Autumn approaches

Part of being an angler is being more in tune with the changing seasons than most non anglers. If you are out on the bank regularly you will notice the more subtle nuances as the seasons ebb from one to another. In many ways I find this slows down the transition and allows me time to enjoy it more. It allows me to appreciate the natural beauty of things more readily and feel I am a part of it all.
We've now rolled over into October and where I live so far south we are probably a couple of weeks or more behind most of the rest of the country, but the leaves are beginning to fall nonetheless and carpet the ground in places. The daylight hours are shortening and the temperatures are beginning to show signs of waning. Bankside vegetation is coming to it's end for the year and wild flowers are going to seed. The aquatic life is at it's peak and the Carp are making the most of the abundant natural larder, building up their fat reserves for the coming winter.

Pretty soon this will all come to an end as the water temperature drops, the fish will form small shoals and settle into their winter patterns. This means more predictable feeding times and hopefully being able to pin them down in their favourite areas. If you hadn't guessed I prefer autumn and winter fishing over spring and summer. I guess you could say it suits my strengths as an angler, less bait, more precise location and tactics, a more delicate approach all round, and of course a quieter time on the banks.

This weekend produced a couple more fish for me from our current venue. The corking looking fish below and another smaller double.

Still having fun at this lake but yet to encounter any of the bigger fish, hopefully this will change as the temperatures fall and the smaller fish slow down while the need to carry on feeding drives one or two of the larger one's into our nets.
I think there will be one more session here and then we shall be heading off the following weekend for a long stay on a very special and famous water on the mainland. Whether any of the prestigious residents will be kind enough to drop their guard for us remains to be seen but as long as we have a bait in the water we have as much chance as anyone else! I am really looking forward to this one and all being well subsequent trips here over the next few months, it's somewhere I have always had a hankering to fish and I decided a while ago it was time to do something about it. In the meantime thanks for reading and keep catching!

Chris