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Re: Memories

Posted: Sat Sep 28, 2013 9:18 pm
by Aitch
Back in the 90's I ran the ODAS match team and the Grand Union at Hunton Bridge was our home water... for the first year we all fished the inside for the Gudgeon at 3 metres just at the bottom of the near shelf, down the track for the Roach and Skimmers and up the far shelf for the Chub and Dog Roach on caster... We had some right old ding-dongs with teams like Ilford and Wanstead, Woodford, Debden and Crescent AS... There were millions of Gudgeon to be had and 8-10lbs of 'em was a good days fishing.... good enough to frame in a match..... nowadays you're lucky to find one.

Now if you fish the first swims either side of the bridge you're likely to hit Carp.... but ain't that all too common these days...?

I'll have to fish the pound again.... just to see how it fishes, other sections we fished were The Cow Roast, Ovaltines and Berkhampstead... great days.... I'm working meself up for a trip as I type this.... Now.... where'd I put me whips and size 22's....???? :Cool: :Hahaha:

Re: Memories

Posted: Sat Sep 28, 2013 10:36 pm
by Jackson
Hello Bluelabel :Hat:

I become less and less familiar the further the canal is up that way - but they read well as classic good memories so thanks just as much for sharing those following my first general post.

Denham and Harefield was more typical of a foray further up, going back so many years though. Up your way it did occur, but i cannot recall quite where because it was when i was very young when there was a relative inclined to ship us out to those parts. Still love the canal anywhere really, modest has a special vibe - i like the pulse of the GUC and its spirit.

Re: Memories

Posted: Sat Sep 28, 2013 11:23 pm
by Aitch
it was a great stretch..... had lots of fun up there... that stretch won us the Div 2 championship and runner up spot in div 1 in the Essex Club League... many happy memories :Thumb:

Re: Memories

Posted: Sun Sep 29, 2013 10:19 pm
by Steve Reed
The Slough Arm was a happy hunting ground for me in he early 70s. Tench and Crucians a plenty falling to breadflake fished using the lift method, often on misty summer dawn. I also discovered that tench love a floating bait and caught many fish off the top with a large lump of crust. When the season turned, my attention changed to pike and I caught my first double from the bank adjacent to the ICI factory. I landed the fish in front of an audience of workers on the other side of the fence and one of them took the fish into a building and weighed it for me! I'm glad to say it swam off none the worse for wear after its little adventure. My best pike from the canal was 18lb and was witnessed by some dog walkers. Chinese whispers got to work and the next time I fished another dog walker told me that someone had caught a 'thirty' the week before in te spot I was fishing!

There were some cracking roach to be had and fish up to a pound and a half were very partial to hemp and tares. On one memorable occasion I spotted a shoal of big roach in crystal clear water under the bridge over the A412. The only bait I had was lobworm and this was presented on a free line. What must have been the smallest fish snaffled the worm within seconds and was to be my PB for many years at 1lb 14oz. I never did relocate that shoal of giant roach.

Never go back they say. I did a few years ago for some spinning on a cold and grey day. A few jack pike and a nice perch brightened the day but after I was shot at by someone with an air rifle from Goodman Park I decided to leave and, in future, reflect on my memories of some great days fishing the 'cut'.

Steve

Re: Memories

Posted: Mon Sep 30, 2013 1:45 am
by Jackson
When i look back we took the canal a bit for granted i think, and there is no doubt that the slough cut is (or was ?) one of those stretches with more to offer than some parts.

In those days it always displayed a good health what with its lovely weed beds and so on, but also this wide variety of fishes. I never had an idea how big a pike could be in there, it had plenty of jacks and you'd often see people spinning sprats and so on. But we did venture toward slough now and again and had some great days - good areas were many along it. If the water quality was such that roach of that sort of size could exist then it is possible that the odd big pike could supposedly, but i wonder what they really caught that time.

One of the great values of such a fishery of course would be how natural it was, this can be wrong, but on its own devices mainly i'd assume :Hat:

@ Blue Label

Sounds great fun indeed and nice achievements there. Everything fascinates about fishing, and the canal match fishing culture i always found interesting, as it was the match scene that was my main motivation in the very beginning. Never got round to canals though, i fished opens on the thames and mole and so on, and specimen hunting just took over. But many a time back then i had micro hook and blood worm plans in the making. I have still got a couple of green Tortue spools of half and 3/4 pound line that were nearly used for this, and probably i have got some of the floats that would have been the tool still.

Re: Memories

Posted: Mon Sep 30, 2013 1:50 am
by Jackson
Oh i get it now, your pike became a 30 ! Makes sense :). Verging on 20 pound is a big pike for a canal though, i expect that one had dined on a few prime roach.

Re: Memories

Posted: Mon Sep 30, 2013 7:43 am
by Steve Reed
Yes, it became obvious talking to the dog walker that he was describing the 18 pounder I caught a few days before! It had grown through the story telling and is no doubt now described as a man eater. There were always whispers on the grapevine of twenties coming out but I never saw one. I think the canal was stuffed with fish so I would be surprised if such beasts existed. I guess these days many of the pike caught end up in the pot.

Steve

Re: Memories

Posted: Mon Sep 30, 2013 12:11 pm
by Jackson
Yes - still going ' john west' a lot of our fishes, or to other pointers on the dial.

I once had an occasion on the slough ( in fact ) when a thick set man was hanging around not far away and kept looking without the usual angling exchanges. I was not using a keepnet but catching roach and skimmers regularly - nothing that interesting. He was not obviously looking at the waterway with affections, so i was thinking, if he is not just enjoying the sights and sounds of the canal, is he contemplating a match practice or waiting for something that i cannot fathom. Finally walked up briskly and said something impossible to understand at first, but when it was clearer it was 'don't put back, don't put back - i buy' !!

Wendover Arm

Posted: Sat Feb 27, 2016 11:55 pm
by Dallan47
In the 50's the Wendover Arm was never explored.The tow paths were overgrown.I found a basin by the Halton Bridge were I caught Roach,Tench and Pike never to get caught.Memories.

Re: Memories

Posted: Sun Feb 28, 2016 2:17 am
by Capebreton
great reads used to love going down to the canal in Northolt.