Roving river

Today was to be the first roving session on the local river, the plan was to fish a stretch we hadn't fished before. Because we didn't know the area at all we decided to park up just before first light, unload the gear and then walk about half a mile to our starting point. The length of the stretch we fished was about three quarters of a mile with around 1.5 miles of walking in total so we needed to pack light. We each had 2 rods each, a few bank sticks, landing nets, a small bag with spare tackle and food for the day. Me and Mike fished 2 rods between us and took the first swim on the river with Bri about 150yds down stream. It was a beautiful morning, cool and still, small fish broke the surface of the water all around us and there was plenty small fry in the margins. We stuck it out for 40 mins or so with nothing to show so moved to the next few swims closer to Bri. When I say swims I mean places to fish, the motto of the day was if you can get a net to the water it was a swim and some of the best looking spots where the hardest to get to. We had the first run in the next swim up from Bri, the bobbin dropped and the fish started to take line, I waited a short while, wound into the fish and then struck, the fish was small, it came to the surface very quickly and then shed the hooks. Bonus, there were fish about regardless of the size so I hooked up another bait and cast it to the same spot. As time ticked by I tried a few other places around Bri, discovering good depths of water and future places to session fish, Bri had the next run, a scrappy little jack of around 6lb, this fish had clearly

been caught by an inexperienced angler before, its bottom jaw was broken and it had last quiet a few teeth on one side of its mouth, this is just another case of poor handling something the PAC are trying there hardest to promote with teaching sessions for those who care.
This area was now spent and with a lot of prospecting to do it was time to move on so we wrapped up and headed down stream. It was to be a good walk to the next fishable swims as most of the bank was unfishable due to the thick undergrowth. Mike and I dropped into the first available swims with Bri dropping in about 300yds down from us. As I was putting the banksticks in I noticed a swirl in the water under a overhanging tree where I was to put my left hand rod so this rod was first in followed by the right hand rod that we put by a very big overhanging willow tree. Mike and I sat back once the baits were in and had a coffee and a chin wag when the bite alarm on the left rod sounded, I hit the run and landed a small jack of around 5lb that was completely flawless, I put him back and re cast. We didn't stay here to long before moving further down stream passing Bri on the way, Bri was fishing a great looking swim opposite a swim I had caught a 17lber a month or so ago that looks so fishy from the opposite bank. We dropped in 150yds down from Bri in one of the widest available swims on the

 bank, we ha to fight to get to it through thick brambles and a barbed wire fence but once passed the fence it cleared up. Again we put the banksticks in first then baited up the rods. the left hand rod was to go in first again, has I was about to cast there was the usual Sunday rowers heading up stream followed by a petrol powered dingy that is the safety boat, The guy piloting the safety boat noticed that I was about to cast out and kindly stopped, I flicked the bait to an overhanging tree and thanked the guy for his patience. As I was putting the rod down I felt a slight tug but dismissed it as the live bait, as I was trying to clip the bait up the line went slack and Mike shouted its gone already, I tighten up to it and set the hooks, Mike soon got down to take over and after a brief scrap she was ours. Weighed, photo'd and returned to the water in a matter of minutes,  10lb 01oz  another double for Mike. Once the fish was safely returned I managed to get the rods back out and kick back for a brew and a bite to eat. We gave it 20 mins and decided to move on, with a fish already falling to the left hand rod I thought it best to bring in the rod on the right first and what a lucky decision that turned out to be, just as I unclipped the bobbin the other rod screamed off. I set the hooks and gave the rod to Mike, he played the fish hard and soon got her to the bank, While I was unhooking the fish Mike was getting the sling, scales and

camera ready, he's getting very efficient at this now, too efficient lol, Mike weighed her 10lb 01oz again so I took the scales for a second opinion and he was right. We took some photos and returned her to the water. Having caught another double from this swim it would have been foolish not to give it another 30 mins so while I casted the rod back out Mike checked the photos to make sure it wasn't the same fish, it wasn't to be.
After feeding our selves and the local robins with tracker bars we wrapped up and headed down stream calling in at a few more swims on the way to our final destination where we fished the rest of the day out in swims we usually session fish. No more fish were caught today but it was most enjoyable discovering new areas on what was to be the last pleasant day of 2013 and all of coarse in good company.

A change for the best



 As you have probably gathered we try our hardest to fish as a group but this has proved to be quite difficult on the river, there just isn't an area that has four swims next to each other, not only that four productive swims. This time out the plan was to split up and fish a premium swim each so to speak the way we come about selecting the swims was decided a few days before the trip by each selecting our three preferred swims and texting each other. If there was to be a clash of first choice swims then we had to draw straws on the morning of the trip, this wasn't going to be necessary as we had all some how managed to select different swims. The morning of the trip we had all arranged to meet at Bri's house around 5am, this didn't happen, Bri had to drop out this time so Bernie and I made our way straight to the river. Bernie opted to fish a swim he'd never fished before, I'd tried this swim a month or so ago in flooded conditions and managed an 8lb jack, its a popular swim with the carpers and situated on the outside of a big bend in the river.

Me and Mike also decided to fish an area we hadn't fished before, this time on a straight section of river with plenty of features to fish to. We arrived and set up in the dark, I like to have my baits in before first light, many of the fish we catch come at first light and even the odd one before light.I got a phone call just before 7am, it was still very dark, it was Bernie, he had just put back a very welcomed 14 lb 7oz pike, he explained how he had caught it and that it  had a very deep wound on its flank.
The fishing wasn't particularly good in the swims Mike and I were fishing, the only action was a dropped run on one of Mikes rods.

I put the lack of action down to the amount of water in the3 river, it was up but falling and the swim we were fishing was on a narrow and shallow section of the system. Bernie soon called again, he had caught another nice double this one was slightly smaller but still a respectable 13 lb 01oz, a very good looking fish in pristine condition. We give it another hour in our swim and decided to move, the fish were on the feed but not in this location so Mike and I wrapped up and headed to a double swim that's been good to me.
We arrived at our next swim around 10am, we soon had the baits in, Mike had never fished here before so I put him on the left hand side which has proven more fruitful, I've had a fair few fish on this side of the swim and today was more about Mike catching than me. I had the first run, a nice jack of 9 lb 4oz, this gave me confidence as most of the fish tend to come from the left so it was only a matter of time before Mike was going to get a run. We settled in and had a few brews and it wasn't long before Mike got his first run, there was plenty room in this swim so now was the time for Mike to net his first pike and what a good job he did of it, we unhooked the fish and weighed it, 9 lb 9oz, put her back in the water for a few minutes and then took her back out for a few trophy shots before Mike released her.

Mike is in a junior league run by the Pike Anglers Club of Great Britain and all the fish he catches are weighed and photographed and the information is then passed on to PAC and regional organiser Sean Ellis to update the league table on the PAC forum. Its more for the fun of it and its all about getting youngsters into our sport because at the end of the day its the youth of today that will be expected to pass on all the hard work, safe handling and good practice that has evolved from past and present pikes to the next generation of pike anglers.

We had plenty more runs that day but only connected to two other fish a 7 lb 11oz and another double of 10 lb 10oz both of which Mike caught. It was one of them days I suppose we caught 4 fish between us but lost just as many fish. Bernie had no other fish but lost a double close in, a good day was had by all and I'm looking forward to getting out again.

 Mike with a beautifully marked 7 lb 11oz pike

 

Mikes only double of the day 10 lb 10oz, he caught it as he was packing his gear away.