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Blogs

Viewing entries posted in category 'Specialist'

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Musing's on the coming river season!

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PIC1 2It won't be long now until we can get back on the river's and enjoy some some lovely running water angling in some stunning unspoilt surroundings. But what will the coming season hold for us all. The weather has certainly been very up and down, and I as I write this piece it is well below the temperature that we should be seeing for the time of year (just 10 Deg. C in Wolverhampton!). If this keeps up, the barbel will probably end up spawning in July, as they seem to have done for the last few season's. This always makes the few first weeks of the season difficult, as you can have miles of river with very few fish because they will be 'shoaled' up in small area's.

From a conservation point of view, I would say it is now worth a review of the closed season dates to take this into account. How about moving it back a month, so it runs from April 15th to July 16th? (other species are also spawning later). I have always been a traditionalist but you have to be prepared for change. With the already delicate situation of a lot of our barbel rivers, do you really want angler's fishing for them during or just after spawning? They take a long time to recover properly as it is after capture in the summer, without the added stress of capture just after spawning. The majority of carp fisheries are flexible and will close during the spawning period, surely we should be flexible to the same degree, when it comes to our rivers!

Turn hot bright weather to your advantage.

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We often find ourselves complaining about the weather. Be it too bright, too hot, too cold, too windy, too wet and so on. But, to be fair, the weather conditions might not be conducive to heavy feeding at the moment, but they are absolutely perfect for taking full advantage of in two different ways.

Posted by Shaun Harrison on 16 November 2015 | Comments Tags: , , Read the full post

Quest Baits Boilies for different species

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We regularly receive enquiries as to whether we produce baits for species other than for carp. Several of our baits have proven to be totally outstanding for other species, so to help you narrow your choices down Shaun has listed some of the baits here that have really stood out.

Autumn Harvest of Golden Barbel

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I was up and about this morning far earlier than I needed or indeed, wanted to be. I had awoken in that comfortable snuggled state when you know you still have a good hour or so lounging time before the alarm clock will sound. But then my brain kicked in thinking back over this last week-end, for the gods of Sir Izaak had done so much more than smile upon me. They had rewarded me richly with a bumper crop of golden autumn barbel. I couldn’t turn my brain off so it was to be an early rise and soon the tea pot was mashing my favourite Assam/Earl Grey blend. I glanced at the pictures again and really couldn’t believe how incredibly fortunate I had been with my timing. If the truth be told it wasn’t really any sort of judged timing, it was pure fate and poor carp catching conditions mixed with a bit of idleness and lack of motivation that had me fishing for the barbel this weekend.

Traditional Angling on a Glorious Autumn Day

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It is nice once in a while to be able to angle with people we haven’t or rarely get to fish with.

I guess I must have known Bob Brookes for 30 odd years now after swapping many a brown paper bag of fishing tackle for his hard earned, for many years before his retirement. I guess a lot of the Nottinghamshire/Derbyshire based anglers used the tackle shop for a little lunchtime therapy after a gruelling morning at work.

I always enjoyed serving Bob, his cheerful face would brighten many a day and one of the minority you could enjoy a sensible relaxed conversation with.

Hang on a minute, time to change tract, it’s starting to sound like a obituary and after watch Bob stomp across the fields the other day with a full pack, shortly after a session in the gym, this is far from being a obituary.

Snippets from my Diary – The first 6 months of 2015

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Well, last night I sat down and read through the first 6 months diary entries I have made this year and it hit home once again the amount of joy and pleasure being alongside water out there in the great outdoors brings to me. So, I thought I would share a few of these moments, as we pass through the changing seasons.

 

Posted by Shaun Harrison on 4 June 2015 | Comments Tags: Read the full post

Braddock’s Sugar and Spice for Tench

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Targeting a silty gulley on 15 acre lake over three separate two night sessions spread over a six week period the approach was to use maggots enhanced with Braddock’s Sugar Spice additive over a bed of scalded pellet and hemp. Action was not necessarily instant as the fish generally took a few hours to home in on the bait, but once they arrived they stayed. I don’t like to be shy with bait at this time of year and typically use 7 pints of maggots and 4 kilos of spod mix over the 48 hour session.

Posted by Shaun Harrison on 2 June 2015 | Comments Tags: Read the full post

Chub, barbel, carp and things you forget about – as well as my money saving blog of the day.

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I was sorting my gear out last night for a spot of chub fishing and found the block of Plasticine I used to use and to be honest I had forgotten how useful it is and for how many different jobs I used to use it for.

The Week-End Dilemma of an All Round Angler

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Most will know me as a carp angler, but in reality I see myself very much as an all rounder. There are few weeks that pass by where I can’t be found at some stage of the week fishing for something other than carp. I might have slipped out after dark in pursuit of chub or barbel, I might have decided to grab a couple of hours to trot a float down a river or I may have decided to spend the last few moments of daylight trying to entice a perch.

Posted by Shaun Harrison on 12 December 2014 | Comments Tags: , , , , , Read the full post

Simple Barbel Feeder Mix

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Spurred on by watching Ron Key catching barbel on the Questrami I thought it about time I prised myself away from my two favourite barbel baits Rahja Spice and Absolute Seafood.

Posted by Shaun Harrison on 18 November 2014 | Comments Tags: , , , , Read the full post