The Sessions - October 2016

Contrasts and a big new moon

2 Oct – River Ouse

I’d had a lovely surprise weekend away in Suffolk, good company and nice food and felt fully re-charged. I had the evening and night to myself with work the following afternoon so I went down to the Ouse for a quick overnighter. The day had been sunny and warm at 16 degrees with cloudy spells, there had been a lot of rain but the levels were good.
I’d been baiting a new swim right down the section and the access was through a ploughed field, Anglian Water had been working on a main and had compacted a track right round to the river so I was able to drive up to the spot. However unbeknown to me they had finished while I was in Suffolk and the farmer had drilled the field, I drove straight onto the field in the dark and was very lucky to get of it. It was a long walk, I had no barrow with me and didn’t want to leave the car by the road all night as we have a lot of “travelling” friends in the area, enough said, so I went back to the weir area.

I went in the big swim with my standard approach and put 20 boilies on the spots, the sky went clear and it was very still, not ideal conditions. I had an Eel at midnight and no other takes, packing up at 0730 in the morning.

10 Oct – River Trent

Regular readers will remember that I cancelled a trip to Spain last October and had a real red letter month on the Derwent and Trent taking 16 doubles. Well for a number of reasons I had to cancel my regular October trip again this year and was hoping for a repeat of last year on our rivers.

Having caught my target fish from the W/Avon and Derwent I decided to swim hop up the Trent trying new swims for the first week and try maggots as the rivers were so low and clear. I didn’t get to the river until dark but was not concerned as I know the sections reasonably well, after looking at two I settled on the third and went to an area I’ve never fished before. It was on the outside of a big bend so I knew the area to fish would be close in so dropped into the swim with the flow pushing right into the near bank. I put two out on Pandemic and pva bags and put 20 boilies over the spots, it was clear and for early Oct very cold and I’d made a major mistake of forgetting my boots and all my warm clothing. All I had was my light Jack Pyke summer water proof jacket and trousers….oops, and I was on the road for four nights.
I caught two Barbel to 9-02 and a nice Roach at 1-09, the Trent is starting to throw up some quality Roach and they would be well worth a go in the winter.

11 Oct

It clouded over in the morning and rained on and off, I soon realised I wasn’t on club water so had to make a hasty retreat to the car with the tackle and move. I went about a mile upstream and dropped in a spot on the inside of a bend that had been producing well this season. The river was very low so I was able to set up on a sand bank that is normally submerged, this made the cast to the far margin easier as my plan was maggots and regular casting. I set both rods up on maggot feeders, I could only get 3oz feeders so bolstered them to 5oz by taping strips of lead to them. The tape also blocked all the holes on the feeder apart from the ends to allow a slow release of maggots into the swim. My hooklink was my usual 5 foot of fluorocarbon, link loop and 3 inches of braid, the only change was a size 12 hook with 5 maggots impaled on it. I cast out at 12:30 hours and planned on half hourly recasts unless I had a take.

It rained on and off all afternoon and I had a very lonely swan keeping me company that was surprisingly tame. The fishing was steady and by the time I’d used up my four pints of maggots I’d landed 10 Barbel to high 8’s, good fun but no big girls.

I changed back to Pandemic before dark, the sky cleared and the temp dropped again and I wasn’t overly confident. I took two Barbel to low 8’s before midnight.

12 Oct

After and really quiet night I recast at 06:00 hours and caught straight away and by 08:10 hours I’d had another 4 Barbel to 9-11. The highlight of the morning was while I was playing the “9”, a female Fallow Deer walked along the far margin and didn’t seem to notice me, stuff like that you don’t see unless you’re out there doing it.

I’d planned on daily moves and any second thoughts were soon dismissed when another, (I use the term loosely) “angler” went in the next swim downstream, I couldn’t believe it, there was no one within 70 pegs either side of me and he drops in next to me, unbelievable!!

A phone call to my pal Matt Marlow and we arranged to meet on the middle Trent in the Nottingham area, so I packed the car and drove the 28 miles to meet him. We had a good look round in the rain and struck lucky with a knowledgeable local, the swim we fancied he recommended so it looked like a win win. There was plenty of room for a social so I set up downstream with Matt upstream. It was a bit shallow but looked good, we both blanked but got plenty of ground work for next time and it’s always good catching up with friends.

13 Oct

We had a cracking breakfast that I cooked on my Ridge Monkey, what a brilliant bit of kit, cooks well and simple to keep clean.

Once all the gear had dried out Matt headed home and I planned on going back to the Tidal, on the way I stopped to look at another section on the middle that I know to find it empty, this looked too good an opportunity to miss so I set up in a swim I fished once two years ago for a 16:00 hours start.

Two pva bags and Pandemic were swung out into the margins followed by 20 boilies on the spot and a few down the section. I couldn’t tell you why but instinct told me to put two pints of 2mm pellet on the spot so that went in as well, certainly not normal for me but time would tell. It wasn’t long before the rod smashed over but it was another small Barbel at 7ish, I’d now had 19 Barbel on the trip and no doubles, incredible for the Trent.

18:45 hours – the right hand rod crashed over and at last I felt heavy resistance, it fought well but eventually slipped in the net and was a good one at 11-11, well worth all the effort.

23:20 hours – after a quiet few hours the left hand rod belted over, this was another double at 10-14.

14 Oct

01:25 hours – the right went again and I landed another double at 10-03.
06:10 hours – following another quiet few hours the right went again and I had another double at 10-04, what a brilliant few hours.

I packed up for home with 23 Barbel for the trip but only the last 4 being doubles a total contrast from last October.

17 October – River Trent

The weekend had seen a lot of rain and south westerly winds so although I thought the river may be up I was confident of another good trip. I got to the river for lunchtime to find it really high, at least five foot up on the week before but crystal clear and no increased flow. This was due to a new moon, I can’t remember the name but it happens every Oct time and brings huge tides. I had a similar experience last season but this tide was big!!

I went back to the area I’d done well on with maggots and set up in a new swim on the large bend. Two feeders were soon dispatched to the far margin, one with 5 maggots on the hook the other with 3 fake casters on a hair. It started well with 3 Barbel caught to 7-15 quickly but as the tide went down the river died, the bites dried up and there was no dippling at all. I changed over to the boilies as it got dark and after three blank hours had a Barbel at 9-00 but that was it for the rest of the night.

18 October

It rained through the night but was warm for Oct, the next tide was huge and was certainly effecting the fishing. I switched back to maggots all morning and had one take and got cut off on the steep gravel bank. I felt the big tides were putting the fish off or they were moving to different areas so I decided to move up to the middle Trent.

I spent the next four hours walking a new section, with a permit price of only £20 and hardly anyone fishing it I made my mind up to join next season. I know it’s done Barbel to over 16 pound so fingers crossed.

By 16:00 hours I was set up on the section I fished on the 13th. It was cloudy with the odd shower and looked good for a few bites, I baited the margin with 20 boilies and sat back confident of success. By midnight I’d caught three to 11-04 and was glad I’d made the effort to move.

19 Oct

I had regular bites during the night catching another four to 9plus and losing one that managed to get in the roots of a tree, I wasn’t convinced it was a Barbel and suspect it was a Carp but I didn’t see it to confirm, an annoying loss but only my third of the season. The rain had raised the level bringing a lot of weed and leaves down in the flow, this was causing presentation problems so I decided on a move across the midlands to the beautiful River Derwent.

River Derwent

I thought I would be able to fish the spot I’d had so much success in this season as it was lowering the rigs in close to the near margin. I arrived at 14:00 hours to find the river looking as gorgeous as ever, the Derwent is without doubt my favourite river I’ve fished in England and for such a small river it is packed with specimen sized fish and I hardly see a sole.

It wasn’t quite as kind to me as it has been, the wind was blowing straight at me and the rain coming into the shelter. I use an open front shelter so had to set up with my back to the river in the end after getting very wet. The fishing was no better with one Barbel at 8plus and two Chub. I packed up at 08:00 hours for home after a much tougher four nights fishing which I think was down to the new moon and large tides. A total contrast to my two weeks in Oct 2015.

23 October – River Trent

I’d gone back to work on 22nd full of cold and felt dreadful. After two days at work I thought I’d try sleeping outside to make me feel better so drove up to the Trent, on my up the A1 I wasn’t concentrating due to feeling rough and went through a camera at 86, what a mistake and probably a £100 mistake, I was gutted!!

After looking at my diary in August I set myself the unrealistic target of catching a 12 pound Barbel for every month of this season, up to the end of Sept I was well on target having had fish to 13+ every month. This was my last chance of a 12 in Oct so was another reason for the trip, I arrived in the dark and swung the rigs into the new swim at 20:45 hours. It’s a swim I’d never fished but I just had a hunch about it, literally 20 minutes later the right hand rod crashed over and it felt heavy straight away, I played it gently upstream and could see it in the clear water, it went in the net first time and was good one at 12-11. Despite feeling rough and a speeding ticket I was over the moon, the target was still on!!

The takes came at regular intervals through the night, I lost one to a cut of that I suspect was a Pike and landed another four Barbel at 9-09, 10-02, 10-04 and 10-04. I packed up at 06:30 after the last fish, I’d had no sleep and felt awful and still had to go to work when I got home, but was it worth it…….of course it was.

A good month with lots of fish, one night on the Derwent, one on the Ouse and eight nights on the Trent, resulting in 44 Barbel, 10 being doubles and to cap of a great month I received a Drennan award for my 16-09 caught in September.

Until next month tight lines.

Julian Barnes