Warwickshire Avon – A spuff patch

With the evening not available to me, this morning session was a roving one to try and find a Barbel. The middle part of the stretch there was a match on so I’d try the swims at the tail end. Not a bad thing mind you as this is where the shallower and pacier swims are.

Tactics are simple for this sort of fishing, a large hook, a chunk of meat and I like to pinch a large jumbo shot on the line where I can mould a lump of plasticine around.

As I thought the banks were deserted because despite the recent rain it’s still very clear and tough going. 

Dusk is far the best time for a static bait 'but' a moving bait can be as effective…

You just need to find the fish and put something in front of them they cannot refuse.

After about 3 hours without a touch in various tasty looking swims I moved to one with heavy cover and sure enough after about the 3rd run through a bite was felt through my fingers.

The bend in the rod and the telltale fight, this was no Barbel or Chub, yeap

A bleeding eel….

There seems to be loads of the around at the moment, ok not a blank, it’s the mess they make I don’t like. Luckily this got himself free from the hook so no need to handle it.

The slime sticks like sh*t to a blanket though, it’s a bugger to get off the net.

Any tips welcome….

The last swim I could see the bottom and despite looking ideal for a Barbel with streamer weed and gravel and the bait going through nicely no fish were spotted and no bites came of it.

The rivers going through a bit of a rough patch at the minute it seems.

So I’ll be after the Zander again midweek, they seem to be on a different rule book.