started fishing again

[mike1234]

hello to everyone here, i have recently started fishing again i used to go all the time in my teens but lost contact with all the people i used to go with and have recently re-took it up again

 

this year i have found a local lake that is new to me and is quite large and have seen and heard of alot of people bagging up on there

 

the lake as some really big bream, roach, carp, grass carp, pike, orfe/ide, and tench and perch

 

but all i have managed to catch so far this year is roach up to just under 1lb a few crucian carp the odd bream but nothing to write home about most sessions i only manage to catch small roach and perch

 

i have tried fishing maggots and corn over bread crumbs and trout pellets just off the bottom i have tried fishing away from the bank and also in next to the weeds but so far have not managed to produce the catches other people are getting in the lake

 

can anyone suggest anything i could do or something i am doing wrong?

 

 

cheers

 

mike

[wanzelbin]

hello to everyone here, i have recently started fishing again i used to go all the time in my teens but lost contact with all the people i used to go with and have recently re-took it up again

 

this year i have found a local lake that is new to me and is quite large and have seen and heard of alot of people bagging up on there

 

the lake as some really big bream, roach, carp, grass carp, pike, orfe/ide, and tench and perch

 

but all i have managed to catch so far this year is roach up to just under 1lb a few crucian carp the odd bream but nothing to write home about most sessions i only manage to catch small roach and perch

 

i have tried fishing maggots and corn over bread crumbs and trout pellets just off the bottom i have tried fishing away from the bank and also in next to the weeds but so far have not managed to produce the catches other people are getting in the lake

 

can anyone suggest anything i could do or something i am doing wrong?

cheers

 

mike

 

Hi Mike. Welcome to AN.

 

What tackle / setup are you using - line, hook size etc?

 

I'm far from an expert, but when you say "just off the bottom", are you therefore float fishing mostly? Have you tried a feeder?

 

There are many people on here who know much more about stillwater fishing than me. Hopefully they'll join in...

[mike1234]

Hi Mike. Welcome to AN.

 

What tackle / setup are you using - line, hook size etc?

 

I'm far from an expert, but when you say "just off the bottom", are you therefore float fishing mostly? Have you tried a feeder?

 

There are many people on here who know much more about stillwater fishing than me. Hopefully they'll join in...

 

i have only tried float fishing i havent tried a feeder

 

the lake in some swims is up to 12ft deep just a few feet from the bank but mostly about 6ft deep

 

i usually just use a waggler that takes a few BB shots to cock and fish about 6 inches from the bottom of the lake which is mostle gravel bottomed using size 16 or 18 barbless hooks

 

thanks for trying to help

[Errrm]

hello to everyone here, i have recently started fishing again i used to go all the time in my teens but lost contact with all the people i used to go with and have recently re-took it up again

 

this year i have found a local lake that is new to me and is quite large and have seen and heard of alot of people bagging up on there

 

the lake as some really big bream, roach, carp, grass carp, pike, orfe/ide, and tench and perch

 

but all i have managed to catch so far this year is roach up to just under 1lb a few crucian carp the odd bream but nothing to write home about most sessions i only manage to catch small roach and perch

 

i have tried fishing maggots and corn over bread crumbs and trout pellets just off the bottom i have tried fishing away from the bank and also in next to the weeds but so far have not managed to produce the catches other people are getting in the lake

 

can anyone suggest anything i could do or something i am doing wrong?

cheers

 

mike

 

Apart from the questions above which are also important I would think about loose feeding the same bait as your hook bait or using trout pellets on the hook. Also alot of the fish you are mentioning feed on the bottom so I would feed either on the bottom or fish over deep i.e. so you have a bit of line laying on the bottm, this tends to give me better results on still waters I think because when the fish is taking my hook bait the line doesnt't go straight up and spook them.

 

Also walk round the lake and have a chat to the other people fishing it and find out what tactics they are using. It might be the because the weather has taken a sudden change and got colder again then the fish might have stopped feeding recently, so check whether anyone is is still catching.

 

Good luck.

 

Errrm

[norfolkfisher]

Somthing that always seems to catch for me is feeding small amounts but often red maggots with same on the hook. If theres perch/roach/rudd/ about you should get bites fairly frequently, the problem is getting through the smaller ones to get the decent sized ones, but usually the comotion from the feeding of the smaller fish attracts the bigger ones so if the bites are coming you never know your luck and what might take next, and if fishing near the bottom theres always a slim chance of any of the carp species.

 

But if you just keep trying out different techniques you'll eventually find a killer method for wherever your fishing.

[Steve Burke]

Hi Mike and welcome to the Forum!

 

There could be any number of reasons why you're struggling, but I agree that one of the problems may be the depth you're fishing at. Six inches off the bottom may be the best depth at times, but especially in winter you're more likely to catch on the bottom or just off. Not only are the fish likely to be deeper at this time of the year, but also it'll be easier to make your tackle behave more naturally.

 

From what you've said I imagine you're fishing a commercial venue that is likely to be heavilly stocked. On such waters feeding is the most important factor, even more so than location. If you tell us a bit more about the venue though we may also be able to help on location.

 

In most situations you could put a little feed in as you're tackling up. However the key is usually feeding very little and very often. How little and how often will depend on the conditions and how heavilly stocked the water is. I agree that imitating successful anglers round you is a good starting point.

 

It's usually far better to err on the side of caution. You can always add more feed, but you can't take it out. Overfeeding is a quick way to ruin a swim!

 

Over the years I've learnt to "feed the bites". In other words I feed everytime I get a bite. That way I'm unlikely to overfeed the swim. A top match angler would be able to improve on this, but it's an excellent way to start.

 

It's certainly better than the common practice of feeding a large handful of bait when nothing's happening.

[mike1234]

the lake is run by the local council as it is in a nature reserve/park and is free fishing so it does tend to attract a few idiots, but mostly the fishing there is good and lot of people do well in there i have seen pictures on a local anglers mobile phone of a lot of double figure fish caught there over the past year

 

i dont think the lake is overly stocked with fish, another local lake was recently filled in and alot of the fish from that where added to the lake where i have been fishing

 

i havent really used many methods other than float fishing corn and maggots but the local anglers seem to keep baits and methods a secrete which is frustrating,