Gravelpit Watercraft

[Vagabond]

I did mention a bag of perch to 2lb on another thread, in connection with someone's query re deep hooking (answer, use biggish circle hooks with lobworm, and perch get lip-hooked)

 

However, during that session I also re-learnt/learnt a bit more about a couple of items of watercraft which might prove of interest.

 

I had decided to floatfish for perch, as there was very little wind, but persistent rain coming down - in my experience quite good conditions for perch.

 

Chose a swim, overhung by a large willow tree, plumbed up - bottom felt gravelly.

 

As the swim I choose proved to be about 16 ft deep, and between two gravel bars about 15 yards apart, I elected to fish about a foot off the bottom, using a sliding float carrying 5AAA. I set a stop-knot 15 ft from the hook and cast out.

 

Why that choice ?

 

There was very little wind, although there had been a vigorous SW wind two days before, which had died down, and the day before had been a scorcher. So I reasoned the fish had gone deep the previous day, and were probably still deep.

 

As I said, cast out, and to my astonishment found there was a very strong undertow - so strong, that my float trotted up against the very slight breeze at a steady walking pace! Now I have know about undertows for many years, but this seemed exceptionally strong, given that the wind had dropped about 36 hours previously. Obviously near the bottom the current had not only persisted, but must be strong, and acting upon my bulky bait (two big lobworms tipped with maggots to prevent the lobs wriggling off the microbarbs).

 

Not much action as the float trotted across the swim.

 

Did some thinking. With that strength of undertow, it seemed likely that food would pile up against the gravel bars, (on the DOWNWIND side), so set the rig overdepth, added another swan shot, and cast to the base of the gravel bar upwind of my swim - ie "laying-on" tactics.

 

Action within minutes - decent perch all, from half a pound up to two pounds plus. 15 in total.

 

So, something to think about. In addition to plumbing the depth, and "feeling" for what type of bottom you are fishing over, it is a good idea to rig a sliding float with a bulky bait, and determine if there is (and if so, what strength) any undertow , EVEN IF THERE IS NO WIND BLOWING.

 

Of course, I might well have been fishing in the right place for the wrong reason, but the scenario made sense to me.

 

So

Lesson One. Undertows may persist for a remarkably long time after the wind drops. Think how long your tea continues in motion after you cease stirring your teacup - it must be even more marked for the huge volume of water in a gravel pit.

 

Lesson Two. No good just knowing the bottom nature and contours - know if and how the water is moving as well - or you might just be fishing the wrong side of a feature!

[Newt]

And that, my friend, is why you are a master at coarse angling (and not half bad at sea angling in all different parts of the world).

[John Weddup]

Thanks for posting that.

 

I find the tow aspect of big and deep gravel pits very interesting.

 

One I am fishing a little at the moment is generally 20ft deep and over 100 acres there are a few shallower bars but hard to find.

 

I think it could take a life time to get to know such a water.

 

regards

 

John

[Dales]

Very interesting stuff, I have to admit that undertow is one of the aspects of large still water fishing that I find quiet challenging.

[Alan Stubbs]

As someone who has only recently started canal fishing, particularly near the head of a canal, the same tow effect is noticeable.

It's sometimes misleading as there is a surface wind generated drift exacerbated by the natural flow of the water towards the sluices.

In these cases I tend to cast further behind the bait.

That said, the issue regarding undertow on a gravel pit has never been better explained. Thanks.

[gozzer]

A good solution to a common problem Dave.

 

I wrote some time ago of fishing a lake near me, on a day that was blowing a right hoolie. I was up at the shallow end where the wind was tunnelled through a road bridge making it worse. The undertow was that bad I struggled to hold bottom with a 1oz weight. I ended up 'trotting' upwind to catch a few roach. The wind dropped almost completely mid afternoon, and within a half hour or so, I could comfortably fish a 3bb waggler in the same swim. I think it depends on the venue, the depth, bottom features, surrounding landscape etc.

Did you try other swims to see if they were effected in a similar way?

 

John.

[Vagabond]

Did you try other swims to see if they were effected in a similar way?

 

 

No fear! This is a particularly difficult water for locating fish, even for a gravel pit**, so having found some fish, I was gonna stay there and catch 'em!

 

**There are gravel pits, there are difficult gravel pits, and then there's this place

Edited August 11, 2011 by Vagabond

[Phone]

All,

 

It would be well to remember that Vagabond's example is true perpendicular to his horizontal recommendations.

 

Phone

[Dales]

No fear! This is a particularly difficult water for locating fish, even for a gravel pit**, so having found some fish, I was gonna stay there and catch 'em!

 

**There are gravel pits, there are difficult gravel pits, and then there's this place

 

 

So not a bagging commercial water then