A guided trip on the Rivers Avon and Severn

Last year I booked a guided trip on the River Avon/Severn with Gary Palmer, however due to the weather we had during the winter and other circumstances I never got around to doing the trip. At the beginning of December I gave Gary a call to rebook and we organised the trip for the middle of the month as the forecast looked like the best chance of some stable weather.

I had to set off at around 0430hrs to be at the meeting point on time which was around 215 miles away. The weather forecast for the day was fine but there had been a cold snap overnight. I met Gary there at around 0730hrs (ish) and he already had the boat set up and in the water ready to go.

Initially Gary showed me some techniques on a light lure rod, on his first cast he hooked into a fish which quickly came off. Unfortunately this was little bit of a false dawn as we didn't have a take or even a follow for the next couple of hours. Then Gary hooked a pike close to the boat but this also came off. A few moves around the weir pool we were fishing and I had a take on a small Savage Gear lip lure but missed it, next cast I hooked into a small jack of a few pounds.
 

First fish of the day

After catching the jack I did some trolling as we made our way to the Severn, we stopped along the way for a few casts in some likely spots and I quickly caught another jack on a shad. We continued trolling to the Severn and up to the top of the weir pool with no joy. We spent some time casting the lures around the lock gates without success. As we made our way back to the first weir pool we stopped at several pikey looking spots for a few casts but unfortunately we didn't catch any more.

1st weir pool fished

I mainly booked the trip to get the chance to fish a couple of rivers I have always wanted to and to try and catch a zander.

Although I didn't catch or see any zander I was more than pleased with this trip as I didn't blank (a rarity for me lately), learnt a few new techniques with the lures and gained some experience afloat. Gary also pointed a few spots that are free fishing, which I will hopefully visit at some point in the future.

I would definitely recommend a trip with Gary as he is easy to get on with, very knowledgeable and works hard to help you get the most out of the day.

I am hoping to book again in 2014 maybe for another try for the zander or a bit of pike fishing on a 'large lake'.

Link to Gary's site - http://www.river-guide.co.uk/

Blank, recce and vehicle issues...

Last Friday I was able to get out on to a new stillwater and after an early start I was at the venue for just after first light. Unfortunately the weather was against me as it was blowing quite hard, this restricted me to certain areas that I could fish as the main part of the water was very choppy and facing directly into the wind. I decided to fish a sheltered bay as I had been informed that it produces some decent fish, however my poor run continued and I blanked again. Two other pike anglers also failed to catch so I wasn't too disheartend. I will be returning to this venue over the winter ( hopefully a few times) as I believe I have a good chance of increasing my pb there !

Over the past week I have been out researching new waters/ sections of the river that I have never seen before, even though I haven't been able to fish them yet I have really enjoyed this.

For the last few years my fishing vehicle has been an old 1986 Suzuki SJ 410, which is perfect for me really as it is cheap to run, 4 wheel drive (when needed) and doesn't matter if it gets full of mud etc... During my trips out I somehow managed to hit a log and split the exhaust, I then noticed an oil leak. I put a temporary repair on the exhaust ( which lasted about 2 hours before it was blowing again) but had struggled to locate the oil leak. I topped the oil back up, jet washed the engine and went on another afternoon recce. After 35 miles of back road driving, I checked the oil and it seemed fine, I couldnt spot any leaks either. I am hoping that the leak was the dipstick not being inserted fully/sealed properly. The exhaust is on order and should of been delivered today but with the weather we've had in the last 24 hours unsurprisingly it didn't arrive. The exhaust should be here Monday and shouldn't take too long to fit. I'm planning on a few short midweek sessions to make up for lost time over his weekend.