I just love catching perch on the float and that bob bob signals a perch fiddling with the worm. As it slides away remember to wait, wait, then Strike.

Get In!

I think it’s just the best way to catch them.

I fished with a mate recently; both of us were catching some nice roach almost nonstop, until the swim suddenly went dead. After 20 minutes we happened to peer into the gloomy water about a foot from the bank only to see two flashes of white opening and closing. As we peered, less than two inches under the surface, we could see two perch; they were huge fish both over 2lbs. We reeled in my roach rod, took off the centrepin and replaced it with a fixed spool reel with heaver line. We tried using maggots; worms; even a little rubber jig I found in the bottom of my bag from a previous pike session, but nothing would move them.

By now my friend had slowly built the swim back up and was again catching roach, rudd and the odd small perch. As we released our fish in the margins we saw the perch move and make a ferocious attack on a roach. We watched, amazed, as it attacked the roach and sucked it straight in, gone…. Just one perch of 2lb ate 1 Rudd, 1 perch and a roach all of 1 oz before sinking, no doubt with the weight of its dinner back into the depths…

We later saw the other perch roll on the surface, fin right up and out the water, take a roach fry off the surface. Dad was stunned – he’s never seen this in his 26 years of fishing.

We did manage to catch one of about 1lb which gave a good jagged fight for its size. I caught a smaller few perch too. They seem to have wised up now and, despite trying different baits and tactics, we’re not catching them at the moment.

It’s time to try something new – maybe I’ll try a light quiver tip with prawn, or use a small dead bait, drop shotting or lure. But there is always a possibility of a pike taking the lure or dead bait so strong line and even a wire trace has to be used.

James