Improve Your Coarse Fishing (UK)
Steve Whitfield
Casting at three-minute intervals and following a series of golden rules keep the bream coming for
One, two, three – plop!
TRADITIONAL bream fishing has always been regarded as a waiting game. Out goes the feeder, the rod goes on the rests, and then you wait patiently until the tip goes round. Those rules are in stark contrast to what you expect from feeder fishing on commerical stillwaters. On these venues, frequent recasting is essential.
But should those in search of slabs really follow the example of those who fish a Method or pellet feeder for carp and employ a much more active attack? Steve Whitfield reckons so. The Cadence and Sonubaits-backed angler spends a lot of time on vast reservoirs where meandering shoals of bream are the sole target, and his view on how they should be fished for has changed drastically. “This style of fishing has traditionally been associated with chucking out a feeder and not doing anything until the fish find it. In recent years I’ve moved away from this way of thinking,” he explains. “The growth in the popularity of feeder fishing means these natural waters are fished more frequently. As a result, the feeding habits of fish have changed.”
The three-minute rule
Bream are regarded as a cagey species that spook away from any commotion. Casting five or fewer times every hour when the action is slow is seen as more than enough. Steve, however, makes as many as 20 casts in an hour. “These fish are now used to feeders landing regularly because of the number of anglers fishing these venues. They are starting to behave like commercial carp, associating that noise with food. “I count up to three minutes and then recast. More often than not I get a bite shortly after the rig has settled. “The feeder needs to hit the clip every time so that it lands with a neat ‘plop’ rather than crashing noisily into the water.” Steve uses a traditional plastic cage feeder fished paternoster-style for most of his sessions. His rig is made up of 4lb Preston Innovations Sinking Feeder Mono mainline and a 2ft 6in hooklength of 0.11mm Powerline tied to a size 16 Natural N-30 hook. He also uses a shockleader of 0.10mm braid that is double the length of his rod to cushion the impact of casting at distance.
Attack on two lines
On commercials, the biggest fish of the day are usually caught close to the bank in the dying stages of the session. Steve also applies this theory to bream. “I always fish two lines – 30m and 50m. The far line is my starting point and I’ll stay on this as long as I can. Leaving the shorter spot until late on will pay off. “If you let a shoal settle on the short line without disturbing it you will eventually catch some of the venue’s biggest bream.” To attract fish into the vicinity, Steve lays down a big bed of groundbait over each line at the start by casting a large metal cage feeder over each spot eight times. His favoured mix is an even blend of Sonubaits Dark Fishmeal Pro and Green Fishmeal Pro. Only a pinch of loosefeed goes in at the start to avoid feeding large quantities of what could end up being the wrong baits. “What the fish want to eat changes by the day, so I include a pinch of dead maggots, live maggots, casters and chopped worm at the start and then work out which they favour for the session. “Once I have sussed this out I can reduce the baits they don’t seem to want and put in more of what they are hunting for.” The answer to what baits they want is worked out by hookbait rotation, with the offerings getting the most bites clearly the way forward.
Feeder rotation
Once the initial bombardment has gone in it’s a matter of getting into a regular casting rhythm to keep the bed of feed topped up. Although it is hoped the feed in the swim will draw a good number of fish into the peg, it is actually beneficial to have just one or two fish directly over your rig. “Bream spook really easily and, more often
than not, one of them flinching can send the rest of the shoal packing. “With that in mind, it’s best to top up the swim with just enough bait to draw a couple of fish at a time over your hookbait. “The initial big hit of bait will get fish in the general area and it is then a matter of getting the right number of bream homing in. This may sound like a hard thing to control, but Steve has a simple method to help manage the number of bream in the swim. “Switching feeder sizes on a regular basis is the way to do this. If you are getting no bites then it is a matter of choosing a slightly bigger feeder that can hold more bait. “If you are getting lots of fish brushing against the line, do the opposite and go smaller. Whatever size of feeder you are on, it is best to choose a pattern that has all the weight loaded at the front, because this makes casting much easier.” During a few hours in front of the cameras at Doncaster’s Southfield Reservoir Steve was nonstop, constantly casting, switching feeders and rotating hookbaits. It took 45 minutes for the first skimmer to go into the net, but from then on sport was steady, with fish to 2lb coming at fairly regular intervals. As predicted, a late switch to the shorter line resulted in the capture of the biggest slab of the day, an old warrior over 4lb. “The days of sitting on your hands for really long periods when bream fishing are gone,” concluded Steve. “It’s time to get busy and keep that feeder plopping in to stay one step ahead.”