Is that it or do you carry on regardless?

peter crabtree · Oct 30, 2017

The clocks have gone back, we've had a few frosty mornings, it's getting colder.
Do you hang up your fishing boots and wait until spring or do you fish on through the winter months?

Personally I love winter fishing, especially the last two months of the river season.

Molehill · Oct 30, 2017

Carry on, but I don't do bad weather and I pick the species for the conditions.
I certainly no longer beat my head against a wall fishing for a species that I possible "may" get a bite if I sit there long enough, life is too short (especially for the over 60s!).

If I think I shall be battling the elements and miserable out there I don't go, but a nice winter's day, frosty and bright or mild and cloudy there is usually some species that can provide reliable sport.

rayner · Oct 30, 2017

So long as there's no ice I will pick my days regarding wind and rain I'll be out.
It's the only time I like to use punch, so much that it's the only bait I take.
The only other thing to prevent me would be health.

The use of other baits makes it easy to over feed, I reckon properly prepared punch feed can be fed all day and not over feed the fish, it sort of disintegrates in water.
Commercial roach don't see fine white bread often, they can't resist.

mikench · Oct 30, 2017

i plan to carry on regardless save for really horrible wet and windy days which are not much fun. I am not too keen on ice fishing either!!!

terry m · Oct 30, 2017

The season is just beginning proper!

barbelboi · Oct 30, 2017

Thankfully, we have yet to have a frost here this season (and the clocks don’t affect me one way or another) although the temperature has dropped a bit (8/9C degrees at night forecast for this week) in the last few days. I do enjoy my winter fishing although if, after a reasonably mild spell, you are hit by a hard frost I wouldn’t bother until the cold conditions have carried on for a few days. Then I’d be after the chub and dace first and a bit later the roach, perch and pike.

Bearing in mind that I often fish the smaller rivers, streams and back waters (which will react more rapidly to the sudden change in conditions) I would be more confident of getting a bite in the lower reach of a bigger river than the upper reaches where a sudden fall in water temperature could be the kiss of death.

If the conditions become harsh where the rivers are subject to snow/frost melt (probably deoxygenated and carrying a load of ‘sh1te’) I’d try one of the deeper pits. However, when the weather starts quickly becoming milder the smaller rivers are the place I’d be most confident of getting a bite. One thing I would stick to though is finding the fish in rivers that I know.

PS I do usually take a break for the couple of weeks either side of Christmas, whatever the weather, as we tend to do a lot of entertaining/being entertained during this period.

Molehill · Oct 30, 2017

rayner said:
The use of other baits makes it easy to over feed, I reckon properly prepared punch feed can be fed all day and not over feed the fish, it sort of disintegrates in water.
Commercial roach don't see fine white bread often, they can't resist.

Any tips for the groundbait preparation? I use bread punch quite a bit, but a bit haphazard with my groundbait, do you use fresh bread through a liquidiser and use on the day or do you dry it after and use it from dried crumbs?

rayner · Oct 30, 2017

Molehill said:
Any tips for the groundbait preparation? I use bread punch quite a bit, but a bit haphazard with my groundbait, do you use fresh bread through a liquidiser and use on the day or do you dry it after and use it from dried crumbs?

Freshest bread for the hook.
I buy the cheapest oldest bread on the shelf, generally a toaster loaf.
I then keep it a few days before putting it in the liquidiser. After I crumb it I freeze, then in the liquidiser whilst still frozen.
Doing it this way I get a finer crumb than just one blitz, a fine crumb is easy to feed every cast without over feeding.
I add a bit of water to hold the crumb together.If fishing deeper than 3 feet I use gravel to get the feed down. I only use a grape size ball of feed to start then top up every cast with a smaller nugget.
In my freezer I keep several bags, I then just top it up as I get down it.

peterjg · Oct 30, 2017

I just carry on, it has got to be done! In winter I do pay more attention to the weather forecasts and air and water temperatures. If the water temperature is above 42F I carry on roach fishing and if it's below I fish for either pike, chub, dace or grayling.

If there is snow I think it is wiser to stay indoors because of the roads. What I really don't like is winter night fishing in the rain - then I chicken out and watch TV!

nottskev · Oct 30, 2017

I certainly don't pack up, but, where and when to go needs a lot more thought,as I'm sure any fellow anglers nursing a few health issues will agree.

I used to find the winter sport much better than in summer, when my local rivers were the Dee, the Dane and the Weaver; the fish shoaled up and we knew where to find them. Nowadays my local river is quite prolific in summer but a mysteriously fish-free desert through winter. Still, there are plenty of other winter options, so I shouldn't complain – I read a post a few weeks back, from Ralph, I think, describing how his choices within a half-hour drive were a borderline-fishable small river and a commercial. That sounds tough!

For me, it's a case of studying the weather and the levels, feeding in calculations of wind direction and length of walk,and going for something that seems viable and not too uncomfortable, eg

Chub and grayling (crispy weather) medium-size river
Roach in marinas or lock cuttings (mild weather/rivers up and coloured)
Bream, roach and perch in deep lake (sheltered from cold winds; fishes reliably, even with low temperatures)
Anything that swims (canal on mild, calm days)
etc etc.

If all inspiration fails, in unappetising weather, I might go and fish 2pm - 4pm on a medium-size river where a peg 10 yards from the car might get you a bite or two from a chub. At least it avoids that feeling of having chickened out and wasted the day.

Even so, I can guarantee I'll end up in the wrong place more than a few times!

nottskev · Oct 30, 2017

rayner said:
Freshest bread for the hook.
I buy the cheapest oldest bread on the shelf, generally a toaster loaf.
I then keep it a few days before putting it in the liquidiser. After I crumb it I freeze, then in the liquidiser whilst still frozen.
Doing it this way I get a finer crumb than just one blitz, a fine crumb is easy to feed every cast without over feeding.
I add a bit of water to hold the crumb together.If fishing deeper than 3 feet I use gravel to get the feed down. I only use a grape size ball of feed to start then top up every cast with a smaller nugget.
In my freezer I keep several bags, I then just top it up as I get down it.

Good tips, thanks. You might like this video. Old-school stuff from Ian Heaps, with some interesting ideas on preparing the bread, hookbaits and groundbait.

YouTube

jasonbean1 · Oct 30, 2017

peterjg said:
I just carry on, it has got to be done! In winter I do pay more attention to the weather forecasts and air and water temperatures. If the water temperature is above 42F I carry on roach fishing and if it's below I fish for either pike, chub, dace or grayling.

If there is snow I think it is wiser to stay indoors because of the roads. What I really don't like is winter night fishing in the rain - then I chicken out and watch TV!

pretty much the same as me, if anything I fish more through the winter and a sunny winters day is more enjoyable to fish in the a sunny summers day

Peter Jacobs · Oct 30, 2017

With the advances in modern materials for clothing there is no need ot have to pack up fishing unless in the harshest of weather.

If you go back 40 or 50 years when we fished in welly boots and raincoats then, for certain, the number of "fishable" days was greatly reduced.

Today we don thermal undies and waterproofs of Gortex etc and can fish in quite low temperatures.

barbelboi · Oct 30, 2017

Yep, two pairs of socks in your welly boots was sheer luxury - except for that winter of 62-63 - we couldn't break the ice..........

tigger · Oct 30, 2017

I reckon it's only the last 12yrs that i've carried on fishing during the winter months. Previous to that my fishing always ended as the hunting/shooting season opened up. I never had the time or the inclination to @rse about fishing in cold weather. My winter fishing is purely on running water and for the biggest part consists of chub fishing and grayling fishing as on the rivers I fish that's pretty much all your likely to get with a moving bait. There are places I know where I can go and target silvers and it's highly likely that i'd get large numbers, but I think i'm the odd one out really as silvers....and roach in particular don't interest me in the slightest, in fact I think roach are one of the most boring fish I can think to catch!

steve2 · Oct 30, 2017

It's starting to get to the stage where I can’t remember the last really harsh winter we had in the South East. I didn’t miss a days fishing last winter due to bad weather. Looking at my photo library the last picture in the snow was taken in 2009.
Looking at the cloths we wore back in the 50’s and 60’s it’s a wonder we didn’t freeze.
I remember fishing in that 62 winter it went on for ever and there was no mention then of global warming.

peterjg · Oct 30, 2017

Tigger: you don't like roach!? That's really good - there are too many roach anglers! Stick to the easy fish like chub and barbel.

I'm sure your post was just a wind up!

S-Kippy · Oct 30, 2017

I enjoy winter fishing...once all the bloody leaf has gone ! Pick your days and your species and the fishing can be terrific. I never have felt the need to be out regardless of conditions but as PJ says there's really no excuse for getting wet/cold nowadays.

You wont find me breaking the ice on the cut just to catch gudjin and micro roach though ! Nor will you find me there at first light but i often fish well into dark during winter provided its not too cold.

binka · Oct 30, 2017

Ya just gotta keep on truckin...

S-Kippy · Oct 30, 2017

I bet both the chair and brolly are no longer with us !

Is that it or do you carry on regardless?

AKA Simon, 1953 - 2022 (RIP)

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