wayne baker

Nice one natty.

Havent got nothing right on my doorstep but my local strech of suffolk stour is only five minutes drive from mine. Its a lovely strech that gets very little attention. Apart from the swims near where you park where you get the odd pleasure angler the rest of the strech is rarely fished as in the summer months it is very overgrown and hard going to get to the good swims. Dipite there being chub to over 5ib and a few elusive barbel to double figure no body realy bothers with it. Certainly in my neck of the woods the rivers get little attention, I know this varies from county to county depending on the rivers but it suits me fine. The more quiet hours mooching alone the better for me.

Might sound like a stupid question, I had my eyes tested the other day and i need some new glasses. I got the eyes done at a quite well known high street opticians but at the time i was late back to work so i didnt bother picking any new frames out and said i would go back later in the week. Now ive got the persciption can i take it to any other opticians for a better deal on glasses? Or do i have to go back to the one i had the test at? Any advice thanks.

It must be about five years since i last had my licence checked. I river fish a lot these day and more than often its on very quiet rural stretches overgrown that most bailiffs dont venture. In the days when i fished busy waters eg club lakes and pits. Checks where more freqent

A 50ib river pike would be quite a fish, If you was in the middle of nowhere i supose you would have to use your mobile to call a friend who could get there quickly whilst retaining the fish, If i felt in any way it would compromise the welfare of the fish it would have to be photoed and weighed and returned. Without witnesses to the capture you would be open to all sorts of disbelivers and controversy. Im cagey enough when i have a good twenty. I probably wouldnt even bother with claiming a record. I would be happy with a few pics and the memory.

There you go, Every little helps

No its not your memory Steve, I can remember them aswell. Must be quite a while ago though, Probably early nineties

I have tried it in paste before. And also glugged boilys in it with a little oil. As far as eating it goes i bought the tesco own brand just to see what it was like and it seems to be more like the old stuff. And a lot cheaper, Worth a look.

Theres been a lot of talk latley about rods and reels on here. Anyway i happened to go round and see me old mums yesterday and while i was there i decided to have a look round her shed. And low and behold i found a couple of my early glass fibre rods. Going back to when i was a nipper. Both float rods 12 foot, Still in there sleeves. Thinking back i must of used them last in the late seventies, What ever happened to Milbro? Did they change their name or were they bought out by someone else? All i need now is to find my black prince reels. Good old days lol

In agreement with the others, You cant beat the old 6010 and 8010. Quality reels,

You dont always need heavy gear. I caught this one while tenching.

I have never had a problem with re freezing them, After a few times in and out the freezer they get a bit discoloured and watery but they still work ok. I tend to use them for loose feed and keep the fresher ones for hook baits.

i see no reason why down grading to a lighter rod should be a problem. 2 1/2 tc is a good alroud rod. The questions you need to ask yourself is Do you need the stiffer rod for extra distance? Is the lake weedy and snaggy? If the answers were yes then stick with the 2 3/4. But if no the lighter rod will be fine. You will enjoy playing the fish more then you will with the heavy rod. It seems to be the fashion nowadays for everyone to use heavy gear even when they dont need it. Fox Nash and wychwood all do good quiality budget priced rods. Dont worry about breaking your rods on a big fish. Going back a few years when i first started carping back in the late seventies we never had these big rods that we have now, And it didnt stop us landing big fish. My two biggest english fish were landed on north western 12 foot 1 3/4 tc with a cardinal 55. I feel sorry for carpers nowadays theres such a choice in tackle and everone is always going to tell you whats te best rod reel etc. Its best to make your own choice. As long as your happy with its performance dont worry. Tight lines Wayne

Fresh are baits best. Very few mixes air dry sucssesfully. Ive found some fishmeal recipes that harden quite nicely when left in a air dry sack, But most just go off and go white. When it comes to readymades i dont think you can beat richworths. The beauty of ready mades is you can always keep a packet in your ruckbox without them going off

I cant tie small hooks without a tool either. I got a mate that cant tie even the really small one by hand. And hes got hands like a gorrila.

If it was winter it would be float fished livebait for pike. summer it would be float fishing for tench on a lovely lilly padded lake devoid of carp. Its a tough one

Bummer, Missed it. Did he have maggots in his catapult?

I know what you mean i have noticed that as well. Im no expert but i would say its most likely down to growth rates. If im not mistaken fish colour pigment is quite slow developing and if the fish grows to fast they tend to be paler. I think pike are a good example of this. It could also be down to other factors like diet and water quality

I know eels when they reach a certain point in life they get a urge to run to sea and spawn. If those fish are already living in a river system then its easier for them to make their way to the sea. Theres a lot of stillwaters that have large eel populations of a good size that are land locked. Some of these waters there is no acounting how they got there, With no river systems nearby for them even to travel overland on wet nights. I can only asume its down to human intevention. I know of one gravel pit in Essex that has the potential to do a very big eel. I have had them accidently to over seven pounds, And have seen one a lot bigger than that. Yet again this particular pit has access to the sea but they never seem to leave. Or so it seems

my first attempt at posting a pic sorry

Never fished it myself, Though its very close to my home. I have had a look at it before and its not much more than a few puddles. Probably ok for a bit of f loat bashing, I do belive theres a few carp in there but nothing to exciting. If its carp your after theres always chigbourgh near maldon. I think thats still day ticket. Its about twenty minutes from mersea.

Snags. haven road. colchester.

Well said. Nothing to do with science. just respect. Give it all a rest for the spring whatever. Other sportsmen have to endure close seasons, A lot longer than ours use to be.

It all sounds bizarre to me, These scientist sit in their little labs and so thinking up these super ideas of re intruducing long extinct species back into the wild. And most of these creatures are extinct for one reason and that is human persecution, Its like their trying to make up for our ancestors mistakes. Its to late in my book, The gone and leave it be. Theres enough strain on the naturel balance as it is without releasing new species on it. Like the otters i know they werent extinct just endangered, Now look at them on the broads now. Their time could be better spent on other things EG making our rivers cleaner. And policeing our water ways properly

I think making anglers more conservation minded towards eels is al well and good, But its the comercial side of eeling that is making the worst impact on the decline.