Late winter in the Fens. Zander, Pike and Rudd fishing.

The Winter just gone has been a bit of a grueler for me and many of my friends. A colder one then recent years mixed with warmer spells in between must have played with the fishes minds. To find consistent action from the predators in particular was very hard indeed! Towards the end of the Winter though, the action certainly increased noticeably which is usually the case given the longer daylight hours.

With the birth of my beautiful daughter in January it meant that fishing around this time was thin on the ground. I did manage to get a midweek day out on my local River to kick off my Pike fishing season. I started on a section that was kind to me the same time of year the previous season. I got there before first light eager to make the most of the limited time I had. Three rods were soon spread out across the River hoping to locate some fish. Every 15 to 20 minutes I would re position the rods to try and drop a bait in front of a Pike. After an hour or so it looked like my effort was not getting me the reward so a move was in order.

There was an area I wanted to try but it involved a long walk with a loaded barrow to get to it. No pain no gain I told myself as I made my way to an area with moored boats that just screamed Pike! 15 minutes later I reached my destination and just stood there for a few minutes to get my breath back! The 1st rod was soon in place and swiftly followed by the 2nd. As I was getting the 3rd rod ready the sweet sound of an alarm was ringing away after a fish had pulled the line from the clip. The fish was pulling line steadily from the spool so I engaged the bail arm and hit into it. After a short but spirited fight a lovely Jack Pike of around 8lb was netted. The bait was probably in the water 2 minutes max before it was taken. I was covering the baits with a generous helping of Dynamite baits XL predator liquid and it must have been triggering a feeding response as over the next four hours had several more Pike using the same tactic. Nothing bigger than the first fish came along but great action when it was looking so bad in the original area.

I was suffering from Rudd fishing withdrawal and the River season was ebbing away too rapidly! Waiting for perfect weather was not an option because I did not have time on my side. I planned a morning session before work and pulled up to the River to find the field in front of it not only flooded but frozen too! It was not going to stop me so gingerly I stepped onto the ice and hoped the water below would not be deeper then my Skee tex wellies. It was touch and go but I made it to the River and deposited my gear in the swim that had been kind to me a year earlier. Bait was good old bread used as flake on the hook and crumb in the feeder boosted with Dynamite baits XL liquid strawberry. Not long after casting I had a good fish on but it fell off not long after. This happened a couple of time and I was not happy about it! I assumed with the water being so cold they were not feeding hard. I didn't want to lose another good fish so I changed to a beaked point hook from a straight point hoping this would hook the fish better. Sure enough this did the trick and the very next fish stayed on all the way to the net! It pulled the scales round to 2lb 10oz and I was over the moon to eventually land a good fish. Several smaller Rudd fell to the same tactics before it was time to pack up and onto work.

I had unfinished business with those Rudd and another trip soon came around. I was to be joined by friends Giles and Chris who were arriving by boat a little later. Using the same tactics as before I soon had the rods out and was into a fish straight away! I wanted to make the most of this feeding spell so popped a hefty looking Rudd into the keepnet ready for pics when Giles and Chris turned up. Another two bites came in quick succession seeing two more nice sized fished popped into the net. Not long after I could hear a boat coming from up River and Giles and Chris soon made dry land ready to join in on the action. After the guys had got settled and started catching it was time to check the golden beauties I had waiting for me. One fish stood out due to it's size compared to the others. On the scales the fish went 2lb 10oz and I was very pleased to have such a good fish early on. The other 2 fish didn't quite make 2lb but who cares when you've just had a lump?!

Giles and Chris were getting into some fish and a flurry of 2lbers fell to all of our rods before the action got slower around lunchtime. That was a good time to sit back and relax for some much needed lunch. Giles and Chris headed off to the pub for a good feed but I stayed back to make the most of my time. I had a fish or two while they were gone but no biggies. The action was very slow for the rest of the day but there was still time for a surprise or two! I had a drop back bite and as I hit into it I was met with a solid resistance. I thought it might be another sizable Bream as I had several earlier in the day? This fish however started running upstream and taking line! Not many Bream do this so I suspected it was a Carp? Well it was not stopping so I shouted for Giles to follow me up River while I held on and hoped the fish didn't snag me up or break me off. Although it tried it's best the Carp was still in Winter mode and didn't give me too many heart attacks and was eventually expertly netted by Giles. A high five or two followed to celebrate before the stunning low double common was unhooked and safely returned.

The best was yet to come and the odd big Rudd slipped up to find their way into our nets. Chris carried on leading the way and netted a big fish. I could see from a distance it was something special and when I saw it i knew it. Chris weighed a very plump looking Rudd which pulled the needle to a weight of 2lb 14oz and was yet another PB in a day where he broke it at least a few times! It was a pleasure to not only share that experience but the whole day with two like minded angling friends. If memory serves I think we had around twenty 2lb plus Rudd that day. For me personally it was a day that took me to just shy thirty 2lb plus Rudd for the season. With the best a PB of 2lb 12oz what a season it was.

It was now the last day of the River season and and predators were to be the targets. I was joining Giles for a day afloat on a local River where Pike and Perch to specimen proportions lurked beneath moored boats. As you know the end of the season was a very wet one and the chance of the River being in bad condition was playing on our minds. Sure enough the River was up high and pushing hard! It was not fishable so we payed a quick visit to a Marina for a smash and grab raid. Giles was first into action on a hard Jerkbait lure. The fish was strong and put up a good fight and we were not surprised to see a mid double figure Pike pop up and duly netted. I had a small Jack on a big soft plastic lure and before the local residents could get on our case we decided to abandon the River in favor of a Lake.

We were not kitted out for bank fishing so we made a detour to mine to grab the vital bits of kit and of course bait. With the car loaded we set off to our chosen venue. It was a lake with a chance of Pike and Zander so Roach was the bait of choice. To give them a boost of attraction a good covering of Dynamite baits XL predator liquid was applied to the Roach. Another way to boost attraction was a few balls of the Dynamite baits silver x Roach groundbait over the top to attract prey fish into the area. It was quiet for a couple of hours but eventually one of my rods had the line peeling off the spool but as I pulled into it I was met with no resistance! Typical of a Zander bite but it was a good sign feeding fish were in the area. Within seconds of winding the rod in my other rod was away! This time I pulled into a fish and after a short tussle a Zander was in the net. It was a fearsome looking schoolie of 6lb or so and looked fantastic with it's dorsal fin standing up in defiance.

The activity went as quickly as it came and it was sometime later as the light levels were dropping another take occured. From the off I knew it was a much bigger fish. It was stronger and less erratic in the fight which told me it was most likely not a Zander. Sure enough a lovely low double figure Pike proved to be the culprit and was netted by Giles. As I was getting the mat ready the fish was trying it's best to escape. It actually made it half way out of the net before I dived onto the floor to scoop her up and catch her for the second time within minutes! We laughed our heads off for minute until we were composed enough to take a couple of pictures. That was the end of the action so it was time for home. Although not the end to the River season we wanted it was a great days fishing none the less.

I could not get Zander fishing off my mind for a couple of days after this. Knowing the conditions were yet again turning cold any day I soon found myself back at the lake. It was 16 degrees centigrade when I got there and I worked up a sweat getting to the swim. I got three rods spread out in front of me using the same tactics as the previous trip. I could now relax and enjoy the lovely warm evening. Well not for long because not long after the sun went down the temperature had dropped to 4 degrees centigrade! Not only that it also started raining then snow! Well as I sat there feeling sorry for myself I had a take out of the blue. I struck and felt a solid connection and quickly netted a schoolie Zander of 5lb or so which put a smile on my face. Now trying to take self take pictures in the windy, rainy and snowy conditions was next to impossible so the result was a blurry Zander. It was a new camera so it was good practice I suppose?!

I did not have to wait too long until my next take. I could feel this was a better fish and it had the typical head shake of a Zander. I drew the fish closer to the net when out of the blue the fish went crazy and refused to go in! After what seemed AGES in it went and it was certainly the biggest Zander I had caught in a long while. Much to my delight the needle settled at just over 10lbs. Again I attempted to take some self take pictures and managed to get a couple of half decent shots. The fish was soon back in it's cold watery home and I wanted to get back to my warm dry one! This was one of those sessions where it was worth the effort and discomfort as the end result was more than worth it.