Darren Tapsfield with his report from a great River Wye trip... I finally managed to get back on the river following a summer full of weddings, stag weekends and a holiday thrown in, however the long absence was well worth the wait. I took Monday and Tuesday off of work and headed to my favourite river the Wye, which I only get to fish once or twice a season due to the long drive. I set off at 3am and arrived at the river at 6.30 with a rolling mist on the river and surrounding fields and I could not wait to get fishing. The stretch I was fishing meant a long cast to the far bank tree line, which is where the fish patrol during day light hours. By 9.30 the mist had dissipated and with the sun out the polaroids were on and a stroll along the river was needed, as not one chub pull had transpired. I walked three fields and only one pike and a shoal of small chub were spotted. I decided to stay in the area I was fishing due to deeper water and my thinking was the fish must be in this section. Hours and hours passed without a single sign of fish and I was starting to question if the river was ever going to switch on. Steve who I was fishing with did manage a small chub on sausage sizzle squabs but the fishing was hard going. Mike the bailiff said it will switch as the sun fades and he wasnt wrong. As the sun faded tell-tale signs that the river was changing started. Pike and sea trout were crashing up and down the river. Then as if by magic I had a spell of 40 minutes where three barbel all in the 6.5 bracket were to grace my net all caught using caviar pellets sprayed with sausage sizzle over spray. As this is a dusk till dawn fishery it was time to time to pack up and head to the hotel so Steve and I could discuss the days events and of course the obligatory bottle of red. The discussion Steve and I had was pretty simple the fish do not bite until after 7pm! How different can two days be……… Steve and I headed up to the top end of the fishery around 7.30 and walked around but we didnt fancy it due to low water levels so we decided to give the same stretch as the previous day another go. First cast for Steve resulted in a 6.5 barbel caught on a well-known brand of pellet fished to far bank and tight to the tree line. Second cast for Steve resulted in a 7.13 barbel caught using the same bait and tactics and I still had nothing not even a chub pull. Steve left around noon and I had the fishery to myself so I decided to rest my swim and went for rove, which paid a little dividend as I managed a small chub on the only pellet I now use being the caviar with sausage sizzle sprayed. I worked three other swims over the course of two hours with nothing else. What happened over the next five hours will stay with me forever.......... 15.25 - Left hand rod - First cast after resting the swim the rod whacked over with a 7.13 barbel with a really great fight and the adrenalin was kicking in. 15.38 - Right hand rod - First cast rod whacked round with a really clean 4.8 chub. 16.13 - 3lb chub 16.45 - The right hand - Bent over and I struck into a fish that roared off downstream like a steam train and straight away I thought carp. I had to jump into the river as my line was being pulled very close to the trees to my right, thankfully chest waders were on and I was playing the fish mid river, far bank, near bank you name she went there, however my Trefor West rod was up the task, as was the clutch on my reel. After 10 minutes, I finally got to see the fish and it was a stunning common, which was soon to be mine. The scales tipped 18.13 and the adrenalin was now well into over drive and the smile on my face was ear to ear. Sadly I had no one to share the experience. There was a lull in the swim for a an hour, which could have been due to the carp and me being in the river. Steve texted to say you still have dark to come. I made to decision to stay on fish and get home late as I would rather sit by the river bank than sit on the M25. 17.50 - 3lb chub 19.02 - Left hand rod - I had a tiny knock followed by the 3 foot twitch. Struck into the fish and knew straight away this wasnt a carp! However, I did think this felt bigger than the previous barbel I had caught, as line was being pulled from the clutch and the fish was staying deep. After a nice battle I got my first glimpse of fish albeit the tail and it was a very nice barbel. Eventually she gave in and my net was bulging with a personal best off of the Wye at 11.01 and my fist ever double of the Wye too so I was over the moon. However the session wasnt over. 19.25 - Right hand rod - bent over and again a really nice barbel of 9.8 was mine. 19.36 - Left hand rod - Light was fading fast so casting and seeing the bites became a little tricky as no isotopes on the rods due to the long range casting. however, that did not stop me seeing the bite of a 6.5 barbel and day was just getting better and better. I cast one rod out whist I was packing up however the barbel didn’t give me any time and my final fish of 8.5 was to grace my net for one final time. All these fish came on caviar pellets some sprayed with sausage sizzle and some not. Loose fed being catapulted at every cast. The three hour drive home was made much more enjoyable as I reflected on two amazing days of fishing, stunning scenery and an overall fabulous two days off work. I cannot wait to get back on the Wye. Tight lines. Darren Tapsfield
Posted on: Tue, 30 Sep 2014 15:36:22 +0000
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