ALWAYS CRASHING IN THE SAME CAR
It's been a long time since I fished shallow. As a kid on the Thames, my mates and I would have Bleak bashing matches. The river back then was heaving with them to the point that it was almost impossible to get through to the Roach and Dace we really wanted to catch. So it was really just a two hour time and motion study. The trick was not to strike at bites, indeed the tiny, unshotted float was only there to aid in flicking out the bait. What one had to do was establish how long it was taking them to get to the bait and then just lift them out to the count that worked best. It was metronomic and effective; if they were really up in the water, 10lbs an hour was achievable. Often they weren't even hooked but hanging on the maggot and a smooth lift would see them drop off straight into the keepnet strategically placed between your knees. It was not unusual to catch ten on the same maggot because they'd still take when only the skin was left. We were young then and enthusiastic; these days, not so much.
After a nice, early Monday morning laying-on with worms on the Leam for a dozen goer Dace, Roach and Chublets, I figured that the rest of my casters might just tempt some bigger Roach and Crucians from the club lake today. I started as I usually do with a bulk two feet above the hook, one small dropper halfway between that and a dust shot six inches above an 18. The dust would be on the bottom and could be augmented with as much lead as might be necessary to resist drift. Three pouchfuls of casters and immediately fish, and good ones at that, were fighting over them at the surface. It was boiling with what looked likely to be quality Rudd. My resolve did not last long; none of my feed was getting past them anyway. I tried just hanging the caster in the surface film and immediately had one of three quarters of a pound.
That did it. I pulled the float down to the bulk and pushed all my other shot up to it. With the float now set at two foot and no shot down the line I started began a more geriatric version of those bleak bashing days and for three quarters of an hour it was manic. I had a Roach/Rudd hybrid, more Rudd and a three and a half pound Tench. If the bait got past the Silvers the small Perch grabbed it and I had a mountain of those as well but after forty five minutes bites just stopped. The fish were still boiling at my feed but I couldn't buy a bite.
In the end I reverted to my default anchored bait but fed with a bait dropper, left in my bag from Monday. I had another Tench and a few bits and bobs but I did get smashed once and that tempted me to employ a recently tied experimental rig. I've always stuck to a maximum 3.3lbs hooklength when using my cane poles, probably through fear of damaging them. Recently, however, I've put immense pressure on them when snagged and been astonished at what they can stand. With that in mind I'd tied a rig to use 4.4lbs hooklengths and so I changed up. Of course I never hooked another Tench but It didn't seem to affect my catch rate which had already slowed up anyway.
I did sneak a small Crucian but it wasn't really working and with 45 minutes left, I tried flicking in some loose casters again. Immediately the swim was moiling and boiling as really decent fish turned and flashed at my feed. By now the sun had moved round and through my polaroids I could clearly identify the culprits. As expected they were Rudd but to my surprise they were really substantial with majority well over a pound and one or two close to, if not over, two. I could see them take my bait but I could not put the hook in. I had a pound Roach/Bream hybrid, some more smaller Rudd to 12 oz or so and, after the Rudd had inspected and rejected my bait, a couple of skimmers and a load more silly Perch.
This time they spooked off my hookbaits after about twenty minutes and although the big fish were clearly eating all my feed, I couldn't buy a bite any more. Those Rudd will feature in my nightmares for years to come. I've never seen so many of that size in those numbers in my life and I had them feeding in front of me all morning. I should never have reverted to bottom fishing. I should have scaled down to an unshotted float, a 2lbs hooklength and a 20 hook. At least then I would have known that I'd tried the best I could but in my excitement, I didn't. I was always hoping that the next cast would work and it didn't. As usual a reluctance to change my approach means that I'm always crashing in the same car.
After a nice, early Monday morning laying-on with worms on the Leam for a dozen goer Dace, Roach and Chublets, I figured that the rest of my casters might just tempt some bigger Roach and Crucians from the club lake today. I started as I usually do with a bulk two feet above the hook, one small dropper halfway between that and a dust shot six inches above an 18. The dust would be on the bottom and could be augmented with as much lead as might be necessary to resist drift. Three pouchfuls of casters and immediately fish, and good ones at that, were fighting over them at the surface. It was boiling with what looked likely to be quality Rudd. My resolve did not last long; none of my feed was getting past them anyway. I tried just hanging the caster in the surface film and immediately had one of three quarters of a pound.
That did it. I pulled the float down to the bulk and pushed all my other shot up to it. With the float now set at two foot and no shot down the line I started began a more geriatric version of those bleak bashing days and for three quarters of an hour it was manic. I had a Roach/Rudd hybrid, more Rudd and a three and a half pound Tench. If the bait got past the Silvers the small Perch grabbed it and I had a mountain of those as well but after forty five minutes bites just stopped. The fish were still boiling at my feed but I couldn't buy a bite.
In the end I reverted to my default anchored bait but fed with a bait dropper, left in my bag from Monday. I had another Tench and a few bits and bobs but I did get smashed once and that tempted me to employ a recently tied experimental rig. I've always stuck to a maximum 3.3lbs hooklength when using my cane poles, probably through fear of damaging them. Recently, however, I've put immense pressure on them when snagged and been astonished at what they can stand. With that in mind I'd tied a rig to use 4.4lbs hooklengths and so I changed up. Of course I never hooked another Tench but It didn't seem to affect my catch rate which had already slowed up anyway.
I did sneak a small Crucian but it wasn't really working and with 45 minutes left, I tried flicking in some loose casters again. Immediately the swim was moiling and boiling as really decent fish turned and flashed at my feed. By now the sun had moved round and through my polaroids I could clearly identify the culprits. As expected they were Rudd but to my surprise they were really substantial with majority well over a pound and one or two close to, if not over, two. I could see them take my bait but I could not put the hook in. I had a pound Roach/Bream hybrid, some more smaller Rudd to 12 oz or so and, after the Rudd had inspected and rejected my bait, a couple of skimmers and a load more silly Perch.
This time they spooked off my hookbaits after about twenty minutes and although the big fish were clearly eating all my feed, I couldn't buy a bite any more. Those Rudd will feature in my nightmares for years to come. I've never seen so many of that size in those numbers in my life and I had them feeding in front of me all morning. I should never have reverted to bottom fishing. I should have scaled down to an unshotted float, a 2lbs hooklength and a 20 hook. At least then I would have known that I'd tried the best I could but in my excitement, I didn't. I was always hoping that the next cast would work and it didn't. As usual a reluctance to change my approach means that I'm always crashing in the same car.
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