Rob Wootton
No bait is better at sorting out the top-quality roach
England ace on how you can master caster fishing on stillwaters for silverfish
THE depths of winter can be enough to reduce even the most optimistic angler to tears as freezing cold days and no bites lead to the thought of taking up golf instead – or, at the very least, stowing the fishing tackle
in the shed until spring. This is especially true of commercial fisheries, where carp can refuse to feed completely – or so it appears. Corn, pellets and brightly-coloured mini boilies get no interest whatsoever, so what can you do to turn a blank into a small victory with a few fish on the bank? The answer lies in your hookbait, using offerings you’d never normally turn to for carp. For England Feeder man Rob Wootton, that means casters. Not only can they get a bite from carp when all else fails, but they’re also brilliant for picking out quality silver fish, which are more than welcome when bites are hard to come by. Popularised in the early 1950s by match angling legend Benny Ashurst on the northern canals, casters are now just as effective on carp lakes – both summer, fished shallow, and through the colder months, when scaling down is the name of the game. “I love all natural baits, but casters are without argument my number one when it comes to targeting quality fish,” Rob said. “Fish simply adore them and their other great plus is their versatility. You can crush them up,
“You could hook anything when fishing casters, from a small roach to a 10lb carp”
fish them on the hook, loosefeed them, add them to groundbait and spod mixes or mix them with other baits like hemp. What’s more, they catch a better stamp of fish than maggots or pinkies.”
To get the lowdown on this brilliant bait, we caught up with Rob on the banks of Holmes Farm Fishery, near Market Harborough, on a dull, chilly winter’s day...
CASTER RIGS
“You could hook anything when fishing casters, from a small roach to a 10lb carp, so your rig must be capable of landing the lot – but in winter, you can fish light as carp won’t be so much of a problem. They won’t fight half as hard as they do in summer.
“Elastic is the most important thing and a solid No6 is the perfect happy medium. It takes the sting out of the strike and helps prevent lost small fish, but if I’m lucky enough to hook a carp, solid elastic rather than hollow will give me a chance of landing it reasonably quickly.
“Mainline is 0.12mm to a hooklink of 0.08mm finished with a size 16 or 18 PR412. These hooks have a rounded gape and a long shank, which not only gives an excellent hookhold but also lets you mount a caster easily while still leaving plenty of point showing.
“That leaves the float, which is a 4x16 Malman Dusty to tackle the deepest part of the swim where I’ll always concentrate my efforts.”
HOW THE SESSION UNFOLDED
“I’m not surprised that it took a short while to begin catching well – this is often the case with casters. If I kicked off on maggots sport would have been immediate but the fish would have been smaller. Roach are the first fish to show plus a few quality perch, which love a caster, and the bulk of them are ‘netters’ in excess of 8oz – lovely fish on a cold day.
“I spoke earlier about the peg building over time, and when this happens, F1s and carp will show. That’s been true today, with a few scrappy F1s and even a bonus winter tench muscling in on the action. A 25lb mixed net might not sound like much to write home about but I’d take it every time in winter.
“Casters build the swim slowly, and their effectiveness doesn’t lie so much with the bait as to how you use them. They appeal to all species.
“So when the float goes under you won’t know what the fish will be, but you do know it will be quality!”