Displaying items by tag: fishing

Well another week of some action. About the same number of Carp out this week as last but seems the smaller fish are hungry so the total weight is down a little. There have been a lot of catches floating biscuit etc. Seems a little early in the year but hey ho, that’s fishing. The silvers have also been coming out in numbers with several anglers reporting good catches from Willow Pool and Island Pool. See the pictures below of Tom Rushby returning to Willow after a long break from coarse fishing with a couple of nice perch. P.F. Dack for Paignton Sea Anglers wins the catch report lottery this week. So well done and you can collect the ticket from the shop any time. Mirror Lake sees the start of the Carp League this weekend starting Saturday at 5pm and end Sunday at 5pm. So lets hope they have lots of success.
Date	Angler	Lake	Catch	Weight	Information
19/03/09	Richard Park (Paignton)	Mirror	Mirror carp	10lb
20/03/09	Callum (Paignton)	Mirror	Mirror carp	18lb 8oz	Caught on Sweetcorn and Garlic
			Common carp	14lb	Caught on maggots off the island
20/03/09	Tinny (Paignton)	Mirror	Common carp	12lb	Used an excel pop-up
20/03/09	David Tozer (Torquay)	Mirror	Common carp	9lb	Floating dog biscuit
21/03/09	Mick Wall (Paignton)	Willow	Silver fish		Used maggot to catch 15 roach and 4 nice perch.
21/03/09	P F Dack (Plymouth)	Willow	Silver Fish		Used maggot to catch 12 roach and 3 perch
21/03/09	Pat Owen (Paignton)	Island	Ghost carp	7lb 8oz	Ghost Carp - Sensas Ground Bait
					Roach, Rudd, Perch using a single red maggot on a small whip
21/03/09	Ian Marshall (Paignton)	Island	Common Carp	3lb	Single pink maggot
			Mirror Carp	1lb 8oz	Single pink maggot
21/03/09	Adam Penfold (Brixham)	Mirror	Mirror carp	16lb	Zig Rig with Maple 8 Pop-Up
23/03/09	Thomas Rushby (Paignton)	Willow	Silver fish + carp	45lb	5 Perch to 2lb 8oz, 20 Roach to 1lb 8oz, skimmers and rudd and three carp 3lb, 4lb and 7lb
23/03/09	Baz (Paignton)	Mirror	Common carp	12lb	Used good old sweetcorn under the aerator
24/03/09	Geoff Young (Newton Abbott AC)	Willow			Geoff won the mini Newton Abbot AC match - well done.

The Environment Agency is reminding anglers in Lincolnshire that the closed season for fishing has begun. This warning is issued as the closed season begins.

Closed season, which protects spawning fish, started on March 15 and runs until June 15 inclusive making it illegal to fish in any river, stream or drain during this period. Environment Agency fisheries bailiffs will be on patrol and anyone caught breaking the law faces a potential fine of up to £2,500.

The first few days of the closed season saw several reports of illegal activity, especially in urban areas such as Spalding, Lincoln and Northampton. On the first day there were several reports of illegal activity, with the Spalding area – the Rivers Glen and Welland, Vernatts Drain and Coronation Channel - proving to be hotspots, along with other urban areas.

In the Grimsby area Environment Agency officers are focusing on the River Freshney, and in particular the stretch between the Riverhead and Laceby Acres.

Roger Ferguson, Environment Officer at the Environment Agency, Lincoln, said awareness needed raising about the closed season, a legal requirement under the Salmon And Freshwater Fisheries Act.

He said: ‘Nobody admits they know about closed season, they know there is one but not when the dates are. We have put signs up at waters where we have had offences in the past and work with fishing tackle suppliers to educate people.’

And he warned anglers who flout the law they would be caught: ‘If you do fish illegally, you will get reeled in by the bailiffs.’

Members of the public are asked to report all illegal fishing between these dates by calling the Environment Agency on 0800 80 70 60.

Source: Environment Agency Fishing News

By Marc Gough

Part One

A year ago two fishermen & I embarked on a quest into the unknown! Our mission, to winkle a few large carp & some of the resident Cats out of Manor Farm fisheries in Headcorn, Kent.

With very little knowledge of the complex consisting of a match lake with a few carp up to the 20lb mark, a specimen carp lake with carp to the low thirties & specimen carp/catfish Lake with fish up to 40lb we unloaded two cars & one trailer crammed full of tackle & bait.

Day One

After several walks around the Carp/Catfish Lake I decided upon a narrow swim adjacent to the island. With only about 40 metres casting distance to the island accurate baiting was easy for the three rods. The island was fringed with overhanging trees, a scattering of duckweed & reed beds, sexy & carpy or what?

Down to my right I had a lovely looking overhanging willow tree & with the marker rod I found the depth dropped considerable, a likely place to find a cat!

Wheel barrowing a week loads of tackle, bait, food, clothes & of course beer up to the swim in sunny midsummer conditions was torture, I really struggled to replace the loss of liquid in my body with lager quick enough! Not only being a fully fledged tackle tart, any excuse getting my kit off & strip down to shorts is a must!

Three hopefully areas were explored & plotted with the marker rod, an extra area was selected just in case.

Marc Tip: I like to have an alternative fishing spot primed to drop a bait onto just in case one of the other spots fails to produce or just dries up.

I decided on different approaches to each fishing spot, one would just have a pva stocking of goodies attached to the hook link, the second spot would have spodded particles, pellets & boilies over it, forming a dining table of about 2 metres square, the third of which I was dropping under the willow tree was dedicated to Mr Catfish. A bucket consisting of stinking pellets, mixed fishy boilies, tins of tuna, lambs liver & a generous amount of fish oil was mixed into balls around the size of a tennis ball; six were deposited loosely around the willow tree. In the heat of the sun, sweat of my labours & lager influenced state I was in, the smell from the bucket was unreal, nearly chuck up city.

I decided to rest the swim to enable me to get the bivvy up, sleeping quarters sorted & a general tidy up of the tackle around the swim. Bearing in mind I arrived at my chosen swim at eleven am & by 4pm not a baited rig had touched the water yet! I believe quiet, careful preparation is vital in any type of fishing you do, whether it be for a day, 24 hours or a week, a stealthy approach pays off every time!

A quick natter & lager with my companions, of whom were only fishing days during the week’s trip & I was ready for the first cast. Lines clipped to the required markers, baits in place, lines left slack to enable sinking, bobbins attached I was sorted as the sun set slowly over the island trees & stunning Kent countryside.

Life really doesn’t get much better than this?

Lager & cigarette in hand, listening to the birds sing, occasional fish flop out of the water & a very unusual noise? Unusual wasn’t strictly true, I recognised it as a frogs call but it was so loud, so near & very repetitive! Curiosity got the better of me & I just had to investigate more! I couldn’t see, locate a frog of any description around the bank side within the swim? The occasional rustle in nearby reeds & grass but that was it, not a Kermit in sight? I was starting to wonder if my ears were playing tricks on me or one of my colleagues was having a joke.

After a hot, exhausting, rare summers day in southern England I decided to hit the sack as the last rays of sunlight burnt away. Sleep wasn’t exactly easy with a good dose of sunburn, over tiredness & Kermit’s chorus echoing out!

I am not sure if my surroundings went totally quiet or I passed out? Probably the later because the next thing I remember was the delkim screaming at me, the middle rod was lurching to my left as a fish sped off down the lake, kiting hard to gain more line towards the island snags. My 3 ½ tc rod soon had the angry fish subdued & looking sorry for its self in the bottom of the landing net. Not a massive carp but 15lb of hard fighting common carp was very welcomed.

A few pictures later, rod back in position & little trickle of loose feed over the bait I was all set again.

Time for a beer, lager at just gone mid night?

Yeah too right, im on holiday, celebrating my first fish from an unknown venue, do I need to say more?

An hour quickly passed as a sat on my spod bucket taking in the atmosphere, savouring the memory of my first carp from Manor, hoping for many more during my weeks stay.

Two fifteen am & the right hand rod nestled under the willow is off, talk about clutch stripping, line ripping; what ever was on the end wasn’t happy. Lifting the rod & engaging the bait runner I really didn’t know what to expect? The rod hooped over, line still poured from spool, this had to be my first catfish?

Ten minutes in & I am still not making much head way with this fish! As you maybe aware I have successfully landed some very respectable carp from France & here in the UK but none have compared to this! I am really concerned about tackle, from the rods, reels right down to hook! The 18lb bs fluorocarbon main line is absolutely singing through the early morning breeze, rod butt resting upon my thigh to take some of the strain from my aching forearm & shoulder when suddenly I have won! The fish has giving up after some twenty five minutes & ready for the waiting landing net, this is when the fun really started!

I have never caught a cat fish in my career so this was all new to me & in total darkness. With the cats head up against the spreader block the headlight torch picked out two foot of tail overhanging the draw string, “Dam, that isn’t going in there” echoed across the night sky. Plan B? & it had to be a quick plan too! With eighty percent of the fish in the net, raise the net & slacken off at the same time hoping the fish will slide in, went thru my head?

“Woohoo, I love it when a plan comes together”

At this point proceedings became a bit blurred! I remember calling my colleagues on the walkie & saying “Bob I have got one, its massive, what do I do with it next”? I don’t remember if Bob & Gary came to assist or not?

I do remember lifting four & half foot of fish on to the mat, looking at it in amazement, nervously extracting the hook from it’s a massive mouth, sliding its bulky length into the weigh sling expecting thirty pounds plus as the scales swung round to a mere eighteen pounds, totally amazed again, I checked & rechecked the scales! Eighteen pound eight ounces from two different sets of scales. Self portrait photographs safely taken & my first catfish disappeared back into the depths of Manor Farm fisheries.

Marc Tip: Cat fish will test your tackle to the utter most limits & beyond, so be prepared!

Re-positioning the rod as quickly as possible & a few unhealthy scoops of the delightful ground bait dropped under the bush I was back in the doss bag gagging for some decent shut eye.

Day Two

After a restless but fruitful first night I began to unload Bob’s gear from the trailer behind me, gentle placing his equipment in his desired swim I noticed a row or should I say large stream of bubbles travelling up the lake, followed by another & another. These aint no carp feeding patterns unless they are huge! I thought to myself.

I watched the activity for an hour or two noting the positions, times, weather & temperature conditions. When all had ceased out with the marker rod to have a feel around! What ever the culprits were (Catfish) seem to be following a small channel that ran directly thru the middle of my swim down to the deep end of the lake, what a find.

Depths carefully taken & noted I decided upon a plan of attack! Of which I would employ late afternoon.

Marc Tip: I had over looked this channel when mapping the swim out yesterday; despite it only being a metre wide, six to eight inches deeper I had missed it! This is why it’s vital when using the marker to log, note everything from where the lead & float lands right up to the margin. An hour or so later Bob & Gary joined me; excitedly I began

to narrate my catfish battle with them, accompanied by photographs. Neither Bob nor Gary could believe the length of this fish.

After a brew, few fags the guys started fishing & the lake started filling up rapidly with day ticket anglers, great time to reel in, wonder down to the wash room for spruce up.

Bearing in mind I had only been gone thirty to forty five minutes, the lake was packed, really packed, non fishing swims now had anglers fighting to wet a line, my margin rod was now unusable as an angler had set up on my door step. With this much activity I opted to only fish with two rods, so a hopeful bait was cast to the channel I had been watching earlier. My new neighbour watched shaking his head & smiling as I let the line sink & drop some spod mix over the top.

Bob wondered up the bank around ten o’clock, “Busy init Bro”? I could only reply with a “Hhhhmmmm”.

We sat there chatting tactics, bait placements etc when one of my rods burst into life, a short tussle later & a carp of around 12lb was safely in the net. This activity continued right up until late afternoon, literally loads of carp around the ten pound stamp were coming out, I don’t think anyone failed to catch! I started to prepare for the coming nights fishing as the day anglers started to pack up & disappear leaving just Bob, Gary & myself to enjoy the lakes beauty once again.

With the sun setting, birds settling for the night, Bob & Gary safely back at their apartment, leaving myself & one other angler on the lake (Nathan). Things had returned back to tranquillity of the night past.

Before setting the rods for the night, I took a wonder around the lake via the toilets. I paused for a good half hour chatting to Nathan, picking his brains for any information, tactics he could give about the lakes & their inhabitants? Safely back to my bivvy, settled for the night & thought it was a good idea to catch a few hours sleep hoping for some action during the night. As I dosed I wondered if I was to be woken by a catfish or a really lumpy carp in the early hours. I still had my plan of attack at daylight! Presuming the culprits that travelled up the channel would return tomorrow?

All these things bounced around within my head as I listened to the recently started rain fall on top of the bivvy.

Marc Tip: It is always a good idea to politely ask other anglers for any information, background knowledge they know of the venue.

Day Three

The night passed uneventful but come first light the bubbles started at the far end of the channel, I quickly repositioned two rods, one baited for carp the other baited with four 25mm halibut pellets for cats. I dropped half a dozen spods of the smelly bucket mixture around the pellets & patiently watched as the bubbles came closer & closer.

To my amazement it was the carp rod that ripped off first but it was no carp pulling my arm from its socket, a cat had picked up a single 14mm KG1 boilie & was now tearing down the lake at a ridiculous speed! Being as cautious as I could I played & wore out the 16lb cat on a size 8 korda hook attached to 12lb braided hook link.

After photographing, weighing & returning the fish I carefully inspected the hook link, as I expected it was shredded with at least half of its fibres torn in half! Marc Tip: After many years of fishing I always replace the hook & hook link after every fish with the exception if I am pasty bashing.

Before I could the rod back in position the halibut pellet rod was lurching angrily to the right, spool spilling off line as another cat sped off down the lake, my arm hadn’t recovered from the last battle & I was into another straight away!

“Jeez, these fish can fight” I thought to myself, its unbelievable how they fight! This cat again tipped the scales round to a healthy 16lb; one thing I did notice was just how much the fish differ between each other! Every catfish’s skin had a totally individual mottled pattern upon it. Has to be the perfect camouflage? By the time Bob & Gary had turned up for their daily fish I had banked three cats within around an hour, with a fantastic 22lb being the biggest. With this sort of action & excitement at 6am in the morning I was enjoying a can of lager, mug of black coffee & bacon frying in the bivvies porch. “Life, what a life” I muttered to myself!

I had all most one hundred percent decided to move lakes today but I was now in two minds after my recent successes. Weighing the options up I decided upon a good look around the specimen carp lake as no real big carp were showing on the lake I was fishing.

The specimen carp lake only being around 3 acres had some lovely features, over hanging trees, marginal shelves & a gravel bar stretching across one very secluded swim. I watched & watched looking for the slightest sign of a carp when I was rewarded with some bull rushes twitching to & fro several times, as I got closer a huge common carp rolled in front of the reeds followed by a mirror of equal proportions. I all most ran back to my current swim! Excited about what I had seen & the prospect of hooking into one of the beasts I had seen earlier.

As quiet as possible I set up the three rods, carefully thinking what sort of bait, loose feed to introduce into the new swim? With activity still constant around the reed stems I gentle lowered 2 grains of glugged natural maize popped up with the plastic version as close as I dare to the reeds. Before I could get the line sunk, rod onto the delkim I was receiving liners, things looked really promising as I crouched close to the rod.

I was in two minds whether or not to bait the area, would this spook the carp off, make them search for food?

I decided to give it thirty minutes before taking any actions & went about setting up, casting out the other 2 rods. One was cast to a likely patrol route along side another reed bed, the other just off a gravel patch I had found on the first cast near to the point of the swim. I constantly watched the other rod as the line picked up & then dropped down again; it had to go soon as clouds of debris rose to the surface just inches from where I had lowered my hook bait.

Marc Tip: When carp are this active I prefer to fish slackish lines as possible & do not get the marker rod out!

My wait was over as the delkim bleeped a few times & the fish kited fast to my right into open water, I was on the rod in a flash, feeling the steady, heavy plod of a sizable fish searching for haven. After a few hair raising moments of the line pinging across the carps dorsal fin & could now see the carp just beneath the surface. Safely netted & photographed the mirror carp certainly looked a mid twenty, the scales settled at 24lb 4oz, “Result” I thought to myself.

Bob soon joined me to take a look at this stunning fish & helped me celebrate with a can of lager in the afternoon sun.

Three days still to go, what else would Manor farm fisheries have in store for me?

Author: Marc Gough

The Angling Trust today launched an online petition to reverse a decision by Severn Trent Water which would see angling banned from the dam wall and East bank of Foremark Reservoir in Derbyshire.

Severn Trent Water has cited various reasons for the closure of more than two thirds of the reservoir to anglers, who have been fishing there for nearly 30 years. Their main concern seems to be health and safety, with concerns that anglers will hook passers-by or that they might fall over on the dam. There have been only 3 accidents in 29 years, all of them minor and none involving anglers hooking members of the public. They have even suggested that anglers fishing on the dam might affect its structural integrity.

The Trust is calling on all anglers to stand up and be counted to stop this nonsense. Signing the petition online takes less than one minute at www.anglingtrust.net/foremarkpetition.

Source: Angling Trust

Following one the coldest starts to the year anyone can remember, the past few weeks have seen a steady flow of thirties reported from both the Old Lake and Temple Lake with yet another Temple thirty reported this weekend.

Indeed, it will come as no surprise that Temple regular Sean Howard had another cracking session on Temple lake this weekend catching 4 fish to 33lb 11oz. Fishing peg 13, Sean fished a single grain of glugged corn to the both the bank and island margins catching a stunning mirror weighing 33lb 11oz as well as a 27lb common, and two smaller Temple residents, the Parrot at 19lb 12oz and a small common at 18lb 8oz which must be about the smallest fish in the lake!

This great winters catch follows Sean's brace of thirties two weeks ago when Sean caught ‘The Ghost’ weighing 37lb and Italian 2 weighing 31lb 6oz. This superb brace was caught from peg 14 when Sean fished a small section (corn size) of a sweet cream pop up singularly to the open water to both his left and right rods with no additional feed around his bait. Sean’s first fish, ‘The Ghost’ weighing 37lb was caught at around mid afternoon Saturday from just in front of peg 15. This is the second time Sean has caught ‘The Ghost’ having last caught her in April last year when she weighed 35lb 9oz. Sean’s second thirty of his session came mid morning Sunday when his popped up bait was taken just in front of the island to Sean’s right resulting in Italian 2 being landed at a new record weight of 31lb 6oz. Both fish were in stunning condition and without doubt would have been a fair bit heavier if it were not for the freezing conditions over the past couple of months

Robin Ellis was another angler to bag a Temple thirty last week, this time a plump 31lb mirror. Fishing a very similar method to that of Sean Howard, Robin fished small pieces of chopped up white pop up to the open water in front of peg 10 with no loose feed catching his first Temple fish of the year around mid afternoon. Carrying tag number 141609, this stunning fish, which is also at a record weight was last caught in May 2008 weighing just over 30lb, but at the time was full of spawn. Returning two days later and fishing similar tactics and baits, Robin, also caught one of Temple’s prettiest fish, ‘Raspberry’ weighing 27lb.

Kicking off the Temple action earlier this month was Bury Hill regular Mark Savage who despite freezing conditions managed to bag not only a new PB but also Temple’s first fish of the year, a stonking 36lb 2oz mirror known as Italian 1. Mark fished peg 4, fishing a number of different methods and baits before settling on a light running rig and a balanced Questbait RahJa Spice boilie tipped with a fake corn which had been glugged for 3 months in a trick glug. Fishing a size 10 long shank blow back, Mark decided to try something different by using a 12” of Korda super natural hook length which he pinned down. With tag number 138134, the big ‘Italian’ is a new PB for Mark beating his previous fish, Temple’s Ghost which Mark caught last year.

Not to be outdone, the Old Lake has also seen some good fish reported these past few weeks with Bury Hill regular, Gavin Campbell catching 'Shoulders' at 31lb 4oz. Fishing peg 24, Gavin fished a single piece of popped up corn on a sinking snowman rig over a bed of crushed hemp and particle mix just short of the right hand margin into approximately 6' of water. With water temperatures just above 3 degree's, Gavin not surprisingly had no runs and was about to pack up at 4.20pm when his right hand rod tore off. As the big mirror kited in front of the boat house, all hell broke loose when Bury Hill's best known lady passed in front of the aerators prompting her to make a very strong run up the long bank taking 100m or so of line before Gavin could turn her, eventually landing his prize at 16.40 just as it was getting dark. Gavin's end rig was a size 8 curved shank hook tied to a super natural hook link with 2oz dung lead fished with a 6 feet lead core which he fished as a helicopter set up. Gavin used a Terry Hearn Mark 2 12' 9" 3 1/4 tc rod with a Daiwa SS3000 reel loaded with 10 lb Nash Bullet line.

Source: Bury Hill Fisheries

Zander go on feeding frenzy with ten doubles reported in 7 days!

Is Bury Hill the BEST stillwater zander fishery in the country?

This weeks catches would certainly beg the question with ten big zeds banked with conditions near perfect.

As reported at the start of last week, young Bradley Gibbons aged 11 was the first to catch a fish of a lifetime, a stonking 13lb 12oz zander which was his first ever Zed. Fishing with his dad John, Bradley and John had opted for a days private tuition with Big Fish tutor Eric Bailey. Fishing swims 46 and 47, Eric tackled the pair up with a light ledger rig and single size 4 hooks and following recent successes opted to fish a Mackerel fillet to the lily beds, as well as the big Zed the pair also caught 3 smaller fish but also lost 2 or 3 as the fish were in a finicky mood.

Another young lad to catch a fish of a lifetime this week was Sam Dodd, Sam fished peg 38 along the long bank catching a cracking 12lb 3oz zander on a ledgered mackerel tail, which he popped up just off the bottom.

Regular Anthony Townsey also had a blinding day with the zed’s catching a brace of doubles. Fishing peg 39 Anthony ledgered a small roach dead bait over the dead lilies catching zed’s weighing 10lb and 14lb 4oz.

Another angler to catch a double figure zander was Chris Roots, having just returned to angling after a big operation 2 years ago, Chris was delighted to catch a 10lb 4oz zed. Fishing peg 42, Chris fished a mackerel section laced with Nash Lobster oil mounted on a size 10 single hook rig which he fished half way across the lake.

Gary Newman from the Anglers Mail also grabbed a quick session in the week catching 6 zander, which included a 12lb 15oz specimen. Gary fished a sea dead bait on a single size 4 hook 10mts out to a snag tree.

Clive Jenkins also cashed in on the action with a new PB Zed weighing 12lb 13oz. Fishing peg 4 at the end of the front bank, Clive fished a small roach dead bait to the margins catching 3 zander which included his new PB.

Source: Bury Hill Fisheries

RENOWNED BRITISH actor and passionate fisherman Robson Green experiences the adventure of a lifetime in the thrilling Extreme Fishing With Robson Green.

Robson Green (Reckless, Wire in the Blood), a keen fishing enthusiast for many years, has always thought you couldn’t beat a nice quiet day’s fishing, until he went on an extreme adventure – a globetrotting fish finding mission to some of the greatest fishing destinations in the world.

Originally screened on Channel Five, the hugely popular, exciting four part series follows Robson on his mission to discover the weird, the wonderful and the forbidden of the fishing world. This fascinating adventure will be released as a two disc DVD set on 6 April 2009, courtesy of Acorn Media to coincide with the TV transmission of series two on Channel Five.

His travels take him to Costa Rica, living with the Maleka tribe as they hunt the elusive piranha-like mahaca, to Louisiana in search of barracuda; on to South Africa to face the hammerhead shark; hunting giant catfish on the Ebro River and attempting to catch a 500Ib marlin in the Azores.

On boats, in canoes, up river and underwater, Robson chases some of the most elusive and terrifying fish on the planet. He learns new tricks, hears old stories, and eats pretty much everything he catches – like a true hunter-gatherer.

Robson doesn’t fish just for fun – he fishes to the extreme.

Title: Extreme Fishing With Robson Green
Release Date: 6 April 2009
Cat No: AV9727
Running Time: 175 mins approx
Cert: E
RRP: £24.99

For further information or any press materials please contact:
Debbie Murray at Aim Publicity on 020 8292 2818 or email debbie@aimpublicity.com

Under the watchful eye of Bury Hill's BIG FISH tutor Eric Bailey, young Bradley Gibbons aged 11 caught the fish of a lifetime yesterday, a stonking 13lb 12oz zander.

Catching his first ever zander, Bradley was fishing with his dad John. Fishing swims 46 and 47 eric tackled the pair up with a light ledger rig and single size 4 hooks and following recent successes opted to fish a Mackerel fillet to the lily beds, the pair also caught 3 smaller fish but also lost 2 or 3 as the fish were in a finicky mood.

A 13lb 12oz zed is a huge fish by any standards, but for an 11 year old to catch such a fish on his first ever zander trip is a well deserved feat, congratulations Bradley and Eric.

Source: Bury Hill Fisheries >>

Prologic Quick Release adaptors. No matter what your angling discipline, these handy little adaptors will save you masses of time on the bank as they can be used on everything from landing nets to storm poles!

Sometimes it's the little things that can make all the difference; and such is the case with this quick release adaptor from Prologic. OK, you can't use it on the hook, so in that respect it's not going to catch you any more fish, however, if we are talking about time-saving devices which allow you to set up and break down your tackle much faster on the bank, then look no further.

For review purposes, 'it' should be 'they', as I've been using a number of these adaptors for some time now, and for a number of different uses. I use them on my storm poles, on bank sticks, and even on my landing net pole. To be honest the applications are endless - if it has a standard thread, you can use an adaptor on it!

Quick release adaptors/connectors (call them what you will) have been around for quite a while, it's just that I've never come across any that I felt were up to the job. I've used some of the bayonet type in the past, but I found the fittings left a lot to be desired and before long you had an element of play. This was ok if using on storm poles or such like, but if using on banksticks or buzz bars, they could hamper indication when the idea is to have everything quite solid. When I say used, it should actually be borrowed, as my mate spent no small amount on a set of four to make his four rod set up nice and smart, though when I borrowed his alarms & buzz bars (and thus the adaptors) for a week on Birch, I have to say they left me less than impressed - within the hour I'd whipped them all off in order to get a solid set-up!

I think this is why I like the Prologic design so much; not only are they extremely strong and durable, but the ball bearing locking system removes the ability to spin, twist, or play. They are, quite simply - solid! They are made from a high-grade precision cut alloy and so can be used for even the toughest of jobs, I've been giving them stick for ages now, and they are still just as good as they day I had them, and the fittings just as tight.

As I say, they might not directly put any more fish on the bank, but when I think about it, they've certainly given me a helping hand. Over winter I've been doing quick overnighters, arriving after dark and leaving pretty much at first light. Setting up in the dark is never great when you've got to erect shelters and set rods up, but these adaptors have shaved loads of time off the job. It takes less than a second to pull the collar down on the connector to release it - far quicker than a bayonet fitting. This means all my storm poles are secured in a couple of seconds, and as I'm also fishing bank sticks on this water, the alarms are attached in seconds also. All of which means the rods are out in double quick time.

The same goes for packing away, and a session I had about a fortnight ago proves perfect testament to their effectiveness. I was fishing a quick overnighter using my brolly, and to cut a long story short, the conditions caught me out; the wind turned really nasty, changed direction completely, and started slating horizontal rain right in and all over me. There was no way I could turn the brolly around on the swim, and with no front on, it was just a case of chucking my gear right under the bed, pulling my bag over my head and seeing it out till morning. Come the morning the rain was still coming down with the temperature barely above freezing, not helped by a biting wind hacking right into me. It was 'proper' grim. No surprise then that the pack up was a mare from start to finish. Even after a brew my hands were freezing, and after only a few minutes spent breaking down rods, rigs, and end tackle, my fingers were already numb, to the point where I was struggling to feel them whilst zipping up my tackle pouch. If I'd then had to start unthreading bank sticks, buzz bars, storm poles and whatever else, I think I'd have screamed! As it was, it took less than a minute to break down the shelter, alarms and banksticks - all thanks to the quick release adaptors. To be honest, they paid for themselves on that session alone.

They've received quite a lot of attention on the bank too, where friends or other anglers have seen how quick various elements tackle go together. I fished a bit of a social at the weekend with a mate I've not seen for ages. Again I did not arrive till I'd got the kids off to bed, and jumped into the next swim just so that we could have a natter and catch up. He's an engineer by trade - and a bloody good one too - and as he helped me set up various odds and ends, the adaptors immediately caught his eye. I told him how I really rated them, though I knew full well he'd make up his own mind irrespective of what I might have to say on the subject! He was still messing with one of them some twenty minutes later after I was all set up and in, and after intense scrutiny, not to mention a thousand testings of the locking mechanism, he finally declared all matter of fact "They're bloody good, these!" ... I could have told him that!

Anyway, they must be good as he rang today to tell me he's bagged a couple of sets for himself. Praise indeed! He got all technical on me (as he often does) and started telling me how mega-expensive air hoses in the automotive industry use similar fittings, though to be honest, as Izaak was screaming for his dinner in my other ear, I didn't hear the rest of it!

Suffice to say they are just the job; strong, durable and extremely effective. I have to point out that I'm not really a fancy gizmo man, and certainly no tackle tart - perish the thought! However, I have to say that I'm properly taken with these. You know how you sometimes find something so good that you can't remember what you did before it came along? Well that's what these adaptors are like - they are just so easy to use, and save me so much time, that I can't imagine being without them again!

The adaptors come in sets of three, priced at just £4.99 from Trevs Tackle, which I find incredible considering how useful I've found them to be. The bonus of course is that at this price you can bag a few sets to do storm poles, landing nets and banks sticks, etc.

Purchase Pro Logic Quick Release adaptors here >>

Reviewer: Julian Grattidge - NorthWestCarp

The Angling Trust is giving anglers over the age of 60 the opportunity to fish for England, with the first 2009 trial for the England Veterans team taking place on Furzton Lake in Milton Keynes on Wednesday 11th March

This will be the first of a series of trials in which England Team Manager Joe Roberts will ask all attendees to fish the match to international rules to help identify anglers who are of international calibre. The match will give anglers a unique opportunity to fish on this year’s F.I.P.S.ed organised World Championship venue using the same tactics that will be needed on 11th and 12th July later this year.

England selectors will be looking for anglers who have an excellent knowledge of bloodworm and joker techniques demonstrating their ability to fish at international level. Anglers will also need to adapt their domestic style of fishing considerably following F.I.P.S.ed rules where only float fishing with a pole up to 11.5m or waggler are permitted.

Any angler who believes s/he has the aptitude to enhance England’s standing in international fishing further and contribute to another gold medal summer should contact England Manager Joe Roberts directly on 07860 469 595 or 01604 712 897.

Any potential anglers who would like to fish the trials need to be 60 years of age on or before the 31st December 2008 and join the Angling Trust to be eligible to fish, which can be easily done via the new website, www.anglingtrust.net or by calling 0844 7700616.

Joe Roberts, England Team Manager, is expectant of a good year for 2009, commenting: “Last year we had an incredibly successful World Championship in Portugal winning team bronze and individual gold with Mark Addy. This year the eyes of the world will be upon us, especially as we are fishing on home water. The anglers that come to trial will need to be at the very top of their profession, as nothing short of gold will be expected.”

International Events Manager Dick Clegg supported Joe, adding: “There will be huge pressure on this year’s Angling Trust England Veterans team due to the venue. However, the team will be able to take nothing for granted as the skills required to fish to international rules are completely different to domestic angling techniques. This makes the series of trials that will be conducted by Joe, become even more important ensuring selected anglers have the abilities required to bring success on our home waters.”

Angling Trust Chief Executive Mark Lloyd commented: “we want the best team possible to ensure that the England veterans can continue their winning streak, and so I would encourage all eligible anglers to register with Joe as soon as possible. As the old saying goes: time spent fishing is time added onto life.”

Source: Angling Trust