kenj

The brown in post 10 was around 12 inches long, my 7ft , 4 weight rod probably makes it look bigger. The trout in post 8 was 18.5 inches (47 cm) long and way over 2 lb. Hard work on this lightweight tackle.

Hi Phone, I've just returned from a short visit to my syndicate water, it's only ten miles away. This was the best of eight taken in two hours. The camera did not do justice to the colours of this wild brown. It looked better through poloroids. We return all our fish. Ken

Since I posted this thread I've netted a couple more "stockies", one had plenty of red spots, the other was an over wintered fish. I am now confused as to stockie, or not stockie. http://www.urbanfieldsportsman.com/index.php/overwintered-stockie-pays-its-dues/

The wild trout have red spots below the lateral line. We also get a few rainbows come down river. If you check out my small river reflections thread you'll see some nice wild browns along with a few intruders. http://www.urbanfieldsportsman.com/index.php/small-river-reflections/ They are good sport on a seven foot 4 weight rod.

Following up about wild trout on our river being thin this year, I landed this beautiful stockie yesterday. We have stocked waters above ours. Maybe this is why the wild fish are so thin?

It's a problem in my area and difficult to police. My club gave up a water that was being illegally night fished, leaving fires and filleted fish remains, plus the beer cans and litter. One local brook with a good head of perch, roach, and dace was fished out by "certain people" fishing day and night with up to four cheap glass rods at a time, using gorge tactics. For them it was a way of subsidizing their benefits by putting food on their tables. On the Basingstoke canal I had a couple of builders come down in their lunch break and offer to buy my net of roach and skimmers. On another canal a few years ago, I stopped to talk to another chap, who had two live bait rigs out for pike, in the water were four jack, alive on their backs with a string through their gills. When I asked about them, he held up a knife and said in broken English,he stabbed them in the brain to stop them swimming away, to keep them fresh. This does go on unfortunately and proactive education is the only way to combat it.

Nice pics. I tried for a few dace this afternoon and got this.

As a "southern softee" I get to fish the Kennet below Newbury once a year in August and target the dace. Method a 4BB shouldered balsa, shotted with the weights tapering to a number 6, 200 mm from a size 14 fine wire crystal hook and two red maggots, if they're "avin it", or size 16 and single if fussy. For 5 hours fishing I'll feed 2 pints of hemp and a pint of reds, both laced with termeric. Tackle is a 14 foot rod with an ABU 501 open face reel. Holding back is the key, easing the float through and stopping, to allow the bait to swing up, the float usually burying at this point with a good dace. small dace can be a problem, but you just have to fish through them. Pike are also a bother on this part of the Kennet, as the dace don't come in that easily, also of course roach, chub, barbel and the occasional trout can ruin a good day's dace fishing!

I add curry powder to my hemp, when boiling it. Seems to work well as a bottom feed in commercials for carp, where ground baits are banned.

We get some nice dace on our little trout river, but I only tend to catch them on the nymph, then they can be fast, but on the dry they are impossible. If you are tuned into trout you won't hook them. As wunnus says, gravel runs, or the tail of a pool is where you find them and I often spend a little time targeting them.

My best dace came from the Waterloo Stream, a spur of the Hampshire Avon that ran through Christchurch under the "other" bridge. I was flyfishing for seatrout from my boat, working a Peter Ross through a run at low water and had several between ten and twelve inches, cracking sport. I also caught them up to ten inches off the stones in Christchurch harbour, trotting a stick float with double red maggot either side of the tide. These were very pale fish, as were the equally large roach, which had green backs and bright yellow fins. Thanks for reminding me. Good memories.

A local trout fishery recently converted to a day/night ticket carp fishery and the owner is dismayed by the number of beer cans left behind by anglers after the average weekend session. We watched two guys carrying a 24 pack under each arm back to their pegs, following a visit to the supermarket for provisions. The owner is not happy about it, and is worried about possible fights, or someone falling in, but needs to sell tickets.

My southern syndicate water has been in constant flood since December, resulting in some very thin fish. This is the first trout I netted from the river on Friday, which gave a good account of it'self, despite it's lack of weight. These are indigenous wild browns and we operate a strict, barbless hook, catch and release policy. Hopefully they will put on a bit more weight, when the river warms up. Interestingly, I was fishing a free urban river nearby earlier in the week, where it runs through a recreation ground and the trout were very plump, no doubt due to the ready supply of bread fed to the local ducks. http://www.urbanfieldsportsman.com/index.php/recreation-ground-trout/

I joined the AN Forum earlier this year, following a few years dropping in as a casual observer, before starting my own shooting and fishing blog and posting a few reports on this forum. I've found the general response to comments is friendly (Even Newt was very complimentary, when he rapped me over the knuckles for just posting links to my site) and there is a lot of knowledge here for anyone, who asks a question. I am also on a few shooting forums and believe me they do get hot and bothered over the slightest things. Give me anglers every time.

Don't forget there's a recession on. Hold on, I've just remembered that money I've got stashed away in Cyprus!

I was looking for a high protein additive and having used ground trout pellets in the 70's went to the local aquarium shop at the garden centre for a looksee and they suggested these baby sturgeon feed pellets.

Has anyone tried gound sturgeon pellets as a feed additive for carp or bream. They have very high protein rating a an equally smelly. I've ground some down , but not had a chance to try them yet. Any ideas?

Hi Phone, Mine did. It was a bit slow. Try it again if you like fishing in ditches.

I made the most of my last afternoon on my little river. http://www.urbanfieldsportsman.com/ The last day of the season dawned with one of the hardest frosts of the year, but bright sunshine had soon thawed the white from the grass and left me feeling optimistic for an end of season chub bonanza from my little river. A mile out of town, it's course brings the river out from private land at the bend in a road, scouring a channel in the gravel as it turns sharp right, before heading off into impenetrable undergrowth. I have driven by this spot many times, but never fished it and was on my "one day I'll fish it" list. I was expecting great things from this swim and tackled up a 14 ft rod with a stick float rig, 5lb line to 3lb link and a size 14 barbless hook. There were plenty of snags and with the shallows dropping away to a deep pool, there could be decent chub, or even a common carp to wrestle from the high bank. A couple of balls of crumb were dropped into the channel and a further two towards the tree shrouded tail, where a log was jammed between the banks. My heart was beating faster as the first pinch of flake was drifted down towards the log, the float dipped a couple of times, but nothing to strike at. I held the float at the log, another dip and missed. More flake, more missed bites. I thought I saw a flash of silver on the shallows below me and dropped the float in, only for the bread to disappear and the float to lift sideways as a small 8 oz chub fought for all it was worth, the long rod giving me the leverage to keep it out of danger. This was a very lean fish and for it's length, I would have expected another four ounces. It had obviously been a hard winter. I dropped into the same spot and away the float went again, this time from a much stronger chub, taking me along both banks, before it's mouth gaped ready for the net. Yet again very lean, about 12 oz. Ready for another I tried again, but that was it. Easing the flake down over depth produce more pulls, but no fish, until I punched a 6 mm pellet from the thick slice and up popped a gudgeon, then another. I'd only been fishing for an hour and decided load up the gear and give the park another go, at least the mums keep them well fed with bread. At the park I set off to another of my "one day" swims, a tunnel of overhanging branches, where the river narrows to push the flow through a no-go area of snags, but with this tackle I was confident of success. I didn't have to wait long, the float going down just as it entered the danger zone and the rod responding with a healthy bend as I pulled the chub upstream. These chub go mad in this shallow water, making long runs towards whatever snag is nearest. A fat pound chub was soon in the net, contrasting with the two taken earlier. `Dropping further into the trees brought a pair of roach, before a tentative nibble and a slow sink set the world alight as the best chub I'd hooked from this stretch buried it's head under a pile of flood debris, snagging me. Steady pressure brought the fish out, but a branch was still wrapped round the line and I watched it Vee upstream towards a sunken supermarket trolley festooned with branches, turning it in time for the possible three pound chub to rush off back downstream. This was like a frantic game of tennis, with the powerful fish charging all over, me putting on conterstrain in an effort to wear it down. At last it's gaping mouth came out and I got the net out to land it, but the branch was still attached to the line and as I drew the chub towards the net, the branch caught in it. This was a signal for the chub to thrash around outside the rim and now in a state of near panic, I dragged the lot in, the fish diving under the bank, with me trying to net it out, but the branch kept it away. Suddenly it was gone and I was left staring at the empty net. I laced the water with a few more balls of bread and inspected my line. The hook link had broken at the spade end and I resigned myself to try again as I whipped on another hook. As if fitted with radar, a swan appeared round the corner and made a b-line for my swim, searching out the bottom with it's neck outstreched. Bread was now beginning to drift downstream with yet another mum feeding the ducks and the swan followed the trail, while I trotted through again hooking more small roach and the odd gudgeon. The commotion had probabaly put down any more decent fish, so cut my losses again, with the season ticking to a close. I was travelling light anyway, with just my rod, bag and nets, so made my way downstream to another chubby spot, only to find an ivy strangled tree had crashed down rendering the bank unfishable. This part of the park has been left unmaintained and many of the trees are in a dangerous condition, but continuing down found a bit of bank cleared by another fallen tree. This was on the inside of a bend with muddy shallows giving way to a far bank trot round the curve. It was greedy to hope for another big chub, but the tangled far bank looked up to the job and with the last of my crumb, fed over to the deeper water. The first few passes yielded nothing and I deepened up six inches, holding back, then letting it run, tap,tap, sink, big gudgeon, one a chuck, then whomp, a chub hooked it'self as I held it back on the edge of the shallows. Back-winding I held the first lightning spurts of power, before getting the upper hand and with snag free water brought it across the shallows to the net. This was another round, plump chub of about a pound, more roach shaped and yet again fought hard in the cold, clear river. That was my last chub of the season and I continued catching the voracious gudgeon, the bites being so predictable that it was cast, tap, tap, lift and reel in. My time limit was 4 pm and made my way back to the van, watching a kingfisher as it skimmed between the trees along the river. A good sign for next season.

I went out after a warming lunch of trout and vegetable soup, to try a very chubby looking spot on my little river, where it follows the road round a bend and has dug out a channel under the road bank. I trotted bread along the channel and had two very lean chub in two casts, then no more, so loaded up and headed back to the local park, where I had a gudgeon fest I ended up with with about forty of the 1 oz bait stealers and one near pound chub, fattened by the many duck feeding mums. Have you noticed that the last day of the season is usually a very sunny day?

In the 70's and 80's Kevin Ashurst used to win matches at Burton on gudgeon. He even had a gudgeon rig for fishing among the rocks. That was in the days of stick and waggler. Only novices used the feeder. Long gone.

Hi guys, Some eloquent theories here. Like most older anglers "I've been there and done that" and today I go out to enjoy myself with out dated tackle and methods, but still catch plenty of fish. Anyone who read my blog post can see that. http://www.urbanfieldsportsman.com/index.php/roach-come-out-to-play-in-the-park/ Today I went out to catch some chub from an overgrown bit of river and with a pound chub in the net, struck into a good two pounder, which snagged me then came out complete with the branch, fought all over the river, still with the snag on my line and I couldn't get the chub in my landing net, because the branch caught in the net with the chub thrashing about outside. Dragged the lot in, only for the chub then to dive under the bank and snap the hook link. Now that was as exciting as any fish I've caught and must admit that I was in a state of panic for the last minute. That's what fishing is about, not Matt Hayes and co bringing in yet another 20lb carp from some exclusive water.

Thanks Andy, that was an interesting link. Of all the roach I've had from that water it's the first I've seen with the spots. Tried to rub it off at first, as I thought it was flecks of mud from the bottom. The roach and chub there often spew mud, along with the crumb. They must scoop it up when the crumb settles. A friend has messaged to remind me that we were catching roach with black spots as kids, when we got caught poaching in a pond in Eton College. I remembered getting caught, but forgot the roach spots. Matt, sadly beer cans and rubbish go hand in hand with free fishing round here. The council closed two carp lakes last year due to the litter despite litter bins at the bankside. There is always a plastic bag in a tree available to pick up the litter. Ken

Another visit to my urban river for some nice roach and a surprise common. http://www.urbanfieldsportsman.com/index.php/rubbish-tip-roach-after-a-change-of-plan/

I went back and fished a bit of this river this week, where it runs alongside a lane. It was like a rubbish tip. Most of it was beer cans and angler's discards. Such a shame as the fishing was brilliant, plenty of nice roach and chub.