Tag Archives: canal

I’m sure that if I told another angler that I knew of 2,000 miles of mature, hardly-fished water; much of it with specimen potential – they would either think I was lying or be eager to hear more! Well it’s true. Right here in Britain we have a huge network of unexploited angling waters, which aside from a few matches, rarely see any angling pressure at all. They are easily accessible, with comfortable banks suitable for disabled anglers and chances are that wherever you live in this country – even in the centre of a city, you live just a matter of minutes away from one of these waters. If you’re still wondering where on earth I could be describing, I’ll spell it out to you… CANALS. Whilst canals have long been regarded by many as sparsely populated, infertile waters, where you might be lucky to catch on a pinkie and size 24 hook; there are a number of species which have managed to thrive on neglect and grow in both size and numbers, virtually unnoticed. I’m talking about species such as carp, tench, chub, bream, perch, pike and even zander. You only need to read a few canal match …

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Since starting serious pike fishing back in January 2000, most of my winter sessions have been devoted to this superb predator. Following a dire 2004 campaign, this season I have fared much better and caught many doubles from a variety of venues, on a diverse mix of methods and baits. An early-November piking trip started off like any other. A pre-dawn start saw myself and two mates load up the van and head off into Yorkshire in search of some specimens. We arrived at the venue to find the water gin-clear, with a few pike anglers already setting up. Not the ideal scenario for a successful day’s piking. Still, we loaded ourselves with tackle and headed as far as possible from the madding crowd, in the hope of finding some big pike seeking some peace and quiet. The weather had taken a noticeable chill overnight and I remember feeling the cold air in the back of my throat as we walked. I was the first to find a peg, as I spotted a shoal of roach and bream rolling on the surface, close to some extensive reed beds. I set up quickly and cast a paternostered bait towards the edge …

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