Moving bait : Static angler ??

[Terry Simner]

Hi'yall. When I'm long trotting I invariably fish just the one swim all session (usually 3-5hrs)...and I think most other 'trotters' do the same : pick a swim, build it up, and fish it all sesh without a thought of moving. But for the last few seasons, when not ledgering, I've been combined rolling meat with long trotting (usually large wagg) and go 'freewagging'
Now my question is : When rolling meat/freelining any bait, do you think that a roving approach is better than a static one? Two things I see against a roving approach, are :
1/. good 'rolling' swims are less common than good ledgering swims, so it wouldn't be so easy to do a 'rolling-rove', and
2/. similar to when trotting, when rolling I often don't get any action for the first hour or so. It's as though (like trotting) a swim benefits from being 'built up' with careful baiting.
Thoughts? Anyone found 'Roving-rolling' to be more productive than the static approach?
ATB
Terry

 

[Howard Cooke]

I had (relatively speaking) good results on the Kennet for a couple of seasons roving-rolling with meat. Although I wasn’t reallly rolling in the traditional way and in a way that Ray would approve of. It was more like roving-bouncing. I wasn’t freelining either- it was a light link ledger using enough LG shot to hold bottom. With a slight tug the bait would rise and move a few yards downstream before settling again. Most bites occurred just as the bait resettled. I found it very effective and meant I was covering a lot of water. I would move the bait through the swim a couple of times and would move on. Very enjoyable way to fish.

 

[Gavin Hoe-Richardson]

I tend to choose a swim that I've had success in before and stay put. Sometimes you have to put up with the chub for a couple of hours before the barbel eventually move in. The only time I might move is when fishing from first light and I feel that my chances are diminishing as the sun rises, I'll sometimes then move to a swim offering more cover thinking that the fish may feed more confidently there.

 

[Terry Simner]

I had (relatively speaking) good results on the Kennet for a couple of seasons roving-rolling with meat. Although I wasn’t reallly rolling in the traditional way and in a way that Ray would approve of. It was more like roving-bouncing. I wasn’t freelining either- it was a light link ledger using enough LG shot to hold bottom. With a slight tug the bait would rise and move a few yards downstream before settling again. Most bites occurred just as the bait resettled. I found it very effective and meant I was covering a lot of water. I would move the bait through the swim a couple of times and would move on. Very enjoyable way to fish.

Like roving laying-on, but without a float Yeah, a good way to 'search' a swim/swims.