The Ringtail

A fish-less evening session on the canal last night, the details of which I will not bore you. As the sun went down there was a lot of action going on from the smaller fish along the stretch I was fishing. The water surface was alive with rings and ripples and the hedges along the canal were hitting rush hour. Thrushes, pigeons, chiffchaffs, wrens and robins were all rushing around feeding and preparing nests, and the air was thick with birdsong. A sparrowhawk cruised by, on a hair trigger to plunge down and maraud the hedgerows for the otherwise preoccupied prey. She just cruised on by today, but it was a stark reminder that not everyone watching the springtime preparations is simply enjoying the show.

There’s nothing like a trilling wren and a brash chiffchaff in full flow at the same time to evoke the feeling of spring. Life renewing, new growth and promise — the essence of nature. I’ve missed this for the last few years as I’ve neglected my birdwatching and fishing trips and have become a bit of a home-body in all honesty. I’m so glad I’ve rediscovered fishing and have an excuse to be out and about and able to witness this wonderful time of year. It may not be as thrilling as salmon migration, or on the scale of The Sardine Run, but the slow transformation of England’s waterways as they move from winter to spring is truly one of Nature’s Great Events.

Sunday was a glorious day so it was back on the canal for a session. Saturday had been spent at the Oxford Literary Festival seeing Jason from the Gadget Show talking about his “Dot Robot” book, so this was going to have to go some to beat that.

I put my new polarising glasses (nice 40th present) to the test as well. The colour was up so it didn’t really get me to see any more than I could without them, but it was much less stressful to look at the water for a few hours. Result. I decided to try the canal at Simpson again as it’s a nice stretch of water. I hadn’t had much luck here over winter but I hoped that the warmer temperature might have brought the fish back as it had fished well before the cold snap. I had two fish on in the first spot I tried but didn’t get either on the bank. Both took the lure right under the rod tip and I guess I forgot to strike properly as they both threw the lure. My catch rate for fish that take within a couple of feet of the bank is shockingly low.

No more action after the second one got off so I took a walk along. There were a few other people fishing and they were catching roach and bream so there is definitely stirrings of life. The float fisherman weren’t catching at all when it was cold either so I thought this may be a sign that there just isn’t much activity at all here in winter. Things are looking up!

Well, the last few days have been gorgeous. Friday was nice and sunny and saturday was even warm as well. I had 3 hours of fruitless fishing on the canal on Friday, now getting a bit disillusioned with it all. I’ve never been a big fan of the canal as it goes, but I’ve been sticking with it while the river is too high to fish. Maybe now is the time to try the lakes as I really am not sure where to fish on the canal. There are little in the way of features along most stretches and it’s tricky to find where the fish are. Especially at this time of year when the fish are likely to be laid up rather than actively hunting, finding the fish is key but that is where I have trouble. Still, at least the nice weather makes it enjoyable being out.

Saturday I went on a 7.5 mile bike ride with my daughter. We went mostly along the river and the canal so it was a good opportunity to find a few new places to fish. We had a great time and it was really good to do something active and spend an hour or two catching up with no distractions. Next project is to try and rig up something so I can take my fishing stuff on the bike. I figure if I can cover more ground on the canal then I can only try the places that look really promising (rather than trying all the places I can walk to in a session as I do now). Anyone reading this with ideas (or experience) of mobile lure fishing – let me know!

I managed to grab a few hours to get on the canal today. Temperature was up to 7 degrees on the car thermometer, but there was ice over most of the canal still. My favourite spot was free of ice, well, nearly:

I had a follow in from a nice looking fish, but I couldn’t tempt it to take. I tried just about every lure I had with me, but didn’t get a second follow even. Then again, it was very cold and there was not much action going on with the silverfish judging by the lack of action the folks just along the way were getting. Took some photos instead, including this one of a nice bit of rust on a seemingly abandoned barge:

More photos up later this week when I get round to processing some shots from a trip to Marlow yesterday.

The forecast on Countryfile today foretold snow, sleet, arctic winds, famine, pestilence and death. Well, ok, the last three I added in myself, but it was certainly dismal. Luckily, today was not too bad and I managed a couple of hours on the canal once I had popped my thermals on.

I bought a new light(ish) jerkbait rod recently (6′ Fox Xtreme Pike Jerk 30-90g) so I took my usual rod and this one today. The new rod is a foray into the world of heavier and bigger baits, but also the first kit I have used with a multiplier reel. Lots to learn ahead!

Visibility was not great, but by no means bad, and I started with my usual kit, trying out a few new smaller lures. I had a 2-3lb fish from a swim I had a take on last time I was on this stretch. It took a Savagear silver crankbait just off the tail end of a narrowboat and put up a hell of a scrap considering the temperature and it’s size. Pleased that I had had a fish out in this cold, but I was itching to try the new gear out so I headed for a wider stretch, one with no boats or bankside trees to hit!

I had an unscheduled break for ten minutes to watch a short-eared owl quartering the far bank field. I haven’t seen one of these for a few winters now but it was as enthralling as ever to watch the effortless flight and diligent covering of the territory as it searched for food. A sparrowhawk also tore along the bank as I was watching the owl, sending the flock of foraging tits up from the bushes behind me. Great stuff!

Anyway, out with the new rod and a first cast with the multiplier. I had spent a good deal of time playing with the reel when I got it, and have gone through the process of casting in my head a good few times, but the first attempt smacked into the water about six feet away. A load of extra line spat out as well and I was left with a minor birds nest wrapped around the spool. The next attempt went about a foot further, but I remembered to use my thumb to control the line so I didn’t get tangled up. After about ten minutes of splashing and crashing around I got the hang of it and was making casts as far as I was used to with the old reel. Using the trigger grip means I can cast one-handed really easily but I think it will be a while before I feel as comfy with it as I am with my old set up. Retrieval is dead smooth, and the heavier braid I had on for the jerkbaits meant I pulled free of a couple of obstructions with no trouble. The shorter rod made using jerkbaits an absolute snap and overall I loved it. No fish in its right mind would have stayed within 2 miles of the racket I was making, so no more fish for me. However, I’m very excited about getting out again, and I feel I am now ready to take on the local lakes with some bigger baits to try and snag a larger pike. Stay tuned!