I’ve been feeling a bit fed up recently, drowning under a mountain of paperwork and red tape in the office, unable to get out much doing the things I enjoy.
What better way of beating the blues than going out with your friends and catching a few fish.
They don’t have to be monsters to be worthy, and fishing certainly cures the blues.
Have a watch of the latest vid, and have a read below.
Last Tuesday evening, the football match I was planning to attend was called off at short notice (non-league), and rather than sit indoors watching rubbish on Netflix, we decided to head over to Wallasey Docks to see if we could tempt anything other than pin Whiting after dark…. sadly we couldn’t. I’ve heard reports of a wide variety of fish species coming from this venue, but for me its only whiting, whiting and more whiting.
Then as Greater Manchester Tier 3 lockdown has come into force we have decided to stay local, and hit two locations on our local canals the Bridgewater and the Rochdale. Both venues hold some good fish, but its a numbers game,as there is plenty of small stuff that will try to get to your baits first.
We caught a crazy little jack pike on the Rochdale, and had a whole bunch of small perch on the Bridgewater, all fished on drop shotted dendrobena worms.
My biggest perch is only about a pound and a half, caught many many years back on the Rochdale Canal at Slattocks, and maybe now lockdown has been imposed – its time I spent a little time trying to beat this rather paltry pb.
Over the next few weeks, I have a number of local venues that I intend to try out to see if they hold big perch — once I’ve gone through my little list – I will take on the advice that I’ve been given by a few friends and hit the tried and tested perch spots in Manchester…I could just cut out the trying and go straight to them, but its more fun finding your own fish !
I think you giving too much information away my friend… let ppl find their own spots😉
don’t think the canals are that much of a secret do you ?
Mant of the canals these days seem to produce very good perch, 2 pound plus fish appear to be quite common in my experience. In my youth, although I fished canals far far more than I do now, I never then had a perch of a pound or more. And I have a theory about the change. Back then boat traffic was far more restricted. On the Macclesfield Canal it has increased at least 20 fold. This has had an effect on the water, and whereas it used to be very clear, it now is more or less permanently cloudy. I think this helps the perch ambush smaller fish quite readily, and enables them to grow to significant sizes. Fish the canals Mike and that P{B of yours will not be long being beaten.
Nice little write up. I’ve never fished on Manchester despite living near by.
I keep saying I’ll fish the Rochdale canal more with is being on my doorstep. I dont get out much and when I do I normally have an itch to scratch.
I know LBA look after the canal from the Rose of Lancaster up to Castleton, but do you know how owns the other way to town?
Used to be some great roach behind the Rose 20+ years ago to a 1lb. I could fish for them all day. A 1.5lb perch off the Rochdale Canal on this section would probably be a fish of a life time!
Great little videos too. Would never have known people were fishing the irk too. Incredible.
Tight lines!
From the Rose Of Lancaster down to Deansgate Locks is under no angling club control – Salford Friendly had the rights for a while but gave them up.
Castlefield Basins down to Hulme Hall Rd Bridge is on the Salford Friendly ticket.
I agree with you — any perch over a lb is a great fish for our local canals