Innholdsfortegnelse for Issue 3666 i Angling Times

THERE are more big carp in England than ever, but catching a fish over 30lb is still special... particularly if you’re just seven-years-old! That’s the tender young age of Thomas Taylor, who landed this common on a trip to a stillwater in Guildford. “He was fishing with his dad down at the local pond, and 15 minutes after setting up, he had a take,” proud mum Kathrine told us. “After a long battle using his 6ft rod, Thomas got the better of it and his dad netted the fish. He was chuffed to bits!” The fish fell to a wafter and certainly sets Thomas well on the way to a successful carp angling career!…

“I TOOK A FEW SLICES OF BREAD FROM HOME” Jay Elliot – 7lb 13oz ide “AS I HAD an afternoon spare I headed to my local water armed with a float rod and a few slices of bread from home. “I settled into a swim and began fishing a rodlength out, feeding small amounts of groundbait plus a bit of liquidised bread. “I make my hookbaits by microwaving slices of bread after removing the crusts. I then apply gentle pressure with a rolling pin and they’re ready to punch, giving me bread pellets that swell up superbly. “After fishing for 40 minutes, the float began dancing, then disappeared. “I gave a firm strike and connected with a good fish. From the fight, I knew it was a chub or an…

DAIWA MATCHMAN MARGIN THE wall strength on these poles has to be seen to be believed! Available in 7m and 9m packages, both with a spare 5.8mm tip bore Power kit suited to Red Hydro, a cupping kit with cups, and a padded holdall. Smaller bore 4.7mm poles suit lighter elastics up to a Black Hydro. All top kits come with end and side bushes already fitted. WHY WE WOULD BUY ONE: Thanks to the cupping kit and availability of lighter duty Power kits, this pole suits open water tactics too. Price: 7m package £200, 9m £250, 5.8mm and 4.7mm top kits both £40, www.daiwasports.co.uk PRESTON INNOVATIONS SUPERIUM MARGIN 8.5M TO COMPLEMENT the range of Superium Poles, Preston has included this superb short-range pole taking the same top kits. Light…

A VERY YOUNG MR FICKLING I HAVE been reading Angling Times for more than 60 years... and used to write the odd feature for the title. Sadly, I have always been a completely bonkers predator angler. So, rummaging through a pile of yellow mouldering copies of Angling Times from many years ago I discovered, by incredible coincidence, the enclosed picture of Neville Fickling. I kept this one because a picture taken by my fellow piker Fred Wagstaffe (he used to write a weekly column in AT) was on that particular cover. You may locate it in your archives... just ignore the ancient comments I wrote at the time! We used to have memorable disagreements with Neville in the 1960s and 1970s about Midlanders ‘poaching’ his area. I recently bumped into…

DICK WALKER’S FISHING HUT, 1962 HAVING been a regular contributor to Angling Times for 35 years or so, you will probably have discovered I have a few idiosyncrasies. Among them are a thirst for angling knowledge and opinion, the desire to know ‘stuff’ (“the ins and outs of a duck’s arse,” as my late maternal grandmother described it), good conversation, and a sing-song. “It would have been the longest angling podcast of all time” Just imagine how much I’d have enjoyed being part of this Brains Trust of anglers, gathered outside the fishing hut they erected on a stretch of the Great Ouse at Beachampton. I’ve never been a specimen hunter, or anything close, but this group would have been considered thus at the time, even though there wasn’t the…

TARGET THE SHALLOWS ON A TYPICAL commercial there are lots of options as to where to fish, but it’s best to keep things simple and focus on three main spots. Carp are starting to feed in shallow water, so up against an island or far bank and in the margins are great areas. As long as there’s a minimum of 2ft of water, you’ll be fine. The third area to target is the ‘short line’ at around 5m, just into the deeper water coming away from the marginal slope. This can be something of a throwaway line, as it can produce 100lb on the right day but, equally, may only throw up the odd fish on another. BOMB IT DOWN YOU want your hookbait to get straight to the bottom…

THIS WEEK EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW FROM THE WORLD OF FISHING THE BIGGEST perch ever caught by an Englishman has been boated by Rob Hughes, who slipped his net under this true giant scaling 7lb. It was the result of a short yet spectacular session, during which he also landed numerous ‘fours’ and ‘fives’, plus another huge stripey weighing 6lb 1oz. Rob was fishing The Netherlands’ mighty Haringvliet – the delta of the Rivers Rhine and Meuse – the globe’s undisputed big-perch Mecca measuring 26 miles long and three miles wide. “I teamed up with local expert Toon Von Ham for a day-and-a-half, and things looked promising from the start as Toon landed a ‘six’ early on,” Rob revealed. But, from then on, things proved tricky. Strong winds battered…

AT LAST – IT’S MARGIN TIME! IT’S RAPIDLY becoming time on commercial fisheries to fish ‘the edge’, an area of the peg that’s only going to get better and better as we head into May – yet too many people assume fishing the margins is just about dumping in a load of bait and emptying the lake! True, that can happen occasionally, but really you need to think about what you are feeding , how much and how often. Even double-figure carp be surprisingly fickle, despite the fact you can see them with their tails up tearing up the lakebed. For me, there are two feeds to use in the edge – dead maggots and groundbait or pellets and corn – and while both will work, they have their pros…

TIPS & TACTICS SNAKE lakes around the UK are dominated by F1s, which are a great target when they’re feeding but they can also go missing for no reason and leave you sat there willing the float to go under. However, by targeting a completely different species, bites can be guaranteed and a surprisingly big net can be the reward at pack-up time. We’re talking silverfish, specifically ide – a species many try to avoid when they’re after bigger fish. But it’s those carp and F1s that are responsible for the size that ide have reached, and in many lakes they now average 1lb apiece, so are well worth fishing for! My regular haunt, Meadow Farm Cottages Fishery near Norwich, is a perfect example. The Silvers Canal Lake is a…

CARPSKILLS NOWADAYS, I probably fish with traditional length carp rods – those of 12ft or 13ft – on no more than a handful of sessions a year. I have been an avid user of much shorter versions for a long time, and use them for 95 per cent of my angling. To my mind, they offer many significant benefits, while the drawbacks are minimal when put into practice. That being said, it’s important to be aware of a few aspects that present themselves when angling with these rods to ensure your fishing tools are able to perform to the best of their ability. WHAT ARE THE DRAWBACKS? It seems strange to begin an article by discussing the negatives of an idea that you are championing , but this needs to…

A WHOLE host of commercial fishery superstars turned out to compete in the Guvnor of the Ridge festival at Cheshire’s Partridge Lakes, where Kieran Marsden walked away with the title. Former Fish O’Mania champions Andy Bennett and Kristian Jones were among the entrants, but it was the Matrix-backed star that tasted glory in the two-day event, thanks to a perfect score. He takes up the story... DAY ONE “Peg 133 on Covey Canal was my home for the day, and I was delighted with it, as it’s a very good peg with plenty of form,” explained Kieran. “I knew that meat had been working well here in the lead up to the festival, and that was all I had on my tray. “I didn’t want to complicate things – it…

THIS WEEK FOLLOWING damage to fish stocks on a popular Midlands river, the Angling Trust has called for the RSPCA to stop releasing rescued seals into the area. Five tagged seals have been seen in and around the Peterborough area, having been reintroduced into the tidal River Nene at Sutton Bridge. Some have travelled 30 miles upstream, where prolonged freshwater exposure is damaging both the seals and the habitat. “Each released seal will consume vast numbers of freshwater fish – one alone can decimate a fishery,” said Jamie Cook, Angling Trust CEO. “We have asked the RSPCA to immediately cease reintroductions at Sutton Bridge to protect the seals, as well as the native freshwater fish and wildlife they are encountering.”…

LITTLE OIKS YES, we need to look to the next generation to boost fishing. But why do all the local yobs head to the canal on your day off? If they’re not throwing things into the water or jumping in, they’re trying to talk “street” to each other. Even though they live in a tinpot rural town, and the closest they’ll come to “thug life” is dropping a crisp packet outside Aldi. THOUGHTLESS BOATERS WHILE we’d espouse a “live and let live” approach to shared waterways, there’s no getting round just how antisocial some of our more energetic boating enthusiasts are. Pleasure paddlers tend to be pleasant, but what is it with those posh, upper-crust types who assemble rowing crews? Not only do they travel at high speed, accompanied by…

THE JOY OF FISHING RIPPING open two bags of Continental groundbait instantly brought back memories of tench, bream and roach as the rich, sweet aroma filled my nostrils. This was a moment to savour, and one that instantly made me want to go fishing – despite the horrendously damp early spring weather showing few signs of abating. The forecast was for a stiff, chilly breeze and heavy showers, but there was no point in waiting for a better day, because the long-range prospects were equally grim. At least the last of the daffodils framing my swim added a splash of colour, and gave me hope that nature was finally waking up. Challenging conditions indeed, but I can get bored when bites come too easily, and I doubted that would be…

SPOTLIGHT ON GLYNDWR, COMMONWOOD FISHERY COMMONWOOD Fishery is renowned for its stocks of giant carp, but several lakes on-site are just as prolific for those who prefer to work with a float rod or pole and seatbox. Located close to the Welsh town of Wrexham, there are four waters that are ideal for lighter tackle and, of these, Glyndwr is arguably the pick of the bunch. Visitors have 19 swims to choose from, and the wide mix of species present can make it impossible for anglers to guess what has taken the bait when the float goes under or the tip goes round. Car parks dotted around the lake make walks to each swim short, and toilets and a reception area are just a stone’s throw away. There are also…

FAULT FIXERS Expert help to give your match fishing the edge THE TUTOR BRAD PARKES The Drennan NW team member is as good at winkling out a few bites on a tough canal as he is hauling out a big weight from a commercial fishery. He’s achieved plenty of success both individually and on the team front. THE LESSON 1 FIND THE BEST DEPTH High pressure – anything above 1010 mb – makes fish feel uncomfortable. When high pressure comes in, they’ll move out of deep water because it will push down forcefully on them. Shallow spots close to far banks and islands are ideal at such times. 2 FEEDING HABITS CHANGE In low pressure, targeting carp and F1s, I’ll fish in the deepest water available. If high pressure then…