Lunch Hour Lure Fishing

With the Wye well within its banks for the first time in weeks and fining down nicely I decided I would have a short session after Pike in my lunch hour.  I would of preferred to use deadbaits since the Wye still had a tinge of colour in it, however I had to be mobile in case I had a phone call and had to return to work quickly.

I took my lunch early so I could fish in the morning rather than the middle of the day and I as I pulled up in the car park, I was full of hope of winkling out a pike. 

Contemplating a move

As I walked towards the first swim, a winter flock of long-tailed tits darted from tree to tree picking grubs off the branches as they went.  The field was still saturated which made it awkward to walk on without having my feet slip from beneath me, however I soon made it to the river.  The swim which was caked in mud about 3 inches deep, deposited when the water was well over the bank.  This soft mud held a myriad of animal tracks including Mink, Moorhen, Rat and Duck.  I soon made my own human tracks as I approached the river. 

Some of you may recall in a previous post I had splashed out on a new Pike net from HarrisSportsmail before Christmas, the mesh was rubber coated making it easier to untangle hooks.  As I placed the net on the ground, something did not look right!  On closer inspection there appeared to be a massive hole in the bottom of the mesh!  The net had been kept in the out house since it was last used, I must have gained a lodger that has been seeking refuge as the weather got cooler - Damn Mice!

Traps have now been laid - Humane ones of course!

Any Pike I hooked today would have to be chinned out, not ideal but not impossible.  I cast the lure into the Wye much to the dislike of a Little Grebe which scooted out from under a near tree then skimmed along the surface until it was further downstream.

I fished a slacker area of the river also pulling the shads along the edge of a crease in the hope of a take.  I tried a few different lures and shads and fished a couple of likely looking swims, however it wasnt to be and it was soon time to get back to work. When we are fishing an hour seems like 5 minutes!  So no fish on my first session of the new year, however its always nice to be back on the bank even for a short session.  Ill try and get in a few more "opportunist" trips during the coming months, as you never know, it only takes a minute to hook a PB. 

Id like to take the opportunity to wish the followers and readers of my blog a Happy New Year and I hope you achieve your fishing goals whatever they might be,  Ill be back out on the bank soon as my New Years Resolution is to make more fishing time for myself.  Tight Lines