River Adur Streatham A Very Short Stick Float Practice Session Monday 16th October 2023

A short practice session on the stick float at Streatham on the River Adur.
Fishing Gear
12ft Oakwood Match Rod
Shimano RB 2500 Reel
Preston Innovations Reflo Power Main Line 0.21mm
Drennan Supplex Fluerocarbon Hooklinks 0.20mm
Drake Alloy Stemmed Domed Float 3.2g
Matrix Hooklength Swivel (Size 20)
Kamasan Siz3 14 Barbless Hooks
Drennan In Line Olivette
Royalty Free Music by Kevin Macleod

[@user-ls1rh4lw3w]

Nice one Alan, tide and time wait for no man, nice to see you break the duck … much closer to home and beautiful place to fish. Really looking forward to next video 🎣

[@intercity735]

Thank you Helen

[@johnstevens5042]

🍺🍺🚬🍺🍺

[@editiontiger9201]

Hi Alan. Thank you for another great video! I enjoyed that. Float fishing in a river can be tricky because you want the float to follow the flow of the water whilst at the same time keeping the line tight. If it's not tight, that's when you start missing the bites. I know you told me you were set in your ways, but that's not going to stop me from suggesting getting a centrepin reel :-) They were made for stuff like this. And you've already got the 12" rod!

[@intercity735]

Hi,mate that's a great piece of advice I can see why I'm missing bites it really didn't occur to me before that my line is slack it has to be tighter in order to set the hook home. I do miss a lot of bites when float fishing and I've always wondered why that is I think that's the reason. I've never used a centre pin or a closed faced reel but maybe I will invest in one later especially if I do more stick float fishing,I'm glad you enjoyed the video and I'll see you on the next one.

[@editiontiger9201]

Sadly, if you buy them from new, modern centrepin reels tend to be ridiculously expensive. However, if you go on Facebook Marketplace (or a place like that), you can find perfectly decent centrepins for £25-40 (+ postage).@@intercity735

[@editiontiger9201]

I just happened to come across this KZbin video which demonstrates the power of the centrepin. One can clearly see in the video how the float pulls the line off the reel, which means that the float moves naturally whilst at the same time keeping the line tight. The very second he gets a bite, all he has to do is to put his thumb on the reel and hook the fish. He doesn't have to worry if the the line is tight or not, because it always is. I would encourage you to watch it. It's kzbin.info/www/bejne/f5jCnH6MZ6uqeLcsi=k32tbkck1jgRjdkv @@intercity735

[@tonysmith2721]

Hi Alan. I’m no expert, but I do know that the bottom rubber needs to overhang the alloy stem. It stops tangles. Thanks for the videos.

[@intercity735]

Thanks,Tony I'll remember that next time it's all trial and error so I'm grateful for any advice I'm given cheers mate

[@166Chatty]

Hi Alan, it is tricky learning to fish with a stick float. I am a member of Henfield AS and if you want to meet up I would be pleased to help you if you want a little assistance. I am really enjoying your adventures keep them coming mate.

[@intercity735]

Thanks, mate much appreciated I'll get in touch if I need any assistance it's all a learning process but one that could be quite productive if you get it right.

[@166Chatty]

@@intercity735 Tell me about it Alan. I have been trotting the Adur for over 50 years and it changes on every visit due to size of tide and seasons. This is because fish move up and down the river as the tides get bigger or smaller, generally the smaller the tide the further they are down the river. The main tip I can give you is reduce your reel line diameter for trotting and keep adjusting your depth up or down with the water. Personally I never use line heavier than 4lb BS for trotting and I have landed some large fish on the river. Good luck Steve.

[@intercity735]

Thanks for that Steve great advice I will lower my diameter on the next one especially with the colder weather approaching. I really wish this river was non tidal it would make things a lot simpler but if you can master it I think it's a great achievement.

[@intercity735]

Hi,Ray yep your right I think it is a Roach I'll be perfectly honest when I saw the fish back on video I thought I had made a boo boo never mind. I've watched a lot of Avon Angling videos which are on KZbin his name is Nic and this is how he fishes the rivers for Chub etc and he catches a lot of fish as well so I thought why not give it a go you never know it could be very productive although the rivers he fishes are non tidal which makes things much easier.On this river the depth is changing all the time due to the tide.I will give it some more goes and also the traditional way with shots just to see which works best. There are some big Chub on that particular stretch I'd love to catch one.Thanks for the advice mate always appreciated there's so much to learn with this river fishing

[@rayb228]

Firstly you left your comfort zone, tried new tackle and technique that's always a steep learning curve, so well done on that!. But.....just have a second look at the first fish you show, looks like a Roach to me, easy mistake i'm sure when your filming and excited at a first capture. The way you fished that float was not "traditional" shirt button style shotting so you might have just used a waggler? Keep at it.... we all have different ways of absorbing knowledge, have a look at some more videos and most importantly BOOKS, some of the older Magazines did illustrated guides on stick float fishing and as always the "old boys" did it first just follow and adapt their work to your need. Every days a school day Sir! 🎣😁