Roach Fishing - Richard Howland

This entry was posted on 14th June, 2016

With my holiday to France just four days away, and my carp gear all packed and ready to go, I decided to get the feeder and float rods out. My intention was to target the rudd and roach that inhabit one of my local mid-Kent waters. One of the things I like about this style of fishing is that you haven't got the tonne of gear that we all seem to take when Carp fishing. Instead I just take a couple of rods, the Korum chair with the bank sticks attached, a tackle bag, net, and bait. And of course my trusted fishing companion Muskett!

Upon arriving at the lake it was apparent that the float rod would be staying in the bag, as the wind was blowing a gale straight into the swim I wanted to fish and the chances of catching rudd near the surface were very slim at best!

After putting a few ‘pults of red maggots and sweet corn about 6yrds out (which was as far as I could get in the wind) it was time to look at how I was going to fish. This particular lake has a ledge that is 4ft deep, goes out about 10ft, then drops down to 11ft. Considering this, I thought I'd use a running feeder with a 15inch rig, size 16 hook and three red maggots, with the idea that I’d fish at the bottom of the ledge and take it from there. I tucked myself behind the reeds as best as I could to keep out of the worse of the wind and, with a cup of coffee sitting on the tray of the chair, I made my first cast.

As I sunk the line the tip pulled round and I stuck! I missed my first bite but I was a good sign, the fish were in the area – or so I thought… For the next couple of hours it didn't seem to matter what I tried or where I put the rig, I just couldn't get another bite and I was starting to think that it was going to be just one of those days. I tried switching up my rig and swapping to a corn set-up, but still no luck. Even the dog was starting to wonder if I would ever catch anything!

Drinking yet another cup of coffee, I decided to change back to what I had started with. I took the corn off and put on the maggot feeder and three red maggots. Not expecting anything to happen, and wondering if it was time for move, I wasn't really looking at the tip when I glanced down to see the rod being pulled round. The angler’s instincts kicked in at this point and I struck without thinking. I was into my first fish of the session.

It was a powerful fish and I thought it must be a small carp as it was really giving me the run around – or at least that was until I saw it! I could not believe it. Praying the hook didn't pull, I carefully played and landed the biggest roach I had ever seen, let alone caught. It was huge and, as there are no bream in this lake, I knew it wasn't a roach-bream hybrid.

Carefully taking the hook out, I knelt there looking at the wonderful specimen. Being completely without an appropriate weigh sling I had to use my ingenuity and put the fine fish into a plastic bag to weigh it. With scales zeroed, onto the hook went the Angling Direct bag plus the fish and the needle went round to 2lb 8oz – my PB by 7oz!

I was happy very happy, but (there is always a but) if I didn't have a set of scales I would have said that this roach was nearer 3lb, having caught 2lb roach before from the river which were nowhere near the size of this specimen. At the right time of the year this beast would be up there!

I took photos on the mat as I've yet to teach the dog how to use the camera on the phone – it was hard enough teaching him to phone the local kebab shop; teaching him to keep the camera still long enough for him to take a descent photo is beyond my capabilities!

I put three more maggots back on the hook and, with the feeder full, I cast back out to the same spot. I had just got the phone out to send the pictures on Whatsapp to my friends when, like before, the tip pulled round and I was into my second fish. As before, this one fought well and I was wondering if it could possibly other big roach. Once in the net I could see I had another one, albeit not as big as the first fish. Into the bag and onto the scales went the fish, and round went the needle to 1lb 10oz.

I decided to get the keepnet out which, on reflection, I should have done earlier but at that point I didn't think I was going to catch anything else! With the fish safely in the keepnet I was ready for another cast back out onto the same spot. This time I kept watching the rod like a hawk.

Sure enough, as before, the tip pulled round and I was on it like a flash and striking into yet another good fish. I began to wonder if I had stood in something on the way to the lake because, yet again, into the net went my third big roach! The dog was looking at me strangely, as I was talking to myself, and I lifted the bag with the fish in it to be weighed. As I thought, it was bigger then the second fish; at smack on 2lb it was another cracking roach.

As the afternoon went on I had one after another quality fish, including rudd, roach, the odd big peach, and even two nice size eels! The latter two were unhooked with the help of my friend Jason Hodge, who had come over from work to see these quality fish I was catching. I could have carried on fishing into evening and I'm sure the real big boys would have been back had I stayed, but as always we have to balance family life with our obsession. Besides which, the good lady was coming with me to France to stay in a log cabin in a couples garden which just happened to have a 2.5 acre carp lake and a river running though it! I thought it only fair that I packed up at 5pm and, with Jason taking a couple of photos of some of the fish, I drove home a very happy angler. It's not everyday you catch fish of that stamp and I will certainly go back with my red maggots in search of a 3lb-er.

Richard Howland.