Pole fishing with Bob Nudd

AUTUMN LESSONS

World champ teaches you the trick to success...

WHEN you step outside and the temperature sends a shiver down your spine, you know it is time to change your tactics. That cool air will chill the water, which then impacts on the behaviour of fish stocks and their feeding habits. As a result, the expectations of anglers dip. If they were used to A-plus style bagging in the summer, they now happily accept the mediocrity of a C grade. But should you really have to accept such a downturn in results? Who better to ask for advice on the topic than one of the sport’s greatest legends... Bob Nudd has won more major tournaments than he can remember, with four individual gold medals in the coveted World Championships among them. Despite still being a regular on the match scene, he is just as happy pleasure fishing as he strives to improve his skills and uses this time to help identify essential tactical changes.

1. Stick with hard pellets

“The vast majority of anglers use a banded pellet hookbait in the summer then switch to using soft expanders at this time of year. In my eyes this is a mistake but people won’t even realise it. Expanders appeal to literally everything that swims in commercials and you’ll catch plenty of smaller silver fish with an odd bonus thrown in. You may be lulled into a false sense of security that the sport you are getting is as good as it gets. But stick with a banded pellet hookbait and every fish will be of quality. You won’t have to wait an age for bites at this time of year if you do this. Just make sure you use the correct sized pellet. Use a 4mm for tench, barbel, skimmers and F1s, a 6mm for small carp and big F1s and an 8mm for large carp.”

2. Keep making noise

“The fish aren’t eating as much bait as they were a month ago and cutting back is the correct thing to do. Many anglers regulate their feed by exclusively using a small cup to drop in bait but a catapult is still an essential tool. Firing in bait makes noise which the fish hear and follow as they associate it with their next meal. “Introduce 15 pellets every couple of minutes but cut that back if you are not getting bites. The fish may be coming into the peg, eating a few morsels and disappearing before they find the hookbait. Do the same if you are foul-hooking fish – less bait will stop the fish charging around the swim and brushing against your rig.”

3. Start light and step up

“The water will be clearer at this time of year and if you use the same thick lines that you have all summer, you will struggle for bites. Fish have excellent eyesight and can spot the trap from a mile off in clear water. I start the session using a size 18 hook to a 3lb 8oz hooklength and step up to a size 14 and a 5lb hooklength later. “You can make this step up when you are catching well as the fish will then drop their guard a little and pay less attention to their surroundings while feeding.”

4. Consider shallowing up

“Although it is best to start fishing on the bottom, you should never be afraid of coming shallow. If you start missing bites or are foul-hooking fish then it could be a sign that they have risen up in the water, competing for the loosefeed that is coming in. The first thing to do is cut back the loosefeed so that there isn’t as much bait falling through the water column. If that doesn’t work, shallow the rig by 6in increments until you start hooking fifish in the mouth.”

5. Pick the right floats

“It is really important that you are in full control of your hookbait, no matter what conditions you are fishing in. If the wind or tow are dragging your rig around, your hookbait will look unnatural on the bottom and it is likely to be ignored. When fishing in 6ft of water, I use anywhere between 0.5g and 0.75g. A fairly long pattern with a carbon stem helps give stability and sensitivity to help spot even the shyest of bites, especially when the tip is dotted down.”

6.Use light hollow elastics

“Big carp are unlikely to feed all day and I love getting bites from other species while I wait for them to switch on. “It’s all well and good getting bites but you need an elastic that is soft enough not to pull the hook out of a tench, bream or barbel. It also needs to power up when thoroughly stretched to deal with carp. Use a side puller kit to give you more control and with a No.8 or No.10 hollow elastic you’ll bank everything you hook if you take your time.”

7. Turn to mushy corn

“Although pellets are essential, you need a backup bait and this is when I reach for my special recipe. “I put a tin of corn in a blender for five to 10 seconds to make a mush. I want the pieces to be blitzed to varying degrees so that when fed in a small pot it creates a cloud. “It has a low food content but the thousands of tiny pieces encourage fish to grub around. Use a whole grain of corn or two on the hook and you’ll interest a wide range of species.”

8. Attack three lines

“If you want to get bites all day you need to attack several areas of your swim. It is unlikely you will get a bite every chuck from one spot all day so I have three zones that I rotate. “My starting point is at 12m directly in front of me where I will fish pellets. My second swim is at 5m and is fed by hand with 6mm pellets and the area I would expect to catch the biggest carp later on. “The final spot is also at 5m but to the right or left and is fed with the corn slop. This is a great part of the peg to get bites from a variety of species.”

9. Rely on simple shotting

“Where the shot should sit on a pole rig often causes confusion but I have a pattern that I use on the vast majority of my open water pole rigs. I have a bulk of shot set 2ft up from the hook with a single smaller shot 12in below that. The bulk quickly gets the hookbait through the top layers of water where there are fewer fish before the small dropper shot slows it down to make it look more natural to any fish that see it.”

10. Always strike gently

“If you strike aggressively then you can guarantee that the fish is going to charge off at pace. When you consider that you have scaled down your lines and hooks, there is every chance that light terminal tackle could be snapped on that initial run by a big carp. “But this chaos can be avoided by the way you strike. A gentle lift is enough to set the hook properly but also confuses the fish and they don’t charge off. By the time they know they are hooked you’ve gained control. If you are fishing the 12m line, simply lifting the knee on which the pole is rested will set the hook and the ball is then in your court.”