Lakes in top form for perch with 4lb 1oz fish topping bumper week
The capability of commercial fisheries to produce huge perch was highlighted once again this week with a series of fish to over 4lb being landed at venues across the UK.
The pick of the bunch was a 4lb 1oz specimen which fell to the rods of Richard Holmes-Moorhouse while targeting a popular northern carp water.
The Yorkshire-based rod had endured numerous unsuccessful trips at several different venues across the region, but he finally struck gold when he hooked in to his new personal best after it fell for a legered prawn mounted on a size 8 hook.
“As soon as I struck in to the bite I could feel the substantial weight of the fish – at first I thought it was a carp because it was so powerful,” Richard told Angling Times. “It was determined to get in the snags but I stayed calm and managed to keep it away from danger before slipping the net under it.
“I’ve heard rumours of similar venues holding perch of record proportions and while it might sound far-fetched to some, I think a fish of such size could be landed from a commercial in the near future,” he added.
Further south, Angling Direct’s Nathan Green relied on livebaiting tactics at a Kent commercial and managed to take his best perch of the season at 3lb 8oz.
The venue regular enjoyed success by constantly feeding maggots over the top of his paternostered roach offering.
Worcestershire’s Woodside Fishery has built up a reputation for its shoals of big perch, and Tenbury rod Nick Goode took advantage, landing a fish of 3lb 6oz during a lure fishing session on Island Pool. The all-important take came on his third cast of the day, with a small Onex spinner doing the trick.
Venue boss Ben Hughes has been inundated with similar reports this winter and said: “We are fast getting a reputation for being a reliable and consistent perch water. There are countless fish to 4lb and it wouldn’t surprise me if there were even big specimens waiting to be caught.”
Various theories as to why the species have thrived in commercials have arisen and highly regarded fishery management expert Bruno Broughton believes he may have the answer. He said: “The key factor is certainly the availability of lots of food. In many commercials, conditions favour the successful spawning of stocked fish, especially silverfish. Any perch present have an almost unlimited supply of small fish.”
**Five big perch commercials to try**
1. Tricklebrook Fishery, Five Oak Green, Kent – Perch over 5lb can be caught on the Main Lake with worms or small livebaits. Contact: 07743 955812.
2. Whitmore Fisheries, Kirkham, Lancs – A number of the lakes are home to fish to 4lb although Island Pond and The Basin are the most prolific. Contact: 07891 397086.
3. Viaduct Fishery, Somerton, Somerset – Match water Campbell Lake is opened to perch anglers in winter and is home to fish over 4lb. Contact: 01458 274022.
4. Lake John, Waltham Abbey, Essex – The Top Lake has produced fish nudging 4lb, with worms and dead maggots in the margins producing the goods. Contact: 07958 938153.
5. Rycroft Fisheries, Hemmington, Derbs – Use worm and caster on the pole or in a small feeder on the Main Lake for specimens over 3lb. Contact: 07816 052235.
3lb 9oz personal best perch on worm
This 3lb 9oz personal best perch was the highlight of an early morning session on a Lincolnshire river for Philip Taylor.
The Skegness-based security guard offered dendrobaena worms mid-river and landed a total of 10 fish including four over 2lb to 2lb 4oz.
“I was planning on fishing two rods but I got one out and started catching straightaway, and then never had time to set up my second,” said the 39-year-old. “The 3lb 9oz fish came on the last cast and straight away I could tell it was going to be much bigger than anything else I’d caught.”
Philip used 5lb Drennan Double Strength straight through to a size 12 Wide Gape Specialist hook.
4lb perch at dusk from River Great Ouse
Ashley Bugden is no stranger when it comes to big perch – he has caught numerous fish over 3lb this year and recently broke his pb for the species with this 4lb 1oz specimen.
The Stevenage-based 31-year-old targeted a tributary of the River Great Ouse and found success using a jig on a day where bites were at a premium.
“I was fishing with a friend, roving the banks of the river and neither of us had a bite all day so I returned to my favourite spot at dusk and, bang, I had a fish which at first I thought was a pike,” he said.
Ashley used a new Tronix Rockfish Light rod with 11lb Power Pro line and a 6lb flourocarbon leader attached to a Fox Rage Warrior Mini Fry soft plastic jig.
New personal best perch from Grand Union Canal
Midland based predator enthusiast Rob Smith took advantage of the recent hot streak of perch form across the country to bag this 3lb 14oz pb specimen from the Grand Union Canal.
Rob fooled the impressive fish using 8lb braid connected to a 6lb fluorocarbon leader. His winning lure was a Lure Fanatics, Da Bomb, 1-inch soft bait, accompanied by a 1-gram jig head.
Rob said: “I’d been fishing for over an hour with no indications but a change of lure and lighter conditions suddenly sent the perch on the hunt. I had fish of 1lb 14oz, 1lb 6oz and then the biggie arrived.
“As soon as it hit the lure I could tell it was a good fish, it gave a really good account of itself and I was very relieved when she finally went into the net!”
3lb 4oz river perch for Angling Trust man
Angling Trust membership manager Will Smith has enjoyed a succession of cracking river perch over two sessions, the biggest being this 3lb 4oz specimen.
After spotting some perch attacking fry by some overhanging willows trees during a barbel session earlier in the week, he returned to the same spot with beefed up float tackle. He then presented lobworm hookbaits under a 6g bolognaise style float, with 6lb mainline straight through to a size 6 Kamasan hook. This accounted for several good fish to 2lb 14oz, but it wasn’t until the following day that the Leominster man latched into the biggest perch.
“I was on the river bank very early in the morning the next day and it was worth it when I hooked this beauty. She was a real solid ‘football’ shape. I fed chopped worms and chopped maggots in molehill soil flavoured with Dynamite Liquid Worm,” he said.
Big river perch on a lobworm
When the temperatures drop, big perch can still be relied on to put a bend in the rod – as proved by Josh Fisher when he banked a series of fish to 3lb 7oz from a Midlands river.
The Norfolk-based all-rounder had endured several fruitless sessions in search of chub and decided to switch his attentions to the predatory species in a bid to change his fortunes.
Fully aware that the cold conditions would affect the feeding habits of the fish, he used a simple yet extremely sensitive rig which would register even the shyest of bites.
“I wanted to spot the tiniest of plucks on the rod tip so I link legered a lobworm on the hook and sprayed red maggots over the top,” explained Josh, who used 4lb Drennan Supplex mainline straight through to a size 6 hook.
Targeting a well-known hotspot on the waterway, it wasn’t long before the professional tattoo artist hooked and landed a fish just over the 3lb-barrier and several others of a similar weight came to the net before the end of the session.
Just days later he headed to a different stretch and adopting a roving approach to fish a number of swims he finally took the biggest perch from the two trips. He said: “A large fish kept picking the bait up and spitting it out so I cranked the reel a couple of times to pull the worm back. This got an instant reaction as the tip immediately flew round and the 3lb 7oz specimen was soon on the bank.”
Determined to continue to his run of form, he has now set his sights on a new winter target, and told Angling Times: “I’ve pinpointed a venue that has a big head of roach and I’m hoping to catch a fish over the 2lb-mark in the coming weeks.”
4lb perch from weedy River Ivel
Mick Burr targeted a small run on a very weedy River Ivel where he landed this monster 4lb perch.
The Shefford & District Angling Association bailiff was fishing the club’s stretch situated between Stanford and Langford near Biggleswade in Bedfordshire, where he used straight lead tactics with lobworm as bait to lure the specimen. The 53-year-old from Hitchin, who regularly fishes the waterway in winter said: “The river was low, fairly clear and very weedy for this time of year but I wasn’t going to give up and I knew there were plenty of these perch in here as I caught one weighing 4lb 4oz just two weeks previous and the swim was fairly deep so I just trotted the worm through the margins and bingo.”
Mick chose a mobile approach, searching each swim as he walked the bank, using 4lb mainline tied direct to a size 6 Korda wide gap hook.
High-pressure perch couldn't resist rubber jig
Perch are notorious for being tricky to catch from swims where they’ve been heavily pressured, but undeterred by this fact Dirk Fastenau went on to catch a string of specimens to over 4lb using a small rubber jig.
Targeting a stillwater in Germany, Dirk ended up fishing a spot that he originally wanted to avoid due to the amount of anglers who have plundered its perch population, but decided to give it go with a Quantum Joker lure with which he’d enjoyed good results with in the past.
His imitation bait came up trumps once again, and his very first cast produced a fish over 2lb which was followed by this superb perch measuring 49.5cm and estimated to have weighed well over 4lb.
Big perch caught on the fly
A day's tuition with a venue expert helped Barry Hawyes fool this 3lb 13oz perch from Chew Valley Reservoir.
Determined to land a large specimen from the 1,200-acre Somerset water, the keen predator rod hired the services of John Horsey in a bid to achieve his goal.
After being advised to use fly fishing tactics he cast out a minky fly pattern, and after catching a number of smaller fish he latched in to the biggest of the day towards the end of the session.
For more details on guided tours on the Bristol water visit: www.johnhorsey.co.uk
Great Ouse perch makes it 'double four' for Drennan Cup champ
Gareth Goldson is in the form of his life and the moment and his run of stunning catches continued when he took this 4lb 2oz perch from the Great Ouse.
The Dynamite Baits angler had set his sights on a ‘four’ from a stillwater and a river this winter and he achieved the former earlier in the month with a stunning 4lb 7oz specimen from Grafham Water.
Determined to achieve his overall goal before the end of the year, he headed to hotspot on the Bedfordshire waterway and took a number of fish over 2lb on lure fishing tactics in the early stages.
But it was a switch to legered maggot and worm that brought about the desired response. After feeding the spot steadily for an hour, the tip eventually pulled around slowly.
“It felt too big to be a perch and thought it was maybe a tench or bream to start with but then the head shaking started and knew I was attached to an Ouse giant,” explained Gareth.
“I thought my target of catching 4lb plus perch from a river and a lake over winter was achievable but I never expected to get the job done so quickly,” he added.
One cast, two perch for 7lb
Predator expert John Horsey enjoys nothing more than targeting big perch with fly fishing tactics and his love for that arm of the sport grew stronger when he netted two fish for over 7lb…on the same cast!
During a session at Chew Valley the professional angling guide shunned the more of traditional approach of lure fishing and set up a rig incorporating two flies and a pair of hooks which tempted fish of 4lb and 3lb 2oz.
And to prove the catch wasn’t a fluke, John experienced over a dozen double hook ups during a manic week on the Bristol water, including another huge brace of perch weighing 3lb 11oz and 3lb 9oz.
It is a tactic that he originally took from his game fishing armoury and he hasn’t looked back since first using it several years ago.
“When I’m trout fishing I use four flies on a 20 foot leader and I was confident that if I scaled this down to two flies on a 10 foot leader I would have a good chance of catching some very big perch,” explained John.
“The flies are spaced out five foot apart and it has proved to be devastating when there are big shoals of the species on the hunt – it’s common to have two fish take flies at the same time and it can lead to a fantastic fight,” he added.
Choosing the right fly has also proved to be important, with a number of carefully selected patterns the most effective. He said: “I use minkies and others that replicate fish fry. The perch are shoal feeders and hunt down fry together, hence the high percentage of double hook ups.”
Chew perch tops 4lb
A day with a local expert paid off for George and Alex Mason as they landed a raft of big perch to 4lb 2oz during a session on Chew Valley Reservoir.
The father and son duo hired the services of John Horsey and were advised to shun lures and other popular predator tactics in favour of fly fishing at the Bristol water.
It was a ploy that brought about instant results and within a frantic two hour period they managed to net 26 perch.
By the end of the outing George had taken specimens to 3lb 11oz while Alex took the biggest of the day and broke his personal best in the process.
Grafham sees record perch hit the bank
Predator fishing haven Grafham Water hit top form this week when a trio of huge specimens were landed from the on-form fishery.
Seasoned specimen angler Gareth Goldson led the way after he enjoyed one of the greatest weeks of his career while targeting the Cambridgeshire venue.
The Dynamite Baits rod set his sights on landing a big perch from the 1,500 acre reservoir and struck gold when he slipped the net under an immaculate 4lb 7oz venue record specimen.
Having spent years analysing the feeding habits of the fish in the water, he was convinced that his best chance of success would come at first light and within 15 minutes of casting his jig out the line tightened up.
“My initial thought was that it was a zander but its head began to shake I had a feeling I was into a massive perch,” explained Gareth.
“Once it was in the boat I couldn’t believe what I’d landed and I even thought it was over 5lb. It was a truly remarkable fish and showed that doing your homework can pay off.”
But Gareth’s run of form didn’t end there as he revisited the water with a completely different target – a new personal best zander.
A campaign on his local Fenland rivers hadn’t produced any major successes so he hooked up with venue expert Adam Perna to try and break his duck.
Bites were hard to come by but with the light drawing in they were given a welcome boost when Gareth landed a 2lb 15oz perch and shortly afterwards he was in action again: “I felt a couple of subtle plucks before I made contact with what felt like a pike. It felt so heavy bringing it up on the tiny rod and I just prayed the jig stayed in place,”
“I wasn't surprised to see the scales spin round to 15lb 1oz and it made a frustrating day more than worthwhile,” added Gareth, who used 10lb braid and an 8lb fluoro leader to a small Savage Gear shad.
He wasn’t alone in enjoying the frantic sport as Paul Douglas banked a new pb pike of 27lb 2oz.
The Northampton rod used mackerel deadbaits in deep water to land the big fish before taking his first ever double figure zander of 10lb 10oz and another weighing 10lb 12oz.
Drop-shotting delivers 4lb perch for Paul Garner
This fin perfect 3lb 14oz perch is proof of how devastating the method of ‘dropshotting’ is for the species.
The fish was part of a memorable haul of specimens for Angling Times’ ‘Bait Doctor' Paul Garner during a session a large midlands stillwater.
A Berkley Powerbait Gotham shad fished on 6lb Berkley fluorocarbon and an 8lb braided mainline, was the winning bait for the Peg One and Baitbox backed rod, who also banked several other smaller fish.
“The shoals of bait fish are migrating into deeper water at the moment so the perch are constantly on the move following them,” said Paul. “This makes location absolutely vital for success.”
It's perfect conditions for perch
The nation’s army of predator anglers proved that there couldn’t be a better time to get out there and beat your perch personal best after a string of specimens over the 4lb barrier were landed from river and stillwater venues across the UK.
The autumnal conditions have seen the species switch on to the feed and Sam Edmonds was one of the first to get in on the action when he landed a stunning 4lb 1oz fish from Grafham Water Reservoir.
Having woken up feeling ill he and his dad Gary came close to cancelling the eagerly anticipated trip but made the decision to head to the daunting 1,500-acre Cambridgeshire venue in search of a big ‘stripey’.
Gary was the first to get in on the action with an early bite resulting in a fish of 3lb 11oz and between them they netted seven others and saevera; zander during the day.
With less than an hour of light remaining, they began to tackle down for the day but Sam was called into action one last time. “Considering how ill I felt I’d enjoyed the day but just as we thought the day was coming to an end I received a take.
“I was using a drop-shotted Sebile Magic Swimmer Soft lure at the time and after a short tussle it was in the net. It had made getting up that morning and getting on the water all worthwhile,” he added.
Another angler who made the most of the perfect conditions for big perch was Kirk Tarren as his first cast on the River Anker produced a personal best for the species of 4lb 2oz.
After walking the venue and finding a raft of weed mid-river, the Tamworth, Staffs-based rod flicked a small rubber lure over the top of the feature and it was immediately taken by the specimen predator.
It was certainly a sign of things to come as his session also produced five other perch between 2lb and 3lb which were all fooled with a Savage Gear Cannibal Minnow attached to a wire trace and a 6lb braided mainline.
“I thought it was a pike when I first hooked the perch, and I can’t really repeat what I shouted when I saw it coming up through the crystal clear water!” said Kirk.
“If you find the right swim on the river then these baits will give you a chance of catching the biggest perch because they mimic bait fish perfectly.”
Last but certainly not least is Paul Douglas who equalled his personal best with a superb 4lb 1oz lure-caught specimen.
The Northampton-based tackle shop manager used the devastating ‘dropshotting’ method at a reservoir in the midlands and concentrated his efforts in depths of water between 15 and 50 feet.
Numerous perch up to the 1lb-mark, plus rainbow trout and jack pike also fell to the 33-year-old, who used a 12lb ESP Ghost fluorocarbon leader and a size 4 hook.
Jigged shads pull big perch
Lure fishing expert Gary Edmonds once again proved the true pulling power of artificial baits when he banked this 3lb 14oz perch from a southern river.
The Abu Garcia-backed angler adopted a roving approach during a session with his son Sam in an effort to cover a number of likely hotspots and he struck gold when the predator fell for a 3.5 inch jigged shad.
Several other fish came to the duo in quick succession and by the end of the day they had taken 15 others to over 2lb.
“It was a really enjoyable day on the bank and the biggest of the session capped it off. The exciting part about catching this fish is that I watched it suck the lure up off the bottom before the battle began,” explained Gary.
Drop-shotting takes 32 perch to 3lb 9oz best
Dropshotting accounted for 32 specimen perch in an afternoon for Dan Sales and James Stevens.
The duo bagged two three-pounders to 3lb 9oz and reckon 90 per cent of their fish were over the 2lb barrier.
The frantic action took place in a number of swims as the pair roved a section of the River Lea in Hertfordshire.
Dan, who used a Fox Ultron rod and reel and presented a yellow forked-tail lure, said: “The action was pretty widespread. We’d catch one in one swim, a couple in another, and we just worked the river looking for likely spots.
“We know there are bigger perch there and we were hoping for one of the real giants, but a 3lb 9oz fish isn’t to be baulked at. It was a fantastic afternoon’s sport.
“There are three of us who all fish together and share information – when we find fish, we tell each other, and it was James who found these fish.”
Due to the lack of pike in the area, Dan was able to scale his tackle down and used a 6lb fluorocarbon leader, with his lure presented on a size six Drennan Wide Gape Super Specialist hook 2ft from a 7gr weight.
**DAN’S DROPSHOTTING TIPS**
Be patient: “I see lots of people dragging their rigs out of the swim too quickly. Put them on a spot and leave them there as long as you can.”
Provoke a reaction: “Sometimes it was taking us 12 casts to the same spot to get a bite. It’s as if you’re annoying them into taking the lure.”
Yellow and white lures rule: “These are the only two colours I use at the moment in the clear water.”
Find features: “We walked the river looking for likely spots and fished to snags, bridges and near moored boats. We also had a couple of fish from a weir pool.”
Long walk rewarded by frantic perch action
A three-mile trek in search of a huge perch ended with Sam Edmonds banking a series of specimens to 3lb 13oz during a session on a southern river.
The Abu Garcia angler took advantage of favourable conditions and set his stall out at first light to target a number of hotspots.
His dad Gary had joined him on the expedition and it was him who kick started the action, with a 3lb 8oz fish falling to a drop-shotted split tail lure on the first cast of the day.
After several hours of prolific sport they headed back to the car but the outing had not yet hit its peak.
“We had a few more casts in pegs we had already visited and all of a sudden I received a quick take which ended with the biggest perch of the session going in the net,” explained Sam.
“We returned to another section of the river in the evening, ending with 22 fish between us by the end of the day,” he added.
'Drop-shotting' proves downfall for big perch
If you're targeting big river perch the popular ‘drop shotting’ method is hard to beat - as proved by James Stevens when he slipped the net under this huge specimen.
He struck gold when he targeted a local stretch of river and worked his lure close to a moored boat situated on the far bank of the waterway.
Unfortunately the Hertfordshire-based rod’s scales were faulty so he and his good friend and fellow all-rounder Dan Sales estimated the fish to weigh around the 4lb mark.
The impressive predator was beaten with 15lb braid and he also managed to fool two smaller perch, while Dan banked a chub and a brown trout, both over the 4lb mark.
Stillwater produces 4lb 1oz perch
A two-year campaign to land a personal best perch came to an end for Neale Woodward when he banked this 4lb 1oz specimen from a Sussex stillwater.
The keen all-rounder had managed fish to 3lb 5oz from commercial venues in the past but was determined to beat the landmark from a local venue containing a low stock of the species.
Despite experiencing countless blank sessions in recent months, he kept faith in the hidden gem and employed a free running leger rig with a king prawn coated in DNA Baits Krill Hydrolysate Liquid.
“As soon as I hooked it I knew I was into a big perch and once it was in the net I couldn’t hide my excitement. This catch makes all the hard work worthwhile,” explained Neale.
