Posted by Keith on May 7, 2010 under Carp and Coarse Fishing, Help and Tips | 
Q. How do I go about approaching my new water? It’s a small and shallow pool with a relatively low stock of fish.
Nigel Gleddon from Weymouth.
A. Thanks for your question Nigel. I’m currently fishing a similar kind of water in Devon. Here’s a few pointers to hopefully aim you in the right direction.
Choice of water is very important as the last thing you want to be doing throughout a hard winter is sitting blanking! Fortunately fishing small, shallow waters is invariably the quickest route to a bend in the rod. The reason for this is that being shallow they will clearly warm up much quicker during daylight hours than a lake of much greater depth.
Location is paramount. A fish gives itself away by jumping clear of the water here.
For example, the water I am fishing currently is between 12″ and 4 feet in depth with quite a thick layer of silt formed on the bottom. Silt as most of you know forms due to rotting vegetation, leaves, bait and the obvious fish waste! This layer of silt will warm up with the water and hold temperature for longer periods. This makes silty areas often one of the best places to target during colder months. On some venues the fish also seem to feed far more comfortably on the silt than on clear open areas…..probably down to feeling safer there. What you have to remember about fish is that they are cold blooded creatures that are unlike us unable to maintain there own body temperature. This means that when the water temperature drops away; so does the fishes will to move around expending energy.
Small venues that get regularly fished during the winter, should continue to fish well. Keeping a regular flow of bait entering the water will certainly do your approach no harm at all. I have done this myself over the past few seasons and really reaped the rewards. The particular venue I am fishing at the moment see’s an average 6-8 anglers a week, the majority over the course of the weekend.
This leaves me the week days to target my quarry. Of course we’re not all that lucky to have week days to go fishing! Time on the bank is obviously important for success and the more time you have, the more you will almost certainly catch.
Aerial maps can be really invaluable.
Before we hit the bank side though, it’s important to gain as much information about our choice of venue, target fish, busiest times, current baits used and particular lake topography. Most of you will be now saying ‘How the heck do I get all that before I see the place?’ Well, it’s not that hard to be fair. With the massive popularity of that ‘internety typey thingy’ you should be able to get most of it from there. Most lakes have been talked about at some point and if you do a search on one of the many Search Engines, it’s pretty likely you’ll find some info about the place.
Another useful tool is Google Earth, Google Maps etc. It’s possible to view most of the planet from one of these cool online tools. I’ve managed to view just about all of my venue choices in the last few years, gaining valuable info on shallows, bars, deep spots etc. Very useful! My next tip would be a good few hours spent at the venue prior to fishing and on as quieter day as possible. Take a marker float rod with you and have a good plumb around. Locate gravel, silt areas, weed etc. Make some notes with a pen and paper. Even go as far as to make a drawn map with depths etc on it.
Keep an eye on the weather, feeding times and the moon strike.
I try to make friends with as many of the regulars as possible as this often becomes another invaluable tool for keeping an ear on what’s happening whilst your not there! Especially if you live 100+miles away from the venue as I do!
Ok, so we’ve discussed a few obvious points. Lets get down to the technical stuff.
On arrival I try to keep my self as low key and inconspicuous as possible. Opening and closing car doors many times certainly won’t help your cause! Try and keep all your movements down to a minimum. Unpack carefully and sit well back from the edge of the water.
If you can see the fish, they can certainly see you….vibration really does carry through the ground too. A few years ago I was fishing on a small island made from boggy meadow land.
The water froze over night and when I arose in the morning it was quite amazing to see the vibrations on the iced over water just from gentle bank side movements. Banging bank sticks and pegs in is also a big no no.
Single hook baits can often out fish beds of bait...
I have gone to some real extremes in the past on very clear water venues…..putting large camouflage sheets over my bivvy front and wearing plenty of camou clothing to hide my presence from the weary carp.
My first application of bait would be to apply a gently gently approach and add more bait as and when I felt that what I had added originally had been eaten. I would choose small mesh PVA bags of broken boilies or pellets presented over a boilie hook bait.
Try to present your baits at a different combination of depths and swims. This will help in gauging the likely depth that the fish wish to feed at. I like to keep a log of all my captures, their weight, bait taken on, time of day, weather, water temp and moon strike. All this helps after a short period of time, to get an idea of the best times to fish, thus optimizing your time on and off the bank.
Learning the make up of the bottom of the pool will really make a dramatic difference to your catch rates too. I won’t go to much into this as I have covered Rig Camouflaging in an earlier article where I caught a 30lb 5oz mirror to order for the cameras.
Small PVA bags are my choice when hitting a new venue for the first few visits
Suffice to say that it makes a huge difference. I again proved this a few weeks ago when I bagged the biggest fish in my syndicate venue. A stunning mirror called ‘Scaley Tail’ down a bit in weight but at 29lb 2oz I was still well over the moon with the capture.
This fish in particular avoids the bank side much more than other more ‘mug’ fish. Whether this is down to it’s cleverness or the fact that many of these larger specimens tend to have a few body guards swimming around with them that clean around the areas checking for rigs before the big boys come in for a carefree and safe munch.
To catch this particular fish took a little bit of background work and some clever tricks to disguise my rig materials on the bottom of the lake. After chatting with many of the regulars I was able to gain invaluable information as to where the fish often gets caught from and on whether it has any preferences for certain baits? After sussing it out a bit more and having a lead around one of the likely feeding spots, it was determined that I’d need to get a bit clever with my approach.
One of my main target fish.....'Scaley Tail' at 29lb 2oz
The bottom make up was a combination of soft silt and covered in a stringy, green, soft weed. I had a good root through the tackle box and dug out some Nash Missing Link hook length material in camou green colour 15lb breaking strain. I stripped about 8 inches of the plastic coating away and started to pierce small sections of the removed plastic onto a size 8 Nash Fang Twister hook. After a fiddly 20 minutes or so I had a hook that looked about as realistically weed like as I could get without dragging it through the stuff! I then wrapped the hook length material onto the hook and formed a knotless knot around the coating.
This made the hook quite light weight and really well balanced with a critically bouyant/balanced bait that just settled on top of the lake bed weed. I opted to fish a light 1oz lead on a lead clip thus enabling the lead to be dropped if it snagged. A fluorocarbon main line fished slack with a small helping of single boilies trickled in over the hook bait finished off my approach.
My Missing Link Camouflaged DIY hook!
It didn’t take too long before I nailed a few fish. I kept topping up the swim with a small handful more of boilies and in that session I bagged my target fish too.
So, to wind up……Keep a low profile. Keep vibrations and noise to an absolute minimum. Sit well back from the edge. Try to gain as much info as you can before you arrive. Apply a little and often approach….remember you can put it in but not take it out.
Tight lines
Keith
Posted by Keith on March 8, 2010 under Help and Tips, Sea Fishing |
by Derek Townsend
Obsolete Ideology!
Historically, there has always been a culture of powerful rods, high test strength lines and heavy density leads associated with sea fishing from the shore in south east Wales. The combination of the extensive tidal range, strong currents and the shallow, shelving nature of the sea bed in the Bristol Channel, was responsible for the mindset that sponsored the use of extreme fishing tackle as the only way, if not to tame these elements, then certainly to make fishing a practical proposition along the south east coast of Wales.
This was the reality before the revolutionary advances in rods, reels and line technology circa the 70’s and onwards, presented the sea angler with both the tools and the opportunity to escape from the restraints of this obsolete ideology.
Long Distance Casting – A Blessing or a Curse?
The current “long distance casting” epidemic has done little to curb this phenomenon or stimulate an awareness that there are alternative approaches waiting for those who wish to add real enjoyment to their sea fishing. It is a myth that by learning a more effective casting technique and using it at EVERY visit to the shoreline, this alone will automatically guarantee improved catches in both quality and quantity of all species.
In fact, this practice can be counter productive, often putting the bait into barren ground beyond the habitat of some of the desired prey species, such as bass for example, or even rays, that at some marks from the shore, can lay in wait in the trench, within easy casting range at low water of a big spring tide. Winter cod fishing was an example where having the ability to cast a bait a considerable distance, could pay off handsomely at SOME locations (like Dungeness), but alternatively, there were local marks where good sport with codling of 6, 7, 8-ish lbs, or Thornback/ Small Eyed Rays circa 8 lbs., could be enjoyed using 11 lb. breaking strain (monofilament) line, 2 ounce (no grip) leads and my Bones Bass Rod Mk. 3, close inshore in rough ground, a la bass fishing.
When the novelty begins to wear off, realisation will dawn that LDC is not the all encompassing panacea for lack of success. Ultimately, nothing will replace knowledge, skill and an intelligent, rational use of ALL the techniques available to the sea angler, WHEN and WHERE experience demands.
The fish in the above photographs were all hooked inside a casting distance of circa 30 yards (90 feet) maximum, in rough ground, as were approximately 70% of all the prey fish (mainly bass but rays, cod and the occasional smoothound) caught by my sons and I in any one year. Accurate, as against distance, casting plus the correct bait was the key.
Having said all that, I would not hesitate to encourage every sea angler who takes a rod to water, to learn one of the modern casting techniques, such as the Pendulum style, from a competent, experienced and proficient practitioner.
The Good, the Bad and the downright Dangerous.
One thing for sure, Long Distance Casting in south east Wales is here to stay and its popularity is readily visible along the coast, be it of varying degrees of competence, ranging from the good, the bad and the downright dangerous. There is little doubt that the distances being achieved, together with the aspirations to do better, are down to the improved design of the blanks and the accelerated use of modern materials such as Carbon Fibre, rather than any revolutionary development of the basic technique which has its roots well into the past.
It is debatable whether the skilled practitioners of today would have faired any better than their counterparts some 30 to 35 years ago, had it not been for these technological advances in blank/rod design and construction. This discussion relates to the use of LDC as an important tool in the armoury of sea fishing, separate from Tournament Casting.
Acceptance of short comings and a desire to learn.
In the 21st Century, the opportunity to learn a modern casting style in this region either through formal, organized seminars, or via individual tuition, is widespread and any would be students are spoilt for choice.
This was not the case back in the 1970’s! Aspirations then, using the standard beach casters (average length= 12 feet) of the day, were much less than would be acceptable today, with the achievement of 150 yards (137 metres) to 175 yards (160 metres), “lead only, 5 ounces, over grass”, being considered miraculous. At that time, “blank/rod” technology was in its infancy and the average ability using the “up and over” style with the available materials (rod, reel and line) would result in a measured distance of 65 yards (59 metres) to a maximum of 85 yards (78 metres).
With initial instruction in the pendulum style, this distance could be improved, on average, to 100 yards (92 metres) up to 130 yards (119 metres), with the best students reaching 150 yards (137 metres) plus. Translate these performances onto the beach plus the vagaries of bait, wind, and weather and the reality was that the lead would, probably, enter the sea at around (a) 55 yards (50 metres) to 75 yards (69 metres) before instruction and (b) after instruction, possibly 85 yards (78 metres) to 110 yards (101 metres). These statistics, compared with the current distances being achieved, illustrate just how much influence technology has had on the potential performances of ordinary sea anglers over a period of a 1/3rd of a century.
“How does your casting measure up?”
On a historical note, I am quoting an edited version of an article titled “How does your casting measure up?” which I wrote and had published in the February, 1977 issue of ANGLING magazine, (Byblos Productions Ltd.) to give the reader an authentic feel for the period, and to provide a yardstick against which later generations can measure the improvements in distance attributable to the advanced technology.
(All distances quoted are for the popular lead density of the time of 5 ounces and using standard, every day beach casters of the popular assembled length of circa 12 feet)
The arrival of each new cod season is inevitably accompanied by a plethora of articles in angling periodicals, all emphasising the importance of developing a style and a capability to cast lead and bait more than 100 yards (91 metres) as a starter to any measure of success that may be achieved with this species. Of course, not all cod fishing involves the use of this ability, and indeed, the value of Long Distance Casting is not restricted to cod alone, although it was the initial source of inspiration to those early pioneers of the technique.
Despite the abundance of these articles expounding the virtues of this and that casting style, many sea anglers remain apathetic, although I suspect that in most breasts lurks a wistful desire to equal the ability of the Darkins, Darlings and others of this world. I am convinced, through my own experiences, that many sea anglers will only be inspired by actually seeing what a proficient L.D. Caster can achieve with the everyday tools of sea angling, be it on the tournament field, on the beach during a fishing session when all the vagaries of wind, weather and terrain are in play, a situation with which the less accomplished angler can relate.
Assuming that it was possible to accurately quantify all the sea anglers who cast from the shore, I wonder what the outcome would be if it was possible to calculate the percentage ratio of the following criteria to mass? How many anglers, using their standard “ beach casting” outfits, can cast a lead alone (a) over 200 yards (182 metres) (b) over 175 yards (160 metres) (c) over 150 yards (137 metres) (d) over 125 yards (114 metres) (e) over 100 yards (91 metres) and (f) over 75 yards (69 metres)? Most of us express our casting distances in the light of our achievements with lead only, thereby ignoring the natural limitations imposed by paternoster rigs, bait etc, which is why the above question was posed. The results of this theoretical survey would be pure speculation, although I suspect that the biggest percentage would be attributed to category (f), followed by a significantly reduced percentage for category (e), with the scale tapering off dramatically from category (d) through to (a).
Once again, recalling my own past experiences, it seemed natural at the time to draw the conclusion that, despite the absence of any reliable yardsticks against which to make a comparison, my achieved distances must be exceeding the hundred yard (91 metres) mark, and it wasn’t until the opportunity presented itself via a club organised casting tourney, that the truth was revealed. At the time, I was getting nowhere near the hundred yard (91 metres) post…more like 80 yards (73 metres) plus, lead only. By the way, I wasn’t the only one whose ego took a substantial knock that day!
Far from being unique, it would seem that this capacity to over assess distances is an angler’s prerogative, illustrating a deep-rooted complex which is associated with the inability to cast at least 100 yards (91 metres)…we all have to start somewhere!
Returning to the articles referred to earlier, if there is any criticism to be levelled at their content, then I feel that it must be directed at the emphasis placed on distances in excess of 150 yards (137 metres),lead only, the impression being that this is the norm. Failure to reach this standard nurtures an inferiority complex amongst those who cannot achieve it, hence the “Hundred Yard Syndrome”. I think it is reasonable to suggest that distances of at least 135 yards (123 metres), lead only over grass, will be achieved by those who have a natural ability, or have developed a fluent style through dedication or opportunity to practice for long hours…a luxury of the minority rather than the majority.
There is a need for some targets to which an aspiring novice caster can relate, but taking into consideration the wide spectrum of abilities and restricted time available for practice, I am sure the continual references to distances of 150, 160, 170 up to 200 yards, lead only, is the point where many lose interest who may have taken up the challenge if less awesome yardsticks punctuated these otherwise instructive articles.”
Just a reminder that this edited article was written and published in early 1977 and clearly demonstrates an apparent lack of enthusiasm for Long Distance casting in south east Wales, mainly due to the fact that accomplished L.D. Casters, “role models”, were thin on the ground in the region to the point of virtually being non existent. The distances in the piece are a true reflection of what was being achieved by the sea angler of average ability using the standard beach casting equipment available at this period.
ANGLING magazine, L.D.C. “Teach Ins.”
In the early 1970’s, ANGLING magazine organised a series of “teach ins” on the east coast of England, which presented the opportunity to witness L.D.C. performed by accomplished practitioners, and offered a unique opportunity for individual instruction in a more advanced casting style. Having benefited from one of the early “teach ins”, I was only too pleased to pass on the lessons learnt, and accepted invitations to demonstrate the rudiments of the pendulum style, impressing upon my hosts that I was not in the “super caster” league.
Casting Instruction and Demonstrations.
One to one instruction.
The average instruction session lasted about three hours, with initial casts using the old “up and over” style, ranging from 65 yards (59 metres) to 85 yards (78 meters), distances that reflected the physique and strength of each individual.
The end result, after a morning’s instruction, was a minimum improvement of, around, plus 35 yards (32 metres), with a fair proportion of the students consistently casting well over 150 yards (137 metres), lead only.
These distances may be small beer when compared to the achievements of today’s casters, but credit must be given to those who were prepared to face up to their limitations over a measured track, as the first step on the road to significant improvements.
Assessing distances cast over sea water by guesswork, or “pacing it out” over grass/ beach, has been proved beyond question, to have no credibility when put to the tape measure.
Derek demonstrates a cast over the measured court.
- Preparing for Instruction and a Demonstration of the pendulum style of casting.
Buy the book ‘ Bass Fishing from the shore in South East Wales and more by Derek Townsend’
Tags: bass, bass fishing from the shore, Casting, casting demonstrations, casting instruction, cod, derek townsend, Distance casting, leads, long distance, rays
Posted by Keith on March 7, 2010 under Carp and Coarse Fishing, Help and Tips, Sea Fishing |
Well, it’s started to warm up a bit by day at last….albeit another bunch of cold nights has plagued us again this week.
Unfortunately this put the stoppers on a trip to one of my syndicate waters in Reading this week.
The lake being all bar totally frozen again.
The start of a cold winters night!
With this snap of cold weather being with us I thought that I’d show you one of the rigs which has caught me an awful amount of big carp through the last few winters, when all but a few anglers have caught carp.
My chosen venue for winter always has to have a decent stock of carp to target. Tie this up to shallow’ish water and time on the bank and you have the recipe for good results when most waters have shut up shop.
The rig needs to be simple, invisible and of course, highly effective. The same needs to be said for the bait…..it needs to be highly visible, simple and of course again, attractive!
The baits of which I talk of some of you may laugh at…it is of course the humble maggot and our best friend the garden worm. These little wrigglers are just what the doctor ordered for a run of fish this time of year.
These baits couldn’t be easier to use and more readily available….obviously the worm from your garden and the maggots from the shop.
A 26lb 14oz common taken in February of this year on 6lb hook length!
I really like a mixture of colors of maggots, red and white minimum really. Tackle for this sort of fishing needs to be gauged to the size of fish you are hoping to catch and of course the venue itself.
The syndicate water i’m currently on in Devon has almost no underwater snags to worry about which means I can get away with very minimal tackle. This of course helps no end in making the terminal tackle invisible. This allows me to step my lines and hook lengths right down to 6lb.
Some of you may now be gasping at the thought of using 6lb line for big carp, but believe me that if you fish with a soft rod, tie good strong knots and play your fish sensibly then there is absolutely no reason why you too can’t catch big fish on light tackle too.
Winter nights can be hard times....
In my old match fishing days down the south of England, we thought nothing of going down to size 22 hooks and 1lb hook lengths for silvers and even catching odd small carp like this too. The reason for fining down the tackle is obvious in that it makes the whole set up less visible in the usually clear water we have around during the colder months of the year.
I’m not saying you should be casting split shot out for weights and size 22 hooks for double figure carp, but the use of 6lb fluorocarbon rig material and size 12 hooks will certainly get you a heck of a lot more bites than using 20lb material and size 4’s!
The humble maggot
You need to start thinking about how the fish react during the colder months of the year.
Many professors of fish science etc will tell you that the species Cyprinus Carpio (Carp) will not feed at water temperatures below 4 deg C….
I wouldn’t say this is a particularly hard and fast rule due to the fact that this year alone I have caught more than 20 fish from water temperatures down to as low as 2.4 deg C.
The maggot clip
Choosing the right fishery is obviously the key point here. It’s no good trying to target a water of 20 feet deep and only a few fish to boot. The main reason being that waters like this will take much longer to warm up as opposed to one of just a few feet deep.
So, we’ve talked a little about the choice of water and our bait etc. Now we need to have a way to present these excellent baits to the fish. There are of course many different ways in which to do this including the use of ‘maggot clips’ which are available
from many of the major tackle brands. I like these clips for their ease of use and simplicity, but I have a preferred method which gives as far as I am concerned a far better presentation.
The knotless knot
You will no doubt have come across this little gem of a method with in the press at some time or another in the past. It amazes me though how few people use it and just how many snub the idea of using maggots and worms for carp as ridiculous!
My principal rig consists of using fluorocarbon in minimal breaking strains as I said earlier in the text.
If I can get away with going down to 6lb breaking strain then the rig will be almost totally invisible withing the depths of the water….even in almost crystal clear water!
I like to team this up to a small hook of 10 or 12.
Forming the knotless knot
To start this rig we need to first cut off a section of fluorocarbon around 10 inches in length.
Now taking our hook, push the line from the point side through to the back of the shank. This is really important because if it goes through the wrong way your rig won’t work properly.
Forming the D section
Now start to twist the line around the shank neatly, around 6-8 turns will suffice. Pinch the twist and hook between your fingers and with the other hand push the line back through the hook eye in the reverse manner to previously.
Pull this up tight and then you’ll have tied your knotless knot which forms the major part of many of today’s rigs.
Our next job is to take a small micro rig ring and place it over the tag end of line left hanging down the hook shank.
This section of line then needs to be also pushed through the back of the hook eye.
Using a lighter to blob tag the end of the D section
Now using a lighter, gently blob the tag of line to stop it pulling back through the eye of the hook.
If you’ve done this correctly then you should be left with a nice little D at the back of the hook shank.
The finished D-rig
Now, this is a little fiddly but place a small size 11/12 ring swivel onto the main section of fluorocarbon. This needs to be tied to the line using a blood knot of 5-6 turns.
Make sure that you wet the knot thoroughly with saliva as fluorocarbon will be damaged badly if it is not moist when pulled tight into a knot. The length you choose to tie this swivel on will be the depth you choose to fish the maggots at.
Use a blood knot to tie on the micro ring swivel
The principal behind this is that the small swivel will act as a hinge in the rig, allowing freedom of movement by the bait and also suitably counter balancing the buoyancy of our pop up baits too.
Right, our final rig part entails another section of the Fluorocarbon material. Cut away a section around 10-12 inches in length. Again this needs to be tied onto the swivel with the use of a blood knot.
Tie on a size 8 ring swivel to the end of the rig
At the other end of the almost complete rig we tie another ring swivel of size 8. This time I use an overhand or Loop knot which allows good freedom of movement in the rig.
Ok, so our rigs looking pretty tasty. We need to now look at our bait attachment. Using a section of dental floss, around 8-10 inches in length. Tie this onto the micro rig ring on the back of the D rig.
Thread on real and buoyant rubber maggots using a sewing needle
You can use any old knot for this attachment. Now with the two sections of floss left hanging from the micro ring we start to get things into shape.
Get yourself a small sewing needle and thread one section of the floss through the eye of the needle. With the needle end start to insert it through the ‘eyed’ end of each maggot gently teasing them onto the needle without causing them to ‘pop’!
Thread each of the maggots one by one down onto the floss. After you have sewn on around 4-5 maggots you’ll need to add a buoyant plastic maggot or two.
Restart the process of threading the real maggots again and after 5-6 of these add another couple of plastic one’s. I do this around 4-5 times. I like to add a few chopped worms to this as well.
Worm Scissors
I chop the worms up using a set of three tier worm scissors which makes quick work of a bunch of worms.
You can test the buoyancy of the baits in the margins of the water or in a bucket……I try to match it up so that the small hinge swivel is just enough weight to make the bait drop down in the water before sitting proud of the lake bed by the length of the hinged section.
Chopped worms...yummy!
Once your happy with the neutrality of the buoyancy then you can simply pull the two floss sections together and tie them in a knot.
This will in turn pull all the maggots and chopped worms into one tidy ball of bait.
If you find that the whole setup is just not buoyant enough then you’ll need to add a small section of buoyant foam to the floss.
Ready to cast
I like to add this about half way through the threading process.
Now we have our rig ready to go, it’s just a case of casting it out and catching a few fish!
It’s obviously better to fish this method over some free offerings too though….I opt to either PVA bag these up or to spod the maggots and chopped worms out to the chosen spot.
Perfection!
As you can see in the pictures opposite….the baits look fantastic sitting in the water just off the deck of the lake and the colour and size of the baits look perfect for a bite!
So, what are you waiting for????? Get out there and dig some worms, get a few pints of mixed maggots in your bait box and go and haul some winter lumps!
Tight Lines
Keith
Posted by Keith on January 31, 2010 under Carp and Coarse Fishing, Help and Tips |
Feature Finding
As I said earlier on in the Blog….I would at some point cover aspects of feature finding and it’s obvious benefits. I’m hoping when the weather breaks a little to put together a video on the topic, but for now here’s a few pointers on the subject.
Feature finding is absolutely crucial to any anglers armoury of skills.
With this ability you will be able to locate individual features and take a look at the bottom of the venue without taking a swim!
This is my marker set up. As you can see there is a large stainless ring which allows the line to move freely through.
This is connected to a swivel and then the lead. In between is a cork ball which helps to keep the whole thing above any silt or weed, this can be made longer to cope with heavy weed or silt.
We then have another cork ball which acts as a buffer and bouyancy aid for the above float.
Below are some crude drawings I have done which should help to make this method clear and obvious to its benefits.
This as far as I am concerned about the best way to get an idea of the swim in front of you.
Start with a cast to one side...slowly pull back and then wind. Then start the process again around 180 degrees of the swim.
Start with a cast to the left of your swim. Use common sense and dont cast into the next guys swim though! Follow up the cast by feeling the lead down to the bottom, you should feel it touch the bottom.This is done by touching your finger onto the reel spool as the lead is about to hit the water and gently lifting the rod on a tight line.
If it hits softly it could be silt or weed. If it hits with a bump its probably on gravel. The next step will tell you exactly. First pay line out a foot at a time till you see the float. Count the pay outs and you’ll get the depth in that spot. Once done start retrieving line till you conect with the lead. Now gently at right angles to the lead pull back the lead level to the water and bank.
You should now clearly feel the make up of the bottom. Continue doing this process from left to right with around a 2-3m difference each time. This should give you an idea of any underwater differences.
Here you can see that the lead and marker float has landed in weed.
The rod will pull round gently and possibly be difficult to move depending on the density of the weed.
If the weed is light it will feel very similar to silt where the lead comes back okay back is much harder to retrieve than on clear bottom.
In most cases at the end of the retrieve the rig will have some weed on it. You can then see what your up against.
The only other time in which the tip will show this kind of gently pull round is when the lead is coming up a slope or bar. This will feel ‘free’ at the top of the slope though and not as difficult to retrieve.
Here we can see that the lead is struggling to come up a slope which may well be a plateau or bar.
These areas are typically well renowned feeding areas for carp. Presenting a bait on top of a bar or on either side of the drop off can result in good fishing. Especially if the wind is blowing onto one of these bars.
As above we spoke about the lead feeling harder to retrieve all of a sudden. This will obviously become less difficult the closer the lead becomes to the top of the bar. Beware though that these areas can harbour weeds, snags and sharp stones which can cut you off!
In this picture we can see the effect of the lead coming down a slope.
This time the rod will bounce back towards you quickly and feel ‘light’ to retrieve. Again after this its worth paying out line to gauge the difference in the depth.
This could be a great place for a bait.
Our final drawing covers the effect of gravel on the rod tip.
Here you can see that there is an obvious area of gravel which the lead will pass over.
The rod tip will show the effect of the gravel by bouncing around.
You will feel it spring back very easily and quickly with a tapping sensation coming through the rod. This is possibly the easiest of all the ‘feelings’ to locate.
This will most likely be a great area in which to place a bait as well.
It may well show up an area which has been recently cleaned by feeding fish.
Taken from Nuts about Carp
Tight Lines
Keith
Posted by Keith on January 29, 2010 under Carp and Coarse Fishing, Help and Tips |
The Cat-o-Copter Rig
Right, so we’ve reached the last in our series of running water rigs for Wels Catfish…..this week it’s the turn of a trusty favourite and very well used rig known as the Cat-o-Copter rig.
The cat-o-copter rig allows a live bait to be suspended well above a snag, weeds or just clear of the bottom for what ever reason.
This rig is very popular amongst big river anglers on venues such as the Rio Ebro in Spain.
You will need to fish this rig in a beach caster style format with the rod positioned in an upright position and placed into a very sturdy butt stand that is well anchored to the ground.
Position a Poly ball pop up onto the main line followed by a bead, heavy duty strong swivel and then another bead, Poly Ball and lastly one more bead.
Now tie on a strong swivel to the end of the mainline. To this you will need to attach a weak link from which to anchor the whole rig to the bottom with a heavy lead. I would use about 6lb line and you will need to vary the weight according to the strength of current.
My good friend Stuart Andrews with a plump Moggy taken on a Cat-o-copter rig
The principal behind this is that as soon as a cat picks up the suspended hook bait it can swim away and your weak link will snap, this leaves you in direct contact with the fish and no trailing lead to be concerned about!
The only other thing left to do with the rig is to tie on a good strong hooklength material and hook to the inline helicopter style swivel.
To stop the whole thing sliding up the line straight to the surface or to fix it at a specific depth you will need to tie a sliding stop knot above the whole rig.
Tight lines
Keith
Posted by Keith on January 22, 2010 under Carp and Coarse Fishing, Help and Tips |
Inline suspender Rig for running water
Ok, so far we have discussed a couple of rigs for use in a majority of still water situations for Wels Catfish…..This week I am going to discuss the use of an inline rig which will aid us in the presentation of a live bait in a running water situation.
Using a running lead loop and lead clip to the weight.
The inline setup will aid us in many ways especially in the way that it tends to avoid tangles associated with using previous rigs we have talked about.
As with the other rigs we have mentioned before, the weight should be positioned on the line first using a good quality free running lead link clip which makes as little resistance as possible.
This is highly important when fishing for Wels Catfish, as they have a good habit of dropping any bait that they feel the least bit of resistance from.
You’ll obviously need to gauge the size of weight required to hold bottom by the strength of the rivers flow. If there is a very strong river flow or you are fishing at long range using a boat to place the baits out in the water…then I would suggest the use of a rig otherwise known as the Cat’O'Copter rig. I will go over the tactics and tackle required for this rig next week.
Next up we need to use a buffer bead and follow this with a piece of soft silicone rubber that will gently push over the stiff dumbell tube.
Push the main line through the center of the dumbell stiff tube and out the otherside.
Now tie on an appropriate hook for the livebait. I would suggest a size 1-1/0 would be suitable for a 5-6oz roach bait, which should be lip hooked to ensure good life in the hookbait. Anything bigger will obviously require a much larger hook.
Finally pull the soft tubing over the end of the stiff dumbell. This all helps to stop tangles.
A nice Wels caught by using the inline set up.
As with other rigs, it is possible to again payout as much line as you like to cover a much larger area. This is very helpful in a river situation where by it’s possible that the fish may well be some considerable distance from the position you are fishing from and to.
Please be aware of the current your fishing in and the weight of fish you are likely to come across….It’s no good trying to catch 100lb + catfish in imense flow at 80 yards on standard carp fishing tackle. Your gear will certainly not be up to scratch. For this kind of angling your going to need one of the custom built rods now available for Catfish or even an uptiding style of rod with a good 4-5lb test curve and 9-10 foot in length.
Next week we’ll view another running water rig…..
Tight lines
Keith
Posted by Keith on January 16, 2010 under Carp and Coarse Fishing, Help and Tips |
Suspended worm/leech rig.
Right, to continue our series is another extremely effective part of our catfishing armory.
This rig allows the angler to suspend a bait of either worm or leeches at a varying depth off the bottom.
Much like the other suspender rigs used this requires the use of another dumbell pop up.
First off, place a running lead onto the main line with a good free running ring attached. Follow this up with our trusted friend the buffer bead.
Now push your main line through the center of the dumbell pop up tubing and out the other end.
I would then push on a section of silicone tubing just wide enough to go over the stiff tubing. Now tie on a good strong swivel.
A nice Wels taken on the Suspended Worm/Leech Rig
You can now pull the soft tubing down and partially over the swivel to lock the whole thing in place.
All that is now left to do is Tie on you chosen hook length material and a good strong hook. I would also use a small bait shield on the hook to stop the worms from wriggling off the shank and getting away!
After the cast you can pay out as much line as you like so that the whole set up is fishable at any depth right up to the surface if preferred.
A really usable and effective rig this……it’s caught me many catfish of all different sizes.
Next week we’ll discuss the use of live and dead baits in running water.
Tight Lines
Keith
Posted by Keith on January 4, 2010 under Carp and Coarse Fishing, Help and Tips |
Suspended Live bait rig/Dumbell rig
I’ve had numerous requests from people asking for some rig tips for catching Wels Catfish. Bearing this in mind I have put together a few rig tutorials with regards to this. I’ll publish these over the coming weeks and we’ll discuss their uses.
This rig has accounted for a massive amount of fish from our UK shores to much further afield.
It’s principal setup is very basic and extremely effective. Many people are under the assumption that the Wels is a bottom dweller and only feeds hard on the bottom…..this is a fallacy and nothing could be further from the truth.
This rig uses a small amount of items to achieve maximum catching effect. The Wels will readily take a live bait presented high up in the water, just below the surface in fact.
The suspended rig or Dumbell rig as it is also known is most effective in water of around 8-10 feet+.
A lead of 3-4 oz would be most suitable and placed onto the mainline in a free running format. Next we need to position a free running buffer bead onto the line. 
Next we need to pull the line through our dumbells silicone tubing center and now tie on a good strong swivel.
All that is left to do is tie on our hooklength material……I like to use a heavy monofilament such as amnesia as it is less prone to tangles as braid is.
Now tie on the hook. You will need to use an appropriate hook for the size of fish livebait that you are going to use. A size 1/0, 1 or 2 will be around the required size.
Place the live fish onto the hook via its top lip and then the rig is ready to cast.
Once cast to the appropriate area I then tighten the line until the weight can be felt and the dumbell is tight to the mainline in such a way that if you were to pull any more then the dumbell would disappear under the water.
You now put the rod in the rests and wait. You can pay out some more line if you wish…..this will help the hookbait to cover a larger area.
So, there you have it……our first rig ready for catching one of those elusive monster fish……more to follow in a weeks time.
Tight lines
Keith
Posted by Keith on October 18, 2009 under Carp and Coarse Fishing, Help and Tips |
Question: My local lake contains signal crayfish that strip my bait off in a few minutes, can you help????
sent in by Gavin Lewis of Whitney.
You don't want one of these hanging off your finger!!!
Thanks for your question Gavin.
This is becoming a more widespread problem across the UK as these pesky non-native signals find their way into our waterways.
Signal Crayfish........enough said!
If you’ve never seen one of these devils, they’re anything up to about 10-12″ in length and some have monstrous claws, perfectly capable of giving you a painful nip!
There are numerous items on the market which help to stop these pests from annihilating our baits…..
First off is an over sized shrink tube which can be shrunk around your hook baits.
These work fairly efficiently but I’m not convinced that this is the best method.
Allow damp baits to thaw out on a towel
My chosen technique is to air dry my baits for a week or so before I go fishing.
What this basically means is that I remove all the fresh/frozen baits from their packaging and allow them to defrost on a towel or a tray.
After they have defrosted I place them into a purpose made Air drying bag…..these are available at the shop for around a tenner.
Allow the baits to hang in the bag in a cool dry place…..airing cupboards are very good. Ensure to agitate the bag regularly so that dampness cannot build up between the baits.
Larger quantitys will need to dry out on big trays
You can also allow them to air dry on large trays for much bigger quantities of bait….but remember as above to agitate the baits regularly to stop moisture build up on the sides and bottom.
This should toughen up the baits considerably for your session, albeit they will still take in water and rehydrate once you start fishing. What we need to apply is a fine mesh skin to the baits to make things a bit tougher for the crayfish to work at.
Many colours available
If you visit a local haberdashery/sewing shop they will sell you a coloured fabric mesh which is brilliant for what we need.
Fine mesh is almost invisible once wrapped around the hookbait
You can purchase these is pretty much every colour of the rainbow and at around a £1 per sqr M they won’t crucify your bank balance either.
All that we need to do is place our chosen boilie into a section of the mesh and gather the mesh around the bait tightly.
Gather up all the mesh around the bait
Gather all of it up and pinch it between your finger and thumb.
Now twist the boilie to tighten the whole thing right up. Ensure that there are no ripples in the mesh as this will give the crayfish something to start working on.
Tie floss around the top of the bait and mesh
Next, take some dental floss which again is available in many colour guesses and tie a good solid knot around the top of the mesh…..ensure it is tight enough to not allow the mesh to slip.
Gently cut away the excess mesh leaving just a few millimeters to work with.
Cut away excess mesh and leave just a little to work with
Using a lighter, gently start to burn the tag end mesh with the flame and as it draws closer to the knot, stop the flame by placing the mesh against the lighters side, thus causing a flat edged blob.
Using the lighter gently blob tag the end of the mesh
This seals the whole thing and stops any slippage of the mesh through the knot.
The other cool thing is that once you have pulled your hair rig through the bait, you can loop the hair around the tagged blob and pull tight.
The finished product......come and get it Mr Carp!
This gives a really solid bait stop inside the bait almost, thus away from the waiting claws!
I have in recent months also started to fish with double bottom baits covered in the mesh….this gives me even more time in the water.
I like to place a small rubber stopper above the baits to stop them from sliding on the hair.
Many bait and colour options for most situations.
This makes things just that bit more difficult for the crays to get into.
Just remember that this is not a total cure for the crayfish problem and that they will still manage to make their way through the baits…but this will add precious hours to the baits water life.
I manage to get 8-10 hours life from my baits. I would cast much more often than usual though on any water containing crayfish.
Although I have used bright baits for the above examples….I would suggest that the use of drab colours is more effective. Other tips would be to steer clear of oily pellets and fishmeal based hook baits as the crayfish will love these!
The other tips I have also found is that crayfish will tend to feed more on open gravel than in silt and a pop up tends to get nailed heavily too.
Tight Lines
Keith
Posted by Keith on September 25, 2009 under Carp and Coarse Fishing, Help and Tips |
Question sent in via email from Ed Collins of Bristol: Please could you explain how to tie up a Chod rig?
Thanks to Ed for his question.
Use a quality Flourocarbon or Bristle Filament
The Chod rig is a very useful rig to have in our armoury of tactics for approaching difficult waters and even tougher carp! The chod is usable in many situations but its primary one being to keep the bait well clear of silt or bottom debris that may hinder the presentation of lets say a bottom bait or just a standard Pop up style presentation.
It’s pretty simple to tie and only a few standard components which most of us already have in our box will be needed.
For 99% of my chod rigs I like to use flourocarbon as its almost invisible in the water due to its light refraction qualities. It’s a fairly tough, hardwearing material that can be steamed straight.
Alternatively bristle filament can be used but is a little tough to get through some of the smaller eyed hooks.
Pass the line from the point side of the hook to the back of the shank first
Step one is to choose our hook…..for this style of rig I like to use the specific Chod Hook from the Korda camp. (size 6-10 depending on bait size)
These have an out turned eye which suits our presentation a treat.
The reason for this is that if you apply an in turned eye with stiff link material, the angle of entry to the hook eye becomes very aggressive and less likely to catch hold in the fishes mouth.
Step two Pass the flourocarbon through the hook eye from point side to shank first and start to form the trusted knotless knot.
Form the Knotless Knot with about 6-7 turns
Around 6-7 turns will suffice before putting the line back through the eye from the back to the point side this time.
Place a small stainless ring on the tag end
Step three You should be left with a small tag end where you would normally tie a loop for bait attachment.
Place a small stainless rig ring onto this tag end and push the line through the hook eye as step two.
Step four Take a lighter and gently melt away a small section at a time of the tag end until you reach a sensible size for the bait attachment loop at the back of the hook.
Blob the tag end with a lighter
When this length is reached just blob the end of the tag with your thumb to stop it pulling back through the eye of the hook.
This is basically how to tie a D Rig attachment.
Step five Place a Large Eyed Swivel on the other end of the rig material and form a figure of 8 knot or loop knot as some call it.
Use a figure of 8 or loop knot
Your length of rig is up to you.
I like to fish around 2-3″.
Step six Position the Big Eyed Swivel onto your chosen Leadcore or Tubing and place a rubber buffer bead either side.
Ensure the beads and swivel can exit the leader for safety
IMPORTANT! Ensure that the swivel has freedom of movement up and down and that the beads don’t stop the swively from pulling up the rig and off the leadcore leader or tubing!
If it slides very easily then just use a piece of pva string to hold the rig in place on the cast.
Step seven Position a small lead clip and tail rubber onto the leader before finally attaching the lead.
The Chod Rig
The lead size and shape will obviously depending on the angling situation but remember a long nosed pointed 4oz lead is likely to bury itself very deep in soft silt!
Our only other step is to attach our bait using either a pellet band or dental floss to maintain the baits bouyancy and stop water ingress.
Tight Lines
Keith
Nuts about Carp
