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What's your edge?

S

Simon Haggis

Senior Member & Supporter
In carp fishing spheres people talk about their edges - those little things that help you catch fish and give you a smidge of extra confidence compared to the next man. Thankfully barbel fishing isn't that competitive or secretive...I think.

Given I haven't caught a fish since October now, can everyone please share their edges? :D I could do with the help!

My top 2:

1) I plumb new swims on leaving the river so next time I can know good spots without thrashing the water to foam. You do this exercise in 2 new swims each time you leave and you get to know a stretch of river over the season pretty well.

2) Fish midweek so there's no-one trampling about the banks and fish have had time to digest the weekends troughing.

cheers, simon
 
Confidence, in your approach, methods and confidence again. Works for me...
 
Jon Frisby said:
Confidence, in your approach, methods and confidence again. Works for me...
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My edge is going fishing with Jon. Theres that much snap in his feeders that I just get about a 100 yards below him and bobs your uncle!:)

Seriously though, I think it helps to keep off the well beaten track and try somewhere that doesn't get hammered on a regular basis.
 
going first thing mondays, i can, so i do, all that bait going in over the weekend, thanx for others for feeding the swims up...lol
 
Lucky rabbits foot stored in my rucksack & to get my girlfriend to make my bait & touch my tackle (ooh er misses) to get that pheromone affect!

Regards

Andy
 
Simon, I actually think it is quite dependant on the river or even stretch you are fishing. On some smaller, intricate, lesser fished waters a baiting campaign would give you an edge, but this probably would not be effective on a heavilly fished or larger river.

Pinning everything down on smaller rivers works but again would probably not make a lot of difference on the Severn or Trent carrying extra water.

Baiting will vary, depending on the river/stretch.

I just follow you these days Simon!!!
 
Simon ,
this is probably not going to help much because for most it is not possible and also it is fairly obvious but ;
my father in law had a heart attack just after christmas and my wife has been living and caring for him and her mum ever since . as they live 50 miles away and my daughter is at university i have been living on my own for a month and i go fishing on the river lea every evening after work .
although conditions have not been great i just feel that i have got to know the river so well at the moment , i just seem to be in touch with where the fish will be and how they will react to any change in temp and river level etc.and my results have been far in excess of my expectations.
when i finish i put a little bit of bait in a couple of swims and then when conditions are right for that swim i give it a go . also because i have got so much fishing time available i dont mind wasting some of it fishing a swim just to get to know it rather than thinking i can catch from it.one of the lads i talk to can only go at weekends so he can only fish in conditions that may not be ideal and also he may not get in where he would have chosen.
he will get to the river on saturday afternoon and say 'i cant believe it is up or coloured or clear' etc while i know exactly what it is going to be like and the type of swim i should be fishing and bait i should be using.
hopefully the father in law will make a full recovery and it will be back to normal .
we all know that luck is so important but it does show that up to date knowledge is so vital.

rich
 
Seriously, I think that making my own bait gives me an advantage over the Muppets who seem to constantly fill the river in with pellets, also fishing inbetween swims has paid off at times offering the fish something different in an unusual place has to be a good thing.

Tom.
 
I find a stretch that is packed with anglers, you know the one where all the big fish get caught. Then I walk along the stretch with my tackle dressed in a party frock. The frock doesn't catch me any fish but don't half clear the banks so I have the stretch to myself.

Regards,

Lee.
 
Good information and sheer persistence.
 
Ian Turnbull said:
My edge is going fishing with Jon. Theres that much snap in his feeders that I just get about a 100 yards below him and bobs your uncle!:)

Seriously though, I think it helps to keep off the well beaten track and try somewhere that doesn't get hammered on a regular basis.
Click to expand...

I cannot agree more there Jim, get off the beaten track. I will be rolling out some new super feeders soon Jim, so you can bag up below me....some more.
Another edge is continually changing your rig and baits.
 
Richard Borley said:
Simon ,

i just feel that i have got to know the river so well at the moment , i just seem to be in touch with where the fish will be and how they will react to any change in temp and river level etc.and my results have been far in excess of my expectations.
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best wishes to your father in law Richard

I totally agree with what you're saying about being in touch with the river. It's something I've never been able to do fishing the loddon as I live a way away from it. on the occasions I've taken holiday and spent a series of 2 day sessions there it always starts to come together.

thanks for comments all.
 
I only fish mid-week , i very rarley see any other anglers on the bank , just how i like it !
Also i keep a very close eye on the Wye thread as well as cams and river reports. So keep the information coming lads , i rely on you all so i can catch more fish !!
 
Clive Shipman said:
Good information and sheer persistence.
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I'll second that. Nothing beats good local knowledge, especially when targeting a new a section. Mind you round my neck of the woods I rearly see another angler. So have to do it the hard way.....that's where sheer persistence comes in..or is it sheer stupidity :D
 
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