The R.Chew grayling seem to be concentrated between Pensford and Compton Dando, although I did once catch one in keynsham memorial park a few years ago. They don't seem to grow nearly as big as the chalkstream grayling, but it's wonderful to see them surviving, considering all that the river has to endure. The water between Pensford and Woollard is leased to Chew Fly Fishers, which costs hundreds to join. I was a member once and asked if they would consider a river only membership as I had no interest in the pond stocked with rainbows, but the answer was no, so I left. Short sighted of them in my opinion. It's then private land down to the Bathampton stretch upstream of Compton Dando, which is such a shame. Best of luck Martin and thanks for leaving a comment.

@@Fishwish Thanks for the information. I must say I was impressed more with the size of the Dace, my biggest being 9 oz. Could possibly beat that there.Regards.

@ I think so. A few years ago, I caught one a couple of fields down when targeting chub with meat that looked well over a pound, but I didn’t have scales. Caught at dusk and the only way I could get my head around it was to assume it was a dace chub hybrid…but came home to learn they don’t hybridise so it was 100% a dace. Wish I’d weighed it.

@@kevinoboyle685 nice one. Best of luck. keynsham AA would be pleased to see more of their members fishing the river.

Happy new year! Yes, the reservoirs only 2 miles upriver from here. I fly fished it for pike a couple of years ago and made a vid of that too. Thanks for commenting 👍

🤣. He can book me some lovely accommodation and make me dinner next time, then. Thanks for leaving a comment and glad it brought back fond memories.

Loved it. I meant to show you Grayling corner as it’s totally unfishable now. It’s been 12 years since we last fished it. Fishing can be taken far too seriously sometimes.That was good fun indeed.

Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment and glad you enjoyed it. I need to get out and do some more. Do you fish that canal or did you just stumble on this video by chance?

Wow! Ten flies a trip is a lot to be loosing, but I can well imagine that salmon flies are expensive. Same with pike flies to some extent. Thanks for leaving a comment and hope you catch on the next trip (and loose less flies!)

@Fishwish thank you.. most Salmon are above 15 pounds. Some, like the 1 on my profile picture are above 30 pounds.. if the water is low and clear , 6lb leader,but mostly 8lb..

Thanks Steven. The grayling in the Frome are quite unique to be fair. They grow incredibly quickly considering the short lifespan. In my local River Chew, you’ll be lucky to catch one over a pound in a lifetime

Sorry Jim, thought I’d replied to this at the time. Well worth the wait. How many years have you waited so far? Tool me about ten! I think they’ve now stopped adding people to it.

It’s the Rio two tone indicator tippet. the different coloured zones help with different light conditions throughout the day

Well done you 2. Great captures!! Loved the deer bit, just as well it wasn't a wild boar or wild cat.😂

@ 🐗😂

Think my reply just got added as a comment

@@andrewgamble5332 yes, a good employer but little consolation if you’re prevented from doing the job you thought you were signing up to. I really feel for those who’ve trained to get those roles only to have to toe the line

@@petermitchell421 Thanks Peter. I believe there’s good examples now of circles getting stuck in stomachs so I’m not sold on them. I agree that trebles can be a huge problem - especially barbed ones, but big singles can do huge damage too. I’ve never quite understood why someone doesn’t bring out a style of treble where two of the points are effectively harmless - just attaching bait and presenting a well positioned single point. Invariably, when I’ve used trebles, one point is in the dead bait, one point is laying flat on the DB, and the third is only one showing. With singles and doubles I’ve had them end up flat against the bait. Not that I do much dead baiting these days…

@@SakhawatHossen-d4e good thanks. Glad you’re enjoying them so much. I’m not getting views and subs because I’m so bloody great that I don’t need them. So my vids aren’t full of click bait rubbish or tenuous banter. I don’t even care if I don’t catch fish because fishing is about life - honest life

@@andrewwilliams9223 I’m not familiar with enough to give you an informed answer but my guess would be that the roach fishing would be very good during winter based on what I have experienced a mile upstream.

@Fishwish Thank you

@Fishwish Thank you

@@andrewwilliams9223 was talking to a friend yesterday who knows this river far better than I do. Apparently the bigger roach have all but disappeared, while the chub and perch seem to be thriving.

@@Filipiakowski thanks mate. I should have said “that’s a wrap” at the end. 👍

@@rybikes6630 Same re the litter and well done. The main reason I continue to buy a rod licence is because it’s the law but I’m not happy with how that money is spent and the fact that no one else seems to be paying their way (boat users, wild swimmers, utility companies, agriculture and private bore holes etc.) . Whilst the EA doesn’t do enough, it’s worth noting what they do with the rod licence money - a large amount goes into angling development and participation initiatives, but it’s also used for improving fish stocks, monitoring and enforcement. Whether it represents value for money is another question altogether though. The problem goes beyond the EA, onto government. Rod licence revenue used to be more or less match funded but now gets next to nothing and is also used to fund things that don’t necessarily benefit the angler.

@@neilmason158 thanks for the kind comment Neil - that’s good of you to leave one. Not trotted for them since making this, but I’m looking forward to trying to get my brother into a fish on the next big frost.

@@sheppeyfishtales how on earth did you manage that!? Were you bait or lure fishing?

Well, I was lure fishing but I gave up and put some worms on instead 😆😆😆. It was Portland Marina which I think is different to the harbour.

Replied above 👆

@@gaiusbell3309 thanks - it’s a nice alternative to a lanyard.

@@Fishwish Great Idea that. I also like your disgorger on a zinger!

Thanks for commenting Paul. A fair request because I know how closed minded some of the anti fishing brigade can be when you try and explain to them that dispatching a fish is no more cruel than buying a cheese sandwich from Tesco (imported forest destroying palm oil spread, intensive indoor dairy farmed milk from maize fed, river polluting cattle etc etc). It was a personal choice of mine to include this because the fish was taken home, eaten and enjoyed. It’s tragic how disconnected people have become from nature, particularly in the UK, whilst also casting hypocritical moral judgments on those living humble, sustainable and ethical lives. To not include it would be to capitulate to the ill informed animal rights campaigners out there who are opposed to fishing for the pot.

I had a bad feeling about this being on youtube. But you know what, i catch fish, and on occasions eat them or return them. These people have free will to watch or to ignore. Its a sad reality that everythings glossed over. In my opinion its a good video because its real and not fake.

@@williamhalliday617 interesting you should say this as an angler has just had a dig at me right now, saying it was stupid of me to include a dropped fish in a video. Best practice fish handling is crucially important, but accidents happen and to pretend that no distress is ever caused to fish while fishing is not just misleading - it's dishonest. Credit to Paul for giving his opposing view so respectfully.

@@Hutch118000 thanks for commenting Hutch. I forget about these videos until someone kindly comments. Had a little rewatch myself and it was lovely to be reminded of that enjoyable freezing cold day. I normally dread the winter but this puts a positive light on it. Just sent a text to my brother to remind him that he has a score to settle with a grayling. Thanks so much for commenting

@@steveparker1240 Alex Fraser made quite a few for Pike Anglers Club regional representatives so I reckon your best first port of call would be Pike Anglers Club, but let me know if it doesn’t lead to anything and I’ll ask Alex to give you a shout.

Thanks! Most of the Bristol Avon barbel are now showing in the lower reaches downstream of Bath as opposed to the better known stretches upstream. This one was from farmland at Saltford that gave me permission to fish in return for a £5 donation to Marie Curie Cancer Care.

@@Fishwish Great, thanks for your reply. Love your vids

@@AndrzejWidelski thanks 🙏. Always nice to hear as they rarely get a comment. Good luck and say hello if we bump into each other. 👍

Thanks Mr Bell. I think it was so hit and miss because of the rapidly changing conditions. Can't be that often that the lake suddently rises 1.5m and turns into a river. We literally saw it drop back and go from coffee colour to weak tea in the space of four days. Areas that offered enough depth on day 1 and 2 became too shallow and too slack by day 3 and 4. Well that's my theory, anyway.

What the best shotting pattern would be played on my mind a lot, so thanks for this. The float was initially locked with stops with the bulk next to it for maximum casting distance. I also wanted to pick up fish on the drop. The wind did pick up and when the towing issue persisted I reluctantly put the bulk two thirds down. Reluctantly because I find that fish reject the bait more frequently with that shot pattern and that I also miss more bites. Not sure whether that's because of the fish rejecting or the striking ability being diminished? Probably an element of laziness too, because taking the bulk away from under the float meant putting the equivalent weight with smaller diameter shot (I don't have olivettes and didn't know anglers used them on heavy wagglers too?). It's a really interesting point though and I'd love to know at what depth match anglers might switch from fishing waggler with bulk next to or down the line. Fried my head a little bit to be honest. Hoped for a bonus bream but also had little dreams of giant rudd running through my mind as it struck me as exactly the sort of place where I might find one. Thanks again for commenting. Although I'm a fishing coach, it's grass root stuff and I really don't know much about the finer aspects of match fishing, so it's appreciated.

Giving up sea fishing? That's a bit drastic, isn't it!? Can't say I blame you though - love my sea fishing, but the days of standing on the beach looking upwards for a fish to hang itself are long gone. Would love to join you bass fishing at some point though...

Thanks - I was pleased with it, but less pleased with the time of day that I managed to drag myself down there! No idea who you're referring to btw - there was only noddies on this trip!

@@maxinesmyth3183 my pleasure. Bream slime matters 😶‍🌫️

Good luck!

Yes, me too. A nice glide definitely would have been my preference. Too much turbulent boiling water to contend with during that session.

@@userweddf7627 the angler who lost their fish because they didn’t have the right one. Obviously. 🙄

The fish care/and as a angler you should be loo

@@michaelflaherty9697 good point!

@@michaelflaherty9697 thanks Michael - When a video like this doesn’t take off I start to wonder if it’s of any interest/value to anyone so that’s music to my ears.

Ooooh! I love prezzies 😁👍

Thanks - I did wonder about the perch. Looks like the perfect place for trotting live minnows as chub, perch and trout must thrive on them. Ideal as there's no pike that far up. Not sure what the club rules are on that one though.

That’s a really good point that I missed out. Thank you.

@@FloatingCream ha - that’s exactly what Ian said! Thanks for watching btw

@@RV-of2in ah sorry / didn’t even occur to me that there might be another Portland harbour.. showing my ignorance! Thanks

You and me both!

Hi David, Not entirely sure if your comment is meant for me, but to be absolutely clear: kayaks are not allowed to launch there and the harbourmaster has nothing but my upmost respect for the way in which he dealt with that situation. Regarding the actual rule that he acted upon - well that's a different matter altogether and I have since written to request further consideration and better clarity on signage, harbour website and downloadable legislative documents. Those matters I shall be pushing with a clear conscience.

@@Fishwish No it was meant for anyone watching, you know what people are like?

@@davidoldboy5425 nice one 👍

@@gaiusbell3309 yes the legit one was sound. He was quite officious when he called us into the harbour master dock from the main bridge which made a public example of us, but he very quickly mellowed when he saw how rattled and anxious we were. I’ve written a letter to the harbour office to commend him and point out that allowing people out on any old rubber dinghy with an outboard is no safer and no less conflicting than a semi powered manual kayak. Especially as we have VHF DSC, PFDs, Dry Suits and rudders. Just hope they see sense - even if it’s a seasonal compromise.

@@gaiusbell3309 lol. I’m ashamed of this one so gave it a deservedly rubbish thumbnail to dissuade people from clicking on it. Still, can’t win em all. Great to see you and really looking forward to Nodmanchester. Billy is getting excited about doing some match fishing - your 15 footer excited him. I offered him one but he said he’s not ready for it 😂

Thanks. This one was a gift, but I believe they cost £250 to make because they're hand made and take a lot of time. I remember when soft toy carp first came about - someone had one commisioned to remember their PB catch, using the photo. Cost went from £80 to make down to £30 once the demand went up, so there's hope. If you still really want one, give me a shout via the Fishwish website contact details and I'll try and put Alex Fraser in touch with you. Where you based?