PERCH LOVE LIVEBAITS
go under many more times this afternoon.
A free-roving rig has the advantage of searching out new areas, but it can also pass by those with potential. This is because a livebait, unless it’s completely stupid, tends not to want share water space with a predator.
This is why I decided to fish a paternoster rig and keep the bait in the strike zone.
To many this means swivels and beads, but I can’t understand why – all these create are suspicious perch and potential tangles.
By tying a simple overhand loop in the mainline with a figure-ofproper eight knot I could connect both hooklength and weight, in this instance a couple of SSG shot pinched on to the tag end. Then I took a short length of 4.4lb Supplex fluorocarbon and tied the same loop into that before interlinking the two.
This gave me a very simple connection and a tangle-free boom. On to the 8ins fluoro hooklengh was knotted an allconquering size 4 Kamasan B983. With its wide gape and curved needle point, it’s ideal for livebaits.
The rig, with zero widgets, can be created in less than a minute and it’s not let me down yet.
The temptation now would be to guess the depth, cast out and begin fishing but, as I try to impress on you every week, preparation is the key to a good performance!
For the livebait to work at its best and never stop moving, the Loafer needs to be set at dead depth, so without a bait I cast out a few times, making tiny adjustments until the mainline was taut from the bottom float rubber to the SSG shot on the bottom.
I left a little of the Loafer’s body exposed rather than just the tip, adding extra buoyancy to pull the bait back after its attempts to dive.
Only when everything was perfect did I reach into the bucket to gently lip-hook a roach. Everything was done to preserve its condition, including the cast, when I laid the rig gently on the surface rather than crashing it down and stunning the bait. With
“Silver scales fell like glitter and my float sped past, towed by a triumphant perch”
everything set, I laid the rod on the bank with an open bail-arm and sat back to await events.
The ripples from the float were minimal, but told a story of a tiny roach flashing its silver flanks and unwittingly attracting attention.
From the shadows came a slouching gang of big ‘Billies’, dorsals erect, each one eager to reach the treasure first.
The first savage bob on the Loafer was the roach avoiding an open mouth, the second was far more decisive. The livebait was engulfed save for scales falling like glitter, and my float sped past, towed by a triumphant perch.
My strike stopped it in its tracks and the tussle was soon over. A classic way to fish, and there was more to come. As dusk drew on the number of bites increased, and so did the size of the perch.
I had come with nothing but I left with plenty of memories – all thanks to a nifty bit of netting.