Fishing can be so so cruel........

[Guest Rabbit]

Blog thanks but no thanks, wouldn't now how to anyway, besides not enough ego to fill a sentence.

The golf comment was a general comment regarding those who come to angling late in life and maybe not attuned with certain aspects of what we do as anglers. It was NOT directed at Phil JohnS

Members do not have the luxury of viewing deleted posts to check such things.

[gozzer]

Tut, tut, Phil, another basic lesson learned, and one I hope all newbies will take note of, (as proven by Phil, it can be costly).

 

Landing Net, FIRST thing to be assembled, LAST thing to be taken down, and ALWAYS at hand,(not up the bank, or left at your first spot, while you try 20 yds away.

(this also applies to unhooking tools, disgorgers, forceps etc)

 

We'll make an angler of you yet Phil.

 

John.

[Guest Brumagem Phil]

Tut, tut, Phil, another basic lesson learned, and one I hope all newbies will take note of, (as proven by Phil, it can be costly).

 

Landing Net, FIRST thing to be assembled, LAST thing to be taken down, and ALWAYS at hand,(not up the bank, or left at your first spot, while you try 20 yds away.

(this also applies to unhooking tools, disgorgers, forceps etc)

 

We'll make an angler of you yet Phil.

 

John.

 

Now steady on, everyone knows the only way to catch a fish on a slow day is to pack away your net first!

 

Medway. Firstly, thanks for your input yesterday. As to your remarks about over moderation etc, perhaps I could offer my thoughts. Perhaps this should have been started as a genuine blog, but it wasn't it was just a thread which became a diary and hence its here.

 

Some threads tend to spiral into abuse and nastiness and then get slammed shut, but to slam shut a diary thats been running over a year wouldn't really be the right thing to do so the mods have taken the stance of cleaning it up rather than shutting it. I'm more than happy for them to do that, and I've had posts of my own removed too and you don't hear me complaining.

 

You said that rabbit just had issues with my angling 'practices' (I dislike that expression as you seem to imply I do them intentionally).....I'd have to take issue with that statement as he would offer help and advice if that were the case. He's even been asked to desist from being abusive and offer some advice but still chose not to.

 

Finally, you are right to a point, this is an open thread, but it's being run as a diary, and on that basis I request that people stick to the topics being discussed and do so in a civil and helpful way. Its not so much to ask is it?

[Guest tigger]

Rabbit - if you have a problem with Phil, keep it to pm/email or just shut it.

 

 

I'd say that comment is pretty pig ignorant!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Kappa]

I'd say that comment is pretty pig ignorant!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

And that comment to a MOD is pretty clever?

 

Rich

[Guest tigger]

And that comment to a MOD is pretty clever?

 

Rich

 

 

I thought moderators where there to moderate, it's pretty sad when they don't practise what they preach.

He could have quite easily have PM'd Rabbit instead of trying to humiliate him on the forum.

Edited July 19, 2007 by tigger

[Janet]

Oh just give it a rest guys. It's getting more increasingly more predictable and boring than Big Brother, waiting for you to have a go at each other. We know it's coming, it's just a matter of time..... Go and sort it out behind the bike sheds or something, but please leave it off here! Better still, go fishing and chill out a bit! You may not always like, or approve of what's posted on here, but I for one do, and I suspect I'm not the only one who finds this thread both interesting and informative.

 

Attempting to avoid the playground squabbles, and trying to get back on topic, (well, one of them) - deeply hooked fish, and the problems I had the other day and that I know Phil had also had.

 

As the weather forecast was good, I booked today off work to go and fish a local pond, one where I haven't had much luck up to now. It's a beautiful pond, quite small, (only room for about 8 anglers) in the grounds of a National Trust property very close to where I live. Very small, very tranquil, and I'm normally the only person on there, which I like, as I can make all my mistakes in private! It's stuffed full of carp, roach, tench, rudd and perch. I was chucking out bits of bread into the next peg and watching some beautiful carp hoover them up like floating Dyson's! One day I'll have a go for one of them, but not until I've learned a bit more. I was quite content just to watch them cruise by on their patrol of the margins. The only thing I've ever caught on this pond was my PB perch of 2lb 14oz and a few tiny roach. Still, that's enough reason to keep me going back. I just LOVE to catch perch!

 

I was using a new float which Steve, my local tackle shop owner kindly lent me to try out, thinking I might find it useful, knowing how I've struggled on this water. It isn't one that he stocks, so he wasn't trying to sell me anything! It's a Spectre float, just 5" long, and reputedly almost invisible to fish. I can vouch for that! I couldn't see any of it underwater, even with my polaroids, unlike my usual waggler where you can see the stem and the locking shot. I found it absolutely fantastic. It showed every bite, (yes I didn't blank this time!) and it was just SO easy to change depth without any messing around. The line just threads through the base of the float, then is locked in place with a clear plastic collar. The only shot I had to use was the tell-tale shot, which was just enough to make this float sit absolutely perfectly, only just breaking the surface.

 

I read all the posts about deep hooking before I went, and remembered especially this one -

 

if your getting bites and not seeing them, (or deep hooking) move the tell tale closer"

 

I think some of my problems the other day were because I hadn't learned this. It's hard when you're trying to teach yourself, and sometimes it's difficult to admit your inadequacies and ask for help. Many times you don't even realise that you have a problem! If you don't have anything to compare it with, you're never quite sure what's normal.

 

I positioned my tell-tale shot much closer to the hook than I would normally do (about three inches away) and what happened?

 

Result! I caught 38 perch and 12 roach (my bestest day fishing EVER!) Even better than that, not ONE was deeply hooked! Not a single one! The other day I caught a few total tiddlers that wolfed down lobworms bigger than they were, and I couldn't use my disgorger without risking doing them some serious damage. There wasn't room in their mouths for both worm and disgorger! Today, apart from four or five that were hooked slightly down in the throat, I'm pleased to say that every other fish was lip hooked. All were safely released and I'm delighted to say that they all swam away non the worse for their brief encounter with this silly grinning woman!

 

I don't quite know where the improvement lies, whether it's the float or the shotting pattern, or the great fishing god looking down benevolently on me, but whatever, I had a brilliant day!

 

Janet

 

PS. And as I've just had a quick Google for Spectre floats, I hope someone will tell me that the shotting pattern made all the difference! £15 for just THREE floats? Still, after today, I may just be tempted....

[nomadpaul]

Phil , with regards to the deep hooking , and it may have been mentioned on here already , i'd try and fish the baits ,whether it be worm or maggot , just off bottom . Any line laying on the bottom will allow the smaller fish to take in the bait into their mouths without showing any indication on the float - By keeping the bait off the bottom , it should ensure a good tight line between hook and float and should get the bites showing up quicker and possibly making them more positive

[Guest Brumagem Phil]

Blimey, looks like I missed all the 'fun' on here! Silly me, I really must stop fishing so much!

 

I went early today as it had been right nice day and I reckoned on taking one or two with bread on the 'caster! Apart from one initial carp which had a darn good go of taking the gear underwater but didnt connect with the hook, I didnt see another carp all night!!! Had a pair of method feeders out too but didnt have a sniff on those either. Had some rather nice thunder storms pass over to watch though so not a completely wasted evening.

 

Paul....thanks for the advice. I think theres a number of errors here actually.........my tell tale was too small to work well and using a pre weighted float in such a depth of water meant too much lateral movement was possible without a bite registering from the very small fish. Also as you say, a maggot or worm a couple of inches off bottom should still trigger a response from passing fish.

 

Oi janet, bugger orf back to your own blog!!!!!

 

Only kiddin............enjoyed your write up no end! 38 perch, blimey! And that PB of yours makes me green with envy! Don't think i've ever caught one bigger than 3 inches long!

 

I hear what you say about the disgorger problems.........that precisely the problem I had with the ruf. His mouth was so full of lob worm that the little blighter couldnt even close his mouth! There certainly was no room for a disgorger in there too.

 

I recall what a difference adding the tell tale was when I had those float problems before on the carp pool. Seems to me that adding a few feet of depth brings with it a while new set of problems.

 

By the way, why don't you have a little go for those carp on the top? Assuming its a relatively snag free pool then just freeline some bread to them ie no hooklength, float or anything, just attach a hook to the end of your line and wrap some bread around it and offer it to them.......be warned though the crafty sods know which bit of bread has the hook in!

[Janet]

Oi janet, bugger orf back to your own blog!!!!!

 

Sorry Phil! I only meant to mention the float and shotting. Guess I got carried away a bit after such a good day.

 

Janet

 

PS. Not one of the fish was over about half a pound. All tiddlers really, but good fun!