My tackle was extremely complex in total consisting of 5 pieces of kit, these being a rod, reel, line, size 8 hook and bread! oh yes and a landing net!
On arrival I walked the stretch and cleared a couple of likely spots in which I have seen fish rise throughout the close season. This is needed as the swims/pegs are very overgrown in fact it was alot taller and thicker than I had first predicted... After cutting a couple of pegs I tackled up amidst the rushes well out of site of any fish eyes.
Put reel on rod, take line through eyes, tie on a size 8 strong hook...simples!!
Once tackled up I feed some more pieces of bread and could see a couple of fish taking it confidently almost immediately. Time to have a go, nice large piece of flake under arm cast into the flow and straight away the larger of the two fish took the bait..only for me to strike to quickly and pull out of the fish, causing it to blow all of the bread that it had previous eaten into the flow, almost projectile! Bugger!
Not to be out done, I re-baited and started the procedure again it took them about ten minutes to come back into the swim and onto the free offerings. Right then try again this time I watched the smaller fish take the bread and sit motionless in the clear water with its thick white lips champing and gills blowing obviously eating the flake, instead of striking immediately I waited until the line began to tighten and as the fish started to move away, then struck and fish on! In fact the larger fish followed it during the fight almost all the way to the net, interesting as this could happen in cloudy water and I would never have seen it.
I was using a soft action float rod so with the 4 lb line was able to maneuver the fish quite quickly into the landing net. As I picked up the net I could see that the fish was larger than I had first though, and indeed in superb condition perhaps it had never been caught previously.
I was very pleased to see the scales register 3lb 13oz, not bad for a tiny bit of river and my second cast of the river season! With such complex tackle as well.
Big cake hole!Due to disturbing the swim with netting, i walked 100 yards further downstream underneath under growth to a very nice swim that is at the end of patch of weed with a small shoal of chub sitting waiting for me that had moved onto the bread that the pair of chub upstream had misses,
Another bit of flake and cast number 3 , once again the bread was hit straight away...wait..wait.. strike...fish on!
This time the fish swam straight towards the bank so it made things alot easier for me, net out fish number 2 in the bag!
This one one slightly smaller weighing in at 3lb 2oz but again another very pretty specimen. This took the total to 6lb 15oz!
As i returned the fish it pursed and then decided to disturb the whole swim by swimming straight along the river bed churning up all the silt off the bottom! This sending all the other fish off and turning the swim brown.
I tried for another 30 minutes but could not get them back onto the feed, the also tried my first swim but could only get one very small chub to show. this was slightly disappointing as though i am not in the fish challenge that a group of other bloggers such as Dan, Keith and Jeff compete in, I was aware of there target of 9lb 6oz for chub, then I could let Dan know!....one more fish and I might have cracked it. But still happy with 3 casts , 2 fish better strike rate than the England team!
I stopped of briefly at the club pools in Church Lawford for a chat with a couple of members and the bailiff before getting home in time for tea!
Session on pools this week me feels!
Tight lines.
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