‘As I enjoyed a mug of tea, I kept looking at the spot where I’d caught the perch. At the same time, I said to myself, ‘If one big perch is in that bit of water, others should be around’. Standing on the weed rack, I peered intently into the water and then spotted what I thought was another perch’
During a discussion with my friend Stephen Collins, a solicitor, he said “Can you come down for a couple of days and fly-fish for pike on a trout-fishing preserve on the River Kennet?” My answer was, “Yes…and why?” He replied “Some pike need to be caught and transferred to another water more suitable for pike.” Stephen lived in the lovely village of Hungerford where I could stay, so there was no problem with B&B. Two days later I made the long trip south in the early hours of the morning so as to miss the heavy traffic on the motorways. I stopped off in Newbury for some breakfast and also to top-up with fuel from Sainsbury’s where it’s a lot cheaper than on the motorway.
Within an hour of arriving at Stephen’s, we were on our way to the river. Conditions were quite good, with an overcast sky with a light south-westerly wind. After a long walk across the meadow, we arrived at the river, a water I had fished in the past for the chub. After sorting out some gear, I chose to use a nine-foot, nine-weight rod. I used a weight-forward line with a short sink-tip line, to which I attached a nine foot, 15lb b.s. leader. Then, using an Albright knot, I attached fifteen inches of 15lb b.s. wire trace, then a small link swivel to make changing fly patterns easy.
I chose to use a ‘Black Magic’ Pattern. This fly is made to represent an eel, a favourite food of the pike, but also it’s a good chub pattern. The first time I used this pattern was on the river Aire, where I’d often seen a good pike when trout fishing. On one session I thought, ‘Let’s try for the big pike’ and on my second cast I got a ‘hook up’, eventually landing a pike weighing 17pounds 8 ounces. After releasing the fish, I said to Kate, “I will have to think of a name for this pattern.” Kate immediately offered “Black Magic”, hence the name I use.
Today on the Kennet I made a cast across and well downstream, then started working the fly back upstream. As I worked the fly across the flow towards some mid-river obstruction, I caught sight of what I thought was a small pike, then the water erupted as a prickly dorsal fin showed. At the same time I felt a solid hit and there was no need to tighten, the fish was on. After a brief struggle Stephen netted what I thought was a 3-pound fish but in fact weighed in at 3 pounds 4 ounces; I then got carried away thinking I could catch more perch. Apart from a couple of pike, I had no more interest in the Black Magic, or other pike flies, during the next couple of hours.
Change of Tactics
I then chose to fish a swim further downstream below the railway bridge, ledgering crust for chub. Before putting together my gear, I put in two of balls of mashed bread, close to the far bank, just upstream of a large overhanging willow tree where some of its branches were trailing in the water creating a small raft. The rod I used was an eleven-foot, soft Avon action and then attached a Mitchell 300 reel, loaded with six-pound line. To this I attached a size four barbless hook, then added three LG shot six inches above the hook. In the first three casts I had three good bites, landing two chub of around three pounds. Putting in another handful of mashed bread, I rested the swim for about fifteen minutes. While I sat resting the swim, I kept thinking of the perch I’d earlier caught. I then had several chub between two and three pounds before losing a chub and the swim died. In the next half an hour I had no more interest, so decided to head off upstream for a brew, and also to rethink my tactics.
As I enjoyed a mug of tea, I kept looking at the spot where I’d caught the perch. At the same time, I said to myself, ‘If one big perch is in that bit of water, others should be around’. Standing on the weed rack, I peered intently into the water and then spotted what I thought was another perch.
Float-fished lobworms
Back in the cabin with a second brew, eating a cheese sandwich, I thought about the perch and became convinced there were other fish to be caught. Tea break over, I put together a thirteen-foot rod, a centre-pin reel with 4lb b.s. line, then attached a five-AA, cork-on-quill, Avon float with a size eight barbless hook. Plumbing the depth, I set the float so the bait would be fished around a foot off the bottom, then spent some fifteen minutes feeding in chopped worms and gentles down both sides of the river.
Suddenly small fry were leaping from the water and at the same time I noticed a prickly dorsal fin. “Time to try and catch a perch…” I said to myself. Before doing so I put a big handful of gentles on the weed-rack at both ends, which would create a flow of gentles into two swims.
Hooking a lobworm in the head, I made a cast close to the left-hand bank and, as the float made its way downstream, it bobbed. I said to myself, “That’s a fish.” It bobbed again and I thought, “…that’s a fish, not weed or other obstruction…” Ten feet further downstream, the float moved sideways then slowly submerged. My answering strike connected with a good fish and soon my second three-pound perch was in the net. Immediately Stephen was beside me and after weighing the fish he shot some pictures.
Stephen then said, “I’m going to watch you fish today and shoot a few pictures.” In fact, Stephen not only netted my fish, he also unhooked and weighed them, before releasing each fish upstream. If any of them weighed three pounds plus Stephen would take a trophy shot. All I had to do was bait the hook, then work the float down the swim and, hopefully, I would hook and guide another good fish to the net.
Ten feet from both ends of the weed rack I put down more gentles which slowly crawled away to fall down into the water. At the same time, I was feeding chopped worms into the two swims close to the left- and right-hand banks. It worked like a charm as the perch continued feeding. Having caught a couple of fish from the left-hand swim, I would switch to the right hand swim but then as the day wore on I started running short of bait.
Stephen was quickly beside me with all his own worms and gentles and this enabled me to keep the fish in the swim by dropping in a handful of free offerings on each cast. As I went to bring in my tackle for another cast, there was a big swirl on the surface. I felt the fish hit and then tightened the line; the rod-tip was pulled down quite savagely and the reel grudgingly gave a few feet of line; ‘this is a pike’, I thought, but I was wrong; I’d hooked another good perch to judge by the jagging action on the line. Twice it tried for some sunken alder branches but then it was out into the faster flowing water.
I crammed on the pressure and it worked; I was soon gaining line. Then, for some unknown reason, the fish went berserk and I was forced to give more line. It was several minutes before I had the fish completely under control. Pushing the net in the water I drew the fish towards the net. As the fish went over the net I lifted; it was mine. Admiring the fish, I thought back to the time Dick Walker described the perch as “The biggest fish in freshwater.” They certainly do look the biggest of all our freshwater fish, pound for pound. I also reckon the big perch is one of the most exciting of all our fish.
I caught a total of thirty-one perch, weighing between 1lb 12oz and 3lb 11oz. Nine of these were three pounds-plus fish. I lost one other which I reckon could have been four pounds plus and I had had a good look at that fish before it slipped the hook. Was I gutted? It had been an exciting fishing session…
Writing & Images – Martin James MBE, Winter 2025
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