Autumn fishing

fishplate42 · Nov 10, 2016

I have been fishing now for a couple of years. In my first, late autumn/winter I did very little fishing. I tried a little last year without much success.

Now, just coming into my third cold season, I plan to go and have another go tomorrow (Friday) and see if, the best part of a year on, I can make a better job of it. I am planning on taking a float rod and a light quiver tip rod. The plan is to fish bread/maggots/meat/corn.

The pond I intend to fish can be seen HERE. I intend to go with minimum gear, just rods, bait and chair plus a few tools and bits of end tackle, net and unhooking mat.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Ralph

peterjg · Nov 10, 2016

Fishing in late autumn can be very hard. Temperatures dropping quickly and the water is often now very clear before the winter rains. Fallen leaves can make fishing very difficult because if you are trotting and when slowing the float the leaves catch up with the float and spoil presentation, if you leger the leaves get caught up on the line. That's apart from all the leaves on the bottom. Also we have stale rivers needing fresh water water to remove the dying weed and fallen leaves. Big rivers are easier than small rivers at this time of year, due to there being more space between the blasted leaves.

I use maggots a bit more often in the late autumn in an effort to get some action. Find venues with a decent head of fish. Another thing to try is to start pike fishing now. What about a bit of predator fishing now, although pike are at their heaviest (females) at the end of the season now can be a very good time for pike and perch - using popped up herrings or air injected lobworms.

Canal fishing now is hard, the water is very clear, but at least the boat traffic will have lessened considerably.

By the end of November most of the leaves will have fallen and the fish will have acclimatised to the colder temperatures - time to start roach fishing again - I can't wait!

greenie62 · Nov 10, 2016

Hi Ralph,
Good luck with the Autumn fishing - it can be very frustrating - even on 'commercials'.

One of the snags with float-fishing in a crispy-topped lake or pond - is being able to spot your float-tip against the pretty-coloured leaves or their reflections from the bank! This, coupled with low sun, makes the normal choice of bright orange/red/yellow floats that you normally fish in summer - almost useless/invisible. You might be better with white or black tips - or take uncut float rubber sleeves to slip over the top and trim to size! - or even using Tippex or a marker pen.

Even dipping your rod-tip under and winding back to sink the line can be difficult with the surface detritus. Sometimes, fishing across a wind lane can be the only chance of finding clear water.

Tight Lines :thumbs:

PS: From another thread:

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

mikench · Nov 10, 2016

You do make it sound attractive!

john step · Nov 10, 2016

Ralph. On your pond photos there are a couple of very good perch included.

Why not buy some worms and try for those perch. If there is a deepish spot close in and a ledge you could lower a pole float over it. Feed a chopped up worm around your float every now and again depending on bite frequency.

Enter results in FM perch challenge

fishplate42 · Nov 12, 2016

Well, I did buy some worms and I tried maggots and... I caught a fish, just one! It was not a bad day though, I learnt a bit more and I have decided that I am not keen on fishing when the days are short and the sun is low. The full story of the day can be found HERE. I have also decided that my next trip out will be on the Regents Canal with a dropshot rod!

Ralph.

Tee-Cee · Nov 12, 2016

Yes, still waters become very difficult as temps drop as I well know judging by results these past weeks.....However, I don't think this will last going into winter proper once the fish get used to something a bit more constant. I do quite well by building a swim(s) over weeks of continually fishing the same spots and it seems to pay off, on most occasions!! Depending on conditions I wiil do this several times a week...
If you are just making the odd visit and 'hoping for the best' then catches may well be harder to come by, but much depends on venue, of course.

I do red maggots for the roach with a light groundbait made up from soggy pellets and another proprietary ground bait added. Works well......

I fished the Regents canal back in the 1960's when hemp/ berry and caster were THE baits for super roach in Summer. Went downhill in winter, though!

Good luck!

ps In my diary for last year I recorded 40 plus decent roach on December 14th using hemp at all sorts of depth in a still water - pays to experiment, but as I've said, the swim building is the key, IMHO........

pps I have experienced floating leaves and a 'film' of muck on the surface these past weeks, so I 've had to move swims, dependent on the wind direction to give me a clear area in which to fish. Not easy at all and it stretches the nerves to breaking point!!!

It's like chasing a good women - you need to be patient, fishplate!!! Hohohoho

Keith M · Nov 12, 2016

Tee-Cee said:
Hohohoho

Now your secrets out Tee-Cee, we now know your the real Father Christmas

Keith

Tee-Cee · Nov 13, 2016

Fishplate............Just as an example of how difficult it can be........Last Tuesday I fished in temps close to freezing at 07.30 and not much higher at noon. Catch: 3 perch that together may have pushed the scales down to 8ozs. Friday it was a little warmer and although I caught few fish they were of reasonable size. All caught fishing over depth in 8' of water with red maggot.
Today I fished from 07.30 again and caught some nice fish over depth, but most of my 25+ catch were caught on the drop at 5' in 8' of water. Temps pretty good with some weak sunshine in my swim and still feeding when I had to leave. Same red maggot on a 20 to begin with but as bites slowed I changed to a 22.

ALL the above took place in the SAME swim, just different conditions (and tactics)!!

Today I could've sat fishing over depth all day and may have caught some more fish in that fashion, but just a bit of thought and a change of tactics helped me make a pretty good catch. The identical ground bait was used on all three days, but IMO I suggest the identical food going in every couple of days may just help hold the fish - for a while at least!

So, the moral of the story is: Flexibility in thought, don't over feed and try every depth from 6" to over depth by at least a foot................and it might just work!!!

Keith M · Nov 13, 2016

One very important lesson that I learnt early on when I first used to fish winter matches many years ago is that dropping down just one size of hook and hooklength can make all the difference between a blank and a win once the temperatures really start to drop.

There were days when I won a match using 8oz hooklengths and a size 24 hook and was sometimes about the only one to weigh in.
So if bites are at a premium don't be afraid to drop down even lighter.

Keith

mikench · Nov 13, 2016

Tee-Cee said:
Yes, still waters become very difficult as temps drop as I well know judging by results these past weeks.....However, I don't think this will last going into winter proper once the fish get used to something a bit more constant. I do quite well by building a swim(s) over weeks of continually fishing the same spots and it seems to pay off, on most occasions!! Depending on conditions I wiil do this several times a week...
If you are just making the odd visit and 'hoping for the best' then catches may well be harder to come by, but much depends on venue, of course.

I do red maggots for the roach with a light groundbait made up from soggy pellets and another proprietary ground bait added. Works well......

I fished the Regents canal back in the 1960's when hemp/ berry and caster were THE baits for super roach in Summer. Went downhill in winter, though!

Good luck!

ps In my diary for last year I recorded 40 plus decent roach on December 14th using hemp at all sorts of depth in a still water - pays to experiment, but as I've said, the swim building is the key, IMHO........

pps I have experienced floating leaves and a 'film' of muck on the surface these past weeks, so I 've had to move swims, dependent on the wind direction to give me a clear area in which to fish. Not easy at all and it stretches the nerves to breaking point!!!

It's like chasing a good women - you need to be patient, fishplate!!! Hohohoho

But once hooked you stay hooked!::wh

Autumn fishing

fishplate42

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peterjg

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greenie62

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mikench

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john step

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fishplate42

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Tee-Cee

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Keith M

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Tee-Cee

Senior Member

Keith M

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mikench

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