The Traditional Fisherman's Forum

Duckett wrote: ↑Sun Jul 19, 2020 4:12 pm I’ve never fished the Essex/Suffolk Stour but decided to spend yesterday exploring LAA stretch at Glemsford.

For once finding an access to an LAA water was straightforward enough - I sometimes think the very dated handbook is part of an initiative test designed to weed out members unwilling to get lost for hours on end.

As is my usual experience with a lot of LAA waters, aside from Bures, Stollies and the River Beult, much of the area was overgrown and anglers clearly few. Walking around, the path to the Essex side was well cleared to the left of the bridge but I failed to find any way to the Essex bank to the right of the bridge. As I hadn’t packed my gardening tools, or gloves for the nettles lining all the banks deeply, I found the only 3 swims that appeared to see regular use, 2 Essex side and 1 Suffolk, and decided to give them a go for 4 hours each.

Chosen kit for the day was my Bruce & Walker CTM 13S float rod, Mill Tackle Company 39 Match loaded with 4lb line, stick float and 3lb hooklength with size 18. Maggots and bread punch for bait, having stupidly left my worms in the fridge at home! I had a white loaf put through the blender for ground bait but only used it when things slowed down.

Water depth was a fairly consistent 6-7 feet just a short distance from the margins with a fairly slow flow. Day was mostly over cast and humid but the sun did put in an appearance at lunchtime and in the early evening. The first half hour on the Essex side produced a half pound Dace and a half pound Roach.

What I ended up having was an interesting species hunt day with every other trot producing a small Roach or Dace, with a couple of Bleak showing as well. I’m not 100% on Bleak identification but they both had disproportionately large eyes and upturned mouth. Around noon I was reeling in what turned out to be a tiny Dace when it was taken by a small Pike. To my surprise, I managed to land it (photograph at end) and it was about a pound, with the Dace popping out of its mouth as I took my artery forceps to the 18 hook that appeared to be just hooked between the gnashers! The Dace even survived the experience. I know that most people find Jacks a bit of an irritation when trotting but I do a lot of ultralight lure fishing and they always bring a smile to my face.

By 1700 hours the fishing on the Essex side swims remained the same. So I moved to a swim on the Suffolk side just upstream of a bridge. I started with maggot again and almost immediately started landing Gudgeon and Minnows. I haven’t had a Minnow for years! Nothing else showed, so I changed to bread punch. My reward was 2 Chublets and 2 Roach of about half a pound. Just before 1900 hours, I’m fairly certain I was about to net my first Rudd of the day but, just short of the net it and my rig was taken by a Jack substantially larger than the one I had landed.

At that point, I decided it was time for the 90 minute drive home for several Rhubarb Gin and tonics! Passing the Nethergate Brewery, one of my favourites, en route reminded me that, in different times, I would have popped in for a carry out! Soon, I hope.

Not another angler or soul seen all day!

Marks7 wrote: ↑Mon Jul 20, 2020 3:29 pm I used to fish the Suffolk Stour regularly when I lived in north Essex about 20 years ago. It was good for roach, perch chub and pike in those days. Chub and perch to small plugs was always good fun in summer and the autumn and winter pike and roach fishing could be very good. I once found a dead roach near Sudbury that weighed around two and a half pounds. It would have been closer to three in its prime.

Fredline wrote: ↑Mon Jul 20, 2020 6:32 pm

Duckett wrote: ↑Sun Jul 19, 2020 4:12 pm I’ve never fished the Essex/Suffolk Stour but decided to spend yesterday exploring LAA stretch at Glemsford.

For once finding an access to an LAA water was straightforward enough - I sometimes think the very dated handbook is part of an initiative test designed to weed out members unwilling to get lost for hours on end.

As is my usual experience with a lot of LAA waters, aside from Bures, Stollies and the River Beult, much of the area was overgrown and anglers clearly few. Walking around, the path to the Essex side was well cleared to the left of the bridge but I failed to find any way to the Essex bank to the right of the bridge. As I hadn’t packed my gardening tools, or gloves for the nettles lining all the banks deeply, I found the only 3 swims that appeared to see regular use, 2 Essex side and 1 Suffolk, and decided to give them a go for 4 hours each.

Chosen kit for the day was my Bruce & Walker CTM 13S float rod, Mill Tackle Company 39 Match loaded with 4lb line, stick float and 3lb hooklength with size 18. Maggots and bread punch for bait, having stupidly left my worms in the fridge at home! I had a white loaf put through the blender for ground bait but only used it when things slowed down.

Water depth was a fairly consistent 6-7 feet just a short distance from the margins with a fairly slow flow. Day was mostly over cast and humid but the sun did put in an appearance at lunchtime and in the early evening. The first half hour on the Essex side produced a half pound Dace and a half pound Roach.

What I ended up having was an interesting species hunt day with every other trot producing a small Roach or Dace, with a couple of Bleak showing as well. I’m not 100% on Bleak identification but they both had disproportionately large eyes and upturned mouth. Around noon I was reeling in what turned out to be a tiny Dace when it was taken by a small Pike. To my surprise, I managed to land it (photograph at end) and it was about a pound, with the Dace popping out of its mouth as I took my artery forceps to the 18 hook that appeared to be just hooked between the gnashers! The Dace even survived the experience. I know that most people find Jacks a bit of an irritation when trotting but I do a lot of ultralight lure fishing and they always bring a smile to my face.

By 1700 hours the fishing on the Essex side swims remained the same. So I moved to a swim on the Suffolk side just upstream of a bridge. I started with maggot again and almost immediately started landing Gudgeon and Minnows. I haven’t had a Minnow for years! Nothing else showed, so I changed to bread punch. My reward was 2 Chublets and 2 Roach of about half a pound. Just before 1900 hours, I’m fairly certain I was about to net my first Rudd of the day but, just short of the net it and my rig was taken by a Jack substantially larger than the one I had landed.

At that point, I decided it was time for the 90 minute drive home for several Rhubarb Gin and tonics! Passing the Nethergate Brewery, one of my favourites, en route reminded me that, in different times, I would have popped in for a carry out! Soon, I hope.

Not another angler or soul seen all day!

That took me back.