IF YOU TRY ONE THING Target shallow water
...and empty your swim! Angling coach Tom Edwards shows you how
HAVE you ever plumbed up your peg and thought that in places it’s just too shallow to catch fish from?
Let’s face it, a mere foot of water doesn’t seem enough to hold fish consistently throughout the day, let alone give you the chance of catching them without suffering the trials and tribulations of them being hooked everywhere except in their mouths.
It makes sense to fish in deeper water where you’ll be a lot more comfortable and confident of catching. Do this, though, and you’ll be missing out on one of the very best parts of your peg on a narrow snake lake, the water tight against the far bank known as the mudline.
Yes, there’s only 12ins or so to work with, but fed correctly, this is enough to catch from all day long. Done right, foul hooked fish and line bites can be totally eliminated.
The principles of fishing here aren’t too different to those we use for the near-side margins. Both swims are shallow and have a bank to fish against, the
only difference being that the mudline is further away from you and lets you catch from the off, as opposed to the margins that can be a final hour job.
However, it’s not just a case of finding the far bank and going straight in. There are a few ground rules to follow to get the best out of the peg.
Look for any cutbacks in the bank, such as small gaps that extend backwards. Make sure the bank is clear of any foliage so you can put your pole float as close to it as possible, often just a centimetre or so away from touching the mud.
A cutback offers slightly shallower water, while getting the float close to the bank means there’s no chance of fish swimming behind your rig (between the float and the bank). That can be a recipe for never-ending line bites.
Feeding is equally important. Introduce too much bait and the peg will be a mass of churning fish ploughing up the bottom and you won’t be able to get your rig to settle properly.
Do it right, however, and it should be a simple case of lowering the rig in, letting the float set and then lifting as it goes under. Often, in such shallow water, the fish will hook themselves as they suck the bait in and tear off.
Mudline fishing is a highly visual way of fishing, as you can see the tails of feeding carp break the surface next to your float. One minute all is calm, the next all hell breaks loose!