Q&A How do I catch more on canals?

THIS autumn I plan on fishing the Grand Union Canal for the first time. Where should I fish and what baits and rigs will I need?

Glen Cooke, Northampton

CANALS offer so many different types of swim to fish that it can be hard to know where exactly to set up camp. Obvious far-bank features hold fish, and these include overhanging trees and bushes or moored barges, but often the most apparently barren swims can come good and provide you with a memorable day’s fishing.

It’s not always about what you can see on the surface, however. Canals have distinct ledges and slopes under the water, typically shallow water close in and right across that either slopes gradually or drops away sharply into the central boat channel that will hold the maximum depth.

Understanding where these depth changes begin and end is the key, as fish use them both to find food and to seek shelter.

The main picture (above) shows four typical swims on a narrow canal. There’s a lot of water to go at, but by fishing only three or four areas you’ll be going straight for goal to where the fish are, as opposed to wasting time and fishing unproductive spots.