Fishing with Rod Discussion Forum
Fishing in British Columbia => General Discussion => Topic started by: Rodney on May 07, 2009, 04:35:14 PM
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Back in Denmark again, skipping the Interior lake gong show. ;) Some new photos to share for whoever is interested. :) These are slightly more interesting than the greyish ones that I take every winter. :D
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The flight over, on Lufthansa's 340-600 again, which are finally installed with PTVs so the flight seemed extremely short for once. ;) Interesting landing, so hard that two of the compartments opened up two rows ahead of me and one smarty decided to unbuckle and stand up just a couple of seconds after the front wheel touched down so he could close them. Well, I guess someone forgot that the airplane was going from 200kph to under 100kph in a few seconds. He tumbled and rolled forward in no time. :o Luckily no serious injuries, except perhaps a few bruises and embarrassment. ;) The seat belt sign is there for a reason after all. ;D
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After reading FLYH2O's horror story on FlyBC (http://forum.flybc.ca/index.php?showtopic=14059), I've become rather paranoid about my luggages so I stood and watched to make sure they were loaded. :P All ten rods made it without damages. ;)
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Sunrise. Our place is just a few hundred meters from the east coast so the view is pretty nice at 5:00am.
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Downtown Copenhagen again... This photo would look better with lots of pedestrians in front of me I think. Normally the area in front of me is just packed, but I guess that I must stink or something, they all decided to take the longer route when I crouched down to take a photo like a typical Asian tourist. ;D
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Spring time means street performers.
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You don't really have to get too far out of Copenhagen to see big fields. This is the area where Nina grew up in, probably about 20 minutes drive out of Downtown Copenhagen.
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Another field shot...
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More field shot... plus local resident...
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Close-up of local resident...
Yes, there will be fishing pics. :D I was out today with the 4wt in the 70+kph wind. Plenty of big garfish, much bigger than the ones I've seen in the past. :)
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That's a nice picture of the interior of the aircraft. A good movie certainly helps to pass the time.
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I would love to take a trip to Scotland for a fly fishing trip. You are lucky that you are able to get out and see Europe and throw a line around while your there.
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I wpuld love to travel over there as well
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Thanks for sharing Rod, I like the pic of the horse in the field...looks like it's missing it's horn though :)
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That why we travel. To see if the fields are greener over there. :) Never going to find that in Richmond ;)
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Those are some really good photos. and anything and everything you have heard about mistreated luggage is completely true i can guarentee that. Also thelast thing you want to do is have luggage with those damn fragile tags on them. Some of the handlers love to see those ones >:(
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More photos! :) There are many little harbour/fishing villages along the coast here, which are really relaxing to walk around. The pedestrian streets are narrow and every corner is worth exploring. The houses are a couple of hundred years old. The exterior retains its historic look while the interior is completely modernized, making these some of the most expensive properties in the country. This particular village is just a short drive from our place.
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Bird pics. :)
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These blackheaded gulls lose the black head in the winter. A few months ago I took a photo of them too.
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The weather is getting really warm now. The humidity seems to be much higher than Vancouver because I seem to sweat a bucketful everytime I am here in the spring. :thumbdown: The quest for garfish tapered off after I was having quite a bit of success by myself last week. While there were fish this weekend, they were not that abundant. Nevertheless, it is a rather relaxing fishery as you get to fish and soak up the sunshine on the shoreline without having to move around. The shoreline gets pretty heavily used by anglers, but it is a family fishery so everything is quite orderly. Parents bring their kids down for a picnic while fishing. Some just cast a line out and enjoy a beer or two.
On the other hand, we take our fishing quite seriously, as you can see on Nina's face. ;)
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It has been awfully windy, which is one of the reason that fishing has not been spectacular. The wind mills are working hard to supply 100% of the nation's electricity on days like this.
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Time to start the weekend cleaning so I can go find some more garfish. :)
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Nice pictures,Rod! Do you fish bait or lures for the hornfisk?
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Nick, I am mostly flyfishing for them.
Here's a new blog entry.
In Scandinavia, the month of May marks the beginning of a season that is celebrated by every life form. The spring landscape is much more pleasant. The green fields are covered by wild flowers. The rocky shoreline is thickened with algae and other microscopic inhabitants. After a long, dark Baltic winter, people are eager to be out in the sun as much as possible by jogging, kayaking or simply relaxing in a park. It is a celebration that no one would want to miss.
While this is happening, another annual phenomena is not being unnoticed. The migration of garfish (Belone belone), which is either love or hate by anglers, usually starts in late April and tapers off by the third week of May. Not to be confused with North America’s freshwater gars, these garfish are in fact a species of needlefish that are pelagic in the Eastern Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea and Baltic Sea. They are loved because they are easy to catch and tasty on the dinner plate. Sea trout anglers tend to find them a nuisance because quite often they take over the sea, making it harder to target sea trout specifically.
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What impresses me about this fishery is the large amount of people who take part in it. Last weekend, we spent an afternoon sitting at a popular spot in Øresund, the strait that runs between Denmark and Sweden, we found ourselves surrounded by families that were out for the same reason. Dozens of boats could also be found just outside our casting distance. A gong show, you may think, but it was in fact very orderly and enjoyable. This fishery is family-friendly due to the fact that garfish are very willing biters.
Just about every fishing method works for garfish, so it comes down to what the angler’s preference. Floating a piece of herring is relaxing and suitable for kids, but it can pose a challenge on a windy day. Spinning lures can generate many bites, but quite often the hook does not penetrate through the fish’s hard beak enough so landing rate maybe low. Since I was introduced to this fishery few years ago, my preference is still flyfishing for them. Garfish do not discriminate, so even a piece of yarn on the line can entice them. There would not be a shortage of bites when stripping a size 10 orange fly just below the surface with a 4wt.
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While one cannot expect reel screaming runs from garfish (after all, their average weight is less than a pound), garfish do fight reasonably well with leaps and dives mixed in between. Constant action is what mostly attracts people to target them.
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Today I decided that we should keep a few for eating. Danes enjoy eating garfish. They can be BBQed, pan fried (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0sWJ7GOtSRE). I have quickly discovered that killing these fish is a messy job. Their length is easily over half a meter long and the body diameter is no more than ten centimeters. Handling them is perhaps best described as snake handling. You grab onto their gill plates, they slap the rest of the body around. You grab onto the mid section, they slip away freely after a couple of wiggles. The line quite often wraps around their body and the hook can sometimes be hard to remove because it is so embedded into the hard beak. When the job of untangling, unhooking, dispatching was done, I was completely covered in scales, slime and the oily fish smell that I used to find when targeting pelagic species in Australia.
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That being said, this is definitely a light tackle fishery that I wouldn't mind putting up with for a few weeks per year. I think that I will go down to the beach and enjoy it a bit more tomorrow. ;)
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Spinning lures can generate many bites, but quite often the hook does not penetrate through the fish’s hard beak enough so landing rate maybe low.
You can avoid that problem by just adding 5cm of line between the spoon and the hook, also replace the regular treble hook with a very small one. It works! ;)
Nice pics again and also a very good report! I can smell the ocean... ;D
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Thanks for the nice pics Rod. The colors are so vivid.
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Landing them has not been a problem lately. In fact, I wish most of them would come off by themselves so I don't have to touch more and smell like fish all the time. The garfish fishing is just getting better and better. I've been hitting the beach after dinner at around 7:00pm and fished until 10:00pm in the last couple of days. The low light around 10:00pm brings fish close to the surface, so I was able to skate the fly as fast as possible on the surface and watch them splash around as they attempted to chase it down. In another month, it will not be dark until midnight and finding time to sleep beside fishing is going to be quite difficult. :D
Walk around the neighbourhood today because the weather has just been so gorgeous. This is a bicycle city. Around 40% of the commuters get to their work by bike. Every main street has bike lanes and cyclists follow their own traffic lights. Driving can be rather stressful in Copenhagen, especially for foreigners. Want to make a right turn? Better check the bike lane first, then the pedestrian lane before turning. The street signs are also tiny, as in forget attempting to read it because by the time you read it, you've already passed the street!
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Great pictures Rodney. You've got a special talent and perspective for this. Not one of your shots is just a "picture". I see art in every one. Thanks for taking the extra time and effort to share what 'you see'.
Travel safe!
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In another month, it will not be dark until midnight and finding time to sleep beside fishing is going to be quite difficult. :D
I can remember my fishing trips to norway, it was daylight 24/7! I loved it, we were able to fish any time we wanted to. I totally lost the feeling for day and night at this time...what about flyfishing for seatrout at 3 AM... ;D But i had a hard time when i was back home :-\
Do you know that bridge Rodney :)
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Fishing at the polar circle, 2 AM
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Silence over the north atlantic
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Finally...
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...done!
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Who's bigger?
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Tough little fighters!
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Second last photo, that is a big cod Nick! Were you fishing up in Lofoten? Lucky...
Perhaps spoiled, but now the garfish just seem like a nuisance. Today I revisited a spot where I fished and encountered dozens of sea trout chasing my lure last winter. Basically every cast resulted in a school of garfish following the lure to my rod tip. Plenty of splashing around me, doing the usual spawning behaviour on the surface.
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The highlight of the morning was this little guy on the fifth or sixth cast.
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On my way home, I dropped by a spot in the Copenhagen harbour. Plenty of people were taking advantage of the good fishing.
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I stood on top of a bridge and watched hundred of garfish schooling by, with the odd sea trout mixed in between. The warm weather has brought lots of smaller critters out in the shallow water too. I could see sticklebacks, some of the biggest ones I've ever seen, and shrimps.
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The harbour is also where many avid flycasters practice regularly before they take off to their annual trips in Sweden, Norway, Kola Peninsula, Iceland and of course BC.
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Great pictures Rodney. You've got a special talent and perspective for this. Not one of your shots is just a "picture". I see art in every one. Thanks for taking the extra time and effort to share what 'you see'.
Travel safe!
Thanks, but don't forget that for every photo that I choose to show, I probably throw away 50 other bad photos. ;)
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That was not at the Lofoten. Way further to the south, we were fishing on a small island in the area of Trondheim. That cod had 112cm and 30lbs, not a bad fish but bigger ones get caught every day up there. Nice pictures again rod and don't get too spoiled, There will be times when you wish you would be back there ;)
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Excellent photos Rod! An odd question that perhaps you could answer... Are internal gear hubs cheaper there (like a nice rohoff or shimano nexus) or are the prices the same?
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Not really sure Jon, but I doubt it'd be cheaper here. So far I haven't found anything here that's cheaper than BC. :P
I took a break from the fishing today. Everything needs to be washed so the apartment wouldn't smell like garfish anymore. :-X
We walked around one of the parks in Copenhagen. The weather is just too nice to stay indoor.
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For some reason, grey herons are everywhere in this city.
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Lucky you weather wise, I'm on the west coast of Ireland and was almost blown off the pier tonite in the fierce winds.
Great pictures as someone has already said. Just wish the fishing in the UK was as good!
Colin
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We caught something other than garfish tonight.
http://www.fishingwithrod.com/blog/?p=114
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It's just after 4am and a thunderstorm just went by and woke me up.
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Now the sun just rose and I'm going to have a hard time falling asleep again. ::)
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Nice pictures again,Rodney! I told you that already a while ago but Jigs or also called twisters work best for cod. Fish the evenings and close to deeper water as the fish will come closer to the beach when it's getting dark. You can also fish stationary with worms called "Sandorm" in DK, watch out for signs along the street or buy them at the tacklestore.
That's very productive for flounder too.Tight lines!
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I think it's time to start targeting sea trout... ;D
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Good pictures Rodney, I really like the lightning shot.
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Wow! those are some nice photos Rodney.Thanks for getting me out Surrey for a couple of minutes.
That roof on the Hollandsfed building looks like straw,am I misstaken?I don't think that would be very practical in B.C .
Nick78 did you eat all that cod?It looks like allot of fish and chips to be had there.
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Wow! those are some nice photos Rodney.Thanks for getting me out Surrey for a couple of minutes.
That roof on the Hollandsfed building looks like straw,am I misstaken?I don't think that would be very practical in B.C .
Nick78 did you eat all that cod?It looks like allot of fish and chips to be had there.
there's nothing wrong with surrey!
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Nick78 did you eat all that cod?It looks like allot of fish and chips to be had there.
You fillet it, skin it and cut it into nice sized pieces. After that it goes into freezer bags and get deep frozen. At the end of the holiday you pack it into Styrofoam boxes like a Coleman and take it home. It stays frozen for the 36 hours ride and you can have cod two or three times a week for a long time...yummy!
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That roof on the Hollandsfed building looks like straw,am I misstaken?I don't think that would be very practical in B.C .
Yes that is a straw roof. Actually you don't see that many around, only on the really old houses. It'd probably do ok in BC too, the weather here is harsher than Vancouver, since it is surrounded by oceans.
Not so much fishing lately, the weather has been pretty unstable. Last night I went down to the beach and returned 10 minutes later because a thunderstorm suddenly rolled in. Didn't really want to be a lightning rod. :-\
Copenhagen Botanical Garden, established since the 1870s.
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One of the easiest way to get around this city is by using the Metro. The trains run once every five minutes. It takes around 15 minutes to go from the airport to city. There is a station ten minute walk from our place and we would usually hop on a train as soon as we arrive and be in the city ten minutes later.
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Nyhavn is probably the most popular area for tourists in Copenhagen. It is also probably the picture you'd see on a post card from here, even though the rest of Denmark doesn't really look like it. You'd have to walk by it to get to the cruise ships from the City. The harbour is where canal cruises start their trips. The entire harbour is lined with restaurants and people normally sit along the edge on a hot sunny day. It was pretty crowded today already.
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More city photos.
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Yesterday we went for a walk around Island Brygge, which is basically the area between our place near the airport and the City. This area used to be quite industrialized. Trains and ships once stop along this part of the canal where factories were ready to deliver their products. Only some signs of these past activities can be found now. In the last few years, during the development boom, new residential buildings have taken over the area. The result is a mixture of historic sites and modernized buildings.
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Christianhavn looks pretty similar to Nyhavn, except the absence of tourists. It's a five minute Metro ride from the City and the walk along these canals is a lot more peaceful. Don't ask how much it costs for a place around here.
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It has been gusty along the coast for several days now. The wind finally eased up slightly and changed its direction today. This does not necessarily mean that the beach fishing is better. Whenever it is windy, seaweed tends to be washed up the coast so it would be tiresome to drag them up on every retrieve. Beside, garfish seem to still dominate the sea and sea trout fishing is only good late in the evenings. I was looking for a change of scenery and contemplated where to fish this weekend. We decided to slow the pace down slightly, by scouting out some smaller water bodies this evening.
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Unlike Canada, the eastern part of Denmark lacks lakes and rivers so most of the fishing is done along the coast. Large lakes and rivers are typically managed by fishing organizations and a day fee is required (see this story (http://www.fishingwithrod.com/blog/?p=116) I wrote up a few days ago about fishing a club-only lake). Although freshwater fishing opportunities are pretty limited, there are still places where you can enjoy it for free.
Little swamps and ponds can be found across this island, they are footprints of the last glaciation. Trout are absent in these tiny puddles, but they have an incredibly rich diversity of life. Small coarse fish such as roach and rudd make up the bottom of the food chain while large predators such as northern pike and perch keep the populations in check. Other fish found in them include tench, bream and a variety of carp species.
They are species that do not excite most anglers, but I really enjoy seeing new species that I have enver encountered before. While in high school, I briefly watched a few match fishing shows from UK and had wanted to catch these species. Several springs ago, I finally had a chance to do so, but did not have the right equipment for them. During my stay in Denmark this time, I have brought along some of the light tackle that I usually use for peamouth chub back home.
After studying the map, we decided to check out a swamp near Nina’s hometown, which is about 20 minutes of driving from Copenhagen. The swamp is tucked away in the middle of a large field, making it a pretty peaceful setting for fishing even though we are not too far away from the city.
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The busiest traffic crossing in the area.
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A protective parent.
I decided to set Nina up with a float rig. The thin float only takes two tiny split shots to balance, perfect for detecting bites from small coarse fish. The long spinning rod and thin line allows her to cast the light setup without much difficulty. Knowing that there could be pike or perch around, I chose to bring along my spincasting setup with my 1/8oz green spinners that have always been so good to me on just about all predatory species that I target.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2009/090530-03.jpg)
Bait, whip and wait.
Several seconds after Nina’s float settled on the water, it dipped a few times. This is one appealing feature of the coarse fishery, the waiting game is always short! The fish are almost always abundant and never too selective.
She missed the first several bites by yanking the rod too hard. The float flew straight out of the water everytime. I guess that we had been fishing for garfish so much lately, it is easy to forget how soft the mouth of these fish is. With a bite of adjustment in technique, the first fish made its way to the bank.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2009/090530-04.jpg)
She lifted it up by the line and tried to see what it was. It took awhile but we figured out that it was a rudd, which looks quite similar to a roach.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2009/090530-05.jpg)
After letting it go, Nina rebaited and chucked the rig out. The float once again disappeared before she had a chance tightening up the slack line. It seemed to be a smaller fish as it came in quite swiftly. It was a roach, which was much more slender than a rudd. Two species in two casts, this was turning into a pretty good start.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2009/090530-06.jpg)
Nina repeated this process for the rest of the evening. I decided that it was time to throw the spinner out after taking enough photographs. The swamp seems to be pretty shallow and weedy, so I had no high expectations. The first few casts ended with some weed on the line during the retrieve. Once I had determined how deep it was, I made some adjustment to my retrieve and that solved the problem instantly. The grassy bank on the other side actually looked very appealing. If a pike or perch was in this swamp, it would be over there. At least that was my theory. I made a few long casts and the spinner landed right by the weed patch. Still expecting nothing, I watched Nina’s float and chatted as I retrieved it. Suddenly I felt a solid tug. It was definitely not a piece of weed, but I hesitated to pull because my mind was still on the float.
Hoping that it would go for it again, I aimed for the same spot. I felt another tug after a few turns on the reel. This time, I set the hook hard. The light spinning rod was bent to the cork and I could felt some shaking at the end of the line. What could it be? I carefully guided the fish into the shallow as I only had a size 4 single barbless hook on the lure. The fish appeared on the surface of the copper-coloured water. It was a small pike! The fish was only perhaps 20 inches long, but I was very thrilled regardless. Nina grabbed the camera and prepared to snap a shot while I celebrated. The fish thrashed on the surface and suddenly freed itself. It sat on the bottom and jetted into the deep after several seconds. I was still pretty caught up with the excitement so was not too disappointed by the loss.
Two casts later, I felt another solid tug just as I started retrieving the spinner. The rod was once again being put to work. It felt just as heavy as the previous fish, but it fought differently. A good sized perch appeared on the surface after 30 seconds. Nina once again brought out the camera, but this fish was also camera shy. It dashed away after shaking the hook off without much effort. This catch and release method is working a bit too efficiently.
I proceeded to hook two more perch, but both also failed to make it to shore. I checked the hook for problems, but it seemed to be find so I guess that the angler was not so fine.
When I finally had a fish posing in front of the camera, it was much smaller than the ones that I had lost earlier. Aren’t the ones that get away always bigger? Nevertheless, it was a pretty fish. The green body, black bands, red fins are all classic characteristics of the European perch.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2009/090530-07.jpg)
Brightly red fins.
A tiny northern pike followed soon after. This seemed to be a world of minis. Despite of its unspectacular size, this specimen was in very good condition.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2009/090530-08.jpg)
Baby toothy fish.
I finished the evening with one more perch on my line. It was a slightly bigger specimen than the previous fish.
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2009/090530-09.jpg)
Meet spiky!
Unlike yellow perch in North America, European perch can grow up to several pounds in weight. Perhaps due to the swamp size, they are unable to grow much bigger? That is most likely not the case, because we did see some biggies rolling on the surface just before dark. For a scouting trip, it was certainly a rather successful one based on the number of species caught. Perhaps this swamp still has other hidden secrets, which we shall find out when we return in the near future.
Here are some more photos that I took over here last week.
(http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3658/3562443984_78c323416f_o.jpg)
(http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3329/3568185844_bd2083b5c3_o.jpg)
(http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3316/3576138187_d2fd120a1d_o.jpg)
(http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3338/3576138037_08348d9a24_o.jpg)
(http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3402/3576943022_2b1d41b99b_o.jpg)
(http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3355/3576138753_14592a9b89_o.jpg)
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great report, those smaller waters look like alot of fun.
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Nice report and pictures again,Rodney! If you got the time,take the chance and do some night fishing for eel. Use floats with glow sticks on top and dew worms or little minnows as bait. I always found it very exciting when the "glow float" dives down in the darkness and the fish is on!
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Those are some really nice pictures... what camera are you using?
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Nick, maybe. It's already hard enough to find time to sleep now though. :o Lately, we've been fishing until 11:00pm and I get woken up at 5:00am because it is so bright outside by that time.
I can definitely understand the exccitement of fishing with the glow stick on the float at night. Years ago when we fished for hair tail (http://www.fishbase.org/Summary/SpeciesSummary.php?id=1288) at night in Taiwan, that was the exact same method being used.
We got some other different fishing plans coming up in the next couple of weeks. ;)
Dspot, I have been taking these photos with a Canon 450D. Some of the photos were also taken with a Pentax Optio W30.
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awesome pictures and fishing reports rodney. i'm of danish heritage and mean to make it over there one day, your pictures give me a good idea of what to expect. looking forward to more. tight lines!
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Wow! those are some nice photos Rodney.Thanks for getting me out Surrey for a couple of minutes.
That roof on the Hollandsfed building looks like straw,am I misstaken?I don't think that would be very practical in B.C .
Nick78 did you eat all that cod?It looks like allot of fish and chips to be had there.
That "straw" roof is what we call in the UK "a Thatched roof". It's actually made of Reeds that are harvested from the county of Norfolk in England. The ones shown in Rod's photo are probably harvested in Denmark or Holland.
Thatching is a highly skilled job and there are very few Thatchers still trading.
There are many Thatched houses across England and very few have trouble with the weather, it's fire that they don't like!!
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Another update. Caught my first European grayling a couple of days ago.
(http://www.fishingwithrod.com/albums/photoblog/090604_1.jpg)
I wrote a lengthy story about it and discussed briefly about how much more expensive it is to use these so-called "quality waters" freshwater fisheries in Denmark.
http://www.fishingwithrod.com/blog/?p=118
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I've created a new thread for the discussion on the fishery management comparison so it can continue without hijacking this thread:
http://www.fishingwithrod.com/yabbse/index.php?topic=20820.0
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Not a whole lot has happened. We've had rain, wind, rain and more wind.
Here's a blog entry from this evening: http://www.fishingwithrod.com/blog/?p=119
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2009/090613-1.jpg)
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Another blog entry on European perch.
http://www.fishingwithrod.com/blog/?p=120
(http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc90/fishingwithrod/2009/090621-8.jpg)
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It is getting quite hot in Denmark now. Most of the fisheries are only good in early mornings and late evenings. We decided to do some fishing in the middle of the day yesterday, so ended up catching some minnow species that are found in Europe.
(http://www.fishingwithrod.com/albums/photoblog/090702_1.jpg)
http://www.fishingwithrod.com/blog/?p=125
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Rod, I hope you don’t mind a few comments ref your latest blog “A simple game on a hot summer day”. As an English ‘coarse’ angler for many years, I find some of your throw away comments a bit hard to digest and may even mislead some of your readers.
Even though it is not a fishery that many get excited about, I guess some coarse fishing is better than no fishing at all.
There are many English (and European) coarse anglers who get excited about fishing in Denmark. Indeed there are specialist holiday companies like Angler’s World http://www.anglers-world.co.uk/fishing-holiday/denmark.htm (http://www.anglers-world.co.uk/fishing-holiday/denmark.htm) that cater for those wanting great fishing breaks. Denmark has also hosted the World Coarse Fishing Championships and is well renowned for the ‘coarse’ fishing it offers.
We like to adjust the depth so that the deepest split shot lays on the bottom. This prevents the float from being carried around by the wind and ensures that the bait isn’t suspending too much.
If there is no wind or undertow then you don’t need to have a split shot on the lake bed. We tend to use smaller shot than here, typically no8 shots in the bottom area of our rigs. These can then be layed on the lake bed to ‘anchor’ the float in position depending on the wind and undertow. Typically we fish within an inch of the bottom for roach whilst bream and carp like the bait firmly on the bottom. A good starting point is the length of the float overdepth. Sometimes fish like a stationary bait and will not take a moving bait when fishing lakes and stillwaters.
Pic - A well balanced float can detect more bites.
This is how not to fish a pole float. Only the bristle should be showing above the water’s surface.
With a touch, your hands would be haunted with a strong odour that can lead to nausea with a few sniffs.
Bream slime has a slight smell but it’s certainly not strong enough to be nauseous, especially when you fish for them regularly. It certainly makes a mess of your clothes.
Although undesirable, float fishing for coarse fish is actually an exciting pastime.
Float fishing is never considered undesirable and to some it is the only way to fish, being more visually appealing than bottom fishing. When you’re back in BC I have a great variety/collection I’d like to show you. What is important is that other methods can be more productive for certain species or on certain venues. In the World Coarse Angling Championships you have to float fish as fishing on the bottom is not allowed.
Keep the blogs coming and hope you find some great fishing.
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Hi Terry, points well taken. I understand that there is much more in this fishery than just what has been mentioned, but the blog entry is meant to be a generic look at it from a British Columbian's perspective with some light hearted humour. In BC, this type of fishery is looked down on and my goal is to explore it from a different point of view so perhaps others may also find it enjoyable. I agree with most of your points except the last one. I wasn't implying that float fishing is not as good as bottom fishing, I was saying coarse fishing as a whole is not as boring as what most people assumed. I actually love the float fishing. Even though the same species are not available in BC, I've found that peamouth chub, northern pikeminnow, largescaled sucker and redside shiner to be good substitutes for this type of fishing.
One more blog entry!
(http://www.fishingwithrod.com/albums/photoblog/090703_1.jpg)
Our last boat trip to the same lake where we've fished in the last two weeks resulted in some good catches of European perch.
http://www.fishingwithrod.com/blog/?p=126
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Hope no offence taken Rod and it is nice to read of your adventures abroad. Although I fully realise it's your view on things you're talking about, you may, at times, give the wrong impression without actually meaning to. I was only trying to expand on a couple of points. Like your last one, I just love float fishing.
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Rodney's fishing photos are among the very best on the web.
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Rodney are you still in Denmark?? :o :o :o
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For one more day. :)
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For one more day. :)
That's one hell of a holiday!! ;D ;D ;D
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Just starting to put some of the video shot during this past trip together. Here's a short one:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WmMj55orT5k