Golden Paws

Fishing can be an all consuming hobby and it can take over your life. When my kids were young I used to get away at every opportunity and I do regret it now. I don't get out as much these days but feel I have a better family/fishing balance. You were a prolific and interesting poster and we'll all miss your contributions but if you need to completely step away, then that's what you must do. I worked for the same Company for 30 years after leaving school and felt "tied" to the job despite the signs it was going downhill rapidly, the redundancy package was what kept me going until the end when it closed down. In the 15 years since, I must have had about 20 jobs but it was liberating because if I wasn't happy, I left. I had 2 jobs when I told them to stick it and left the same day. You don't know how good that feels! Hopefully after a while, you'll come to realise what it was you enjoyed about fishing and hopefully it will outweigh the negatives you are feeling at the moment. Good luck for the future.

After many years of using Shimano 5000 and 6000 Baitrunners, I finally upsized and bought 3 x XTE 14000's. The line lay is ridiculously good and although I haven't fished a large water since I bought them, I can reach the far bank of my local water which is probably 70/80 yards with barely a flick of the rod. If I really wound it up, I'm sure 120/130 would be easily achievable. That said, all the reels you mention would be a good buy. The old saying "Buy cheap, buy twice" might apply to some of your earlier purchases.

I used to fish for barbel with a quarter of a tin of spam! (The photo is only a sixth of a tin) The first time you cast it out, you feel like a complete noddy and can't believe it's going to work. I also caught plenty of chub as well. The photo is a genuine dropped run - you normally fish the bail arm open and allow a few seconds for the fish to get the bait into it's gob properly.

Just watched it, another classic.

Got a new kindle for Christmas (had a hand me down 10 year version with poor battery life and unreadable if it was a little bit dark) and started to reread An Obsession With Carp and really enjoying it. It's amazing he caught anything the amount of time he used to spend in The Horse and Barge!

Yes, I'm just getting over that cold after 3 weeks and plenty of people I know have had it as well. I had Covid a few years ago at the final lockdown and that was a piece of cake compared to this one (I was treble jabbed, so that probably helped.)

Your family can struggle to buy for most people at Christmas and I've had some horrendous "angling" presents over the years I've had to graciously accept and retire without even using them! My daughter bought me this Portwest beanie hat a few Christmas's ago and it solved the age old problem of sleeping with a head torch on your forehead or round your neck which are both uncomfortable. The latest versions have a removable light which means it can be washed and is also easily USB rechargeable which means you can charge it on the bank with a power bank. It's plenty good enough for landing a fish and then you can get the head torch out when the fish is landed. This years she bought me some LED gloves from Temu. At first I wasn't quite sure and I haven't used them properly yet but can see they could be useful. They only fit on the thumb and first finger and a strap fits around the wrist and attaches with velcro. They are quite stretchy and will fit over a conventional pair of gloves if the weather is cold.

If you are worried about soft silt, get a long prodding stick and poke around in the margins. Alternatively, tie on a few foot of light coloured wool on your line and attach a heavy lead and let it sink in and see how much of the wool is discoloured. If it is quite deep, as greeksil says try a PVA bag with a lightish flat lead or a pva mesh stocking of bait on a longish supple braid on a helicopter rig rather than a lead clip. This time of year, it's all about the windows of opportunity that arise when the temperature climbs or a low pressure system comes in. Plot where the sun is shining when it is at it's maximum and aim for that area. This time of year, shows can be pretty rare and if you don't have any previous knowledge to go on, it could be a struggle.

You might save a bit on gas but you'll have to buy a set of split can rods, centrepins and a tweed jacket!

Unfortunately, probably wise advice. My mate was always on Facebook market place as he chops and changes his gear regularly. He got his garage broke into by a couple of pro's who disabled his alarm and were in and out in 5 minutes with about £8,000 worth of kit. He said on reflection that a couple of likely lads he showed around a few months previously were probably the culprits. My local club are also glad of gear for youngster and it might be worth asking around. It does seem a shame to chuck away stuff that could have a second lease of life.

I've had a set of Shimano 5000 baitrunners for years, Bought them for barbel fishing on the Severn and suited my early carp fishing sessions on small estate lakes. My mate has some Basia's that he bought when his mum left him some money when she died and he said he always though of her when using them. Unfortunately my mum died a few months ago and I decided to upgrade to some Shimano XTE's out of some money she left me. Waited for Black Friday and got them for £136 each despite being £160 elsewhere. (I did try Carp.com honestly Nick but they were £180 and always out of stock!) Hoping for this spell of cold weather to break so I can christen them.

If Steve R cooked this for me, I'd be well impressed.

I've had a pair of Korda Kombats for over 5 years and never worn them fishing! They are my go-to trousers for the weekend and despite many years of dog walking and cycles through the washing machine, they still looks as good as new. Probably the best £50 I've ever spent.

https://www.trustpilot.com/review/coral-clay.com Never heard of them before and nor have a lot of people as they only have 1 review!

Several years ago I took the dog for a walk over the local common and saw a car at the bottom of a steep grassy slope with the back wheels in a ditch. When I walked past again about half an hour later there was a large recovery vehicle with a pulley hoisting it back up the slope with a woman stood by the side. As I walked past the woman, I said "What happened, did somebody pinch it?" "No" she replied sheepishly, "I was doing a 3 point turn......" I just about kept a straight face!

It's not racist to believe that a Country should look after it's own people, not give 5 star treatment to people who turn up in a boat and jump the queue for housing and benefits.

I used to work in an area that was blighted by tramps, druggies and prostitutes. We often found abandoned tents outside the premises on a morning and they normally went in the skip. They didn't mind, just go to the council and get another one! Unfortunately the housing system in this country is severely broke and I can see how many people are forced into rough sleeping.

I agree about trying to do your bit for the environment and not throwing out batteries after they have run out, that's why I went down the rechargeable route. Unfortunately rechargables seem to suffer from discharge, even when stored outside of devices. I have a spare set of batteries at all times and it seems that every trip I was having to take the camera batteries out and replace them with the spare set. I've just bit the bullet and bought some Energizer Ultimate Lithium batteries. Not cheap at £18 for 10 but they are reputed to last double that of even the best alkaline batteries. Reliable: Each lithium double A battery boasts up to 20 years' shelf life in storage and is tolerant of extreme temperatures, from -40C to 60C, for year-round indoor and outdoor use. World's Longest Lasting: Nothing outlasts Energizer lithium AA batteries. Lifted from a website. Can't give you a long term review yet but they do have a good reputation. Unfortunately in life, sometimes the best is always the most expensive!

I've used rechargables for a number of years from the old fashioned and totally unreliable Ni-Cad's (Nickel Cadmium) that "lost" the amount of charge that remained if you didn't totally flatten them before recharging. The latest ni-mh (Nickel Metal Hydride) batteries don't suffer from the memory effect but I'm starting to find them a pain. I keep my camera gear and batteries in the house ( a cold, damp garage drains them really quickly) but I'm still finding that every time I go to use the camera, I take a few shots and they fail on me and I have to put a new set in. I checked the batteries with an avo-meter and when they failed they typically showed about 1.2 Volts but when fully charged, even the best ones were only giving about 1.35 Volts. I'm probably going to get some alkaline or possibly lithium batteries in the future. Generally speaking, the better ones cost more but they do last longer.

Where did you get those Kev?

Great twist on an old classic, just in time for Halloween.

Everything I mentioned about stealth and accuracy doesn't apply here!

Another System of a Down track given a different twist!

Thanks for the confidence boost! Got it off Dangling Erect so there is a branch not too far from me.

My old 36" landing net got chewed by rats a good few years ago and I replaced the arms and net to a 42". Unfortunately I went cheap and got some plastic arms that sagged every time I went to lift a fish. Finally bit the bullet and bought a Trakker T3. Although I have got a bivvy, I still prefer the speed and convenience of a brolly system. The ground sheet is a half size which is OK in the summer but with an overwrap being used in the colder and wetter months, the front area could be a bit of a quagmire. I've got the extra large which is 1300 x 650 mm which should be ample. I did try a couple of old rubber car mats out last time but they were heavy and dug into the ground and took a lot of washing off when I got home. Well it is my birthday coming up soon and all the family don't know what to buy me so I've made it easy for them!