The humble gudgeon

Very often the first fish we catch as boy anglers, What are your memories of this lovely little fish

Thinking it was a tiny barbel when I caught my first gudgeon !

what a cracking zander bait.

Check this out

GUGGS - Grand Union Gobio Gobio Society

It's not a joke they're very serious about it

Two fish guaranteed to put a grin on my face are Crucians and Gudgeon, any size does it.

A water that contains lots of Gobies, also contains big perch.

Red Army said:

Check this out

GUGGS - Grand Union Gobio Gobio Society

It's not a joke they're very serious about it

Click to expand...

A very impressive list of fish there RA. I had one that went two ounces a month or so back from a small pond that as been devoid of them for years, I was so taken with its size I felt it had to be weighed. Now they are back with a vengeance.
I can enjoy catching them when they show up, they can be great fun on the day.
Years ago when I was into match fishing I won a match with just one fish off the Witham, my winnings were, if I remember correctly about seven or eight pounds which for an apprentice was equel to a weeks wages.
Seems these days young anglers start with carp, missing a lot of fun methinks.

I'm fond of them. In the thread discussing Gary Cullum's "Ruffe fishing by design, I had a rush of blood to the keyboard and this emerged - wasn't sure whether to just post a link or copy and paste. Opted for the latter.

Gudgeon Fishing

I don’t quite understand why - at least, I didn’t when I started writing this, though I think I do now - but Ruffe don’t quite cut it for me as a mini-species of choice.

Ruffe are proper predators, and proper perciformes, all flick-knife spines and blades, and as much a pain in the palm as in the, er, neck. So why do they have no appeal to me, when I’ll happily spend an afternoon after gudgeon? What is it about gudgeon that makes them, in the eyes of many, the kings of the little fish?

Matchmen may study the ways of bleak, and perfect ways of catching vast numbers of them, but I suspect the process is no more fun for the angler than the fish.
Bullheads and loach are wonders to behold, the one all points and angles - all pleasantly blunt - while the other is as graspable as an eel's oiled ghost - both are ideal aquarium subjects, though I doubt that's legal now. But not serious subjects of sporting pursuit.

Ditto minnows -they always look so aghast at the imponderable consequences of such a small mistake that I can neither clonk them for chub-bait nor stay fishing the same method in the same swim. “Cute nuisances” sums them up.

As for sticklebacks - if it's that desperate, go home. Read a good book, accumulate brownie points, sink a drink. Whatever. The only possible reasons for fishing for them are: you agreed to fish a series of team matches on a canal - in which case, unless rohypnol was involved, you've only yourself to blame; you are seven - that's a sound reason, enjoy the sticklebacks, and being seven; or you have an aquarium and a young non-angler who's just read - er, oops, I ought to know this, it's either Huxley or Tinbergen - and wants to watch the nest-building, territorial disputes, paternal care and mad attacking of anything red, at first hand. That's the best reason of the lot, and I wish you great success. Only necessary once a year, max, though.

But, somehow, gudgeon fishing is proper, respectable angling! Only just, to be fair, but the little, brown mini-barbel with the lilac sheen is seen as a proper fish, even though bleak and ruffe reach bigger sizes. Perhaps it’s because they are shoal fish -but then, so are bleak - in spades. Perhaps it’s because if you set out to catch bleak, you will. The only likely nuisance fish is a smaller bleak… set out to catch gudgeon, and any thing can happen.

And now I think I’m getting warm.

Gudgeon-fishing is the only form of angling which is truly relaxing. Sat behind a battery of silent buzzers, the angler is acutely aware of his life slipping away while fish observe a solemn fast; nerves fray, nails are nibbled, teeth are ground and hair is torn; legering or float-fishing for the “serious” species, one is constantly willing the indicator up, the float down; trying longer or shorter hook-lengths, moving shot around, changing depths, agonising about whether or not to risk swiping the bait from under Leviathan’s nose to check it, or sitting baitless for hours; in short, winding oneself up into a state of excitement - pleasurable, if it works, but not relaxing - whereas, laying-on a bit of worm while gudgeon try to munch their way up to the hook, the pleasant passing of time becomes the whole point. It simply doesn't matter. The quality of the picnic matters more than the size of the catch. The afternoon drifts by...

Or, and this is what I think I’ve been groping towards, am I kidding myself?

Is the whole point of gudgeon-fishing to achieve a zen-like state which almost guarantees the "bonus" roach, chub or carp that comes along at dusk to put an emphatic full stop to the day's paragraph?

Am I alone among gudgeoners in making dam' sure to step up my hooklength and check my knots as the last hour approaches?

No?...Thought not!

---------- Post added at 18:23 ---------- Previous post was at 18:18 ----------

soddit, I used "gudgeon" and "ruffe" as my search terms and it's gorn an' kept 'em highighted. Now it looks as naff as one of those Superhero comics where Superhero's name is always in bold caps.

I love gudgeon.Somehow they seem to qualify as proper fish despite their size. I won a match once on a dour day on the GUC when nothing much else was feeding and I found a shoal of obliging little bull pongoes. Spanked the pants off everyone else fishing a pinkie about 2 foot off the end of my rod rest. Still only weighed in 6lb odd....and these were proper gudgpigs not the transparent leaf like things you used to get up the Aylesbury Arm in those days. They went about 500 to the pound.

I remember as a lad going into Jack Harrigans shop and seeing an absolutely huge gudgeon that Jack or one of his cronies had caught on the Avon. This brute was nudging the then record [4oz 4 dr]. As I recall this one went bang on 4oz. Jack had it in a tank in the shop....you wouldn't believe how impressive such a little fish was. Until you've seeen one you have no idea just how big a 4 oz gudgeon looks.

Alan Tyler said:

I'm fond of them. In the thread discussing Gary Cullum's "Ruffe fishing by design, I had a rush of blood to the keyboard and this emerged - wasn't sure whether to just post a link or copy and paste. Opted for the latter.

Gudgeon Fishing

I don’t quite understand why - at least, I didn’t when I started writing this, though I think I do now - but Ruffe don’t quite cut it for me as a mini-species of choice.

Ruffe are proper predators, and proper perciformes, all flick-knife spines and blades, and as much a pain in the palm as in the, er, neck. So why do they have no appeal to me, when I’ll happily spend an afternoon after gudgeon? What is it about gudgeon that makes them, in the eyes of many, the kings of the little fish?---- respect!

Matchmen may study the ways of bleak, and perfect ways of catching vast numbers of them, but I suspect the process is no more fun for the angler than the fish.
Bullheads and loach are wonders to behold, the one all points and angles - all pleasantly blunt - while the other is as graspable as an eel's oiled ghost - both are ideal aquarium subjects, though I doubt that's legal now. But not serious subjects of sporting pursuit.

Ditto minnows -they always look so aghast at the imponderable consequences of such a small mistake that I can neither clonk them for chub-bait nor stay fishing the same method in the same swim. “Cute nuisances” sums them up.

As for sticklebacks - if it's that desperate, go home. Read a good book, accumulate brownie points, sink a drink. Whatever. The only possible reasons for fishing for them are: you agreed to fish a series of team matches on a canal - in which case, unless rohypnol was involved, you've only yourself to blame; you are seven - that's a sound reason, enjoy the sticklebacks, and being seven; or you have an aquarium and a young non-angler who's just read - er, oops, I ought to know this, it's either Huxley or Tinbergen - and wants to watch the nest-building, territorial disputes, paternal care and mad attacking of anything red, at first hand. That's the best reason of the lot, and I wish you great success. Only necessary once a year, max, though.

But, somehow, gudgeon fishing is proper, respectable angling! Only just, to be fair, but the little, brown mini-barbel with the lilac sheen is seen as a proper fish, even though bleak and ruffe reach bigger sizes. Perhaps it’s because they are shoal fish -but then, so are bleak - in spades. Perhaps it’s because if you set out to catch bleak, you will. The only likely nuisance fish is a smaller bleak… set out to catch gudgeon, and any thing can happen.

And now I think I’m getting warm.

Gudgeon-fishing is the only form of angling which is truly relaxing. Sat behind a battery of silent buzzers, the angler is acutely aware of his life slipping away while fish observe a solemn fast; nerves fray, nails are nibbled, teeth are ground and hair is torn; legering or float-fishing for the “serious” species, one is constantly willing the indicator up, the float down; trying longer or shorter hook-lengths, moving shot around, changing depths, agonising about whether or not to risk swiping the bait from under Leviathan’s nose to check it, or sitting baitless for hours; in short, winding oneself up into a state of excitement - pleasurable, if it works, but not relaxing - whereas, laying-on a bit of worm while gudgeon try to munch their way up to the hook, the pleasant passing of time becomes the whole point. It simply doesn't matter. The quality of the picnic matters more than the size of the catch. The afternoon drifts by...

Or, and this is what I think I’ve been groping towards, am I kidding myself?

Is the whole point of gudgeon-fishing to achieve a zen-like state which almost guarantees the "bonus" roach, chub or carp that comes along at dusk to put an emphatic full stop to the day's paragraph?

Am I alone among gudgeoners in making dam' sure to step up my hooklength and check my knots as the last hour approaches?

No?...Thought not!

---------- Post added at 18:23 ---------- Previous post was at 18:18 ----------

Click to expand...

Alan, many thanks for that response,absolutely pure class, I think it just about tops any that I have read on FM for a long time.
So glad that someone has spoken so meaningfully /profoundly about so humble a little fish.

think there is a case to be made for them being, weight for weight, one of the hardest fighting fish of all-never ceases to amaze me how powerful an initial rush (which makes you think of a 2 pound chub) turns out to be a 2 ounce gudgeon. And they are handsome, too-always welcome.

If Gudgeon were dogs they would be Jack Russells.

I love gudgeon, such plucky, spirited little fish.

As a youngster there was a lovely wading spot at the tail of a benign weir pool on the Suffolk Stour where up to a dozen or so kids would congregate in summer to catch gudgeon using short whips.

We used to head down to the Tackle Box on North Street and cobble together our change to buy a quarter of a pint of maggots before heading down to the river in an attempt to get the prime spot where the bigger gudgeon seemed to congregate.

I’ve managed a few decent examples over the past few years on the Lea. One fish I took from Fishers Green was certainly over two, perhaps nearer three ounces. Sadly I’d left my scales at home that day.

As a kid I was a member of the London AA and used to fish the Suffolk Stour at Rodbridge near Sudbury. I remember catching 23 Gudgeon on one maggot, Obviously it was just skin by the twenty third. Respect to these greedy little B***ers

I,ve been to my "gudgeon pond today for a few short hours. The gudgeon were noticably absent and all I had for my efforts were a big perch, some skimmer bream and a couple of crucian carp.
Looks like I will have to do a long session with the two rods,optonics,and the old bivvy

I remember when we were kids, fifty odd years ago, one of my friends catching a gudgeon on the River Dane in Cheshire that, when weighed on our "Little Samson" went to 6oz...
we had a massive row about the record (4oz 4dr at the time) and how to claim it before the lad who had caught it declared that he didn't want to be known as the holder of the gudgeon record and threw it back...

but, yes, gudgeon made many a great day for us on the Dane...

Frank, it wouldnt bother me one iota if my name was on the record list as the guy who had taken the biggest gudgeon.
I was on a pond the other day and having had one of two ounces a few weeks back was delighted to take two or three more that were slightly larger in dimension but I didnt weigh them.
Anyway a very pleasant diversion,

There is nothing wrong with having a small record, just look at Mr Dennis Flack
who has caught leviathan Bleak,Bitterling,Stickleback,Silver Bream,Dace,Ruffe
and Gudgeon. The Carp or Pike records are no better than these.

beerweasel said:

There is nothing wrong with having a small record, just look at Mr Dennis Flack
who has caught leviathan Bleak,Bitterling,Stickleback,Silver Bream,Dace,Ruffe
and Gudgeon. The Carp or Pike records are no better than these.
__________________

Click to expand...

Absolumo'n, Beer weasel. anybody who sneers at these little fish aint no angler!

Great fish very underrated, often one of the first fish to be caught by a young angler in the old days...hehehe nowadays I keep hearing its all about Carp in double figures, sad really they are missing so much.