There’s always something new you can learn...

THEY SAY every day’s a school day. Well, this week I learned some fascinating facts about the toilet habits of pike!

I won’t divulge any more information here, but I suggest you turn to page 14 if you’d like to discover some more intriguing gems about what goes on beneath the surface.

I think that’s one of the most exciting things about fishing as a hobby. No matter how long you’ve been doing it, there’s always something new you can learn. Whether it’s mastering a new tactic, learning to tie a new rig, or simply putting the pieces of the watercraft jigsaw together on a new venue, there’s always a new piece of information we can add to our armoury.

Even the best in the business can’t possibly know everything there is to know about fishing. There are always going to be other anglers out there who we can glean a nugget of information from, or who have developed a new tactic that could transform our season. During my time working on Angling Times and its sister title, Improve Your Coarse Fishing, I’ve been fortunate enough to read countless features about pretty much every freshwater species going.

There’s always a new angle to try or a tweak to a tactic as anglers look for that next edge that’ll put a few extra fish in their net. In reality, with the amount I’ve read about fishing, I should catch a lot more than I do... but we won’t focus on that! While many of the principles remain consistent, fishing is a constantly evolving sport, and I imagine there’s still a whole host of rigs and techniques just waiting to be invented by some crafty angler.

So, keep an open mind and always be willing to listen to and embrace the opinions of other anglers. It could just lead you to a new personal best!