New to fishing - please help

Hi all,
I am very new to the fishing scene having only been once before with some fiends for a couple of hours in a chalk stream in Dorset. I now live in Kent and after changing jobs have a lot more time on my hands. I am keen to start fishing but am struggling to find out what kind of equipment I need.

I fancy float fishing for 'non carp species' but I am not having much luck in find suitable bits of water.
I would prefer to be able to fish in rivers/canals as a commercial fishery does seem very expensive.

I live in East Kent and have looked in Mid Kent Fisheries, but I wonder if anyone knows of any other places to fish that does not require a memebership until I decide how often I will be going.

Looking through magazines I have my eye on a Shimano Hyperloop Rod (what is better easier a 13 or 14 ft rod?) but I am a bit stuck as to which reel to go for. What is a Rear drag reel in comaprison to a Front drag reel?

What kind of floats should I go for? I have seen lots of mixed packs in adverts in IYCF and TCF.

What else would you consider vital/non vital?

I really only want to spend ?60ish and the test in IYCF recomended the 2 'kits' from Chapmans and NWAC but are these any good for river fishing?

These may seem stupid questions but any answers/advice would be greatfully recived.

Many Thanks
Tim

Tim ,where about in east kent are you living ,there are a few day ticket waters about .

Tim, whatever you do stick to your plan of floatfishing for 'non carp species'.....at least for a season or two, carp can be great fun but there is so much more on the way up, it is a shame to miss it!

Personally i would never by ready made up packs.....just talk to good local tackle shops and slowly build up good choices of individual floats.....modern 14ft rods offer a little better presentation on some rivers but i would still sooner rather have the "right" 13ft than the "wrong" 14ft......try and buy rod and real together and imagine holding them for up to 8 hours or even more!

Your questions ain't stupid either!

PS...the really experienced guys still argue about front or rear drag reels....but i will say that nowadays there are some great rear drags at great prices!

Thanks for the advice guys.
I live between Canterbury and Hythe if thats any help. I do know of the militray canal but looking on Mid Kent Fisheries website but it is a bit confusing about whether they cover the whole canal or not.
I have seen kids fishing from the road bridge in Wye. Is this legal and are there other areas of land that access to rivers is easy/free?

Any chance someone could explain the difference between front and rear? What is it? Does it make a difference?
Cheers
Tim

I used to fish a lot down your way Tim. Used to fish the Military Canal quite a bit at Appledore, Warehorne, Ham Street, West Hythe, Hythe town centre and Seabrook. It was all day ticket in those days. Good fishing too. Excellent tench fishing at this time of year. Good bream as well.

I also used to fish the Stour in Canterbury, Griffins Lake at Chartham, the Wantsum at Reculver, the park pond in Radnor Park in Folkestone and Nicholls Lake between Hythe and Dymchurch. They were all day ticket in those days. (Late 70's - 80's) You may find that certain clubs and associations have taken over a few of them now though.

Its worth having a go on the Drains and Dykes on Romney Marsh as well.

Sorry I haven't got any more upto date info.

Welcome to FM Timothy you have found the best site on the web.

No real diffrence on the reels rear or front drags both work by putting pressure on the spool. One pulls down the other tightens down.

With only ?60 to spend the rod is going to be a compromise with weight being the main criteria. If you are planning of fishing rivers and holding the rod then i would opt for the 13foot model to start.

Floats buy from your local dealer. he can guide you to the best one for the conditions and explain how to shot them for different conditions.

Main thing is get out and enjoy. If you have any questions just ask. Were a freindly bunch most of the time.

hi timothy i have just bought a shimano hyperloop 13ft rod and a shimano alivio 3000r reel fished with them a couple of times now and found them very comfortable and easy to use and they didnt cost the earth hope this helps

For information on the Wantsum Angling Association which has a 26 peg day ticket stretch on the River Stour at Plucks Gutter and around 100 day ticket pegs on the Wantsum please see www.wantsumangling.co.uk
I am the secretary of the club, if you have any questions please get in touch.

What Ho Tim

Welcome to FM -watch out for the nutters -you'll soon spot who they are.

As a beginner ask your questions there's plenty of top guys on here who will help.

Tally Ho

Welcome Tim, questions are never stupid, we'd never learn anything if we didn't ask, and with the amount of people on here you'll get answers to pretty much everything you need, and from experience of using tackle/tactics etc not just a mag telling you how something was "new". Not done any river fishing myself so unfortunately can't really help, but best to ask people for advice and to buy tackle you can physically pick up than just online, if you find it cheaper online you can check it out first at a tackle shop or haggle :0P

I would add to the excellent advice you've had so far this: make a friend at your local tackle shop.

If it weren't for my old friends Terry and Fred Hatcliffe in Weymouth when I was a lad, I would never have had a decent start. Go to your tackle shop and talk to the staff (when they're not too busy, obviously).

I really wish tackle shops were more of a hub for anglers; if I ran one it would have a corner with all the club details, catch pics, latest form for the local waters, and a coffee machine!!!

some very good advice on here.. Ive not been fishing a huge amount of time, a few seasons maybe, and I love going into my local tackle shop, little Ron who runs it can answer any question I have for him, and he'll draw diagrams if need be.. Tackle wise, I would agree in that you shouldnt really go for a ready made thing. Go into your tackle shop and maybe have a bit of a chat with they guy who runs it, explain your situation and tell him how much you have to spend, and let him give you the best rod and reel for what you need them for.. My personal rod preferance is a feeder rod, for reasons which I will explain.. I like to travel as light as possible, so one rod to carry is great. The feeder rods I have have interchangeable tips, soft, medium and hard.. the rod is very good for float fishing, and if the fancy takes me or the conditions dictate, I can switch over to a ledger or a feeder, and still use the same rod. This is only my preferance, so dont go n buy a feeder rod on account of what I say, but bare in mind that youll learn things very quickly with all the help on this website, so it wont be too long before youre trying other techniques..

As Bryan says, not much differance in front or rear drag reels.. I may be wrong, but going back a few years, rear drag reels were considered to be far superior to front drag, but now-a-days, theyre more or less the same, except for bigger 'carpy' reels, which tend to be front drag..

One thing I might mention, although I am hesitant to do so, is to look on ebay.. it would be an idea to buy your rod and such from the tackle shop, to kinda sweeten the guy who runs it, but terminal tackle n stuff you can get quite cheap on ebay if you look for it, just make sure youre not paying over the shop prices though.

hope this helps
Matt