grayson
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Posts posted by grayson
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Common sight in April in N Yorks- have seen on Swale (in big numbers- river lamprey) and brook lamprey on Cod Beck, Rye and Seph .Extraordinary spectacle to watch them spawning from a few inches away!
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don't believe that is what I asked for.
Not that long ago I would have been standing waist deep in a river swing a Spey rod. Now I can't but I still want to go fishing so I do what I can.
It doesn't mean that I don't think that others shouldn't be able to do what I can no longer do.
Sorry- no intention to be unkind to you but to a make a general point. And in your position of course I would do exactly the same by fishing whatever was available to me.
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If an overstocked puddle is the only show in town I can of course fully understand your point.But please let us not see all fishing reduced to a risk assessed synthetic experience because some people have difficulty in accessing some waters. I couldn't climb a Munro in the highlands because I am an unfit 50 something- but I want other people to continue doing so whilst I stumble around on my tame little walks.
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The real issue is that anyone who dares to utter a heartfelt view unqualified by a craven 'it's just my humble opinion' is so often termed a snob. I love fishing for wild fish of any species and I find overstocked commercial puddles an abomination and a denial of everything I hold dear about my sport .If that makes me a snob so be it.....
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no-one owns rivers but land owners have the right to decide who uses them from their land ,your best bet is to choose a bit of river and ask a nearby house if they know who owns the land bordering it ,you may have to get two permissions for one particular stretch of river
Not quite right-on nontidal rivers the adjoining landowner usually but not always owns the river bed up to the centre of the river and controls the fishing and other rights- boating, shooting etc.It is possible to sell or lease these rights to a third party or to reserve them for yourself even though you have sold the land over which the river runs. Some rivers are navigable- so the boat user has the right to sail along river but not necessarily to moor it.Tidal waters and fishing rights are usualy owned by the crown but are available free to all.
Sorry to go on- but you can do a land registry search and this will usually show the details of land ownership.
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Because I am dipping a toe into more coarse fishing than previous fly only seasons I have been buying some stuff to replace vintage gear- Mitchell 300s and other museum pieces.The good news- new Shimanoes(bait runners of various sizes) fantastic.New Fox Chub and Barbel rods- superb
New barbel net - nice big circular job bought last Autumn.Appalling- had a flip up facility (which I didn't really need )which lasted 3 trips and a bit of mud.The arms have now pulled irretrievably out of the not so cheap but very nasty spreader block.
New rod rests- nice funky design- shame the spikes pulled off when I removed them from ground .Shame the soft feel rubber heads' thread stripped because..ermm..I screwed them on- gently.
Extendable specimen type carbon landing net pole- either won't lock at all at desired extension or locks solid and has to be taken home at full stretch as it were.
All above items from well known quality firms.
There is not the space to tell you just how crap my designed in Alnwick built in Christ knows where breathable water cooled £299 chest waders are ....
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I used to believe in all that humourless guff about rod hours and putting your time in etc as if fishing were some type of job.Strange that when I woke up and decided to enjoy each and every trip as a treat , not a duty- which probably coincided with getting reasonably good at flyfishing- I have caught more and bigger than ever before .And if I had to endure 50 trips a year out of which only a handful were successful I would find another sport pretty damn quick. So I wouldn't make a very good session carp man then - tried that and when it sunk in that all the mindlessly tedious hours waiting for a run were not fishing in any meaningful sense to me- more like sensory deprivation- I decided that I needed something which involvd a little more activity than contemplating my navel!
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I should add the caveat that my old tactics were appropriate for where I used to fish, though, and that if I'd tried the big bait approach back then I'd likely have blanked from October to March!
Back then, even in the summer, my friends and I would disparage anything bigger than a size 16 as a "meat hook" - you fished fine or blanked!It 's been a cracking winter for some of us in the North East- if North North Yorkshire counts.Lots of chub- big baits even in the cold - and good piking on the rivers.I hardly see a soul on the riverbank these days- God knows why as the fishing is superb as long as you adapt to the conditions, keep on the move and fish with confidence.
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Chest waders - easy really , put them on , enter river ,catch fish , go home.Some care needed in deep/rocky water/fast water , doddle the rest of the time.Wading staff at all times ? Only if you want to clutter yourself up with stuff you dont need.Vital on some rivers - would not go near Upper Tees for example without them but unnecessary on many waters .
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Far be it for anyone on an angling forum to express a point of view that is 'non-indicative of opinion', but that sounds suspiciously like an oxymoron.
Like 'mature student' and 'political integrity'
just a thought... what's the Angling Trust for, if not to indulge in politics? See the second sentence of this post.
I haven't heard this AT officers integrity questioned, but then again, I haven't heard it mentioned as existing either!
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Always had a hankering to catch a big roach - but this wish has been on the back burner for a long time since I had some lovely roach from the Nidd - to just below the magic 2 - many years ago.Anyway, I was fishing for chub on the Swale yesterday and had a steady day in the cold- couple pf fish - one at 4-9 so good to be out.But the stretch I was fishing looked very roachy - first time I had fished it and I got to thinking I should give it a go.Anyone had recent encounters with big roach from this river ?
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I've watched my copy about five times already and each time I enjoy it more and more. I didn't quite enjoy the two girls fly fishing as much as i enjoyed the Bowler / Cribbins duo. I enjoyed Bernard Cribbins digs at Martin Bowlers hair nearly as much as the actual fishing.
At the end of the day we all know it took 4 years to film and edit. Yes the rudd scene was over and done in a matter of minutes but I for one don't want to see repetitious scenes of feeding maggots and watching a staionary float. I'd rather see the proper action.
I can honestly say that thsi is the best fishing programme I have ever watched and it made me lapse back to my childhood days (35 years aog) when I went fishing for the first time. It made me want to go fishing immediately and inspired me to try harder in the future.
It showed that nothing is impossible if you try hard enough!!
It is a stunning piece of work and the underwater scenes take one's breath away.The venues are - in the main- lovely ; but having never seen the Gt Ouse barbel water I was amazed how small it was and utterly unlike what a barbel river should look like. If I have a niggle it is the fact that the dvd is devoted only to the fish and the admirable Bernard Cribbins apart there is not a hint of personality from Martin Bowler.I am sure he is a lovely guy etc but he is not a natural in front of the camera and most of what he has to say is near inaudible.Maybe he is the Stig of the fishing world ? The Yates /James lovefest in Passion did get toe curling but you were aware of strong personalities and I am not here.But that is a minor thing- Hugh Miles is a bloody genius and Bowler is one hell of an angler.
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I'd be looking at the choice of mono hooklength in that case. If it's breaking that easily, there's something wrong, whether it's crap line, wear and tear or whatever but your hooklength, regardless of the fact your using braided mainline, should not be breaking that easily.
Sorry to drone on but the line is just fine.Used same line as hooklength today- but with mono main line - and no problems.The weird thing on the braid breaks is that it isn't a case of whacking hard into the fish on the strike - when the breakages have happened there has been momentary resistance , not enough to even get the clutch going or the rod well bent over and then back comes broken hooklength.Will persevere with mono for time being but am missing the feel of braid already- the fight is just so much more 'real'.
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If the hooklength is as light as you say it is, that would suggest the chub aren't that big, therefore just about any knot is going to suffice. A uni-to uni will do fine. It's not pike you're after (clearly) so the chub you're catching aren't going to pull that hard. Knot types and specialist joins are obviously a requirement when targeting hard-fighting fish like pike or salmon but you're not. You're chub fishing. Any decent join should do.
Just my opinion but I think we sometimes put far too much thought into the fighting abilities of our target fish.
To clarify - the braid has never broken and my knots haven't either,the break occurs in the hooklength.I am using a set up etc that is identical to one I have used for many seasons without this problem.The hooklength is 8 lbs bs.The chub I caught yesterday- when I didn't have the problem that is - ranged from 2 lbs to 5-4. I have caught many pike and some salmon and whilst most salmon and some pike certainly pull hard so does a good chub when bolting for a snag on its first run.Not getting into a mine pulls harder than yours discussion but I certainly do not take any chances in tackle on anything I fish for including the humble chub .The rod , BTW, is a 12' Avon- not particularly fast action.
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Your totally correct in your guess that the lack of stretchin your braid is causing such a short hook link to break.
Forget the power gum just use a leader of mono attached on the end of your braid ( I usually use around a rod length).Gives a bit of cushioning to your finer mono hook length.I say mono as flurocarbon is both stiff and quite brittle.
Thanks for this; very helpful.Is there a knot you would recommend for braid/nylon join ? And do you think a braid hooklink is also worth exploring- bearing in mind that I do use v short leaders for some of my winter fishing ?
Re strike- I do strike but not as hard as when I was using all nylon.But I amfishing up to 25yds range and 10' deep in a powerful river- have found barbel will hook themselves but not chub
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I use braided line extensively for my winter chub fishing and am delighted with it, especially the feel when playing fish.But I have had a problem which reoccured twice today and would appreciate advice.I have had several breakages of the hook length - not against big pressure but on the strike.I feel a tiny resistance- not enough to break the line, the rod hardly bends but back comes the hooklength broken above hook.It's not biteoffs - am fishing the same river,same method , same hooklength as I have for seasons and never experienced with nylon.I am using 10bs braid and 8lb powerline hooklength.I suspect it is fact that no stretch in braid so all of the strike goes into the 8-10" 'point' and it just cannot absorb it.Most of time it doesnt happen but want to avoid a repetition for obvious reasons- help ? Want to keep using braid as I miss far fewer bites but what do I do- use braid hook length too ? Or what ? Have tried other nylon BTW and none has been 100%
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Many thanks for all the replies so far - keep em coming - please!!!
I realised as soon as I put up the poll that I should have had a 'never caught a game fish option' - if this applies to you please retry the poll - and put Arctic Char as your 1st ever game fish. I'm sure if anyone votes who really did get a Char as their 1st fish wil come on here and tell us about it!!!!
C.
Tench - Pontefract Park Lake circa 1962; I had caught lots of sticklebacks before but this was the real deal- it pulled back using all of its 10 oz weight.I knocked it on the head only to find it still alive when I got home and released it in local lake where I hope it had a long and happy life.First game fish a brown trout from a small stream in Aberdaron, Lleyn Peninsula circa 1963
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Oooops! I only just spotted this post! Must admit I don't recognise the user name, but from the content, I think I can guess who you are....
What the chuffing heck are you doing fishing when you are 70K short of making an old woman very happy? I was hoping for your book for Christmas. Instead I've got flowers, perfume and smelly, girly stuff!
Pah! It's just not good enough!
Janet
It 's not fishing Janet- it's research.Or so I tell Mrs A anyway.
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Hi Janet - sound like you had a good day.I have just had a good session on the Swale - five fit chub to around 4lbs.Hope to meet you again if I take up Martin's invitation on the Ribble.New book 20k words up and ...oh bugger..about 70k to do !
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Ah..cheesepaste.A bait I have been using for chub since 1972 and it still outfishes anything else on my rivers (Yorkshire,especially Swale).Current evolution of definitive recipe is - a couple of packs of Danish Blue, put in large mixing bowl, add golden breadcrumbs, a good dunk of olive oil, a tablespoon of turmeric, a spalsh of Nam Pla(Thai fish sauce) and a half cup of water.Knead with hands to produce smoothish mixture.Store overnight and will be a lovely deep yellow.Attach size 4 hook, a pad of crust and a lump of the said cheese.Cast in and catch chub.QED
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I have strongly held views on this subject and that is why I state them. Which is..um..sort of what forums are about really. Don't expect everyone to agree but wouldn't life be tedious if we all thought the same or had to qualify every view by some craven' it's just my humble opinion ' equivocation ? I don't really think I am guilty of a 'random attack' unless disagreement constitutes an attack.Still struggle to get the random bit though.Ho hum.
The serious point I make is that fishing - to me- is the pursuit of wild creatures in their natural environment and whilst overstocked puddles are already way outside that definition to floodlight them just turns this manifestation of the sport into even more of a parody. Like many , I have seen much loved waters utterly destroyed in the interests of ensuring they are easy, predictable and tedious. Plenty of trees cut down because the poor loves can't cast properly , banks flattened to make every swim the same and so on.
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haha! just picked up the copy of IYCF from the newsagents, just realised this flood light place they have done the article on is about 20mins from my house! A few night trips there are on the agenda!
If you think fishing under floodlights is acceptable then you practise a different sport to mine.Tell you what though- antis will love it.Just don't drag the rest of us down when commonsense kicks in and nasty little overstocked puddles are subject to some careful scrutiny by the mainstream press.Hear that noise- it's poor old Dick Walker revolving in his grave.Who's he then ?
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Yes, we achieved a lot in just two days, and I'm very proud to have played my small part.
There were twelve or thirteen on each day. Some did both days, some did just one, so I'd guess that there were possibly twenty or so people who made the effort to come and help over the course of the weekend. Some, such as the guy operating the hired mini digger, worked from around seven in the morning until late in the afternoon. Some members just came along for a few hours to do what they could, including one lovely old guy in his eighties, who was still capable of carrying planks round to the peg that was being rebuilt.
One of our members isn't fit enough to do any manual work, but he played a vital part by providing transport for several members and also supplying everyone with vast amounts of bacon butties and freshly brewed tea, which were most welcome. What could be better than sitting round a lovely lake in the sunshine with good company and a nice bacon buttie and a brew?
I worked from about nine till five on the first day, which was hard work, but very satisfying. I didn't do much on the second day as by this time most of the heavy work had been done, but I stayed for most of the afternoon doing what I could, mainly fetching and carrying.
Even our Club Secretary turned up, despite only being released from hospital a few days earlier, following a heart attack. Of course he wasn't able to do anything except offer support and encouragement, but it was great to see him out and about again. We'd all been concerned about him, so it was very nice that he made the effort to attend. Another member has very severe back problems following an injury, so he couldn't do any heavy lifting, but he still turned out to do what he could, which is probably a lot more that he thought he would be able to! I did see him wincing with pain on several occasions, and I felt rather guilty about complaining about my bad back after shovelling tons of gravel! Our digger driver has recently undergone surgery, but it didn't stop him working for two days solid, from morning to night.
Although there was no fishing over the weekend, he still managed to bank two tiddlers! They were scooped up with the digger as he cleared part of a reed bed to thin them out a bit and make a safe spawning area. It’s all very well to have minimal intervention, but left alone, the reeds and lilies would soon swamp such a small lake. The next job, later in the year, will be to thin out the beds of water lilies before they cover the whole surface. Although they look fabulous when the lilies are in flower, they do need to be kept under control.
I guess that out of a total membership of less than fifty, the turnout was reasonable, but it did seem strange that some of the younger and fitter members didn't bother to turn up, especially considering that it was such a lovely weekend. The weather was absolutely fabulous, and it was hard to believe that it was only February. Still, as I've heard, that's always the way it is with these things. It's always the same ones who turn up each time and put in the effort, whilst the ones who complain can’t be bothered get off their backsides to help.
Steve, I very much like your ideas for increasing attendance at work parties, and I'll pass your comments on.
All in all, although I was totally exhausted at the end of the first day, it was great to be out in the fresh air, and equally great to meet some of the other members. As you said, it's a great way to socialise, and I’m sure that knowing I’ve played my part in making the lake a more pleasant place to visit will enhance my fishing in the future.
Janet
If you could only fish one river...
in Coarse Fishing
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Never heard of it- really? Not as in Teesside perhaps ? Southerners....... But it is a lovely river and its upper stretches are absolutely stunning scenically.Used to fish for trout and grayling there and it is beyond all doubt the most vicious bastard of a river to wade !
My one choice would be the Wye (the big one in Herefordshire).Never seen it let alone fished it but looks and sounds big enough and wild enough to keep me going for years.