Let's talk fishing

[Bonefish Blues]

I watched the celebrity fishing comp on TV earlier this week, held on a commercial fishery. It was a right load of old pony, and demonstrably many fish weren't in great shape. That's an aspect of the sport that is a cause of concern imv.

ETA
Did I mention I'm off bonefishing in the second half of October?

 

[RoubaixCube]

If you need to eat then fishing is a great way of hunting. However to catch a carp only to throw it straight back is like a fool, waiting for another fool to bite the bait. I’ll never be hooked on Fishing.

Its about the 'sport' of it. Its like youre saying that you dont understand why two people would get inside a ring and beat each other half to death - Its the same reason. For a lot of people, (fishing) its not about winning or losing. Its about the fight a fish can give when its hooked.

A good while back (many moons ago) I used to fish Walthamstow Reservoirs for absolute months and blanked pretty much every session till one day I caught a 40 odd pound mirror carp and all those days sitting on the bank catching absolutely nothing session after session was absolutely worth it.

Fishing line can break, at most my line was probably rated to 20-25lb back in those days so I could never bully a really big fish into the net. You've got to 'play' them. let them take some line to stop them from snapping your line, then reel them back in multiple times back and forth. let them wear themselves out then slide into your net like a deflated pancake. Youre trying to catch a big fish without snapping your line. This is the sport of it.

Putting the fish back ensures that more people can have the same fun that you had when they catch the same fish again.

 

[Milzy]

Its about the 'sport' of it. Its like youre saying that you dont understand why two people would get inside a ring and beat each other half to death - Its the same reason. For a lot of people, (fishing) its not about winning or losing. Its about the fight a fish can give when its hooked.

A good while back (many moons ago) I used to fish Walthamstow Reservoirs for absolute months and blanked pretty much every session till one day I caught a 40 odd pound mirror carp and all those days sitting on the bank catching absolutely nothing session after session was absolutely worth it.

Fishing line can break, at most my line was probably rated to 20-25lb back in those days so I could never bully a really big fish into the net. You've got to 'play' them. let them take some line to stop them from snapping your line, then reel them back in multiple times back and forth. let them wear themselves out then slide into your net like a deflated pancake. Youre trying to catch a big fish without snapping your line. This is the sport of it.

Putting the fish back ensures that more people can have the same fun that you had when they catch the same fish again.

Well on Paul Whitehouse & Bob Mortimer fishing program Bob kept on losing the fish. How about a bit of trout tickling & stealth poaching that’s a more interesting game.

 

[RoubaixCube]

Well on Paul Whitehouse & Bob Mortimer fishing program Bob kept on losing the fish. How about a bit of trout tickling & stealth poaching that’s a more interesting game.

Maybe he was using barbless hooks or his rigs were tied incorrectly? Anyway. I retired from fishing well over a decade ago as i no longer had the time to commit and it ended up kind of boring me even though i went to a place that was filled with carp. between 5-20lb with the odd heavier fish lurking around somewhere. Action was almost non stop and even the smaller fish between 5-8lb would send my reel screaming. Very easy to fish, It was fun but i still got bored and thats why after a lot of finger poking from someone i used to do a lot of fishing with - I have returned to the sport but not doing the same thing i used to do before.

if tickling trout interests you then more power to you.

 

[Supersuperleeds]

Maybe he was using barbless hooks or his rigs were tied incorrectly? Anyway. I retired from fishing well over a decade ago as i no longer had the time to commit and it ended up kind of boring me even though i went to a place that was filled with carp. between 5-20lb with the odd heavier fish lurking around somewhere. Action was almost non stop and even the smaller fish between 5-8lb would send my reel screaming. Very easy to fish, It was fun but i still got bored and thats why after a lot of finger poking from someone i used to do a lot of fishing with - I have returned to the sport but not doing the same thing i used to do before.

if tickling trout interests you then more power to you.

His problem is he just winds in, he doesn't let the fish run, or even just hold them, just constant winding. It is hilarious when he hooks into anything, Whitehouse screaming at him "Don't Wind"

 

[RoubaixCube]

His problem is he just winds in, he doesn't let the fish run, or even just hold them, just constant winding. It is hilarious when he hooks into anything, Whitehouse screaming at him "Don't Wind"

Ah... That explains it. I suppose he also had his drag done up tighter than his pants. Never seen or heard of the show in my entire life. Either he's completely clueless or he's doing it for comedic value like a baseball bat to the face.

 

[Poacher]

Did I mention I'm off bonefishing in the second half of October?

Here's hoping you get to play the biggest boner yet!

 

[carpiste]

Did I mention I'm off bonefishing in the second half of October?

I did a little bonefish fishing at the Florida Keys a few years back. Some on the fly, some using Prawn. It was absolutely fantastic! They burst into life like no other fish I ever caught. So fast and powerful it is breathtaking. Agreed they don`t have the pure power of Tarpon, Mahseer or big Cats but for electrifying quick runs nothing else comes close! Lucky, lucky you

 

[RoubaixCube]

well, I went out for a few hours to give the new kit a go and i absolutely blanked Not even the slightest love tap.

I spent 30mins hiking the 1.6miles to the location then some 2hrs of walking up the river and tossing lures in some pretty shallow water which was full of weed before calling it a day and hiking the rest of the way home.

I half regret paying club membership as the water was way to shallow for my liking which now means i will have to travel further from home then previously thought for a good fishing spot. So much for keeping it local

water also had tonnes of weed and since im a newcomer to baitcasters, I couldnt get good range unless the wind stopped blowing. I may need to invest in heavier lures and maybe an electric scooter to get me further afield.

The sun was out and i could literally see my lure in the water but the place was just devoid of fish. I occasionally did hit a good cast and managed to lob the lure to the otherside of the river bank near some overhanging trees or weed but absolutely no life what so ever.

I covered half a mile of water before calling it a day and walking the 2.2miles home.

Got the baitcaster dialed in and didnt suffer any serious backlashes or birdsnests though all that youtube studying paid off. Now if only i could find some pike to inhale the lure like they did in some of these videos

Next trip out will be this sunday

 

[RoubaixCube]

went out for more lure flipping but this time i managed to blag a ride to take me further down the river. Absolutely beautiful stretch of river by Picketts lock. Got talking to a few of the locals there and they both said that most of the bigger fish had been 'cleaned out' by the locals who probably fancied it a long with a portion of chips. Sad news but not totally unheard of. I was fishing with a spoon while the other guy had a shallow swim or crank bait with a rattle and rubber curly tails. We fished the same stretch of river for about an hour. When he moved up, i moved up to cover the same area he had covered earlier but with my spoon.

Neither his fancy crank/swim bait or my spoon manage to tease any sort of take from a pike 😢

I was using a Abu Garcia limited edition spoon

Absolutely lovely action, especially when you do the slow and twitchy/jerky retrieve. It dances in the water so beautifully.

Maybe the story about the people 'cleaning out' the lea is true 😢

Really made me re-consider future membership with the club even though i just joined last week so i could fish that stretch of river they have control over.

Ive got all year to think about membership none the less. I'll probably give the Waterway Wanderers scheme a go.

 

[delb0y]

I've had many trips like that RoubaixCube. I lure fish the Gloucester and Sharpness canal and many's the time that I'm convinced there's no fish in it (or none that want to take a lure - I've caught plenty on feeders, and floats). But then all of a sudden, out of nowhere... bang "I'm in!". Makes it all worthwhile.

And I enjoy just being out there, too. That's the beauty of it.

Talking of catching, not fishing, did anyone see that little article in the fishing press a few weeks back about an angler breaking the record on a "well known northern fishing complex"? 881 lb - yes 881 !! - in 5 hours. He filled 20 keepnets by the end of the match and had to have help lifting them out. The angler in second place in the match caught over 606 lb.

That really is catching not fishing, and sounds pretty awful to me.

 

[Bonefish Blues]

It's utterly ridiculous, that's what it is.

 

[carpiste]

That really is catching not fishing, and sounds pretty awful to me.

It sounds knackering to me!

 

[Hicky]

Wasn’t Partridge by any chance?

 

[delb0y]

It didn't say where it was in the original paper article, but here it does spill the beans. Angel of the North complex, apparently:

https://www.anglingtimes.co.uk/news/stories/massive-881lb-smashes-fishery-match-record/