Andrew Jackson
Senior Member & Supporter
I know the common method of overcoming drifting weed and other rubbish when fishing at short range on rivers like the Hampshire Avon is to stick the rod top under the water and wait for the reel to spin. Fair enough. It certainly works. All the same I prefer to watch the rod top if at all possible. I suspect you will see bites, particularly from wary Chub , that you wouldn't with the rod underwater, bolt rig or not. Keeping the rod well back from the waters edge and dropping a backlead off the rod top is one solution to the problem. These handy adaptors from Bank Tackle are a good idea and allow you to just attach a bomb rather than having to carry about additional backleads.
I won't use a backlead though when there are too many rocks or snags about. An extra lead on the line isn't a good idea in those circumstances.
I won't use a backlead though when there are too many rocks or snags about. An extra lead on the line isn't a good idea in those circumstances.