Catch22 Try our perch challenge
AUTUMN is now officially here, and of all the species we think of at this time of year, the perch is very much to the fore.
Shorter days, lower temperatures and clearer water combine to fire up the predatory instincts of this fish.
As anglers, we’re living in a golden era for big perch – 3lb fish are commonplace, and catchable from almost any venue you care to mention. That aside, a fish of around a pound is still an impressive sight and will give you a good scrap on light tackle.
One of the Catch22 requirements is to catch a perch of over 1lb, so now is the time to begin to think about ticking this one off.
Whether you’re planning on fishing a canal, a river or even a commercial carp fishery, there’s one bait you can’t be without for perch, and that’s worms.
Perch are greedy fish that will nobble most things put in front of them, but there’s something about a worm that does it time and time again for a big perch.
Lobworm tails are the king of them all, being a big meal but super-soft and easy for the fish to get hold of, although dendrobaena worms make a good second choice and are highly active once in the water.
This activity is something that’s vital to catch perch. Being predators, they will soon take notice of a hookbait that moves as opposed to one that sits still. For that reason, the float or pole is a great way to catch, but a more static feeder or bomb approach will also produce the goods if you inject a bit of life into the bait.
When it comes to timing, perch are fans of hunting and feeding in low light conditions, so early
or late gives you your best shot at completing this task – try to avoid bright sunny days as this is a real turn-off for all predators, the perch included.
To give you a bit of a head start, here are dead simple float and bomb rigs to fish on running or still waters. Best of luck!