Warwickshire Avon - Crocodiles and Cryobiology

I didn't feel brilliant for this short morning session as apart from feeling lethargic I also had a fever overnight where 2.30am I'm chucking off the bed covers and reaching for the paracetamol, as I was sweating like Prince Andrew ordering a flaming hot pizza at Pizza Express. 

At 7.00am though I felt ok and with the tackle already sorted and in the car I decided to take a short trip to the Warwickshire Avon where I'd lost a good fish towards the end of the last river season.  

I'm sure it was a decent Zander as I've caught them in this area up to 7lb or so but I've the years there has been rumours that there could be the odd double swimming in the waters.

Probably not ideal conditions at the river was on the rise and it was also clearing after a couple of hard frosts. Now that fish I lost at dusk when it managed to get into a snag and the inevitable happened and I lost it. One of those fish where I didn't even get to see it which is very frustrating indeed. 

I love arriving at dawn when most people are in bed because I'd be bankside before sunrise and during the winter months some of the sunrises especially with a clear sky can be lovely to see.

Now where are all the anglers in these winter months ? I rarely see another one these days and yet despite the rivers being high there are still some fish to be caught.

A section of roach under a small pike float and a size 1 circle hook my default zander set-up was positioned in a slack bit of water where I lost the decent fish before.

The sun had just about shown itself above the horizon when a bite came which I was surprised at, because the swim was like a whirlpool and it wasn't exactly a nice place for a fish to hold up.

The float buried under quite quick and you rarely get that with zander so once I tightened down to the circle hook I knew it was probably a pike. I was correct in my assumption and after a cracking fight  where it went on a good 4 or 5 powerful runs this river croc was in the net.

I knew it would be a river PB and going 16lb 10oz on the scales it was indeed. With that fish returned I stuck it out for another hour and a half but that was it, no more bites, but we are barely in to 2022 so I cannot complain over a PB, especially when they look as magnificent as this fish.