Winter Chub on the Somerset Frome

Having a young son who is keen to catch just about everything has inspired me to branch out with my fishing. Today we set out to catch Chub and have a little dabble at Pike on the fly if that wasn't successful. It has been a long time since I had prepped bait for the next day but I diligently liquidised some bread and made up a quick and easy cheese paste. The paste was effectively cheddar, a bit of the liquidised bread and some clover to bind. We headed to a lovely stretch of the Somerset Frome on the Avon and Tributaries ticket which I knew was frequented by Chub. First swim and a few handfuls of liquidised bread were thrown in. Literally second or third cast and the stick float slid away. After a lethargic struggle our first Chub was in the net and it was a fine fish of I would estimate over 3lbs. James was made up with such a large fish from what he called a shallow river. A few more casts with missed bites and we moved on.

Second swim slightly deeper and slower. Same method few handfuls of bread and let the stick float trot down with a size 6 hook and generous blob of cheese paste. Another clonking Chub in the net. We caught 4 decent sized fish one of which James did all the work on so it was so really rewarding for him on his little 8' Shakespeare all purpose rod.

After the bites dried up I made a few casts with the fly rod and tempted a Pike of 5lb from the bottom. Unfortunately it did not make it to the net and shook the single hook on the surface. We then moved locations and spent the dying hours of day in little mill pool run where James bagged a half a dozen smaller Chublets. He actually enjoyed this more than catching the big ones as it was quick fire instant reaction fishing. A great way to spend a dull miserable Saturday, anything but for us!

Mixing it up with Pike on the fly and a bit of drop shotting for Perch

Took my son canal fishing on a wet windy day. The worse rain all year constrained us to the canal. My first trip to this lovely lilliput canal with naturalised banks and no boat traffic. I set up with my usual pike fly gear while my youngest James had a light LRF rod with a selection of mini lures. It was the first time we had really tried this method. The light reel had 20lb braid with an 8lb fluro leader and Size 4 hook set about 9 inches above a small weight. When we got to the canal some parts were clear but there were large stretches where the nearby ploughed fields had run off muddying the water making it pretty unfishable in places.

I immediately hooked into a nice jack of about 5lb on the fly but failed to get to the bank. Shortly after that I banked, on the fly, a miniature beauty that looked at home in the mini chocolate box surroundings. My son James was beginning to get the hang of the drop shot patiently encouraging the Perch to feed under a small bridge. Ironically though his first fish banked was a Pike about 15" that took the tiny plastic. He then went on to catch several palm sized perch on the drop shot. Pink seemed to be the colour.

All in all I caught 3 small Pike and lost two bigger ones on the fly and James caught 4 Perch and a Pike on the drop shot. It was a brilliant call and made the most of the horrendous weather. It has whetted our appetite to try drop shotting nearer to home perhaps on some of the urban waterways.

Portland Bill excursion for Bass and Wrasse

Light winds and last of the summer sun had encouraged a long day trip to Portland Bill. A bit of old rag still left from a previous south coast trip but the focus was on lure fishing for Bass and Wrasse. First stop was the far end of Chesil where it met the Bill. My son and I traversed some impressive boulder fields to make our way down to an idyllic spot sheltered from the light easterlies. Loads of Gar were showing but we did not have the hooks or lures small enough to connect. After an hour or so I hooked a nice Bass of about 40cm on the Black Minnow and then the Wrasse started hitting the lures. The neap tide was on its way out mid way between high and low. After several bitten off lures we finally landed a nice Wrasse.

Time for change in scenery and we headed off for Pulpit rock at the end of the Bill. It frustrates me greatly when you can't pay for parking on your card. An app later and 30 minutes of faffing on the phone and finally we could park - is this meant to be easy arghhh? Pulpit rock was busy with sightseers and fisherman but we managed to slot in amongst them. After a few hours of fishing across low we managed a small Pollack and Wrasse but not easy fishing although we were distracted by the impressive scenery. We ended up back on Chesil to see the sunset. A long beautiful day and well worth the trip.

If only I had found this place sooner, Bitterwell a great introduction to my son for Carp on fly

Last few weeks of summer have seen my son and I re-invigorating the Friday fish. I having been dashing home at school exit time and with a quick turn we were fishing for Carp on the fly at Bitterwell Lake near Bristol by 16:30. This nice little lake is not picky about fly fishermen using artificial flies and it is a great venue for late evening sport. Both James and I have landed some good double figure fish. The only difficulty is the ducks and swans competing with the carp for your floating bait. After I while I realised liberal amounts were required to cause distraction and subdue appetites! To my surprise there are a few other regular carp fly enthusiasts joining us.

Carp on fly and a new venue

Despite the trout streams looking good after a bit of rain I was fixated on tackling carp on the fly having not had a good session for some years. I convinced Red it was good idea and set off with a small bag of dog biscuits and half a dozen deer hair flies. We were on Avon Tribs exchange with Warminster Angling at a small lake near Frome. On arrival the carp were drifting, breaking water in the shallows and looking decidedly catchable. However once aware of our presence they soon became skittish and retreated to the snaggy fringes. Patience persisted though as we fed the biscuits little and often and soon the fish were with in easy casting distance and confidently feeding. It turned into a busy session with our fly reels screaming as the small but feisty carp sped off across the lake. Between us we landed a handful of fish in the 4-6lb range with Red losing a good double figure fish. The poor water clarity allowed a good strong leader of 12lb fluro which was a bonus when stopping the fish heading for the numerous snags in the lake.

Its raining and more Perch on the Frome

It had rained persistently for some 24 hours and unbelievably the water was up and coloured on the usual trout beats so we headed way down on the Frome and its confluence with the Avon. The Avon was absolutely clogged with weed after the low water spell and almost unfishable by any method other than float. A few Chub were showing in the Frome amongst the rannuculus but none taking the fly. Switch of tactic to the lure and finding some structure managed to tempt a few Perch again on strip of fluro fur with weighted fish head. First a nice fish of about 1lb followed by few smaller brothers. No pike though.

Cornish excursion

Wonderful few weeks in Cornwall. Surf small and clean most of time with some flat days or northerly winds dictating a bit of South coast kayaking. My lads totally into the surfing for the sheer fun whether its on shortboards, softboards or bodyboards which suits me fine.

All the beautiful Bass caught close to the shore not necessarily at high or low, but in the movement of tide. As ever the Bass went back to grow on. Great sport looking for chasing fish and then casting in front with lures waiting for the hit. Weather sublime, water crystal clear. Mackerel too were great sport together with lots, and I mean lots, of small Pollack.