THE EVER RELIABLE PERCH

     Anglers, especially those of a certain age, have a lot to thank the perch for. For most of us they were the first fish to sacrifice themselves on the altar of a child's unsuitable tackle. Today those same, now geriatric, anglers are grateful for their willingness to feed when nothing else will. They are certainly a gift from the angling gods on a day like today.

     For three hours from first light I religiously fed and recast every 10 minutes for absolutely no good reason beyond establishing my presence and hopefully overcoming at least one fish's reluctance to feed on yet another cold day. I say cold but by 11 o clock it was a balmy 8° and yet it felt far colder than a recent trip when the line was freezing to the rings. I'm not sure how that works but I suspect Pete's suggestion that the damper weather has some relevance. In the same way that foreign travellers will tell you that the dry heat of Spain is more bearable than the humid heat of Blighty, the damp, cold weather of late seems much harder than that of a bright, crisp, frosty morning.

     Anyway, I plugged away at it, flicking a few maggots around the float every cast, fiddling with my shotting and my depth in the hope of solving the riddle. Eventually, the very subtlest of indications gave me an excuse to strike and a gentle lift found the tip pulled over and a half-decent fish plugging doggedly away in eight feet of water.

 

     Gentle work bearing in mind my 1.3 lbs hooklength eventually paid off and a fine winter perch was in the landing net. There are very few more splendid sites on the bank than a very hard-earned winter perch although I would have swapped it for a roach of the same weight, one and a half pounds exactly. A quick photograph and both fish and bait were back in the water. Within five minutes I had another of the same weight and then a smaller fish of around 12 ounces.

     Bites, for so long the stuff of wild daydreams were now coming almost immediately that the bait got to the bottom but were almost impossible to hit. Usually when this happens, I leave them longer and longer before striking and eventually I hit another nice fish. Sadly it came adrift and as so often happens, all my bites went with it and my day was over.