Grayling fishing on the Itchen
After getting home from the river Wye on the Tuesday night and Ron catching 3 doubles up to 12lbs it was quick change around for me. Packing away the barbel gear and then getting the float gear out. It was the annual grayling trip on the river Itchen with Alan, Steve, John, Tony, Colin, and Bob. We normally have a couple →
Ron the barbel catcher of the river Wye
I had guided Ron before on the river Wye last year. He caught some good barbel in the 9lb mark but not the double figure fish. Now Ron I'm sure won't mind me saying that last year at 78 he said that it was going to be his last visit. However I wasn't surprised him contacting me again regarding 3 days →
Andy and Roger barbel fishing on the river Wye plus some pike from Chew
Roger had kindly taken me fishing the last few years on Blagdon and Chew Valley fly fishing for trout. He used to be a very good coarse fisherman before he changed to fly fishing 30 years before. So on my suggestion of a barbel fishing session on the river Wye he couldn't wait to for the date to come. He hadn't caught →
Thames Perch and 40-50 of the darlings
I had been told about some large perch on the Thames that were just reaching 4lbs. So I decided to fish for them. I couldn't get there too early as I had been trying to sort out the Tench Fishers fish in on Horseshoe lake. Well having got half a kilo of worms the method would be waggler fishing in the →
Now 8 blogs missing.
I have about 8 days of fishing blogs to write up. To be fair some of this will be easy as they are 3x one day sessions 1x 2 day and a 3 day session. They are quite varied fishing the Thames for perch, a day afloat on Chew after the pike. a single day on the Wye with Andy and →
Colin and Brian go fishing on the river Wye
Please read the previous two blogs too! Again I've just returned from holiday and time is short. I'm busy guiding and as normal doing plenty of stuff. Not only this but I've had a cold for 4 weeks that I just can't shift. So an emergency visit to the Doc's see's me having to take some antibiotics to clear it up. →
Andrea and John fishing the river Wye for barbel
Again time is very short and it's more of a picture story this blog! Andrea is from Italy and I've guided him a few times when he has visited UK. He was over this time presenting a paper about an Italian poet in Bristol and of course he had time to fish for one day. Fellow Tench Fisher John was in staying →
Hampshire Avon and 8 great chub
I'm now so far behind with my blog and having had a couple of weeks holiday the only way to complete it by doing a photo story. This is a session on the H.Avon with Andy Cowley (you should have been here yesterday Andy). We both caught some great chub. Hugh Miles took a few photo's for me too. We spent a couple →
Eddie and Steve go Wye barbeling.
Day 1 Eddie and Steve are fellow Tench Fishers and they wanted to catch a barbel or two. Steve had caught 3 from the Severn along time ago to 7lbs 12oz. Eddie had yet to fish for them let alone land one. They were down on the river Wye for a couple of days so for sure we would land a good →
River Wye with Bob and Steve
Steve had bought a voucher for Bob to celebrate a significant birthday and today was the day it was put to great use. We met at my place and drove the hour long journey to the river Wye. On arriving the river was up from my previous visit and there was plenty of weed coming down. We were using the normal West →
13lb 14oz barbel for Chris
Now there is always a story here. Chris booked a chub session with me in February on the river Stour. We fished all day and had a big fat blank! The river was at the right level however for some strange reason there was a funny colour to it. We tried really hard to find a chub or two but →
Another H.Avon visit and bingo a 11lbs 9oz barbel
please read previous 5 blogs. I'm on blog overload! Lots going on again and some excellent fishing with new clients and some I've guided before. So still plenty of guiding and another day for me. I have decided to reduce the amount of guiding for the future as I'm not getting out myself. So I was supposed to be fishing on the H.Avon →
James and Mike his Dad on the river Wye
Please read the previous 4 blogs I had guided James and his friend Chris a few weeks previous on the river Wye. They had both caught some good fish. So James had given his Dad (Mike) a birthday gift as a voucher for a days guiding on the river Wye. Now Mike is no stranger to barbel fishing and has caught a →
Steve, Graeme and Dad Stan go barbel fishing!
Please read the previous three blogs. Well they say time waits for no man and it seemed ages ago that Steve had phoned me to arrange a barbel session for his bother Graeme and their Dad Stan. What I hadn't relised but Graeme and Stan had traveled from the lake district via Manchester to pick up Steve for one days fishing on →
H.Avon and a difficult day
I've not been fishing the H.Avon of late due to guiding obligations. See the previous blog. The river had been low and some huge barbel having been putting in an appearance. Me though have been trying for some huge chub. I started off fishing one swim which has produced some large chub and barbel. I saw a couple of barbel but →
Carl and Daffers barbel fishing on the Wye
Well got to say I'm really running well behind with the blog's. I could lump everything together but that seems a bit unfair at this stage. First up is a trip to the Wye with Daffers and Carl. They are fellow Tench Fishers and do enjoy other forms of fishing as do most of the members. I think if you asked →
Dan and Dad Bill first barbel
Dan had been in touch in the winter asking me to guide him and his Dad Bill on the river Wye for barbel. Could I provide a birthday voucher for Bill to spend on this day out. He also wanted to buy Bill a new barbel rod and could I recommend one. I had no doubt the Fox range of barbel →
Tench feature in the Anglers Mail with Gary Newman as the camera man and reporter.
It's funny how long ago it seems now Gary had asked me to help him to do a feature for the Anglers Mail on the Carp Societies Horseshoe lake. A few phone calls later saw us arranging a date in early June to fish the lake. I turned up early the previous day and set up where I thought the tench →
Luke’s first ever barbel session, 24 for the day, “Happy Days”
Now I guided Luke before a couple of times chub fishing in the winter and tench fishing in early spring. It's great because once he see's what I'm doing and from what he has learnt he returns and replicates the methods and catches fish. He was telling me he has now had tench to over 6lbs using the methods and →
Chris and James fishing the river Wye and the first guided double of the season.
James had wanted to fish the river Wye for barbel and asked if his friend Chris could come along. There is never a problem with this as it normally leads to fair bit of banter between the 3 of us. James had just returned to angling after a break and wanted to see what was needed tackle wise and also learn →
Barbel fishing on the Wye with Lloyd
I had first met Lloyd over the winter. He asked me to guide him with pike fish, however I found it difficult to find sufficient time with one thing or another. However I did spend a few hours just helping him out with a few tips. These few tips resulted in him landing some good pike from the Bristol Avon →
Carl and his Wye barbel adventure
Carl is in the Tench Fishers and asked me sometime ago whether I could take him fishing on the Wye fishing for barbel. Now Carl won't mind me saying here that he has been going through a tough time of it of late and he needed some distraction to take things off his mind. We agreed to fish a short session →
Short session on the Hampshire Avon
I was thinking of walking the stretch where I fish on the H.Avon as some things had changed on the fishery and I wanted to walk and take a look at the swims and see where the chub were hiding. I walked the stretch for 6hrs taking note of where the large chub were and also feeding them. It was after →
Plenty of guiding and Jeff’s 3lb 2oz perch
Well since the river season began it's been very very busy with me catching some great chub and barbel. The guiding has really taken off with lots of people wanting to get in on the act too. However the first session was back on the lakes for Jeff. Now Jeff has just returned to fishing after an absence of a good →