Don't Be Put Off Fishing In Cold Weather

Over the past few days I have received many e-mails on winter fishing Some writers ask what they can do when its to cold to go fishing. A quick answer. Its never to cold, even for a person like me who is nearly a septuagenarian. Wear layered clothing, make sure you have a hot drink and get out fishing.

Other writers have asked if its worth fishing in cold weather conditions? Several suggesting it wasn't worth the effort. Not true. You can still catch in sub zero temperatures. This his winter has certainly seen more cold frosty nights than for a few years. Water temperatures have been as low as 34 degrees F on the rivers Ribble and Calder some days there has been ice along the margins. But me and my friends have still caught fish.

Yes, when the temperature first plunges below 40 degrees F we will often struggle for a fish, but its vary rare for us not to catch. After a few days of low water temperatures you will find chub, roach, dace and even barbel will pick up a bait, and often you can get a good catch of chub. One of the most important bits of equipment you can carry is a thermometer.

Cold frosty nights with clear skies usually coincide with a high pressure zone over the country, I don't fish long sessions. More so when its a bright sunny day, its usually its a waste of time until the angle of the sun has dropped below ten degree.

I choose to fish a couple of hours at dawn, then again late in the afternoon often arriving at the waterside around 3-0pm. We must not forget that water changes its consistency. As the water temperature reaches 39.2 degrees F, the viscosity of the water changes. Its like the oil in your car, on a cold day its thicker than on a warm one. The fish become sluggish in their movements, their digestive rate slows down, one reason why we shouldn't dump free offerings into our chosen swim when we arrive at the waters edge.

If the cold snap has just started then the fish will be harder to catch, after the water temperature has been below 40 degrees F for several days fish will certainly feed. I and many other anglers have had some great catches when the water temperature has been very low for a long period.

Recently Martin Salisbury of Leyland and me were taking part in filming project on the River Kennet. I was asked to catch a fish, the water temperature was 43 degrees F ideal conditions. Within thirty seconds of dropping a bit of crust into a likely looking spot I had a barbel, in the next swim I had a chub, during the session we caught barbel to 9-14-0 and chub to just over 4lbs.

Next day it was a different story, we fished the River Loddon, where the water temperature had dropped overnight to 39-40 degrees F, the wind was blowing from the north east, I didn't have a bite. The following day after a night when the thermometer had plunged to minus 8 F we fished the River Kennet. The water temperature was down to 36-37 degrees F Within an hour I had a good chub on legered crust, moving to a weir pool on a carrier stream I had a perch of two and a half pounds on lobworm, then another good chub on crust. I called Martin, and suggested he come and fish the weir pool. I vacated my swim and left it to Martin. Half an hour later he had a personal best bream of 5-4-0. These fish were caught on a day when we really did think we might struggle for a bite.

When chub fishing on rivers such as the Kennet, Aire, Nidd and Calder and rivers of a similar size, I would advise you to fish every likely looking spot. Spending five or ten minutes in each swim. My baits would be lobs, cheese paste and bread fished on a leger rig using the lightest weight possible. I use an Avon action rod designed for 4-6lb lines centre or fixed spool reel and 6lb line with hook sizes 2's 4's and 6's. Keep it simple. Don't worry about using fancy rigs. Just pinch one, two or more LG shot lightly on the line. The distance from the hook will depend on the bait being used. I have no more than two inches between crust and hook. When fishing flake, lobs or paste its no more than twelve inches, often six.

In cold water fish want often chase a bait They want it on the bottom and on their nose.
Remember how ever tough the conditions are, you can't catch if you don't have a bait in the water, or your sitting at home.

I well remember some years ago fishing the River Ribble upstream of Mitton Bridge the river had some five or six feet of ice down the margins. The water temperature had been 34 degrees F for ten days, the thick ice had a covering of snow. I fished legered crust catching 26 chub averaging some three pounds.

On another occasion back in the 1960's I fished the River Thames near Goring catching some super roach, including three two pound plus fish best at 2-6-0 all on legered lobworms. Again there was thick ice down the margins, a water temperature of 34 degrees F.
There is plenty of documented evidence of big fish and big catches of fish being taken when the water temperature is below 40 degrees F. Recently Dave Pickering of Blackburn was chub fishing on the River Ribble where he caught a super barbel that was in perfect condition. One could see by the thick girth of the fish, that despite the cold water it had been feeding.

Recently I had a good catch of chub including three five pounders 5-2-0 5-7-0 5-8-0 fishing double lobworm as bait. I could see by the firm stomach that all my fish had been feeding.
In cold water conditions, Many writers suggest using small baits , they write about little taps on the rod tip. I don't expect either, my bites are usually a small pull, then a whack round of the rod tip. Sometimes the tip will pull round slowly, all I have to do then, is tighten into another fish.

I certainly don't use small baits, its chunks of crust, flake the size of a match box. Cheese paste, sausage meat or luncheon meat paste the size of a bantam's egg, sometimes as big as a chicken egg on size 2 or 4 hooks. I reckon you have a far better chance of catching fish on big baits, more than small baits. Remember small baits, equal small hooks, which equal fine lines. Not the best of tackle when hunting big fish.