The Glorious 16th - New River Season Arrives

A warm welcome to this weeks blog update i hope i find you all well and your nets wet.  Well its finally here! After 3 months of the closed season the rivers this week finally opened again.   I love my closed season as it gives me an opportunity to dedicate my efforts at campaigns away from flowing water.  In this weeks update we look back at the closed season and then forward to the rivers by looking at my preparations in build up to the season opening and we finish the introduction with a look at a special purchase i made recently.

Before we get into the update i would just like to say a huge thank you to all the people who week in week out share, like and favorite my posts on Facebook and Twitter and also the people who take the time to email me with questions and sharing their angling experiences that are similar to mine on the blog, thank you.  I would also like to say a huge Tight Lines and Good Luck to all the anglers heading off this week to fish the Rivers, Lakes and Canals that all adhere to the closed Season!!

With that it is on to the Update...

Looking Back At The Closed Season....

The closed season is always a time i look to try some different angling away from flowing water.  My uncle is a real lover of the river and during the closed season he always goes into a sort of fishing hibernation where he devotes time to getting big jobs done around the house.  I for the first time had a mini break after the rivers closed and the pike season came to an end and i did feel a lot better for that time.  Next year though i will be utilising this time by not fishing but pre baiting up some spots to fish when i do get back at it.  The break is certainly something i will be looking to continue and saving up some pike trips to cover the blog in this period.

During past closed season's i have set myself mini challenges, blogs on my first 10lb carp and last years where i aimed to beat it all where enjoyable but very pressured times.  As you go through life you also learn a lot about yourself and i know i am a very obsessive person and once i get my head onto a challenge it really does take over and with a little boy just arrived and another little girl i owed it to my family to be there a lot more this spring and summer and i knew targeting small trips on the local canal would fit in nicely.  A few hours in the morning before the boats started up and back home for dinner with the whole weekend ahead for family time.

So looking back the closed season was spent fishing the local canal.  After the first few trips i got into the swing and to keep the trips interesting for myself i set myself a target of working out how to fish the swims and what baits where best for getting the best out of the swim.  I feel the blogs are some of the best i have done as they chartered not only the fish caught but the thought processes behind why i made changes to the set up.

Canals are also venues i am very passionate about, having grown up on the banks of one its hard not too, and because of that i found it all the more upsetting when i returned to the banks that where once lined with anglers to find i was literally the only on on the banks.  It really saddened me that a venue that offered such good fishing was barren and devoid of anyone fishing.  Canal fishing can be really hard work and the rewards do not always mirror effort put in but his canal is fishing its head off and the fishing is far from  complicated, at least i thought.

Asking around on forums and receiving a number of emails and private messages around canals it was clear canals where being seen as hard places to fish and places that almost scared people off as they did not know how to approach them.  I decided then to change my philosophy with my blog and write in a style that showed people how i fish, regular readers will have realised telling people how to fish is not how i write my blog as i feel angling should be a voyage of discovery where challenges are solved by the individual by trial and error and that way the results are ever so sweeter.   The canals i made an exception and began a series of blogs breaking down how i view canal fishing from tackle to location it was all covered in the blogs below.

CHOOSING WHERE TO FISH ON THE CANAL

WHAT BAITS I USE FOR CANAL FISHING

WHAT TACKLE I USE TO FISH THE CANAL

LINES TO FISH ON THE CANAL

I do hope these blogs some people to think about trying our canals as they offer such a wide variety of fish and lets face it these blogs have only scratched the surface on canal fishing.  A lot of canals in the country now contain big heads of carp and tench that can be targeted via a pre baiting approach.  Some canals are also areas that are used for people to get rid of unwanted pets that have got to large for their tanks so they can hold some real surprises like catfish and goldfish that surprisingly do quite well in the quiet surroundings of the canal.

The Build Up To Opening Day.....

The weekend before the start of the season and i have to say i have never been so under prepared for the start of the season.  I had a reel needing new line on it, no hook lengths made up and my basket was a right mess and really unorganized.

We decided on a trip to the tackle shop on  Saturday to stock up on some line and also pick up some feeders and maggots for the trip on the opening day.  We decided to get there an hour early and spend some time walking the banks of the local river.  Armed with just a loaf of bread it was not long before chub where topping taking bread off the top.

The sight of chub after chub taking bread off the top was continued in most of the swims we stopped off at and boy did it raise the excitement levels.  It killed me to watch these fish going mad as i knew had i been there with rod in hand and a pint of maggots the fishing would have been exceptional, it had to have been, that bread was mullered 5-10 yards down the swim and in 3-5ft of water i reckon that's as far down as your float would have gone before it zipped under.  The river season was nearly here and i was raring to go after this.

Tackle shop visited i left a bit unhappy as i had only managed to pick up 6lb line instead of the 4lb i had hoped for.  The session we had planned was one for chub and big dace so i was hopefully i would get away with it, only time would tell i guess and i was sure this line would be too thick for the dace on the dee despite having a 2lb hook link.

I got home and spent the afternoon giving my fishing box a much needed clean, it was rammy, I normally give the box a spring clean after the river season ends to wash off all the mud that accumulates on it from a hard and rough season on the River banks.  This year i had not bothered at all and i was left with a box that looked, well quite frankly disowned.  A bucket or warm soapy water and a bunch of elbow grease late i had something that resembled a tackle box.

A quick glance inside the boxes trays revealed a mess that would rival Kevin's bedroom from Kevin and perry, it was shocking.  Floats all over the place, bits of ground bait that had dropped in after shipping the pole back in and all manner of castor shells and dead flies.  Lets just say it needed a clean and again a good sort out throwing away empty hook packets and weight tubs and then replacing them with new i was soon on my way to looking like i was remotely organised.

A hour later, who said men can not clean!!!

All that remained after that was to make up some hook lengths and boil some hemp but i left that task for the night before the session.

A special Purchase....

With Stick float fishing being my main branch of our sport where i use a normal open faced reel i do normally stray away from making an expensive purchase as i feel the very act of trotting where you constantly are turning over the bail arm an excessive amount of times during the session, that you are in fact just breaking the product as such.  With this mindset i normally buy a cheap reel in the 15-30 pound bracket and then used it for that following season.  I had been going through a reel prob every year and i was just taking the hit on the price.

Most of my fishing up to last year was mainly for dace and chublets so the reel was never really tested on better fish like chub in the 3lb plus bracket so i never really had any problems, this was until last season.  Last season regular blog readers will have noticed a step up in my river fishing and a lot of trips included big nets of chub, these fish certainly tested my tackle and all in all my knots and hook lengths stood up to the task but i lost a lot of fish due to a sudden surge for the snags by chub and the reel either sticking or not reacting quick enough or smoothly enough to prevent a hook pull.

With a recent voucher for some work i did around the blog i decided to treat myself to a decent reel for my trotting.  The reel i went with was a Shimano Tecnium reel which when it arrived i was instantly impressed with as you could just tell from the build quality and feel of the reel it was well made.  The front drag had numerous drag settings which i presume means you have a much finer drag and i can not wait to get out and try this reel on the 16th.  I will do a full review in the coming weeks but early impressions are good.

Lets get into the session and the first trip to the river....

The Ever So Glorious 16th June!!

The night of the 15th of June and i had just completed a long day in work, to say it dragged was an understatement as at times if felt like the clock was winding backwards.  Eventually evening came and with the house quiet i settled down to the tasks at hand that included boiling up a pint of hemp seed and making up a few hook lengths for the next mornings attack on the river.  The heady smell of hemp seed cooking in the air and with all the components needed to make my rigs set out on the table the excitement levels where high and that feeling that only comes with special events was in the air, it really is like having Christmas right in the middle of the year for me.

The walk along the river from a few days ago was still clear in my mind and although it was not this area we were heading to the next day that feeling of being by the river again made the wait even harder.  I had planned on a midnight attack on the river but looking at the money available at the moment then i could not justify the extra purchases to allow us to hit the river in the dark.  It was not until 3am that i packed the car and headed off into the dark to pick my uncle up.

In the early hours of the morning i had loaded all the gear into the hall and was set to go and put it all in the car around 3am but i made a decision at the last minute to change the swim i was planning to fish and i knew from experience it was no place for a big seat box so i quickly put together a box of essential buts and conveniently enough it all fit inside my new cool box.  It turned out to be a revelation as with no seat box so much weight was lost and all i had to carry was my holdall, net bag and a cool bag.  This might be the way forward for me in future, although it means having to stand up all day trotting, the lighter tackle was a real bonus.

The closed season is a time where my uncle relaxes and does not really go fishing so it was weird to find myself heading down his road again to pick him up, i guess year on year this will become part of the ritual of the 16th and part of what will make it stand out more as a special event on the calender, the build up the night before and then the feeling of travelling down an old path to pick my uncle up for the first session.

"I Walked Across An Empty Land

I Knew The Pathway Like The Back Of My Hand

I Felt The Earth, Beneath My Feet

Sat By The River And It Made Me Complete....."

For most people the verse above from Lily Allen's version of "somewhere only we know" conjures up nostalgic feelings of winter and Christmas time but for me this very first verse of the song always reminds me of that first walk along the river bank of the season.  The gear on your back and you walk over that final hill, below you the river, and that blast of freshness hits you and its almost as if the dirt and staleness from 3 months next to still and stagnant waters is washed away in that very moment.  You feel your body waken as you feel the freshness of a new season.

Approaching the river you begin to stop in swims you left 3 months earlier as brown, dead patches of earth that over the winter you had manicured and pruned to fit in with your task of fishing that are now hip high with nettles, thorn bushes and Himalayan balsam.  You just want to get set up and get a line in the water but you know housekeeping is needed before the task of fishing can even be considered, nature has awoken in your absence and defiantly claimed back their space.

A bit of flattening out here and a few overhanging trees teased back it was beginning to look like i could get a line in and have a comfortable days fishing.  Threading the line though my 13ft Trotting rod, my hands almost trembling as i rushed to do so, you always take longer when rushing but you can not help it, not today.  Eventually the rod was threaded and the 6 number 4 stick float was attached, a quick hook length attached and i began pluming the depth, bang on first time, it was like i had never left!!  A hand full of hemp down the swim and a sprinkling of maggots slightly upstream i was set for the first cast of the day and the season..............down the float trundled and BANG straight under it went, in all honestly i expected to be a bit rusty but the bit was unmissable and after a short fight a greedy chublet earned the crown of the first fish of the 2015/16 river season..



The Swim was a short 30 yard deep run coming off a shallow bend that started to shallow up again towards the tail of the run is a classic spot for trotting a float.  Its uniform depths and bank side cover mean it can hold some nice chub in winter and to be honest fishing it this time of year i did not not know what to expect.  Winter had brought chub only nets to 27lb so this chublet had me thinking "where have you been all winter".  I get many questions about my chub fishing and asking where i go and the sort answer to it is that it is private fishing.  My uncle, a builder by trade, did some work for a farmer who owns the land with the river on it and during the work he noticed my uncle would walk to the river to see the chub, he never allowed anyone to fish it but did give my uncle and myself permission for us two to wet a line when we wanted.  Its a privilege that might not last forever but for the moment we are two lucky anglers.

The next trot down the swim and again the float went under, again not a massive fish but it was pulling a bit in the flow, i thought chublet, yet i was amazed when i saw a flash of silver jagging through the swim and the silvery flanks of a dace slapping its tail defiantly on the surface as it came to the net.

The next 3 trots down brought instant bites and it was a hectic start to the session and the season for myself.  The average size of the dace shocked me if i was honest.  They must have been over 8oz maybe up to 10oz in size and did not look out of place with the chublets.  Again from a swim where big chub had been the order of the day in winter so it posed more questions than answers as to where these fish where in winter as species like chublets and dace generally can be caught all through the year in the coldest if conditions, this season is going to be so interesting.

Not long after the swim went a bit quiet and i thought the chub might have arrived but not come right onto the bait yet, they can sometimes hand right back in the swim, so you can imagine my excitement when i thought my hunch had been proven right when the float sailed under and something with a bit more fight was on the other end of the line.

The fish came upstream right in front of me before moving down stream in one long strong run and i knew there it was not a chub.  My theory was confirmed when a flash of brown and yellow leaped clear of the water, a trout.  Trout are great when you are not getting a bite and can save a blank on some sessions but right when the swim is building a trout bombing through the swim and splashing all over the place is a real nightmare, it can really put you back to square one. Lovely fish though.

After this trout had done its worst to ruin the fishing the swim predictably went quiet and sat among the undergrowth i wound the rod in and fed the swim with no lines in the water.  Sat flicking the odd maggot and grains of hemp in the swim was a killer trick i learnt in winter and it was great just sitting back and watching the wildlife go bye, first a king fisher then a swallow bladed low through the swim and it was great to be back on the river.

The time felt right for another trot through and there is no better feeling than when you get it right, although only the first session it makes you feel like you really are almost at one with the river you are fishing and you have learnt something from the previous sessions.

A plump fat dace was my reward and i was over the moon.

This resting of the swim proved to be a master stroke as the fish came heavy back on the feed, i was getting bites most trots down, missing a few, but also connecting with the odd fish including some more chublets and dace.  I was working for them but when i got the presentation right i got some form of a result.  A rogue trout again saw me resting the swim for another 15 minutes but i knew by then the plan would work a treat.

A good rest and feeding and i was again ready to run through, right at the end of the trot the float buried and i struck to set the hook.  The strike was met with a stubborn solid and defiant thud as a chub held its ground.  It is almost like they are working out if they can do you right away and working out how strong your set up is from the off as this chub held firm the all of a sudden bolted for the roots.  Lurching over the river i strained to keep the line from the sharp roots.  The shimano reel ticked over a dream and i did notice on a number of occasions the hard runs that had seen hook pulls last season where not present, yet.

When the chub move in they move in and it was no surprise the first chub was followed by 3 more all coming in successive casts.

The time was 8.30am and i ad caught steady during the morning, arriving at the bank at 4am in the morning i had been fishing for a good 4 hours and the sun was just coming onto the river.  At this point i could see my bait going straight through the swim and down stream untouched and it was clear the chub and dace had returned back to their snaggy homes.  I also had work the next day so i trotted a float through for another hour before calling it a day.

The final net went 10.5lb and i was more than made up with the mornings efforts.

The rest of the week ahead me in work i knew it would not be long before i was sat waiting again for that clock to come round to 3am and the start of another adventure on the bank.

till next time i wish you all tight lines

Danny

Red Letter Pike Trip, Otter Talk and What Line to Use For Trotting.....

A warm welcome to this weeks blog update I hope I find you all well and your nets wet.  There has been a lot going on at the moment with the blog behind the scenes with both new and old supporters.  The blog trips wise is still miles behind and its safe to say there is a healthy back log o fish filled trips to write about.  I do always try and give the full picture of my angling by making sure I include the blanks but it is proving very hard with so many trips where I caught still to be blogged about.  I guess its not a bad tying and it could be worse if I had no fish caught to write about.  It does go to show though how winter does not have to mean you hang up your rods there are plenty of fish to be caught through winter and in fact winter fishing can be easier than summer if you pick the right species.

In this blog update the introduction covers the new blog sponsor I have welcomed on board, a little on my thoughts on a otter picture ding the rounds on social media and the introduction if finished by looking at what main line I use for my trotting on rivers for Dace, Roach and Chub.  The fishing in this update includes a red letter session for pike with Ste, a solo trip the next day where I get one chance but do I take it? After that its a short trip feeder fishing with my uncle for chub.

Lets get on with the update...

New Blog Supporter....

This week I received a email from a company asking if I was interested in working together with regards their new product range aimed at anglers.  The company in question is called KitShack and they specialise in head gear including Buffs.  I checked out their impressive website and was impressed with them and agreed on a deal to work together.  They recently sent me out some products to review so keep an eye out for a product review in the coming week or so, believe me Its worth reading as this companies products have really impressed me so far.

Check them out on this link:http://www.kitshack.com/new-angler-14-15-collection

There will also be a link going on the side bar of the blog shortly but at this moment y laptop is broken so I am writing the updates on paper and writing them up when I have access to a computer.

What Fishing lines??

A question I get asked a lot around my fishing, apart from locations, is what fishing line do I use? It is a question I have covered before on my blog but with over 200 entries now on this blog I am not searching through them to find it haha, much easier to just cover it again.  For my main line when trotting for Dace, Chub and Roach I use 4lb 4oz Drennan Float fish line.

I came across this line a year or so ago when I was put onto it by a angler on facebook and I can honestly say I have never ever looked back.  For many years I used Maxima thinking nothing about it but it isn't until you use a line that Is specialised for the task of trotting you appreciate just how good it is.  The line is strong and yet it lifts of the water a dream and that is so important when you are trying to mend the line t get it behind the float again.  The other good point about this line is it does not cost the earth, I think 100m of it costs £3.00.

For hook lengths I use Bayer Perlon in either 1lb 7oz or 2lb 2oz breaking strains.  When I first started trotting a float on rivers I used some of the new high tech lines and to be frank they are just not up to the abuse you put the line through on rivers, fantastic lines for pole fishing but in my experience for hook lengths they have a tendency to pig tail as you constantly wind the line through the water.

Otter Pic Social Media Storm....

This picture below has been doing the rounds over the past few days on facebook and has caused a but of a storm along the way as it reignited the otter are out o control debate

The picture taken by an angler shows a otter attempting to take a pike as the angler brings it in.  In regards to the otter taking the fish then I guess there is no difference to an otter taking the fish as there is it being a cormorant or even a bigger pike that will both only see a fish in distress and an easy meal this picture to my eyes does nothing but show the circle of life being played out, a  predator taking opportunity of an easy meal.  The very same tactic employed probably by the pike angler offering a dead bait to tempt the pike into taking an easy meal. 

With regards to otters as a whole then my opinions are quite clear on them.  I do feel the otter itself is not to blame as a species as it cannot be held accountable for the open releasing of otters by animal groups in this country where in my opinion not enough studies have been done before they are released onto water ways where they have been absent for many years.

Some rivers like the Severn, Dee, Wye, Ribble and Thames have the fish stocks to support a natural population of otters if they where released in low numbers then food available would control how large their population would be.  This has not been the case though it would seem and the reintroduction if otters, in some cases for commercial reasons to attract visitors, has got out of hand and has not been managed hence why you now see these otters moving away from the rivers to find food in the local garden ponds or commercial carp fisheries.

The only other part of the debate around otters that I have an opinion on is the releasing of otters onto smaller waterways that just can not support an apex predator like otters long term.  Take for example the River Dane at holmes chapel, a small river with mainly grayling, trout and compact shoal of chub.  The fish populations around these parts would probably sustain an otter but when you are dealing with a pair that then have pups you then in one season can possibly have 5 mouths to feed and the fish populations can support them short term but in the long term the fish can not reproduce and then grow to a size to feed them in the long term.

In short the damage to these small waterways is now done and fisheries along water ways like this will all have to be on their guard to protect their fish stocks and of course prepare their fishers to stop otters getting into them.  There is another point as well I read recently it costs thousands of pounds for otter fencing to be put up around a fishery, a cost that most companies wont have factored into their plans when going into this business. 

The actual otter in the wold is a beautiful creature to see though there is no getting away from that, I have fond memories of moments spent on the bank quite close to these creatures and again I repeat myself by saying its not the otters fault more the people who reintroduced them in uncontrollable numbers in the wrong places.  As anglers we should thoroughly enjoy sharing the bank with these animals and they are here to stay there is no doubt about that, they are far to popular with the general public for any cull to be agreed.

with that lets get onto this weeks fishing...

Can Do No Wrong Piking.....

This season I have really loved my pike fishing there has been no hiding that as the sheer number of trips for this species alone is testament to how this dead baiting for pike has captured my imagination and ignited a passion for a different branch of our sport I didn't know was there.  The solo trips have been enjoyable but its been the social trips that have stood out for me this year with the piking.  A few with all the lads, Garry, Ste and Ryan and more recently a few short morning session with just Ste and this following session was one of those short sessions.

As always with any trip it was a really early start on the bank and as always with my pike fishing I set out hoping for one chance.  The first area we tried shocked me as is was quite shallow and I guess with all my winter river fishing I had automatically associated winter pike fishing with deep areas.  My two rods where given a liberal amount of oil and put in position hoping to pick up any early morning pike on the feed.  Ste had been on a few trips previous to this trip and like myself had been struggling to put together fish with the changing conditions.

The rods had been out for around a hour before my right hand rod started to show some signs of activity.  One thing I have been learning on my trips with Ste is how long to leave my runs before striking and it has been noticeable just how many fish I have got onto the bank on his sessions than on my own where I have lost a fair few fish.  The time to strike came and striking hard was met with the fish keeping deep and fighting hard a proper battler.  Keeping calm and letting the fish take line if it needed it I played the fish out and Ste slipped the net under a nice upper single pike, a great start to the session.

Its becoming pointless taking the scales on these trips as Ste hits the nail on the head with every prediction he has caught so many pike.  A nice start to the session with a 8lb fish.

The fish returned we where both full of anticipation especially given the fact a number of swirls in our area from feeding pike.  These fish certainly where not interested in our dead baits but they did succeed in keeping us in the swim till midday.  Moving along we tried a spot of wobbling and it was during bringing in a wobbled roach I got a tangle in my reel line causing me to let the roach drop to the bottom in the middle.  The tangle undone I began reeling in and it went solid and I felt a hard tug on the line, a fish, I then made the school boy error of striking and playing the fish and it of course spat the bait.  What I should have done when I felt the resistance was let the line go slack and let the fish take the bait a bit before striking, all a learning curve though.

Moving along we ended up in our last swim of the and with one bait long and one in the near side I had both bases covered.  My far out rod was the first to go, only slight bobs at first and as the float was slightly over depth it was hard to make out if it was the wind or not.  The run took an age to develop and begin to move off and even after it did move away it was a very slow run.  The fish was heading straight for a big underwater snag that's location ste knew very well.  This speeded up the time I had to strike.  Striking it was met with lots of head shakes and a sure sign you don't have a good hook hold.  The fish was on a good minute or so before it spat the bait and with it my chances had gone, so I thought.

The rod replaced in position I was sure with time counting down that my chance had gone.  My wobbled roach lay in the edge and whilst chewing the fat that then began to move off but as soon as we noticed it the fish dropped the bait, it was a day where I could do no wrong it seemed as every where I placed a bait it resulted in some type of action, inexperience though had shone through with only one fish on the bank and I was sure had it been the Ste getting these chances we wold have had 4 pike on the bank by now.

I was hoping for one more chance between the two if us before we called it a day.  In keeping with the day it was my margin rod that had remained dormant all session that moved confidently off and by heck it was a confident take as the float marched off and quickly was submerged, a nice fish I thought.  Striking I was met with a hard fish and the rod hooped over and we both instantly said its a better fish as it called the shots.  Having two people on the bank certainly helps with netting the fish and Ste nailed the fish first time it raised its head!  Nice one!  The fish went 10.5lb on the scales and a nice end to the session for myself although these sessions are never good when only one catches I much prefer the fish to be spread out.  I left happy with the two fish of course but tinged with a little upset as missed chances.

Worth Getting up for....

The next trip out was a few days later and again was only a morning session and was one of those sessions where had you known the end result you could have saved yourself a few hours.  I set off into the dark as normal with just my pike rods and ruck sack for company and I really had no idea where to head.  Driving along I passed a section of canal and looking out of my window in the dull morning light it just looked right for a bite so I quickly pulled the car over and set off on my way.

There was other sections where I had caught well that would look just as good in these conditions I thought as I walked the bank to the swim, so why was I wasting my time trying this place just on a hunch.  The water was really clear so I decided on trying a roach as I knew for at least the first hour or so it would pop up naturally off the bottom.  I silently placed the rod in position and then turned round to bait the second rod with a tasty mackerel, turning round to cast the bait in I looked for my other float which once I spotted it was well on its way along the canal.

Jesus I thought this fish must be hungry as that roach must have still been frozen! Knowing the hard density of the bait and the fish would not be really chewing into it I gave the fish as long as I dared as I felt sure it would drop the frozen offering.  The time of reckoning came and I struck like my life depending on it.  It was one of those fights where I knew I had to be quick of faced losing the fish as I could see the bait out of its mouth.  A few heart stopping head shakes as she came in gave me a few scares and I was so relieved when she slid over the rim of the net.  A nice early pike on the cards I was made up!

The pike was 8lb on the nose and a cracking start to the session

A new bait placed out I was full of enthusiasm for the rest of the session, enthusiasm that was dampened 20 minutes later when a precession of boats approaching regatta proportions passed through leaving the swim looking more like willy wonka's chocolate river than a pike swim.

This colour normally takes around a hour to drop out so moving in the opposite direction to the boats I hoped to speed up this process.  Travelling a few miles I found the colour to be half depth so I was again confident of a fish or two, again my chances where destroyed as no sooner had my bait hit the bottom long came a huge dredging boat! I thanked my lucky stars for the early fish and called it a day and enjoyed  lovely meal at the pub with my ladies and little man in the afternoon.

Rain Spoils Play.....

All set for a days trotting I loaded up the hall way in preparation for a session the next morning and full of the excitement that comes with the evening before I fishing session I headed off to bed and set the alarm.  Waking up to the alarm my ears adjusted to the back ground sound that was the hard tapping of heavy rain against my window.  I knew straight away our chances of getting on our usual part of river for the chub where decreasing with every drop and a quick check on the Environment Agency confirmed that all the rivers around where on a steep rise, not good.

One thing i have found fishing rivers regular is you can have a stonking session when a river is on the rise but you have to hit it right on the first rise and then you will catch well as the fish feast on the influx of food washed into the system but this explosion in feeding will only last to a certain point in the rise before the fish stop coming to trotting tactics.

We put our heads together and headed of to an area of river that had a huge slack on a deep bend.  The river was pushing through on the inside bend but the far slack was there and just begged for a feeder fished bait.  Feeder fishing is not normally part of my angling in recent years but before the blog it was the only way i fished rivers so its a tactic that is not alien to me.  The clarity of the river was ok but it was certainly on a fast rise and we knew we only had a hour or so's fishing.

The maggot feeder was not in the swim long before we both had a hungry trout each on the end of our lines, why people fly fish for these species when maggots are so irresistible to these fish is beyond me.  The suicidal trout continued to crawl up our lines until my uncle had two rasping bites on his feeder which almost pulled the rod clean off the rest.  Two bites and in two casts he had two nice trout resting in the keep net.  EA rules dont allow the keeping of game fish in keep nets so there where just two chub occupying the keep net.

The river then over the next hour or so really coloured up badly and with only maggots as bait even the ever hungry trout bites dried up.  It was probably not the best day to go and explore a new bit of river but i guess we also found another swim to fish in normal levels with the possibility of holding something special.

Well that sums up another couple of sessions on the bank.

Till next time tight lines,

Danny

Big Chub Nets And Piking On Ice....

A warm welcome to this weeks blog update i hope i find you all well and your new year nets wetter than 2014.  The sessions mentioned in this blog will round up the fishing action for 2014.  Introduction wise we discuss how the festive period has been for myself with the new family member,  I look back on my best session of 2014 and although i still have a few pike sessions to cover i begin to look at what the next month holds as we move into the best time of year for a big predator.

Festive Times The Best Ever....

So its safe to say Christmas 2014 has been a Christmas like no other in our household as we welcomed our little man to the world on the 19th and eventually got out of hospital on the 22nd December right in time for manic preparations for Christmas (and a cheeky Christmas eve fishing trip ha-ha).  The festive period being my little girls first where she knew about Father Christmas really brought the magic back to what had been quite a sad occasion since my mums passing and just seeing her face on Christmas Day really put a new light and brought the magic of Christmas back again for me and i cant wait for the years of Christmas days to come.

Speaking of our little girl she is really coming on now and shocking us all with her development and i certainly think a short trip to the canal or local pond to catch her fist ever fish might be on the cards this spring.  A session i can not wait to get out and experience and then blog about as it will be such a special occasion for me.  She will of course in time choose her own path and if angling is top be part of that then i will be happy to teach her the little i know but if not then i am surely going to enjoy the enforced fishing trips till she makes her mind up.

Christmas always gets you thinking about family and this year i am determined to get my dad out on the bank more with us again.  I am hoping to do a few sessions on the canal we used to fish all those years ago to see how it has changed and see if those big bronze slabs are still around.  Fishing is always a family affair with myself any how what with most of my trips being trips with my uncle its safe to say I'm hoping 2015 is going to be a year around family.

The Session Of 2014.....

I mentioned in a recent blog update that i had been asked about writing a recap of 2014 by a blog follower and that i was apprehensive to do so as i feel my year runs march to march with the closing of the river seasons.   What i have decided to do is pick out one session that stood out for me in 2014.

The year of 2014 was really good to me and if it was a wine it would certainly be classed as a vintage year.  It was a year where all our hard work paid off, all these trips to flooded rivers blanking and all those times travelling to a different area of a flooded river and catching all come good, all those hours searching on google earth for new areas of river and then walking farmers fields to wet a line in their unexplored depths.  This year was certainly good to us and i do feel those trips put us in a situation where we could pick and choose each week from 4-5 areas on different rivers to trot a float through with confidence but it was a new exploration into the world of dead baiting for pike that bought about me session of 2014.

I had dipped my foot in the water of dead baiting for pike from January to February of 2014 and under the tuition of Garry learnt some of the fundamentals of dead baiting for pike.  October and i was ready to cut my teeth and the early session in October saw me break my Pike Pb with a 15lb pike but it was the very next session that will live forever in my memory.  Sat on the banks of the river i noticed my right hand float twitch and then again and then slowly move along the surface, i struck and the rest is in the following update if you want to read about the session.

link: My First 20lb Pike 

Planning for January and February....

At the beginning of the pike season i set my self a target of catching 100 pike.  This total seemed large at the time and knew it was going to be a huge achievement if i got there.  With this total in mind and two serious fish under my belt in October my mindset since then has been more about numbers of fish than size of fish.  That has meant me concentrating on one location on a consistent basis, a place that of course could throw up a big fish, but in reality i was settling for the fact most of the fish i was going to catch were going to be between 4lb-7lb with the odd rare upper single or double.

early season nice fish

This proved a very good tactic with at least one or two fish coming on most trips to this location.  This of course led to the odd recapture but that's pike fishing and at the time of writing this (SPOILER ALERT) i am on a total of 56 fish caught.  I will be returning to work next week so the chances of me getting close to 100 pike is very slim indeed.  The whole challenge started of with plenty of momentum but in reality work and family commitments has seen fishing time for two of the people doing the challenge hard to come by and for myself and Ste changeable conditions has made the piking really difficult as the prey fish are not yet shoaled hard in their winter spots and as a consequence the pike are still quite spread out.

With this in mind i have made a conscious decision from now on to concentrate on areas that might produce less fish but the fish will be of better quality and also give me a serious chance of ending the session with a special capture.  There will be a full round up of the challenge at the end of the season on how i feel it has gone and the pros and cons of chasing such a total.  So to this point i feel i have done all i can to get to 56 pike, i have hit the bank every time i could and fished as good as my angling ability will let me i can honestly say i have not left the bank thinking i didn't do everything i could on the session.

So fingers crossed in the next one or two months we can put a few nice fish in the bank and also get some where near the total.

On to this weeks fishing....

Piking on the Off Chance of a Bite....

With a number of jobs completed in the morning and my partners mother coming round for a few hours i jumped at the opportunity of a few hours on the bank.  It was already gone 1pm when i loaded the car and left for the bank  I was a little unsure as to whether it was worth going after a sharp overnight frost but i knew the spot i was going to there was always a chance of a bite.  My confidence was hit a little as i received a phone call on the way from Ste saying he had struggled on the same waterway with his mate and not had a touch all morning.

I cast in a Herring tail on one rod and a smelt on the other, both loaded with oil, and hoped for the best.  It was early on during my vigil waiting for one of the floats to go that i got speaking to another angler lure fishing.  I did not get his name but we spent a good hour chatting about angling and some of the perils on being in Warrington Anglers and it seemed we shared the same view on a number of subject around silver fishing and the excessive amount being ploughed into carp.

I was quite honest with the man about the location and what to expect from fishing the stretch and i remember saying that most fish will be small singles with the outside chance of a double.  No sooner had the words left my mouth than he said "your floats moving there" a sharp glance round and the tentative bobs had turned into a solid run and the float slowly began to move off as i picked up the rod.  A few seconds as it was a nice piece of herring as bait and i struck into the fish.  The rod hooped over and stayed over as the fish kept deep and i instantly knew i was into a nice fish.

Eventually the fish came up to the surface and the good gentleman netted the fish for me.  Its sods law that fish come along that make a liar out of you as this was comfortably a double figure pike.  It went 13lb on the scales and i again thank the guy for taking the time to take a picture.

This was it for fish for this short session and i left around 3.45pm happy with the result of the session and another double added to the list.  Pike fishing can be a funny old game some days you spend all day without a sniff and other a hour or so produces a decent fish.

Stick Float Fishing For Chub...

The stick float rod had been a rare addition to the boot of my car before this session with its space taken firmly by two pike dead bait rods.  The ease of these pike sessions just fitting in perfectly with my the arrival of our second child but there certainly was an itch that needed scratching and it was with great excitement we headed out for a days stick float fishing on the river.

The river does contain a mixed selection of species including dace, gudgeon, roach, perch, trout and chub and it was really exiting setting up on the peg not knowing what lay i your swim.  The set up for the session was my 17ft trotting rod and a reel loaded with 4,4oz line down to a 6 number 4 float a hook length of 2lb line down to a tiny size 18 hook.  Situated in a swim i had fished before and with a river fining off after recent rain i was confident of a fish or two it all depended on whether the fish had migrated away from this area.

I had been feeding the swim from the off with maggot and hemp so it came as no surprise that the float buried on the first trot down and at first i thought i was into a small chub but as the fish hit the surface it soon became clear as the fish jumped and flapped about that it was a brown trout.   i was not surprised by this as these fish are hungry and greedy fish at the best of times never mind in winter when competition for food is high and these fish with their extra size will easily muscle out dace and roach.  I carried on trotting the float through with no activity more often than not and i remember getting a hour and a half into to session with 3 trout under my belt thinking maybe its time to get mobile and find some fish.

It was just as this thought was in my mind i struck into an altogether different animal that held station in the current in a defiant stand as only chub do and i knew there and then that i had a chub on the other end.  The fish fought well in the current and it was a struggle to land it with the flow in front of my peg but i did manage in the end to slide the net under the brassy flanks of a chub.

The swim i was fishing was shallow in front of me, probably only two feet, but it then fell into a deeper hole and then below that lies a big fish holding feature so in my mind i had eventually drawn one chub up from the feature into my trot.  As soon as this chub was in the keep net my confidence rocketed as where there was one chub there was certainly more in this swim so i almost began to concentrate more and of course upped the feed slightly and also experimented with hook baits.

This chub came at 10.17am and it was another half an hour of trotting the float through before the next fish came at 10.37 and again another chub.  What was noticeable with these fish was the fact the trout completely where removed from the equation in the periods between the chub almost as if the chub where there and it was a case of getting presentation right to catch them.  The theme of fish every 20-30 minutes kept true with more fish coming at 10.50, 11.27 and when my uncle visited i had four chub in the onion sack, my uncle had also done well with 6 chub to show for his mornings efforts.

My uncle left to return to his peg and as he did my peg took off as i landed 10 chub in the next two hours to 2pm, i can only guess the steady feeding of hemp and maggot mixed with the colder conditions brought a shoal of the chub up the swim and they got their heads down.  The crazy thing about this period was i lost just as many fish in this period which showed just how hard they were on the feed.

As always with these sessions the end comes too quick although i have to admit for the last hour the bites tailed off completely and the odd trout moved into the swim again almost as if the absence of the chub allowed them to feed and goes to show in the feeding order the chub is king.

With me doing a lot of piking of late i had been taking my weigh scales in my pike box so unfortunately on this session i could not put a weight to the net but with around 12-16 chub and chublets in the net all between i would say 1/2 a pound and probably 3lb i must have been over the 20lb mark.

my final net

My uncle had also got into a good number of chub on his peg.

All in all it was a session like i had never experienced before with chub.  I had done well before for chub with my best net of proper chub containing around 6 fish but this was a net like i had only seen my uncle catch in recent weeks.  A few years ago when me and my uncle started going fishing he used to tell me stories of chub nets from years ago where he would struggle to lift the net and that we would find them and one day i would see.  Well Azza we found them mate and i was over the moon.


 Piking on Ice....

The temperature read a bone chilling -1 as i left my house and started the car and this temperature only plummeted further as i left the confines of my town.  I had set up to fish the local waterway and as i drove to the first venue i walked along the track to find it covered in a thick layer of ice all the way across the water and the full length of the stretch, there was no way i was wetting a line here today.

I got back in the car and drove around for what seemed an age as i searched out areas that might not had frozen overnight and i eventually did find what was a little short bit of ice free water.  I say ice free water it literally was a short 10 yard bit of water blocked either end by ice and my rubbish first cast showed just how thick the ice was either side of me.

The baits in position i had to constantly edge the flows of ice back and i have to say it was the first time i have ever been happy to see ducks in the area as their gentle milling on the far bank certainly helped my cause.

Some say anglers are mad to even go fishing in the first place to out wit a fish and then you get the ones who say to go out in such conditions fishing you must be puddled and i must say on this session i was beginning to see their point.  Although the cold and wind is never ever something that decides if i go fishing or not as in my opinion you never know what fishing is like in certain conditions unless you go and sometimes you can be surprised.

I must say a quick word at this point for anyone reading this thinking about going fishing in these conditions you do need to be prepared clothes wise ideally with thermal boots and a thermal under layer at the bare minimum and of course a flask of something hot.  This session i was only out for the morning and after all the driving round it was gone 9am by the time i cast in.

After a hour of inactivity i was beginning to wonder if i was wasting my time and my mind wandered to those chub on the river and maybe i should have gone for another dabble at those.  Fishing the gaps in the ice meant the water i was fishing was like a mill pond and flat calm and it meant the slight flicks of the float as a pike showed interest where picked up straight away.  I quickly marched to the rod full of excitement as the float gently cocked and moved along the water towards the ice before in true jaws style it hit the corned and submerged below the ice flow.

It was a hard one to balance as i knew i didn't have much of a run for the fish to take the bait but i also had to leave it long enough for the bait to be taken as on a day like this it was a fish i didn't want to lose.  A short hard side strike saw the fish come straight back at me from under the ice flow as a small jack came up to the top.  The rod i was using made little of the fight but i was happy for it on the fish as i might have been in trouble had it been a double.

The next activity did not come round till almost packing in time and this time some of the ice had moved on and i could tell from the run that this was a solid take as the float moved solidly through the water and under the float went.  Sometimes you know its a small 2-3lb jack just by the jagged float pulls as the fish tries to eat the bait.  I will always remember this fish as it put up one hell of a scrap and i mist say as i slid it under the net i thought it was a better fish as it was so long.

The fish on the mat was as skinny a pike as i have ever seen it has loads of length and a big head but it looked like it needed a good meal.  The pike went 6lb on the scales and marked an end to the session for me.  A freezing cold day and two fish on the bank i was a happy camper as i have been on days where conditions have looked better and not had a sniff.  Two fish well earned and shows if you get past the mindset of the weather is bad and get a bait in the water you never know, not massive fish but certainly better than being at home tuning into Discovery Shed seeing Matt hayes circa 1990 repeats.

All in all the session proved to be a success, i head out to the bank piking hoping for one chance of a fish and if i take it then great and anything more is a bonus.

Thank you for checking out my angling blog and i hope you have enjoyed following my fishing in this weeks update.  I am still quite a bit behind on the blogs so there is plenty more fishing still to see the open pages of this blog.

Till next time i wish you tight lines

Danny