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Upstream balanced ledger


The Flying Tench

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When do you use this? When there is a heavy flow in a big river there isn't much choice. But when conventional ledgering is perfectly possible, do you still use the critically balanced technique? How do you decide whether to use it? eg weed, species, flow rate, depth.

john clarke

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On the Thames around Windsor to Oxford we used it as the main method. It works in slow and fast water. In slower water a softer tip is better, if after roach, or bream. Balance the feeder by letting out more, or less line on light, or heavy feeders. In faster flows, try a longer tail, as the freed will wash down a few feet from the feeder. It works well on the Thames, where there is a smoothe gravel bottom. On the Trent (Stoke Bardolf to the weir) rocks caused problems for this method, but below on the wides I was in the section money with a disbelieving crowd watching. It worked well on the Ouse at York too.

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I tried it today though not in its purest form, I was after roach. I started downstream ledgering with mash in the feeder and flake on the hook, bites were regular but again I couldn’t connect. I tried everything from different hook lengths to punched bread instead of flake but no joy (and I spent three hours trying). In desperation I cast upstream, the flow wasn’t much so I wouldn’t call it true upstream ledgering but it made a difference. I caught some lovely chunky roach to 12oz and wish I’d started with that method, fading light stopped play.

 

I need to spend some time perfecting the method but from what I learned today I would use it when targeting roach with bread in a flow which doesn’t need 2 ounces to hold bottom.

Edited by Rusty
  • Like 1

It's never a 'six', let's put it back

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Way back in the day, I had joined a sponsored match team and being a stick and waggler float angler, was taken out on the Thames to learn the upstream feeder technique by one of the older members. His eyesight was going and he used an elastic band on his reel spool to get the distance right each time. I fished downstream with the rod at 90 degrees to the flow, he fished upstream with the rod down parallel with the flow. After about half an hour he came down to watch me. Using maggots in a block feeder I had three dace, having missed most bites. Walking up to his swim, he had about ten in his net and I watched him hit most of his drop backs. In fact I remember him missing a couple of wrap rounds, while it seemed the drop back dace had hooked themselves.

 

He then did the demo on my rod, sitting behind me, as I caught dace after dace. As with all fishing, there are variations on the theme and it was probably a year before all the practice and matches began to gel. Once upon a time I would have been lynched for passing on trade secrets like this.

 

Keep at it Rusty, you'll soon wonder why you used any other method.

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Tench,

 

No telling how many times I've posted this. Trying to critically balance a bait is something fiddly to do when the fish are not biting. Just get a bottom bouncer and be done with it. They vary in weight and length to fit the circumstances.

 

Phone

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Phone, don't really know what a bottom bouncer is, possibly a round weight? But upstreaming is a sensitive way of detecting a bite, in that the merest bite slackens the tip on the rod, a 'drop back bite' if you will. It also enables you to fish with a lighter weight.... I don't really think it is for the average GI Joe :whistling:

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Neil,

 

The forum has had this discussion previously. It is a very good topic. Once, we had 40 posts before the definition of "upstream" and "downstream" was decided. Casting into the river with the flow coming toward you - vs - casting the same direction as the flow. A bottom bouncer works very well in both cases. However, let me say it is very tricky when casting into the flow. Few can actually say they "master" this technique. Bottom bouncers work best for species that stick to the bottom or when weather conditions push the fish down toward the bottom. But they are far far far easier than trying to "dance" a bait along the bottom, and IMO 90% equally effective. Sometime even more effective when a slight stir of the bottom becomes an aid.

 

I'll post a picture of a bottom bouncer.

 

You can see your leader and end kit hooks to the swivel. The length of you leader in relationship the the length of the shaft of the bottom bouncer determines the proximity of the bait to the bottom. They come in a wide variety of lengths and weights. The problem casting into the flow and avoiding tangles takes skills and experience.

 

IMO their is NO such thing as a "critically balanced bait". Physically impossible given all the variables.

 

BAITWALKER-2.jpg?1407512466

 

Phone

PS: the weight in the one I posted looks "clunky". 1/4th or even 1/8th oz is available. The longest stem I have is 18 inches. The ideal position, if you can visualize it is 45 degrees which of course, makes the bait directly in the same path as the mainline.

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Neil,

 

Ha ha ha Just re-read my post and noticed you were trying to pull my chain a bit. GI Joe indeed.

 

Only Walter Mitty can match a Brit for complicated, convoluted angling rigs.

 

Phone

Edited by Phone
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Neil,

 

Ha ha ha Just re-read my post and noticed you were trying to pull my chain a bit. GI Joe indeed.

 

Only Walter Mitty can match a Brit for complicated, convoluted angling rigs.

 

Phone

How true.... well talk about convoluted did you ever have the Dambusters screened over there? Sort of how we won the war with bouncing bombs, I am ex RAF you know, but alas just missed that 'Jolly' ^_^

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Neil,

 

The forum has had this discussion previously. It is a very good topic. Once, we had 40 posts before the definition of "upstream" and "downstream" was decided. Casting into the river with the flow coming toward you - vs - casting the same direction as the flow. A bottom bouncer works very well in both cases. However, let me say it is very tricky when casting into the flow. Few can actually say they "master" this technique. Bottom bouncers work best for species that stick to the bottom or when weather conditions push the fish down toward the bottom. But they are far far far easier than trying to "dance" a bait along the bottom, and IMO 90% equally effective. Sometime even more effective when a slight stir of the bottom becomes an aid.

 

I'll post a picture of a bottom bouncer.

 

You can see your leader and end kit hooks to the swivel. The length of you leader in relationship the the length of the shaft of the bottom bouncer determines the proximity of the bait to the bottom. They come in a wide variety of lengths and weights. The problem casting into the flow and avoiding tangles takes skills and experience.

 

IMO their is NO such thing as a "critically balanced bait". Physically impossible given all the variables.

 

BAITWALKER-2.jpg?1407512466

 

Phone

PS: the weight in the one I posted looks "clunky". 1/4th or even 1/8th oz is available. The longest stem I have is 18 inches. The ideal position, if you can visualize it is 45 degrees which of course, makes the bait directly in the same path as the mainline.

I take it those are lures Phone, I am afraid our poor much pursued stock fish would never fall for such a contraption, but I get your drift. We mess around, with line the diameter of a gnats pubic hair just to try and get a fish's attention....

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