Venue choice and playing the odds

binka · Nov 10, 2016

The rivers are finally on the rise again after what seems like an eternity of low, clear conditions but that first flush will bring with it the road wash and all the grime that has been building up for so long.

What at first appeared to be the favourite option has now dropped down the list and with a milder southerly on the cards for the weekend I reckon I will be somewhere on the end of it where I can find a bit of deeper water on a lake or gravel pit, and trying to hold my horses on the river until it’s had that first flush through.

Unless of course I just fancy it in which case all the logic goes out the window!

How do you go about choosing a venue for your next session?

Do you go with your best chance of a catch, opt for where you would rather fish (despite the odds), a compromise of the two or maybe some other factors?

greenie62 · Nov 10, 2016

binka said:
....How do you go about choosing a venue for your next session?....

I find a lot depends on forecast wind and weather as well as what the rainfall has just been!

There's a nice club pool which has some good fish in it, is nicely sheltered with plenty of tree cover and is 10 mins away - but the path to it is almost impassable after a heavy shower - a veritable quagmire - 1 step forward, 2 slides back! and that's just the CarPark swim!

Peter Jacobs · Nov 10, 2016

Seeing as down here we are on a chalk sub strata then the recent rains have yet to filter through into the streams and rivers.

So, I would still be fishing the local stretches of the Hampshire Avon myself.

When that rises and gets coloured then I'd move onto one of the several club lakes, or at a last option, then the nearest commercial, but again, locally.

rayner · Nov 10, 2016

Commercials are my bag now, more comfortable for me with a few bites to keep me concentrated and the time just flies.
It's expected to be one or two degrees warmer Friday with hardly any wind, so that gets my juices flowing, it's a definite for me.
The only thing that drives my choice these days has to be if I am comfortable. Tomorrow I feel I will be.
I know exactly which swim to chose and how to fish, another plus.

S-Kippy · Nov 10, 2016

I'm not going anywhere until all the leaves have gone.

greenie62 · Nov 10, 2016

S-Kippy said:
I'm not going anywhere until all the leaves have gone.

I can understand that and sympathise S-Kippy!

Re-posted in Autumn Fishing thread in reply to Ralph.

mikench · Nov 10, 2016

I go to where I last achieved success unless the weather has radically changed.

I am eager to try river fishing and will do so between now and Xmas. I have only done it once when I was 13 or 14 and caught my one and only chub!

I am going to go again tomorrow but have yet to decide where!

The weather looks more promising for tomorrow!

john step · Nov 10, 2016

The weather forecast for Saturday is a right stinker. Sunday is the best bet in these parts.

itsfishingnotcatching · Nov 10, 2016

Being limited to fishing Sundays and by choice, on a river, I tend to alternate between BAA stretches or a private section of the Salwarpe where I'm usually the only person fishing. May try the Arrow on Sunday in search of a Barbel, too much rain and it floods but weather forecast suggests it may have a little more colour and flow

barbelboi · Nov 10, 2016

Being limited to fishing whenever I like I took a stroll around some local waters this afternoon. The rivers are still gin clear with no flow, similar to the gravel pits but slightly less weedy................

binka · Nov 10, 2016

john step said:
The weather forecast for Saturday is a right stinker. Sunday is the best bet in these parts.

Yeah I saw that John, the river's already on the rise and will get a bit of a flush through before the weekend.

Trouble is I enjoy a good drink on a Saturday night especially as it's the only night of the week I tend to have one nowadays and the last thing I want to be doing is getting in the car at sparrowfart on Sunday morning so Saturday it will be, brolly 'n all.

I'm now starting to fancy the river with some mashed bread and a big lump of flake on the hook

flightliner · Nov 10, 2016

The fen drains are (or were) a good bet when the rivers rise closing the entrence gates.
Not so prone to road wash off like the flushing river.
Also when the flood tops or the river comes to a halt some drain gates re open allowing coloured water to enter, this coloured water travels pushing fish in front of it before coming to a halt.
At this juncture you can see very clearly the dirty/clear waterline , fish above the "dirty " water into the cler stuff and it can be fabulous fishing--- not every time but in general.
Timing is all--- but well worth considering .

Keith M · Nov 10, 2016

At this time of year my choice of venue usually depends on the weather:

If the temperature is very cold and it's very windy then I will usually pick my local wooded estate lake where I can always find a swim that shelters me from the cold biting winds and is usually a degree or so warmer than the more exposed swims.

If it is bitterly cold and the temperatures are still dropping then I might either be wrapped up in front of the fire or at one of my clubs waters which has several warmish springs erupting from its bed (it was originally dug out from cress beds). A lot of the fish there often congregate near to these under water springs.
Or If the temperatures have been fairly steady for a few days I might choose to go trotting on my local stream or do a little piking on one of my local pits.

If it is around 3 or 4 degrees or above and theres a light upstream wind then I will be trying to catch a few chub and barbel trotting on my local stream or I may be trying for a pike or two on the river Gt. Ouse or one of my local pits.

Keith

Philip · Nov 10, 2016

My first choice is nearly always going to be based on were I think my best chance of catching is. If the choice is still more than 1 then I will pick what I fancy on the day.

I guess like allot of others on here, having fished for a fair few years through experience you get to know where and what to target depending on the conditions. In some cases you even know the precise swim to go to and what tactics to be using just by looking out of the window. I can think of countless times stuck at work when I have looked out of the window and just knew the chub would be having it in this swim, or the Roach would be going mental in that swim and so on. Torture !

However that can be dangerous too…getting to THINK you know the best swims and tactics. It does pay to question yourself and have a few casts in some “blanker” swims in “bad” conditions from time to time !

terry m · Nov 10, 2016

Rivers still far too low down here. Need a lot more rain to get that flow going properly!

Until then, boring gravel pits I am afraid.

john step · Nov 12, 2016

binka said:
Yeah I saw that John, the river's already on the rise and will get a bit of a flush through before the weekend.

Trouble is I enjoy a good drink on a Saturday night especially as it's the only night of the week I tend to have one nowadays and the last thing I want to be doing is getting in the car at sparrowfart on Sunday morning so Saturday it will be, brolly 'n all.

I'm now starting to fancy the river with some mashed bread and a big lump of flake on the hook

I had a walk in the pouring rain this morning and wondered if you really did get out. I shall be watching HDYGO for any wimping out

binka · Nov 12, 2016

john step said:
I had a walk in the pouring rain this morning and wondered if you really did get out. I shall be watching HDYGO for any wimping out

I whimped out!

Made the decision yesterday but currently have a bucket of mashed bread on the go ready for tomorrow, should go down well with the mature cheddar and chopped chorizo omelette I will be knocking up on the riverbank

Venue choice and playing the odds

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