Stour, Roach - No show

The Warwickshire Stour isn’t a river for big fish, but there is still lots going for it, fish maggot in the summer months you will probably have 10 species in a short session and get on the Gudgeon you will have a net full. I was after Roach today though and the weather looked favourable, an overnight frost, slightly coloured water and a river on the fall. It’s a roving river, no point sticking it out in a single swim you need to find the fish.

The first swim I’d caught decent Roach from in the past and usually within 15 or 20 minutes or so after the lobworm tail or bread had settled you would start getting sharp twangs on the quiver tip to indicate they were in the swim. Not this morning though, suspicious in their absence. Usually a cage feeder filled with liquidised bread get them interested pretty quickly. I have the swim a bit longer than usual then moved on to the next swim.

Fishing for me isn’t just about catching bigger and bigger fish, appreciating the countryside and wildlife as well as topping up the vitamin D and fresh air which doesn’t feature much in my weekly work routine. The morning was lovely, crisp underfoot with the slow rise of the winter sun gradually melting the frost wherever it touched.

A few swims further down a bend in the river is fed from a feeder stream and the water is a little more oxygenated, I don’t think I’ve not failed to catch a fish from it and again after a few indications there were fish within the swim the tip properly hooped over and I was playing a fish. With the river up from its usual levels the Chub was making most of the flow assistance and was giving a good account for itself. It was a pristine 2lber, not that target species I was after but an enjoyable fight all the same.

A few more biteless swims later I called it a day. Over Christmas I’m planning to try further upstream where there are some really narrow stretches but also some larger pools which look particularly Roachy if there is ever such a thing.

I returned to the River Sunday morning to try for a Zander, the river looked ideal, slightly coloured and overcast. The sunrise was awesome but the fishing wasn’t. A few dropped runs in different swims and a tiny Jack but that was it. Maybe a couple of sessions in to dusk is in order as either they ain’t there or it’s not feeding time.