Tag Archives: fishing

If you’re looking for cheap days out to entertain children & families, during the school summer holidays, in Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and the East Midlands – why not let them learn to fish! On this page I’ve compiled links to organisations – such as the Angling Trust and Canal & River Trust – who host free-to-attend fishing events such as taster sessions, where children can have a go at fishing, under the guidance and supervision of qualified angling coaches & instructors. I believe strongly that learning to fish gives youngsters a great range of skills, with many, wide-ranging benefits. If you’re taught properly how to fish, those skills stay with you for life. If you’re a parent or grandparent of a child over the age of three (some kids try fishing younger, but it does take a little patience & attention span!), looking for a safe activity for your kids to try over the school holidays, this could be just what you’re looking for. It may be something they dabble in for the odd day to keep them occupied; it may even become an obsession which makes them a lifelong angler… Or somewhere in between! Whatever the outcome, the vast majority …

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If you’re a new visitor, welcome! If you’re a returning visitor, you may notice a few changes to the looks, layout and functionality. I’ve upgraded to a new theme for the site, so the fourth incarnation of www.Just-Fish.co.uk is now live. I have retained the overall looks and colour scheme of the old site, but this new theme has brought with it some improved functionality, speed and better responsive elements. There may be the odd bug or missing element here and there, that I’m not aware of, so if you spot any issues please let me know. Thanks, and enjoy the site! Andrew.

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If you were fishing in the 1980s and 1990s, John Wilson’s name was synonymous with angling; due to his various books, but predominantly due to his TV series. Go Fishing with John Wilson was the first of his TV shows, and his unique mixture of knowledge, enthusiasm and infectious laugh proved a hit with viewers – anglers and non-anglers alike! A YouTube user, Andy Creigh, has uploaded all of the original four Anglia Television series of Go Fishing – which he’s recorded from original VHS tapes – so those of us who can remember over three decades ago can relive JW’s on-screen charisma. Hopefully some younger anglers will now also see the earliest TV forays of this angling legend for the first time too. My own personal favourite episodes mainly revolve around the ones I had on VHS myself. These included: crucian and tench fishing at Diss Mere, small river barbel fishing on the Teme, fly fishing for mullet on a tributary of the Ebro, fishing for tench (but catching perch) from the dam of an old estate lake and then eventually catching tench whilst fishing in chest waders (Series 3, Episode 1 – Fishing Summer Lakes), and my all-time …

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An instructional video describing the method required to convert Pro-Logic quick-change bankstick adapters (used with fishing rod rest heads, bite alarms, rod pods, etc.) to make them universal-fit. This makes the old and new versions of these very useful adapters fit each other. Frustratingly, Prologic have changed the design of their quick release adapters very slightly over the years. To my knowledge there have been 3 versions: mk1, mk2 & mk3. The male part of the mk2 adapters will fit into all 3 female designs but the mk1 & mk3 male parts will not fit into the mk2 female parts, which were spring-loaded to pop out the male part on release. The mk3 (left) and mk2 (right) versions of the Prologic quick change bankstick adapters. Note the difference in shape on the male parts in the centre of the pic. I have these adapters fitted to all my bank sticks, bite alarms, rod rest heads, etc. and I have all 3 designs. I find them really useful and surprisingly reliable. My only bugbear with them over the years has been the backward compatibility of new versions. It would be expensive to replace all of my adpaters when a new design …

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On this page I’ve compiled a list of all the free-to-attend events I can find, where children can have a go at fishing, under the guidance and supervision of qualified angling coaches & instructors. Below is a list of fishing events – FREE to attend for children – during the school holidays this year. This list concentrates on events close to Derby, Chesterfield and Nottingham. Besides the curated list of events below, there are some excellent online resources to find fishing events, taster sessions, open days and free coaching events in the East Midlands, such as: IMPORTANT!  It is a legal requirement for all anglers aged over 12 to be in posession of a valid Rod Licence when fishing. Rod licences for 13 to 16 year olds are FREE – but you still need to register for one. These can be purchased instantly online here (only buy rod licences from the official Gov website to avoid extra fees), or by calling the Environment Agency’s Rod Licence service on 0344 800 5386. 2019 Summer Holidays Angling Events Listings – Free Fishing Taster Sessions & Learn-to-Fish Events in Derbyshire & Nottinghamshire Date:Thursday 25th July 2019Event Name:Free Let’s Fish! – Nottingham – Learn …

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I’m currently looking for guest contributors to have their fishing-related articles & blog posts featured on my revamped website… Whether you’re a published angler or you’re interested in writing your first piece, if you’d like your writing to be showcased on my site, head to the Contact Me page, fill in your details (including a link to your blog or website, if you have one) and email it to me with “Guest blogger” as the subject.  I’ll be in touch soon to discuss your ideas and you could see your writing on this site soon! Interested in a guest blog spot? My idea for guest fishing bloggers is not in order to promote sales websites, it’s to promote genuine talent from anglers with something to say – NOT with something to sell! So, if you intend to promote your brand or boost the SEO of your revenue-generating website, please don’t bother. There are plenty of places out there for you to hawk your wares. However, if you genuinely want to help other anglers through offering advice or instruction, or you think your writing might encourage more people to take up angling, then that’s my intention here.

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Click on the image slider below to open a full gallery of the carp tackle department at local independent fishing tackle shop, Phil’s Bait & Tackle at Sutton-in-Ashfield. Phil’s has a large carp fishing & specimen fishing department with large stocks of: carp rods, carp reels, carp bait (boilies, freezer baits, pellets, particles, flavours, glugs, oils, etc.), carp luggage, terminal tackle, hooks, leads, mainline, hooklinks, bite alarms, rod pods, metalware, landing nets, bivvies, bedchairs, unhooking mats, cookware and many carp accessories. Brands stocked include: Fox, Korda, Nash, Shimano, Avid Carp, Daiwa, ESP, JRC, Korum, Chub, Spomb, Dynamite Baits, Mainline Baits, Sticky Baits, Nashbait, Bait-Tech & Solar. Their dedicated carp showroom was expanded in 2019 and features their largest ever range of quality carp tackle and carp fishing accessories, which is open to browse and try out the latest carp gear and there’s always someone on hand to provide advice. Phil’s Bait & Tackle also has a large and very well stocked coarse, specimen, match & pole fishing department. Other services offered by Phil’s include a full range of repair & spares services, including: rod & pole repair service, pole elastication, rod re-ringing, reel servicing, spare parts for some other tackle …

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Click on the image slider below to open a full gallery of the coarse fishing, match fishing, pole fishing, pleasure fishing & specimen / specialist fishing tackle department at local independent fishing tackle shop, Phil’s Bait & Tackle at Sutton-in-Ashfield. Phil’s has a large department catering for general coarse, specialist/specimen, match and pole fishing, with large stocks of: float rods, quivertip rods, avon & multi-tip barbel rods, poles & whips, free spool & baitrunner reels, bait (live maggots, casters & worms, groundbait, boilies, freezer baits, pellets, particles, flavours, glugs, oils, frozen pike deadbaits, hemp, luncheon meat, sweetcorn, etc.), luggage, terminal tackle, hooks, leads & swimfeeders, mainline, hooklinks, floats, lures, rod rests, fishing chairs, seat boxes, metalware, landing nets & keepnets, bivvies, bedchairs, unhooking mats, cookware and many accessories. Brands stocked include: Korum, Drennan, Preston Innovations, Middy, Maver, Shimano, Daiwa, Chub, Guru, MAP, Dinsmores, Matrix, Shakespeare, Fox Rage, Kamasan, Gardner, Dynamite Baits, Mainline Baits, Sticky Baits, Sensas, Sonubaits, Marukyu, Ringers, Van Den Eynde, Baitbox & Bait-Tech. Their well-stocked shop is open to browse and try out the latest fishing gear and there’s always someone on hand to provide advice on tackle, bait and local in-form venues. Phil’s Bait & Tackle also …

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My old (read: antique!) fishing website – despite a couple of updates & minor facelifts – is vastly outdated and not very visually appealing or compatible with mobile devices.  So a couple of years ago I started work on a new fishing website, as a replacement, based on the WordPress platform. A server error lost all of the work I’d done and my backup was corrupted, so I’ve had to start again from scratch! I quickly got the framework in place and I’m working on importing & updating all my old articles, blog posts & photos, along with improving the looks & layout.  Once I’m happy, everything will move to www.just-fish.co.uk and the old site will be no more (2020 edit – the old site is no more! You’re looking at the new one!).  So please check back to see new content & improved looks as soon as I find the time! Meanwhile, I’m also looking for guest fishing bloggers, so if you have a fishy story to share (who doesn’t?!), then please get in touch via my contact page.

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In April last year my life was changed forever by the birth of my daughter! So whilst I’ve been experiencing the highs and challenges of fatherhood, finding time to fish has become even more difficult. Time to blog about it has inevitably proved yet trickier to find! I have, however, sneaked in a short evening session most weeks since June and I’ve really enjoyed the fishing I’ve done this season. More than I have in quite some time! So I thought I would write about my 3 angling highlights from last summer; a blog post for each. They include a first, a PB and an exhilarating spot of close-quarters, clear water fishing.  If you like the sound of those, read on… First barbel on the stick float A couple of seasons ago I decided that I really wanted to catch a barbel on the float.  With almost all of my barbel fishing consisting of summer & autumn evening sessions, I only managed 4 or 5 hours of trotting for them last season, with only a few small silver fish and minnows to show for my efforts.  This year I decided to put some effort in at the beginning of the season when, arriving at …

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