One On, One Off!

After a dawn to dusk blank - not a run all day - I was back on the riverbank the next morning (dragged myself out). Fortunately three runs; perch (first of the season), a pike and a pike lost to a hook-pull.


Six pike landed, and six lost this season (all hook-pulls, including lure & bait) - got to improve that ratio - not finding enough to keep losing them! Can't see anything wrong - might have just been unlucky so far.

Pike: Consolation Prize

Unusually for me I decided to sit it out in one swim all day - the spot where I lost the big pike before the flood. It took a while to catch a livebait - but once I had I watched him work around the slack all day. It looked perfect, and so did my bait when I set him free as it got dark!

No pike - I was expecting some blanks - but they're always disappointing. I did however stick a cube of meat out on a sleeper rod (this stretch is known for some big chub). The alarm screamed off twice; a 6lb barbel and a cracking 5lb 11oz chub - what a blank-saver!

Pike: Flood

Well it needed a good wash through, but no fishing this weekend. Lets hope it settles down now - and doesn't keep flooding - fingers crossed.

I did loose an upper double (possible twenty) on a lure earlier in the week & had one about 16lb keep following - need to get back to them...

Pike: Run!

I've said it before; the most exciting thing in fishing for me is a pike run. Sometimes you've been watching the float all day when suddenly it comes to life - then sails away - when it does it could signal a two pounder or it could be twenty. Not much over two in this case!

Pike: Chips

Chipping away at my River Wye pike target or just enjoying chasing pike! Less than ideal conditions, red and rising, but one fish lost to a hook-pull & one landed, 10lb 5oz - bleak livebait doing the trick.

Pike: Backflip

On the river in the rain - beating a flood? I found a massive shoal of bleak - and sat on them hoping a pike was keeping her eye on dinner. Just one run - a fantastic aerial fight - this thing pulled like a pike three times it's size! Brilliant, season number three.

---

And James has added The Fabulous River Wye to his 40 River Double Challenge. But he did it at night while I wasn't there to take the photo, perhaps he needs a daylight one?

Pike: Opener

Pike-Time - first day targeting pike on The Wye, sunrise to sunset. And I think it's going to be tough; I've seen a lot of otters over the summer and although the pike population does seem to be increasing overall on the river I wonder how many are still in the sections I'm fishing?

I expect a few blanks - so I was delighted when my float bobbed and slid under. A jack to start the season - not a big fish - but a pike is a pike and I love 'em! A lot of miles covered over the rest of the day but that was the only action - more to follow I hope...


I had the camera set up for dogfish in the dark and didn't check the photo until I had release the pike - at least it wasn't a thirty :-)

Chesil Binks

A day on the beach in the autumn sunshine. Fishing with Steve, the targets were cod, bass and rays. Although I really wanted to catch my first gurnard - just as well, that's all we could manage in daylight - what brilliant looking fish - really made my day!


Gurnard - it's like Jar Jar Binks had sex with a gudgeon.


Steve isn't one to quit so we fished on well into dark - unfortunately the cod didn't show up. Nor bass or rays - but we did manage a few dogfish, seen by most sea anglers as a pest - I'd happily catch them all day! Cracking day - more sea fishing coming up I hope...


Dogfish - mini-sharks.


Foxfish - waiting to steal the bait!

Summer Fishing 2024

Quick look back at the summer - written monthly as I went along. And a quick tally: 80 barbel, 238 chub, 19 eels, a carp & a cracking pike - a total of 190 hours fished over the short summer season. It was tough going on The Wye - not what I was expecting at all - but great to be back stomping this riverbank again...

June: Very slow start on The Wye, the fish were behind this season due to the wet, cold start to the year. There were still shad in the river (loads of them, good to see) and the barbel were still spawing. There was very little to report. Only four barbel landed and no pike spotted since the season opened. Onward and upward - hopefully...

July: The River Wye still hadn't come to life - I could see barbel but I struggled to catch them! Only 13 barbel landed all month, plus a few chub - for a lot of effort. And the perch fishing was even worse - not one landed yet! A couple of 2lb+ eels seemed to be the highlight of the month - let's hope there's more to report in August...

August: The highlight of the month was three afternoons on the Small River - great to be back - and 27 barbel, 2 chub & a small carp landed - I have missed it! Still stuggling on The Wye, lots of short sessions added fourteen barbel to 9lb 1oz - plus plenty of chub. The summer is turning into autumn - perhaps my season will turn around now?

September: Started with an afternoon fishing a private stretch of The Wye with James - both landing 6 barbel. Part of a total 22 barbel to 9lb 4oz over the month. The highlight of the month, and really the only noteworthy fish of the summer, was a 19lb 4oz pike - caught while fishing for perch! More of those please!!

Now it's time for wooly hats, wellies and hopefully pike. Lets see what the Winter Wye has planned... Hopefully not perpetual flood...

Wye Week 15

Last week of the summer season - and here comes the rain and floods - perhaps those barbel are finally going to start feeding now...

Sat 21st:	1 barbel / 3 chub / 0 perch	6¼ hours
Sun 22nd:	2 barbel / 1 chub	5½ hours
Thur 26th:	3 barbel	1 hour

Might be a tricky start to the pike season!