Going the extra mile for more bites

SOME anglers go to greater lengths than others to catch the fish of their dreams.

Intrepid sea anglers at Bempton in East Yorkshire are known to abseil several hundred feet down cliffs to access the best spots. Going down isn’t so bad, apparently, it’s the journey back up that tests the mettle.

Passionate big-carp anglers risk life and limb to climb trees, just to gain a fleeting glimpse of their hallowed targets. Even match anglers in the depths of winter have been known to use chainsaws to break thick ice, all in the name of a few bites.

For Andrew Knots, our cover star this week, going that extra mile came in the form of buying a kayak to gain access to new perch hidey holes on the River Witham. His exploits had the best possible outcome in the form of a new personal best stripey, but going afloat in search of your quarry doesn’t always come to such a rosy conclusion.

As Thom Airs reveals on page 16, there are plenty of waterborne perils to contend with, chief among which, in his case, was a highly territorial swan which terrorised him every time he set sail on the River Welland.

I’ve only tried to fish from a kayak once, 12 years ago on the Wye. After capsizing in the margins and watching my sodden lunch drift off downstream, I regrouped and paddled about 100 yards until I could tether myself to a rocky outcrop and attempt to fish for barbel. Before too long I heard the whirr of a chainsaw in the woods upstream, and half an hour later a large tree trunk came floating down the current, on a direct collision course with my position. What followed was a flurry of foam and foul language as I paddled for dear life. Never again…