salokcinnodrog

Just thought , Fox do a range of their Rage Warrior rods in shortened lengths for boat fishing

Rod Hutchinson often explained something similar about the carp using gravel bars as the routes across gravel pits, and the silt in between being the feeding areas. Day time may be the time to fish on gravel and night the time to fish off them. The day is an 'inquisitive' take, night is a feeding take. RH also mentioned that the carp may hide in lily beds and weed in the day, occasionally picking up a bait, and again coming out of the weed to feed properly at night.

Again at Taverham, I spent a lot of time out in the boat or wading. The most productive spots tended to be small gravel patches, even harder margins, not the biggest bars or plateaus. These gravel patches were not true bars, often being no more than the size of a dinner plate. One of my favourite swims was a tight corner swim looking to an overhanging tree with gravel under it. The productive spot was not the gravel, where carp would often pick up every free bait, leaving the hookbait, but a grubby patch next to a fallen branchless tree stump. It was the route into or out of one of the back channels. Brackens on Nazeing was a lake where for some reason you had to fish on the gravel if you weren't fishing the margins. If anyone has ever seen the lake empty, the gravel bars often rise vertically from the lakebed, no slope. You simply could not get a take from the deeper silty areas. I think that some gravel bars are 'roadways' rather than actual feeding areas. If there is bait on it, you may get a pick-up, but carp are more wary and inspect everything, whereas in the silt adjacent to it is where the food is.

I definitely think there is something with garlic. It is the base for one of my most successful pop-ups, Verselle Laga garlic oil bird food liquid. It does also get used in a bait soak with liquid yeast if I can get hold of the yeast. Rod Hutchinson KMG I do believe stands for Krill, Mackeral and Garlic, and I have had a load of fish on that.

10? She's a Husky, make it 20... I should convert my barrow!

I think that 'no night fishing' is my problem as well. I have the motivation to walk Sky dog every day, but that is just about it. I've got plenty of bait ready, boilies and Vitalin in cupboard, ice cream tubs full of prepped particles in the freezer, so bait isn't an issue. Walking to the park with fishing gear and Sky is a pain, although I would have run that far with it as a kid! It's not like my pike gear is much, just a Rucksack of gear and deadbaits and my rod sling, but is so much easier to drive... Which doesn't exercise Sky...

I did split the topic, if you need the link

I know that feeling. When I fished Taverham in one swim I always used to stick a bait on the corner of the island, and the other in a bay just on the side of the island, for years it produced loads of fish to me and most others. Nowhere else in that swim produced. Bruce and I had a week there, stalking and surface fishing during the day, rods on alarms at night, which being as I 'knew the swim' was to the aforementioned spots. After 5 blank nights, I was fed up, being rained on and just chucked 2 rigs to the lily pads to the left where the swim shallowed up. I had 3 fish within minutes from a spot that had not previously produced.

I very rarely gamble. I used to stick money I couldn't always afford in the fruities in the pub, which while I won a number of jackpots, meant I rarely did more than break even. I can't remember the last time I went inside the bookies. Liz and I occasionally used to make a night out with a trip to Romford Greyhounds, even then we gave ourselves a limit, and never used the track side bookies.

I've struggled with motivation recently. Furlough from work is doing my head in, putting me off doing anything. Saying that I have put fresh braid on my marker rod, and my pike rods after weeds and mussels fragged it, and respooled my carp and spod rods. I don't fancy spending silly money for a day ticket taking the 10minute drive to Suffolk Water park or Hintlesham, and the syndicate is 23miles away. I could get the pike rods out on the park lake now its thawed, might do that once the car is MOT'd tomorrow. I can always walk there.

I know what we have all said about prebaiting in winter, but if you do know the location of the fish, it might be worthwhile trickling a few baits in. I have written about this session before: Years ago I used to fish a lake called Thwaite, which in winter often produced the occasional fish to bright pop-ups, but you did need to mix and match, until you found what they were after any week. For some reason I couldn't get to Nazeing and had time off between Christmas and New Year, so I spent a week on Thwaite. For the first couple of days, once I had found the fish, every take came on hi-attract pop-ups, but I was feeding my usual food bait, probably around 50 boilies every day. From day 3 onwards I started catching on the food bait, I seem to recall it was a 15mm hookbait with around 5 freebies on a PVA stringer. I ended up with a good number of decent winter fish. It was a proper winter session, freezing temperatures at night, and a cold rain almost every day, just warm enough to stop it freezing over. On the occasional day trip to the end of the season it switched back to finding the right bait on the day, pop-up or even sweetcorn as I wasn't still baiting regularly.

I've managed to knock a centre spindle off true and break a handle on one of my DL10000's. For the cost of them I was not happy. The older 4000/6010 Baitrunner reels definitely better quality

I use a multi rig for pop ups now, quite happy with that, just think a nice simple d rig would work well enough as a bottom bait rig They do work as bottom bait rigs, I used to catch a lot of fish from Taverham on them, although for some reason I started using pop-ups more often, and found as a pop-up rig the presentation was perfect, especially with 20lb Amnesia. I don't like the extra metalwork either. You are almost committed to a pop-up whereas a standard D does work as both.

No, never, it is not my basic pop-up rig, I don't ever use them, they don't work.... 😳😅😋😉

Knowing how 'plasticky' the current Shimano Ultegra reels feel, I know exactly what you mean. If I wanted to stay with Shimano it would be Aerlex's or Beastmaster reels from their current range, they are also budget priced. If it was the choice between the ones you mentioned, I'd go for the Penn reels. I played with them in the tackle shop and they feel built to last.

Like @yonny I think it's too late if they have closed down for winter, unless it's still fishing and producing fish, or you know where they are holding up. On my syndicate the fish appear to be in an out of bounds area, so there is no point in baiting until they come out. It may also be too early for prebaiting for next season. It might be valid if your are fishing a small water and they are constantly moving.

Your problem is setting the hooks with a shorter rod, not many are stiff enough. On a jerkbait or lure rod it is the fish hitting the lure that sets the hooks. You might find a 10ft carp rod with a 3lb TC is OK, but to be honest, not having done it myself I wouldn't know. My pike rods are 12ft and 2.75 or 3lb tc

I find preparing for a season and venue is the best way to make the catch results show. I've found that the less I do, the worse my results are. Just walking around the water is gaining knowledge, even better if you have a marker rod in hand... On Nazeing at times I felt like I hadn't prepared enough, whereas on Earith, Ardleigh and Alton I knew I had, and to be honest in reference to not enough prep and doing the preparation, I think the results showed in my catches. I know we all pretty much got messed over last year, lockdown, then often crowded banks so we couldn't get on fish, although I did not do too bad in the time I had on Alton. This year I really hope the government get their act together, but I'm not holding my breath. I would love to be able to succeed on the syndicate lake as there are some very nice fish in there, and that will come to plenty of time looking.

I have seen tigers blow. If you are going with a Brazil, find the floating ones, and use a 360 rig (shrink tube over the eye), or stick with the D-rig. The D rig can be used with buoyant or sinking baits😉

Yes they do. And yes I did cos I know what you mean, hopefully the space makes sense

This is the funny bit, there is no set distance for local; the police are having to use their own judgement, for absolutely every situation, not just fishing. The government is once again giving insufficient advice. Lawyers, councils and even the government ministers and home office are confused as to what is counted as local, 5miles, 10miles or walking distance. I have, as pointed out, a number of fisheries, including 2 reservoirs within 15miles, my syndicate at 23miles and various other waters. Ardleigh involves swapping counties, but is on that 15mile line.

Amusing thing is I could legitimately go to Bromeswell or Melton, as I need to do some training at work, they are 5 minutes from work. Go fishing for the say, then go in and do my training in the evening.

I did the same. I know science has proved that outdoors is the safest place to be, perfect isolation. Even essential shopping is on the high risk list, a place you are more likely to get infected. This is where you get the questions though, what defines local? What distance from home is that? I still walk Sky around Alton water, a 5mile drive for an 8 mile walk. I couldn't easily walk 8 miles from my flat with her. I have SWP, Melton, Bromeswell and Alton within 15miles, and the drive north to my syndicate is 24. In fact Suffolk Water Park is the same as Alton!

Already emailed my MP to make an effort to get it reinstated

Vitalin Original muesli https://www.vitalinpetfood.co.uk/store/item/original