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Bream

Ian Hugo Arnott

Ian Hugo Arnott

Senior Member
Now I know that most barbel anglers do not actually want to catch bream, but I fish a small river which has a reasonable number of average size bream. I have been trying to catch them for a week now. They are bubbling like mad and I am fishing amid the bubbles. I have not been able to catch one and have had only a few twitches. There is a deal of blanket weed in the swims I have fished. Any help would be appreciated.

Regards

Hugo

 
I always thought that bream preferred clear spots to feed, so perhaps a bit of raking may help. This may be the wrong thing to do however, so I'd wait for a few more responses before trying it!
 
Hi Hugo,

What bait(s) have you been trying? I have done rather well with small river bream using good old fashioned bread flake. Cheap, medium sliced white loaf from the supermarket, as fresh as possible.

I gently pinch a two pence piece sized disc onto the shank of a no.8, leaving the point exposed. A soft actioned rod, 4.0 lb line, with a swan shot link with as few shot as conditions will allow, stopped 18"/24" from the hook completes my tackle. The flake will settle gently, laying on top of the blanket weed, as will the slightly compressed pinches of flake flicked in little and often as the only form of ground bait. If the fish are very finicky, add another swan shot or two and fish up stream for them.

Very old fashioned, very simple...and very effective.

Cheers, Dave.
 
David Gauntlett said:
Hi Hugo,

What bait(s) have you been trying? I have done rather well with small river bream using good old fashioned bread flake. Cheap, medium sliced white loaf from the supermarket, as fresh as possible.

I gently pinch a two pence piece sized disc onto the shank of a no.8, leaving the point exposed. A soft actioned rod, 4.0 lb line, with a swan shot link with as few shot as conditions will allow, stopped 18"/24" from the hook completes my tackle. The flake will settle gently, laying on top of the blanket weed, as will the slightly compressed pinches of flake flicked in little and often as the only form of ground bait. If the fish are very finicky, add another swan shot or two and fish up stream for them.

Very old fashioned, very simple...and very effective.

Cheers, Dave.
Click to expand...



Dave,


Thank you, so simple and I feel that I am even simpler!. I have been using worm and maggot, but neglected bread. Doh!

Will give it a try and report back in due course. Most fish like bread as much if not more than worms!

:)


Regards

Hugo
 
Hugo, one of my fishing friends fishes the Ribble a lot and he just float fishes, trotting a float down a run with maggot, castor, bread and he has had some massive bin lids on that method. Not my idea of fishing, but everyone to their own eh;)
 
Bread. Just for a laugh last year or the one before, on finding some whacking small-river bream, then getting bored with everything but the desired bream going for tiny, haired pellets or worm / maggot, I went back (for a laugh, aha ha ha) to the most ancient of baits that the man (an old-time London angler, still alive at 87) who got me catching my first ever bream from the very same river moulded onto my hook then got me to fish layed-on below a big quill float when I was 6 or 7 - honey-flavoured breadpaste.

Laughable, but it worked on the bream, including one that went nearly nine pounds.
 
My oh my....that brings back fond memories Paul...honey flavoured bread paste. That, and paste flavoured with custard powder used to be great favourites, kept critically soft in washed tobacco tins (didn't have plastic tubs then :D)

Lord knows how many roach we kids caught on those baits back in the day, though we float fished tiny blobs on a no. 18 hook....hadn't really progressed to 'big stuff' like tench and bream at that time :p

Cheers, Dave.
 
David Gauntlett said:
My oh my....that brings back fond memories Paul...honey flavoured bread paste. That, and paste flavoured with custard powder used to be great favourites, kept critically soft in washed tobacco tins (didn't have plastic tubs then :D)

Lord knows how many roach we kids caught on those baits back in the day, though we float fished tiny blobs on a no. 18 hook....hadn't really progressed to 'big stuff' like tench and bream at that time :p

Cheers, Dave.
Click to expand...

David,

I note that we are of a similar vintage, and my grandfather used to give me his tobacco tins. My first tackle box was an old biscuit tin. I can't even see a no.18 hook nowadays, mind you I have some ancient hooks to nylon somewhere.............



Regards,


Hugo


 
HI Hugo
Vanilla flavoured Black eyed Beans, scopex also works. Cheap as chips and dead conveniant, keep them in the freezer. Used to get them as sweet as I could, thawing them and then adding more vanilla before refreezing them.
Shaun of the dead
 
Ian Hugo Arnott said:
Now I know that most barbel anglers do not actually want to catch bream, but I fish a small river which has a reasonable number of average size bream. I have been trying to catch them for a week now. They are bubbling like mad and I am fishing amid the bubbles. I have not been able to catch one and have had only a few twitches. There is a deal of blanket weed in the swims I have fished. Any help would be appreciated.

Regards

Hugo
Click to expand...
Are you bored with the Burbot old boy ? Why fish for bream for goodness sake ? They don't fight, they just sort of resign ....
 
Mike,
I would never tire of burbot but one needs a change which is as good as a rest, although I normally hold the rod. These river bream can hold on better than chub, don't you know?

AS ever

Hugo

 
The Chairman on Sunday


I find that the river variety offer a pretty fair account of themselves if you get them angry - I find that repeatedly yelling "Come on, you slimy b'stards!" from the safety of the bank at the river in front of you works wonders. Gets rid of Flyfishers, too.


As ever,

B.B.
 
Ian Hugo Arnott said:
Mike,
I would never tire of burbot but one needs a change which is as good as a rest, although I normally hold the rod. These river bream can hold on better than chub, don't you know?


AS ever

Hugo
Click to expand...

Hugo, you've obviously been reading to much pro bream spiel on FM, me thinks.

River residing snotties: IMO best bet is find a clean area towards the tail of a pool or a scoured run mid pool and bait up at start of a session with a couple balls of fishmeal based groundbait loaded with chopped worms, a few softened carp/coarse pellets and corn (only if you intend using it on the hook).
Squeeze balls just tight enough to get them to the bottom, to create a carpet of bait.
Personally I'd fish a feeder over the top with maggots, worms, corn, casters, bread, pellets or a cocktail hook bait but as you like holding your rod, no reason not to float fish, I'd recommend a stick or avon float, as best to slow your bait down.


I'm still awaiting the punchline to this thread....




Bream fishing, SUCH FUN!! (sort of)




As ever




Me
 
The Chairman on Sunday


The real fun starts when you are quietly minding your own business, bucolically stret-pegging a small ball of trout pellet paste on a size-12 hook below a lying-flat float downstream of a 15ft Harrison GTi rod's tip, when the damned float dives under, the centrepin (a Sheffield that day) screams and you're into one of those big golden things that run you all over the place and make one's aged arms ache. 11.25 pounds. Which got quite a shouting at, for it had quite ruined my day on the Bream Hole.


As ever,

B.B.
 
Colin Gordon said:
Hugo, you've obviously been reading to much pro bream spiel on FM, me thinks.

River residing snotties: IMO best bet is find a clean area towards the tail of a pool or a scoured run mid pool and bait up at start of a session with a couple balls of fishmeal based groundbait loaded with chopped worms, a few softened carp/coarse pellets and corn (only if you intend using it on the hook).
Squeeze balls just tight enough to get them to the bottom, to create a carpet of bait.
Personally I'd fish a feeder over the top with maggots, worms, corn, casters, bread, pellets or a cocktail hook bait but as you like holding your rod, no reason not to float fish, I'd recommend a stick or avon float, as best to slow your bait down.


I'm still awaiting the punchline to this thread....




Bream fishing, SUCH FUN!! (sort of)




As ever




Me
Click to expand...


Great advice Colin and i hope it will be

SUCH FUN!


Hugo


 
Paul Boote said:
The Chairman on Sunday


The real fun starts when you are quietly minding your own business, bucolically stret-pegging a small ball of trout pellet paste on a size-12 hook below a lying-flat float downstream of a 15ft Harrison GTi rod's tip, when the damned float dives under, the centrepin (a Sheffield that day) screams and you're into one of those big golden things that run you all over the place and make one's aged arms ache. 11.25 pounds. Which got quite a shouting at, for it had quite ruined my day on the Bream Hole.


As ever,

B.B.
Click to expand...


Chairman,

I am all of a quiver!


AS ever


Hugo


 
The Chairman on Sunday


No, it was one of those wotsits, the ones that people get into slanging matches and fights about, like the carp cavemen - barbel, I think, and quite a pretty one (as fish go).


As ever,

B.B.
 
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