Early Morning Starts

Ray Daywalker Clarke · Aug 15, 2010

As a kid going fishing, I could never get much sleep the night before, if any at all.

As I have got older, I find many of my friends don't want to be on the water as light breaks, unless we have stayed over night that is.

Have you found that as you have got older, you start your days fishing later than you did when you were younger???

I still have the bug for fishing, just as I did when i was a kid, and i can't wait to get to the water, is it me, am I the Peter Pan of fishing???

Let me know what you think, do you stay in bed that bit longer??, or are you up and out at the crack of dawn.

Peter Jacobs · Aug 15, 2010

I am up and about usually by 5am every day of the year, and sometimes a lot earlier, especially if I'm going fishing.

For Blenheim I'll be on the road by about 3:45 I reckon.

My enthusiasm hasn't waned over all the years I've been fishing, I far prefer dawn and dusk though to sitting through the heat of the day, usually biteless.

Dave Burr · Aug 15, 2010

Having done shift work all my working life, I now find it very difficult to crawl out of my pit a sparrows fart o'clock. Give me an evening session any day.

The Scarlet Maggot · Aug 15, 2010

Same as Peter really, though it’s been hard when the kids were little, though as there getting older I’m finding it easier to drag myself out of bed at silly o’clock once again, don’t think I’ll ever lose that feeling or that charge of nervous energy and expectation I get when preparing to leave the house before dawn. Though I love my evening fishing, it’s never the same, think the day’s events take the edge off it.

S-Kippy · Aug 15, 2010

I would still much rather be there at dawn than dusk but as I've got older I find that harder and harder to do. I still do it...but nothing like as often and it wrecks me physically. I've had it for the rest of the day after an early start.

Fred Bonney · Aug 15, 2010

I have always found it a benefit to fish at first light, so as I am a morning person that's what I continue to do most of the time.
Never found any benefit of fishing through the night, although an hour or two into darkness sometimes comes off.
Blenheim will mean a 3am start for me. I will stay overnight this time though a 3 hour drive after a day relaxing on the lake last year, was a bit hairy.

r1paul · Aug 15, 2010

I still favour a early start ,can`t understand the blokes who turn up at 9or10 am and wonder why they can`t get a swim .

Tee-Cee · Aug 15, 2010

I can't say I've caught loads of fish by being out in the early hours but I do love that time of day and regardless of catches I always go early.Never seems right to me-turning up mid-morning when the suns on the water.....

Evenings are pretty good but I find myself becoming anxious as the light fades and the 'last cast' seems go on forever......I tend to over consentrate if thats possible!!

....nothing like driving through the street in the early hours though-feels like the world belongs to me...........

blankmeister · Aug 15, 2010

I fish mainly commercials these days, and some of them don't open at the crack of dawn. I find 6-7 hours on a seat box is quite enough so I'm happy to start late and fish into the evening. There never seems to be a problem finding a swim. As Ray says, as a kid we'd think nothing of setting out at 3am and not getting home till dark. Maybe I'll do it again when I retire, but not at the moment

preston96 · Aug 15, 2010

Good post Ray!!

I often fish alone at strange ( to "normal folk") hours and where as i used to have plenty who wanted to join me when we were young i struggle to find anyone who will put up with it now.

I dont find that a problem usually but i do sometimes think that it would be nice to have someone there with me especially at night in out of the way places.

Sometimes it worries me but then i think ***k it! long live Peter Pan!!

slime monster · Aug 15, 2010

It must be old age creeping up on me , I used to be able to get up in the early hours saturday with a thick head from the night before ,ride 40miles on a motorcycle loaded with kit then walk three fields on the Trent to stand thigh deep trotting all day .
now after grafting all week and travelling miles to work I find it hard to get up much earlier than 7am but that does not bother me much as I used to fish 5 hour matches on the sundays! ......no wonder my first missus got fed up with that.

Ray Daywalker Clarke · Aug 15, 2010

As a kid i used to go by bus and train most of the time, i might get the odd lift off my Dad, or if fishing with my brother.

When fishing at Kingweir, I would start at 3.30am, have about a 3 mile walk to the bus station to catch the first bus at 4.55am. That would take me to the old pond here at Cheshunt. At that time I lived in Potters Bar.

From there it was another walk of about 4 miles to start fishing. In those days it was a basket, chair bucket of bait and rod holdall, what a carry.
Didn't think anything of it, would fish all saturday, stay over night, fish all day sunday.

Walk all the way back to catch the last bus from the pond, then walk all the way from the bus station in Potters bar back home. The down side was school on the Monday

I do fish with my sons sometimes now, but most of my fishing is on my own, with friends joinng me later in the day sometimes, they just don't want to do the early morning thing anymore.

Early Morning Starts

Ray Daywalker Clarke

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Peter Jacobs

Moderator

Dave Burr

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The Scarlet Maggot

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S-Kippy

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Fred Bonney

Banned

r1paul

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Tee-Cee

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blankmeister

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preston96

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slime monster

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Ray Daywalker Clarke

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