What you love about coarse fishing?

[lightdragoon]

I've only ever fly fished until recently, however I'm now mainly a float fisherman. Float fishing, to me anyway, is the most exciting form of fishing an I'm now a complete convert to coarse fishing. What do you like so much about coarse fishing?

 

[binka]

For me it is has to be the wide diversity of species, wide diversity of methods and wide diversity of waters.

I never want to specialise... I'm much happier going with whatever tickles my fancy and creating my challenges when I wish.

Good luck with it

 

[sam vimes]

Diversity. The way I can fish a single water in a multitude of different ways for different species of fish.

 

[mark brailsford 2]

It matters not one jot whether I fly fish for trout or fish for coarse species, what matters to me is just being out there in the fresh air being at one with nature.

 

[greenie62]

Sorry lightdragoon,
I'm not going to answer your question in the way you probably originally intended.
- When fly-fishing I could generally just take 1 rod and reel, a folding landing net, a vest with bits in the pockets, a small shoulder bag with butties and a bottle of water, 3-4 boxes of flies, a wallet with tapered leaders, 2 spools of tippet line, a pair of forceps and a small towel.
- Float-fishing - I usually take at least 2 rods, 2 reels + 2 spare spools, telescopic landing net, set of bank sticks plus a pod depending on state of pegs, chair, float box, tackle box, collection of hooks to nylon, hooks, 3 spools of hook-length, disgorgers, swivels, links, shot, hair-rigs + assorted paraphernalia, pellet bands + assorted etc, groundbaits, at least 3 types of hookbaits, forceps, unhooking mat, weigh sling, scales, and a large towel (because of bream) + whatever else I've forgotten - Usually food and drink!

There is so much more to buy in float fishing, you can spend hours in the tackle shop just trying to remember what you went in for! mg:
:thumbs:

 

[lightdragoon]

Yes fly fishing is far more simple, but I love the variety of fish you can take while coarse fishing. I'm a big dam of the humble roach! I personally prefer catching wild fish than stocked bows. Wild brown on the fly can be hard to find and can get expensive.

 

[greenie62]

Wild brown on the fly can be hard to find and can get expensive.

Agreed - but you can also find wild brownie & grayling fishing with clubs for about the same cost as a coarse membership - and you get year-round river fishing! It depends a lot on where you live and whether or not you have transport.
I was previously lucky enough to live in N.Wales and could join a club with many miles of the Dee, its tributaries and several lakes plus rights on associated clubs waters for £50 a year (local rates for local anglers) - roughly the same cost as a comparable coarse club, - and here's a thing - you don't need to buy any bait! OK - once in a while you may buy the odd fly, but you buy hooks to nylon and rigs in float fishing too!

All I'm trying to do is to make sure you don't lose the skills you've already developed in fly fishing - there are several on this forum who delight in catching coarse fish on the fly - even if sometimes its accidental!mg:
Tight Lines :thumbs:

 

[lightdragoon]

Oh I still love fly fishing, I just hate to death fishing big waters which is most trout venues. At this point in my life I love wild coarse fish on the float and centerpin.

 

[chub_on_the_block]

For me it is definitely the variety of target species, techniques and waters. And i have barely even touched first base when it comes to Pike or Carp fishing, or lure fishing.

 

[andreagrispi]

For me it is definitely the variety of target species, techniques and waters. And i have barely even touched first base when it comes to Pike or Carp fishing, or lure fishing.

Ditto.

You could live a 1000 years and still wouldn't have enough time to master all forms of fishing.

I love the mystery of fishing and it's anticipation. Being at one with nature and having the ability to reflect on previous fishing adventures, all add to the life of an angler.

 

[derwentbob]

While my greatest passion is for dry fly fishing on a nice small river, my finances no longer run to it. For the same price as a single day I can get a fortnight's coarse fishing. But I find there is more to coarse fishing than price, the tinkerer in me loves the near-infinite number of different rigs and set-ups for targeting different species, waters and conditions before we even get on to the bait. I have found an outlet for my DIY impulse in making floats, lures, leads, feeders, boxes and rods that I used to satisfy by fly-tying. Coarse fishing is generally more gregarious as well, I often find people I know at the bankside and can spend as much time chatting as fishing. Not that fly-fishermen are stand-offish, I just don't meet people as often stalking the river with a fly as I do stalking a lake with a lure.

In the end, any fishing I can get out to do is the fishing I love.

 

[greenie62]

Coarse fishing is generally more gregarious as well, I often find people I know at the bankside and can spend as much time chatting as fishing. Not that fly-fishermen are stand-offish, I just don't meet people as often stalking the river with a fly as I do stalking a lake with a lure.

In the end, any fishing I can get out to do is the fishing I love.

Know what you mean Bob - any fishing is better than none at all!

The 'gregarious' part is a bit of a 2-edged sword.
Sometimes I just want to chill, relax and unwind - the last thing I want is to be 'sociable' - all I want to do is concentrate on my fishing and RELAX! - and what happens - some gibbering old fool sidles up and starts a conversation and - b*88er! - missed another bite! "Missed one there" - he observes needlessly. When this has happened 3 times I REALLY start to get wound up - .... - breathe deeply, relax, switch off, tune him out, - .... - "You catching much?" I enquire - "No - my swim's gone dead", he says. "Well you won't be getting much standing here talking to me will you", I comment, "Best try again - perhaps with a change of rig" I helpfully comment - hoping he'll take the hint and p*ss off - so I can get back to concentrating on relaxing!

This is an advantage in fly-fishing - you can be a lot more independant - people tend not to sidle up to you when you are flinging around a #8 with a budgie on the end - caveat custodiens - leaving you alone with your thoughts - even on a 'commercial' trout fishery. The situation is even less likely to arise when stalking a brook with a #4/5 and a nymph or dry fly just because there's nobody else around - hopefully!

Taking people out of the equation (where's the shotgun? ) - the simplicity of fly fishing is part of the attraction. There's so much less between you and the fish - rod, reel, line, leader and fly. No bank sticks, pods, indicators, beepers, floats, weights, rigs, hairs and bands, - all of which give a staggering number of 'degrees of freedom' with consequent sources of success - or failure!

Yeah - I'm playing a bit of Devil's Advocate - it's just that sometimes I think the 'Technology' gets in the way of the fishing - it's really just man & fish with a bit of line in-between - all else is tackle marketing!

It all depends why you want to fish on a given day - what you want to get out of it - fish or peace of mind - or even conversation!
:thumbs:

 

[Lord Paul of Sheffield]

For me it's the wide aspect of fishing - one day you can fish a large lake containing a few big carp, next a small brook for dace. Then there's the methods, float, quiver tip, floating baits.

then there is the constant changing conditions, what works well one day may not work at all the next on the same water , fish move, feed at different depth ect

 

[derwentbob]

The 'gregarious' part is a bit of a 2-edged sword.
Sometimes I just want to chill, relax and unwind - the last thing I want is to be 'sociable'...

An angler I know who is also a bus driver has a sign that he hangs on the back of his chair...

DO NOT STAND FORWARD OF THIS SIGN. DO NOT SPEAK TO DRIVER

 

[greenie62]

a sign that he hangs on the back of his chair...

Fumes ...... Something ELSE to carry ... !

 

[Jim Crosskey 2]

What do I love about coarse fishing?

What I love about it most is it reconnects me with the ten year old kid in me that used to load up the bike with his rod and bag, set off in the morning and not come home til it got dark (or you got hungry).... More than any other aspect, it's still has the same lure for me now. And the best part of that fishing was that it was very rarely around any kind of plan... I would just go to the river, have a look and try to catch what I could find.

These days I'm arrogant enough to think that I might know best, that I can plan where to fish and what bait to use and what method to employ. Back then, those were decisions I only ever made once I'd arrived.

Of course, it helped that I only had one rod and reel, and usually only a couple of floats and if I was very lucky a single wire trace and a bigger hook. So often, the only decision i was making was - pike - or everything else? Great times....

 

[vort]

The late, great Jack Hargreaves once said that if you sit quietly in the countryside for one hour you will see something you have never seen before.

Coarse fishing is about the only opportunity I get to test this theory. Turns out that Jack was right.

 

[denzinho]

For me its the exploration and a darn good excuse to get out and about. My favourite thing and it probably sounds stupid is seeing the fish swim off strongly is satisfying.

 

[The Sogster]

I am a a solitary angler 99% of the time, for me the true beauty of fishing is the ability to lose myself completely in the moment and surroundings. Thus by passing any intrusions from thoughts of work or other mundane aspects of my life for the duration of the session.

 

[nogoodboyo]

Just watching a float twitch, slide to the left or right or disappear vertically.
I even like looking at my collection of floats I never use sat idly in a pint glass on my bookshelf.
Of course it's me that's idle not the floats.
Why has David Attenborough never done a series on the wonders of our freshwater fishes?