Down the Mill

Last week I suffered an alcohol induced lay off, caused by a little Saturday night over indulgence. Eager to make use of the good river conditions this week, I crammed in a short afternoon predator session down on the Avon.

With time against me I decided to stay a little closer to home and for the first time this season I reached for my Warwick book. It's actually the first time I've held that book during my blogging years. I was a regular in years gone by though so I know their waters pretty well.

Two venues were on my mind for this session and although I wasn't a predator angler the last time I fished them, I had experienced my share of predator problems while fishing for other species at both venues.

In the end it came down to convenience. Saxon Mill was the closest, so it was always going to be tough to drive straight past it.

I have some fond memories of this stretch dating back 20 years. There are lovely swims where you can just hide yourself away from everyone and enjoy the scenery. The only drawback is the access, which isn't always the best.

One peg that would always feature amongst my all time favourites is the one sat in the shadow of the Guy's Cliffe ruins. Aside from the draw of the ghostly and imposing ruins, the peg itself is a classic. A deep nearside back eddy with plenty of overhanging features, a good flow of water just beyond and lots of far bank cover.

I concentrated on the slacker water on the nearside and dropped out a pair of deadbaits. Sardine to my left and lamprey to my right.

It only took the second move of the sardine to trigger a response. At the time I was just clicking off a few photos for the blog when the float twitched. It then dipped under and I was in business. It wasn't the hardest of fights though and I slipped the net under a pike of 7lb 8ozs. As it's the first I've caught from the stretch it set me a target.

The rest of this fairly brief session was a struggle though. I wanted to check out the prolific mill race above the weir. At times it is stuffed with silver fish and that in turn means predators won't be far behind. I recall having some problems here in the past - not from a pike though, but from the biggest perch I've ever laid eyes on.

The promise wasn't fulfilled though and I retired to the weirpool for my last attack. It went totally wrong though, largely due to snag after snag taking its toll. I quit and was left to rue my decision to move away from the area near the ruins. 

It was nice to reacquaint myself with the mill again, but it might be a while before I return. The weeks are slipping by quickly and other venues are still on my to do list.

The week ahead looks set to turn colder and particularly so towards the weekend, when there might even be potential for some of the white stuff. Maybe my snow pike will be on the cards this year after all?

Stalked

I wasn't really sure what to fish for this week or where to go - or if I'd even manage to get out at all. As it turned out the Avon had dropped down much better than I thought it would (to about 6 inches up on my normal stretch), while the Leam was struggling a little more to shift the excess water. I gave the nod to the Avon and headed off for an afternoon session.

With a dropping river that was nicely coloured, reasonable enough temperatures and overcast conditions, I opted to go for bream in a fairly sheltered and deep area. A simple feeder rig fished with a braid main line was the plan of attack, with a bunch of red maggots. Five balls of a fishmeal groundbait spiced up with some liquid molasses was used to kickstart the swim. A sleeper rod for pike was also dropped into the right hand margin

Initially the bites weren't as frequent as I'd hoped and so I scaled back the terminal tackle and lengthened the tail. It seemed to pay off as I started to connect with a few fish. Mostly dace to start with, but then a familiar slow thudding fight signaled that a bream was on the way in. It was actually a venue best for me at 5lb 1oz (ignore the scales in the picture - the net weighed 1lb). Excuse the poor photo - I discovered soon afterwards that the lens needed cleaning.

It was the only bream I had though and I missed far more bites than I managed to catch. No roach showed up at all, which was quite surprising. Just dace and more dace.

A new pike float I made recently was being put through its paces - or rather it was doing a good job of staying above water! I had moved it a couple of times, but it was a third move that did the trick and a fish was on very quickly. I find it's often like that with pike and you need to keep changing positions to make something happen. It's easier when you're actually having a dedicated pike session, but less so when you're also trying your luck with the feeder and hoping to build up a swim.

I made a right clumsy fight of it, managing to snag my landing net on an unseen snag beneath a landing stage. Luckily I freed it and then the fish nearly went under stage too. Eventually I got myself sorted out and netted the pike.

It was another very low double at 10lb 3oz - my third low double in as many sessions and all consecutive fish too. It's a strike rate I'd like to keep going! Many's the time when I've been cursed by jacks and can't get near a double.

Something was niggling me though and when I got home I took a look through past catches. Sure enough this was an old friend last caught on Christmas Eve and previously caught in September too. Now you might think that I caught it from the same swim again, but that's not the case. I caught it in an area that I don't often pike fish and is about 100 yards upstream and around a bend from where I last caught it. I feel like this fish is stalking me! The good news is that it continues to put weight on - 2oz heavier this time.

I dedicated the final hour of the day to pike fishing and moved up to the banker area, but it failed me on this occasion. I did very briefly connect with another fish, but it slipped the hooks quickly and I never saw it. Quite often when this happens you can fool them again soon afterwards, but not this time.

Another unsettled week of weather lies ahead, with temperatures dipping away towards the end of the week and frosts likely for next weekend.

Deja Vu

My first outing of the year was on the Leam. The river was fine and the lowest I've seen it in a while, but the wind was howling through and made for uncomfortable conditions. Thankfully I was able to tether a brolly into position to shield myself from the brunt of it.

In no mood to mess around with float gear, I decided to go for two feeder rods, occasionally sacrificing one for a pike rod. As is usual, fish were topping all across the river while the light levels were low, but they disappeared noticeably as it got brighter.

Bites were never terribly frequent, but all the action took place early in the session. A handful of silver fish were caught (roach and perch), but nothing above 6oz. My first attempt with the pike rod was more successful though and following the first repositioning of the lamprey bait, the float was doing a dance.

A fairly uneventful fight followed and the fish was quickly in the net. It was a long, lean fish that easily has the scope to be a hefty double, but my instincts were that it was still a single figure fish. Brian helped with the weighing and it just sneaked into double figures at 10lb 1oz.  

When I looked back at my blog, I spotted that it was the same fish that I caught back in September when it was 10lb 8oz. It came from the same spot in the same swim - maybe it doesn't get out much?!

Bizarrely, my last post of 2014 also saw me catching a 10lb 1oz pike from the Avon, that I'd previously caught a few months earlier. I'd much rather have caught a completely different fish though - even if it was smaller.

As I'm sure many fellow bloggers do around this time, I've been reflecting over the past year's fishing. It was pretty slender pickings for me in 2014 and I probably spent less time than ever on the bank. A positive that came from the year was discovering the River Leam. I've still barely scratched the surface and have made loads of mistakes in my approach to it, but there's enough promise to keep drawing me back. It's a beautiful location where you can just get totally away from everything and that's how I like it.

One thing that I intend to do in 2015 is to diversify a little more. I spent too much time on the same waters in 2014. So, I've drawn up a list of venues I want to fish and I'll chip away at it throughout the year. Big rivers, chalk streams, canals, lakes and reservoirs are all featured. Many of them will be new to me and that's all part of the fun.

I've also been busy making a few new floats over the festive season, having received a fresh stock of supplies. It's just something I enjoy doing during quiet times when I can't get out fishing and I've done it for about 5 years now. Some are a little bizarre and experimental, but here's a selection of balsa bodied floats that are waiting for their final coats of yacht varnish. They are a mixture of cane and crowquill.

Apart from pike floats and controllers, I only ever use my own floats now. I'm sure the shop bought articles provide greater flexibility and more of a range, but there's nothing better than using a home-made version where every one is unique and built with quality in mind. They also work out cheaper.

Fishing related presents were thin on the ground this year, but one product I received was the Wychwood Solace Bucket Tool Station.

Thanks to Mick Newey for highlighting it in one his past posts. With the handy outer pockets, it's bang on what I needed. I detached the seat cover from mine as I don't really need it.

As I write this, the rivers are now full of cold water again. Hopefully things will settle down during the week and will allow for some decent fishing by next weekend.

Single to Double

Christmas Eve fishing is something I look forward to over the festive period. Last year I couldn't get near the river due to flooding, but conditions were bang on this year down the Avon.

I planned a rare two river attack for a change. The early part of the day was set aside for some piking, to make best use of the low light conditions. It was a beautiful morning, with fish topping everywhere and I felt totally confident of banishing my two previous blank pike sessions from memory.

I only took one rod - a bit of a fun rod too, being just a light six foot lure rod. With time in my mind I went straight for the banker swim.

Around half an hour in I was starting to get twitchy and as I often do at these times, I began taking photos. Perched behind the rod I eyed up a downstream shot and fired away. Then I looked back to the water and my float was bobbing away merrily! You can see the ripples in the photo.

Popping the camera down I waited for their float to slide away and hit the bite. Fish on and a fairly solid one at that, but all too quickly, fish off. It was probably a double, but I always say that when I lose them!

I was a little gutted and wondered if my chance had been blown, but I needn't have worried. The float was soon dancing away again and a long, lean fish of around six pound was given the comfy mat treatment.

Relieved to have broken the duck, I switched to a different part of the peg in search of something bigger. I broke out a lamprey section and hooked it very lightly. I had wrecked my trace on the previous fish and only had smaller trebles available. I wanted to avoid burying the hooks too much.

I saw a typical twitch on the float, which heightened my attention. Then a little bob about 10 seconds later. Any moment now I thought....

But nothing happened. That wasn't part of the plan, so after a couple of minutes I lost patience and reeled in. No bait! The fish must have whipped the lightly held bait off the hook.

Although disappointed, I knew there was a fish in the swim who'd just had a free starter, so I was determined to make the main course count.

Less than five minutes later from the same spot (under my feet really) I was battling another pike. It felt small at first, but the fight got stronger. It was good fun on a lighter outfit and the hooks just about did their job, falling out in the net.

It was just a double - 10lb 1oz. Now I can't help thinking that if, as is highly likely, this was the same fish that gobbled up the lamprey section that was pinched five minutes beforehand, then it wouldn't have been a double had I hooked it first time!

I'm a stickler for keeping photos of my pike and I always try to photograph them in the same direction to help with identification in future. Pike are so unique with their markings.

A quick check through my photos saw that this one had met me before, back at the end of August. Although it was a poor photo last time taken late in the evening, it's clearly the same fish. The good news is that it was bang on 9lb last time, so it's doing very nicely.

August capture at 9lb

I called it a day and headed of for a crack at the Leam. I shouldn't have bothered! I fished it all wrong - like a total amateur if I'm honest. Just a couple of roach and a dace to show for it. Oh well, 50% of the day went right! I just wish I had stayed on the Avon now, but that's fishing I guess. I'll make plenty more bad decisions I'm sure.

Have a good Christmas and I'll hopefully be checking in again with another session before the year ends.

One For The Future

Once again there was extra water flowing through our rivers this week. I was monitoring the Avon and Leam closely for a few days, willing them down to a decent level.

I plumped for the Leam, but decided on new territory this week. I had eyed up a swim on a pre-season recce that I fell for hook, line and sinker. It was a beautiful wide pool (for the upper Leam) below a bend. Nestled in a wooded area it was completely secluded and quiet. It screamed out to be fished.

Summer

So why has it taken me until December to fish it? In truth I've tended to take the easier options of less walking, preferring to try out swims nearer to parking areas. Given that I had zero knowledge of the upper river, I didn't really want to take on longer walks without first trying the obvious convenient swims.

The other deciding factor was the mass of chest high vegetation to wade through, just to get near the river. It was too much trouble in all honesty.

Autumn and Winter bring about big changes to the accessibility of natural venues. Areas that were badly overgrown, suddenly open up and my target swim was one of those. With a just a minimal amount of gardening I was settled in position.

I plodded away for about 90 minutes and it was tough going. A roach of 12oz broke my duck, but that was it for that swim. I feel sure it has plenty of potential though (in better conditions) and with a bit more maintenance (which I'll complete next visit) it will be a better proposition.

I tried three other swims and managed only slim pickings - a couple more roach and a dace. I missed too many bites though - possibly roach getting the better of me.

I'm starting to take more of an interest in the redfins through my fishing on the Leam. Having never topped the pound mark with a river roach, I'm eager to put that right now.

It's not quite time for Christmas well wishing yet. I'm hoping to squeeze in a Christmas Eve session.

A Little Un

A quick recap of last week to begin with and it won't take long. Blank! 

I fished the Avon for pike and only had one bite from two rods across a 4-5 hour stint. The bite resulted in some resistance but I could see most of the lamprey bait hanging clear of the pike's jaws through the all too clear water. I knew it wasn't well hooked and all too quickly the hook was dispatched, My traveling partner suffered a blank also. 

It was a weird session weather wise though with the temperature being 9C on arrival at about 7-30am, but on leaving not long after mid-day it had actually dipped to 5.5C. Rain began to drift in, the wind increased and made it all a bit unpleasant. One to forget.

This week was a "Do I, Don't I?" scenario, with the decision to go only being taken at 6am on Sunday. A quick check of the river levels saw me favouring the Leam, which was falling more quickly than the Avon. 

I once more headed for deep water, but with a two rod feeder attack I placed one bait in the bottomless hole and another in a shallower run tight to the far bank. In the chilly conditions I dug in for the session and wrapped up well, perhaps looking a little too much like a terrorist.

One of the joys of an early start is the occasional stunning sunrise and today was no exception.

The fishing was tough, but four roach found their way on to the bank. The best was 11oz - weighed purely to set a benchmark, as it's the best I've had from the Leam yet.

A half pound perch spoiled the all roach party and all fish had come from the shallower water.

Bites completely tailed off but I did manage one more fish - from the depths - that put a smile on my face.

Only my second ever bullhead, tamed on a size 14 hook with 4 maggots. Greedy little devil! That now takes my Leam species tally to 10  for the season (or 11 if a roach/bream hyrbrid is thrown in).

I packed in at 12pm and went for a wander around to the opposite bank. Mostly unfishable in the summer due to high vegetation and lack of bank clearers, it was now much more exposed. Suddenly a whole host of extra opportunities has opened up and there's a few new swims I'm itching to try now.

I also took a detour on the way home to check out a stretch of canal that has been on my mind. I'm not really a canal fan, probably due to a combination of boyhood memories of struggling to catch, coupled with the fact that I generally prefer as much peace as possible (especially from non-anglers) when I go fishing.

I do need something to occupy me in the closed session though and with a key part of my plans being scuppered by the closure of Warwick Racecourse reservoir, I want to try something different and I think this bit of cut is more suited to me than most.

I also have a stillwater I haven't fished for about 20 years in mind too. Mind you there's no happy memories there either - two visits, two blanks. Still plenty of river season left though, so the plans can wait for now.

Another mixed week of weather ahead - rain, wind, warmth midweek and then cooler towards the weekend with temperatures returning to about normal for the time of year.

Last Cast Saloon

After a one week lay off due to other commitments, I returned to the Leam this week for an afternoon session.

I'd been closely monitoring the river level all week and it did push up to around one metre above normal at one point. A drier end to the week saw it dropping nicely for my arrival though.

After a brief chat with a fellow blogger who had been plundering the abyss, I settled into a swim just below an overhanging tree. The far side offered an enticing slack while the main channel of water was running beneath my feet.

It didn't take off though and a biteless half hour saw me itching for a move. With the deep hole now vacated and no doubt fed, I made a simple choice of dropping in there. Roach were topping from the off, which is always a pleasing sight.

It developed into a strange old session where I missed a lot more bites than I hit. I was using two rods and it was perhaps one of those occasions where one rod fished with 100% attention might have been better than two.

I managed a couple of roach, a perch and a gudgeon which gave the most violent of bites for such a small fish.

The worms weren't successful again and neither were the prawns or bread flake. Bites tailed off over the last couple of hours and the roach were less active on the surface.

I pretty much gave up all hope of catching something that might require netting. Loading up a size 14 hook with 4 maggots I dropped the feeder tight to the far bank in an area I hadn't cast to previously. This was to be my last cast.

I dropped lucky and the tip pulled round. A plump perch popped up in front of me and slipped into my net.

At 1lb 14oz it's a Leam pb for me and over a pound bigger than any other I'd caught from the venue previously.

Maybe I've been attacking the wrong part of the swim all along? It has given me food for thought though because this part of the river has double bank access. The far bank is too overgrown in the summer months but now looks a lot more accessible. A little investigation might be needed when the water levels drop down fully.

If my phone is to be believed we should have a drier and cooler week ahead. A return to the pike could be on the cards.