chelmerpaul

Roy, I think I'm going to have to revise my answer. After the events of the last couple of days, your best chance of a pike is now in the middle of Chelmsford High Street. I reckon the small roach will congregate outside McDonalds, especially at the weekend and that's where the predators will be as well. No seriously, most of the river is now over the bank with some major flooding in certain areas. Will not be fishable for a good many days, and that's if there is no further rain.

Hi Royboy, There is a good stretch for pike near Chelmsford town centre. The stretch between the A12 bypass bridge and Springfield lock is well noted for it's pike, part of it is actually referred to locally as "Pike corner". All methods work here, but I believe deadbaits are the preferred method, especially at this time of year and when the water is coloured. I don't fish for them myself. Not sure if anywhere is fishable at the moment as the river was flooded and bombing through when I last looked. There will be a lot of snow-melt going in there too. There is usually a bit of slack water just before Springfield lock, where the main river is joined by a canalised arm. It's an area that I fancy fishing myself for other species, as I reckon they hole-up there in times of flood; and where there are lots of silvers there are lots of pike! When are you thinking of going?

I reckon to be considered a "great" angler, you've got to have a few things: 1. A deep love and appreciation of the natural world - many anglers considered "great" have had this, and also had an ability to communicate this to others, either in words or verbally (Yates, Isaac Walton etc.). 2. Enthusiasm - of course, to be a great angler you must be passionate about fishing. John Wilson (love or hate him) has this in abundance, and is probably responsible for more people of recent generations taking up angling than any other person. 3. Knowledge - Goes without saying that a good angler has extensive knowledge, but a great one must add something of his own to this, instead of merely standing on the shoulders of giants. I.e. Richard Walker devising new ways and methods to improve his chances (lot of "science" there, Anderoo). 4. Good old fashioned luck - Is there any such thing as luck in angling? (Good subject for a post of its own, maybe?). Sometimes, when I catch what I want, when I want, I attribute it to "skill", "knowledge" or "sixth-sense", but there is a large elememt of chance involved. When Yates caught his record carp from Redmire he claimed he somehow "knew" the fish was there. True, or just a way of justifying a lucky capture after the event?

a male Mallard copulated with another male he was chasing after it had been killed when it flew into a glass window"[/i] F..K a duck!

My advice to you would be don't forget your umbrella! It's absolutely chucking it down in London this morning (don't know what it's like where you are) in very strong winds. Feel sorry for those who are out in it today.

Doesn't save the embarrassment of blanking using rod and line when the pole is the better option, though - it's called multi-skilling! Don't knock it till you've tried it.

Matt, I am in the same boat as you. I've been using a pole for two seasons, but it was given to me and I am not really geared up for it accessory-wise. My catch rate has increased considerably, and the pole is unbeatable in certain situations, especially in weedy slow running rivers, where you can put your bait exactly where you want it, and hold it more or less still. Like you, I have been holding my pole with no pole rests on an ordinary chair (not a seatbox) and I find my let arm (I am left handed) and shoulder kill me after a session. My pole is not a particularly light one, either. Standard rod rests are no good as the pole is basically too big and heavy for them, and has sploshed unceramoniously into the river on a couple of occasions. I have seen the under and over pole rests and I reckon the advantage of these is you can keep both hands free for feeding etc. However, the pole bar attachments means you can still hold the pole without bearing the weight. The advantage of this is you will probably hit more bites. I have seen more top matchmen using the bars rather than the rests. Bob Nudd doesn't use either and holds his pole, and actually continues feeding at the same time as playing large carp - a nice trick if you can do it! Your specific seat box manufacturer may supply these accessories for your box. Preston and Octoplus also supply these. I really must invest in a seatbox myself.

Don't forget the ridiculously obvious health and safety warnings on everything, too. "Caution: This carp is wet!".

Sounds just like the "secret" lake that was fished by Chris Yates and Bob James in A Passion for Angling. Imagine what uptapped treasures could lie in wait in such a place. Ancient, natural (as opposed to the "gut bucket variety) carp, mysterious tench, uncaught specimen roach and rudd. Not to mention the diversity of the non-fishy wildlife. Sellng the rights to a syndicate would have at least preserved some of the mystery, and lessened the angling pressure on the place.

Thanks Paul, I've seen the site you suggest already. There's some decent info., but nothing very current. Mat - will keep you posted of how we get on, if we do go.

I'm thinking of fishing these lakes later in the week with my son. They seem a bit noisy as they are so close to the A12, and a bit smelly as they are often downwind of the sewage works! Still think I'll give them a go. Anybody fished here?

Go for it. As Oscar Wilde said: "The only way to beat temptation is to yield to it" (although he probably wasn't taking about tench fishing)!

And my Mrs has no carpet to match!

I think the point that Anderoo was making is that it is just as illegal to fish without a licence as it is to do any of the other things he mentioned. Do you think it is worth risking a big fine or worse still, an angling ban, for the sake of twenty-odd quid a year?

No, I didn't.

I agree Mat, the good stretches are quite remote - they are even difficult to reach via car in some cases, which is why the river is relatively lightly fished and still has a great deal of potential. However, there are some fairly good (and quiet) stretches just out of the town centre.

Couldn't agree more. I was watching the Six O'Clock "News" last night. The pouting Kaplinsky woman doing her thing - the journalist kidnapped in Gaza was given a cursory mention, before a five minute slot about the new Spiderman movie - absolutely disgusting. Stick to Channel 4 news or Newsnight for imformative discussion of world events. The BBC have even started a "viewers comments" section on their main news bulletins, a perfect opportunity for every crypto-fascist to submit his opinion!

Yes, there's a couple - just use your search engine and all will be revealed!

I think that this discussion is generally indicative of the confusion that still prevails with regard to this issue. The EA clearly state that there is no longer a closed season on canals. Then you have to define what exactly constitutes a "canal" as opposed to a "river" or "navigation". I have had a long running issue with regard to a local section of canal (as least what I define as a canal). The waterway authority tell me it is not a canal because "It is fed by a natural stream", I have investigated and the canal is fed at one end by a pipe and a motorised valve, which is activated when the lock gates are opened, thereby maintaining a constant water level. Hardly natural! You could argue (using the same criteria) that the Grand Union (or indeed any other) canal was not a canal at all! There are obviously other interests at work here - the boat owners seem to carry a lot more weight than us anglers - especially lone Joes like me.

Myster, As you may be able to tell by the name, I fish the Chelmer regularly. Some of the town stretches (away form the very centre of town) are actually quite good. Further down, out in the sticks, the fishing can be excellent. There's 11 miles of fishing between Chelmsford and Maldon with some nice little weirpools on the way. I believe the fishing from next season onwards will be controlled by Maldon AS in conjuction with the Chelmsford AA. Day tickets will be available from the bank. It can often by extremely weedy in the summer, and usually fishes better from Autumn onwards. There are some huge bream and chub, and some good roach / tench. The carp can go pretty large too. The winter piking / perch fishing can be excellent. I am happy that people like Mat don't rate it - gives me a better choice of swims!

7 lb on that old favourite, sweetcorn. Had bream to 6lb on casters, and caster / worm cocktail, and a few 4 pounders on red maggot. I usually use a groundbait which contains fishmeal, mixed with brown crumb. A bit of hemp works wonders, too. The good thing about bream is if you get a shoal feeding, it is almost impossible to overfeed them. I find that once they are feeding it is best to loosefeed over the top rather than adding more groundbait, to avoid throwing big balls on top of them. Actually, I really like bream, unlike some anglers who see them as a slimy nuisance that don't put up a fight. I have had some decent tussles with large bream on fairly light tackle - the sheer size, weight and shape of them presents a challenge. If you are a matchman, they are an absolute Godsend. Long live bream, I say!

My largest tench (a mere 5 and a half pounds) fell to sweetcorn, but I've also has decent fish on casters and red maggots. The biggest specimens are probably caught on boillies from carp waters.

Whoa, sexy! And these are "High Impact" EA guys!! Shame you don't usually see any nomal "beat" guys on a regular basis during the season. Sounds like river policing is going the same way as normal city policing - you never see anybody until the s**t hits the fan, and then they send in the heavy mob, with the full body armour and tooled-up to the nines.

Myster, There are John's Lakes in Bentley near Brentwood. Go to www.fishsoutheast.co.uk for further details. I've heard that this is a good venue.

Myster, This fishery is run by Mick Toomer, who also owns Gloucester Park Lake in Basildon. It's noted more as a silver fish venue, with double figure bags regularly taken on pole or waggler tactics. For more informaion go to micktoomer.co.uk