Rough and Ready

Trip to the canal.

After last weekend, where I was too shattered after a business trip, and Claudia's boat trip was cancelled, when neither of us fished (shock!!!!), we had to get out this week. The forecast was looking a bit rough, but we decided to tough it out and go for a trip to the Kennet and Avon canal, it is reasonable local, and if it was a short session due to weather, not a great expense.

6-30 arrived, alarm ringing, wind blowing ( outside too!!) and raining hard!! I must admit to being a bit reluctant to get out of the duvet, Claudia had wanted to fish the pole, but hearing the gale blowing, she jumped out of bed with the comment "Sounds too rough for the pole, must go repack my kit!".

8-00 saw us trudging out to the van in the rain, I was wondering why I was so keen to go fishing today, I was feeling a bit rough after a hard few weeks at work, yet here I was in the foul weather gear, on a wet and windy day, heading to a little bit of canal, to spend the day getting cold and wet, in the quest for tiny fish. Am I mad or am I becoming a "proper" fisherman??

We stopped at the tackle shop for bait and day tickets, Claudia managed to get out having spent less than £30! another shock!

By 9 we were sat on the banks of the canal, roughly the same spot I have fished a few times now, the weather was better now, the sky was clearing and the wind had dropped to a sensible level to fish, we set up about 50 yards apart.

I was fishing size 18 hooks, with red maggot and caster, on float and later in the day, 12g feeder. Claudia was fishing float, and a bit of dead baiting for some of the pike later on.

Claudia soon found that she had picked perch central for her swim, she was soon hitting small and medium sized perch from the off. She at one point had a beauty on, she even reached for the net, but it slipped the hook and got away, she thinks it was around the 1lb mark, but nothing makes a fish heavier than it getting away! Here is one of the perch she caught during the day



she reckons she had about 20 during the day and roughly the same amount of small slivers, roach, hybrids and a small silver bream.

I started a bit slowly, was getting little takes but not connecting, then I managed a small perch too



Then I started to get into the swing of things, switching between float and feeder I soon had a few hybrids, some better silver bream and a nice perch or two.







I was actually enjoying the challenge, the silver bream were giving such delicate bites, I was using a 1oz quiver tip with the feeder, the one I won in the raffle a couple of weeks ago, and it was great to detect such subtle bites.

Around about 4 I packed up, Claudia was trying a dead bait out for pike as it was getting duller and darker, she had a couple of touches, but not takes so we called it a day about 4-30 and headed home.

I had enjoyed a gentle days small fish hunting, I had set out with a target, but sadly I did not manage to get a gudgeon, I still need one and hoped that this venue would oblige, but it was not to be.


but......







I did get a couple of Ruffe






So I think I deserve this now



A cuban cigar and a couple of beers!!