That Guy

[Golden Paws]

I've met some great people on the bank but also some I'll be glad never to meet again. Here are some examples of "That Guy";

You've found a spot, got the rods out and the bivvy is up. Time to relax with a cup of tea and then it starts. Tap, tap, tap........tap, tap, tap.... tap, tap, tap. Worse, you know the idiot has about 11 more pegs to get in! You struggled to push yours in the hard ground with a bit of sweat and a few choice words but did it confident that the fish wouldn't be aware of your presence. Anyone owning a bivvy mallet should have it inserted blunt end first!

It was 2 in the morning. It was during one of the recent heatwaves and all the bivvy sides were up. A blinding light hits you and a car rumbles past on the gravel track. Everyone has an emergency ever now and again so you let it go. Ten minutes later it comes back and parks again. I know the portaloo is 200 yards away and despite what you think, your Tesla does make a racket!

A bloke was fishing on the opposite side with his missus and 2 kids. They had a BBQ at dinner time. No problem. Then the 2 kids get out a football and kick it all around the lake!

I was fishing one rod about a rod length out near some rushes. All of the sudden, there is a huge splash right where I was fishing. I thought it must have been a fish. Twenty minutes later another splash and I saw the lead go in! I walked a good 25 yards to the next swim and had a few words with the bloke!

A couple of kids were fishing near the dam. Doof. The lead went in. Five minutes later another doof. Every five minutes another doof as they cast repeatedly for hours. Yes, I blanked.

A noisy bloke was on the other side, Regularly you would hear him tell his dog to lie down. Luckily after dark it all went quiet. Then at 2:30a.m., he started chatting to his mate in the next swim. I could hear every word, despite him being 100 yards away!

 

[kevtaylor]

Gets me when on a pretty quiet lake a new arrival will choose to go right next to you or bang opposite - I mean really?!?!

I've been doing this fishing lark for a long time now so if I want to go down a particular end of the lake but find it to be busy down there I go the other end instead of fitting in and spoiling it for those already present.  I'm not desperate to catch these days and it usually works that the pressure pushes them away anyway. 🤷‍♂️

[yonny]

I've been known to move swims if someone shows up next door with a mallet and a ten billion lumen headtorch. Can't be doing with that.

Tbf I'm not bothered if someone moves in next door and they're quiet and show etiquette. If I see fish in an empty swim I'll move in there regardless of who else is about, but I'd be mindful of the situation. For example, I'd not cast out at bite time if there's guys on the fish next to me.

 

[kevtaylor]

This is something that bothers me always has and something that came up on a recent Korda Podcast where Dovey of all people admitted to doing it all the time.  To me this is pure noddy!

Re-casting at dusk, what is that about?!?!

Was taught early on you get the rods set and leave them ready for the key bite times with no disturbance i.e dawn and evening into dusk.

So on what planet does it make sense to reel in during bite time, cause commotion and smash the lead back out for no reason whatsoever?

We find a spot were happy with, cast accurately, use rigs we know present and reliable bait that stays as it should, it washes out (ages) along with the freebies and can stay out for the duration of your trip, unless you suspect something has got away with it.

Why would anyone re-cast at key times when you should be sitting on your hands - it's beyond me tbh - smacks of not being confident with all of your previous steps so doubts have set in, if not that why would you want a fresh hookbait that now looks alien to the rest?

Stupidity IMO

[salokcinnodrog]

51 minutes ago, kevtaylor said:

This is something that bothers me always has and something that came up on a recent Korda Podcast where Dovey of all people admitted to doing it all the time.  To me this is pure noddy!

Re-casting at dusk, what is that about?!?!

Was taught early on you get the rods set and leave them ready for the key bite times with no disturbance i.e dawn and evening into dusk.

So on what planet does it make sense to reel in during bite time, cause commotion and smash the lead back out for no reason whatsoever?

We find a spot were happy with, cast accurately, use rigs we know present and reliable bait that stays as it should, it washes out (ages) along with the freebies and can stay out for the duration of your trip, unless you suspect something has got away with it.

Why would anyone re-cast at key times when you should be sitting on your hands - it's beyond me tbh - smacks of not being confident with all of your previous steps so doubts have set in, if not that why would you want a fresh hookbait that now looks alien to the rest?

Stupidity IMO

At Brackens I knew everyone else was going to recast around 6pm at night, so I would make sure I had my baits in place long before that, and use their disturbance to move the fish out of their areas.

Quite frequently I would get fish about 8 o-clock at night while they blanked.

I also try not to change hookbaits, even after a fish. The smell of 'me' is gone, the first fish found it acceptable, so changing it might upset that.

That attitude also comes with me now at the end of a session. My pop-ups are already counterbalanced, on floss and lighter blobbed, so don't come off unless pulled. I can quite easily just attach a fresh bag or stringer without actually touching the bait.

The only time Sky goes silly, talking and jumping, when someone comes to visit, and most people she loves, but there are one or two who she is not keen on for some reason, possibly because they are nervous about her.

On 24/07/2026 at 11:54, yonny said:

Tbf I'm not bothered if someone moves in next door and they're quiet and show etiquette. If I see fish in an empty swim I'll move in there regardless of who else is about, but I'd be mindful of the situation.

I don't mind the majority of people if they move in next door, but sometimes there are some you wish hadn't. I make sure Sky is on bark mode, lol.

I try to spot fish, and if I do have to move in next to someone I will just stringer and one cast rather than make a massive disturbance.