Who better to join for a lesson in flowing-water waggler fishing than Garbolino’s river connoisseur and Welsh international, Lee Edwards?
When you’re sat biteless during a match on a river, there are probably hundreds of quality fish in front of you. It’s a bold and crazy statement to make, but one that I strongly believe in. The venue where we’re fishing today, the Warwickshire Avon at Evesham, is a perfect example. Three big matches pressure the 87-peg match length here most weeks, and the fish are incredibly wary.
Jake Fowles gets to grips with the powerhouse of the Browning Xitan range.
I am finding myself increasingly impressed with what tackle manufacturers are able to introduce to the market; the advancements in what bang we get for our buck has improved drastically, even in the 10 or so years since I was working as a sales assistant down at my local tackle shop.
Although most of these developments span right across the board, there is no one area that impresses me quite as much as the mid-range pole market, such is the standard of what is now available, and despite it being, in my opinion, the most competitive and difficult to conquer price point for poles.
It is the £1,499 priced Browning Xitan Z7-2 (Power Special) that I have at my disposal today, a pole that slots itself nicely into the mid-range pole bracket.
Joe Carass gets an early look at the fantastic new Frenzee Precision 6E FXT flagship pole.
Frenzee is a brand that just keeps on producing the goods. I have been so impressed with the products it has brought to the table in recent years; it always likes to do things its own way and always has some interesting ideas and innovations that set its products apart from the rest.
We managed to get hold of the first-ever model of the brand-new Precision 6E FXT.
Another £320,000 is being made available this summer to the Angling Improvement Fund (AIF) to support anglingfacilities and access improvements on rivers and at angling venues around the country.
The Angling Trust, which administers the fund on behalf of the Environment Agency, is seeking applications from clubs, commercial venues, councils, charities and community organisations by 20th September, for grants worth up to £5,000. The grants are only available for projects benefiting angling for coarse fish and non-migratory trout.
The themes in this round are:
Fish protection and predation management
Around 20 awards will be offered for fencing, fish refuges and other non-lethal measures to protect fish stocks from unsustainable predation by otters, fish-eating birds and other wildlife.
British Pole Championship qualifiers: Wayne Sharman, Matt Cuplin & Ray King
Angler's Name
Weight (lbs/oz)
Peg # / Lake
Wayne Sharman (Matrix / Lanes Bait)
202-03-00
28
Matt Cuplin (Weston AA / FTW)
150-03-00
124
Ray King (Cresta / Gamakatsu)
101-07-00
123
Andrew Crocker (Neath)
98-08-00
19
Dan Hull (Dynamite Baits)
89-06-00
5
Michael Williams (Guru / Daiwa / Mainline)
87-12-00
18
Jaroslaw Slusarz
86-14-00
122
Steve Openshaw (Lingmere Fisheries)
84-08-00
13
One hundred and sixteen (116) anglers attended this Sunday qualifier event held at Barston Lakes. Conditions on the day were ideal with a stiff breeze blowing towards the river bank coupled with plenty of cloud cover lasting for the duration of the match. That said, sport was a little slow for some with three anglers breaking the 100lb barrier with the resident carp appearing to have been affected by the impromptu thunderstorm the day before.
Next to qualify for next month’s big money final was Wayne Sharman (Matrix / Lanes Baits).
Shallow fishing is the topic for commercial god Jamie Hughes this month. This is his not-to-be missed guide…
If you were to ask anglers what their favourite method was during the summer months, you could be almost certain that the majority would answer with “fishing shallow”. There are few things more exciting than a shoal of fish swirling for your loose feed, or your elastic being pulled out as soon as the rig hits the water.
Over the years there have been plenty of articles written on this subject, but as it’s something I have never written in depth about myself I felt I would always prefer to fish shallow ‘properly’ using a correctly shotted float.
Des Shipp explains when fishing the waggler can give you the edge over other methods…
Fishing the waggler is a tactic that requires almost unparalleled hard work and perseverance. However, done correctly, in the right situation it can prove to be devastating, just as I proved in a recent Maver Match This qualifier at Gold Valley Lakes, where I qualified for the £65,000 grand final!
Why The Waggler?
The first and probably most obvious reason for choosing to fish a waggler over the pole is its versatility and range. You can simply fish much further out using a waggler than you can the pole; it is therefore suited perfectly for large lakes or up to features where the pole cannot reach or using a feeder isn’t suitable.
It also thrives on tightly pegged venues where fishing the waggler can create space for yourself by fishing an area of the lake nobody else is venturing into.
