Sliding Down The River

 Thursday wasn't looking great weather wise. Overcast, drizzly, windy, an easterly at that, but you just never know. I wandered down the stretch a bit to just above a large sweeping bend. The wind wasn't too bad but gusting downstream. A bit of plumbing showed there to be nearly fifteen foot of water. With this in mind I rigged up a 5SSG sliding waggler with a 5g olivette a couple of feet above the hook. The weight should get the double maggot bait past most of the bleak and minnows that tend to appear. Half a dozen tennis ball sized balls of ground bait laced with chopped worm and maggots were flung in with remarkable accuracy. The gudgeon were the first to move onto the bait after a little while.

It was a fish a chuck with a couple of dozen soon amassed. Three or four dace soon followed before it it went quiet. A couple more balls of ground bait wee added. After some adjustment of the depth so that it was fishing over depth a steady precession of hand sized roach. Again as the bites tailed off I put out a couple more balls of groundbait. The next few fish were tiddlers and minnows, before the roach returned.

I then put the kibosh on matters. Having thought to myself that it had been nice not to get pestered by pike the very next roach was grabbed by a pike. After a minute or so of battle it let go of the roach. With no more bites even after fiddling with the depth I hurled in the last of the ground bait. Sone after a rather fine Ruffe turned up.

A bit more depth fiddling followed as I was not getting any more bites. With the bait an inch or two off the bottom. Some thing a bit bigger took the bate. The thump thump as I played it suggested a perch. A rather nice fish of 1lb 7oz. Next cast produced another a couple of ounce bigger. A couple more trots down I hooked another which felt even bigger. Unfortunately it came adrift.

I fished on but only got the occasional chewed maggot, the odd tiny minnow, and a bleak. Not a bad haul in the end considering the gusty downstream wind and occasional bouts of drizzle.

Waggling A Slider

A trip to one of the deeper sections of a local river was the plan for Friday. In order to avoid the bleak and minnows that normally pester you down there I intended to fish sweetcorn over groundbait. After a bit of balsam bashing to create a swim I got set up. Plumbing up showed the swim to be just over fourteen foot deep. Because of the downstream wind my usual bolo style slider was ruled out in favour of a three and a half gram peacock waggler. 

While I mixed up the ground bait I tossed out a feeder rod with some hemp in a blockend feeder. Having mixed up the groundbait I wound in to find a tiny dace had managed to hook itself. I chucked it out again having thrown in several balls of groundbait. I'd just finished setting up the float rig when the tip whacked round. In came a feisty little chub.

I continued on with the feeder for a while longer but attracted nothing else. I then changed to the float. It was quite a while before I got my first bite. A respectable roach. Another one followed next cast. Followed by another three of four casts later. I had eleven over the next ninety minutes before things went quiet. I tossed out some more groundbait and let things settle while I had a cuppa as it was now rather worm and sunny. Even the wind, which was getting stronger, was rather warm. The bites came a bit quicker over the next couple of hours with eighteen similar sized roach coming to the net before things went quiet again.

The last of the groundbait was tossed out and after another cuppa I trotted the float down again. The float had barely settled when it shot away. At first it felt like I'd hooked a small pike but it turned out to be a rather large perch which came adrift just beyond the net. I continued on for another half hour with out any more bites on the float. I tied the feeder for a whole but nowt was happening. Time to pack up I thought. Not a bad haul and a lot more pleasant than striking at maggot stealing minnows and bleak.

Try, Try Again

After the mess I made of the last session I decided I'd have another go to see if I could do any better. I have to admit I'm never sure this is a good idea but Friday was a full moon which is supposed to be an optimum time to fish. Also I decide to try fishing a slider in the deeper swim as it would be easier to cast from under the trees. I did come across a victim of Agnes as I arrived at the ponds. 

The setups were a 1.5g waggler for the inside swim and a 4g slider for the deeper swim. A dozen balls of groundbait laced with dead reds were launched into the deep water with remarkable accuracy this time. I left this swim alone and fished the nearside to start with, feeding hemp and maggots. After half an how with out so much as a chewed maggot I tried the deep swim. This failed to produce anything either. Back on the inside I sated to get bites on the drop that I couldn't hit. After a bit of fiddling with the shot I was soon into a slow but steady flow of lovely bronze rudd. This continued until just after midday. At this point the predators turned up and fish were scattering everywhere. The attackers were small jacks, at least four of them, all around the 1-2lb mark. This seemed like a good time for lunch as no more bites were forth coming.

While I eat my lunch I had the slider rig out in the deep swim. After lunch I tried the inside line again but bites were hard to come by and the pike were still making a nuisance of themselves. I decided to stick it out over the deep swim  to see if any of the ponds bream would turn up, but all I got was the occasional small roach. A reverse of the previous session where the rudd came from the deep swim and the roach and occasional perch from the shallower swim. This time though there were no perch at all. The bream had failed to show by the time it came to packing up and the majority of fish I'd caught were in hour between eleven and twelve. A quick weigh showed there to be 5lb 1oz of shiny rudd and roach. I was quite amazed as I though there was less than three pound in the net.

If I was practising for a match I don't think I'd have learnt very much from these two sessions unless it was a pike match. In this case it seems the smaller pike feed between twelve and two. I bet they don't when I go down there pike fishing.

One Of Those Days

Despite storm Agnes heading this way the weather forecast didn't look too bad for most of the day. A tad draughty and, maybe,  the odd shower. I had a cunning plan to protect me from the worst of the wind. I would try the brick pond as the wind would hit the woods first so shouldn't affect the water too badly. I'd also acquired some 5AA insert wagglers which were nice and long so I should be able to counteract any drift. Having not been there for quite some time I was shocked to find that only a couple of swims were fishable. The rest had lilies growing in front of them. Oh well.

After a bit of plumbing about I found a clear area six foot deep in front of the Arrowhead. Further out I found a deep spot  at some eleven feet roughly half way across. I set up a 2½AA insert waggler For the inside and the 5AA insert waggler for the middle. Maggots over hemp for the inside line and breadcrumb laced with maggots and fishmeal pellet for the middle. It seemed my bait chucking skills had deserted me. Whether throwing groundbait or catapulting hemp I really struggled to hit the target. In the end I was just glad it hit the water. If I'd been playing darts I think I'd have ended up on double one.

First cast to the near line produced a bite on the drop. A tiny perch which fell off as I swung it in. Next cast i was bitten off when a jack grabbed a the fish. Things then went quiet on the inside line so I had a chuck with the heavier rig to the middle. Unfortunately I miscast straight up into the tree above me. I got a tangles mess back minus the hook. Back on the inside while I re-rigged. My feeding of hemp and maggot got a bit more accurate but it was still over a larger area than I'd of liked. The float dipped under the surface and out came a small roach.

Out it went again and there it sat for twenty minutes with out so much as a chewed maggot. With nothing on the inside line I went back to the middle, or I tried to. For some reason I'd now lost the ability to cast. Eventually I managed to get the rig where I wanted it. After a few minutes I was into something small that was grabbed by a pike as I wound it past the lilies. As the pike turned I was bitten off again and the float etc. shot into the tree again.

This seemed to be a good time to partake of luncheon. I'd been trying to fish for two and a half hours at this point. I chucked out more feed to somewhere in the vicinity of both swims and settled back with a cuppa and lunch. Suitably invigorated and with the heavy rig redone I started in the further swim. The wind had now changed direction slightly and leaves were starting to drift into the swim. After half an hour with nothing forthcoming I moved to the inside swim. The leaves were now a bit problematic as I seemed to either land the bait or the float on one. Once I got the bait through I did manage to catch half a dozen roach before and other pike attack scattered them.

Back out to the middle. All was quiet for about twenty minutes before a small roach dragged the float under. I then managed to drop three while swinging them in. The next fish in was a rudd taken off the bottom in eleven feet of water. The threatened shower finally turned up so up with the brolly. This made casting a problem again but I somehow managed to land the float in the vicinity of the feed. Four more rudd followed each taken after the bait had settled on the bottom. All bites stopped as the rain got heavier.

Looking at the rain radar showed a gap in the rain around half three before heavier rain was due along with stronger winds. The moment rain stopped I got packed up as there was a fair walk back to the car and I didn't want a soaking. I just got everything in the boot of the car when the heavens opened.  Eight roach and five rudd for five hours fishing isn't brilliant but I'd caught. One problem I did have on packing up was two of the wagglers were too long for the tackle box so they had to be wrapped in a towel and carefully tucked into the corner of the rucksack.

More Lazy Maggot Drowning

With Agnes on it's way making the coming weeks weather a tad unpredictable I got myself down to the estate lake for a spot of maggot drowning. Dry and windy was the forecast. One other angler was there when I arrived in the car park after trying every combination lock code I knew and still getting it wrong. The number of combination locks, doors, fire alarms, cards, etc. that I need a four digit code for is getting silly. Admittedly I don't need some of the codes any more but I've used them for so long those are the ones I remember. I've only got three months to remember this one before the club changes it again. Really it would be easier just to get my ticket out and look at the code on that but I'd forget it by the time I got to the gate.

 

After a bit of a wander I decide to fish the down wind end near the island. Despite the number of times, over the years, that I've fished here I've never fished this part of the lake for silvers. I've only ever fished for carp or pike. Two float rods were set up. One to fish about a rod length out with maggot over hemp and the other to fish the deeper channel near the island with maggots over ground bait. Two more anglers arrived during this time both intent on a spot of maggot drowning like myself. Having tossed several small balls of ground bait out towards the island I started on the inside line and had half a dozen very small roach and perch quite quickly. Before it went quiet.

I then went over to the island and had a skimmer first cast on half a dozen maggots on a size twelve. After waiting for the next bite I changed to a similar number of dead reds but this failed to elicit a bite. I chucked out a couple more balls of groundbait and  returned to the inside line Eventually I had four small roach. Slightly bigger than those I'd caught previously. After a couple of very small perch there was a scattering of bait fish and the swim went dead. As previously I went over to the island and caught a skimmer nearly straight away. The wind had now got up a bit more making bite detection a bit of a problem.

This is how it continued for the rest of the session. The skimmers never seemed to settle and the predators kept attacking the inside line. Unlike previous visits it took a long time for the fish to come back. After five hours I had four skimmers and three dozen small roach and perch. Reports form the other anglers were similar although had had a decent bream.

A pleasant five hours was had even if the fish weren't very cooperative. The weather had been reasonable warm and the breeze not too troublesome. Strangely I didn't catch any rudd this time. Nor would the skimmers take dead reds. We'll see if the rest of the week allows for any fishing as it appears it's going to continue to be wet and windy. I don't mind either, it's both I dislike.

More Fish Counting

I had my barbel gear ready for the rising river, but a sore ankle from slipping on a rotten apple in the garden as I picked up the windfalls suggested it might not be a good idea to be wandering around steep slippy banks. I decided instead to fish a clay pit that I'd not fished since last century. Armed with maggots, casters,hemp, and groundbait for anything that was hungry.  I decide on one of the few pegs with out a platform. This would allow me to stick banksticks in and I could park the car right behind the swim. Tactics were to be hemp and caster in one swim and groundbait with maggots in the other. Two waggler rods were set up and a bit of plumbing around was performed. The bottom seemed snag and weed free.

Hemp and caster to the left. Maggot and groundbait to the right. It took a good half hour before I got my first bite. A small perch on maggot, quickly followed by a small rudd. It was then the turn of the caster to produce another small perch. Bites came in fits and starts for the rest of the day. Three other anglers arrived and set up shop, mainly catching the same thing as far as I could tell. At one point I thought I was into something better but it turned out to be a small rudd with a twig wrapped round the line. At the end of a rather unexciting day I had 25 rudd, 23 perch, and only 3 roach.

Not the most exciting day but the weather was pleasant and the bites kept my interest with out me have to try too hard. Others had a feeder rod out but hadn't caught anything on it so I'm glad I didn't bother. It does, however, look like a good bet for a pike or two later.

Fishing In Pea Soup

I was surprised to only find one car at the estate lake car park when I arrived. I wasn't that amazed when I saw the colour of the water - a horrible green colour which didn't really show up in photos. I dip of the hand showed the water to be cool so I decided not give it a go. A light waggler was set up to fish close in. Hemp and maggot to the left. Groundbait and maggot to the right. A couple of ducks turned up attracted by the splashes and made a bit of a nuisance of themselves for the rest of the session. They even tried sneaking up behind me at one point.

Double, even triple, maggot produced plenty of bites the majority of which I hit. All small perch, roach and rudd. Quite how such small fish manage to engulf three maggots and a hook I don't know. Normally they would drive you to distraction just nipping the end of the maggot. Every now and then the predators would move in scattering fish. A bit more feed would have them back feeding. The other chap fishing had only a small bream on feeder tactics, but changed to close range float to rack up net in a short time. before leaving. Over the five hours I was there I managed 204 fish. averaging a fish every ninety seconds. Things were a bit slower for the last hour as the wind had got up and was blowing leafs into the swim. I'm sure with a whip I could have doubled that number, or maybe I'd have got bored.

Not my usual sort of thing but good fun all the same. A keep net would have been useful as the catch would have made a great photo. I also had my licence checked for the fourth time this year and the second time here.

Another Attempt At Tench Fishing

When I arrived at the lake I was surprised to find only one other angler there, fishing the swim I'd fished previously. He was pole fishing and mainly taking small roach and perch. I set up a couple of pegs further down it a peg with a bit more room. My intention was to fish double maggot to one side and sweetcorn next to the lollies to the right. A bit of plumbing around showed the swim to be a couple of feet deeper than the corner one. The waggler floats were trapped between a couple of float stops with all the shot in a bulk a foot from the hook in order to bypass the tiny rudd up in water.  I did fond one of the largest water snails I've ever seen. I knew they grew to this size but most of them I see are only half the size.

Having chucked out a few balls of groundbait laced with sweet corn by the lilies and similar with maggots to the left I settled down to fish. While not much happened to the sweetcorn the maggots attracted a fair few perch and roach Before a pike grabbed one I was reeling in and wrecked the swim for quite some time. In the mean time the carp were crashing about in the lilies. The other gent suffered a similar fate. By tea time the perch and roach had turned up again and I was the only one on the lake. I spent a little time trying to take a picture of one of the grass hoppers, but they're reluctant to stay still. When I did get one in frame another jumped in as well so two for the price of one.

As a chomped on a sandwich the maggot float shot away out into the lake, the ratchet on the centrepin panicked the moorhens. . After a while had whatever it was under control and heading back to the swim. A double figure carp came wallowing up to the surface and was heading to the net when it went barbel on me and shot off again through the lilies to me let before coming the a halt in the next swim. I wandered down there to find it stuck in piles of Canadian pond weed and silk weed just beyond the reach of the net. I left it for five minutes to see it it would swim out before opting to just heave and see. This seemed to work as it was heading towards me but it then decided to set off the other way. The float jammed in the pile of weed and the hook length gave. Bugger.

As I tied on another hook-length the float above the sweet corn lifted and slid away. After charging around the swim like a lunatic a two and half pound tench made it's way into the net. I put the last few balls of sweetcorn laced groundbait in and recast. For the last hour before dark the swim was fizzing but nothing seemed interested in the sweetcorn on the hook. I tried replacing it with a bunch of maggots but that didn't make a difference. The final bite of the night was from a tiny perch that took four maggots.

 

I suspect the tench in this lake my be morning feeders in the main.

Out For A Waggle

 With the trout rivers up again, though dropping, I decided a spot of stillwater angling may be a better idea. I quickly gathered up the requisite tackle and stopped at the tackle shop for some maggots. I already had ground bait and sweetcorn, but maggots never go amiss. My first problem of the day was the road was closed to the pond I wanted to be at. I traipsed round the diversion to another pond instead. I was surprised to find the car park empty. I remembered a club notice about it being closed, but a quick check showed it to be last week, so all OK. As I put the reel on the rod I noticed a complete lack of line on the spool. A spool of 4.6lb was found in the tackle box. As I wound it on I couldn't help thinking it felt a bit thick. Another look at the spool showed it to be 4.6Kg. Ooops. After winding it back onto it's spool I found the 4.6lb and got that onto the reel. Next cock up was the tube of insert wagglers wasn't to be found, all I had was a collection of rather thick river wagglers. Oh well.

 

I selected the slimmest float I could find and dotted it down as low as I could. To avoid the tiny rudd I put the bulk of the shot a couple of foot above the hook. A few balls of groundbait laced with maggots and a few bits of sweetcorn. The first few fish followed by a skimmer.  It then went quiet for a while. This is how it went for the rest of the day. While I was struggling to catch a couple more anglers arrived. I alternated between live & dead maggots and sweetcorn. The sweetcorn picked up the odd roach, live maggots got the Rudd, and dead maggots the little skimmers. For 4½ hours fishing I really didn't catch very much. I had plenty of bites, but I suspect the thickish float was the problem.

One of the later arrivals had a reasonable catch of skimmers and bream from the far side of the pond so the fish were feeding, just not in front of me. To be honest the swim I'd chosen does well in winter but I'm not sure it's a spring/ summer swim. I was entertained by a carp during the afternoon that kept rising vertically out of the the water to it's shoulders. A bit of a strange antic but then carp are bit strange at times. Once I got home I made sure the tube of insert wagglers was in the bag as well as the spare spools with more appropriate line on the them.

A Sticky Problem

 With the country about to catch fire and the rivers boiled dry I'd ummed and ahhed about fishing. However I'd been informed by and  authoritative source that a local river was in quite could nick. The temp wasn't too high and the dissolved oxygen levels were pretty good. So, off I went to a deep section of the Ure on a bank I'd not fished before. I was surprised when I got there and dunked my arm in up to my elbow how cool it was.. I was also surprised to find I needed another layer after half an hour in the string breeze. It wasn't quite warm enough for a T-shirt and too warm for two.

After a bit of plumbing about I found a five foot deep ledge just over a weed bed and eleven foot about a third of the way across. Far shallower than I remember this section. A small stick was set up for the inside line and a waggler for the far line. The stiff breeze was blowing straight downstream, but as the sick line was just beyond the rod tip I had decent control of it. Anybody that's fished the Ure will know about the downstream wind. It doesn't matter whether you're fishing Tanfield, Ripon or Aldwark it only blows downstream and at twice the speed of the surround area.

The far line was to be fed using groundbait, maggots and chopped worm. The inside loose fed with maggots and chopped worm. After launching half a dozen tennis ball size balls of ground bait out to the far line I set about the inside line. Bleak were the first out followed by some micro dace. After an hour of beak and micro dace I went out to the far line. Things weren't much better there as there only seemed to be tiny gudgeon yank the three swan waggler under. The occasional small perch would turn up out of the blue. I did manage to catch a ball of mono full of split shot and a couple of bullet weights for a bit of variation. 

I alternated between the two lines, but the same species kept coming. A few decent roach showed up on the far line after I'd topped it up with more ground bait, but the gudgeon soon returned along with the small perch. I was surprised not to take perch on the inside line as it looked an ideal spot right along a weed bed.

I've no idea how many fish I caught as I thought a keepnet wouldn't be a good idea so didn't bring it. I know I caught 35 in the first hour. One problem I did have when packing up was the joints on the fourteen footer were stuck. What to do, as it wouldn't fit in the car like that. Eventually I managed to remove the top section and with a bit of wiggling and seat manoeuvring I just got the lower two stuck sections in the car. A bit of a dilemma could have ensued if I hadn't been able to split  one section of. I have had this happen before but there were other anglers about who could help. I suppose I could have asked one of the golfers or wandered the village for assistance.