Fishing

[moochy13]

i see lots of people fish from the hobby threads ? to what extent and what type ? i know people who will spend every spare minute and every spare penny hunting that elusive huge fish. mega expensive kit, bait boats, month long trips etc.

i on the other hand have spent the last 3 years using a 30 quid beginners kit, though last year i brought a better reel. that was only 30 quid aswell. im still using the same cheap rod, tackle, net etc, and i get plenty of enjoyment from my fishing. its as much about relaxing with your mates as it is about catching fish for me.

recently i went with my cousin on a proper 'carp' lake, fishing for 30lb + carp and 80lb catfish. i really got the buzz for this big fish fishing, so this week have been getting a single rod carp set-up together, again as cheap as possible. ive spent about 70 quid on a rod, reel, line, bite alarm, and some other bits and bobs. i intend to be fishing this set-up for less than a 100 quid - something my mate spends on bait alone when he goes for 2 days.

anyways, just seeing how much other people are into fishing. i live near the beach, i got put off sea fishing as an 8 year old getting dragged along to the cold windswept beach by my dad, my only salvation being some hot chocolate in a thermos.

oh and heres the unexpected fish i got yesterday, pulled out of a small coarse clay pit with just some groundbait pressed round my hook :

Sturgeon !!!!!! (of some description)

 

[SchottayB]

recently i went with my cousin on a proper 'carp' lake, fishing for 30lb + carp and 80lb catfish. i really got the buzz for this big fish fishing, so this week have been getting a single rod carp set-up together, again as cheap as possible. ive spent about 70 quid on a rod, reel, line, bite alarm, and some other bits and bobs.

Sturgeon !!!!!! (of some description)

I remember them days, going to my first proper pond catching some monsters . Great buzz when you get your first big carp if your used to little perch, roach etc lol.

V.nice fish you caught there good job mate.

 

[moochy13]

my PB, just with my Argos special kit, is about 9-10lb carp, i dont even own any scales hahah. ive caught countless fish up to that mark, but im hoping my new kit will open up 20lb+ fish to me. im still not fishing for the monster fish, anything between 20-30lb would be enough to make my day. funnily enough in 3 years i can count on 1 hand how many rudd, roach and perch ive caught. im now trying a new pit aswell, got bored with my old one. an endless tide of 4-5 lb tench and carp, great to begin with, but bored now.

 

[Corydoralover]

that is a long nosed sturgeon and like u i go fishing with a beginners rod and i reagulary catch fish

 

[StandbySetting]

Nice catch, I'm still using my 8ft rod that my uncle bought me about 10 years ago, it's a good rod, has served me well but I also use a 39ft carbon fibre pole now too (I generally only use about 18ft), I fish for Tench and Carp mainly, but I've caught Goldfish out of our local canal before as well as a few Rudd, Perch, Roach, Gudgeon and Stickleback.

The baits I use are generally meaty, I use dry fried spam a lot, Chub, Tench and Carp seem to love it, Roach, Perch and Gudgeon tend to take maggots and sweet corn, bread works well with some too, I use 3mm pellets for ground bait from a sling shot.

When I last went to the Isle of White I fished in the harbour, Blennies were popular catches there, you'd get the occasional crab too if using a ledger.

 

[micko]

The kids got me new fishing stuff a year last christmas, so I don't know the price but I know the rod is over £260 as I was looking at buying one myself before that.
I love fishing but don't get the time to do it much anymore, one of our boys loves fishing but the others don't like it so much.

 

[Ace Of Spades]

It doesn't really matter on how much you spend, the better quality just helps you a bit when fishing, you don't "NEED" it. I haven't fished for a while but when I get back into I'll probably spend £200 on a setup that will last me 5 years +, I just enjoy chilling by the lake.

 

[micko]

I have to agree. Although owning an expensive rod may make you feel better when your fishing along with others it doesn't make you a better fisherperson. I've fished with rods in Donegal that were childrens rods that cost €20 and caught more than I did the day previous.

 

[moochy13]

this is why i only have cheap kit, but i do think theres a point where you do notice improvements. as i mentioned, i replaced the reel i got with the starter kit, and noticed a definite increase in quality and feel. even line is better if you spend money on it. with the stuff im getting together now, ive skimped on a bite alarm, 11 quid. as with any electronic item, i do suspect that i will be replacing it within a year because ive brought a cheap one. on the other hand, i now wouldn't consider replacing my 30 quid unless it snapped in half.

 

[NottsFishy]

The most expensive fishing item i have bought has been a £170 centrepin and it is worth every penny have caught many fish from minnows up to carp with it.
I go fishing for anything if there is a big fish i want to catch i will attempt to catch it but if that dont work i will go after whatever is gullable enough to jump on my hook lol.

 

[ian]

fishing still remains the biggest/most 'played' sport in the UK.

 

[moochy13]

to be honest, i struggle to see why its classed as a sport. i know you can have matches and you can win, but i cant think of many other sports, if any, that involve less physical exertion and no proper sort of training. you dont spend a week doing your fishing training before a match at the weekend, you just turn up with your kit like every other time. you get better by actually just going fishing and doing the same thing over and over, tweaking little things.

 

[LiamGoodaire]

I think that's a little unfair to say it doesn't involve training, surely what you described is training even though it's in the same environment as the matches that would be played. I have a wide range of tackle which I use and I generally decide on a selection to take with me on the day I usually try to play the big carp if nothing happening then slap a few maggots on just to feel the sensation of a bite no matter how big or small

 

[StandbySetting]

Try landing a large fish, then you'll know why it is called a sport, I once saw a man spend over an hour trying to land a catfish in excess of 40lb.

 

[moochy13]

i thought it might raise a few eybrows

i know hitting huge fish is proper sport, playing it, trying to beat it. my cousin landed an 80lb cat in 40 minutes, and couldnt use his arms for the rest of the day, he had to pack up. he told me if you land a 50lb + fish, its not because you beat it - its because the fish is tired and physically cannot do anymore fighting.

when you go do any other sport i can think of, you know you're going to be doing stuff all/most the time. at fishing, you might spend 85% of your time sat on your #14###. even golf, snooker and darts, which are generally the other least active sports i can think of, you're generally on the move a lot of the time. unless you're so crap at snooker you never get to the table, but if thats the case its not even sport anymore

its hard to describe. i dont go fishing thinking that im training, not like i go to football training where we practice certain things, work on fitness, work on set pieces, work on team work etc. i just go fishing. it is what it is. maybe its a case of how serious you take it. matches obviously involve sport anglers, who live for a bulging keep net or record fish. i certainly dont class my sort of fishing as sport.