Improve Your Coarse Fishing (UK)
Kevin’s tackle:
Rod Korum 1.25lb Neoteric
Reel Korum Neoteric 6000
Mainline Korum Feeder Line 12lb
Feeder Korum Inline Grub Feeder
Hooklink Korum 15lb Smokescreen Micro Braid
Hook Korum Specimen size 10
Another half- hour of nothing followed. I reeled in to find weed on both hooks. I assume that the worms had used the increased movement provided by the supple braid to work their way into whatever weed was still there. Yet another quick change was in order!
This time I used the quick stop to fix a piece of black rig foam on to the hair before adding three sections of worm. When I checked the rig in the margins, the buoyancy of the foam caused the hooklink and worms to sit straight up in the water. It looked really good. I also added a hook bead to fix the hair in place and prevent the worms from covering the hookpoint.
Effort equals reward
By 6am I landed my first tench! The direct pull through the inline feeder made getting the tench through the weed much easier, and the poppedup hookbait had earned the bite. A succession of 7lb and 8lb tincas followed over the next couple of hours. By 9am, with the sun high, I thought bite time might soon be over but then the bobbin pulled up tight.
This time a weighty fish was on the end. As soon as I got her out of one weedbed she found another. At one point I had to put the rod in the rest and slacken off my line as I was locked up. After 30 seconds I saw the line twitch and start to move so I reeled down on the fish fast and kept her moving before she had chance to weed me up again. With steady pressure I was able keep her in the deep margins and soon had her in the net. I knew it was a double and thought she might push my long- standing pb of 11lb 2oz. On the scales, a new pb of 11lb 7oz was registered.
This was my last bite and I was away by noon. An evening’s hard work and a bit of innovation the following morning had produced the goods.
Before leaving I put another dozen Spombs of bait on the area to keep the fish feeding and restrict weed growth.
I returned the following week. Weed was still a problem although a bit clearer, and I managed another fruitful morning session which included several tench to 8lb, plus an absolute cracker of a common carp, all on the inline grub feeder and popped- up worms.