River waggler advice

[clutch]

Hello,

This season on the Severn at Bridgnorth, I have really enjoyed fishing the float. I have mainly fished the stick, holding it back, controlling the pace through my swim. After some advice from others, and trial and error, I am getting the hang of it.

However, I have tried the waggler a couple of times and I am struggling a bit, so I have a few questions if anyone can help.

1. controlling the pace- With the stick, I hold it back. This obviously isn't an option with the waggler. Probably seems like an obvious question, but when fishing a waggler do you just let it run through at the pace of the river?

2. Depth- What depth should I be fishing at? On the floor, over-depth, up in the water? I have found it a bit difficult to properly gauge the depth, especially if I am fishing mid river trying to use a plummet.

3. Technique- So I cast, reel the float back slightly, then let it run through the swim. I keep the bail arm open, trapping the line with my finger and letting line out when necessary. Sound about right?

4- Keeping the float on line- My float doesn't always go straight, especially when it runs further down the swim. It seems to pull slightly, following the line. How can this be avoided? Due to fishing further out with the waggler, I cant get the line 'straight' behind, like I can on the stick.

Finally if anyone has any other suggestions, or ideas that I might find helpful then that would be great.

Cheers

 

[108831]

Right mate,1,the ways i find most effective is to fish overdepth,dragging shot along the bottom,these can be no.10's,or right up to possibly a bb or more,to slow it more thicker tipped floats and more tip out of the water,you allow the float free passage at what looks like river pace,but be assured it is going slower.

2,all the depths you mention are an option,but to fish the deck say in what you presume is 6ft of water in summer,I would fish maybe seven or nine no.8's down the line,one no.8 at the end of say a 15in hooklink,then 10ins up two more no'8's,then two more 10ins higher again,repeat it again to use the remaining shot,cast out and run it through(no bait),keep increasing the depth until you drag bottom,obvious if flows are greater no.6's and 4's can be used,after depth is found you can move shots and depths to alter presentation.

3,thats about right mate.

4,this is where you need to correct the line,this should be done minimally and when you find the killing zone you mend the line above this point and feed the bow,this keeps the float running ok for a short period,hopefully long enough to get a bite,also you never will get the line behind the float like a stick,feed a yard or two downstream and cast down slightly too,it all helps control.

I hope this bumph is understandable and a help to you,don't give up on it,it works brilliantly,caught loads of good fish on the Severn years ago,barbel,chub,roach etc...

 

[peter crabtree]

The waggler is better if you cast it straight in front or even slightly upstream. Once it's downstream of you it becomes difficult to control..

 

[theartist]

On the Severn those who advocate the use of a waggler are usually referring to heavy a Truncheon waggler dragging bottom, usually with big baits or bunches of maggots/casters in snag fee gravel run swims.

Therefore the answer to 1,2,3 and 4 is would be to stick to the stickfloat unless you want to try the above

 

[theartist]

I amend the advice above before I get shot down - standard waggler does work on rivers such as the Severn but it's probably not the best place to learn the tactic nor would it always be the most effective in most swims around that area

 

[rob48]

The waggler is better if you cast it straight in front or even slightly upstream. Once it's downstream of you it becomes difficult to control..

I couldn't disagree more with this statement.
How you can control a float of any sort that is upstream and heading towards you is beyond me. Cast the waggler downstream and further out than your feed line. Wind it back to starighten up then pay line out. As stated above when you determine the catching area don't try to tighten up behind the float, leave it on the catching line by feeding the bow and tighten into that when you get a bite, you'll hook the fish more often than not due to the current.
I wouldn't worry too much about slowing it down at the moment as with rivers low and clear the fish are in the faster water anyway. If you keep the feed going in they'll come up off the bottom to intercept it in the flow.

 

[peter crabtree]

I couldn't disagree more with this statement.
How you can control a float of any sort that is upstream and heading towards you is beyond me. Cast the waggler downstream and further out than your feed line. Wind it back to starighten up then pay line out. As stated above when you determine the catching area don't try to tighten up behind the float, leave it on the catching line by feeding the bow.

To be fair I did say slightly upstream, so by the time the float cocks properly it is directly opposite you.
For a novice on a fast river like the Severn this would be a good way to start. Once the float gets going downstream and a bow forms the flow will pull the bow and make the float go too fast or pull it in towards you.
All well and good in experienced hands but for a novice not so easy.

 

[nottskev]

Generally, the stronger the downstream wind and the quicker the flow, the further down the peg you should cast, in the interest of keeping the line behind the float, the float going down straight and the bow to a minimum. The general wisdom in places I've lived/fished has been that it's better to present your bait well in the last half or third of your peg than try to cover it all with the float under less control. On slower water, with only the wind to contend with, you can get away with a less downstream cast with choice of float, shotting and a quickly sunk line.

There was a Riverfest qualifier a few years ago on the local Derwent. I watched several famous names, interested to see how they tackled it. On a peg sheltered from wind, Jan Porter cast the waggler just downstream, but never straight out or up. Dave Harrell, on a narrower peg with the wind funnelling down the river, cast his float about halfway down the peg, and got it trimmed up and steady to fish the bottom third of it.

 

[peterjg]

A few more thoughts .....

Sometimes it's useful to deliberately slightly undershot the float so that it initially sticks out more, then after casting a bit downstream the float can be held back so that the float rides downstream at it's correct level.

A small backshot can be a good idea to try.

On the Thames in the week the flow was minimal but there was a strongish upstream wind which actually slowed the float too much so (eventually!) I realised what was happening and swapped to a waggler. (still learning)

 

[nottskev]

On the Thames in the week the flow was minimal but there was a strongish upstream wind which actually slowed the float too much so (eventually!) I realised what was happening and swapped to a waggler. (still learning)

I don't know if it would have helped, but there is a type of float/approach invented by anglers who fish rivers that flow against the prevailing westerlies, so get regular upstreamers.

The floats are bodied quills like these, and they are fished with a heavy bulk - the smallest in the pic is over 7bb - and the idea is that with the weight well below the wind-affected surface, the flow will pull the float through. They're often known as "Toppers" after a well-known Bristol Avon angler.



My local river flows west to east, every breeze seems a downstreamer, so these don't come out of the box much.

 

[peterjg]

nottskev, many thanks for your post - I eventually sorted it with a heavy homemade float. It is all just so interesting. The swim was 9ft deep - at one point I shallowed up and the float moved noticeably faster than before which proves (to me anyway) that the surface water moves faster than at the bottom - correct presentation is so important!

I have been fishing since I was a very young boy for 60 years now - still learning and still really keen. I fish three days a week, one day I might take it up seriously! (my poor wife!).

 

[Richox12]

The waggler is better if you cast it straight in front or even slightly upstream. Once it's downstream of you it becomes difficult to control..

I'd do exactly the opposite to keep the bow less significant. If the float starts in front of you or even above (which you couldn't cast to in a match anyway) the bow will just get bigger & bigger & bigger as it has further to travel.