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"Finding New Tench Waters"
by
David Will
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Intro
With the spring approaching many anglers begin the annual search
for new waters to target in the warmer months. Sometimes this is an
easy choice; You may have been given a tip or your choice will simply
be limited by the distance you are able or willing to travel. Being
an eternal optimist and having the boredom threshold of a two year old
I am generally always on the look-out for that special water. You know
the one, unfished, full of big fish, if possible free and not too far
from home. I
work on the basis that such a water does not exist but I try to get
as close as possible to the ideal. For example, a tench or bream water
that’s solely carp-fished counts as unfished.
In
my neck of the woods waters such as this are common. Most anglers are
carp anglers and the all round specialist is a rare beast indeed. Most
are club waters that are joined for around £50.00 per year and at less
than a pound a week this is close to being free as you are going to
get. What
follows are a few tips to sort the wheat from the chaff. Syndicates
Of
the few syndicates I have ever joined all have been carp syndicates.
Most have been expensive but they do offer certain advantages over club
waters. The first may be rather surprising. I found that on the whole,
once June had given way to July, you would have the place to yourself.
Why this is so I do not know, but suspect carp anglers join several
waters but end up fishing just one or two. This leaves the remaining
waters quiet and under-fished. Another
advantage is that the tench, bream, roach, etc, are totally unfished
for with methods that account for numbers of fish. I know they get caught
on carp gear but believe me it is not a very efficient way of targeting
these species. An
example is one very well known syndicate water. This was a boilie dominated
venue and very few tench and bream got caught and I was told I was wasting
my time. A maggot/particle approach accounted for up to 13 tench per
session and these went up to nine pounds. Bream showed in catches over
double figures. This has proved the pattern on similar waters down the
years. I do accept that for that very big tench you may be better served
by using boiled baits, but I would rather catch most of the time than
spend a spring and summer blanking on most occasions.
Syndicates
do tend to have more rules than my local club waters. Most are in the
area of bait bans due to abuses in the past. So it pays to check before
joining. If all particles are banned you will have a pretty limited
armoury to start with. Carp
Orientated Club Waters These
waters make up the bulk of my local fishing. The M1, M25 and A1 all
made possible a proliferation of gravel pits which clubs took on in
the 50’s and 60’s. The rich waters of the Lea, Colne and Thames valley’s
produce fish of specimen size in dozens of waters. In the early days
the pits were used as pleasure and match waters as small fish flourished.
Later bream dominated but over the last 30 years Carp have taken over
as the dominant species. As a result many clubs now survive because
of carp and carp anglers. Thankfully
the other species still flourish. Small fish are evident as fry in summer
and early winter but serious fishing for match sized fish is a very
hit or miss affair. Along
with other factors the bream, tench, roach, perch and, in some cases,
rudd, can only be described as fantastic. Big fish of all these species
are a viable target and save for a few notable exceptions the chances
are you will be one of very few targeting them.
I
would happily fish any of the club waters near to me and expect to catch
good fish through the summer. A bit of research will however point to
one or two with exceptional sized fish of one or two species in particular.
I make no apology for saying that Club Secretaries and club officials
are generally worse than useless when it comes to information. It is
a case of getting on the waters and talking to the anglers fishing.
Walk
the banks look for fish. In the hot spring days look for tench. They
will be cruising the margins. Try to judge the sizes of the fish you
see. Sadly most carp anglers do not weigh tench and bream but guestimate,
usually very poorly. Visit the waters at dawn and dusk to identify areas
in which tench and bream roll. Join the club that controls the water
you fancy and fish it. Your
first efforts should revolve around a groundbait and maggot approach.
This is a sure-fire way of getting some ideas of stocks. I usually fish
from late afternoon for 24 hours a couple of times. This will put you
in with a chance of both tench and bream. Do not be afraid to really
pile in the bait either, and keep it topped up. Regular casting with
the feeders followed up by a couple of balls of groundbait per rod will
keep the swim active far longer than the traditional fill it in and
leave it approach. As
the summer progresses you can narrow down your visits to feeding times
and, if present, perch and roach should start to appear in catches.
If the average size of fish is good , say 6 to 7lb for tench and 8 to
10lb for bream ( adjust weights for whatever part of the country you
live in) stick with it as a very big fish may come.
Match
Orientated Club Waters
Of
those I know near me only one has proved worthwhile in terms of big
fish. These waters do tend to be overrun with bream in the 2 to 5lb
bracket. Now, while these are fun, every now and again I am afraid I
cannot get over-enthusiastic about catching one after another. The targeting
of bigger bream and tench, if they exist, is nigh on impossible due
to the ravenous mouths these waters support. I do keep membership of
a couple, but for winter perch and pike fishing - but that is another
story. Rules
on these waters tend to be draconian . No night fishing and bait bans
abound. This will give you an idea of the difficulty surrounding my
effort to catch a decent carp from one such water. Nothing short of
26mm boilies will suffice and if you think tiger nuts are bream-safe
then think again. Stalking individual carp has worked but is hit and
miss. On the plus side the clubs that run such waters often have control
of a not so popular water. This could prove to be one that due to low
stock density is the one you find suits your needs. The bans that affect
the prolific water may not apply or be totally inapplicable. I found
one of my favourite waters this way so don’t write off a club because
it is match orientated. I used to fish another water that had a match
orientated committee. It’s name? ….. Savay Lake! |
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