Sunday, and an opportunity presented itself. 2 hours before lunch. I grabbed it.
I wrapped up for an arctic expedition, and yet when I arrived on the canal bank it felt more like a Mediterranean stroll. Perhaps the mild conditions might encourage the fish to feed?
After a fruitless first 400 yards of towpath, I found a hot spot. Two takes in two casts.
The first was a perch. Handsome chap, probably about 6-8ozs. He took a 2" yellow quad-curly tail.
Next dip, same spot, and a vicious take. This time a pike. It was only a young fish, maybe a couple of pounds or so. Hooked neatly in the lip as usual.
And that was it.
I covered the area meticulously, but there was nothing else showing.
As I moved further along the canal, there was an abrupt colour change. Some work being done on a property on the far bank, and it looks like they have diverted a stream into the canal. It was an awful milky colour, and the next half a mile of canal was the same. Certainly no good for lure fishing.
That pretty much killed the session. Hopefully I'll get out again before Xmas day...
Short 1.5 hour session on Sunday before lunch. I had a go at an attractive stretch between 2 bridges. I'd caught a big perch here before years ago in a match, so I held out some hope.
I was surprised at how clear the canal was. Cant remember ever seeing it that clear before. I could see the bottom most of the way across. So, I covered all the water I could. Any deeper / darker places got some serious attention, but to no avail. I didnt even manage a bite. Not a nibble. The only thing I "caught" was a zebra mussel that somehow managed to clamp onto my lure.
It was cold though. Hail rained down on me twice during the session. Perhaps that's it now the winter is here. I guess the fishing is going to be hard!
Sunday. Not long before sunset, gear was in the van and I was on the road to another "new" section of canal.
Normally I chop and change my lures during a session, alternating between "swimmy" curly tails and "jiggly" shads. This time I decided to stick with one lure, and focus on covering every inch of the nearside margin. So by means of compromise, my weapon of choice was a Bass Assassin 2" hybrid in black and silver.
Sure enough, there were perch about, and I caught several small fish before a better one turned up. Maybe half a pound or so.
As the light faded, the bites dried up. I then got a text from my mate up the other end of the canal who has been avoiding the small fish by using larger lures. He'd just caught another PB, a few ounces short of 2lbs. Maybe it's time I swallowed my pride and step up the lure size?...
