River Cam produces amazing rudd session
AN EIGHT-mile walk along the River Cam ended in success for Paul Faint in the shape of this 3lb 6oz rudd.
It was a new personal best for the 46-year-old, who said: “I started off by walking a section of the Cam, only to find the area that I fancied was privately owned, with no access for fishing.
“This was a long hike for nothing, so I decided to return to the beginning of the section and make my way across the river over a footbridge and fish it from the opposite bank.
“By this time I had been on the bank a few hours – I must have walked eight miles and still not wetted a line.”
After eventually locating some fish, Paul flicked out a few pieces of bread crust which were soon snapped up by a shoal of hungry Fenland rudd.
Without hesitation he cast out his rig, and a floating crust hookbait was devoured almost instantly.
“Half way through the fight I could see the golden flank of the fish and knew it was a rudd, and a big rudd at that,” Paul added.
“Carefully retrieving it back to the net amid the lily pads and rushes I knew it was going to be a pb – beating my long-standing best of just over 2lb.”
Paul’s session also produced other rudd of 1lb 15oz, 1lb 4oz and 1lb 3oz.
All fell to floating crust fished on a size 8 Kamasan hook, with a 3lb Drennan hooklink tied to 5lb mainline under a thick-topped Drennan waggler float.
Roving approach leads to 7lb 8oz chub
A roving approach led to the capture of this 7lb 8oz chub for Mark Lindsay.
But the Gamakatsu and Spro-backed rod needed every second of a free half day just to locate some fish. He said: “I eventually stumbled across a pod of six or seven big chub chilling under the safety of a large overhanging tree. I cut out a swim 20 yards upstream and began to feed maggots little and often.”
After around 30 minutes Mark had taken a few small perch and chublets alongside a bigger chub of 5lb... and it wasn’t long before the 7½-pounder joined it.
“Just as I drifted the maggots down to the fish and they hit bottom she hoovered them up,” Mark told Angling Times.
“A slow, steady fight with a few very powerful runs was nerve-racking, but when I saw the open mouth at the net I knew this was a special fish.
“Not a scale was out of place, and at 7lb 8oz it was a new pb for me.
“It’s amazing when you consider that chub can take well over 25 years to get to this size.”
Mark’s rig included a Gamakatsu RX Specialist size 12 hook with a double maggot hookbait. BB shot added casting weight to the rig.
Season's best roach landed!
A 3lb roach is considered by many as the pinnacle of achievement in any angler’s career, and this dream became a reality for Mark Woodage during a recent session on a southern gravel pit.
The angler from Swindon, Wiltshire, had spent three months targeting the venue’s redfins before success finally came knocking at his door.
He told Angling Times: “I decided to target the roach in a large gravel pit after hearing that the carp anglers had caught a couple by accident. After numerous visits over nearly three months I had caught only tench and perch, with absolutely no sign of a roach – although during the first week of June, for the very first time, I saw what I was convinced was a big roach roll.
“A couple of hours later, after chopping and changing methods, my float went under and soon my landing net was graced by a stunning redfin that weighed 2lb 12oz – a new personal best.
I was over the moon.”
After returning a number of times to the venue with helicopter maggot feeder tactics, Mark was able to put other roach of 2lb 10oz and 2lb 9oz in the net – although it was during his most recent visit that he struck gold.
“It was very noticeable that I received all my bites on the rod supporting a Drennan buoyant bloodworm maggot hookbait,” Mark added.
“The winning combination was one fake and one live maggot, and on this session I was fortunate enough to land an awesome fish weighing 3lb 1oz. I’ve just about stopped turning cartwheels, but I’m still beaming from ear to ear!”
Mark’s winning helicopter rig included a size 18 Drennan Wide gape hook attached to a 3ins hooklink of 6lb X-Tough mono.
U-turn for a 4lb pit perch
A session targeting tench quickly turned into a perch hunt for Richard Hall after a change in tactics helped him to this 4lb 2oz specimen.
The Tenchfishers member targeted a large southern gravel pit, but soon switched his attentions to perch after a big stripey came off the hook.
He told Angling Times: “After losing a large perch at the net in the early afternoon on rubber maggots I changed one rod from fake casters to worm and baited the area with a few Spombs of chopped worm.
“I had to wait until dusk for the bite, but the fish fought well and looked impressive in its summer colours.”
Richard was targeting an area at the bottom of a shelf behind a bar at around 50 yards range.
Huge perch takes a lure
PERSEVERANCE paid off for Lee Coupe when he fished for perch and hooked into this near-3lb stripey just moments before it was time to pack up.
The lure fanatic targeted a rocky feature on a stretch of the River Trent and had to wade through a number of smaller perch before eventually striking into the daddy of the shoal on his tiny 3g spinnerbait.
Big crucian with a taste for a boilie
A SHROPSHIRE carp syndicate lake produced this stunning 3lb 10oz crucian for Ed Matthews during a recent trip.
The Korum-backed all-rounder banked a 3lb 3oz fish a week earlier from the venue and decide to return in pursuit of an even bigger specimen.
Ed used a Korum Easy Method Feeder loaded with 2mm Sonubaits Stiki pellets and an 8mm Oozing Boilie hookbait.
Trio of 7lb chub from the trent!
No fewer than three chub over 7lb have been landed from the River Trent in another fantastic week for the species .
First of the trio fell to specimen hunter Alfie Naylor, who latched into a 7lb 2oz beauty (below) during a session with his friend Brian Skoyles.
Alfie told Angling Times: “We both introduced a steady flow of bait during the evening, hoping to build up our swim, but the river is still far from easy due to being very low and clear.
“The action was slow and I only had two bites into late evening – but they were from good fish.
“The first was a lovely 7lb 2oz chub, the second a double-figure barbel at 10lb 8oz.”
Alfie tempted both on a running rig incorporating a 5ft hooklink and a Premier Baits wafter hookbait over scatterings of the same.
Jay Elliot was next in line to enjoy Trent chub success when he slipped the net under another 7lb 2oz specimen.
The fish was a new personal best for the Vortex Baits-backed angler, and the biggest of several caught during a five-hour evening session on a section of the middle river.
Martin Allen completed the hat-trick of specimen chub when he hooked into a 7lb beauty from another middle Trent stretch.
Martin, another angler who is sponsored by Vortex Baits, targeted the inside of a crease with pellets and Vortex Baits Squid Liver chops to get the fish feeding.
A running hair rig with a boilie wrapped in paste and a small PVA bag attached to the lead was the route chosen by Martin to get the all-important bite.
This approach also worked for another chub of 6lb 1oz and an 11lb barbel to complete a memorable session.
Best-ever don barbel
The River Don barbel record has been smashed with the capture of this chunky 13lb 11oz specimen.
It was netted by 3FootTwitch-backed angler Krzystof Barczak after an extensive prebaiting campaign in his chosen swim on a stretch of the Yorkshire waterway.
He told Angling Times: “I’d been introducing 3FootTwitch Dubby feed pellets for seven days prior to fishing, to help draw the barbel into the area.
“I arrived at the river bank just after 7pm, and after setting up I didn’t have long to wait before I had my first bite – a new River Don pb at 13lb 5oz!
“After about 30 minutes I had another run, resulting in this awesome 13lb 11oz fish.
“Not only did I smash my pb twice in one day but I claimed the new River Don record!”
The previous river record barbel was caught by Paul Scott in February 2007 at 13lb 10oz.
Boilie lures in specimen roach.
Big roach love boilies, as carp angler Simon Price proved with this stunning 3lb specimen.
The 49-year-old from Suffolk hooked into the colossal redfin during a 48-hour session at syndicate complex, Highfield Fisheries.
It fell to a trimmed-down 18mm Nash Scopex wafter hookbait fished over a bed of 15mm Scopex Squid boilies in 25ft of water.
River Thames barbel hits 15lb 1oz
The River Thames is the new kid on the block where specimen barbel fishing is concerned – as Justin Beale proved with this beauty of 15lb 1oz.
The Bait-Tech and Kodex-backed angler reverted to traditional barbel tactics to fool the fine double-figure fish.
Meat rolled through a well-oxygenated stretch of the river brought the all-important bite.
He told Angling Times: “I caught the barbel early evening at around 7pm, so it was a rare yet thrilling sight to see such a big barbel in daylight.”
He added: “The catch was extra-special because it was my twentieth Thames barbel over the 15lb barrier.”
Monster eel landed after three day search
A THREE-day session targeting specimen eels paid off in spades for Dean Aston when he took this impressive ‘snake’ weighing 6lb 6oz.
It was the only bite of the trip for the 48-year-old painter and decorator from Wolverhampton, who told Angling Times: “The eel was caught using a short 6ins hooklength utilising a Barry McTwig rig on a size 8 hook, baited with worms soaked deep in worm extract.
“With this set-up you don’t deep-hook the eel, and sure enough it worked – the hook just pierced through the fish’s lips.
“She gave me a few heart- stopping moments, I can tell you, and I was lucky I had my mate Chris Brown with me to help land the 45ins-long eel.
“I’ve been eel fishing for 20 years now and this is a new personal best, so I’m over the moon.”
Huge 4lb 4oz crucian landed
The UK’s longest heatwave for years hasn’t stopped crucians from enjoying a feeding spree with numerous specimens banked topped by a 4lb 4oz monster.
While many of the country’s anglers have been struggling to catch during in the hot weather, those who have been fishing for crucians have been enjoying red-hot sport.
One of them is 26-year-old Scott Walker, who hooked into a rare 4lb 4oz beauty during a recent session at Lizard Fisheries in West Drayton, London.
He told Angling Times: “I’m a carp angler at heart but when the lakes were busy on this particular day I decided to switch to targeting perch on the float instead.
“I’m a bailiff for this water, so I know there’s a good head of perch in here, but I also know that there’s a stock of big crucians – although they very rarely show.”
Fishing the margins using his 13ft Drennan Float rod, centrepin and pole-float rig with two red maggots on the hook, it wasn’t long before Scott received a number of dips on the float.
“I’d been feeding maggots and 2mm Mad Baits pellets over the top and started to catch quickly,” added Scott.
“Within a short space of time I’d caught a number of bream, plus by two proper carp to 23lb 8oz, but my next bite was altogether different.
“The fight felt somewhere between a small carp and a bream, so when the fish rolled on the surface and I saw it was a big, proper crucian, I was ecstatic.
“It was my first-ever crucian and one that I don’t think I’ll beat for a while – it was the perfect session.
“I didn’t bother recasting after I’d slipped her back, I just sat back in my chair in shock.”
3lb 2oz giant leads fine week for rudd
There's no better time than summer to target surface-feeding rudd.
Pick of the numerous big rudd reported to Angling Times this week is an incredible 3lb 2oz fish caught by Gary Knowles.
The golden beauty was the result of a near-400-mile trip to a Fenland drain, proving that dedication and location are vital to catching specimen fish.
The Korum-backed star told Angling Times how the session unfolded: “For the last four years I have been making the long journey to the Fenland waterways for one weekend every summer,” he said.
“In previous years, despite catching several 2lb-plus rudd, I failed to break the 3lb barrier.
“Last weekend started well with a couple of fish to 2lb 8oz, then I hooked what felt like a really big rudd, only for it to throw the hook.
“Deflated, my friend Matt Rand and I moved to another venue a 30-minute drive away. On arrival we headed to a spot from where I had caught some good fish in the past.
“As I baited against the reeds with mashed bread, fish quickly began to swirl. I cast the float out and it had barely hit the water when a nice boil broke the surface and it sailed under.
“As soon as I struck I knew it was a decent fish, and as Matt netted it he shouted ‘it’s a three!’.”
Gary’s stunning rudd personal best was caught on a loaded waggler running on 6lb line with a 5.14lb Preston Innovations hooklink and a size 10 hook. A piece of bread flake was pinched on to the hook and fished amid a cloud of mashed bread.
For those looking to catch a specimen rudd, Gary had this to say: “They can be challenging, as they are very nervous fish that spook easily. It certainly pays to cover plenty of water”.
Trent '16' tops amazing week for barbel
This sublime 16lb 1oz barbel tops the list of catches in what’s been another fantastic early-season week for the species.
It was banked by Nottingham rod Den Willets and was the best of 20 barbel taken during a week’s fishing on a section of the middle Trent.
Arriving in his swim on the eve of the new river season, Den caught steadily from midnight right through to Saturday the following week – but it was his catch on the Thursday that really set the grapevine buzzing.
Den said: “Some friends and I had just started cooking on the Thursday morning when my left rod on the inside line ripped off.
“It took me into a snag but after five minutes I managed to free it.
“In another cruel twist of fate it then swam into another snag that had been plaguing my mate Wayne all week.
“I thought I’d lost it but I didn’t give up, knowing that something special was on the end.”
After a tense few moments Den finally managed to free the fish and his other friend Luke jumped into the water to net the prize.
“When he brought it up the bank I couldn’t believe my eyes, and I knew then it was a new pb,” Den told Angling Times.
“When the scales read 16lb 1oz I was over the moon and couldn’t stop shaking – getting a fish that big on my first session of the season was unreal.
“I ended the trip with more than 20 barbel, a tally that included eight doubles.
“I lost at least five big fish and caught an endless procession of chub, a couple of bream and an elusive river carp.
“It’s a start of the season I shall never forget, and I doubt I’ll ever have another like it.”
Den’s new barbel best fell to Vortex Baits Hydroshrimp cocoons fished over a scattering of the same in dumbell form.
2018 tench campaign gets off to a flyer
Christopher Taylor has got his 2018 tench campaign off to a flying start with a rack of double-figure fish, topped by this specimen of 11lb 13oz.
Fishing a bay on a southern stillwater, the Hampshire angler arrived at first light but had to wait four hours for the first bite.
He said: “After a drop-back that resulted in a hook pull I was cursing my luck and thinking I’d probably blown my only chance of the day when the other rod roared off. That resulted in 8lb 15oz tench.
“ Five minutes later the first rod was away again – the fish put up a dogged fight, and in the net I could see that it was clearly a good double.”
Chris’ helicopter rig incorporated three rubber casters on the hook that fooled two other tench over 7lb in the remainder of the session.
Stunning pictures of this 9lb 1oz tinca!
Targeting a southern stillwater with float tackle brought Mark Erdwin this new tench pb of 9lb 1oz – and it certainly left an impression on the angler from Reading, Berks.
He said: “I must say I was a bit of a nervous wreck at the end of the scrap, but truly over the moon to have taken this fish on the float.”
An old-school porcupine quill, 6lb line and a size 12 hook baited with a lobworm presented over groundbait laced with particles helped produce the bite.
See the video of this wonderful capture on Mark's youtube video here
The biggest tench of the season!
The biggest tench of the season has been taken from a Midlands stillwater – a monumental specimen of 13lb 1oz.
The plump tinca was banked by building contractor Nick Proctor, and smashed his old personal best for the species by more than 4lb.
The story behind the phenomenal catch typifies the challenge specimen anglers face when trying to extract a monster tench from weed-choked waters.
Nick solved that conundrum by taking to a boat to ensure his baits were presented effectively amid beds of intense weed growth.
Speaking exclusively to Angling Times, the 39-year-old described his session to remember.
He said: “I arrived to the venue at Saturday tea time and fished right through to Thursday morning – only having a day off on the Monday.
“In this time I banked 14 tench and a 12lb 5oz bream – but the highlight by a country mile was the 13lb 1oz tench that I hooked on Sunday evening.
“It’s a 40-mile round-trip to the venue for me, and since the second week of April I’ve been down there in the boat as often as I could, raking and baiting a swim 80 yards from the bank with Vitalin – a muesli-style dried dogfood – sweetcorn and oat groats.
“On Sunday I went back out in the boat to re-rake and bait the swim with Dynamite Baits Red Krill groundbait, hemp, groats, chopped worm and caster – with that job done, I positioned my rigs over the top from the boat.”
To help hook any fish that came into his swim Nick fished 2½oz leads on three feet of leadcore attached to supple 15lb E-S-P Sink Link braid.
His hookbaits incorporated red and yellow fake casters mounted on a piece of rig foam to critically balance the hook, which was a size 8 Fox SCS.
“Because the weed was so thick I had to go out in the boat to land 14 of the fish I hooked,” Nick added.
“The 13-pounder, however, was the only one I did play from the bank as it fought more like a bream than a tench.
“I felt I could ease it over the weed without too much trouble.
“I’m not going to lie, the fight lasted only around five minutes and the fish didn’t put up much of a scrap – but when I clapped eyes on it for the first time it was by far the biggest tench I’d ever seen.
“It was incredibly fat – but it wasn’t until I lifted it in the net that I knew it was a big double. I was in total disbelief.
“Tench just don’t grow this big in the North West – no-one would have believed me if I’d just taken the picture so I rang Dai Gribble to come down to confirm the weight and witness the fish for me.”
Speaking to Angling Times, Dai said: “The tench was exceptionally fat, and it was an equally exceptional catch.
“I’d have thought it’s one of the biggest tench ever caught north of Birmingham.”
The best haul of big rudd ever!
Simple waggler tactics have accounted for one of the biggest hauls of rudd ever recorded by an angler in the UK.
The five specimen silver fish totalled nearly 16lb, and were banked by Airfield Lakes Fishery owner Richard Wilby from a private five-acre irrigation reservoir in Cambridgeshire.
Richard’s impressive catch boasted rudd of 2lb 15oz, 3lb 1oz, 3lb 2oz, 3lb 4oz and 3lb 6oz – and all fell to sweetcorn hookbaits fished just feet from the bank.
Angling Times spoke to the former UKCarp deputy editor about his achievement, and how he came to be fishing the water for its specimen rudd.
He said: “The lake is crystal clear and has a very low stock of carp and a handful of big rudd, but when an angling friend of mine told me that a couple of these had been caught by mistake by the carp boys, that really got my attention.
“After a few phone calls and favours I was fortunate enough to get invited to fish it for myself.
“I did several laps of the lake but couldn’t find any rudd – I knew it was a low stock, but it felt like a big task to see a fish, let alone catch one.”
Richard’s luck soon swung in his favour, however, when the arrival of a northerly breeze saw a single rudd break the surface, and over the course of the next hour 10 more rudd revealed themselves.
“The surface water was blue with a massive mayfly hatch and the handful of big rudd in the lake were like trout taking them,” Richard added.
“I started to spray corn as far as I could catapult it in the breeze and put on a loaded Drennan waggler to try to reach them.
“The first bite soon came and the rod doubled over but I lost the fish in the thick marginal weed. I felt sick, as I knew it was a clonker.
“But just like that everything went to plan and the rudd then came in very close.
“I could see them, and I patiently fed maggots and corn to get them feeding confidently.
“In the next hour I banked five huge rudd, all of which were the fish that I could see in the water perhaps the lake’s whole stock!
“I went to the lake hoping for my first 3lb rudd and ended up with the session of a lifetime.
“The fish were immaculate and huge, and to see one of my favourite species of that size
and in that condition was a real buzz.
“I must thank Dale, Dave and James for their help in getting me to fish this incredible lake.”
5lb-plus eel... and he meant to catch it!
Big eels are notoriously difficult to catch by design – however, by adopting an unconventional approach Paul Scowen successfully landed this 5lb 4oz specimen.
Targeting a 50-acre syndicate lake in the South East, Paul fished over a bed of dead maggots with hair-rigged worm sections or bunches of maggots, presented on a bolt-rig with a short hooklink and a 2oz lead.
This tactic proved highly successful, as it avoided the finicky bites and deep-hooked fish that traditional eel rigs often result in.
Over the following weeks Paul continued to fish the same water, adding a 10lb 2oz tench and a bream of 12lb 7oz to top off an excellent run of form.
big norfolk roach falls to a heli-rig
A short three-hour evening session was all that James Howes needed to tempt this stunning 2lb 6oz roach.
Targeting his Norfolk syndicate, James cast a feeder fished helicopter-style, with a short fluorocarbon hooklink and a size 12 Drennan Wide Gape hook baited with a 10mm boilie.
Filling his feeder with hemp and groundbait, James also landed many other roach to just over 1lb.
The same tactics were also employed to land an even larger roach during a previous trip to the venue. This personal-best fish weighed in at 2lb 14oz.
Both captures highlight the success of James’s approach to specimen redfins.