Catch fish with Mike Ladle.

Catch Fish with
Mike Ladle

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Freshwater Fishing

For anyone unfamiliar with the site always check the FRESHWATER, SALTWATER and TACK-TICS pages. The Saltwater page now extends back as a record of over several years of (mostly) sea fishing and may be a useful guide as to when to fish. The Freshwater stuff is also up to date now. I keep adding to both. These pages are effectively my diary and the latest will usually be about fishing in the previous day or two. As you see I also add the odd piece from my friends and correspondents if I've not been doing much. The Tactics pages which are chiefly 'how I do it' plus a bit of science are also updated regularly and (I think) worth a read (the earlier ones are mostly tackle and 'how to do it' stuff).

Chub on the plug.

I do like a change now and then. Even if I know, from recent results, that I'm likely to catch on a particular method I'll still try something different occasionally. Anyway, the other day I fancied a spot of spinning so I went to the river to try the spot where I went livebaiting last week. This time I tied on a short wire trace and an 11cm jointed floating Rapala - for many years one of my favourite lures. I know that it would be considered a bit on the large side for perch or chub but past experience has shown that it will catch both, even in small sizes.

My first couple of chucks into a deep pool produced nothing at all. So I walked a little way upstream and plopped the lure into a really fast run (too deep and fast to wade in) at the head of the pool. Within seconds there was a fierce take and a couple of splashes before my adversary leapt a couple of feet into the air and transferred my plug to the branches of an overhanging bush before making good its escape. Phew!!!! I tried another cast into the same place, more in hope than in expectation, and needless to say I didn't get a bite but a good trout (2-3lb?) leapt from the water. Presumably it was the one that I'd just lost.

I pressed on, wading upstream and shortly I hooked another fish in a small slack which proved to be a pike that I'd landed on my previous trip. The fish was unmistakable because of a serious bite injury to its flank. Interesting. On my way up through the shallows I had a couple of follows, easily detectable by the bulges in the shallow water behind my lure. Then, casting into the tail of the next pool up I had a good bite. "Pike!" I thought, but there was no rushing about and not much of a struggle then a rounded dorsal fin, waving like a surrender flag, showed me that it was a nice chub - excellent.

I fished my way back downstream through the stretch I'd just tried, but there was no further incident. Having had fish in the shallow water I decided to try the next shallows further down before going for my tea. We've had no rain for a while and the water was really shallow so I paddled on upstream casting into any spot deep enough for the lure to avoid grounding. After about ten minutes I flicked the plug into a slack behind a big bankside willow tree and in an instant it was taken. This chub was bigger than the first one but it didn't fight any better. I tried to take a picture of myself with the camera rested on my new, homemade, beanbag but the fish was obscured by plants in front of the lens. There's always some sort of flaw that I fail to see. Next time!!!!

If you have any comments or questions about fish, methods, tactics or 'what have you!' get in touch with me by sending an E-MAIL to - docladle@hotmail.com

First chub.

This one was in the thin water at the tail of a pool - just where I usually catch a small pike.

Closer.

Chub really don't fight whatever anyone says.  I catch all sorts of fish on this gear and although they're lovely fish they are pathetic.

Second chub.

Bigger than the first and this time hooked on the tail treble but no more lively.

Never mind!

It might have been a reasonable picture if I'd given it a bit more thought.  Put it down to my haste to return the fish.