Fishing in Lilliput

A 9 foot Daiwa Matchman ledger rod sold this month.

It's been at least 18 months since I fished the canal, so it was good to get back to one of my favourite stretches. I went to Willington on the Trent & Mersey Canal and found my usual spot, where the towpath is wider, was full of narrow boats. I continued down the towpath where I found a good spot. The far bank looked fishy, the towpath was still wide, and there weren't any overhanging trees to get caught in when casting my 13' rod.

Temperatures had dropped since my previous session, and although the sun was out, it was a chilly nine degrees with a cold westerly wind. We'd had heavy rain for the previous few days and the water was coloured with quite a fast flow. After a few float and shot changes, I settled on a bobber float which I cast to the far bank with a single maggot on a size 14 hook. It was very slow fishing and a while before I hooked my first fish, which was a nice Roach. A small Perch followed, and due to the boat traffic I decided to call it a day.