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Predatory roach

Vagabond

By Vagabond
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Vagabond Member

Vagabond

Posted
Posted

Went spinning for chub this morning, at Deerdrink , which in the past has yielded me chub to over 4 lb and perch to over 3 lb. It was a casual trip - just a couple of hours spinning whilst Norma searched the surrounding woods for Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers.

 

Deerdrink is the top one of a series of small dams linked by one of my trout streams. The stream rises on the Ashdown Forest, well away from any housing and thus is unpolluted. Here (I believe) be monsters!

 

Started about 10 am (I said it was a casual trip). Tied on a tiny wobbling spoon, direct to line (no pike here) the spoon was a Hardy's - vintage about the 1930s. I acquired it along with a bundle of split cane rods, Allcocks and Ambidex reels, two game bags full of assorted flies, spoons, plugs and spinners, and an artist's easel for good measure, all for a fiver from a house clearance.

 

Anyway, believe it or not, I have never used that spoon in the forty years I've owned it, but for some odd reason put it on today. It was well tarnished (I've never cleaned it either in those forty years!) and I suppose some logic like "Bright day, Dull spoon" lurked in my subconscious.

 

Crept up to the dam. Beside a tangle of alder that had fallen into the water there were some fish working just below the surface. My first cast I manage to get right - way out beyond them so I could work the spoon back through.

 

A savage tug!, and one hell of a commotion as the shoal all took fright and flight, but I had my fish on. Thought it was a small chub at first, but when I got it nearer, jaw-drop was the order of the day.

 

A roach, fairly hooked with all three points of the treble inside the mouth. Norma had not yet left for her woodpecker hunt, so took this picture.

 

As far as I can remember or have records for, this is the first roach I have ever caught on a spoon - I have had one or two on a fly in the past, but nothing on chunks of metal.

 

The rest of the two hours' fishing was an anticlimax, just one small chub , then home for lunch.

 

 

predatoryroach.jpg

 

Got home and thought y'all might be interested in a vintage Hardy spon - as far as I know it must date from the 1930s - the same provenance as the job-lot of vintage tackle referred to above.

 

If you look closely you can see the engraving "Hardys, Alnwick, England" in three lines in the middle of the spoon

hardycopperspoon.jpg

 

...and here is a back view. The coin is a modern tenpenny piece.

 

hardyspoonback.jpg

 

 

Anyone else had roach on spoon, plug or spinner ?

 

 

RNLI Governor

 

World species 471 : UK species 105 : English species 95 .

Certhia's world species - 215

Eclectic "husband and wife combined" world species 501

 

"Nothing matters very much, few things matter at all" - Plato

...only things like fresh bait and cold beer...

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Dick Dastardly Member

Dick Dastardly

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Dave when we first took over Le Paquiers I spent two weeks "general fishing" on the water to try and see what else was in there other than the carp. Some big Rudd (2-3lb) could be seen cruising but the only way they were caught was with small spinners!

And thats my "non indicative opinion"!

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Dales Member

Dales

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I have had a Roach around 10oz while spinning for trout in the little brosna in Ireland.

 

It took a small silver Mepps, made my day as the trout were not having it.

Stephen

 

Species Caught 2014

Zander, Pike, Bream, Roach, Tench, Perch, Rudd, Common Carp, Mirror Carp, Eel, Grayling, Brown Trout, Rainbow Trout

Species Caught 2013

Pike, Zander, Bream, Roach, Eel, Tench, Rudd, Perch, Common Carp, Koi Carp, Brown Goldfish, Grayling, Brown Trout, Chub, Roosterfish, Dorado, Black Grouper, Barracuda, Mangrove Snapper, Mutton Snapper, Jack Crevalle, Tarpon, Red Snapper

Species Caught 2012
Zander, Pike, Perch, Chub, Ruff, Gudgeon, Dace, Minnow, Wels Catfish, Common Carp, Mirror Carp, Ghost Carp, Roach, Bream, Eel, Rudd, Tench, Arapaima, Mekong Catfish, Sawai Catfish, Marbled Tiger Catfish, Amazon Redtail Catfish, Thai Redtail Catfish, Batrachian Walking Catfish, Siamese Carp, Rohu, Julliens Golden Prize Carp, Giant Gourami, Java Barb, Red Tailed Tin Foil Barb, Nile Tilapia, Black Pacu, Red Bellied Pacu, Alligator Gar
Species Caught 2011
Zander, Tench, Bream, Chub, Barbel, Roach, Rudd, Grayling, Brown Trout, Salmon Parr, Minnow, Pike, Eel, Common Carp, Mirror Carp, Ghost Carp, Koi Carp, Crucian Carp, F1 Carp, Blue Orfe, Ide, Goldfish, Brown Goldfish, Comet Goldfish, Golden Tench, Golden Rudd, Perch, Gudgeon, Ruff, Bleak, Dace, Sergeant Major, French Grunt, Yellow Tail Snapper, Tom Tate Grunt, Clown Wrasse, Slippery Dick Wrasse, Doctor Fish, Graysby, Dusky Squirrel Fish, Longspine Squirrel Fish, Stripped Croaker, Leather Jack, Emerald Parrot Fish, Red Tail Parrot Fish, White Grunt, Bone Fish
Species Caught 2010
Zander, Pike, Perch, Eel, Tench, Bream, Roach, Rudd, Mirror Carp, Common Carp, Crucian Carp, Siamese Carp, Asian Redtail Catfish, Sawai Catfish, Rohu, Amazon Redtail Catfish, Pacu, Long Tom, Moon Wrasse, Sergeant Major, Green Damsel, Tomtate Grunt, Sea Chub, Yellowtail Surgeon, Black Damsel, Blue Dot Grouper, Checkered Sea Perch, Java Rabbitfish, One Spot Snapper, Snubnose Rudderfish
Species Caught 2009
Barramundi, Spotted Sorubim Catfish, Wallago Leeri Catfish, Wallago Attu Catfish, Amazon Redtail Catfish, Mrigul, Siamese Carp, Java Barb, Tarpon, Wahoo, Barracuda, Skipjack Tuna, Bonito, Yellow Eye Rockfish, Red Snapper, Mangrove Snapper, Black Fin Snapper, Dog Snapper, Yellow Tail Snapper, Marble Grouper, Black Fin Tuna, Spanish Mackerel, Mutton Snapper, Redhind Grouper, Saddle Grouper, Schoolmaster, Coral Trout, Bar Jack, Pike, Zander, Perch, Tench, Bream, Roach, Rudd, Common Carp, Golden Tench, Wels Catfish
Species Caught 2008
Dorado, Wahoo, Barracuda, Bonito, Black Fin Tuna, Long Tom, Sergeant Major, Red Snapper, Black Damsel, Queen Trigga Fish, Red Grouper, Redhind Grouper, Rainbow Wrasse, Grey Trigger Fish, Ehrenbergs Snapper, Malabar Grouper, Lunar Fusiler, Two Tone Wrasse, Starry Dragonet, Convict Surgeonfish, Moonbeam Dwarf Angelfish,Bridled Monocle Bream, Redlined Triggerfish, Cero Mackeral, Rainbow Runner
Species Caught 2007
Arapaima, Alligator Gar, Mekong Catfish, Spotted Sorubim Catfish, Pacu, Siamese Carp, Barracuda, Black Fin Tuna, Queen Trigger Fish, Red Snapper, Yellow Tail Snapper, Honeycomb Grouper, Red Grouper, Schoolmaster, Cubera Snapper, Black Grouper, Albacore, Ballyhoo, Coney, Yellowfin Goatfish, Lattice Spinecheek

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gozzer Member

gozzer

Posted
Posted

I've caught roach on live minnow when after chub and barbel on the Swale, but never on a lure.

 

I thought you were going to say it weighed 1lb 14 oz Dave. :D

 

 

John.

Angling is more than just catching fish, if it wasn't it would just be called 'catching'......... John

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Vagabond Member

Vagabond

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I thought you were going to say it weighed 1lb 14 oz Dave. :D

 

Didn't weigh it, but I guess I would have needed two to make that weight !

 

....or perhaps said that roach caught on a spoon count double!

 

 

RNLI Governor

 

World species 471 : UK species 105 : English species 95 .

Certhia's world species - 215

Eclectic "husband and wife combined" world species 501

 

"Nothing matters very much, few things matter at all" - Plato

...only things like fresh bait and cold beer...

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Peter Waller Member

Peter Waller

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It's seen as quite a regular event in Holland. I suspect that we are, in general, too darned lazy to try it. That said I have nevr caught a roach on a lure, but I have had several unintentional bream and a carp, the latter being a darn nuisance fish!

Peter

https://www.charliecarp.com.au/

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Vagabond Member

Vagabond

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It's seen as quite a regular event in Holland. I suspect that we are, in general, too darned lazy to try it. That said I have nevr caught a roach on a lure

 

But Peter, I spend a lot of time light spinning for chub, perch, trout and seatrout - but only one roach in a lifetime.

 

I think there is something different going on in Holland - nothing to do with laziness.

 

 

RNLI Governor

 

World species 471 : UK species 105 : English species 95 .

Certhia's world species - 215

Eclectic "husband and wife combined" world species 501

 

"Nothing matters very much, few things matter at all" - Plato

...only things like fresh bait and cold beer...

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Andy Macfarlane Member

Andy Macfarlane

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I've caught roach full of fry so I suppose like any fish, once big enough, they'll predate on smaller fish.

¤«Thʤ«PÔâ©H¤MëíTë®»¤

 

Click HERE for in-fighting, scrapping, name-calling, objectional and often explicit behaviour and cakes. Mind your tin-hat

 

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