30/01 Derwent

I think I need a change of tactics...perch fishing with a pike rod out just in case seems to be OK for pike but not for perch. Next time going piking with the spare rod out for perch.

Caught a long skinny fish of about 10lbs, lost another which looked a bit smaller. Not a bite on the floatfished worms again.

23/01 Derwent

No perch again. Maybe I should stop going back to the places that I'm not catching perch and expecting to catch perch. 3 chub but not particularly big ones, biggest about 3lbs. Water temp only 4.8.

19/01 Trent

Back to where I had been catching fish...
Some interesting looking features which look great for perch and with the temperatures dropping seemed a sensible option.
Also took some dead baits just to hedge my bets. Not a good perch session but very good for pike - a 14lb 0oz (top photo), a 17lb 0oz (middle) and then pike 1 again (I'm 99% sure it was).

When I packed up found this little perch attached, so they are there, just hope the pike havent eaten all the big ones.

16/01 Trent

This stretch was very good to me a couple of seasons ago, now I can't buy a bite on it. There is the big advantage of being able to park behind your swim, ideal for a quick session on a wet sunday evening like this one. The big disadvantage is that theres no fish. Hopefully they'll be back next season. Blanko.

14/01 Trent

Back again lol. Just the one bite this evening, a good fish though, 13lb 2oz at 20:40. Unfortunately the camera decided to play up so just got a unhooking mat photo on crappy camera phone.

Not had many big ones this season so most welcome. Might even allow myself a day off tomorrow.

13/01 Trent

Water temperature up to 7.8 degrees and river up again on yesterday. Even managed to catch barbel today. A cheeky looking scamp at 17:50 followed by a better fish of 9lb 3oz at 18:25. Half a tree floating downriver decided to settle right in front of me so I moved to the next swim down for

another smaller one at 19:50. Got one rod in a tangle that I couldn't get out just as it started raining so decided to call it a day at 20:45.

12/01 Trent

Wow, I actually caught a fish...

Hedged my bets by fishing deadbaits and boilies/ meat. A missed run and a couple of knocks on smelt before hooking and losing one all in the 1st hour and a half or so. Went quiet for quite a while so changed to a roach head and caught my 1st fish of the year. 5 mins before home time at 20:55. Even weighed it in the excitement, 6lb 14oz. Gave it an extra 1/2 hour and even managed to lose another one at 21:15.

Nothing on the barbel rod, but nothing new there.

Water temp 6.5 and river level not too high, think the temperature and level will be rising over the next few days though.

09/01 Derwent

Found the Derwent considerably higher and more coloured than expected with a water temperature a fraction over 5 degrees. Just to make things more difficult for myself I managed to leave my deadbaits on the side in the kitchen and ended up fishing with just worms. Another blank. At least the weather forecasts are a bit more possitive for the week ahead.

08/01 Trent

Trent up a bit and coloured, just under 5 degrees, small amount of debris coming down, level maybe even falling very slightly. Tried smelt, 1/2 a roach, boilies and halibut pellets. Blanked.

05/01 Derwent

Another short session and another blank. Lost 1 hook.

A passer-by stopped and shouted that he had caught 4 pike to 18lb something from where I was in 10 minutes the other day! Unfortunately I was fishing boilies and unable to match his remarkable feat of angling. An entertaining story to me anyway.

03/01 Trent

Just a speculative couple of hours with the barbel rods and boilies. Water temp was 4.5 degrees but the air temp was -2 when I left and the temperature in my boots felt like about -6. Normal service resumed, another blank.