The float
dipped within the lilly fringed pond as the rod took on a healthy curve. A fine rudd, golden in colour, spirited in fight
and undiscovered, until now, had taken the bait. This has been one of many fish caught from
secluded, uncharted venues over the years.
For an intrepid angler, the thought of fishing a hidden gem off the
beaten track, with only rumour of its inhabitants, stirs emotion and excitement
and it’s easier to discover these venues than you think.
With a bit
of research, leg work and time you can also identify suitable unfished waters
that hold stunning carp, plump tench and a plethora of roach. If the thought of arriving at a commercial
venue competing with dozens of other anglers is not your cup of tea, or the
adventurer in you would like to seek a new challenge, then please read on, as I
reveal how I have gone about finding new venues and Ill share the enjoyment I
have had fishing them.
My first
experience in discovering a new water came almost by accident. I and a friend had planned a hike into a
wooded area a few miles from where we lived.
We were in our early teens and wanted to do things properly so perused
an Ordnance Survey map of the area. On
the map, within the wooded area was a small patch of blue, a body of
water. Following this discovery, I
decided to take a basic fishing kit along with bait in my rucksack. The day was warm and the hike to the woods was
a very enjoyable experience, it was made even better after we came across the
blue area shown on the map, which turned out to be a pond no more than a
quarter of an acre in size. Bulrushes
surrounded two thirds of the bank; we crept in between the dense undergrowth
and spent a couple of hours catching sticklebacks and small roach on a simple
float set up. It was my first experience
of “Pioneering Angling”.
Once you
have located a potential water, gained permission to fish, it can be a very
rewarding experience catching from these unfished venues. Depending on the size of the water in
question, very simple tactics can be employed to land these fish and for the
venue to divulge its secrets. Baits can
also be kept simple and quite often natural baits are the most responsive.
When a new
venue is dug out for whatever reason, it normally doesn’t take long for it to
be occupied by fish. Whether that is by
natural or unnatural origin, Stillwater’s can be naturally stocked by birds,
which unknowingly carry fish eggs on their under body feathers and legs and of
course unnaturally by humans knowingly transporting fish. Many of these venues are on private,
commercial land or simply way off the beaten track to make it possible for a
fishery.
Don’t
presume that there are no suitable venues near you and make the mistake that
any waters would have already been snapped up by clubs or syndicates. In the last 12 months alone I have come
across 3 individual waters, 2 hold carp another tench and all 3 roach and
rudd! I would recommend viewing any
waters you’ve found at dawn or dusk when the fish are at their most active,
this will give you an idea if any fish are present, however if you do not see
signs don’t worry, there could still be fish in the murky depths waiting to be
caught, only fishing such places will reveal its secrets. Most land owners will know if fish have been
stocked or are present so you should get a good idea from the first time you
speak to them.
It’s not
just stillwaters that can be discovered.
Stretches of river that run through private land can be accessed once
permission is given. I know of one
particular stretch that is controlled either side by a local fishing club,
however the 100 yard stretch that the garden backs onto is privately
owned. A quick knock on the door and
within minutes a running water fish haven is opened up to you.
You must
also be prepared for knock backs, not every land owner will appreciate having a
stranger on his land in the early hours or at night fishing his waters. Don’t let this put you off, just gratefully
understand and move onto the next one, who knows it may be owned by somebody
else in years to come.
Approaching Land Owners
Be polite
and friendly. Remember you are a
stranger asking for permission to use their land. Explain you are fishing alone, don’t go in
with big ideas of setting up private syndicates and making them lots of
money! Offer to pay the price of a day
ticket (£5); in my experience the land owners will not accept the money
anyway. Always respect their land,
closing gates, do not antagonise livestock and never leave litter, this is a
sure way of not being invited back!
Ask their favourite tipple! Buy them a bottle of scotch for Christmas,
that should normally be enough to secure a year’s secluded fishing for
yourself. Most land owners/farmers are
approachable and as long you approach them courteously, hopefully you can gain
access to a little piece of tranquil fishing.
Tactics
Personally
when it allows I prefer to float fish, perhaps baiting several swims in a day,
and fishing them in rotation, this is another advantage of these venues, no
other anglers will move onto your prebaited swims! On larger venues normal feeder or carp tactics
will work, again prebaiting wherever possible, this gives you more confidence
that you may have attracted some of the residents into you fishing area. Always look for signs of fish, especially at
dawn and dusk when often the water comes alive, with fish topping, bream
rolling or carp crashing.
Baits
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| A "Wildy" that fell to the MPP |
Natural
baits are a good start, worms, maggots or sweetcorn. There isn’t a fish alive that doesn’t enjoy a
worm, especially perch and bream.
Maggots will catch all fish, the only drawback being they will attract
the smaller fish which can be unwanted especially if you are targeting the
larger species in the venue. Tiger Nuts
are great natural bait, in small quantities fed in prebaited swims, fish a
single tiger nut on the hook. Carp in
these waters that have never seen a boilie will often fall for a single tiger
fished over a small baited area especially in the margins or snags. If you are looking for a boilie that the
carp, tench or bream will respond to instantly then I can highly recommend
Charwood Baits MPP boilie which I have used to great effect. It is a milk protein bait that smells like
candy and has been the downfall of many large carp. I have used this on waters where the fish
have never seen a boilie before and have had instant success using it.
Discovering New Waters.
Ordnance Survey Maps
This is the
“Old School” way of searching for new venues, and possibly the quickest, as
long as your maps are up to date. Large
areas can be searched quickly, however not all bodies of water are recognised
and small farm ponds are often not marked on the maps so potentially, targets
can be missed. Personally I would
recommend using both maps and Google Earth, find a venue on the map then look
in more detail on the internet.
Google Earth
Technology
has moved on leaps and bounds since I started fishing and Google Earth is a
great tool, not just in searching for new venues, but for inspecting venues you’re
familiar with. When looking for a body
of water, I start within a couple mile radius of my home. This does take time; however, if you want to
find an undisclosed venue then you have to search over many miles of Google
earth looking for a hidden gem. The
beauty of Google earth is that it’s a satellite picture, every body of water
big or small is shown, no stone unturned, unlike ordnance survey maps, every
aspect of the land is shown.
Follow river
courses, quite often they will have stillwaters close by that have been dug out
for that reason. Take a lot look at
Google Earth, you might be surprised just how many bodies of water exists
within close proximity of where you live that you never knew where there.
Internet
Browse the
internet for properties or land for sale with water. Estate agents promote the features of
properties including, lakes, ponds and rivers.
Once you have identified some potential properties, all you can do is
knock on the door and politely enquire if any fishing is possible.
Follow up on Rumours
Don’t be
afraid to follow up on rumour. I love to
hear stories of big fish and how they were caught. Does this sound familiar? “I heard a 3lb
perch came out from farmer Jones’ pond several years ago” or “My mate spotted
large shadows cruising below the surface of the old estate lake!” Ok most of the time, rumours prove unfounded and result in disappointment, however there is always the one rumour that ends
up being true. Don’t let it be someone
else, have confidence in your fishing ability and make an effort to catch the
biggest in that venue.
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| A carp gives itself away |
Even club
waters are worth investigating if you have heard rumours of a certain species
being caught, especially in the past.
For instance a carp pond on a club book might hold big perch however
perhaps no one has fished for them for several years, especially with carp
being so popular other species go ignored.
Be a pioneer, you might be surprised what you catch.
Discovering
a new venue, fishing it and catching from it is a very rewarding aspect of
angling, it is not easy however the rewards can be great, even if it means your
not surrounded by dozens of other anglers.
Be careful who you share your new waters with, too many people arriving
may change the landowners mind about letting you fish it and you may lose the
water forever.
I hope this has helped and encouraged you to find an unfished venue near you to go after. I wish you luck in your search and believe me, once youve found one you will soon be looking for another, Tight Lines.
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| Scanning a "potential" water for signs of fish |
