Purplepeanut007 PP007 FLOAT MAKING & FISHING ADVENTURES - THE RIVER IRWELL AND BEYOND.

LEDGERING FOR CHUB. A SMASH AND GRAB RAID BY BALD EAGLE. Bald Eagle phoned me today and said he was having an hour after work on an SFA stretch of the River Irwell. I didn't need telling twice so a quick call to Casterman so he could come down and meet my old mate for the first time. Thirty minutes later I finished off what I was doing - float fiddling -, jumped into the " Mighty Megan " and high tailed it off to Radcliffe to meet the Eagle. When I arrived I nearly missed Eagle he was the well camouflaged in his " Ripped to shreds " fishing suit. We said our hellows and settled down, sitting on Eagles coat to keep my arse dry. Eagle mentioned that the last time he fished this peg he had about 15 bites and no hook ups so he was after revenge. He reeled in and put some liquidezed bread in his feeder then russled in a bag and brought out the smelliest cheese paste I have ever smelt. " Jesus Eagle , what have you put in that"  I asked , grimac

A REVIEW OF MIKES STICK FLOATS BY THE CASTERMAN. After all the hard work Mike had put in making his stick floats I thought it only right to join him in giving them there first maiden voyage on the Irwell. Mikes latest addition was a lovely crafted wired steamed stick float, which I was keen to try out. Mike had aptly name them Irwell stick floats and they look the business nicely balanced, mine having a very bright pink top ideal for long range trotting. I don't usually fish the Irwell in the mornings, preferring an evening session as I've had my best catches as the lights going. From left to right. Irwell Stick Float , Alloy StickFloat. I gave Mike the choice of swims and I fished next peg up within shouting distance should one of us get in to a fish. The river had about 10inchs on it and know doubt full of melt water, not the best of conditions but at least it was on its way down. We had a pint wagered on the first to catch, and it wasn't long before Mike wa

STICK FLOATS - TESTING TIMES ON THE RIVER IRWELL. On Sunday morning, with a certain amount of trepidation, I took my new stick floats out from their holding tube, placed them in my tackle box and went to meet      " The Casterman " for our stick float fishing trial. I felt like a kid on exam day. I have put a LOT of effort into making these floats. Raw material sourcing and trialling etc. not to mention the amount of time it takes to make just one float so I was hoping they gave a good account of themselves !!!!!!!  A quick brew and I was off, river levels were on their way down and temperatures were on their way up, favourable conditions, no excuses there then. :) .... lol.     I pulled up in the car park near our stretch of River for the day ......... - No sign of  " The CasterMan " - he is usually early !!!!!! A quick text too Casterman -………..no reply ……………………………., but, not to worry his motor pulled up next to me and he jumped out full of beans .

Float Making Part 5 - Stick Floats. If there is one method I love above all other types of fishing it is trotting a stick float in conjunction with a centerpin reel. It is the most intimate and satisfying way of catching fish I know, so, full of confidence after my successful waggler trials over the Christmas period I was confident enough to have a punt at making a few stick floats.  " The Castetman " will field test these precious pieces of wood for me. Casterman will pull no punches with his float reviews either, otherwise, whats the point ????? I require a none bias product review and I believe Casterman will do just that.......I'm a little nervous to be honest. I will never live it down if he slates them off. Due to a lack of raw materials I was forced to make a cane stemmed stick float first. This float is very useful in the summer months fishing on the drop but not an ideal choice for testing at this time of year on the middle Irwell but the Casterman

Little Britain Anglers - The Beginnings - March 2014 I joined a new angling club last year in march , " Littlle Brittain Anglers ".  Check them out on Face Book.  It is a truly wonderful club to be in and bursting with friendly characters none more so than the Life Chairman and chief pollution fighter " Eric Owen Eric exposing yet more fly tipping on the banks of the River Irwell in Radcliffe. Eric and I hit it off straight away. We were both vigorously discussing a pollution incident via the Salford Friendly Anglers face book page when out of the blue I received a personal message off Eric asking me if I would like to fish his own personal stretch of the River Irwell near Bury or " The Red Zone " as it was known at the time.Well, you know me kids, it was like giving a 10 year old free sweets ................ I was down at Eric's house before you could say " stick float " ... lol. Now, I had heard about "The Red Zo

River Irwell Chub On The Stickfloat. This session was about trying to extract a chub from the upper middle Irwell on the stick float and I was looking forward to a new challenge. The River narrows off at this stage and can be fished easily with a stick float on most stretches.   It was a lovely mild morning the sun was shinning when I arrived at my chosen peg and I noticed a few fish topping further down the run. My set up consisted of 4lb line straight through a stick float an 18's hook and maggot as the hook bait. I set up the " Peanut Station " a few feet into the river, finished faffing around with my tackle and rig and I was ready to rock and roll. The Peanut Station The legs on the P.S.are to long for a lot of situations. I must saw a third off each leg and put a screw & thread on the bars so I can screw the extra pieces in if needed. I chose to fish the deepest part of the run, just where the white foam is visible in the above picture. The

Bald Eagle - A Man On A Mission. I have not been fishing today as it is my first day back to work after the Christmas break but my old pal Bald Eagle has come out of his River Irwell retirement and has been at it again with old rubber lips !!!!!!!!! From left to right: Eagle, Peanut & The Rat.....lol. John Doran, Mike Cootes & Daz Morrison. Eagle is one of the laziest river anglers I know. He would rather sit behind a tip all day rather than skillfully guide a stick float through a run. It is not that he can't do it, it is more that he can't be arsed doing it ......lol. Even I have to admit, regarding Rivers he is probably the best tip angler I have ever fished with. That includes one very famous river angler that taught us both our trade back in the eighties. Myself, Eagle & Casterman usually fish the River Irwell around Whitefield, Prestwich & Bury simply because that is where we all live respectively. Lately we have been concentrati