Took a break from my winter piking, as the main rivers were well up I opted to fish the stick float in a small brook which feeds into a tributary of the river Exe, on a normal day you would not give this brook a second look, fished at the mouth of the brook were it enters the tributary, what a afternoons sport I had, I took quality Dace, Roach, small brown trout, and parr all afternoon, made it hard for myself as I didn't bring a keep net because I planned to wander all afternoon so I was returning the fish to the shoal, the most encouraging thing is that over the years a lot of the silver fish in the rivers of the South West have been decimated by cormorant's the stretch I was fishing was no more than five miles from Exmouth beach, it's great too see that some fish have escaped the Black Death for now.

big congrats on yer day, I too had a bit of a day in an hour and a half I had 24 roach each one just under a lb and my first chub from a canal all 3lb of it,my local canal had just not been producing at all,so I expect that with the warm winds of late and being in the right place at the right time had something to do with it.

PS all fell to single pinkie/22 hook

Cheers kendo, it's mild down here in the South West at the best of times, it feels more like the end of March than the beginning of February I hope it lasts.

Just goes to show that putting the fish back immediately doesn't stop you catching. Hopefully you won't feel you need to bother with a keepnet again.

Anyway, congratulations on an excellent catch.

Congrats to you too! What a cracking 90 minutes!

Steve I tend to agree, I very rarely use a keep-net in fact my net really needs renewing I don't think I will bother, just out of interest is there any documented evidence to suggest returning fish such as roach and dace spooks the shoal? a lot of match men seem to think so from todays result, I originate from the midlands in the early seventies as a lad older match men and pleasure anglers banged on about returning fish so I dutifully got a net, as I have got older and lazier I like to travel light so I very rarely take it.

best ive had for some time did not have to good a summer,oh and I too did not have a keepnet just goes to show only match anglers need them.

Nice one, Tony!

And it's good to hear that those dreaded cormies haven't eaten everything everywhere ...yet

DG

[ 08. February 2004, 06:28 PM: Message edited by: The Diamond Geezer ]