Improve Your Coarse Fishing (UK)
Silver fish from the margins – Adam Bowen
Water down the edge isn’t just for carp, says Adam Bowen who targerts silvers close in
WHEN you notice a plume of mud erupt in the margins, you’re bound to think that a carp has started feeding. More often than not you’d be right, but occasionally something else could be responsible. Stocks of silver fish are growing at a rapid pace on commercials and sometimes those dark shapes patrolling the margins could well be quality tench, chub, barbel or even roach that are hoovering up freebies. Most anglers feel the need to reach for their heavy line and hooks when they launch their attack down the edge but Fishing in the North West blogger Adam Bowen often sets up with a touch of finesse because carp are the last species on his mind. “There are lots of people fishing for silvers on commercials now but for some reason they rarely do it in the margins and prefer to fish into open water,” explained Adam. “But just like carp, the silvers will always look for cover and if you approach the swim properly you can prevent mirrors and commons invading the peg.”
DRIP FEEDING
At the start of the session most of the fish are likely to be sat close to an island or feature well away from the bank, or in open water. With that in mind, many anglers reach for the biggest pole pot they have and dump in large quantities of bait to draw them in. “Carp will have been dormant at many venues all winter so they are now after lots of food, and piling it in will attract them in no time at all. Once they turn up, they will bully out other species and stop you catching silvers in the edge. “This is why it is best to drip-feed a few freebies at the start and after every fish via a small pole cup. This will be enough to draw roach, chub, tench and barbel but the carp will probably ignore it as it won’t be enough to satisfy their hunger.” Small baits such as maggots and micro pellets are Adam’s top choices, with a pint of each enough to last a whole session.
BANK ANALYSIS
Glance into your margins and you’ll see that the contours change as you move down the bank. There may be patches of reeds, followed by a barren area of mud bank and an overhanging tree at the end. Fish will patrol the whole area but they are easier to hook in certain parts of the margins. “If you fish close to reeds or a tree then the fish may take a few loose offerings and then back off into the vegetation. “But if you fish tight to a bare bank they often have nowhere to go. Sometimes the banks are undercut but you are still able to get the rig close to them. The depth of water down the edge is also important and 1ft-2ft is ideal. Fish will feel comfortable sat in this depth but they also won’t rise off the bottom and start darting around the swim, causing line bites and foul-hooking.
TACKLE TEASER
If you were fishing for carp close in you would probably use the same mainline, hooklength and hook every time. But when you are fishing for silvers the species
you are in search of dictates how heavy the setup needs to be. “You can fish with plenty of finesse when roach are the main target and I would use a No.5 solid elastic to 0.12mm mainline and a 0.10mm hooklength to a size 18 hook. “But if you are after chub, barbel or tench you really need to scale things up because they will snag you up in an instant if you fish too light. “I will have no hesitation in using a 14 hollow elastic and 0.16mm mainline to an 0.14mm hooklength and a medium wire size 16 hook.” If you are fishing a venue where a wide range of silver species are stocked then setting up both rigs and rotating between the two is best to maximise chances of success.
PARTRIDGE PATROL
There are hundreds of commercials where Adam’s tactics will work well and Partridge Lakes in Cheshire is one he regularly visits. Piper Pool is well-stocked with F1s and carp but it is roach, chub and tench that are of greater interest to Adam. “I’ve selected a peg at the end of the lake with a big reedbed down my left-hand margin and also plenty of cover to the right. “I’ll trickle in 20 maggots over each spot to start with and see how things go.” The float soon dipped and a small roach was in the net. Several others were taken but Adam refused to increase the feed because he knew what the result would be. Instead he patiently worked his way through the small fish and eventually his elastic was stretched by a chub over 2lb. An F1 was next then Adam cut out the feed altogether. “If I keep it going in the F1s will dominate and the silver fish which are clearly nearby will disappear completely.” That worked a treat and over the next three hours roach to 12oz and chub to 3lb fed well, with only a couple more F1s invading. “The margins are much more than just somewhere for carp to hold up and you’ll find they are actually the ideal place to fish for big silvers,” he concluded.