Warwickshire Avon - Panchymagogue and Palmoscopy

We are back, WE ARE BACK !!!!

As much as I've liked the canal fishing, >40 sessions in-fact, it is always a means to an end because I'm not going to lie, the rivers are where ones allegiances lie. Lakes and pools, same thing, just not me at all, but then then this is fishing after all. 

A pastime that be adapted in all manner of ways to suit the piscatorial pursuit participator, with sessions lasting 2 hours, 2 days or 2 weeks. For me little and often works as it has done for years now. A <5 hour session commonplace, a full day a rarity. 

To be fair I could have ventured out for a last gasp session down at'thee canal but to be honest a session up the Hallowed would probably only cut it.

The likeminded you see had been updating me with pictures of 24lb pike and 7lb Tench and with life's pressures becoming a little overwhelming of late a 2 hour session for a slimy bream probably wouldn't have cut the mustard. 

A little like this rum I bought at a recent air show, my previous favourite completely forgotten about.

For a sipping rum, my God, hard to fault when it tickled ones experienced palate, 

Now after a chat with the seller after sampling a few of the other Maroon offering this Premium Caribbean Rum is blended with various flavours including  Caramel, Orange, Beet, Ginger, Rum Spice and a few secrets.

In-fact its the caramel which first hits you and then boy talk about a sensory explosion, this 65% percent oddly hides its alcohol content rather well. A napalm throat burner this is not, but instead gives a nice warming feeling. 

Now to kick things off for this new season catching chub off the top is always up there with my early season approach because at the start of the season when the rivers are low and clear, these most cautious of fish can sometimes be caught off guard with a white surface drifter when surfaces baits are ignored. 

Sometimes slow sinking flake is also worth a go especially when you can see the fish come up to inspect the bait and then shy away and head back to where they came from. 

Now Warwickshire Avon 6lber is my target for this season and I nearly managed it last season when a right old lump made an appearance When it took a lump of spam meant for a Barbus. In-fact it couldn't get as close to 6lb if it tried as it weighed 5lb and 15 ounces, if only I fed more freebies  !!!!. 

The river was stupidly low as expected and crystal clear but the first swim I came to I could see the dark shapes of the chub milling around.

Some small pieces of bread floating down t he river brought almost instant reaction but then with a hook in one they came up to inspect the bread and then went back to where they came from. Not huge fish admittedly but well worth catching.

The key in one swim was slow sinking bread where the bright white colour of the bait could be seen falling through the layers of the later column, and then disappeared from view where a fish had picked it up. 

Displaying its summer colours this one around 3.5 to 4lb and most welcome indeed. In-fact forget barbel, Chub are probably my favourite river species, great scrappers and one of the most interesting of species.

Roving is the key for this sort of fishing and this swim above within a millisecond of the bread hitting the surface a chub had picked it up.

Oddly the first caught was the biggest with the smallest a couple of pound or so. To be fair I lost one at the end of the 2.5 hour session that picked up the bait right at the end of the 30-40 yard swim.

6 fish were landed and a very enjoyable fish day back on the river. It's going to be 30 degrees later so not sure if I'm going to get out because it was very hot and humid for this session and very 'close' but will decide later.

So get out there and give it a go, a loaf of bread and a hook, and that's your lot. Such a simple method and one of the most rewarding.