Andy May –

Bag up on silvers

WHEN targeting silvers fishing the float instantly springs to mind. But there are plenty of occasions when a feeder will lead to better results. If the fish push further out or the wind makes float presentation tricky, a feeder is the answer. And for Andy May there’s one type of feeder in particular which he favours. “The maggot feeder is a deadly tool and when you want to catch a mixed bag of silvers on a feeder it is the only type I will use.”

Active tactic

“We keep our rig moving when fishing the pole by lifting and dropping the float to keep the hookbait active, and a similar thing needs to be done on the maggot feeder,” says Andy. “Every 30 seconds I pick up the rod, pull it 6in towards the bank to dislodge the feeder and then wind down to pick up the slack line and put it back on the rod rest. After I have done this 10 times I recast.” Moving the feeder has two benefits – a quick burst of movement for the hookbait which often provokes a bite, and it releases more maggots for the fish graze on.

Catch on-the-drop

Andy sets up his rig so that he can catch fish lingering off the deck. “A long hooklength is an important part of the rig as it helps you catch fish that are sitting off the bottom,” he said. “Once the feeder hits the deck, the hooklength will flutter down slowly. It’s amazing how many bites you get during that time.”

The depth of water dictates how long your hooklength should be. Andy’s rule of thumb is to have it half the depth of the water you are fishing in. Mainline of 6lb to an 0.12mm MAP Power Optex hooklength and a medium wire size 18 hook will give you a chance of catching all silver species.

Docklow silvers

Andy has had loads of success with maggot feeders over the years and one venue that has been particularly kind to him is Docklow Pools, Herefordshire. Fishing Moby Dick Lake, he cast close to an island of reeds in the middle – a spot well out of pole range and difficult to fish with the waggler. A small handful of maggots were loaded into the feeder and, just as Andy was about to chuck it out, he dipped it into

the water. “This wets the maggots and makes sure they cling to the feeder. This stops them crawling out too quickly.” Within 30 seconds of making the cast he was twitching the bait, repeating the process several times before winding in and recasting. Although he had no indications in the first 20 minutes, he plugged away, building up the amount of bait in the swim while keeping his hookbait active. Small roach and perch were the first to respond but he soon attracted a better stamp of silvers with quality redfins, skimmers and tench. As the hours passed by the gentle breeze increased in strength, but Andy’s presentation and results were unaffected. “If we were fishing a float our catch rate would plummet as you wouldn’t be able to present the rig properly. There’d still be loads of fish to be caught and you’d be missing out, but the maggot feeder makes sure you keep on bagging,” he concluded.

Fish often take a slowly falling bait after the feeder has landed

The hooklength should be half the depth of the swim

Quickly dipping the feeder in the water before casting prevents maggots escaping too quickly

This 3.15lb mono is adequate for the half-depth hooklength that sinks slowly to attract bites