The Traditional Fisherman's Forum

Fella's...I think I will be out on a limb here but I just can't see the fascination with this species. I think a lot of the "interest" has spawned (excuse the pun) from APFA whereby it has almost become fashionable to like gudgeon. Personally, I find them a good live bait for perch, but that's about as far as I can get excited about them. Am I alone in thinking this or do I need converting to the virtues of angling for a fish that rarely exceeds 4 inches long???

Dave wrote:Fella's...I think I will be out on a limb here but I just can't see the fascination with this species. I think a lot of the "interest" has spawned (excuse the pun) from APFA whereby it has almost become fashionable to like gudgeon. Personally, I find them a good live bait for perch, but that's about as far as I can get excited about them. Am I alone in thinking this or do I need converting to the virtues of angling for a fish that rarely exceeds 4 inches long???

I think they are just a bit of fun for an alternative and it takes you back to the simplest type of fishing done when a boy.
Other reasons I like them...
The are hard fighting for their size and so can be fun on very light tackle.
You can catch loads of them once the shoal is located
They are cute...
They squeak
They jump out of the water and 'fizz'
They look like a 'serious' fish in miniature.

It just makes me smile when I catch one.

Have not caught any gonks in a while and when I do they too will make me smile. They think they're hard tough fish but as Snape says cute and squeak god bless the gudgeon

Dave wrote:do I need converting to the virtues of angling for a fish that rarely exceeds 4 inches long???

I simply offer the following for your consideration, Sir.

Henry Cholmondeley-Pennel (1837-1915) wrote "Gudgeon fishing! ... I maintain to be, par excellence, the sport of the poet and the philosopher." I had it as my signature for a while here.

Falkus and Buller report that "Victorian and Edwardian professional Thames fishermen ... took out gudgeon fishing parties," and that "Dr. J. J. Manley, pointing out the dangers of taking women onto the riverbank, noted that 'Many a heart has been irretrievably lost when gudgeon fishing.' "

Maurice Wiggin wrote in "Fishing for Beginners" in 1958 "Now this is another little fish that deserves better of anglers than he gets. True, he stays small - a two ounce gudgeon is good, and three ounces is enormous - but he has a number of virtues. First, he will go on biting on the hottest day, when everything else in the river seems to have called it a day and gone to sleep ... Secondly, the gudgeon is the most understanding of fish - he will go on biting even when you are standing in the river with your feet in the middle of a shoal of him."

Billy Lane devotes a small but interesting chapter of his "Freshwater Fish - and How to Catch 'Em" (1975) to "Tiddler Snatching," advocating this as the way to learn watercraft, swim identification, fish location, and concentrating and holding a shoal ... amongst other things.

I have caught gudgeon everywhere from my most local commercial, to my local canal (hence my TFF name), to trotting for roach on the Wye a couple of years ago, and have learned much about light tackle and striking, and yes at times I have specifically targeted the little gentlemen. Suffice it to say that on my "bucket-list" is the hope of setting a new national record for gudgeon.

My angling would be poorer for the lack of gudgeon.

And my answer is
It doesnt do for us all to be the same.
Personally Carp fishing doesnt do it for me but hats off to them that do.
As for a fashion i think you will find theres many a Gudgeon fisherman out there whos never seen an episode of APFA .
Gudgeon fishing still holds the magic it had some 30 yrs ago to me.
I think alot of so called Anglers out there could do with fishing for a few Gudgeon to teach them the basics in fishing, float shotting, light lines and small hooks.
Have to agree on one point though they do make good bait for Perch.

Loop Erimder wrote:Have not caught any gonks in a while and when I do they too will make me smile. They think they're hard tough fish but as Snape says cute and squeak god bless the gudgeon

Yes, bless them! :thumb:

And at least they're not prickly like ruffe...

The biggest gudgeon I ever encountered was caught by an old fellow fishing the next swim to me on a small club water many years ago. we weighed it at 3oz and he dropped it back in whence a huge mouth materialised and swallowed it! The mouth belonged to a big perch and the old fellow invited me to drop a little live roach in the spot which I did and I soon had my PB perch of just over 3lbs; still not beaten it. But I also raise a smile when I catch a gudgeon. I've had thousands, including 300ish in a Thames match when I drew what I always considered my favourite swim but no sign of the usual roach and chub that day just an endless procession of gudgeon. Still get a few, especially on the upper Stour at the end of the season for some reason.

Davyr wrote:And at least they're not prickly like ruffe...

That's true, but they also make me smile. Been too long since I caught one.