tryzard

There's absolutely no doubt that lead dissolves in water. Water pipes used to be made of lead and people could be, and were, poisoned by their drinking water! This is worse in acid water (i.e. water with a pH lower than 6.5, commonly referred to as "soft" water). Toxins such as lead may be absorbed by fish through the skin and mucous membranes. It is a cumulative poison that, over a period of time, may affect vital organs such as the liver. However, fish seem to have a far greater tolerance of these toxins. There are tuna swimming around in the ocean containing levels of mercury and cadmium which would kill humans! It's all a question of scale. Given the quantity of lead weights which may be present in a lake and their extremely slow dissolution rate in a large volume of water I would imagine that it would take a very long time for fish to be affected. Certainly many times longer than their natural lifespan. It's a good question though Tony - the sign of a thinking angler.

What are your concerns Tony, maybe I can help? I run my own business and, guess what, it's an environmental management consultancy!

Blimey, someone agreed with me - I must be slipping! Seriously though, I agree with Tony on the safest possible rig, although I add a short length of anti-tangle tubing (Korda) more for peace of mind than anything else. I don't like running rigs in thick weed, however, as I prefer to dump the lead. In this case I'll use a lead clip with the tail rubber only just pushed onto the clip. You can tie the clip closed with PVA tape to stop the lead coming adrift during the cast (or should I say when the rig hits the water). I've heard the new Nash weed clips are brilliant but I haven't tried them yet. I haven't used anything but soft coated braid for my hooklengths for ages. My choice is ESP Stripteaze.

I can't remember ever using longshank hooks. Until recently I used Korda wide-gapes or ESP Raptors for most of my fishing. I rarely use barbless either. I nearly always use hooklengths over 6" so I don't think it was that, but I hadn't considered the possibility of the hooklength material (coated braid most of the time). Rods? Yep, I could see that as a possibility but I've been using the same rods (Century NGs) for ages. Thanks for the input guys. I guess this will remain another of life's unsolved mysteries!

Like the majority, I agree that light running leads fished on a slack line provides superior bite indication and good hooking capability. However, unless I'm fishing at short range and can use leads of less than 2oz, I prefer to use a lead clip plus a short length of tubing so I can drop the lead when a fish is hooked. Quite a while ago when I used running rigs exclusively, I experienced a number of lost fish due to hook pulls (over quite an extended period) when using leads heavier than 2oz for casting purposes. This didn't happen with lighter leads. After trying a number of adjustments (such as hook pattern, hook size, hooklink length etc.) without any noticeable improvement I formed the opinion that the lead remaining on the line might be the cause as it may be weakening the hook-hold or perhaps creating an angle for the fish to use as a lever. Since switching to a lead clip I hardly ever lose a fish. Any comments?

I've had two 24hr sessions on the specimen lake with kraftykarper this winter. We blanked, but I'm not too surprised given the freezing conditions. We'll definitely be having another go in Spring. I like the look of the place and there are some cracking fish in there. It's not a runs water though.

Many thanks for the info.

Thanks for the feedback. Tight lines.

Sorry Paul, in the end I didn't go (had a week in the UK instead). Tight lines (and let me know how you get on). Regards, Alan.

Me and 2 mates went in august 2006. I can highly recommend it mate! The price may seem a bit steep but believe me its not. The lake is out of this world, the team r very friendly and helpfull. The food is first class! What i would suggest is don't book in advance, keep an eye on the website and take advantage of the offers of the free flights they sometimes offer! we saved about £130 with the same offer! Tight Lines Thanks for the feedback mate.

I'm thinking of going to Lac Chateau Cavagnac later this year (being a lover of creature comforts I don't fancy drive & survive!). Anybody been or got any feedback?