WATERCRAFT
Fish can shoal in the zone between pole range and the feeder line, so break out the float rod to target them!
Target the dead zone on lakes
MANY fisheries have been busier than ever this year, as record numbers have hit the banks.
The two tactics that most anglers opt for after settling into a peg are either a pole or a feeder set-up.
The most popular length to fish a pole is between 7m and 10m. Every pole is light at this length, and it’s a distance which is easy to fish accurately. If bites are hard to come by, out comes the feeder gear, splodging loose-feed towards the island margins or 40 yards into open water – just like every other angler on the lake!
The less pressured range between about 15m and 25m out is a part of the lake that most anglers ignore, much to their detriment, and there’s no better way to target it than by breaking out the float rod.
This often-neglected zone is where a great deal of the more ‘clued up’ fish sit, particularly through the middle of the day.
By fishing just beyond pole range, you can still accurately loose-feed, and the fish are often much more amenable to picking up baits with confidence.
Create a hotspot
If you can, plumb up the swim so that you’re fishing around 1ins to 3ins over depth.
Next, choose the area you want to target. There’s no need to be deadly accurate, but aim to hit the same tabletop-sized patch of water every time. A good trick is to pick a permanent far-bank marker like a tree or a telegraph pole to aim at.
Once you’ve started, it might take half-an-hour for the area to come alive, but as the session continues the sport should increase until you’re getting more or less a bite every chuck… and the stamp of fish should improve too!