Publisher's Overview
Interest in pole fishing began to increase substantially in the 1970s with the introduction of much longer carbon fibre poles, and since then its popularity has grown enormously both on stillwaters and latterly on rivers as well. However, it is on stillwaters that the use of poles has proved to be most popular, and pole anglers now clearly dominate the commercial fisheries. This is hardly surprising as most of these fisheries are stocked with carp in the 21b to 10lb range, fish that are undoubtedly best targeted by the pole angler. It is not that the rod and line methods do not work, rather just that pole fishing is ideally suited to the conditions that prevail at most commercial fisheries.
The first law of fishing is to find your fish; the second law is to present your bait in such a way that the fish do not know that it conceals a hook, which may well result in a trip to a landing net. Pole fishing offers the ultimate when it comes to the second law and that is why the pole is the first choice of most anglers who demand the ultimate in bait presentation.
This fascinating book, written by two experts, is essential reading for all those who are interested in pole fishing, whether they have no detailed knowledge of the subject and are considering taking up the sport for the first time, whether they have already gained a little experience of pole fishing, or even if they are more seasoned match anglers. There is something for anglers of all kinds in this book, although the authors never lose sight of the fact that most people are simple pleasure anglers who want to enjoy a successful day's fishing. They discuss: how to choose a pole; how to set it up; baits and rigs; how to use the powerful margin pole for taking carp; how to deploy the more delicate long pole to catch the silver fish; as well as pole fishing techniques on all types of waters, including commercial fisheries, rivers, canals, drains, lakes and reservoirs.
This invaluable book is brimming with information, advice and useful tips, and tells the reader everything he, or she, needs to know about pole fishing.
About the authors (from the inside back flap of the book)
Mark Wintle
Mark Wintle has fished extensively in the UK for nearly forty years. For many years he combined a long and successful match fishing career at club, open and National Championship level with a desire to catch better than average fish on his local rivers and lakes. A preference for float fishing led to a tremendous understanding of the skills required to win matches on a regular basis. He has held a number of match records, and won many club championships. For many years now he has been developing his pole fishing skills and putting these to good use on commercial fisheries, lakes, canals and rivers to the point where he is now fully conversant with pole fishing in the UK.
Graham Marsden
Graham Marsden is a long established angling writer, photographer and tackle consultant and is one of the UK's most respected anglers. His articles have appeared in almost every major British angling journal, and in many foreign fishing publications. He has written in every issue of Coarse Fisherman magazine since its first issue in 1975, is the author of several books and contributed articles and photographs to several major angling partworks. Graham has also made professional videos, appeared on TV and hosted his own show on local radio for eight years. He now edits and writes editorial, features and reviews for the UK's foremost angling website, Fishingmagic.com.
Graham has caught specimen fish of every freshwater species and still holds, as far as he knows, the Cheshire county records for both tench (11lb 4oz) and bream (14lb 1oz). He holds the unofficial world record for the biggest catch of double-figure bream in the shortest time ever recorded (13 bream over 10lb in two hours). In 1996 he was runner-up in the Angling Times prestigious Drennan Cup, a feat possibly unequalled by a northern angler catching northern fish. In recent years he has become increasingly interested in pole fishing, being particularly impressed with the ideal bait presentation that pole fishing offers.
Why I bought the book - Bryan Baron
Most that know me will realise that I have never really seen any point to learning pole fishing as I mainly fish the Ribble which does not lend itself to the method. After picking up an 11 meter pole from a work colleague and for a good price I thought I'd better learn something about the method. I had looked at the various magazines available but found them a little complicated with regards to which rigs to use. I did not have the grounding, so I needed something to help with this and set a solid foundation to build on. This is when my luck turned as Mark and Graham brought out the new book.
Picking up my copy from Mark and Graham at the Clattercote teach in I eagerly awaited the chance to read what these two well respected anglers had written and see if it would help me build the foundations I required.
At first, flicking through the book, I noticed it was peppered with plenty of excellent photographs and line drawings. The 11 chapters seem to be well laid out in a progressive step by step style.
So down to the read. Well, let me say that it was a nice easy, light read, with plenty of good advice. The most relevant advice is repeated throughout the book but without being too repetitive.
The chapters start by giving a brief history of pole fishing. From the days of the Tonkin bamboo roach poles on the River Lea and how the anglers from the continent took the match fishing world apart in the 1970's and how it affected our home teams.
Next comes a look at the type of waters and how the commercial pools have changed the face of angling and become the home of the pole angler.
Baits that are used by pole anglers are looked at in the next chapter, with a few advantages and disadvantages of each explained depending on the time of year.
The chapters so far are a brief outline with more details to come in the following chapters. The first of these is on selecting the correct pole depending on the type of water and fish you will be targeting, be it small silver fish or the harder fighting carp. With advice on what to look out for and also what to expect for your money.
The chapters then move on to how to tackle your first session, fishing a short pole to hand then moving on to the long pole, followed by advanced long pole fishing. Throughout the book advice is given on what accessories are required for each method.
The final chapters are on fishing the various alternatives to lakes or ponds, canals and rivers for instance. Both of which require a completely different approach to the standard commercial fishery.
carl pepper
