perch fishing deep rivers and drains

[Vagabond]

For a static approach on a deep river/drain, I'd echo Steve's post and suggest paternostered lives.

 

I've been doing something similar on the Thames, which is deep in places, although nowhere near 20ft. The benefit of the pats is that you can drop baits in good spots and leave them to it.

 

1. the best feeding times........... don't appear to be anything special

2. although the perch may spend their inactive time in the snags and tight to cover, when they feed they are out hunting in open water

 

My experience of deep-river perch is limited, but I remember a session on the River Shannon, just where it leaves Lough Ree.

 

The river there forms a deep channel between bulrush beds , and the bottom seemed pretty snaggy, so we opted for tight-lining rather than paternoster. It was a fortunate choice, because the taking depth kept varying. (see Anderoo's point 2)

 

Tight-lining - a form of free-lining in which a small weight is used to keep in contact with the bait in a current - in this case a half ounce barrel lead stopped about eight inches from the hook (#6 baited with lobworm). Used from an anchored boat. Cast a little way downstream and maintain contact with the bait as it sinks. Retrieve slowly (a bit like spinning really) Takes are very positive and result in lip-hooking.

 

We had anchored in about 10 to 12' of water, and immediately downstream the water was considerably deeper (too deep to anchor).

 

Plenty of perch, but all about the same size of around a pound apiece. We were fishing for the pot - or rather for our worm-digger's pot (a lad from a very poor family of 18 whose male children went barefoot and whose sole garment was a pair of short trousers made out of hessian sacking, and held up with string braces) His family normally couldn't afford to buy meat or fish.

 

This was in the 1950s - things are different now. Real poverty has been replaced with virtual poverty - families living a life of affluance on an unrealistic burden of debt. Better than starving, but where will it end?

 

Anyway, back to fishing. The perch fed all day (or all the time we were there - see Anderoo's point 1) and because we were fishing on behalf of the hungry we made no attempt to try to locate bigger fish - just filled a large sack with perch of about a pound apiece until we ran out of worms.

 

Four hungry hessian-trousered urchins met us back at the landing stage at Athlone, and next day we learnt the family had scoffed a sackful of perch at a sitting!

 

Anyone else into tight-lining ?

[Anderoo]

...It was a fortunate choice, because the taking depth kept varying.

 

This is one of the big problems to solve at the stillwater I mentioned before. Although it's not a big water, it is deep - a good 12ft straight off the rod tip, with deeper areas further out. It could be that so far I've actually been in the right swim and there were feeding perch there, but I've been fishing at the wrong depth. It happens all the time when fly fishing for trout...

[Vagabond]

This is one of the big problems to solve at the stillwater I mentioned before. Although it's not a big water, it is deep - a good 12ft straight off the rod tip, with deeper areas further out. It could be that so far I've actually been in the right swim and there were feeding perch there, but I've been fishing at the wrong depth. It happens all the time when fly fishing for trout...

 

Yep, you get that problem in spades when fishing for white bass in deep Texan lakes. They can feed at any depth from 10' down to 80' (.....and don't get me started on charr... )

 

Because I had to cast a fair distance out for those bass, I needed casting weight, so opted for an largish overloaded float, shotted to sink slowly and watched the line for twitches.

 

In the smaller water you describe I might opt for a couple of lobworms on a #4 and either freeline or add a small shot so that the end gear sinks very slowly - and watch where the line enters the water. If the gear sinks too quickly, add half an inch of peacock quill to the set-up - trim it till you get the sinking speed you want.

 

Fish feeding at variable depths seems to call for either a bait that sinks slowly, or one you can retrieve from depth slowly (and vertically) - so if you opt for the slow retrieve, you need either a boat, or a long rod from the bank - tight-lining is a classic example of slow retrieve from depth.

 

Either approach allows you to cover all the possible feeding depths each cast.

 

You mention trout - ever noticed how, if you are fishing water deep enough to allow the last bit of retrieve to be vertical, how you often get a really fierce take under the rod-tip? Works when spinning also....it seems fish can't bear the sight of prey escaping vertically.

[Anderoo]

- although the perch may spend their inactive time in the snags and tight to cover, when they feed they are out hunting in open water

 

One additional note to this, which occurred to me when I was perch fishing a few days ago - although the perch may spend their inactive time in the snags and tight to cover, when they feed they are out hunting in open water as long as the flow is suitable.

[John Weddup]

One additional note to this, which occurred to me when I was perch fishing a few days ago - although the perch may spend their inactive time in the snags and tight to cover, when they feed they are out hunting in open water as long as the flow is suitable.

 

 

So Anderoo

 

on ten mile bank or the middle level, relief etc where there is mostly no or little flow but occasionally is run off what would you call favourable flow? please.

 

Last year the anglers that could not catch said it was because there was no flow and water was clear.

 

This year there has been lots of flow and colour but the same anglers cannot catch.

 

Funny old world.

 

What is evident is that there are now hardly any matches on the KLAA waters and last weekend, and according to bailiffs, less anglers fishing the rivers than last year. It seems if you cannot catch at least a 100lb by using 8mm pellets then its not worth fishing there.

 

Goody goody more space for me.

 

John

[Anderoo]

I know, terrible isn't it, I have the same 'problem' here

 

When there's no or little flow it makes things harder. Last year I had that problem with both perch and chub, with so little flow they could have been anywhere, it was very hard work. With a decent flow things are much easier as big areas of water can be discounted.

 

On the drains there is no flow a lot of the time, and I've never fished for perch there, so I would probably spend my time finding quantities of bait fish, and taking it from there...sorry, not very helpful! But better than guessing...!

[JV44]

Pitched up at a deep slow spot next to moored boats one evening last week with Rusty on a Perch hunt with lobworms He hooked a good fish which turned out [After a few wrong guesses on our part] to be a Tench ....he then declared he was after a Thames Tench anyway and then declared he is a Tench fishing god.............god get me a gun.

Agree with Anderoo if it`s a featureless looking stretch of drain then find bait fish shoals and go from there or lure fish sections to see if anything turns up and return with the bait gear .

[John Weddup]

Yes Anderoo I see what you mean by favourable flow. Not for perch feeding but location.

 

As you say a river with a few bends a bit of flow and a bit of colour its easy, with watercraft, to locate all species.

 

The fens are a bit different as you know.

 

I have been concentrating on finding the silvers, bream shoals etc and catching them and have been very successfull hence headless wanting to join me for the zander. The two go hand in hand.

 

On my local river I did notice something a bit odd a few years ago. I tried the reverse by following where pike anglers have multiple catches and then trying to catch roach. Working on the basis that is why the pike are there.

 

Wrong In several pike hot spots few if any silver fish were there. I tried fishing and spotting at first and last light. I figured the pike were easy to catch because of lack of silvers present.

 

Maybe the pike are lazy and maybe perch and zander will travel further. Maybe just the smaller perch and zander swim a long way looking for food.

 

Maybe the big ones are lazy too and sit in their favourite haunts.

 

Lots of maybe's but plenty to think about.

 

The fens are doubly difficult by their very plain nature but equally a huge challenge to catch what you target there.

 

John

[Anderoo]

I've had a real breakthrough with the perch rigs recently. A CD-style paternoster made with a very bouyant sunken float on a boom of stiff flourocarbon, fairly stiff flourocarbon hooklength, and if using bleak, tail-hooked baits. Fishing with light bobbins on a long drop. I tried fishing both the near bank and - with the rod tips really high - the far bank, and it worked really well. No tangles at all, and very good bite indication. I only had a couple of micro-pike, but it was enough to prove the concept. It's the only livebait rig I've used so far that is completely tangle proof, and completely free running. Ideal for stillwaters too, and especially good for deep water.

[John Weddup]

I've had a real breakthrough with the perch rigs recently. A CD-style paternoster made with a very bouyant sunken float on a boom of stiff flourocarbon, fairly stiff flourocarbon hooklength, and if using bleak, tail-hooked baits. Fishing with light bobbins on a long drop. I tried fishing both the near bank and - with the rod tips really high - the far bank, and it worked really well. No tangles at all, and very good bite indication. I only had a couple of micro-pike, but it was enough to prove the concept. It's the only livebait rig I've used so far that is completely tangle proof, and completely free running. Ideal for stillwaters too, and especially good for deep water.

 

 

HI Anderoo

 

I too have been playing with the CD rig for small lives and even worm presentation. I used them with the zandavan rollovers and although nothing to report fish wise yet I feel they are going to work really well when the time comes.

 

Its been too hot on the fens the last couple of weekends with tree's for shade as rare as a lost squirrel.

 

Come the autumn I feel confident in the use of the Cd rig now for most of my predator fishing other than the obvious ledger dead setup. I can see me fishing 2 CD rigs and one dead ledger overnight for z,s and switcing to 2 small lives on a setup similar to what you just described for perch daytime and probably one on worms.

 

As I had loads of skimmers and roach in my swim last weekend I tried the rollovers with feeder and maggot setup just to get practice with them and found they worked really well for small fish too. It was easy to set them for the moderate flow aswell. I even believe the bigger skimmer bites were more positive. Normally you have to hit them to hook them but as the rollover rolled away the skimmers kept taking line with bail arm open.

 

Quite interesting and maybe usefull for more than just eels perch z,s etc.

 

John