Warwickshire Avon – Psychoshadmacology

So these Zander, anyone worked them out yet?

As someone who spends a large amount of time fishing for them I’m sure they are on a timed release of a psychoactive drug. The problem is their feeding time and habits vary day by day, and there doesn’t seem a pattern emerging despite the hours I’ve put in.

On the cut where I know there are fish just laying up, all of a sudden something will trigger them off

….and they go the full on Tasmanian.

Maybe one of the pack farts or something, God only knows.

It’s a little like someone I know who despite bad experiences after necking bucket loads of cheap alcohol still enjoys the Gin Craze, she goes from nice to nasty in a click of one’s fingers…

Proper mentalists….

In this area of the Avon I’ve not properly explored I managed to catch a schoolie that had properly nailed the rather large lure meant for Pike, it was veritable gob stopper but despite that it was determined to give it a good going over and manage to ingest both rather large treble hooks.

So after being a bit disheartened trying my best to catch a good Barbel I wanted to explore the upper reaches of the river to see if I could snare a larger specimen. There are some nice hiding areas here you see, so I was hoping drop a lure in the right place might trigger a Tracie Andrews reaction and hook a nice Zander or for some sport, a rod bending Pike.

First swim where I’d caught Zander before, not a jot. Second, same again, the third, bugger all. The fourth, eventually a fish, a small greedy Jack.

The weir had to have some fish in residence and sure enough after some searching out with the lure a half decent Pike shot from the margins but probably saw my ugly mug and went back where he came.

A surface popping lure had a couple of surfacing fish but swopping back to a shallower diver eventually I hooked in to a decent fish. My 7ft Korum snapper jig rod has some decent backbone to it and despite giving the clutch a workout it was landed. 

Not the biggest at 6 or 7lb but welcome all the same.

Now further upstream, three swims later ‘Bang’ something’s properly nailed the shad, fighting harder this one but eventually in the net.

That’s a bit better, 7lb 8oz’s.

3 or 4 swims further up, not a sausage but it weird up there, devoid of any life for some reason. There must be some fish around though, as I’ve had Zander right at the top of the stretch.

So back where I came from, nothing in the weir so decided to go past the bridge to some potential Perch swims I’ve been told about.

I bumped in to Sean who I’d spotted crossing the meadow who had similar ideas and was trying for a Zander or whatever came along.

After a quick natter and two swims without a Perch I walked downstream to an oxygenated area that must hold a few fish. Sure enough a greedy Jack nailed the small shad.

With half an hour left, I fish a peg with a large overhanging tree which gives an area of still water downstream of it.

Didn’t take long either for a fish, another Pike of around 5 or 6 lb.

Not the biggest of fish but considering the conditions not a bad result. This type of session suits me a roving angler too. Small rod, bag and landing net that’s all you need.

Sean this robin took a liking to your car :)

Warwickshire Avon – Daylight Robbery and the Exhibitionist

Post 400, wow, doesn't time fly....

Anyway bye bye British Summer Time

Well not quite, but long now, October the 30th, when we go back to GMT again.

The mornings will be lighter (for now), and the evenings darker.

So the longest day of the year which is in June on the summer solstice, 16 hours and 50 minutes of sunlight. That dwindles to just 7 hours and 40 minutes on the winter solstice in December.

When you look at that one sentence, it really can play havoc with ones fishing sessions, it has to, and there is no getting away from it.

So when will it start to get lighter again ?, well as a seasonal affective disorder (SAD) sufferer it seems like months and months, and it actually is, 1am March the bleeding 26th.

William Willet the British businessman popularised the idea of Daylight Saving Time in the UK in 1907. He thought the clocks should go forward in April, and then September so people got out of bed earlier and saw more of the sun. He popped his clogs before seeing his plans put in place. Weirdly he was the great-great grandfather of the Coldplay singer Chris Martin, maybe explains some of his tracks I suppose.

So negative thoughts and feelings, fatigue, increased irritability. I didn’t mind it when I wasn’t a maggot drowner as when I lived in Birmingham (still got the scars) as the rather attractive neighbour over the road when the light went used to reveal herself and her assets to everyone in the street whilst trying on her extensive and skimpy wardrobe ….

….curtains open, light on, boobs out.

To be honest it got boring after a while, very much groundhog day, even the local taxi firm who serviced the area didn't bat an eyelid, it might have added a few grand to my house sale mind you, and you cannot knock that. Then again, sadly I didn’t get the chance.

At least the fattening up starts to get through the winter, be it Barbel, Chub or oneself…I’m not quite ready for those hearty stews, the port, the brandy, the Stilton cheese, the open fire, but I’m already on the look-out for a new woolly jumper and some thicker socks, anyway I’m 44 in November, heck might even start wearing vests.

Many get the winter blues, but me as a fisherman, ok the sessions tend to get less, but I actually prefer the winter fishing months so the SAD is offset somewhat,….

….the banks are quieter, the fish fatter, what’s not to like…

Now talking of exhibitionists, as the light dropped the fish start moving here, Barbel rolling, Chub topping, they were showing themselves off to a degree I’d not seen before, like they wanted to be seen, weird as it sounds, but I'd like one of those Barbel please.

So these smash and grab session(s) were just that, straight after work rods made up complete with a couple of spicy krill boilies on a long hair, tackle in car, the bare minimum.

Rigs deployed with an hour before dusk to hopefully catch a fish. PVA bag with a few matching crushed boilies.

Wait for sundown....and that unmistakable 'BITE'

1st session, no fish, just some outrageous Chub bites.

2nd session, no fish, no Chub nibbles or pulls.

3rd session, sadly work got in the way so finished later than expected. Met up with Russell Hilton (remember him) who was in the area and targeting Zander on the cut.

4th session, some Chub pulls but no fish banked, however I did spot two hunting barn owls though and the sunset was fantastic.

5th session, hair shortened, 1 small Barbel of 3lb, one small Chub

I might take up knitting....

Canal Zander – Professlowalism

“Are they moving ?”

“Not sure to be honest”

“Oh yes, I think they are”

Careful now, got to line the boat up with ponderous precision, it’s a small opening after all.

“I never knew a barge could go so slowly”

They are eventually in, should have brought my gas stove, could have cooked us up a full English whilst we wait to get the bait out. We’ve no choice but to become gongoozlers.

The Jack Russell’s out complete with life-jacket, the elderly owner with windlass in hand.

He’s surveying his quandary, hmmm, hang on a minute he’s attached it to the paddles.

“We’re getting somewhere”

Easy now, don’t turn it too fast, might put your back out.

“Good, take your time, half a turn then stop, then repeat” “He’s succeeded”

Back, against paddles

“CRACK !!!!!!!”

Whoops, he’s bottomed out the gates, I thought it was his knee for a minute, yeap, he’s tried to close them. Oh I know what, I’ll push them the other way, that should work.

Finally, they are out, and on to the next one in a sloth like manner.

I’d give Hatton flight a miss if I were you....

Luckily it was the last swim Danny and I were to fish. We had planned to fish the Avon for Zander in to dark, but both agreed we probably we wasting our time and the session would likely end fruitless.

So it was an early start on the cut to see if the Zander were biting. As like-minded canal Zander anglers it’s always good to meet up. We’ve a professional and businesslike approach to targeting them and successful because of it.

We both have had some decent fish from the canal now and my biggest of 9lb to date, Danny even bigger and I’m sure a double is there for the taking. The conditions were not ideal though, some horrible rain for the first couple of hours put a dampener on it but still Zander were caught.

Nothing of size but with Zander fishing we both agree, you stumble on a bigger fish the likely hood it won’t be in the same swim again. The bigger specimens are transient so it’s a matter of getting as much banktime as possible.

Danny’s ‘washed’ out looking baits out did my fresher looking roach deadbaits and I’ve said before the condition of them doesn’t really matter that much.

They were in scrapping mood too, not the biggest of fish but the bend in the rod was deceptive the result an average cut schoolie.

Danny alternated between dead and lure, dead and dead. I for the majority of my canal Zander fishing, exclusively floatfished deadbaits.

What I’ve found though, is the colder the better so once the first frosts hit, they will likely be feeding more heavily particular the larger fish. Still, find some pocket of fish and they are decent sport when the river is out of sorts.

Come March when I’ll start my Zander challenge again, I’ll be concentrating one particular canal and plan to fish pastures new and stretches very familiar to me.

I cannot wait….