Plans for the new river season

[Phone]

Anderoo,

 

Didn't I read your same post in 2011 and 2012?

 

Phone

 

Edit: See post #4 - is there an answer?

Edited May 30, 2013 by Phone

[Anderoo]

Anderoo,

 

Didn't I read your same post in 2011 and 2012?

 

Phone

 

Edit: See post #4 - is there an answer?

 

Ha ha, yes, this particular plan is taking a bit of time...!

 

It's taken quite a while to get to know the stretch and quite a while to work out how to fish it, but I think I'm finally there now. The last 2 winters have not been good conditions, so I still haven't had a proper go at it. Hopefully this winter will be OK.

 

In answer to your question in post 4, they could only really be perch, zander, or ruffe. I don't know the river that far down.

 

Perch:

 

Zander:

 

Ruffe:

 

Any use?

[Phone]

Anderoo,

 

They were Ruffe

 

Phone

[Steve Walker]

Interesting little fish, ruffe. I think the phrase is "regionally rare and locally abundant". Whenever I have come across them, they have been fairly common in that bit of water, but most waters and even other stretches of the same water have none.

 

I once helped empty some survey (gill) nets which were full of ruffe. The eels had got at them in the night and chewed a lot of them to pulp, all twisted up in the mesh. If you imagine anchovies mashed up with cactus spines and twisted up with netting, that's pretty much what the job was like. Nasty.

[Rusty]

I've walked four different stretches of the Kennet on my club books and they all look great, I'm not sure where to start. Last year I targeted barbel for the first week and whilst I did catch a couple right at the end I don't think I'll repeat the exercise this year. I’ve got the first week off again and to be honest I think I fancy just chilling out in some nice spots with no particular plan in mind. There will be a visit to the Kelly Kettle swim with my new rod for some retro action but other than that I’ll do whatever feels good on the day.

 

[viney]

I've walked four different stretches of the Kennet on my club books and they all look great, I'm not sure where to start. Last year I targeted barbel for the first week and whilst I did catch a couple right at the end I don't think I'll repeat the exercise this year. [/size]I’ve got the first week off again and to be honest I think I fancy just chilling out in some nice spots with no particular plan in mind. There will be a visit to the Kelly Kettle swim with my new rod for some retro action but other than that I’ll do whatever feels good on the day.[/size]

Walked one stretch this evening that I'm sure you will have, still v overgrown but evidence of prebaiting or close season fishing in a few pegs not a far walk from the new car park, didn't walk the whole stretch as I had a rather moody 3 year old on my shoulders but the river is looking in fine form for the start of my barbel campaign providing the weather stays constant (fat chance!)

[goosequill]

_{Well, after last seasons rather poor effort on the Thames I am really looking forward to getting back into the swing of things again.}

 

_{This year I would like to target Roach, and in particular a river two pounder would do for me I am also going for a three pound Rudd.}

 

_{I expect the lure of big chub will however take over at some point .....it is a hard habit to kick.}

Edited June 4, 2013 by goosequill

[Anderoo]

Well old chap, I do think that 2lb roach we've talked about all these years is a real possibility now! And as for chub, I wouldn't be surprised if we get to the end of the season having had the pleasure of meeting one of simply colossal size!

 

After the last couple of winters, I think we're overdue AT LEAST that

[nick]

Androo,

 

The only place I fished the Thames was behind Windsor Castle across the river from a famous English school - (Eton maybe(?). Had licenses but not sure I had permission. There's an Inn on the banks and that's where I was staying.

 

Fished all day as that was an extremely tranquil place with lots going on across the river. I'd love doing it again - assuming I was there legally. Caught just enough fish to keep up an interest. (unfortunately I was not well versed in English species at the time. The fish were under a pound and "perch like" although I don't believe they were perch.

 

Phone

 

Sounds very much like the area I fished on my one and only session on the Thames when I was about 11 so about 40 years since. I caught lots of gudgeon, some small chub a few perch, and lots and lots of ruffe, and they where the biggest ruffe I've ever seen, must have averaged about 2 ounces, with one monster I weighed at 4 ounces, little samson scales were notoriously inaccurate, but it was huge.

[arbocop]

I’ve had a plan for a while now and every year I say I will do it. I want to get a chub from each of the rivers I have access to in my local area in one day, starting with the smallest to the largest, I could do it the other way around but starting with the smallest makes more sense somehow. Ideally this would be journey downstream from smallest tributary to the Thames, but instead of sticking with the Kennet (I have no access to the River Enborne – well not yet anyway) I could throw in the Loddon as an extra challenge.

 

My proposal would be a chub of at least 2lbs in one day from:

 

River Whitewater, River Blackwater, River Loddon, River Kennet and Thames.

 

No I’m not doing it on opening day but it would be a great achievement.

 

Mike

Edited June 5, 2013 by arbocop