Lure Fishing UK Forum

Lure fishing at Grafham water?

kfsand — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 16:20:11 GMT

Hi all,
I will be pike/zander fishing from a boat at Grafham water next week and am looking for some tips on lure type/location etc. I know this could be a big topic but just a few simple tips would be great.

Cheers in advance

Kev

Hooking perch

NeilM — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 16:31:50 GMT

I have hardly fished for pike so far this season and have instead been seduced away by perch (and the faint chance of a Thames zander!). As a result I have fished crankbaits, jigged and dropshotted with soft plastics.

One thing I have noticed is the seemingly higher percentage of lost fish on the jigs and dropshot approach. Casting (and trolling) tends to be with lures armed with small trebles and once hooked it is rare to lose a fish. However, the single hook approach on soft baits does seem to "fall out" easier, despite good hits, hook sets and tight lines. The bigger perch do tend to engulf even big jigs with the hook meeting gristle and I can console myself that most lost fish are small fish. With the membrane sides to a perch's mouth I suspect it is something that will always occur unless I use treble hooks on stingers or use small trebles on my dropshot setup.

Decisions, decisions

NM

Weighing fish

puggyfeeesh — Thur, 12 Nov 2009 08:46:36 GMT

How prepared for weighing a fish should you be?

It always seems a lot of messing about to get the weighsling out, wetted, the scales zeroed etc, either whilst the fish is being unhooked (if a boat partner can do it) or after the fish is unhooked (if solo).

I don't catch that many fish that I want to weigh and it seems optimistic to have all the weighing kit prepared from the start of the trip, and it will only get covered in lures, flask, sarnies, whatever.

I can see the need to get this a bit better organised though because not having it ready leads to hurrying, the possibility of mistakes and unnecessary extra time out of the water for the fish.

Does anyone have a good system to keep the process as methodical and foolproof as possible?

Towing

puggyfeeesh — Thur, 05 Nov 2009 19:10:47 GMT

I am sometimes amused and quite often terrified by the behaviour of other car drivers when they see me towing my boat along. No matter what the speed limit is, how fast I'm going or how many cars are in a long line in front of me they become obsessed with getting in front of me. Pulling out in front of me out of side roads at the last second is quite normal, the closer I get the more likely they are to do it when they suddenly notice I'm towing. Then the overtaking, no matter how pointless the exercise they have to get past. They close in eagerly like a predatory animal then dash past regardless of the road. Do they win prizes perhaps for the most reckless overtaking? Then I find they are slowing me up because they didn't want to go that fast anyway, just to get past the "hold up".

It all makes me very nervous.

winter lure fishing

finn — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 18:10:13 GMT

Hi l have just started to lure fish the last 4 months is it any good in winter

Rainfall

puggyfeeesh — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 20:46:09 GMT

To save me searching, does anyone know where I might find online data about today's rainfall, like how much there was and where it fell?

Jointed Long A Bomber Lures WANTED

Fluke — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 14:13:03 GMT

Preferably similar to this one.

Split rings for small lures

hb904460 — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 10:25:06 GMT

Are the split rings on salmo hornets and butchers of a reliable standard? What alternatives would you recommend?

Lucky Strike Lizards wanted

Fluke — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 22:12:15 GMT

Lost my last two this week has anyone got any silver, copper, nickel ones for sale?

I am new on here so best say hello to

Life in the country

puggyfeeesh — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 06:52:16 GMT

We have a grazing association in the village using our pasture rights on the 7 local commons (I'm allowed 20 sheep. 4 ponies and 4 cattle) we fatten sheep and cattle, managed mostly by one bloke we all help out moving them or treating them as required and get very tasty meat at a substantial discount to supermarket prices.

At the weekend 7 cattle broke out and ended up a mile away, I've spent most of the last 2 days searching for cattle, chasing them across the countryside and being amazed at what athletes they are. When you see a long line of docile milkers crossing the road to the parlour you have a totally false impression of what cows are like, the steers are wild animals. They are like heavy deer, they can run a lot quicker than me and disappear out of site in a trice, the only fences they respect are electric or the sturdiest high barbed wire, everything else is largely ignored as they half-jump and half crash through into the next field. They are not hard to track but they are unpredictable and only their crazed fear of humans stops them being dangerous although it is a tad unnerving when 24 heavy hooves are stampeding towards you only to turn at rightangles a few feet in front of you through yet another hedge and disappear across yet another field to hide in another bramble thicket.

I've covered a few cross country miles and learned a lot about cows in the last 2 days. And my feet hurt. The owner of the cows has several insurance claims for fences and trampled crops to sort out.

Largely by luck 6 of the 7 cows are back on the common, not a clue where the other one is.

All in all I prefer sheep, better still, fish!

Desulphation.

MartinGodliman — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 12:41:43 GMT

I'm getting an orange flashing light on my charger at the same time as the green light saying it's fully charged, if I understand the instruction leaflet it's doing something called desulphation is my battery finished or just will be soon ?

Lure fishing has become really hard!

Burty — Thur, 15 Oct 2009 23:02:58 GMT

I started Lure Fishing in 2003 on a stretch of water where it was believed to be impossible to catch Pike on lures and as a result no one bothered.

Besides a few lobbing Mepps and Big Ss, I virtually had the water to myself and after gleaning superb advice from the Harris Forum I went out and started chucking proper Pike sized lures about and had a ball.

The only bad cast was one that missed the water.

Pike would cross-vast distances to hammer the lures.

Unfortunately as time passed a lot of spaced out dead baiters witnessed my good catches and the word got around.

Now the fishing is really hard with my annual catch rate down by 60%.

Would have caught a lot less but I drastically changed my tactics.

I wonder is there more I can do to claw back the good old days.

Folding boat

Keef — Thur, 08 Oct 2009 12:34:44 GMT

How do you reckon this compares with a Portabote, any lighter ?

http://www.rochemarine.co.uk/erol.html#811X1049

Lifejackets again

Keef — Thur, 08 Oct 2009 09:15:54 GMT

Tim and Martin,
Saw your posts on P+P board about that talk given by RNLI guy. Interesting.

We have discussed this numerous times over the years, and like you I see no reason to change from my fixed bouyancy jacket for freshwater use. Far from it - I dont trust auto-inflates. Have heard of too many examples of them not working properly, and, as you point out Tim, they need to be fitted properly in the first place.

No thanks, I will stick to my nice comfortable, dependable, Cabelas jacket.

New member

jimbob — Thur, 08 Oct 2009 09:04:39 GMT

Hi Guys and Girls.
Just like to say hello, i am a new member to the board but not new to angling.
I have just about finished with carp fishing as i now find it quite boring unless stalking for them, i do like stalking for chub and Barbel also.
In my club water when hooking perch or small silvers i often get a pike snatch at my hooked fish, i dont get pee'd off with them as they are doing what comes naturally.
Now i would like to actually get into lure fishing for them, as i feel they are a worthy quarry, i will also be looking for big perch and maybe chub.
I have been given an old Shakespeare 410 baitcaster reel and have got used to casting it from a small rod, (not in the water yet) and i feel i will be ok with it.
Could anyone recommend a cheap Baitcaster rod of around 6' or so, so as i can see how i get on on our river, if things dont go to plan i will have to revert back to a fixed spool, but i do like the idea of a one handed cast because of limited space.

Thanks