Bluemoon Angling Thread

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the rig
 
Only 3 days fishing this week. River Avon on Tuesday was rubbish possibly because I was on Bluemoon most of the day savouring CAS fallout.

Thursday was the Severn which was hard but I caught one small but scrappy barbel and lost two others. Highlight, though, was my first Severn bream. Only 1.5lbs but I love bream so was very chuffed. Whilst fishing I saw a very large perch, hump out of the water, chasing fry. Didn't have any bait suitable to fish for it so I've earmarked him for another day.

Yesterday was Stocks Reservoir somewhere in Lancashire for a spot of fly fishing from a boat. The day was most notable for the fact that there were no disasters and I managed my first reservoir rainbow. About 2lbs. My mate had 3 up to 3lbs.

All being well, it's Ireland next week. The ferry we're due to come back on isn't running at the moment so who knows when we'll be back. So, in the meantime, tight lines.
 
Newman Noggs said:
Only 3 days fishing this week. River Avon on Tuesday was rubbish possibly because I was on Bluemoon most of the day savouring CAS fallout.

Thursday was the Severn which was hard but I caught one small but scrappy barbel and lost two others. Highlight, though, was my first Severn bream. Only 1.5lbs but I love bream so was very chuffed. Whilst fishing I saw a very large perch, hump out of the water, chasing fry. Didn't have any bait suitable to fish for it so I've earmarked him for another day.

Yesterday was Stocks Reservoir somewhere in Lancashire for a spot of fly fishing from a boat. The day was most notable for the fact that there were no disasters and I managed my first reservoir rainbow. About 2lbs. My mate had 3 up to 3lbs.

All being well, it's Ireland next week. The ferry we're due to come back on isn't running at the moment so who knows when we'll be back. So, in the meantime, tight lines.
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Good, varied fishing mate. You going to Ireland for the game or coarse fish?
 
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I had a spare afternoon yesterday and decided to use the warm weather/low water as a chance to catch my first barbel on the centre pin. I’ve hooked and lost a couple but never landed one. I went to the Ribble and set up a loafer float on a long rod.

I fed a long glide with hemp, corn and small pieces of luncheon meat and got in waist deep. This is always a lovely way to fish in nice days as you really are part of the environment. It took a while, varying baits and depths, to get any action but I eventually landed a chub on sweetcorn. But after a couple of hours I was getting plucks from small fish but couldn’t get anything really going so I got out, baited the swim heavily. Had a little drink and put on a big hook. A few trots trundling a big cube of meat produced nothing so as last throw of the dice I put on a big piece of flake and long trotted it 50 yards+.

Suddenly I’d found the winning method and started getting bites right down the bottom of the swim where I could barely see the float. After bouncing a fish or two I hooked a barbel which roared across the swim. I couldn’t control it and it snapped the line, a 3.5lb bottom. I upped the strength to 4.4lb, still a bit light, and hooked another next cast. We had a good tug or war at range but then the hook pinged out and came back with 2 barbel scales on it. Another trot our two and I hooked something else which I could control. Had a lovely battle with a 4lb chub but that killed the swim off and I had to be home.

So I had a lovely short session with the waders on, although didn’t quite get the barbel I was after. I’m going to up the line strength on the pin and go back, maybe Sunday. Very interesting how they liked the fluttering bread (whilst everyone else on bottom baits blanked)
 
Didsbury Dave said:
I had a spare afternoon yesterday and decided to use the warm weather/low water as a chance to catch my first barbel on the centre pin. I’ve hooked and lost a couple but never landed one. I went to the Ribble and set up a loafer float on a long rod.

I fed a long glide with hemp, corn and small pieces of luncheon meat and got in waist deep. This is always a lovely way to fish in nice days as you really are part of the environment. It took a while, varying baits and depths, to get any action but I eventually landed a chub on sweetcorn. But after a couple of hours I was getting plucks from small fish but couldn’t get anything really going so I got out, baited the swim heavily. Had a little drink and put on a big hook. A few trots trundling a big cube of meat produced nothing so as last throw of the dice I put on a big piece of flake and long trotted it 50 yards+.

Suddenly I’d found the winning method and started getting bites right down the bottom of the swim where I could barely see the float. After bouncing a fish or two I hooked a barbel which roared across the swim. I couldn’t control it and it snapped the line, a 3.5lb bottom. I upped the strength to 4.4lb, still a bit light, and hooked another next cast. We had a good tug or war at range but then the hook pinged out and came back with 2 barbel scales on it. Another trot our two and I hooked something else which I could control. Had a lovely battle with a 4lb chub but that killed the swim off and I had to be home.

So I had a lovely short session with the waders on, although didn’t quite get the barbel I was after. I’m going to up the line strength on the pin and go back, maybe Sunday. Very interesting how they liked the fluttering bread (whilst everyone else on bottom baits blanked)
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That's really interesting. I had read, and believed, that barbel don't take bread. And the fact that they were approaching it and then, presumably, veering away raises a whole series of questions. Do you think they thought the bread was something else ? A small fish perhaps?
 
Newman Noggs said:
That's really interesting. I had read, and believed, that barbel don't take bread. And the fact that they were approaching it and then, presumably, veering away raises a whole series of questions. Do you think they thought the bread was something else ? A small fish perhaps?
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In my experience all fish (except perch and pike) like bread and barbel are no exception. It’s not that unusual to hook one in the winter on a chub rod.

What I don’t know is why they were taking bread but not corn or meat!
 
Didsbury Dave said:
In my experience all fish (except perch and pike) like bread and barbel are no exception. It’s not that unusual to hook one in the winter on a chub rod.

What I don’t know is why they were taking bread but not corn or meat!
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You saved me typing similar mate. I think barbel will take bread on occasion whilst fishing for chub. I can't recall ever catching a barbel(on bread) whilst fishing for chub though as chub are greedy, especially when intercepting food before it hits bottom as barbel are mostly bottom dwellers.

I've previously caught perch(very rarely albeit) on flake and bread punch but only on cold winter days. I suppose when fish are hungry they'll eat baits they aren't renowned for eating.

As for bread it's a much underused and largely ignored bait especially with most anglers choosing high protein pellets and boilies. I've had some really good catches of chub roach and bream on bread, crucians and tench also. For the price of a couple or thrice of family loaves one can have a fantastic days sport if they use their loaf! ; )

Liquidised bread and flake stickfloat trotting a river or cage feeder can often get chub and roach in a feeding frenzy especially when used with hemp.

Well done yesterday evening DD, excellent session by the sounds of it trotting in chest waders, nice one. A tad unlucky on the barbel though.

River fishing is as purist as it gets IMO, especially trotting a stickfloat. So many anglers are fixated on excavated commercial waters pointing poles at donut shaped far shelved ledges hoping to fill keepnets full of F1s. Those anglers are missing something magical in not tackling wild flowing rivers for unknown species.
 
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Just bit the bullet and upgraded my bivvy. Not been fishing for a few years. Did 48 hours last weekend, took my 11 year old son on his first fishing trip. I have had back surgery since i last fished. My back cannot handle the constant bent over position when in the bivvy anymore.
So I have just bought a Fox retreat+ 2 man bivvy. Can't wait till it comes.
Its 185cm high. So I will be doing star jumps in it!

Anyone got one or something similar?.
 
SouthStandStander said:
Just bit the bullet and upgraded my bivvy. Not been fishing for a few years. Did 48 hours last weekend, took my 11 year old son on his first fishing trip. I have had back surgery since i last fished. My back cannot handle the constant bent over position when in the bivvy anymore.
So I have just bought a Fox retreat+ 2 man bivvy. Can't wait till it comes.
Its 185cm high. So I will be doing star jumps in it!

Anyone got one or something similar?.
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Nice one fella, welcome back to fishing. Keep us updated. @Didsbury Dave is your man on bivvy advice pal.
 
SouthStandStander said:
Just bit the bullet and upgraded my bivvy. Not been fishing for a few years. Did 48 hours last weekend, took my 11 year old son on his first fishing trip. I have had back surgery since i last fished. My back cannot handle the constant bent over position when in the bivvy anymore.
So I have just bought a Fox retreat+ 2 man bivvy. Can't wait till it comes.
Its 185cm high. So I will be doing star jumps in it!

Anyone got one or something similar?.
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Hi mate. I don’t know that bivvy. 2 man bivvies are massive and won’t fit on a lot of swims so I hope you’ve considered that. What I do know is that I can’t sit for long sideways on a bedchair In a bivvy was it hour getting backache. I once bought one of those bivvy chair things that you rest on the central section of your bed chair but found it useless.

I either sit on a chair outside the bivvy or lie on the bed chair.
 
Didsbury Dave said:
Hi mate. I don’t know that bivvy. 2 man bivvies are massive and won’t fit on a lot of swims so I hope you’ve considered that. What I do know is that I can’t sit for long sideways on a bedchair In a bivvy was it hour getting backache. I once bought one of those bivvy chair things that you rest on the central section of your bed chair but found it useless.

I either sit on a chair outside the bivvy or lie on the bed chair.
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My previous bivvy was a 2 man, although a cheap one. It was a tfg force 8. Did me well for about 5 years. Back problem has made me change.
I used to sit on my bed chair folded into the "chair" position. Wasn't a problem in the past, pre back op. Thats another thing I had to invest in. Bought a trakker longback recliner a few weeks back. Expensive but it is supportive of lower back. I had no choice really. Angling direct hardly had any chairs left. That was one of them.

My sons first trip fishing with me went really well. Set him up with his own rod and alarm nect to my 2,. He caught 5 carp between 8 and 15lb. Be first of many trips for him as he loved it.
 
Just got home from the river, floated a couple of miles, beautiful day. Lost count of how many I caught but up until the end they were all pretty small. Caught a beautiful Cutthroat at the end...all on spinners as I was in my kayak
 
SouthStandStander said:
My previous bivvy was a 2 man, although a cheap one. It was a tfg force 8. Did me well for about 5 years. Back problem has made me change.
I used to sit on my bed chair folded into the "chair" position. Wasn't a problem in the past, pre back op. Thats another thing I had to invest in. Bought a trakker longback recliner a few weeks back. Expensive but it is supportive of lower back. I had no choice really. Angling direct hardly had any chairs left. That was one of them.

My sons first trip fishing with me went really well. Set him up with his own rod and alarm nect to my 2,. He caught 5 carp between 8 and 15lb. Be first of many trips for him as he loved it.
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A mate has a trakker brolly and says it's excellent for the price. You can buy add ons too. May get one myself as I have a large Trakker carryall, 2 rod sling and tackle bag. Practical well made gear for the money.
 
BlueMoonRisin' said:
A mate has a trakker brolly and says it's excellent for the price. You can buy add ons too. May get one myself as I have a large Trakker carryall, 2 rod sling and tackle bag. Practical well made gear for the money.
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Mines a Trakker Armadillo Mark 2 bivvy . Still rock solid after about 10 years. It’s been brilliant. Prior to that I had a Fox Evolution Brolly with overwrap that I liked because you could pop it up as a day shelter. The Amadillo is definitely a proper bivvy.

I went out on the Ribble again this afternoon, long trotting for chub with Breadflake. I messed up because there had been a rise overnight and there was colour in the water so barbel would have been on the cards but I wasn’t geared up.

I did half an hour in about 6 swims and managed one chunky chub of around 3lb. Had half an hour after dace with some spare casters but couldn’t find them.
 
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