsibQN-Q2O-XJBYMf4v-OVn8mf1fPF/s320/theseus-carp-protector-weigh-sling-tpws-409.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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The material inside the sling felt of a high quality and the mixture of mesh and material with holes in ensured the water drained quickly when you wanted to weight the fish and also the holes and mesh meant that water could completely fill the sling and allow a flow of water through the sling when it was submerged with the fish in the margin.<br />
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<b><i>"With Plenty of Holes and mesh it allowed for the free movement of water through the sling for resting the fish</i></b>" <br />
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A complete wrap round zip ensured the fish could not escape and although i never night fish so did not ever need the rest a fish in the sling for any amount of time to get pictures i did testing and the floatation tops on the sling ensured the sling held in place. A huge amount of space in the compartment to hold any size fish you are likely to encounter i tested the sling with weights up to 60lb and straps coped with it easily.<br />
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Again as a package the sling slides in between the base of the cradle and the cradle to make the package easy to carp and transport to the bank. I like to be mobile when fishing and these two going together so easily made it easy to move around swims and never felt like i was over burdened and not wanting to move with a view of the gear being a problem. <br />
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<b><i><span style="font-size: large;">Final thoughts</span></i></b><br />
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All in all two products that really surprised me, i am not going to lie it presented some real challenges to incorporate it into my fishing but with a little thought and imagination i found products that dovetailed nicely and will certainly be a piece of kit that will feature in many more of my photos and sessions for both carp and pike. Being a blogger i saw huge benefits in me dealing with fish on the bank and having more control of the fish when on the Matt, the camera set pics where obtained or video pieces recorded in quick time. One bloggers life made a lot easier, now to catch a carp to fill them both :-)<br />
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Check out the video review for more info. <br /><br />
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<br />Dannyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01502479739807267682noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2364857995265112843.post-34839803167565174912017-04-03T20:41:00.002+01:002017-04-03T20:41:42.959+01:00Cheshire Particle, Bailiff Role and Some Pond Fishing :-)A warm welcome to this weeks blog update i hope find you all well and your nets wet. Two blogs in short succession it finally feels like i am getting stuck into this routine and finding the time to fit it all in. I am on top of the extra additional duties and sticking to my promise to be more proactive in my fishing this year.<br />
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Recent trips out on the bank have seen me bump into loads of people who read the blog, like buses you don't have many people mention it then all of a sudden you get people coming over for a chat everywhere you go. I love this side of the blog and if you do ever see me on the bank please do come over and have a chat its great to hear your fishing stories. <br />
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The past two weekends has seen me targeting carp for a product review i have got coming up for a carp sling and it was great to bump into a regular blog reader on the bank and share a moment that saw him catch his first ever chub! A keen predator angler it was good to hear his stories from the same canal we fish, share some of my hot spots i have come across for perch and then sat back and waited for a run whilst watching his roach swim get stalked by a small jack pike. We spend all winter chasing them on dedicated gear and how typical if fishing when you set up a roach rod and leave the pike gear at home, mr esox then finds you. Who would be a fishermen eh?<br />
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I can honestly say i am loving my fishing at the moment and in that i mean all aspects of it. The challenge of the fishing, different challenges with the writing and then the extreme challenge that is the youtube channel. Challenge is good in any part of life not just fishing it keeps you on your toes and makes the journey one to remember.<br />
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<b><u><span style="font-size: large;"><i>Cheshire Particle...</i></span></u></b><br />
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Cheshire Particle is a North West bait company run by Mark. Working from home to produce his own blends and mixes of particles he, in a short space of time, has gained a reputation for producing quality baits. The 2016 sponsor of the wales carp fishing is a testament to the hard work put in by mark and his team of anglers.<br /><br />link to cheshire particle: <a href="https://cheshireparticle.com/">https://cheshireparticle.com/</a><br />
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The range of products on offer is fantastic ranging from parti-mixes, pellets, nut mixes to his new range of snail boilies and of course his particle mixes with hemp tares and maize, it is a range where anyone can find a bait that fits into their fishing. I always like it when i come across anglers with an obvious passion for their sport and products and even more so when they are local, long term blog readers will remember me working with Beechwood baits a few years ago.<br />
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Of course this blog does stray into the world of carp fishing from time to time but when i was asked to work with Cheshire Particle i wanted to of course use items that compliment my fishing and dovetail nicely into my methods and ideas. The stand out was of course hemp seed and i was also very interested in the hemp oil the company produced and the different ways i could incorporate that into my fishing. A review of these two products will bin the coming blogs but here is a little taste of what this hemp and hemp oil can be used to catch.<br />
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<b><u><span style="font-size: large;"><i>Lymm Anglers Bailiff Role...</i></span></u></b><br />
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The world of fishing can be at times a world of gripes and discontent, certainly if you frequent facebook groups a lot you will certainly be open to this world. I, at times, have also been guilty of having a lot to say on certain subjects but offering little in the way of a solution to the problem but like i said earlier 2017 i made a resolution to be more positive and more proactive in my angling, April is fast approaching and i think i have been true to that word.<br />
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In the past 2 years i have seen the banks of my local canal, the bridge water, (Northern One) become a place i dont like, a place where you worry about its long term future and the effects certain types of behavior are having on the water. In the past two years i have seen the pike fishing be reduced to a shadow of its former self and increasingly in that time i was catching pike with large sea hooks in their mouths and trailing tackle where the angler had been snapped on really light lines with no traces.<br />
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More and more i was seeing anglers mistreating fish when handling them and after getting chatting to few anglers an ever increasing number of anglers with no licence. This year i got chatting to another bailiff and i decided to put my name down to join a team of dedicated bailiffs and as a group we are now completing checks on the canal and in only a short amount of time have i think got a message that the canal is now in safe hands and being well bailiffed.<br />
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For me a bailiff role does not just confine to the boundary of checking cards and i want it to become the canal i remember as a kid, i want to see anglers back on the banks fishing the canal, The lads and dads getting out and about to wet a line and create memories together on the local cut. To achieve this is going to take time and a lot of effort and hard work. I will certainly be covering in detail my sessions on there in the form of my youtube videos and on here and if you are local to the Cheshire area come and give this canal a go, you will not be disappointed.<br />
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You can acquire a licence here: <a href="https://www.lymmanglingclub.com/join-us">https://www.lymmanglingclub.com/join-us</a><br />
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On to the Fishing:<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;"><u><i>Welcome to my...Pond Life...</i></u></span></b><br />
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So with a few product reviews in the past few weeks my fishing for once has been mainly dictated by the blog, not my normal way of doing things but some times it has to be done and carp fishing has been the area i have been spending most of mt time in recently.<br />
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As with all aspect of life it is always good to break away and spend a few hours doing something completely different, an evening on a local small pond with my uncle offered such an opportunity and it was away with the carp rods and out with the maggotts and hemp.<br />
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A small secluded pond situated in the ruins of an old monastery it holds a wealth of history and the pond itself is part of that with it being a stock pond for the monks when they inhabited the local area. How times change now someone taking carp from this pond for the pot would be seen in such a different light.<br />
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This pond is also quite sentimental to myself as both me and my dad helped to create the fishing pegs many years ago and s reward we where both granted with a fishing licence for life to fish the pond, a reward we drop in on from time to time, but in all honesty a place i fish quite infrequently. A place, like the local canal, that holds so many special memories of mine and my dads fishing trips.<br />
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So with only a few hours in the evening we decided to give this little pond a go. The margins lined with toads in quite a amorous mood it was one of those typical early spring evenings, a warm breeze and intermittent sun and cloud, i was interested to see how the fishing had changed.<br />
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Feeding red maggot via the catty over the top of my light pole float soon saw some roach coming on the drop. A decent pouch of hemp from the off would guarantee some feed on the bottom when the maggot arrived. A deep swim for a pond at 10ft i fished a rig full depth with little shot to catch in all the layers as the bait fell. Roach where soon coming steady on the drop.<br />
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As with all truly wild fish that need not our baits to sustain their existence their natural instincts soon kick in and caution outweighs the need to feed. Changing feed and depths can fool the stranglers but keeping the fish coming can really be a game of cat and mouse. My uncle was also getting steady bites and had actually landed a few small carp, distant ancestors of the very fish this pond was created for, the history of this place as i have said makes it so special.<br />
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A solemn silence soon came over my peg and it all felt very atmospheric as the float sat lazily dancing to the ponds tune as the slight ripple lapped up against the float. A rhythm soon interrupted by the slightest of line bites, a fish moving on the bottom was the obvious culprit and when the float finally gave in the ever excited angler on the other end of the pole and sunk into to depths i knew little of what was going to be on the other end.<br />
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A hard fight seeing the drennan aqua elastic oozing from the end of the pole it was a good while before the fishes identity was certified especially with the severe depth of this pond. Eventually through the surface came the shimmer of dark olive green and that most iconic of spring fish was slid into the landing net. A teddy bear eye and a paint brush tail she was by far the fish of the session and a sign spring had finally sprung.<br />
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<br />As the session wore on to its end and we reached that most mysterious time in any session, the last hour, the witching hour, a hour when you know those wise old fish are starting their hunt for food and if you get lucky maybe they will slip up and allow you to admire their beauty.<br />
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The last hour as the oily sun dropped below the horizon my palm was graced with bars of gold time and time again as some lovely crucian carp moved in over the bed of hemp seed. A sight that brought those childhood memories flooding straight back.<br />
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A session end came in just as fast as the darkness began to fall and a cool mist began to creed over the pond, many say the morning mist is the ghost of anglers past then surely this mist rolling in just had the be the ghosts of the monks moving in to protect their pool through the hours of darkness.</div>
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Two nets that held so many memories.</div>
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Till next time enjoy you fishing and creating those special memories that will last a lifetime.<br /><br />Danny</div>
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<br />Dannyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01502479739807267682noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2364857995265112843.post-74557720737890783782017-03-22T20:57:00.001+00:002017-03-22T20:57:19.787+00:00River Season End, Cheshire Fishery and Xchange Landing Net ReviewA warm welcome to this weeks blog update i hope i find you all well and your nets wet. Its safe to say that spring is well and truly here now and its fantastic to see all the little changes i spotted a week or two ago no bursting into full life and all around it seems like the world is coming to life.<br />
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Recent trips to the bank have seen the ducks starting to pair of and "do their thing" if you get me and a recent trip for an evening session on a a pond i was greeted to the margins alive with toads all preparing to spawn. The morning commute to work is now done to the back drop of bird song and i know i always say that i love winter as the best time of year for myself enjoying my time on the bank but i think the reality is i love all the seasons for the little bits of magic they bring.<br />
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It is at this time of the year i find myself just heading out with just my camera on my phone to take some shots of nature and leave the rods tucked away at home. The venues are always water related in some way but its just good to be out in the fresh air. The Monday to Friday job as i have always said is simply just a means to an end to putting food on the table and pay the bills. Its 4 walls and 5 windows do get you down so time is needed alone out in the wilderness with your thoughts or just by a river to wash away those stagnating days in the dungeon.<br />
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There have been some good changes recently in work and one of them has been the introduction of a late shift every week till 6.30pm. The late is not great news but with a late finish comes a late start so it has meant i can take my time and after dropping the kids off at nursery i have a hour or two to burn. This week i am writing this piece for my main blog but last week i took a leisurely walk along the local canal.<br />
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The walk was on a warm Wednesday morning the sun on my back and my camera in my hand it was a great start to my day. Daffodils lines the path and fish where topping on the end of the wind i was heading into work in the next half hour but that was firmly at the back of my mind. <br />
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A lovely spring day<br />
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On to the update...<br />
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<b><u><span style="font-size: large;">Time To Spring Into Life....</span></u></b><br />
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This week my next article for my role at Warrington Angling Centre went live. I always try to keep these articles in a different style to this blog with them being more about the how i fish than the fishing as such. I have always tried to keep this written blog about the experience of my fishing and not so much about the diameter of the line used.<br />
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In this latest blog i look at how i prepare away from actually fishing a session as spring arrives. How and why i travel to the venues before i even wet a lone and the best times i have found for visiting that water you are looking forward to fishing in the coming weeks.<br />
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Here is a link the the article: <a href="http://www.warringtonangling.com/time-to-spring-into-life/">http://www.warringtonangling.com/time-to-spring-into-life/</a><br />
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There are links at the bottom of the article to rate it out of 5 stars and to share it on your social media platforms. It would be great if you could suport the articles in any way.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><u>Xchange Landing Net Review</u></b></span><br />
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<b><i>Product Info:</i></b><br />
Price: £20.00<br />
Link to product: <a href="https://www.tincafishing.co.uk/xchange--interchangeable-landing-net">https://www.tincafishing.co.uk/xchange--interchangeable-landing-net</a><br />
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<i><b>Product description</b>:</i><br />
The XChange Interchangeable Landing Net Head is a landing net with a difference because you can change between different mesh sizes, depths and materials with ease. It comes supplied with a set of 3 different varieties of mesh, and two more can be purchased separately. Not only does this provide you with an all-round net, that is more cost effective, but it also means that if one mesh was to break or get a hole in it, you could easily put on a new one without having to buy a whole new frame!<br />
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<i><b>Review: </b></i><br />
A few weeks ago i was contacted by a company asking if i was interested in reviewing one of their products. A landing net that allowed you to change the mesh to either a deeper one or a rubber one depending on the size or species you where fishing for. It looked a really exciting product so i agreed to take a look. What came really did capture myself as i think it is a fantastic bit of thinking outside the box and innovation.<br />
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Like with all things the best ideas are almost always the most simple and this one i no different. A cut in the metal allows you to slide off the widget on the landing net mesh and pull it completely off the metal rim. Attaching the new net is a simple as sliding the next net onto the gap into the metal.<br />
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I found this net really useful on a a recent session on Cheshire Fishery where i knew the carp had woken up so i wanted a deeper net in case some of the carp showed. Luckily i did as in the last hour 27lb of carp appeared under my feet. <br />
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The net offers fantastic versatility whilst only carrying the one net. The rubber net will certainly come into its own for predator anglers fishing for perch who want a lightweight net with some depth in case an esox makes an appearance.<br />
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All in all a great product and below is it up close on the bank with my first ever video review.<br />
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<b><u><span style="font-size: large;">Cheshire Fishery Silvers On Pole...</span></u></b><br />
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The river season in truth came to a drab and wet conclusion with most of the rivers carrying a good amount of water as we moved into the closed season. At times like this it can be hard to decide what to do as the natural still waters are still slowly waking from their winter hibernation. It can mean we are left with a period of quite hard fishing and this is when i firmly turn my attention to the commercials for some action.<br />
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A fishery we headed to last year was Cheshire Fishing in Tattenhall and it served us well for both silvers and the odd rod bending carp. We decided to again head there again in search of the fantastic roach that reside in this venue please check out the session below.<br />
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The plan for the session was to fish two lines, one on caster and hemp for the silvers and the other for carp on a heavier elastic and bigger bait in corn. The first few hours we sat in a cold corner of the complex struggling for bites and we soon decided to have a move onto one of the other pools on the lake. It was a move that would remind me just how mad fishing can be. Two pools on the same complex with the same conditions and same water depth yet one was dead and the other was alive.<br />
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With only 3 hours of the session left it did feel like it was only a case of hoping to get a few bites if we moves. I set up on pool 5 and literally went down to one line on castor and Cheshire Particle Hempseed. My plan was to try and make the most of the time we had left and just enjoy getting a few bites.</div>
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The rig was a simple light float that took 3 number 8 weights and i spread them evenly down the line to allow me to target fish in all the water layers as the bait fell. The bait was introduced via a Preston soft pot. </div>
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The fish where soon coming regular to the hemp and caster and with this type of fishing you really do get into a rythm. I find each session is different with how the fish want you to feed, sometimes it is better to lay your rig in and feed over the top and others its best to feed and then follow it in with your rig. On this session feeding first was certainly better.<br />
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The fish in the swim in good numbers i knew competition for the bait would son see the fish coming up in the water to the castors so i quickly set my rig to half depth and i certainly saw the quality of the silvers improve. Testament to the competition i started to even get the odd skimmer on the drop.<br />
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Why is it with this type of fishing that when its good the time flies bye. As the session came to an end the fishing went from strength to strength as the swim built up and the dusk set in. I knew i had caught well but i was not ready for the final net to go over the 20lb mark!!</div>
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My first session out with the Cheshire particle hem seed and hemp oil, more on that in the coming weeks blogs but as first outing s go, well 20lb of roach in 3 hours speaks for itself!</div>
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Just a quick update this one really but there is some exciting news coming in the next update along with the regular videos on youtube.<br />
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Till next time<br />
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Tight Lines<br />
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Danny<br />
<br />Dannyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01502479739807267682noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2364857995265112843.post-83724217645590814542017-03-06T20:28:00.003+00:002017-03-06T20:28:36.106+00:00End February Update - Chub Session and Simple Pike RigA warm welcome to this weeks blog update i hope i find you all well and your nets are wet. Talking of wet just how wet has the passed two weeks been in the UK it has made fishing very very difficult indeed. Old Dorris swept through causing endless chaos on the roads and no doubt on the rivers as well as i am sure she will have created a few more snags for those chub to hide from us anglers in.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u><b>Looking Forward To March 2017.....</b></u></span><br />
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so i thought with this new way of blogging it would be good for the last blog of each month to have a little look at my plans, as always weather permitting , for the upcoming month. March is always a month of mixed emotions as we say good bye to the rivers and normally the pike fishing as well fades away during this month also.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i><b>"As One Door Closes So Another Opens" </b></i></span></div>
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In life i always refer to the saying "as one door closes so another opens" and it is never more true than in fishing. The river and piking doors close and it opens up opportunities on the canals and lakes for some silver, tench and carp fishing. Planning is always essential of course so with bad weather this weekend i spent most of Sunday driving round some waters just getting a feel for them for future trips.<br />
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So March, i have been lucky enough to be invited to fish a pike match towards the middle of march so i am looking forward to that and even if i dont catch it will be an experience to remember i am sure. The first two weeks of march i am hoping to get out on the rivers for at least one session for roach and dace and of course some more chub fishing<br />
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If the weather continues as the rivers are high and coloured then my attention will turn to a bit of piking or carp fishing to see if we can winkle out one or two fish but all being well i am remaining positive and expecting to be out on the river.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u><b>My Simple Pike Rig...</b></u></span><br />
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So it has been around 3 years since the term deadbaiting appeared in my blogs and over that time i have had so many adventures chasing these beautiful creatures. It has been hard going this season for them but asking around it seems to have been hard for all with pike being quite absent from their normal haunts.<br />
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Over that time i have tried many rigs for pike and although the choice of rig is determined by the venue m ore than anything else there is one rig that i would take anywhere. In my recent article for Warrington Angling Centre i share my simple but effective float rig, a rig you can use for dead baiting and live baiting and a rig that offers no end of versatility in presentation on and off the bottom.<br />
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link to article: <a href="http://www.warringtonangling.com/deadbait-pencils-the-stealth-item-in-your-box/">http://www.warringtonangling.com/deadbait-pencils-the-stealth-item-in-your-box/</a><br />
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On To The Fishing..<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u><b>Chub Fishing - Effort Equals Success...</b></u></span>.<br />
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As mentioned above it has been a typically wet February and with it it has meant the rivers have generally been up above their fishable levels and for some of the bigger rivers in the fields. When the weather is like this we look to the spate rivers and tributaries as these will generally fall and drop quite quickly.<br />
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When fishing a river you do need to spend time learning the river and how she behaves, most rivers you can work out how long they will take to drop and more importantly at what level they will be fishable. It is also important not to be too put off by colour in the river as most river fish will be hard on the feed in the coloured water looking for insects and grubs washed in and often the only factor to consider is the pace of the river as to whether or not to fish it.<br />
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When you get to grips with your river you can then travel to their banks with confidence rather than hope and can actually make the most of small windows of opportunity where the river is fishable. This window might only be a few hours before the next rain in the hills sends the river back into spate but for that window you can at least get a pull oin your string.<br />
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On this session i spotted the river was dropping fast and was fishable in the morning on the EA, i knew i might only have a hour and the fishing would be hard but if i located a shoal i would have a chance. I traveled a good mile of river before i landed in a swim that held some chub and the action was frantic with chub and a rogue trout coming thick and fast<br />
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The second week was a complete write off with rain pouring down all week and flooded rivers meeting us at the weekend. I decided to make the most of this gap and go for a look around some waters i fancy fishing in the coming weeks and it was certainly time well spent.</div>
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pic flowers</div>
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till next time i wish you all </div>
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tight lines</div>
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Danny </div>
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<br />Dannyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01502479739807267682noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2364857995265112843.post-68681953115747628682017-02-17T21:00:00.001+00:002017-02-17T21:00:47.322+00:00New Blog Format and Mid February Update....A warm welcome to this weeks blog update i hope i find you all well and your nets wet. Well what can i say a week of work has come to an end and i find myself back at my desk. Again writing this blog offers me a place of solace and, if only for an hour, a place to relax and enjoy updating the blog.<br />
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In this update i am going to cover a new format for the blog going forward and More importantly the reasons for this and will also have a look forward at what adventures are to come over the next month or so. Grab a brew and lets get into it.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u><b>New Written Blog Format.</b></u></span>..<br />
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So we now move into another year of blogging and i think it is 6 years now since i started writing this blog and it has been fantastic to see it develop from a few paragraphs viewed by 10 people in a month to the almost feature length updates it now has on here attracting hundreds of views.<br />
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Over that time the blog has changed and like the very rivers i love to fish it has twisted and turned over time and now i feel we have come to the middle reaches, waters are calm and comfortable and the pace easy. <br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><i>"Easy, Calm and Comfortable are not a good place to be..."</i></b></span></div>
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Easy calm and comfortable is not a good place to be with anything you are passionate about. you should be always looking at producing the best content you can and always be pushing some sort of boundary with your fishing whether that's going out of your comfort zone on projects or developing new ways of keeping your content interesting and due to this i feel the time is now for the blog to again develop and continue to allow me to produce the best blogs i can.</div>
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So going forward, regualr readers of this blog will be pleased to know the written blogs are going nowhere at all and i am more dedicated than ever to blogging on this media. What will be changing is the regularity and the content of the blogs. From march the blogs will go to fortnightly updates so there will be an update half way through the month and then another update on or around the end or start of the month.</div>
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The reason for these changes is simple, my blog has now developed onto many formats and now is not just confined to the written format you see on here. The social media side has grown to a pint where we have 2k followers on Twitter, close to 1k on Facebook and a growing popularity on Instagram. As you will know recently i set up a Youtube channel for the blog and now regularly produce videos of my fishing sessions and have also undertaken a Consultant role at a local tackle shop.</div>
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all these commitments do take time out of my week and i am someone who puts my heart and soul into everything and to do all of these to the best of my ability there has to be balance so i am hoping updating this blog every 2 weeks, a video every Friday on Youtube and completing my consult role at the shop will all slide in nicely for me to do the best i can on all these avenues.</div>
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That is the fishing side of things but please do remember this is a hobby for me and there is no blog without the actual getting out on the bank fishing, all this is time out of my week. I also work a 9-5 job and I am also a father to 2 kids and have a very understanding partner who quite frankly will always come first before all this so i really am doing my best to find some balance.</div>
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Lets see how it goes...</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u><b>Looking Forward....</b></u></span></div>
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So February, a time of real change, always a time tinged with mixed emotions for me as the daffodils coming up signal change is happening and for the river angler and pike angler in me i know the good times are now but it will all so quickly be over and another winter will have passed us by.</div>
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This time of year i really do start to think about the exciting fishing to come after the rivers close and my mind right now is ticking over with a few ideas of trips to come. I am thinking of spending the two weeks after the rivers close on a commercial chasing silvers and carp and from march starting to get on the canal for silvers and chasing those carp again on floating crust.</div>
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One species that will be getting some attention from me this season will be the tench. I have run into these red eyed teddy bears a few times over the past years on the canal and i think a targeted attack on them is well overdue, as is some dawn raids on bigger waters for them. </div>
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All in all im looking forward to the new exciting adventures to come with spring even if i am a little sad to be leaving the pike, chub and dace fishing behind.<br />
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<u><span style="font-size: large;"><b>On to the Fishing..</b></span></u><br />
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So with a week off work it has been a case of having a back log of content to work through, never a bad thing i have learnt over the years. The two fishing sessions released so far are a session on cheshire fisheries and a Chub fishing session on the river and here they are:<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><u><i><b>Cheshire Fisheries - A cold Winters Day</b></i></u></span><br />
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Monday morning and i headed in my car to meet my mate Gary for a days fishing on Cheshire fisheries near tattenhall. The barometer recorded a barmy -3 and already before we left there was a wind howling through the trees outside Gary's house, experience over the years had taught me to expect a rough day as a wind before first light is always a bad omen for the rest of the day.<br />
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Heading onto the Cheshire plains i knew we would be exposed to the elements so we set up on a pool down the embankment hoping the wind would blow over our heads and miss us. It surely was a lot calmer down the bank out of the wind and with a few fish topping it all looked well.<br />
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setting up either side of a overhanging tree i had high hopes for the session ahead and i set out a all pole plan to fish ground bait and maggot on one line and hemp and caster on the other. Cutting the first few hours short it was a very very slow start that saw us catch the odd fish and i also lost a carp but when the fish started coming like the one below i knew it was time for a move.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_u6fOXWrviIx91xUQntE5gv3khy7PDW72CYOlKgNkQOXmehx7gZbxJX9h8xu5apGW6vOb5gH5sO2VJII6x-Zs0AZ14BddbxxtycXo6DOnXlwUUbdBwJlJ_ApHl4GlzhDlQRbqaCTfzwfm/s1600/20170206_083136.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_u6fOXWrviIx91xUQntE5gv3khy7PDW72CYOlKgNkQOXmehx7gZbxJX9h8xu5apGW6vOb5gH5sO2VJII6x-Zs0AZ14BddbxxtycXo6DOnXlwUUbdBwJlJ_ApHl4GlzhDlQRbqaCTfzwfm/s320/20170206_083136.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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A move onto the top pools put is right in the weather but straight away i was into roach and of a nice stamp. All on maggot at first and i did try to put in a caster line but no bites where forthcoming on it. As the session wore on the bites slowed and i managed to latch into a carp, the peg dying was a sure sign of their arrival.<br />
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The wind howling now and icy cold rain coming down i moved over to castor shallow and it proved to be a good call with roach coming at regular intervals. The wind and rain made it hard to get pictures never mind blog so it was a grueller but enjoyable in a mad type of way.<br />
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Garry was also fishing a pole with a waggler rod out the side and was also picking up regular roach and had also snared a nice carp, a good reward for suffering the weather. The roach continued to come as well as two more carp that had been attracted onto the castor line.<br />
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At 3pm we decided to call it a day and weigh out nets. A combined net of over 23lb of fish and some quality silvers did warm the soul, even for a few minutes.<br />
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As the weather warms i am looking forward to getting back on this exciting fishery. <br />
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<i><span style="font-size: large;"><u><b>Chub Fishing Session - Deadly Tactics For Catching Chub </b></u></span></i><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">In river fishing it always pays to spend as much time on your rivers and learn their moods. How quick they rise, how quick they fall and how the colour varies with their depths after rain fall. Each river is different and learning them means you can pretty much always have a river to try.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">Sometimes after the levels of rain recently the river might only be right for a few hours before the next load of rain sends them back into flood so you really do have to make the most of small windows of opportunity. Last Friday was one of those windows so after dropping the kids off at school i set of in search of chub.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">With Rain due in the afternoon i knew it was going to be a whirlwind session of only a hour or two. In this video i cover that short session and a deadly tactic i use when chub fishing to get a few quick bites from wary chub.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">Please like and subscribe to the channel to be updated when new videos go live:</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">That concludes another angling blog update. I hope you have a fantastic session on the bank and till next time i wish you all.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">tight lines</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">Danny </span></span><i><span style="font-size: large;"><u><b> </b></u></span></i></div>
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Dannyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01502479739807267682noreply@blogger.com0