Keith: fond memories

At the time, the early 1970s, I could have been considered a bit of a fashion victim and my choice of trouser on this occasion left something to be desired, namely pink jeans!

Keith Arthur
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Now Christmas is here I am certain that loads of you will have new tackle you simply HAVE to get out and fish with as SOON as possible.

I'm certainly no exception and, up until quite recently, Boxing Day was one of the days when angling was a must.

One of the most famous south London match teams of all time, The Grebes, used to organise a match at Richmond, running from Richmond Bridge, or even as far down as Twickenham railway bridge, as far upstream as Teddington Lock.

This was in the days before pegged-down matches of course, with each angler drawing a number from a hat then 'walking off' in numerical order, with NO overtaking allowed.

All sorts of chicanery went on in this style of match, with people already fishing mysteriously packing up and leaving prime spots just as their mate arrived. I was never aware of really top anglers adopting this tactic and it rarely proved successful for lesser lights.

The big problem was, of course, that the river was tidal and we always fished the bottom of the tide. On this section that means two hours after high tide to two hours before high tide.

During this period the river is maintained at 'navigable depth' by barriers at Twickenham. Now one thing you will know is that on Boxing Day any river in England is going be carrying COLD water; the Thames is no exception.

That is only relevant in certain circumstances of course as most sensible people will be sitting, or at worst standing, on the bank. On the tidal Thames that is NOT the case; wading is essential.

We are spoiled these days with thermal boots and waders and for many anglers they are a fact of life. In the 1960s and 70s that was NOT the case. No neoprene, no Skeetex, it was Dunlop rubber and that's it.

Tingling toes

No matter how many socks were put on cold feet were guaranteed. It started with a sort of tingling in the toes, made even worse because they were squeezed tight by the volume of wool surrounding them. That feeling didn't last long because eventually total numbness took over.

The numb then became an ache which got worse until the match finished. Walking back to the meeting point would sort that out but back then fish were not weighed in at the peg, or chosen swim, but had to be carried in a canvas bucket of water back to a central weigh-in point.

It was impossible to say exactly how cold that made your hands. Once they started to thaw out the pain was excruciating - and remember that even car heaters were optional extras on most models!!!

As well as Boxing Day there were usually matches on New Years Day, one that sticks in my mind was at Boveney, also on the Thames but way above the tidal limit, between Windsor and Maidenhead.

The biggest headache was the walk. Entry was either from Dorney Reach, entailing a stroll opposite Monkey Island and Queens Island, or from the Boveney Church end.

The total length is best part of two miles, and on the day in question I drew more or less bang slap in the middle. By now matches were pegged-down so it certainly wasn't my choice of swim.

At the time, the early 1970s, I could have been considered a bit of a fashion victim and my choice of trouser on this occasion left something to be desired, namely pink jeans!

My peg was on a fairly high piece of bank, entailing standing in the water so cold feet were a given. The fishing was HARD, just a couple of dace, a roach and one chub, all over the Thames size limits we were forced to fish to then.

Hooklink

I decided to try a lighter hooklink and with my basket, this was pre flash fishing boxes days, was back up the bank a touch. To enable me to climb the 6ft-high bank in waders, with feet that by now were as numb as they could be, I put my right foot into a convenient rat hole.

My left foot went on to a small ledge formed where a nettle grew in warmer times and as I pushed up the ledge broke off. I slipped, like a liner being launched, down the bank into the water. It was only inches deep but laying on my side that was small consolation.

Like a true stalwart I fished on to the end and when the scales arrived (that had changed too, peg weigh-ins were now the norm) my weight was 1lb 13oz 12dr.

My old buddy Chris Love was on the next peg and I thought I'd just done him, as I was a dace better off. But his chub was that bit larger than mine and he pipped my by just one-quarter of an ounce.

The walk back was extraordinarily uncomfortable and the 'chaps' I suffered on my thighs had to be seen to be believed.

I'm not actually fishing any of the real holiday dates this year, but I have a match planned for December 28th, on a lake in Iver, Bucks.

It will be more comfortable, I am pretty confident my feet - and the rest of my body - will stay dry and warm, courtesy of decent thermals, proper fishing clothing and thermal boots, possibly the greatest aid to winter angling in my career. One other thing's for sure too - no pink jeans!

Keith answers your questions...

Email Keith Arthur here

Will the temperature and air pressure affect fish feeding? What signs should I look out for during winter months? Thanks, Daniel Blackwell (Aged 10), Hazlemere, Buckinghamshire.

KEITH SAYS: Hello Daniel, Cold weather and high pressure can have quite a profound effect on fish behaviour; especially feeding. Both are often experienced at the same time as high pressure usually means clear skies and clear skies at night in winter often means frosts. Once a large area of high pressure becomes established, as it has been for the past several days, waters become clearer - the 'heavy air' pushing down on them settles any suspended matter such as algae - and most fish tend to shoal up tightly together. This applies to most 'cyprinid' fish, such as roach, bream and carp and fishing can really be feast or famine and the cooler it is the more likely famine applies.

Of course like most clouds, or in this case the lack of them, there is a silver lining and predators such as perch, pike and zander will tend to hang around the shoals and feed quite actively so lure fishing - a great way to keep warm to boot - can produce some superb catches.

If you target cyprinids, the best times are, ironically, the coldest times of the day, when the sun rises and sets as lower light levels afford them sufficient security to venture out and feed.

The biggest silver lining of all though is knowing that when the high pressure system moves off it will be pushed by a deep depression, bringing milder, south-westerly winds. The fish will 'follow' the wind and if you can stand it battering away at you, some superb catches can be expected. I'll make a small prediction here: I reckon by mid/end-January the carp record will be raised and it will be done during a big blow.

I've just bought a holiday home in north Cornwall and I'm looking forward to fishing in a few of the local harbours. Is fairly light coarse tackle suitable as I've watched some people toiling away with heavy line and big leads to no avail? I'm looking to catch mullet and bass and have had some success float fishing with bread and ragworm in the past. Regards, Teddy Lemerald (Twickenham).

KEITH SAYS: Hello Teddy, A decent purchase would be one of the 'two-tip' specialist rods available, often sold as 'barbel' rods. Team that up with a '4000' size fixed spool reel with two spools: one with 30lb bs braid, the other with 8lb mono and off you go.

One tip will have a selection of push-in quivertips, perfect for legering harbours for flatties and mullet with the mono line; the other, 'whole' tip can be used for floatfishing harbours or even from rocks for wrasse, mackerel, pollack and bass. Live prawn can be a devastating bait for that and braid helps you feel everything!

The other use for the 'whole' rod is the famous 'Rockhopper' method, used by Ed Schliffke, where baits are cast from rock marks. This entails some scrambling up and down cliffs with a rod, reel and a little bit of tackle. The rig is quite simple, a paternoster incorporating a weight from 40 - 75gms and a trace of maybe 1.5m ending in a 3/0 Aberdeen-type hook.

The bait, or should that be THE bait, is frozen sandeel, better even than live or fresh for this job. A cast is made out from the rocks as far as possible, the weight allowed to hit bottom and then slowly retrieved. It is worth knowing where the rocks end as the bait should be wound over them rather than into them!

This is a superb method for bass, pollack, big mackerel and even gurnard. Leaving the bait in sandy areas will sometimes attract big plaice or even occasional rays.

Great care is essential along with decent climbing boots and a companion; going alone is for the foolhardy. I've done it once and wish I could do it more often, truly exhilarating sport and several marks can be tried during a day.