2013 part 2....in pursuit of barbel somewhere!!

Plans are usually hatched before the rivers open when in pursuit of big barbel....if only!!  The trouble is I usually have three plans and cannot after very careful consideration, ever decide which needs hatching.  If I could fish all day every day then life would be great.  The reality is I have a busy life outside of fishing with work and family commitments.  So those evening/morning sessions are often all too brief, and time spent chopping from one river to the other, if I am serious about catching specimen fish, will end in tears and frustration I know all too well.

That word frustration summed up my season start.  Typically, due to a very cold spring the barbel spawned very late and fishing was extremely difficult....and to be honest not very enjoyable. I found myself moving from the Loddon, onto St Pats, then the Kennet, and struggled on all.  After a few weeks the Kennet barbel returned to their usual summer haunts and slowly started feeding.  Plenty of smaller fish between 4 to 6lb were evident, which provided some good sport during hours of darkness, and was also very encouraging for the future of the river.  However, I had decided that the draw of the beautiful river Loddon was too much to resist and that's where I wanted to spend the remaining summer months into autumn. 

Two big barbel were in my thoughts.  One of which I'd caught a couple of seasons earlier weighing 15.07 and 14.4 and was curious of her whereabouts.  The other was another 15lber I'd never seen, but knew of her presence through a good friend, who had the pleasure of her capture on more than one occasion.  Jammy git!!

Having fished the Loddon for quite sometime and knowing this stretch was important if I was to be successful.  I know how hard it is here, and experienced more blanks than I would care to mention. Many have fished, expected much, struggled and then soon moved to alleviate the boredom.
I had to make the effort to fish a minimum of three evenings a week till midnight at the earliest.  My trusted approach which has rewarded me over the seasons past was to select two swims and stick with them.  This would ensure my bait would eventually be found, and that the fish would come to expect some free meals when passing through if they were not already in residence.  There was no need for pre-baiting if I was on the river every other evening, and to be honest I had little time or desire to do it.

After a couple of low doubles and high singles during the previous couple of weeks an old friend made a mistake one warm August evening.  Here she is in all her glory not quite making the 15lb yet, but very close.

 

One down, one to go and this barbel I desired more than any other. This meant a move a little further away, and a week or so of fishing but not catching.  The Kennet very often tempts me away for an evening or two when my stubbornness starts waning and so it did this time too.  Great to see that rod bend when the Loddon plays hard to get.

Back on the Loddon and with two new swims that had seen my presence and bait for a couple weeks I could feel it was only a matter of time...or so I hoped. 
From recollection it was a September midweek session. Low pressure and drizzle greeted me that evening.  The river was up a few inches from the recent rain fall.  Two rods were quickly assembled, hooks baited and bait delivered to my spots with no fuss.  Then the waiting began as darkness approached.  With the light faded, my downstream rod slowly arched in that all too familiar way and an explosive battle ensued...hold on!!! :)  Those battles don't last more than a minute or two despite what you read, but certainly get the heart rate up.  With the barbel safely in the net resting I could see upon closer inspection she was the one.  A quick call confirmed it.  What a splendid looking fish and one of my favourite captures and self-takes.

Tight lines.....zander and chub next.

2013.....a mixed bag. Part 1

Gosh....looking back at my angling adventures over the year just past.  I can honestly say I enjoyed every minute of my time on the bank and afloat.  The previous few years have been equally rewarding, but in different ways as my pursuit of catching big barbel had become a little too obsessive.  However I needed to change as those late late night's were starting to take their toll;  Bags under the eyes, grey hair etc.
So last year I broke the habit and tried very hard to branch out and embrace new and exciting fishing techniques and revisit the old tried and trusted methods to re-ignite my passion with my limited time available.  Barbel fishing would still figure as you'll see, but I tried to become a little more sociable and make the time to attend a few club fish-ins, fish with friends and have some days casting a fly again.


Take care....

Well last winter and into spring where dominated by floods and cold weather.  Those short sessions during the evening did limit me somewhat. The rivers were far too cold and dangerous so I had to pick my sessions carefully, and shouldn't have fished on a few occasions.  Knowing the river banks when in flood is essential for your safety, and I can honestly say upon refection that I took too many risks, even thought I know my patch.  I'm not paid to fish, I've got no article deadlines to commit too.  No fish is worth risking your life, and the events of last year have hit home to me that what's most important is your family. 


Short and sweet...

On a brighter note I did catch a few nice fish during these tough months.  I caught a personal best chub weighing a modest 6lb 3oz on a Thames trib, but plenty of room for improvement.  Please excuse the head gear, but it was -7c.

  
The pike fishing improved on my local gravel pit while the rivers had burst their banks once again.   I equalled my best with a lovely double.  That 20lber still eluded me though.

 



 But who needs to catch big fish when you are blessed with wildlife and views like this.

 Before the river season closed I did sneak out a river Kennet best barbel of 13lb 6oz. A fitting end to the river season.

Now as the very cold month of April arrived it was last chance saloon pike fishing with dead-baits.  After visiting an old trout lake this rather lovely 21lb 7oz pike graced my net on my first attempt.  Beginners luck and my first ever twenty.

With the rivers closed and my thoughts turning to fly fishing.  I had the pleasure of spending a couple of days during late spring into summer with Graham Elliott, fly fishing for trout on Farmoor reservoir.  Now Graham is an extremely good coarse angler and very competent fly-fisher.  With fly fishing it's all about chopping and changing and as they saying 'matching the hatch'.  Well we had fun, got frustrated when things weren't going our way, and had a few mishaps with the casting.  I recall Graham is now missing his left ear ;).  Now that's a poor show from a fly-fisher with over 30 years experience.  Graham I owe you an ear.  However we caught lots of rainbows and they fought like any double figure barbel.  Here's some of our highlights.

There's a rainbow at the end of that rainbow.

 

Graham with a hard earned trout.

 

 

Me...with a double...chin

 

 

Sunset at the end of a fine day

 

 

 

 

Lastly, the early summer ended well for my daughter Tahlia.  She beat her best ever haul of fish by some margin.  Go girl!!

 

 



 

 

Hello, and welcome to my blog. 

I'm no writer, as suffer from dyslexia so tend to shy away from describing my experiences via the written word.  Those who suffer from it will know how frustrating it is, and that even formulating a short piece like this can take an awful long time.  However I decided I wanted to keep a diary of my angling experiences through the fishing season here in the UK. Also to share my other hobby of photography....and hopefully my writing skills(and mistakes) wont get in the way.

My beloved DSLR......... 

Back at the end of 2012 I decided that my old digital compact camera wasn't cutting it whilst out enjoying nature (mostly fishing ;)).  So I decided to take the plunge into the world of making things complicated for myself by buying a DSLR.  I opted for the Canon EOS650D, as the reviews were good and the camera was within my budget....that's a lie...oh well!! 
Wow....I can honestly say this was the best purchase I ever made.  It's a joy to use and although I'm very much a novice in terms of photography I'm really pleased with some of the shots its produced.  Here's a selection of my favourites over the past 12 months.