I am back out on the river, after a long break. I am still trying to catch a 30+ Common carp. I think I need a bit of a break from carp fishing to get my head back in order.
I have picked a nice area, where I have been told the barbel sometime hang around this time of the year. However, it’s not the best weather for sitting on open ground, as the wind is due go gust up to 50 mph (which is nice).
I am using Gulp Baits, Tuna & Spice 16mm baits, soaked in Gulp Liver & fish dip. With some ground bait & broken up Red crustation boillies.
Hopefully with all this lot, I will finally catch a Barbel from this river.
I also spent an hour after some Chub on my favorite weir pool.
Even with all that effort I still managed to blank.
I would like to give a brief snap shot of my life and introduce myself;
My name is Richard Handel and was born in 1965 in Suffolk. I have worked as a UK Operation & Intermodule Manager for a shipping company. I live in Hampshire now and am married with 2 young children, both girls so I am a bit outnumbered even the cat is a girl!
I have been fishing since I was about 7 years old. I started on small local rivers in Suffolk, then moved onto gravel pits and then carp fishing. My personal best is a 39.08 mirror, over recent years I have started river fishing again, on the Hampshire Avon, this is a nice break from the carp lakes.
My life has turned a big corner this year, the company I was working for relocated their Operation centre to Estonia. I was offered a job at the head office in London. This would have meant a 5 day commute and working in Stratford. As a family, we did not fancy this, as I would hardly spend any time with the children (and the Mrs). So after 22.5 years, I was given a nice redundancy package and with my wife is working full time. I became the house husband.
This has meant a complete turn around in my fishing, as I can pick and choose when I go. I have found a splendid new syndicate to fish this year, which includes 5 lakes and some 8 miles of river with only 150 members. It's an amazing change to the way I am able to fish.
I am now trying to start my own tackle business and make a bit of a name for myself in the world of fishing, as I have retired from real work.
Richard
UK Carp & Coarse Fishing 