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Which is more pleasurable – float fishing or ledgering?


tiddlertamer

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I learnt that lesson the hard way 25 years ago - club match on a rising River Dane and I had drawn the fancied peg, a deep hole on a bend. I spent the whole match floatfishing maggot for very little, a couple of dace if I remember rightly. As I was packing up, a couple of local lads dropped into the swim with quivertipped cheesepaste and were almost immediately having their rods pulled off the rests by chub.

 

I did return the favour a few years ago, mind, pulling out a chub of 4lb or so on quivertipped breadflake from the bottom of the swim of a chap who was waiting to weigh in a couple of pounds of hard won gudgeon and roach. :D

 

In my early match fishing days, I learned the same lesson, but not necessarily using a leger. It was an article by the late, great, Fred J Taylor that got me thinking. His advice on match fishing a small river, was to put a large bait out for the first half hour or so, while still feeding the swim. My interpretation was slightly different, in that I would feed and fish for the dace, roach, gudgeon etc, then at several times during the match I would use heavier float gear to put a lump of cheese, bread or a lob, through the swim. A half dozen trots and back to the small stuff, until the next time. It caught me many a bonus chub or barbel (or sometimes 2 or 3) that boosted my weight. I got to the stage that I was even accused of bringing chub with me! I've found that few things attract bigger fish, more than the feeding activity of their smaller cousins.

 

John.

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

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I prefer to ledger, if I can find a way to use a quivertip for any species I will give it a go. I can get lost in watching one for hours. Trying to read ever little knock. Is it a shy bite or line bite. Then when you do get a bite, it may be just a little tap, or steady wrap around or the excitment of a total slam on the tip. It's hard to beat.

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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For me float fishing on river.

Ledger for specimen ,meat fishing.

for me it depends on the water /weather conditions/season/target species but i love float ledgering and as i mainly target pike float fishing for them is a fantastic buzz

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i don't see why everyone likes float so much.. am I missing somthing? i not a big fan due to the fact of tangles and it don't bring you large carp.

that being said i know i catch a lot of silver fish on float and have broaught home some beutifull silvers... bu come on where are the carp hunters and the catfish hunters like myself?

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i don't see why everyone likes float so much.. am I missing somthing? i not a big fan due to the fact of tangles and it don't bring you large carp.

that being said i know i catch a lot of silver fish on float and have broaught home some beutifull silvers... bu come on where are the carp hunters and the catfish hunters like myself?

 

Sorry to disappoint Dean, but there are those of us who actively try to avoid catching carp. I know, it's not 'normal' in this day and age but it's a cross we have to bear. :D

 

John.

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

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i don't see why everyone likes float so much.. am I missing somthing? i not a big fan due to the fact of tangles and it don't bring you large carp.

that being said i know i catch a lot of silver fish on float and have broaught home some beutifull silvers... bu come on where are the carp hunters and the catfish hunters like myself?

How big is a large carp? I can think of a number of occasions when I've bagged up with float caught carp to nearly 20lb while the buzzer boys looked on bleep-less. :o

 

Lowering a light pole float with a rod into the margins on some of these carp fisheries that only see buzzer boys fishing them can get you great results at times and can be a lot more fun than just sitting there waiting for a bleep.

 

A tiger does not lose sleep over the opinion of sheep

 

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This is an interesting area of fishing, and I confuse yself when I try to make sense of how I feel about it.

 

I love fishing for carp, and used to spend all my summers stalking round the edges of local gravel pit and small, interesting lakes nicking out a fish here and there on freelined crust or float-fished corn or meat. It was impossibly exciting, and most of the skill was getting close enough to a wary fish to present a bait. When it was taken - all hell broke loose! I can't do this any more as I don't know any lakes that contain carp that aren't packed 24/7. My style of carping needs a lot of space and a lot of peace.

 

Sitting behind 3 rods on alarms fishing for carp does nothing for me at all. I've tried it and hated it.

 

However - and this is where I get confused - I love fishing the same way for big tench or bream. Everything is the same (bivvy, bedchair, cooking stuff, 3 rods, alarms, pellets, mini boilies, etc...) except the species of fish.

 

Why is that? Is it just a case of snobbery, like someone who won't listen to anything just because it's in the charts?

 

It just occurred to me that the reason I love my winter chubbing so much is because it's virtually identical to my old summer carping, except for the temperature :)

 

PS big carp can be caught on the float. The reason most aren't is (1) no-one does it, and (2) on lakes packed with carpers lobbing big leads about, stalking a big fish from the margins is virtually impossible. However, have a look at the Catching the Impossible episode where Martin Bowler catches a 40lber on the float and pin...from a quiet lake.

And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music

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