The Rescue Mission

This weekend the three of us went back for another try at Dovehouse pool. A nice little pool known to hold some good fish, and as we know from experience loads of Gudgeon.

We all started off with one rod fishing for carp or tench, Toby and I had both had other rods fishing waggle for the silvers. Chucking a few maggots out with every cast I didn't have to wait long for my first gudgeon of the day, here we go again I thought. My next fish a moment or so later took me a little by surprise as it was not a gudgeon but a Rudd. I recast, threw a few grubs out and waited for my float to dip under. Which it dutifully did a few minutes later this time a gudgeon again, quite a big gudgeon to fair. Next fish was a roach, then another gudgeon, then a Rudd. A pattern started to emerge well kind of, but you get the point. So im pleased to say that its not all gudgeon there are other silver fish too.

 The silver bashing was all very well and good but to be honest was not the reason we had come back to Dovehouse. With the weather starting to warm up, it almost feels like summer. This in mind we were hoping to get a bit of Tench action or a bonus carp. But our efforts so far had yielded very little result, using tactics that have been catching us fish elsewhere.

Not great at sitting behind a rod that is doing very little, Toby had gone off for a wander. While he was away Liam had a proper screaming run. He briefly connected to what must have been a good sized fish, (from the size of the swirl) before it snapped him off and left him cursing. After coming back to see what all the commotion was about, Toby asked Liam and I to follow him to take a look at something. So I brought in my lines and went off to see what Toby had spotted. We mooched round and Toby stopped and pointed at a small clump of reeds a couple of feet out into the open water, "watch this" said Toby chucking a few pellets just to the right of the clump of reeds. The reeds started to move towards the area that had just been baited. Toby explained that he had been watching this odd patch of reeds for a while, and had come to the conclusion that it must be somehow attached to a fish. We decided the best cause of action would be to try and snag the reeds, try and land the fish to set it free. This not only being very humane but also great fun on an other wise tough trip. Set up on lightish tackle nothing but a hair rigged bait band on the line, from free lining the margins. Toby managed to snag up the reeds and was into a good double figure fish, on 6lb line to reeds to what ever the fish was hooked up with. After a ten minute delicate fight we nearly had the fish at the net. But with what must have been the last of it's strength it flapped off again, freeing it's self and leaving  Toby with one hell of a birds nest.

Cutting our losses after what was turning into a hard session, we headed to Border fisheries on the way home for the last few hours before dark.  We had a go on Three Island pool for a change and it turned out to be a good move. Toby who is loving stalking the margins at the moment was on the look out for any movement in the reed bed or lillys like a hawk. Liam was having a go at getting to grips with fishing small pellets on the hook or a bait band. And alternated between cage feeder with the deadly half dark method mix half mixed pellets combo, with trusty old lob worm on the hook.  
The stalker Toby was the first to catch, good karma for his heroics earlier in the day. A really hard fighting Barbel from the margins that he thought was a carp. This was soon followed by a second and third all from the spot in the margins on the far side of the pool.

Liam fishing the waggler on peg 12, and was still struggling to catch despite his best efforts it just wasn't to be his day. We all have lean spells and this seems to be his, but the glorious 16th will soon be upon us, and the River Dane is Liam's stomping ground. It could be an omen when our friend finally did get a fish it was a Chub.

The river theme continued that evening. Not having much joy with the cage feeder to worm approach. I dropped a small loaded float into the margins over an area I had been baiting for a while with micro pellets, with a couple of pieces of corn on a quick stopped hair. My float sailed off and I was into what felt like a good fish.
 I had know idea what was on the the end of my line. Instead of trying making runs like the feisty little carp we have been catching at border, this was just moving around the bottom just in front of my feet. Not wanting to come up from the bottom of the pool, the fish I had hooked stubbornly moved round in a sort of figure of eight. My arm started to ache trying to persuade the fish up using my little 7ft light quivertip rod. After what seemed like an eternity I eventually landed a nice Barbel of about a couple of pounds. This has finally hit home that my little rod has no place with me on the Dane. It is a DAM mega match twin tip rod that is about 16 years old, that I love very dearly. It has served me very well up to now but as my friends assure me, it will get destroyed on the river Dane.

      
I finished the day off with a nice brace of carp from up against the island, on the feeder line with corn on the hair.  The first of which took me straight in to some snags, and I had a real struggle to free her. After much wrestling my line came free and I expected to have lost the fish in the snag. But no she was still attached and going strong, after another couple of mins the fish was landed. It was then I realised how lucky I had been, because my feeder had come off in what ever I was snagged up in.

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Still searching for that double

It was back to Robbie's pool at border fisheries this weekend as it has been fishing very well of late, In search of a double figure Carp.
And the morning started really well, with my first cast I had a great take which resulted a lovely almost golden Carp of around a couple of pounds.

I had started the day fishing with a cage feeder filled with a 50-50 mix of pellets and groundbait and corn on the hook. This method has produced some good fish from the middle of the pool, it seems however that Toby's method of float fishing corn over micro pellets tight to the margins produces the bigger fish.

The fish above was another good sized fish of 9lb that Toby has had from the same margin that was home to three 8lb-ers last week, and a cracking 18.8lb fish for our mate Liam on the Thursday. All of which fell to the same method. But I am a bit stubborn so stuck to fishing out in the middle with my swim-feeder on, occasionally changing hook bait from corn to worm then I'd have a go with meat. But the fish didn't want to feed on what I was offering. So in the mean time I changed over to the float rod and fished for some of the Rudd, which would strip me of my maggots on the drop. I was only fishing at about 8 inches deep but if I hadn't gotten a bite after a minute or so, my maggots would have gone and I just hadn't noticed. The surface of the water would virtually erupt as I flung out a few maggots its great fun, the silvers are nearly one a chuck and are great sport when the Carp don't cooperate. I was bagging up on the Rudd and some really tiny roach with my little puddle chucker float, when I caught a good sized fish for the stamp and was unsure what it was. At first I thought it was a really big roach but on closer inspection I could not figure out what it was.

I have since decided that it must be a short of hybrid but of what origin I'm not sure, I'll leave you to work it out and if anyone has ideas please let me know.
Toby was still fishing the margins with great success and pulled out some great fish again, even managing to catch one on his new idea for hook bait would you believe it a wine gum! Eventually I followed suit and tried fishing the margins for a while with the float rod. I was just moaning to Toby that it wasn't fair as my bits at the inside didn't seem to hold any fish, when my float buried and I missed it!   In went another hand full of micros and I flicked my float out, I saw a fish rooting around in the rushes at the side of me and could barely contain my excitement as I expected the float to disappear again, I sat at the edge of my seat for a few minute hoping the float would go at any time and just as I settled back down to wait patiently off went my float, and this time I connected expecting a beast. Was a bit of shame it was only a few lbs but at least I had managed to bag one from the margins and it was one that I would have liked to get a picture of, but my side kick was far too busy catching fish of his own.

Despite some good fish and even one from the margin for me, neither of us is yet to bag ourselves a double figure Carp. But it is still early in the season and yet again we had another excellent day on the bank, even if my friend is enjoying the better fishing at the moment. While I was catching the loins share of the pike over winter he did say his time would come in spring when we started after the Carp, and it sure looks like that for the time being.

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Starting to get the hang of this

Our buddy Liam joined us again this weekend, so it was back to our local club water for another crack at Robbie's pool on the Border fisheries complex. And what a session it turned out to be!
We started off early as usual arriving at the pool just after 6:30am. With mist still on the water it was a lovely looking morning and the fish seamed to be in a biting mood. Toby true to form landed the first Carp of the day with pretty much his first cast at about 7 o'clock, a lovely little common of around 2.5lb that fell to maggot feeder with meat on the hook.

I followed suit shortly after with a nice mirror which was a bit bigger, but fell to the same tactics of a small maggot feeder and piece of punched spam. The little carp from Robbie's don't half fight and I had a good old scrap on my really light quiver-tip rod and 4lb line, I was half way round the pool with this one giving it far more respect than it needed as I made sure not to lose it

I had a switch to lob worm on the hook for a while (that's what I the great one that got away on last week) and start to produce some real quality Roach up to about a lb


Our old friend Liam had to wait quite a while before he managed to bag himself a carp, but his patience was rewarded mid-morning with a nice little fellow of about 1.5lb that fell to a single grain of corn ledgered at a couple of rod lengths out.

 
What had started out a nice morning had become very changeable, one minute the sun would be shining the next it would be tipping it down we even had a good round of hail. As the morning wore on, when the sun shone we couldn't get a bite from the carp lines and with Rudd topping around us it was out with the waggler rods. Either set really shallow or with no weight on the line at all and maggot on the hook the Rudd near the surface were easy pickings and of a nice stamp too. A chap who was fishing across the way had hooked into a good fish on the pole and was having a hell of a time getting it up from the bottom. As we watched the action unfold Liam and I had a little competition to see who could catch 5 of the Rudd the fastest, it was great fun and I found myself getting wound up if I had to change bait. Our floats barely had time to settle before we would have another fish on, and after about 10 minutes I had won 5-3 much to Liam's disgust. It was time for round two and Toby had put the carp rod down and joined us Rudd bashing on the float. The gent over the way was still doing battle with the big carp that was stretching his elastic as round two got under way. The second little fun match was won quickly and easily by Liam 5-2-2 and after just over an hour we finally got to see what the fellow the other side of pool had hooked into when he landed a lovely 16lb common. The rain came down again so it was back out with the carp lines for us, with the hope that we could catch a cracker like that. This time I opted for a couple of bits sweetcorn on a quick-stopped hair rig and a cage feeder, which was full of a 50-50 mix of dark method mix and course pellets of a couple of different sizes. Making up my ground bait like that seems to not only do the trick with the Carp but it also makes pretty expensive groundbait go a lot further.

We started to put together a good run after lunch picking up Carp throughout the afternoon at regular intervals all falling to fairly natural baits like corn, worm, meat and maggot. Toby had five carp which seemed to get bigger every time up to just under 9lb , mostly coming in the margins over a bed of micros and with polarised glasses he could see them moving in and out of the swim. I was well chuffed to have banked my best tally of carp to date landing six over the course of the day. I had one on meat another on sweetcorn but the rest all fell to my favourite bait to use the trusty(and cheap) garden worm fished either over maggot feeder or cage feeder. Liam bagged 3 little carp and a hat full of Rudd and skimmers. All in all it was one of the best days fishing so far this year and as the weather warms up things, as they say can only get better
   

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First Carp of the season

Having still not managed to catch a Carp this season after several attempts, we fished on Robbie's pool at  Border fisheries with the hope of a change of luck. Our mate Liam joined us again this weekend too.

We all started of with a different approach this week, Toby started off on the pole, Liam the method feeder and I started on the the waggler. It didn't take long for Toby and I to get good swims going. Both of us fishing with maggot on the hook, over loose fed maggots every chuck. The stamp of Roach and Rudd is really good in Robbie's and it was great fun bagging up on silvers. Liam had started to get a few twitches on the rod as the Carp moved into his swim and found the free offerings from around his feeder. After about an hour Liam's perseverance paid off and this lovely coloured Carp was his reward                            

Not backwards in coming forwards I quickly changed over to the method feeder and stuck some corn on the hook. I'm not sure however that the fished had got the script as I started to catch some quite nice skimmers. Not the Carp I was after but my first fish using the method feeder, Its a technique that I really like using so I'm glad that its finally starting to put a few fish on the bank

Things started to slow down on the method feeder and after an hour or so without a bite, I made the change to maggot feeder with a lob worm on a quick-stopped hair. I'm really fond of this new invention and find it excellent for hair rigging worm, its also really good for punched bread.Worm started to do the business and I was soon catching some quality Roach and Skimmer Bream.
This was the pattern until my rod bent round and from the feisty fight could tell it was a Carp. Admittedly it was only marginally bigger than the skimmers I had been pulling out all day, but never the less it was a more than welcome addition to the days bag. I played it very carefully as I really didn't want to lose it and was well chuffed when my first Carp of the season was landed.
I spent a little while playing about with a pellet waggler, trying to get the hang of another new method. In the mean time Toby and Liam having both changed to a waggler were enjoying the good sport that the silvers in the pool have to offer, catching Roach and Rudd almost one a chuck.
Not having much success with the pellet waggler I changed back to the maggot feeder, to fish out the remainder of the day.
I had a cracking bite at around 5pm and my rod nearly came off the bank sticks, before I stuck into what can only be described as a "zoo creature". Which I had on the line for a good 5 minutes pulling me this way and that, I was doing quite well with the 4lb line I had on, and started thinking this could be a new personal best. It was about then that my hook link gave out and I was left gutted with nothing, other than another "one that got away" tale.
Still at least I finally managed to get my first carp of the season on the bank, and have had a taste of the big old Carp that live in that little pool.
I may be back this week to see if I can tempt that beast back onto my line........

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Bank Holiday Bagging

This weekend we were lucky enough to get on the bank twice, and having had a couple of tough session recently, our thinking was to up our chances a little and fish some slightly easier waters.

On the Saturday we fished  Dovehouse pool  in hough nr Crewe, a small farm pool just under a couple of acres, which is known to hold some good size Carp and Tench, plus plenty of slivers. I fished method feeder with a couple of 8mm spicy sausage pellets, for the Carp and Tench, and set up a small waggler with a couple of maggots on a size 18.
It didn't take long to build up a good swim on the waggler rod. I was soon catching small Gudgeon with every chuck, keeping a steady trickle of maggots going in, I was building up a nice tally.
My Carp rod however remained very quiet. Not knowing the pool very well I cast around a bit, to try and get a feel for any features that may lay beneath the water hoping to find a fish or two. Yet all morning, my yellow bobbin didn't move an inch, not so much as even a line bite. Toby was having much the same luck using a similar approach, float fishing and having great fun Gudgeon bashing, no joy on the carp line fishing up around the island, with a running lead and popped up boilie on a hinged stiff link.
On speaking to a couple of guys who arrived shortly after us, we found out that last week the Carp and the Tench had been taking a liking to small halibut pellets.
We changed our hook bait and hoped this new advice would pay dividends. We cast back out and got back on with the very serious business of catching Gudgeon, while waiting for a run on the bigger rods. I have not had such great gudgeon fishing since I was a lad on the Shropy Union canal in Nantwich, and in all honesty it was a delight. Having had a fish-less session last time out, it was good to back amongst the fishes. The end of the day was soon upon us and we must have had a good 150 fish, all gudgeon save for one solitary Rudd.

On the Bank Holiday Monday we spent the afternoon down at Border Fishery on Three island pool. We fished on pegs   12 and 13, which turned out not to be so unlucky. Toby's rod tip was bent round with a cracking take, only minutes after his first cast. Pulling him hard into the first of this years lilies, he had a good fight on his hands on relativity light tackle. I stood on wait with the net thinking the battle was almost won, the 4-5lb mirror made a dash for under the staging that Toby was standing on, never to be seen again. After unhooking the method feeder rig from the staging under his feet, Toby cast out again back to the edge of the lilies. Using my little rod with a maggot feeder and a couple of the grubs on the hook, my quiver- tip was just light enough to show a tentative bite from small Rudd I had attracted to the swim. After putting three or four on the bank with the feeder, I started to miss bites. The fish in my swim had started to gain confidence and were trying to take the bait on the drop. With that I changed to the waggler and fished a bit shallower, this seamed to produce more bites and a better stamp of fish.

This skimmer was one of about 4 or 5 of a similar size, that I managed to bank over the course of the afternoon. Toby had hooked up and lost another carp in the lilies, so decided to join me fishing on the float. This move soon saw Toby catching a few silvers, the best of which another skimmer Bream. Yet again Toby managed to hook up another sizeable fish, only to lose it again. This time the size 16 hook wasn't up to the job and left Toby more than a little frustrated. The Carp may still be very illusive but in the end we another great afternoon silver bashing at Border.

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New PB Bream saves the day

We had a really bright and warm week here in Cheshire and I was really looking forward to getting on the bank, to target the Carp and Tench at a water that I have never fished before called Bentley pool in Tarporley.

It is a lovely secluded spot set in a small wooded valley. There is an island in the middle and the water is stream fed. From the looks of it at the moment the water level is down quite a bit, but it has been a very dry winter. We started the morning fishing at the dam end of the pool, which despite the low water level was still between 6-10ft deep, thinking that this would be where the fish would be hiding, before moving into the shallower areas as the day warmed up.
It had been our intention to give the old lift method a go today, with maggot under a stick float, but due to the depth of the water we chose to fish the feeder, Toby switching between cage filled with groundbait, pellets, corn and hemp and maggot feeder, while I just went with maggot feeder. unfortunately we couldn't get a bite on either method, we toyed around with different hook baits and had the occasional cast around to see if we could locate some fish. I even tried a bit more of a technical carp rig for a while, trying a couple of pellets on a hinged stiff link, again to no avail. A couple of guys who were fishing against the island on the other side had a bit more luck with a big Bream and a 14lb common.
So with that we moved round to find some shallower water where the fish were now showing, I changed back to maggot feeder and put a big fat Lob on a size 12 hook, on my first cast into this new swim, I was just organising my seating arrangements when my 7ft quivertip bent double with a cracking take, and I was finally into a fish which was putting a good fight on 4lb line, that is until the hook pulled and I lost the fish. I found out when I retrieved what was left of my rig that it must have been a good sized Bream, from the tell tail sign of a big blob of slime on the end of my line. Know that bream are a shoal fish I quickly retied a hook and cast back out into the same area with another big worm on.
I was beginning to think that I was going to end the with nothing more than a great tan and a tale of "the one that got away". then I had another great indication as my tip bent round and I was into a fish again, It felt quite a lump and was unsure as to what it was for a while, so taking it nice and steady I was a good couple of minutes before Toby had kindly netted, what I then saw straight away was a new personal best Bream, which weighed in at 4.11lb (although I thought it was bigger!)  

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Final Pike sessesion of the season

This weekend saw us head back to Longbarn in Warrington, for what was to be our final session after Pike. We intend to give the Pike a rest now until October and target fish more comfortable in the warmer months.
We arrived at the pool at about 7 o'clock and were fishing by half past, using the same set up that has been so successful for us. A simple float ledger rig with a fresh Smelt on the bottom is irresistible to the Longbarn jack Pike

I had to wait quite a while for my first fish, it came with the excitement I always get as my pencil float cocked itself and started off on a run, only to be stopped by me setting the hooks.
It felt like a good fish as it tugged back, and took a while to get to the surface, but alas it was just another really hard fighting Jack of around 4lb, that made another break for freedom, as I had him at the inside about to grab the little fellow. Successfully landed and a quick picture taken the fish was returned none the worst for wear.
There was another long interval before the next bit of action, as Toby was enjoying his lunch he noticed a small float appear, on the far side of channel between two islands. I had a good luck at it with my binoculars and saw that it was a massive waggler, which we presumed was a lone float wandering on the wind, until Toby watched it shoot under only to reappear a bit closer to us. Now convinced there was a fish attached, Toby attempted to cast his line over the float to snag it, which he very skilfully did on the second try, and connected to what was now most definitely a fish!
Putting up a good struggle we thought it was a good sized carp at first, due to the over sized waggler it was underneath, but as Toby continued to play the fish when it got closer we saw that it was a Pike. Now our thinking was, somebody had been using regular waggler tactics and a Pike had hit a fish they were bringing in, which could well have snapped them off. When the fish was finally landed after a very careful fight, all became clear as we tried to unhook the fish from a two treble hook rig, which had been attached to perfectly shotted 4AA waggler, on about an 8lb main line. Toby worked magic with the forceps, while I held the fish, she went back into the water in a big specimen net for a while to recover before we grabbed a quick pic and returned the Pike to the water, now able to feed and without a float and about 3ft of line attached to live a healthy and happy life.

I had another couple of fish (as you can see below) before the day was out, one to a lamprey section injected with a bit of salmon oil, and the bigger of the three, a good 5lb falling to the old faithful Smelt. It was quite a long fish and when I first saw it in the water I thought maybe it could have been close to the double figure fish I have so longed to catch from this water, but no it was a long lean and quite mean jack of nearly 6lb.
Never the less it was a good fish, and a great way to end our first season of pike fishing, which only started in December, Since then I have landed 11 Pike including a good double of 12lb, they may all have been from what are fairly easy waters, but I now have some great experience and knowledge in catching and handling these fantastic creatures, which come this winter I will be putting to good use in attempting to catch a specimen from a river and having a go with some lures and spinners.
 But for now we turn our attention to Tench and Carp, and some sitting behind the buzzers waiting for a monster 

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On The Bank Technical specs

 

 

 

Final Fling

This week would see us heading to the Dane, for the last session before the river season, for us course fishermen comes to an end. We travelled light along the BMAC Manor Farm stretch, dropping in on various pegs, chucking out a few pellets, then casting ledgered meat on top. Toby had a bit of a knock on the first peg we tried, so we gave it half an hour or so to see if anything developed, but alas the tip of Toby's rod stayed motionless. Undeterred we carried on along the river, varying hook baits slightly, changing hook lengths and casting into different types of swims. And we still couldn't get so much as even a twitch.  I have now lost countless bombs, a couple of feeders, a float, god knows how many hooks in trees and branches, about 4 pints of maggots, 3 tins of meat, 2 tubs of pellets and 20 man hours fishing and am yet to see a fish from The River Dane. Yet I know they are there, and I will catch one, but my first river Barbel really will have to wait until the summer now.

Deflated by another unsuccessful morning on the river, we headed down to Border (our local club complex) to fish closer to home for a couple of hours. Toby had been on the Friday and fished the canal again, and had a great session catching some of the fairly newly stocked F1 carp, which he told me "really hang on!"
That sounded like great fun to me and after a quick change of tackle, we were fishing again by half past two.
Unable to get on the peg that Toby had fished on before, we started off on pegs in the lower numbers.
My side has a great knack of being able to put his bait onto fish with his first cast, and yet again he was into a fish with the first chuck on the Meridian. The small hybrid flapped around wildly on the surface as Toby fumbled for his net, then just at that critical second bumped itself off the hook. That little fish must have swam back and told its friend not to bother because we really struggled to get another bite.
I moved round the canal a bit, to a section that was a bit more sheltered, thinking that the ripples on the surface might have been making it difficult to see the shy bites of the F1's, and switched from pellets which I was finding difficult to keep on the hook (no bait bands), to a bit of chopped worm in the hope of nabbing at least a couple of silvers, while the little carp evaded me.

This roach was my only fish of the day and fell to the old faithful chopped worm under a little waggler, on what was a pretty frustrating weekend of fishing. I even went back solo for a few hours on Sunday morning, still couldn't buy a bite. It really wasn't going to be my weekend
I did get treated to quite a performance by the new F1 carp, who paroled up and down in front of me, in big shoals just under the surface. But never once did they get there heads down to feed on my offerings. When they have settled down a bit it's going to be some fantastic angling, if I can ever hook one,  and I'm sure the big resident Perch are already enjoying their new guests, and might even start to pack on a pound or two.
    

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Swamp things 2

We went back to Longbarn in Warrington this weekend, for a final Piking session of the season, and to try and break Toby's duck with Longbarn Pike, having lost a couple and missed as many last week.
The weather forecast was pretty good and it was a nice bright morning, a pleasure to be on the bank.
Toby only had to wait about ten minuets after his first cast, for his pencil float to stand to attention and start of on a wander, after a very short battle Toby had his fish. A nicely marked 2.5lb Longbarn Jack Pike.

I had my first pike not long after, using what seems a favourite of the hungry Longbarn Jack, Smelt float fished hard on the bottom. Giving a good fight, I wondered if this was one of the big old girls that must live there, but it was just a tough Jack of nearly 5lb, that gave me the run around.
 
As I said it was a lovely morning, and there was a few dog walkers doing the morning rounds, some of which would stop and chat to us, as they walked past. A familiar face had stopped, and Toby was telling the chap about the fish in the pool, and as if on cue, my float righted itself and started to wobble around. As I played the fish I was trying to put a name to face I was sure I recognised, Toby chinned  my pike which we guessed was around the 4lb mark. Our onlooker admired the fish and then they both went on their way (although in different directions). We took a quick picture of the Pike, we didn't however get a picture with, who we eventually recalled was the character Ashley Peacock from Coronation St

After that bit of excitement, it was lunch time. And in typical fashion Toby had just poured himself a cup of soup, when his float cocked itself and tanked off towards an island in the middle. Toby soon landed his second fish of the day a Jack of around 3lb. The good weather didn't last too long, the heavens opened and we had to quickly grab our umbrellas, to avoid getting drenched, with the rain came a bit of a thunder storm, and I was glad to be in my insulating wellies.
The passing storm, however brief seamed to have a massively detrimental effect on our afternoons fishing. Despite moving round and changing baits, we just couldn't pick up another bite, on what is a fantastically productive venue for Jack Pike.

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On The Bank Technical specs

Crocs from the swamp

We travelled up to Warrington to fish for Pike this weekend, at a venue called Longbarn pool or "the brick pits" as it is know locally. It is a small water set between a housing estate and a main road, at only 4ft at its deepest with lots of islands, over hanging trees and reed beds, it has some great features to fish to.

Starting off with float ledgered dead baits, I cast to little island just to my left in about 2ft of water and wasn't long before my float started to twitch and then rip off towards some reeds, and I was connected to small be lively jack, who gave a really good account of himself, tail walking and pulling off line before eventually coming to the net, my first Longbarn Pike just a shade under 4lb.

My next run came around lunch time and was a bigger Pike of around 4.5lb, Toby however was not doing so well, a couple of good runs but still no Esox on the bank. Just before I caught my second Toby had one on only to lose him at the net. We also met fellow BMAC member Michael who had a good day, banking three pike the biggest of which was somewhere between  6-7lb.
I had another couple of nice Jacks to 3.5lb and three or four good runs , but the Pike evaded my old mate Toby all day, despite loads of runs he just couldn't get one on the bank, fish crashing in the reeds all over, cruelly mocking him. That place its absolutely crawling with jack Pike, seven fish banked over three rods in day is great pike fishing, and we will definitely be back so that Toby can catch the big old girl that must rule the swamp.

For more information on rigs, set ups, bait and tackle please have a look at our brother blog

On The Bank Technical specs

New PB Perch

This weekends plan of action was to finally get up to Lymm Dam to fish for Pike, last time we tried to fish Lymm it had a lid on it. 
A much milder week hear in the North West meant that everywhere was now fish-able again and there was a match on The Bay Cliff side of the Dam, so Toby and I fished the church side. The Bream in Lymm Dam are said to run to double figures so with that in mind we had a rod each set up for bin lids and another with float ledgered dead baits.
Using a large maggot feeder I tried to build up a nice carpet of the grubs for the bream to come and munch on, while working round with the float rig for the pike trying to find some features to fish to.

 Then the heavens opened and we were battered by torrential rain for what seamed like forever. I had to fight with my brolly continually, as it turned inside out with every gust of wind, when I did manage to keep it upright the rain still soaked the left hand side of my so called waterproofs!
In the mean time Toby who was much drier in his bivvy was becoming increasing agitated by the lack of any form of bite or indication on either rod, I too had not had so much as a knock. But that was really the last of my worries I was soaked and pretty fed up.
I made a quick phone call to our friend Liam who was fishing with his son at Border to find out how the weather was closer to home, the weather was ok and so was the fishing, he was bagging up on Roach and Rudd and Michael had lost a good Carp.
Without further ado we packed up and headed to join the fun on Robbie's pool, I had my first Roach in just under an hour after packing up at Lymm.

Single Maggot under a waggle was doing the damage and we  had a merry hour or so finally catching fish again after such slack couple of weeks.
We had the Canal style water behind us, and a move again would mean we could spend the last hour with the wind off our backs comfortably under our umbrellas and have an impromptu little match.
All armed with a waggler and maggots we more or less took it in turns catching nice little silvers with Toby gaining the edge with his swim hold the slightly bigger fish, as Toby and Liam continued to chalk up fish after fish, I couldn't get a bite again.

Liam had decided to call it a day and was walking past me as my float suddenly disappeared again, asking was it a good fish? I replied I thinks its a bit bigger than my 2lb nylon hook-link. From the dogged fight I wondered weather it was maybe a Barbel or Chub as it tried to get into the inside margin, but once it got near to the surface, I could see those red stripes that are unmistakable.
Once landed and quickly weighed I could sit back well and truly chuffed with a new personal best Perch of 2.6lb

For more information on rigs, set ups, bait and tackle please have a look at our brother blog

On The Bank Technical specs

Winter Barbel on The Dane

Having had a brief and unsuccessful trip to the Dane last week, We were back hoping to bag a winter Barbel, much more prepared for a river fishing session this time out, we had even brought re-enforcements. Our friend Liam was to be our guide, as he has fished the Dane for years.  
We set off along the Bay malton Manor farm stretch travelling light, settling into a suitable looking peg on a nice bend, I tried ledgering a couple of pellets to the far bank, Toby and Liam using similar tactics with variations on bait. We sat on what was a quite chilly morning bite-less for about an hour before moving on, yet again I was experiencing problems with the eyes on my rod freezing.

Finding another nice looking set of pegs down stream, that the three of us could all get on, we tried again, this time I opted to try a couple of maggots and a small maggot feeder. Liam sticking with meat, while Toby was trotting a couple of maggots down stream. Starting to get a little frustrated by the lack of fish, some light hearted ribbing of Liam ensued, claiming the pictures I have seen of him with some lovely look river Barbel, were obliviously the work of Photoshop!
We carried on down stream trying various pegs and slightly different methods and baits with very little success.
Fishing the Dane is a very different beast than my local River the Weaver, where the weaver is deep and plodding, the much shallower Dane pushes through a fair rate, I was finding it difficult to hold bottom with a 14g flat ledger, the biggest I had in my box.

Finishing the day off on a sandy bend which the fallen tree above dominated, I tried ledgered meat again and still couldn't buy a take. My first river Barbel will have to wait until the summer now, when I hope the Mink we saw dashing up the fallen tree, has saved some fish for us!

For more information on rigs, set ups, bait and tackle please have a look at our brother blog

On The Bank Technical specs