Pole fishing "up in the water"

[Gary Wilson]

have recently been fishing a few matchs at some commercial venues. The last few times I have noticed that the blokes that are having the big weights are fishing 6 inches deep and are bagging up. Is it as easy as just fishing 6 inches deep and constantly drip feeding? There must me more to it than that!

 

[Shrek]

You need to keep a short line between pole tip and float as well.

Read Mark Wintle's Article on that very subject.

 

[Mark Wintle]

Gary,

You're best placed to find out more. After the match when the bag-up winners are still around, go and talk to them. Are they using floats? What hooks? How are they hooking the bait on? How are they feeding; very regular? how much each cast? It's surprising how those that have just won will let you into their secrets. Try the same questions before a match and they'll clam up.

And once you have some info you need to practice, and develop the method so you're confident on it.

The more to it is getting the rig/tackle right, the feeding right, being totally confident and playing the fish quietly and efficiently so that the swim is undisturbed and kept fed.

Good Luck!

 

[Stuart Harvey]

You have to feed regularly. But the key is knowing how to much to feed. This can only come from experience. Start by feeding 6 maggots every mintue or so until you start getting bites, then try increasing the number of maggots from 6 to 10 or 12. Eventually the bigger fish will dominate. If bites slow, drop down to 3 or 4 maggots each time. Dave Harrell is one of the best for knowing how much to feed. Try finding a few articles by him on the web.

 

[Gary Wilson]

Cheers fellas. Practise is the key I reckon.

 

[Danny Lancaster]

Dont be afraid to fish right up to 1 or 2" deep also. Sometimes you can literally dangle the bait just in the surface film and bag up. Missed bites generally means you're too deep. (liners!)

 

[Warren 'Hatrick' (Wol) Gaunt]

Keep the pole directly above them when your playing them. They tend to go round in circles rather than bolting off here and there, just a tip!

 

[Warren 'Hatrick' (Wol) Gaunt]

Sorry, that tip was for Si's thread,oops.

 

[Lee Thornell]

in the summer months,on stillwaters when the fish are right up in the water,try using this,fishing the pole, fish no float just put a ssg shot on the line,hold the ssg just above the water with the bait in the water,in the summer when theres lots of fish up in the water they take the bait well,so when they bite, the weight of the ssg hooks the fish,you wont hook ever fish but it seems to hook the better ones,i have had over 150lb of big dog roach in a day,,tight lines

 

[Ergo]

Well they seem to have said it all.

I could add one thing. When you have a fish on, don't drag it through the others, take it to the side and then in.

This way you won't disturb the swim too much and spook the other fish.

 

[Terry Comerford]

Set your pole float at 3 feet deep, with all the shot pushed up underneath the stem.
Add a small, thumb nail sized, ball of floating putty, below the shot.

This can be slid up or down on the line below the float, the putty floats on the surface, allowing the hook bait to be fished at depths from 2 inches to three feet deep.
If you want to return to fish at full depth, simply remove the putty and spread your shot out again and set the float to full depth.

This 'putty' method also works on running line and waggler set ups.
Enabling you to fish at distance, at various shallow depths, without a float being over the hook bait.