Tudor's Chub

Well it's been a while since my last piscatorial blog but I thought I'd make an effort as this evening was my last river session of the current season. My partner in short evening session fishing Tudor had suggested we end the season with a quick post work trip to the Broome AC section of the Soar at Narborough and it didn't take much to twist my arm into joining him.

Just before 5:00pm we left work for the short journey to Flash Farm, upon arrival it didn't take us long to get tackled up and a swift walk through the farm yard had us on the banks of the Soar. We had both decided to finish the season with a spot of lure fishing and Tudor went for a small traditional spinner while I went for a soft lure jig set up in the hope of a Pike. It was looking like a promising evening with very mild conditions and the river looking fairly clear giving good clarity for our chosen lure techniques.

 The River Soar at Flash Farm

We had only been fishing for a short while when Tudor hooked into what he initially thought was a decent Brown Trout, however he soon realised he was hooked into a very nice Chub. After a brief but nerve jangling tussle Tudor managed to guide his prize into the net which I had carefully positioned. What a stunning fish it was in fabulous condition without a mark on it. Tudor decided not to stress it out and weigh it but we guessed it's weight at around the 3lb mark! A clonking good Chub for Tudor to end his river season on, a possible personal best and his first ever lure caught Chub.

Tudors spinner caught Chub

 A stunning bar of gold, fin perfect

Once Tudor had returned his prize to the river we decided to head down stream to the deep pools at the far end of the beat and work our way back, we spent the next hour leap frogging one another from one deep run or pool to the next. 

I was fishing a bright orange soft bodied jig but couldn't get any interest no matter how hard I tried so with only around 20 minutes fishing time left I switched to a small perch fry imitation lure.

The Good, the bad and the Ghostie

I had planned a full day session on Broome Anglings Lizzie's Lake in search of a few more winter cypry's, so at 5:00am on Sunday morning the alarm went off and I headed to the kitchen for a quick bite of breakfast before I loaded the car and set off on the 30 minute drive to the Kilworth Sticks Fishery.

The sun wasn't due to rise until just after 7:00am, I arrived at the fishery just before and was the first fisherman into the car park although I was sure Tudor wouldn't be far behind me. I got the gear out of the car and carried it up the bank into my chosen swim for the day, before I'd even started to get organised I saw the familiar shape of Tudor's Peugeot driving along the lane to the fishery car park, game on!

After a brief chat Tudor decided to fish a couple of swims to the right of my chosen spot and expectations were high on this blustery, chilly February morning. I tackled up the first rod with my favourite winter combo of Peperami and Sweetcorn and hooked on a PVA mesh bag of pellets, particles and corn, this I launched towards the island. To my surprise it landed right on the spot first cast, having dropped the rod onto the alarm I then set about getting the 2nd rod sorted. This rod went into the margins under some very carpy looking overhanging trees, once clipped up I dug out the Coleman stove and got on with preparing a brew for Tudor and myself, tea is as essential to fishing as bait in my opinion.

Within half an hour of getting the first brew sorted I had a stuttery take on the island rod, on lifting into it there was no resistance and when I retrieved the rig it came back tangled, gutted! I felt that the exposed braid hooklink was proving too supple for the distance I was casting to the island in such heavy cross winds and decided to tie up a slightly stiffer rig using GW Rig Solutions Multi Semi Stiff Coated Hooklink. As I was tying on my new rig Tudor was into his first fish, I walked around to his swim just as he landed a lovely and very pale 6lb Common, it was first blood to Tudor and a lovely little Common it was too. I soon had the rig back into position and settled down under the brolly to enjoy the day ahead.  After the aborted run on the tangled rig things went slowly for me, however Tudor was soon into carp number two and also lost a very pale tench to a hook pull just short of the net.

Muddy home for the day

Although it was sheltered and warmer under the brolly it wasn't long before the soaked ground around my swim started to resemble a swap! The ground was so wet after Saturdays rain that no matter how little you tried to move around you soon churned up the bank making it very slippery under foot.

It was now heading towards midday and although Tudor had landed another small Mirror I'd not had a bleep, I was convinced the rigs were fine, the spots good and my tactics sound, but worried about the hookbait especially with so many crayfish in the pool. I decided to check the island rod and was pleased I did as I discovered a very nibbled hookbait, old Ronnie and Reggie had been having a party! I put on a fresh hookbait, tied up a new PVA mesh bag and recast to the island. I'd love to say I hit the spot first time, but I didn't and needed two more attempts in the blustery crosswind, finally with the rod positioned it was time to put the kettle on for another brew.

Time for a brew

Around twenty minutes after recasting I had a couple of bleeps on the island rod, these were quickly followed by a screamer of a run and I was onto the rod and into my first fish of the day. My newly hooked quarry put up a cracking fight under the rod tip trying for the snaggy branches on both sides of my chosen swim, but I soon had things under control and a stunning little Ghost Carp swam into the folds of my waiting net. It was my first ever Ghostie and as such I had to weigh it, on the scales she went 8lb exactly but the weight was irrelevant, in the sun that had broken through she shone, a picture of gold and platinum hues and I simply had to have a trophy shot for posterity, luckily Tudor was on hand to do the honours and after a quick photo I slipped my prize back into the cold waters, hopefully we'll meet again in a few years.

Once I'd got the island rod back out I settled down for...yes...a well earned cuppa.

Platinum Perfection...

Not long afterwards the wind picked up to the point I had to hang onto the brolly and with it came a tremendous downpour, however it was very short lived and we were soon greeted with a spectacular rainbow. Once again the action slowed up for both Tudor and myself, just last weekend I'd had four fish in under three hours but this day I'd had just the one in seven hours with Tudor having caught four and being broken off on what he felt was a decent fish to a snag on the island, it really was proving a difficult day. I felt with the sudden drop in temperature and the twenty four hours of cold rain going into the pool that it may have just put the fish off the feed and I mentioned this to Tudor who thought the same. We had checked the weather forecast earlier in the day thanks to the wonders of the iPhone and we were due very heavy rain by 5:00pm so agreed we'd call it a day around 3:30pm. At just after three I started to get my bits and pieces together at which point I received a stuttery take on the margin rod, I hit it and was rewarded with fresh air! On inspecting the rig there was a grain of hemp masking the hook point and preventing it from taking hold, gutted again!! To make matters worse as I repositioned the margin rod I discovered the baitrunner mechanism on my reel had failed, these are my favourite reels and the fact one was now broken was upsetting to say the least. In order to fish the recast rod I had to slacken off the front drag fully and forget the baitrunner function, I started to finish my packing slightly downhearted with the last ten minutes of lost fish and broken reel.

Just as I was trying to fold away my brolly the margin rod with the now dodgy reel went into meltdown on a screamer! I quickly tightened the clutch as I lifted into an angry little carp, within a few minutes I had the bonus of a 5lb Common on the bank. By now the forecast rain was looming darkly in the overhead sky and I made the decision to get everything packed away, it was a decision which was probably a little too late in the making as within seconds of starting to pack down the heavens opened! Amazingly Tudor had the same problem having just caught and returned his biggest fish of the day an 8lb Common, we both met in the car park, soaked through but also very happy with a successful winter session. Car's loaded we both drove off along the fishery driveway and I'm sure Tudor would have been thinking the same as me as he headed home.....roll on the next session.

New Year, New Journey.....

So as we start 2016 a change in my career and the meeting of two keen anglers has brought upon a shift in my angling focus, although I still intend to persevere with my Fly Fishing for Coarse Fish I'm also going to try as many other methods as I can to catch our finned adversaries.

My new angling companions both fish as members of local societies which have on their books some fabulous waters containing a very good mix of species to specimen proportions, with this in mind I have already joined one and will be joining the second when their membership renewals night arrives in February. 

January's fishing has been a limited affair, what with starting my new job and various other commitments I've only managed to get to the waters edge twice, the first time without tackle to visit Bob on a very wintery Sunday morning Pike session and the second, my first trip to one of the societies waters in pursuit of a January Carp. On my trip to see Bob it was great to be out, even without my rods, especially as our planned meeting unexpectedly coincided with this winters first proper overnight snow. We had planned to meet on the river where Bob was dead baiting for Pike, as usual I awoke before the alarm went off excited to be out however what met me on leaving the house was a good layer of white stuff. It had snowed quite heavily through the night and had left the world looking very wintery, the 30 minute drive to the river was a pleasure with white tipped trees and snow covered fields.

Once I'd found where to park it was only a short walk to find Bob and his fellow anglers. This was my first proper meeting with Bob, although we had been corresponding via messenger and it was a pleasure to finally meet the man in person. He was just setting up his rods as I arrived but was happy to stop and chat although I encouraged him to carry on and get those baited rods out and into position in the heavy flow of the swollen river. It wasn't very long before the first action of the session as the closest bung bobbed a couple of times before slowly gliding under the rivers surface, Bob was quickly onto the rod and after a spirited but brief fight in the rivers strong current Bob brought a lovely winter Pike to hand, it looked stunning on the bank on this cold, snowy Sunday morning so I offered to take a quick photo before Bob gently released his prize back into the cold winter water.

 Bob's snowy Sunday Pike

It wasn't long before the next chance came along in fact it only seemed like minutes before the second bung, fished into a slack area to the left of the swim started to bob and then dip under and again a spirited but short fight ensued and Bob had his second Pike of the session on the bank. Two fish on the bank in less than an hour, what a fabulous winter mornings Pike fishing I was witnessing!

Pike number two comes to the net

Unfortunately I had to leave shortly after Bob returned the second Pike and as I made my farewells we also promised it wouldn't be long before we fished together properly. 

Although I can't actually join Bob's waters until the last week in February, I am however very excited at the prospect of joining especially as I will be able to fish a pool I've only dreamt about since I was a teenager, a lily covered pool of natural beauty that holds some lovely fish. The end of February can't come quick enough for this angler.

As for my first session of 2016 behind the rods, it took the form of a short three hour post work session on one of the waters belonging to the Leicestershire based Broome Angling Society, which I have joined for the first time this year. I'd originally planned to finish work at midday and head to the Kilworth Sticks complex for a bit of a recce of all of the pools, however when I arrived and looked across the deserted Lizzies Lake I abandoned the idea of a walkabout and decided to get the rods fishing as soon as possible. That actually turned into a bit of a challenge as the wind had picked up and was gusting to around 40mph, anything not held down quickly tried to take off! 

I tackled up my new Prologic C1 carp rod with a basic lead clip set up onto which I attached a short exposed braided hooklink which was knotless knotted to a size 6 GW Rig Solutions barbless long shank hook. As boilies and artificial (plastic) baits are banned on all of the Broome waters (except Jurrasic) my plan of action was to fish a small piece of spicy peperami tipped with a single grain of sweetcorn on a long hair and then attach a small pva bag of mixed pellets to the hook prior to casting. The intention was to create a small patch of high attraction and hopefully draw the carps attention to the spicy hookbait, this first rod was then cast as tight to the island as I could get in the very windy conditions.

On the way to the water my phone had been going crazy with calls and texts, so once I'd got the first rod out I thought I'd quickly catch up with my missed calls before positioning my second rod. The first missed call was the wife, so I quickly checked in explained I'd only just arrived and then checked the second missed call, this one was from Tudor the man that had convinced me to join Broome, I quickly called him back to let him know I'd only just arrived and as I was explaining where I'd chosen to fish I had a quick drop back on the only rod I was currently fishing! I cut Tudor off, threw the phone into my open rucksack and wound down into a fish!! After a very spirited fight on the carp's behalf and a tentative fight on my behalf due to not having hooked or played a carp over the last six or so years, I slid the net under a stunning winter Common, on the scales it went 9lb exactly, to say I was pleased would be a massive understatement.

9lb of winter gold

Once I'd returned my prize, refreshed the hookbait and re-cast to the island spot I gave Tudor a quick call back to let him know of my result and after his congratulations I started to sort out my second rod. However, before I could get the second rod sorted I had a screamer on the island rod! A short while later I had another stunning Common of just over 6lb on the unhooking mat, half an hour into my first session behind the carp rods and I'd already banked two cracking little winter commons, I couldn't have been happier.

When I'd got everything sorted and the hot rod back out to the island spot I finally managed to get the second rod organised and into position. I dropped the rig into the margin under an overhanging tree and scattered a couple of handfuls of corn and pellets over the spot. I was finally fishing two rods an hour after arriving at the lake!

It wasn't long before I received a text from Tudor saying that he was going to pop down to the lake to see how I was getting on, as there wasn't another angler on the water I was pleased to be having the company, especially as I had a feeling more carp would be gracing my net on the session. Five minutes before Tudor arrived a had a couple of bleeps on the island rod, I hovered over the rod and a couple of seconds later the line tightened and the swinger moved a fraction, I instantly picked up the rod and wound down into another fish. It didn't give as good an account of itself as the first two but I was pleased to engulf a pretty mirror of around 5lb within the folds of my net. I quickly unhooked this little mirror, took a quick mat shot and slid her back into the cold lake, as I shook my hands dry Tudor pulled into the car park.

Little Mirror

It was great to see Tudor and we chatted away about the Society and it's lakes along with our prospects for 2016, we've decided to try and catch as many different species as we can at the best weights possible from our society waters during the coming season. Typically once Tudor had arrived the action had slowed down and we both sat patiently awaiting for mr cypry to trip up. I had to be home by five as the wife and I were going out for the evening, so at around four I suggested to Tudor that I start packing up my gear. As always I intended to leave the rods out to the death so started with packing the scales, sling and unhooking mat, just as I picked up the scales the margin rod tore off!

A couple of minutes later Tudor (my new ghillie) slid the net under another little mirror of around 5lb, I was so pleased to have banked a carp while Tudor was with me, especially as it was all down to him that I was there in the first place. We quickly returned the little mirror before I finally packed up the rest of the gear and loaded the car ready for home. 

What a first session on my new waters, less than four hours and four carp on the unhooking mat, two commons and two mirrors, what a session to start my piscatorial peregrination for 2016!

Until the next time....TIGHT LINES

Back on the towpath

This morning I actually managed to squeeze in a few hours on the towpath, it's been a good few months since my last lure fishing adventure and although I awoke to howling winds and the weather forecast was looking pretty grim I was still looking forward to being out with the lure rod again.

On parking up in the lane the heavens opened and I had to resort to the waterproof jacket but was eager to walk the few hundred yards to the canal and start my first fishing trip of this winter campaign. The autumn colours of the canal and towpath are simply stunning and it was a pleasure just to stroll along flicking out a lure into the murky canal, to be fair the water was actually a little clearer than my last visit back in March and I have to say I was feeling optimistic of a bite.

 

Autumn colours on the canal

The fishing was to prove difficult with such strong winds, I was happy enough with my casting and I was managing to drop the lures into some very fishy looking spots including the area in which I caught my first ever Zed. The problem however was the amount of debris blown into the water from the continuous heavy wind, virtually every cast encountered some form of flotsam either on the line or ensnaring the lure. I'd started with a rattling crank bait but after searching various spots for a good half hour I switched to my faithful slim Jim, yet again working this lure resulted in nothing but a few windfall leaves. 

With the wind picking up by the minute I decided to pop on a soft lure to try and get down as deep as possible and search the bed of the canal for my first winter predator. Sadly all I could pick up was yet more debris, I did have one rattle on the rod which I initially put down to more sunken bank side vegetation but once the lure was back at the rod tip there were no signs of unwanted plant life and my soft lure bore a couple of scars, a quick snatch by a Zed? I'd like to hope so.

Soft lures to get down..

I could have stayed longer but I needed to get back so it was a couple of last casts and then I headed for the car and out of natures wind tunnel, it may have been a blank morning as far as fish hooked goes but it had been one of the most refreshing mornings I've had in a long time, I can't wait to put plans together for my next Lurcherfly Canal Peregrination.....

Not gone to plan....

It's been a difficult year for me on the fishing front, having vowed to start my coarse fly fishing and get to grips with my lure fishing for one reason or another I've not actually managed to get out on the bankside, in fact the only time I've picked up a rod of any sort was a quick ten minutes with the brook rod at my parents place in Llanidloes back in September!

A little piece of heaven in Wales

Hopefully I can get out with fly or lure very soon and start adding to this Blog, in the meantime I hope everyone else is enjoying some quality fishing....tight lines, I'll see you soon.

The return of Wet 'N' Dry......

So early on Saturday morning I managed to sneak a couple of hours in on the canal.

My initial plan on Friday evening was to get up early on Saturday morning and head out with the fly rod and to take the lure rod along as well to have both options covered. However, upon seeing the miserable grey skies and strong breeze that faced me on Saturday morning I decided to leave the fly gear at home and just set out with the new lure set up I'd acquired during the week. As I only had a couple of hours available I worked on the idea of using the time to get to grips with casting and working a lure, also feeling if I was to have any chance of catching in the horrid weather I was heading out into then a lure may give me a slight advantage over the fly, especially as the lures I was thinking of trying have a slight rattle which should help fish to locate them in the very coloured water on the local canal.

I chose to have a crack at a different section of the canal from where I'd started out my fly fishing campaign last weekend, the section I headed for in the car was the stretch I'd walked with Hannah and the Lurcher's the previous Sunday. While we'd been walking I'd noted a few likely looking areas that I wanted to explore and thought this section was as good as any for me to have my initial trials with lures.

As I pulled up into the parking space I'd located at the side of the canal it started to drizzle, the sort of drizzle that doesn't look much but after a short while soaks you through. I was here now though and if I'm honest I was dying to get a lure into the water and fish, sometimes no matter what the weather you just have to fish, even if it means an uncomfortable session. If you're a fisherman you'll understand, if not you'll think I'm mad, maybe I am?

I had already set up my 30Plus Radar 8' Lure rod with the Rovex Ceratec 3000 reel I'd purchased and this was loaded with 15lb braid onto which I'd tied a wire trace and now I was canal side I clipped on an 8g Slim Jim Lure. I'd chosen the Slim Jim as it was a slightly smaller lure and I had read that it was designed to mimic the characteristics of small coarse fish and was a very good lure for smaller Pike and Perch.

 The Slim Jim Lure

Setting off down the steps onto the tow path a couple of fat wood pigeons clattered out of the trees above me, obviously not happy at my appearance in their vicinity, I'd have been annoyed with myself for spooking them if I'd been out with the Air Rifle and not the fishing rods! Once on the path I initially decided to head off to my right under the bridge in the direction I'd walked with Hannah the week previously, although for some strange reason I had a real compulsion to go left instead? Knowing I'd seen a couple of areas I wanted to try the week before I resisted the urge to go left and carried on under the bridge to the right heading for the first area I wanted to try. I started to get to grips with casting the Lure rod fairly quickly, soon able to flick the Slim Jim into some very Pikey looking spots without too much trouble. As I reached the next bridge the breeze had really started to pick up and the drizzle was getting driven into me, quickly soaking me and my kit. For some reason the niggling urge to head left again started to play on my mind, especially as by heading back to the first bridge and then left I'd be turning a corner backed by woodland which offered some shelter from the rain and wind. I could resist no longer and a quick reversal was decided upon and I strode off back to the first bridge and more uncharted canal.

As I started to explore this new area of the canal I came across a spot that just looked so fishy I had to have a cast, with what seemed to be an old pontoon of sorts sticking out of the water on the opposite bank, it looked the perfect spot for a predator or two to lurk around. I flicked my first diagonal cast in the direction of the last rotted post in the water and it dropped a foot or so short of where I felt I needed to be and sure enough, nothing. On the third attempt my cast dropped right next to the post and I remember feeling 'that is the spot', a few slow turns of the reel handle and I felt something hit the lure and I swept the rod to my right to strike. Immediately I was met with the resistance of a fighting fish which at first I thought was a small Jack Pike but I couldn't believe it when all of a sudden it thrashed to the surface and I could see it was a small Zander, not just a Zander but the first Zander I'd ever seen let alone hooked! A nervous couple of minutes went by while the Zed shook it's head vigorously to rid the hook and I reached for my net, thankfully it all went to plan and the little Zed slid into the folds of my waiting net.

My first Zander...perfect!

It was only a small Zed approx 12” in length but it was fin perfect, a stunning little predator and I was over the moon with the capture. I'd never before seen let alone caught a Zander and to christen my new lure rod with such a superb little fish made the hour or so in the soaking rain worth every second. Unfortunately the camera didn't like the wet conditions as much and my attempt at a self portrait of my little Zed and I came out a little blurred.

 Wet but happy angler

After the photos were sorted I started getting everything back in order but the wet conditions now conspired against me, a slippery mud stricken tow path caught me out and in a split second my right leg disappeared to the knee into the near margin, my boot filled and was waterlogged but I didn't care, in fact I had a wry smile on my face!

Years ago as a youngster while fishing with my father, grandfather and uncle Frank at Henry's pool in Cambridgeshire as I was trying to return a Tench I'd caught I stepped on what I thought was solid bankside and my right leg disappeared into the pool soaking my jeans to the knee and filling my wellington boot, my father, grandfather and uncle found this very amusing and my uncle quickly nicknamed me Wet 'N' Dry on account of my one wet and one dry leg! From that day forward, whenever I saw my uncle Frank my name to him was always Wet 'N' Dry, he never let me forget and now here on the canal with a right boot full of water and trousers soaked to the knee I couldn't help but smile. Maybe, just maybe that niggling feeling I'd had to head left instead of right which eventually led to my first Zander had been my uncle, the wonderful fisherman that he was, pointing me in the right direction? Whatever I'd like to believe what I do know is that a very wet miserable looking morning had turned into a truly memorable morning for me, even with a soaking from the heavens and an unexpected dunking for my right leg from the canal.

I'd caught my first Zander and Wet 'N' Dry could not be happier.........

The Lure of Lures.......

So after meeting Paul last weekend (the Countesthorpe Lure Angler) I started doing a little research on Lure Fishing as another approach to my canal predator fishing. 

Lure Fishing is something I've never really tried before other than one attempt with a spinner as a youngster on a Fen Drain which ended with me being bitten off by a Pike as I had no idea I needed a wire trace! As the years have flashed by and I've become a Fly Fisherman (of sorts) the idea of Lure Fishing has started to appeal greatly to me as it's so similar in it's attributes to Fly Fishing, active, travelling light and always on the move while searching the water with an artificial lure, very similar really when you think about it? So, today I picked up my first Lure rod, a Middy 30Plus Radar 8' Lure rod which I'm hoping to christen on the local canal very soon.

 

I intend to concentrate on my Fly Fishing for Pike, Zander and Perch on the canal but will also be taking along the Lure rod on my trips just to keep my options open and hopefully pick up a new fishing skill along the way.

I'll keep you posted, I'm thinking there may be exciting times ahead.......