Hello I’m Richard, welcome to my website about fishing. There are three parts to my site.
How to fish – good to know methods and ideas for catching fish.
Fishing glossary – defines fishing terms with video, audio and text. Often with added info and tips.
Sussex fishing blog – stories of my fishing trips in Sussex, fishing for pleasure as an amateur angler.
I am also on the committee of my local club Hassocks Angling.
It was defiantly one of those trips this week. I wanted to start work on my next film, method feeder fishing. So I went to Decoy lake in Sussex (Hassocks AC) knowing the Carp respond well to a feeder. I settled on a nice wide peg which had good light for filming. I use two camcorders to make my films, an old one and a better later model. I got my better camera out, set it up on the tripod and switched it on…. but nothing, it had packed up.
So I got out the older second camera. I mixed up some ground bait and dampened some pellets filming as I went. I started to setup my tackle which is when I discovered that I had picked up the wrong rod. Instead of my feeder rod I had picked up my heavy float rod. Both rods are made by the same company, so they came in identical tubes. Due to a lack of attention on my part I had simply grabbed the wrong rod !
Driftbeater float – combats strong wind and drift.
Driftbeater’s have quite a large buoyant body which have a high shot carrying capacity. A Thin antenna to help stop the float drifting and a Sight bob to keep the float visible in choppy water. [Read more…] about Driftbeater float combat wind and drift
I decided to give the river a miss this weekend as the weather was unseasonably windy with showers. So I went for a Roach fishing trip to my local pond that I know is full of silvers. I sometimes fish there in the winter when the rivers are flooded. Although in the winter the fishing can be hard, catching a few Roach I find very rewarding.
The fishery is not at all popular, having only about four Carp in it. No surprises I had the place to myself. After a good look around I settled on a peg with two lily beds in front. Having never fished this water in the summer, I brought along my float gear and a quiver tip to be on the safe side. For bait I had some dead maggots, a pot of hemp and some sweetcorn, all good Roach baits. [Read more…] about Roach fishing trip to my local pond
Stick float fishing
All stick floats have two halves, a buoyant top section and heavy bottom half. The idea is the buoyant top holds the float up and the heavy bottom acts as a stabiliser like the ballast of a ship or the keel of a yacht. It’s not like a loaded float where some of the shot carrying capacity is built into the float, the bottom half is designed to help maintain the floats stability in running water, especially when held back. [Read more…] about Stick float fishing explained
Salted bread hook bait is an old idea which I believe was used by Roach anglers on the Thames years ago. They found that the Roach seemed to hold on to the bread just a little longer, giving an extra second or two to strike.
How to make salted bread hook bait with the ends off the bread [Read more…] about Salted bread hook bait for fishing
Surface fishing with a Bubble float
Bubble float fishing I reserve for those summer evenings when you know the fish are on the surface. Free lining with bread is possible when Carp are close in, but when they are further out a bubble float is needed. Partly filling the float with water adds enough weight to make casting much easier.
A return visit to the upper Adur in the hope of catching some Chub. Last time, armed with float gear and maggots I caught dozens of hand size Roach and Chub. This time with an Avon quiver tip rod and Luncheon meat, I planed to rove this short stretch called Cemetery Wood in search of bigger fish. My plan was a simple one, fish a running rig with a size 4 hook and a 20mm cube of Luncheon meat, staying in each swim for just half an hour. In the past at other locations I have found this to be quite a successful method, testing each swim and over time finding the productive areas. After several trips it becomes clear which swims are best for Chub, then I concentrate on just those swims.
I spent a short four hour session on the upper Adur for the first day river trip of 2016. I went to the clubs new water Cemetery Wood, which I think holds great promise and looks beautiful. Being part of the upper Adur, Cemetery Wood is quite narrow and at this time of year about five feet deep. The water flow was very slow despite the recent rain, so the usual river floats were left in the box and a waggler used instead.
Waggler float fishing on a lake with rod and line.
This film describes the art of waggler fishing on a lake and explains the basic waggler rig for fishing on the bottom. Preventing the float drifting and methods of presentation are covered in detail. The purpose and location of shot in relation to presentation and casting. Reading the float for bites and the presence of fish. [Read more…] about Waggler float fishing – lake
Today I went to a stretch of the river Adur that is new to our club called Cemetery Wood. Hassocks Angling only acquired this new venue at the end of last season, so it remains an unknown quantity. I managed to fish it a couple of times at the tale end of last season with my best fish being a pike of 9½ lb, But with the mild weather and the regular flooding I only had those two trips.
Cemetery Wood sluise
