Cotswold Rods

Archive for the ‘Fishing Blogs’ Category

Even though I go fishing a lot I have a lack of the photos. I know what you are thinking I need to catch something to photograph, that maybe true, with this in mind I thought I would ask Dan if he could help me out with a picture for my last posting. I was thinking a nice sun rise or some wild life something like that, I was quite surprised with what he picked. If you are wondering I am the one in the middle with the good pair of legs, I think it’s a good picture but next time I go fishing I will be taking a camera with me.

So what have I been up to, well before the closed season kicked in I managed a couple of hours down on the river. I was trying out the new barbel rod from Cotswold rods, The Wye special. The first thing you notice is how striking it is to look at. I’ve got to say it is stunning. You will have to go a long way to find a better looking rod. I was fortunate to catch with my first cast, it wasn’t quite what I was after as a pike of about 5 lb had taken my halibut pellet (hungry little bugger) it did put up spirited fight and gave me a glance at what this rod will do, with a reasonably soft tip for bite indication it also cushions the fight nicely to avoid hook pulls when a fish makes one last bid for freedom at the net, yet there is plenty of back bone to this rod for casting heavy feeders, fighting fish when the river is bank high or making sure a fish doesn’t get in a snag, it is a nice balance of power and sensitivity and is a joy to play a fish on. With a chub of a couple of pounds in the net the season was closed. I may have only use the rod for a few hours but I can see this becoming my favourite rod in my bag. I cannot wait for the summer to put the rod through its paces against some barbel.

I’ve also been up on the water park for a 24 hour session on Ham pool. It is still pretty cold with ice on the bivvy in the morning, I fished the pool this time last year and the pit is a good three weeks behind not surprising after this winter, so I was not expecting a lot of action, so I picked my favourite swim which seems quite reliable regardless of conditions. I would once again be trying a new rod – a 3 piece 9 foot stalker with picking this rod up I was taken with how light it was, it is hard to believe it is 2 ¾lb it is well balanced with a reel on. So I set up in my usual way which I will share with you another time. I started baiting up with boilies from Baitworks which I have been using for all my fishing for about 18 months, it is a top quality bait which produce 17 fish up to 32 lb last year plus tench to double figures. I hope to have a few more this year as I get to know the pits better. Back to the rod, it was a few hours after I had set up and an alarm sounded. I turned quickly to see the stalker pulling round hard, my first thought was a tench. As I bent into it I knew it was not, it was not heavy but it was a carp, trying hard for the snag. The stalker soon put a stop to it and had the fish under control. I slipped the net under a small common, not much more than 10lbs. It was a small fish, but a welcome one at the start of the season. It was not a true test for the rod, as it has power in abundance and yet it is still lovely to play a fish on. I can’t wait to hook something big on this rod. It is another winner from Cotswolds Rods.

Last night, despite the howling wind and rain, I managed to squeeze in a short 12 hour overnight session on a venue in the cotswold water park. Less than an hour after getting a soaking setting up, this lovely 20lb 10oz mirror was putting a lovely bend into my V111. The lively male fought hard for a good 15 minutes after taking a liking to one of the new sweeties from Baitworks!

After a not so glourious start to my defence of The Plough @ Little Dewchurch angling cup a good win today put me back in running. Fishing 4mm expander pellets at 12.5m over Atlantic Heat groundbait i caught steadily for 5 hours putting 46 skimmers in net to weigh a 18lb+ winning net. Rob McCreedy hot on my heels only two pegs away fishing the waggler taking roach and skimmer to take second spot. Fine weather and a few pints a Stowford Press cider rounding off a lovely days dangling.

Tight lines, Dan.

What with me doing no carp fishing so far this year due to building rods for you all people! I though i might try and get out for a quick session before the tricky syndicate shuts at end of month. Two nights and one day ahead of me it was gonna be tricky to winkle one out but winkle one out i did! Two V111 rods fished over a couple of kilo of lovely new sweeties from that lovely Mr Bryant at Baitworks resulted in this mid double mirror at 6am this morning. Not a whacker but pleased me hugely as this is a brand new bait and also christened my new landing net.
Tight lines all Dan.

Finally managed to hook into my first few fish of the season during a very short afternoon/evening session on a cotswold lake.

After a few fruitless afternoons last week, I was rewarded with three takes in close succession, christening my freshly built V111s nicely! The biggest of the bunch is an awesome fish, carrying some of the best winter colours I have ever seen on a carp. The pictures really do not do it justice unfortunately, but it was a joy to see the old girl on the bank, at a good weight too. Here are a few pictures….

Well, it’s been an interesting last few weeks of the river season with the water getting lower and clearer every day, the only thing to rise has been the temperature, and that not by a lot.
This has made the fishing very unpredictable and areas that were full of fish a couple of months ago now seem totally devoid of fish life.
For this reason I have concentrated on pike and chub. The chub fishing has been a total disaster with only a couple of moderate fish to show for my efforts so it’s back to the drawing board on that one!
I have been lucky to catch several cracking 20lb pike in recent weeks, the best a magnificent specimen of 26lb 8oz. I’d been targeting an area for a few weeks with just a few average fish to show for my efforts and decided to try the next fishable swim upriver. The bank was that steep I nearly had to absail down it and could just get a rod in amongst the jungle of trees. The bait had only been in the water for about 20 minutes when I noticed the float fished deadbait was moving around. It didn’t go far and I presumed a jack pike was playing with the bait, best to try and lose it I thought. As I struck the Cotswold prototype rod was nearly ripped out of my hands and within a split second I could see a big pike going mental in the middle of the river. It was a really tight swim and brute force was the only option and within 90 seconds the beast was in the net. The fun had only just started and getting the fish to the top of the bank was an absolute nightmare. Somehow I managed and was soon on the phone to Dan to ask if he could come down and take a few photographs. An hour later I was still quite shaken up which probably accounts for my weird expression on the photograph!
It’s moments like this that make all the effort worthwhile, early starts, miles of river covered, steep, muddy banks clambered up and down, but as long as I’m fit enough to do it I will carry on because I love every minute of it and you just never know, the next swim could be the one to produce a ‘doomsday’ pike (over 35lb). As my mate ‘Mad Rob’ says “keep the faith, cover water, cover water”
Next trip out is a carp trip, literally one extreme to the other but both equally enjoyed. I expect to excell at the lake this weekend, I usually do, straight rods, limp lines, and no smelly old fish to worry about and mess up the unhooking mat!
Hopefully the highlight will be a glass or two of red whilst listening to England smash the French at rugby – I wish!
Tight fishes, Martin

Our big congrats must go to Martin Mumby on yet another another big river pike!
“The big old girl” Martin mentioned in his last blog update has now been captured, photographed and returned! Top angling mate. Pics to follow soon.

After reading the other blogs, it has got me thinking about my own aims and the type of angler I am, how I would class myself. I’m certainly enthusiastic but I lack the skill to catch at the level of my fellow bloggers and must admit to rely on a slice of luck, so would I rather be good or lucky, well I wouldn’t do without the luck but I would like to improve as a angler, I guess that is the aim of most anglers, improvement will hopefully result in better catches. So what am I hoping to catch this year, well my main quarry for the last two years has been carp and will remain so, I would really like a 30 pound common. I will also be spending some time on my local river and what a river it is, I am fortunate to live on the Wye which I had some what forgotten about, until last autumn when Dan and I started our pursuit of barbel and ever since I cannot get enough of their raw power. So much so I have a pair of rods just for the job being built as I speak, by our friends at Cotswold rods. I will keep you informed on how they perform. I cannot wait to get a bend in them. There will be some match fishing between sessions as I am in the same club as Dan, match fishing is an area I do struggle but the crack is certainly worth a bad session or two. I will try to keep something resembling a dairy and share a few thoughts and hopefully a few fish.

The 2010 campaign starts!

 The first morning I was woken by a familiar sound, I peered over my sleeping bag there they were a pair of ducks inside my bivvy, having a good root around. Later in the year this would be some what annoying but after three months stuck at work it was a welcome sight and brought a smile to my face. I was visited by all sorts of bird life this morning. I guess there hasn’t been many people out fishing and they are a bit hungry. After feeding the local wildlife I set about feeding myself, nothing like a fry up on the bank, as I sat there eating, slightly cold listening to the rain, not a sign of a fish. I remembered what carp fishing is all about, its not only catching the big one, it’s the whole experience, the weather, the wildlife, camping out, people you meet, near misses, a tight line occasionally if you are lucky, the things you learn, the mistakes you make. As I thought about it all I concluded that it was not a bad first morning at all, a near perfect start to a new campaign.

If Dan’s the “slightly more mature” half of Cotswold Rods then I must be positively ancient!
I’d class myself as an enthusiastic all rounder, trying to catch larger than average fish of many species on my terms. I fish where I want, for what I want and with who I want, and my aim is to enjoy myself.
I’ve never been a prolific catcher of big fish but have been lucky enough to catch one or two nice ones over the years and have plenty of ambitions left to fulfill.
If I had to single out a speciality it would be blanking for carp, it’s something I’ve always excelled at, is it just me….?
Most of my fishing is on rivers and it is actually quite hard work being an ‘all rounder’.
The reason is that I try and fish according to the conditions. If it’s low, cold and clear I will probably target pike or dace, if it’s overcast and muggy, barbel, roach or perch would be my quarry.
Whatever the conditions I need to be ready to go at short notice to make the most of them so I have to be well organised at all times.
I like to think that I am partly responsible for Dan turning his hand to other species in the last couple of years. Gone are the days when he would bivvy up, night after night throughout the winter.
He now fishes to the conditions and enjoys his fishing more than ever.
I have to say though that I feel very sorry for his fellow angling mates in the local pub.
They’re just a nice bunch of blokes who enjoy a few hours fishing followed by a few pints. That used to be the case until Dan turned into the monster he has now become!
He’s got all the gear, one of those funny box seat things with all sorts of attachments and paraphernalia, a blue, yes blue, fishing suit and he actually owns a pole, utter madness!
Hereford’s answer to Bob Nudd and he pretty much wins all before him, I’m surprised he’s allowed in the pub let alone the fishing club!
Anyway, the river’s looking good and I’ll be out all weekend. I’d like to mainly go for roach and chub but know I will find it hard to resist a few hours after the pike, whatever happens I shall enjoy myself and make time for a pint on the way home.
Tight fishes, Martin Mumby