Barbel with a touch Spanish roach and catfish.

I’ve not done any blog updates for a while, but recent trips had me wondering just what makes a successful fishing trip?  With a Spanish adventure arranged with John Found along with two other friends, the target would be mixed fishing, John and I would try for roach along with the catfish whilst the other pair would try for carp and catfish.

                                                      Catfishing on the River Segre

The weather as we approached the holiday was fantastic and we even had a record Oct 31^st temperature of 24C.  During this period I was aware that friends fishing the River Goyt at Stockport were catching quite a number of barbel including doubles, with time running out I decided on a last minute trip for just the day, at 200+ miles round I could only hope it would prove worth it.

As is often the way I had already decided on the swim I would fish if it was vacant and having the advantage of arriving while most anglers are at work it proved to be available.  This swim was a good favourite with the river narrowing down after the run-off the weir, a narrow gulley and fast water made it perfect for the trap I hoped to set and indeed my river best came from this swim.

I had come with a two prong approach, both with my usual open-ended feeders but one rod would have Dynamite Source boilie whilst the other would be baited with Elips pellets.  The boilie was placed into the upstream end of the swim on top of a couple of pints on hemp that I had bait-dropped when I first arrived.  The pellets were cast well downstream to fish on their own and out of the way should I hook a fish on the boilie.

The hours past and my time were running out, but just on dusk the boilie was taken and a terrific battle ensued.  The fast water certainly gave the fish more power and I wondered just how big he was as I could see him in the clear water as he held station in the flow, determine not to come to the waiting net.  As with these situations there were only two possibilities, he either got landed or was lost, fortunately I landed him.

                                                                 12lb-6oz River Goyt beauty.

There was a lad fishing just downstream of my position and having confirmed the weight at a very pleasing 12lb6oz he took a couple of very good shots that show up as in darkness with the flash in use.  This was my 25^th different river double figure barbel so you can perhaps imagine how pleased I was with its capture, now two days later I was off after some Spanish giants.

All through the previous weeks I had been following the Catmaster Tours site as numerous large cats were caught, many over the 200lb mark.  Now I was looking at a weather forecast that showed a 10C drop in temperatures, not good.  We arrived on the Sunday afternoon and it was still quite pleasant but the following day the predicted fall could easily be felt.  Fortunately we did not get the rain that was supposed to fall but those temps plummeted.

The catfish had mostly been coming out at night so that fitted in with our plans quite nicely.  We would fish for the cats from 5:30pm up the midnight limit, then fish for the roach from about 9:30am through to 3:30pm; this would allow us to go the café for our evening meal.  On the first morning John and I made our was to the same River Segre swims we had fished in May and although we caught a few roach to over the 1lb mark it seemed slow compared to what we hoped for and the follow morning we moved out onto the River Ebro.  Meanwhile we drew for turns on the Cat rods and John was first on the rods though the night saw no action at all, I feared the worse!

                                                         Ready to cast out.

                                                       Roach fishing tackle and bait.

Going down to our favourite swims on the Ebro we found the locals and visitors were out in force and all the normal swims were occupied, fortunately John Dekin our guide knew other areas where we could get down to the water’s edge and we were soon in such a place.  The lads would fish out from the slight point we were now on for the carp although John did advise it was a snaggy area, we would roach fish from the swims slightly to the side and of course we could easily fish that bit closer without a problem.  As it turned out we all had chances, both the lads hooked carp but the warning of snags proved all too true as three of the hooked fish go into a snag and the fourth chance was missed.  On the roach side both John and I caught at a steady rate, quite a few 1lb plus and a number going over the 1.5lb mark, but the jewel on the crown came to me as a magnificent 2lb-12oz immaculate specimen roach fell to my soft pellet offering.

                                                          2lb-12oz best of the trip.

The next few days continued on a similar vein, blank on the cats, odd chances for the carp and plenty of roach with the 2lb fish showing occasionally but not over the weight of that first beauty.  The fourth night came and John was still on the rods when at 11:53pm one of the rods finally showed fish activity.  This rod was out at perhaps 200yds on the far side of the original river bed and John had quite a battle to bring it back over that distance, when it finally came within torchlight range we could see he had definitely got his hoped for 100lb+ catfish.  With years of practice John Dekin soon had the fish safely in the weigh sling and out over the waiting tarpaulin to be weighed.  First the measure and it came in at 8ft-5in, a new best length fish for John D.  The weight came in at 214lb and although very good John D did say that at that length he would have expected at least another 10lb on its weight.

                                                       214lb and 8ft-5in length.

                                                 Now that's a mouth.

That was it on the catfishing side, and although we caught a fair number of roach the trip was a bit disappointing but down to the weather change and we can do nothing about that.  The final tally for us was carp to 36lb-9oz, the 214lb catfish and I took five roach over 2lb while john caught just the one.  I think he used his luck on the big cat.

                                                             2lb-6oz for John.

                                                                2lb-9oz Specimen

So back to the original question, what makes a successful fishing trip?  The Goyt trip gave a long awaited personal goal, the Spanish trip gave both John and I good fish, good company over several days and lots of anticipation of that extra big fish.  I did see a nearby carp angler catch what appeared to be a very big roach on his carp gear but he had returned it before I reached him.  There is a well-known saying ‘there is more to fishing than catching fish’ and I feel in retrospect that it applies here.  Will I go back to Spain, too true if only to catch the roach that the carp angler had!

                                                            2lb-6oz

                                                          2lb-2oz.

Highs and lows of 2013.

Well we reach the end of yet another year and of course that means a review of some of the highlights and a mention of those low points.

                                              My third book continues to sell but copies are left.

January
With the very cold January it seems that lots of us anglers stayed home and read a good book, my sales at this time were quite reasonable but by the end of this year they had fell off dramatically and I've copies of both hardback and leathers still available.  With very little fishing done and no big fish caught I will move on to February.

February
Slightly better weather and with trips to Chew Valley and local waters the pike were the saviour of the day.

                                                  Chew pike, short and fat with small heads.

                                  At 19lb-14oz this would have been a 20lb+ but removed five sardines from its throat in order to remove a previous set of trebles that had been left there, this done before weighing it. :)

                                              The first of two local 20's caught this month 22lb-11oz.

                                                  The second pike at 20lb-12oz.

On the downside for this month we were reminded how fragile is life with the news of the death of the legend that was Terry Lampard, a good friend and one that will be sorely missed.

March
Normally the end of the river effort and the start of my bream fishing but this time South America's rain forest rivers called.    A trip to Guyana was too much to miss and although we struggled there were still plenty of big fish to be caught.

                                               One of my targets achieved 64lb Redtail Catfish.

April
Amongst lots of other fishing for this month the week at Lochnaw Castle always stands high, especially when the magical 3lb roach is landed.

                                                 A 3lb Lochnaw specimen roach.


May
May is always an exciting time though this year nature seemed well behind its normal state possibly by as much as 4 to 6 weeks.  fortunately the crucians at Johnson's Lake on the Marsh Farm complex did not seem to mind with good fish being caught over several trips there.

                                   At 3lb-12oz this was the best of 12 crucian on this session.

                                    7lb-3oz pb for the lake, one of 17 tench taken along with the crucians on this trip.

June
With a few local tench along with trips after bream and crucians the highlight of this month or even the year was the capture of a 12lb1oz tench, almost into the fish of dreams.

                                                Highlight of the year - 12lb-1oz personal best tench.

July
I had applied for a ticket for a carp syndicate in order to try for the eels after reading that two big ones had been caught by accident, it finally came through with a start date of July 1st.  The first night session was to prove both exciting and disappointing in equal measure.  At just gone midnight I hooked and landed a 6lb-4oz eel, weighed and safely secured in a Queenford tube I continued and took another eel of 4lb-3oz.  Through an amateur mistake the bigger fish escaped back into the lake whilst I was trying for a photo.  A later visit almost made up for the lack of the photo with the capture of a 5lb-10oz and two others over 4lb.

                               Normally I would be pleased with this eel but a poor 4lb-3oz consolation prize.

                              At 5lb-10oz the best of three eels the others going 4lb-9oz and 4lb-2oz.

August.
Plenty of fishing and a reasonable number of barbel caught, but the highlight for this month was my inclusion in the Barbel Challenge of trying to catch a double figure barbel of 14 different rivers in 14 days.  I joined Jerry Gleeson and Paul Floyd on four rivers and we caught on all four.  Dove, Derwent, Trent and Soar.  Over the total effort there were doubles caught off 9 of the 14 rivers, a remarkable effort by those involved and over £2500 was raised in the process.

                                             One of the doubles taken at 11lb-1oz.

                                         The largest of the doubles taken at 12lb-10oz by Jerry.

September.
Always barbel time and this month was no exception although I've still to get the hoped for River Nene double.  Sturgeon have always atracted me with the look and power so I was very pleased to capture a 42lb8oz specimen from a midland lake.

                                             42lb-8oz the best of four sturgeon on the day.

Over the years I've caught lots of 6lb plus chub along with four over 7lb, but I was very pleased to get a couple of big 5's off the local River Anker.

                                                    5lb-12oz River Anker Chub, one of the pair.

                                                5lb-11oz to make a very pleasing brace.

October
Along with lots of other fishing I got the chance to fish on the River Test for the roach again and fortune smiled in the form of a 2lb-4oz specimen as the best on the day.  Later in the month I was on the Chew Valley water again but this time it came up trumps with a 25lb-11oz specimen pike.

                                             2lb river roach are always that little bit more special.

                                                 25lb-11oz reward for a lot of effort.

November.
For a very long time I've not bothered to fish for carp having caught large numbers in the 1980's and 90's now I had decided to try and better my pb common with a fish of hopefully over 40lb.  I'm not a purist here so I was quite content to try for the shortcut to catch such a fish and booked with Catmaster Tours in Spain and they did not let me down.  On the first day our guide dropped us in a swim he thought offered the best chance and a few hours later I was looking at a 44lb-14oz specimen that met my target.  The rest of the trip was spent after the roach and again my companions John Found and Pete Reading all succeeded in getting into the 2lb plus specimens.

                                                Target set and Achieved.  44lb-14oz.

                                                 My 2lb-8oz best for this Spanish trip.

December.
This has been a very strange month and although I've fished in what I consider to be quite reasonable conditions along with those that were less favorable I did not catch any even moderate fish..  A small double figure pike from my main venue that has failed for all fishing there, small chub and no barbel, definitely not a good end to this year.  In just over a weeks time I will be back off to South America, this time Surinam after large catfish.  I might get wet but at least I'll be warm.
Tight lines for 2014 and I'll let you know how the year goes as always.
Phil

         

A personal best carp and big roach.

Well as you can see it has been a busy time on my fishing calendar, back from Lochnaw roach fishing for just a week and I was off again on a Catmaster Tour trip to Spain, roach and carp being the target.  The start of the trip was not good when the Monarch Airways flight going out was delayed for four hours, but we eventually got going after the fault had been fixed.  That ‘we’ I mentioned are John Found, Pete Reading and myself, all well-known and successful roach anglers who also fancy a bit of carp fishing on the side.  All three of us had previously tried the Spanish roach fishing on a previous carp trip, catching roach to over two pound, but this time we would allow more time in their pursuit.

                                                          Mequinenza Dam

Picking up a self-drive car at Barcelona the two hour drive to Mequinenza was soon completed and with a phone call it was arrange we would meet our guide to show us the apartment where we would stay.  This proved to be a very satisfactory accommodation with all that we needed for our holiday there but for those intending to go out to Spain, take your teabags with you!  Once settled, we had already decided not to fish on the first day and we made out way to the local eating establishment - The Citron Blue.  We again met up with John Deakin who was to be our guide for the week and over a meal we discussed the various options open to us.  John suggested we fish just up along from the town frontage in an area that had been producing a number of good fish so that was agreed and having set a start time we retired to bed.

                                      John Deakin chats with John Found after checking all was well .

Just after dawn John came along to take us to our swims and before too long we were fishing out to the distant weed beds that could be seen on the surface some 80yds or so out from the bank.  There were gaps in the line of weed as it followed the bank and we were attempting to place baits within these areas with a single 22mm pellet along with a bag of 6mm pellets as an extra attraction.  The 3.5lb test rods were supplied by Catmaster, but the Biomaster reels were my own and loaded with 15lb line and a 45lb shock leader, this would make casting the 4oz lead safer and also give extra resistance against the weed when playing any fish that was hooked.  John had mentioned that a number of anglers had lost fish through them going into the weed and becoming totally snagged, I was determined this would not happen to me.

                       John in the camp, Pete in the background, and myself to the right of the photo

The weather was very nice with what wind there was coming from slightly behind us and the temperature going over 20C.  We were spread out over perhaps fifty yards of bank which allowed for a little exchange of comments during the hours we waited for action, but then just before midday my indicator began to scream and I was quickly playing a big fish.  You will probably know that pumping a fish gives it ample time to move away as you reel in the line you have gained as you pump the rod upward, I used the other way to get him away from the weed beds.  With plenty of open space behind me available in this swim I just clamped up and walked slowly back away from the water’s edge.  This is a method I’ve used over the years at various times when snag fishing and space is available to do it, it works a treat.   Once I had gained perhaps twenty yards and I was reasonably certain he was clear of that problem I began to reel in and walk forward making sure the tension was kept on the line whilst doing so.  It took a little time, but eventually an obvious big common came towards the waiting net that John held ready and he slid in to be safely mine.  John gave a surprised comment when he went to remove the hook and all three of us looked in wonder at the state of the hook that had brought him to the net, how much longer it would have held is anybody’s guess but I soon changed to a much stronger pattern.

                                                                 Mugga hook before and after capture.

It was with a lot of excitement that the weighing was completed since I was positive this would be a new personal best common carp for me and so it proved when the scales showed 44lb-14oz.  That was to be the only carp of the day for our group, though others staying with Catmaster did get fish after dark, but we packed up at dusk having had enough for the day.

                                                           44lb-14oz pb Common.

Since the carp fishing was mostly my idea, the other two not being anywhere near as interested in their pursuit we would spend most of the rest of the holiday after roach and the next day saw us start.  From previous trips we had come to the conclusion that the roach are spread throughout the river downstream of the Mequinenza Dam and all you need is a suitable bank to fish from.  Sounds easy, but there are cliff faces and rocky reinforced banks all over the river side and suitable fishing spots can be at a premium.  Fortunately there are still plenty to go at, and we were set ready with tackle already assembled in the chosen swim at dawn.  This can always be a useful time to be on the bank if it is reasonably calm as the roach do tend to show themselves for the first hour or so of light before they disappear from the surface for the day.  Fortunately we saw enough to give us high hopes and we settled into our chosen spots.  Although you can at times get away with using bank sticks it is far easier to use the carp pods provided along with chairs etc.   At the moment Catmaster is not geared up for the roach angler but I’m sure this will be changed as they take advantage of this incredible fishing on their doorstep.

                                                  The veiw from one of the roach swims.

                                                   Griffin Vulture soars overhead.

                                                 Roach fishing Spanish style.

                               A Griffin Vulture with up to a 9ft wingspan the King of the mountains.

My tackle comprised of two rods which I had taken out with me along with a suitable small net and landing net pole.  With those rocky banks you need the longest rod it is reasonable to use and I had chosen a Drennan Medium 11.5ft to 13ft Feeder rod with the intent to use it at the 13ft length.  Along with this I also took a Drennan 12ft 1.25lb test Avon Specialist which I could use either as a standard top joint or the quivertip top joint option should I need.  My end rig was a simple water knot paternoster rig of 6lb main line.  This was tied to give a 1ft length for the Drennan 35 gram open ended cage feeder, and a 3ft tail going to a 4lb fluorocarbon hook length and a size 10 wide gape  Drennan super Specialist hook.  The bait was single grain of corn that had previously proven to be deadly bait for the roach and this was readily available from the local store, we think they must have wondered what had happen as we emptied the shelves each night of the tins they put out.

It did seem that any groundbait that carried a high halibut content worked better, and this would of course make sense with the amount of pellets fed in for the carp and catfish.  Indeed it can sometimes be a problem for those anglers to wind in and find a large roach stuck on the size 4 hook or even bigger, much to their dismay.  That first day set the pattern for those that followed and John opened the 2lb plus account with fish of 2lb-3oz and what proved to be the largest of the week at 2lb-12oz.  At first Peter was catching roach at a far better rate than John and I though we eventually realised that it was just because he was fishing at a greater range.  This did not make much sense since we were going into 30 foot or more of water just a short distance from the bank but results were undeniable so out we went.

                                                          John's best of the trip at 2lb-12oz.

                                                    The first 2lb of the trip at 2lb-3oz.

                                   A planes trail gives us our own volcano on the opposite bank.

The scenery is both bland and majestic at the same time, mountains dominate the region and very little grows on the banks while what had grown had already dried up to a tinder.  The cliffs behind this swim and also another we visited hold a group of griffin vultures, magnificent birds that ride the thermals with ease throughout the mornings.  The weather held up throughout our stay with the wind being the only problem on one of the days causing us to finish early avoiding the waves crashing over the bank and drowning us as we sat there.  Daytime temperatures went over 20C and even the late evenings were still in the mid-teens.  Over the five and a half days we fished we caught 16 roach over the magic two pound figure with the best going to John at 2lb-12oz as already mentioned.  Peter and I both had a best fish of 2lb-8oz, but all of us caught a good number of the fish just under the 2lb mark these going 1lb-14oz and 1lb-15oz, still magical fish but not what we came to Spain for.  The 3lb fish are there to be caught, but don’t make the mistake of thinking they will fall for your bait every day.  The value of a specimen fish is that they are exceptional and with 2lb plus roach being a worthy target and caught almost every day, it is nice to know the 3lb fish could be the next bite.

                                                       My best of the trip at 2lb-8oz

                                          A rare shot of me with a hat on plus a sunny 2lb roach.

                                                      Pete's 2lb-8oz taken at dusk.

                                                      An equally sunny 2lb-6oz for Pete.

 Throughout the roach days I occasionally put out a carp rod as my second rod and this did produce another carp though nowhere near the size of the first.  Meanwhile we were being kept updated on the results of the other groups of anglers with Catmaster  and these seemed to be doing very well indeed with another 40lb carp along with lots of 30’s, and two catfish over the 200lb mark falling to one lucky angler who was definitely pleased with his weeks fishing.

                                                 The larger of two 200lb cats landed by David at 205lb.

                                        The second 40lb common in the week at 40lb-2oz for Iain.

 In closing I would mention that the one essential bit of gear we missed was that of a small unhooking mat for those rocky banks, but I’m sure Colin Bunn will have those available should the anglers take up this roach fishing as should be the case.  Mild winter weather and great sport catching specimen fish, give it a try you will not be disappointed!

                                                My carp is returned but not forgotten.