Targeting specimen river perch on lobworms

[tiddlertamer]

There is much interesting and revealing talk on Anglers Net about targeting specific species at particular times of the year with particular tactics.

One of these tactics is using lob worms to target river perch in autumn.

Whilst I know perch love lobworms, so also do chub and large roach too.

What specific tactics or what types of swims are targeted in the hunt for large river perch which differentiate it as a type of specimen fishing - as opposed to the chuck it and chance it tactics I normally employ when I’m happy with whatever fish gobbles my bait including a brassy flanked chub

When using lobs, is it generally float fishing and trotting that is the most devastating tactics in rivers during autumn? Of course, conditions and weather play their role but do people generally just trot a lob worm or are do they work better as a static bait?

From what little I know, perch prefer shady spots and slacker waters. Do perhaps chub concentrate in faster runs? Then again chub love cover too!

 

What are you looking for in a likely perch swim? What differentiates it from a chub swim?

And what is the best tactic when using lob worms in rivers in autumn if you wish to catch perch?

Edited November 12, 2009 by tiddlertamer

[Chris Plumb]

perch prefer shady spots and slacker waters.

 

Thats what I look for - bush or tree in the water creating a downstream slack - especially if there's reeds growing on the bank of the slack. All my perching is done float fishing - ledgered lobs and signals don't mix (float fishing them is bad enough). If the swim permits I always go for a slow sinking bait - ie all the shot up by the float plus I only hook the worm in the very tip of the head - you can impart a very enticing wiggle by twitching the bait and it looks very natural as it falls through the water. A big perch wolves the whole lot down so you needn't worry about a fish taking the wrong end - small ones may struggle so I put the odd missed bite down to tiddlers!

 

 

 

C.

[The Flying Tench]

Ah, well I'm no perch expert but IMHO

 

perch and chub may well overlap, but chub would tend to be in slightly faster water

 

float is superior to ledger with lobworm for perch, cos they're so sensitive to resistance that they grab the end of the lobworm and give it a shake and say 'ha ha ha' when you strike and all you do is pull the worm in half! So frustrating! Not a problem with maggot, though of course then you have the different problem of tiddlers taking the bait. So normally float and worm are best, and if you want the bait to be still pole is option, though I don't use one. I can think of one place where I've found it works if the float slowly drags a lobworm along the deck.

 

Actually I think perch like movement, so you don't want the bait to be still per se - but of course you may want it by a particular feature. A lot of people say you should give the bait little nudges from time to time to precipitate a bite - with float or ledger - though I've little experience personally.

 

Let's see what others have to say.

[Anderoo]

I think to some extent all the answers will be venue-specific, and what works on one may not work on another. But perch are a bit like chub, in that if you walk a stretch of river you can normally pick out half a dozen 'perchy looking' spots straight away.

 

In general, I would look for a flow that is slower than the main current (and completely slack in high water/flood conditions), relatively deep water (relatively is the key word - if the river is mainly 2ft deep then a 3ft area is 'deep' - especially if it's a sheer drop off in the margin), cover like tree branches, etc (especially in the downstream slack, as Chris says), thick reed/rush beds, and a hard bottom.

 

The clearer the water and brighter the sun, the more likely they are to be tucked right away under cover. With more coloured water and low light, they can be found almost anywhere, as long as the current speed is right, but even then fishing near cover is usually a good bet, as that's where they've come from and where they will return to.

 

With big perch, I have found that you can fish very close in (under the rod tip) and still catch if you are not ultra quiet. Staying quiet is important but I don't think as important as with chub. I think perch's feeding spells can be quick and intense (usually around dawn/dusk) and when they hunt they become less cautious.

 

I would agree that float fishing is the best option but last season I started fishing a second rod with legered lobs static on the bottom (using a free-running paternoster, heavy lead and a very light bobbin and a long drop). This actually accounted for most of the bigger perch I caught. Interestingly most were from areas that looked more 'chubby' than 'perchy' - creases in the current nowhere near cover - whereas the float-fished lobs right next to snags and cover struggled. Make of that what you will! But it has made me look at river perching differently.

 

I will also rock the boat gently by saying that almost all my bigger perch (from several different waters) have come from lobs fished hard on the bottom and left static - sometimes for quite a long time (crayfish permitting).

 

The last thing I would say is that you should never discount a swim until you've fished it properly half a dozen times. They do move about and it's easy to think that they don't exist...

 

I will cease my ramblings now ( ) but to sum up I would say that perch fishing (like chubbing) is a matter of playing the odds - fish the best looking swims first and always fish dusk into darkness (or dawn, if you can handle getting up that early!). Big hooks, strong line, and don't let them bury themselves into marginal vegetation when you do hook one (the swines)!

[Dales]

All this talk about river Perching may just inspire me to get out on the river and give it ago as most of my fishing is done on still waters.

[tiddlertamer]

This season I've lost three good perch right at the net.

 

Each time I got a good look at them.

 

Two of them were around the pound mark but one was around two pounds.

 

They all seemed to break free by thrashing their head about at the net and the hook hold pinging out

 

I'm sure some might suggest barbed hooks would have been a better bet.

 

I'll perservere with barbless if for no other reason it'll be easier to unhook myself if I ever get careless with the hook and impale my own hands or fingers, which I manage to do more regularly than is good for my health.

 

I did wonder though if my technique of holding the rod high might not have been the wisest. Are there fans out there of keeping the rod thrust low when entering the final throes of a battle with a perch?

 

Which technique of holding the rod - high or low - works most effectively?

Edited November 14, 2009 by tiddlertamer

[DavyR]

Which technique of holding the rod - high or low - works most effectively?

 

It may be that having a rod with a soft enough top is more important than whether you hold it high or low. I certainly find that I'm losing fewer fish (roach as well as perch) at the net since I've started using a rod with a very soft and forgiving top.

[Chris Plumb]

I'm sure some might suggest barbed hooks would have been a better bet.

 

I would - and possibly safer for the fish too. There's a body of argument (ask Steve Burke) that barbless are dangerous to perch due to deeper penetration - a bigger problem in perch as many vital organs are near the throat region....

 

 

C.

[Dales]

It may be that having a rod with a soft enough top is more important than whether you hold it high or low. I certainly find that I'm losing fewer fish (roach as well as perch) at the net since I've started using a rod with a very soft and forgiving top.

 

Would tend to agree, I like a very soft action tip when fishing for Perch, it helps with playing them and you pick up all the little knocks that give you plenty of notice before a bit.

 

I aslo like to loosen the drag off just before netting so the fish can run again if it wants too, I often find if your rod is not very foregiving and you are on small barbless hooks the fish can tighten the line against the rod and in effect roll off the hook. With a very fine tip this does not seem to happen.

[Anderoo]

I would agree with that too. A big, barbed (ideally micro-barbed) hook, strong line (6lb is what I normally use) and a fairly strong rod (1.25lb tc ish) with a forgiving tip to soak up those head shakes and fast lunges. I'm normally fishing at very close range, so the idea is to bundle them into the net asap - don't give them an inch unless you really have to, and let the rod absorb the scrap.

 

I keep the rod highish for that reason, but hefty side strain is often needed to turn them away from the near-bank snags. If you can get them up on the surface quickly (much easier on shallow waters) it can be over very quickly.