Sweet Breams

This forum is for discussing bream.
User avatar
Shaun Harrison
Zander
Posts: 3561
Joined: Wed Aug 08, 2012 4:34 pm
11
Location: Nottinghamshire/Derbyshire Border
Contact:

Sweet Breams

Post by Shaun Harrison »

Every so often I think of another little angling project to get the old juices flowing again. I have been most fortunate over the years in achieving many of my childhood angling dreams and these days find myself filling a few of the gaps in that I may have missed by jumping forward too far too soon, for some of these gaps can prove to be very fulfilling indeed.

Glancing through the TFF forum on a daily basis for the past 3 years it became apparent that very few bream captures are reported. Lots of carp, barbel, chub, roach and tench, but very few bream yet I’m sure many of us have at one stage or another have been sat there winding half a shoal in. In fact I see more gudgeon tales than I see bream.

As a child I remember reading about and being influenced the big Cheshire mere bream being targeted in the late 70’s by names which have stayed in my mind all these years later, names such as Eddie Bibby, Roger Harker, Graham Marsden and so on. I never met any of these but have corresponded with Graham odd times over the years. The pictures of those what seemed like huge slabs left an impression on a young mind who was fishing waters with a big bream only reaching possibly 4-5lb. A double figure fish seemed immense.

Roll on the years and indeed I did find myself catching double figure bream from a few waters albeit not on cane. This year I joined a water that was reputed to hold some nice bream. I had joined it to fish for the carp but after landing a few bream on my first session from right out of the margin I realised that a double figure bream on the cane was a distinct possibility here as the usual long range casting would not be required to reach the often distant patrol routes.

So, this last weekend I fished for the carp Friday night with the intention of spending Saturday fishing for the bream.

Saturday dawned with the rain hammering down on my canvas bivvy, a much nicer, softer, gentler sound than the rain on taught nylon. I lit the Kelly Kettle that I had loaded the night before and looked toward the Northern sky which was showing signs of brightening. The carp had not been to visit me in the night although this was no surprise as the water doesn’t appear to contain many but being the only angler there on the 20 or so acres well off of the beaten track was enough reward for me.

The rain eased and stopped by the time I had finished my wake up coffee.

Image

So, it was in with the carp rods, bream rod sorted, a bit of bait trickled in on top of the bait I had primed the hoped for bream swim with the night before and it was time to sit tight watching my silver foil on the needle. The needle was essential due to the blustery wind and of course you can’t miss that magical sound of foil dancing up a stainless needle should my sight wander to the plethora of wildlife.

Very little was happening but after so many years targeting larger than average fish this is something I have come to expect in most of my angling. The waiting game combined with anticipation often makes for a most magical feeling. I know it isn’t for everyone all this purposely avoiding smaller fish and fishing ‘big fish methods’ but for me it has been my way of life for almost 40 years, keeping my swim as undisturbed as possible in order for the older fish to gain the confidence to move in and feed.

Image

Around 4.30pm and a the foil rose sharply about an inch, my hand hovered over the rod and the foil began to move again as the firm strike doubled my rod over. I was ready for the huge surge of a carp but no, the head shaking coming back indicated I may have struck gold on my first attempt. I had to play it quite heavily to get it up on the surface over a huge bed of Elodea growing on the marginal shelf. It was a bream and soon it was enveloped in my net. I tentatively pulled back the mesh and looked at my prize.

This one was going to be close to my hoped for double but alas the scales said it wasn’t quite and to be fair it didn't look in great condition. Never the less I was delighted as it was my largest bream on cane anyway beating my previous best by around 6lb!

Image

I took its picture laying next to the rod and suddenly it flipped and left me thinking that I didn’t remember sneezing that hard – there appeared to be sneeze juice everywhere. Hey ho, I gently let the fish go and surveyed the scene. My net looked like an excited teenagers bed sheets!

I risked catapulting a little more bait and re-cast to my spot. 5 pm and the same type of twitch bite was again met by solid resistance and this time I was unable to bully the fish in so quickly and had a merry old dance under the rod top. In the net this one was so obviously into double figures and the scales confirmed it as I reduced the pristine and possibly previously uncaught fish to mere numbers.

Image

Image

Image

Image

I was on a high, a big high. Another project had come good. I made a brew to celebrate, cast again but nothing else was forthcoming so with sky turning the most wonderful colour and my carp areas waiting to be primed again I wound the bream rod in for the night and sorted the carp rods back out before cooking a rather nice even if I say so myself bank side paella before settling back under canvas for another night.

10 pm and a absolutely furious carp had me grabbing hold of my rod with an alarming amount of line screaming from the reel. This run took yards and yards of liner from me despite me bending the rod as hard as I dare. I won the battle in the end but as this is a bream tale I won’t bore you too much with the carp but will say it was my first decent carp I have landed from this tricky venue so a glass of red seemed the appropriate celebration of 2 milestones, a bream and a carp.

Image

Sunday morning and I couldn’t wait to have another go at the bream and yesterdays practice was repeated. The bite came early this time at 3.50 pm and it was oh so obvious that another double figure bream was attached. I was ecstatic and even more so when another rolled over the mesh.

Image

Image

I really felt ‘mission accomplished’ and never being one to be too greedy I decided to wind in, have a slow pack down and leave on a high.

Friday I was a double figure bream on the cane virgin, now I feel like a whore.

Best fishes
Shaun

User avatar
LuckyLuca
Barbel
Posts: 4792
Joined: Mon Jul 02, 2012 10:20 am
11
Location: Oxfordshire

Re: Sweet Breams

Post by LuckyLuca »

Mission accomplished indeed Shaun!
I walked across an empty land
I knew the pathway like the back of my hand
I felt the earth beneath my feet
Sat by the river and it made me complete.

User avatar
Mark
Head Bailiff
Posts: 21141
Joined: Mon Aug 22, 2011 4:55 pm
12
Location: Leicestershire
Contact:

Re: Sweet Breams

Post by Mark »

Lovely write up and pictures Shaun and well done on the bream. :Hat:
Mark (Administrator)

The most precious places in the English landscape are those secretive corners,
where you find only elder trees, nettles and dreams. (BB - Denys Watkins-Pitchford).

User avatar
Woolly Bear
Chub
Posts: 1184
Joined: Tue Jan 08, 2013 9:52 pm
11
Location: Near Liskeard, Cornwall

Re: Sweet Breams

Post by Woolly Bear »

Nice one mate . K R W B . :Tongue: :Tongue: :Tongue:

User avatar
Aquaerial
Chub
Posts: 1179
Joined: Fri May 09, 2014 6:16 pm
9
Location: Norfolk

Re: Sweet Breams

Post by Aquaerial »

Friday I was a double figure bream on the cane virgin, now I feel like a whore...

But even if you found one your niff would probably cost you double again Mister.
Brilliant fish Shaun and nice looking Paella!
Aquaerial
But Oz never did give nothing to the Tin Man
That he didn't, didn't already have

User avatar
Julian
Salmon
Posts: 7463
Joined: Sun Jan 15, 2012 3:42 pm
12
Location: North Buckinghamshire

Re: Sweet Breams

Post by Julian »

Great report and photos, and the stunning bream on cane. Well done Shaun. :Hat:
There is no peace on earth like the peace of fishing in the early mornings

User avatar
Marc
Sea Trout
Posts: 4006
Joined: Sun Mar 10, 2013 11:14 am
11
Location: Co Durham, land of the prince bishops

Re: Sweet Breams

Post by Marc »

Great effort Shaun. I've never caught a bream over a few pounds and they all had as much fight as a cabbage, so I have to admit to them being pretty low on my list of treasured fish. That's not to say I don't enjoy them just never had the inclination to target them.
Marc. (Prince of Durham)

“A life that partakes even a little of friendship, love, irony, humor, parenthood, literature, and music, and the chance to take part in battles for the liberation of others cannot be called 'meaningless'...”

User avatar
Bob Brookes
Zander
Posts: 3654
Joined: Sun Oct 23, 2011 6:54 pm
12
Location: Nottinghamshire

Re: Sweet Breams

Post by Bob Brookes »

Now that's just greedy Shaun!
Well done and very well deserved, and on very fine tackle and tactics too. Did they taste OK in that paella? :Hahaha:
"You do not cease to fish because you get old, you get old because you cease to fish"

User avatar
Danny Boy
Arctic Char
Posts: 1564
Joined: Sat Jul 27, 2013 10:32 pm
10
Location: Nottingham

Re: Sweet Breams

Post by Danny Boy »

nice write up shaun and some cracking dustbin lids,well done .that paella looks yummy
I go fishing not to find myself...but to lose myself

User avatar
Dave Burr
Honorary Vice President
Posts: 13482
Joined: Fri Jul 20, 2012 7:03 pm
11
Location: Not far from the Wye
Contact:

Re: Sweet Breams

Post by Dave Burr »

That's an excellent result mate. Its a shame that bream have become so unpopular. I used to love thundery summer days on the drains or those early morning sessions after bream and tench. Mind you, three doubles in a couple of mornings is taking the wee wee, it serves you right that whenever the sun shines your net and unhooking mat will forever remind you of your trip.

What's next, three pound roach, two pound gudgeon?

Post Reply

Return to “Bream (Abramis brama)”