Will Wilkinson

Put me down for 1 too. Really enjoyed the last time I went despite the weather! Had a good day on the Kennet on Sunday too - only 1 grayling but loads of brownies, I'll write up a trip report at some point. Will

My PB Rudd of 2 1/2 lb fought very much like a large roach-bream hybrid - lots of short powerful runs, all heading straight for the bottom of the lake. It was caught on a very deep and clear clay pit on the pole which may have had some effect on the fight. It certainly out fought its weight though. My previous PB of 1lb 14oz was caught on a dry fly and fought rather differently, still a powerful fish for its size, but stayed right on the surface and never dived at all. All the runs were short, fast and powerful; it also never really gave up, still fighting right until I mugged it with the net as it shot past my rod tip. Will

Great account of what must be just about the best accidental capture ever in the UK. Seems like a really nice chap as well. Just a little disappointed that one of the Wingham beasts hadn't taken the record first, but there's still a slim chance that there might be a slightly bigger one around. Will

This is fine for a standard groundbait, but a method mix should stay on the feeder so needs to be pretty sticky. Vitalin (possibly ground up a bit if you don't want too many larger particles) mixed with fishmeal powder (e.g.ground pellet) works pretty well. You could also add ground hemp. I mix little and often as I find it looses its stickiness after a while. HTH Will

Congratulations, 100 UK species is a most impressive feat. And it's a very pretty little fish as well. Will

I'll try to confirm the +friend over the weekend - I'd guess it's about a 50/50 chance as it's a mate who's just getting back into the sport after a long lay off so he might not fancy a long trip to a (relatively) expensive water, but it's also a chance for a bit of river tuition. Will

I'd echo Anderoo's comments, plus add that the various brands of bacon grill stay on the hook far better than the softer ones like Spam. Another useful tip for small baits is to use a large drinking straw as a punch (MacDonalds straws work well for this) - cut a 1cm thick slice and punch baits from this these can be fished on a size 14 or even a 16, plus the shape's different from the usual cubes. Will

Sunday's fine by me. Will

Many happy returns Have a great one mate, and many more. Will

What a cracking fish Best eel I've seen for a few years now and reminds me that I must have an eel session at Wingham later this year - I'm sure there must be a few good specimens in there given the number of 4lb+ ones that have come out. Will

Put me down for a ticket as well - might bring a friend as well, but will need to confirm later (if there's space). Terry - you're welcome to a lift from mine to save on transport costs if you're going. Will

Beautiful fish Decent Rudd are one of the prettiest species in our waters IMO. Congratulations. Will

There's also loads of club water that's fishable on a day ticket, so no need to join to get many miles of fishing - over in Milton Keynes MKAA control around 10 miles of the Ouse & Ouzel that's day tickets on the bank and I'd expect most clubs will have a lot of day ticket water available. Will

That's my view as well - a few big carp in a lake adds a little something. I'd be looking at half a dozen commons and a similar number of grass carp in 5 acres, but all of a decent size. I'd also look to have a good head of predators that would hopefully keep the numbers of each year class of all species down to allow real specimens to develop. Will

My ideal would be a spring fed lake around 5 acres with a good mix of features - an area of deep (up to 15') water with some pegs having 10' under the rod tip, several small islands between 30 and 80 yards from the bank, areas of shallower water (3-5'), reed lined banks (50%) with some trees overhanging the water and a good number of lily pads. Stocking would be low density mixed - Tench, Crucians, Orfe, Roach, Rudd, Bream, Perch, Pike, Gudgeon and a very few large carp including some grass carp. Fishing would be restricted to like minded friends, although I'd allow them to bring guests with prior approval. Rules would only be used when necessary - e.g. restricting fishing from certain pegs if needed during the nesting season. From others' posts it seems like most of us have similar ideas as to what constitutes the "ideal" lake. Will

Cheers for the info Andy - just what I needed to know I'm up over the weekend of 22nd-23rd August if you're about and fancy joining me on either day you'd be more than welcome. Will

I'd agree with Rob on this, particularly if coupled to a stiffish rod. I've also moved away from barbless for specimen fish for the same reason. The problem's even worse with braid mainlines and barbless hooks - I've seen this cause damage even with very through actioned rods. Never had a problem with micro-barbed hooks though, even with braid and medium action rods. HTH Will

I've got to go up to Erskine for work for a couple of days next month and have managed to arrange things so I'm working Friday and Monday to give me the weekend for fishing and walking. I thought I'd give Loch Lomond a bash and possibly have a go on the Leven for a bit of game fishing as well. Plan is to take spinning and fly tackle and hire a boat for a day on the Loch then do some night fishing for sea trout on the river. Is it worth packing a feeder outfit as well, assuming that coarse fishing's permitted on Sundays (I know that the game fishing's not)? Any tips, both coarse & game, appreciated. Also, if anyone local fancies a day on a boat, I'd be happy to oblige in return for the local knowledge. Will

Most matches are 5 hours whereas an average pleasure session would be likely to be much longer so there is a significant difference in terms of fish welfare. It would be very difficult to police emptying of keepnets periodically through the day for pleasure anglers so I'm not suprised that most commercial fisheries adopt the no keepnets except in matches rule. Will

I'm happy with my current bobbins - Solar fluro I-Lites with coated braid tethers. Will

Cheers for the input, particularly for the report on the Prologics from Den. I'm now down to 2 - the Prologic Senzora VTSWs or the Gardner ATTSs, with a slight leaning to the Gardners as the build quality seems a bit better. Will make up my mind tomorrow and order a set. Will

I also have the AN pin & Okuma Sheffield, hardly ever use the okuma now as the AN pin's so good. I use mine for trotting on small to medium sized rivers, float fishing margin swims and, very occasionally, for Barbel fishing, either with rolled baits or static. Will

The other thing I should have mentioned is to check your elastic's tension - it should be just tight enough to retract after landing a fish. If it's set too tight then you'll get more bumped fish, too loose and it will be harder to set the hook. Will

That would probably be a better investment I'm slowly leaning towards the Gardners having read a few reviews on other forums. Whilst sensitivity's only adjustable by changing rollers the base sensitivity sounds to be what I'm looking for, the remote works well, battery life's good and they're completely waterproof. Best price I've found for 4 with receiver is £334.99 with a set of Nash stainless buzz bars thrown in (Climax Tackle). Will

Another possibility I've just found is the Gardner ATTS - no speakers on the alarms which makes them very compact. Can get 4 of these with the receiver for around £325. Will