Ive never really thought about how much detail goes into my paste fishing i just take it for granted and get on with it,but after being asked to write about it on this blog, It's actually bloody hard work!!
So I've made all my rigs up made my paste and its time to get fishing, lets say I'm at Tirley court and I've draw the deeper bank.
Plumbing up, I'm looking for a flattish area(for those who have fishing this bank at Tirley you know this is not an easy job).Now I'm really looking for and area 3 metres from the bank but not too worried if the area i find is dinner plate sized or the size of a dinner table as long as it's flat. I will do this at 3 metres at around 5 metres and one last line where i can fish just my top 2. Now i found the depth and i will start by fishing dead depth on all lines, this may change if there's any tow or if the bites dry up etc.if its towing i have no problem fishing over depth but not too much maybe maximum of 2 inches if its still towing then I've no problem with some movement as when paste fishing really the float shouldn't have much time to settle. the bites should be present almost immediately, if there not it just means you have less time for you're paste to stay on the hook before you have to re bait.
So now my attention turns to my paste which at the moment just looks like over damp pellet.Take a good handful out of the tub and mould it so it has a smooth consistency. Now if I'm planning to fish the 3 metre line at the start i will place the paste that I've mixed in my landing net and give it a good dampening in the lake, then i will give it another good mixing with my hands, i don't want it too soft as i need it to stay on the hook when shipping out and also i don't want it to fall off the hook when fish brush the line etc. I want it to stay on until i get a proper bite.The rest of the mixture in the box will be for fishing further out as it will be stiffer and for re mixing to fish the nearer lines too.
To start off i will feed with a pole pot to get the fish there, and once I'm catching regular i will feed by hand. Now one point i will make is if you're trying to catch 100lb plus of fish you will need more than 1 pint of feed pellet i will take with me 8-10 pints of feed pellet for a venue like Tirley.That doesn't mean i will always feed heavy but if i didn't have it ,it could affect my whole match.
Now i will feed a good handful of pellet at the start every put in, in fact i could use 2 pints of pellet within the first hour.Now if i find that I'm starting to get foul hookers i will reduce my feed until i start getting proper bites again, i will even reduce this to nothing if needed as the paste will still feed the line I'm fishing, I will still feed nothing if have to until my bites start to slow and then will feed again, and will continue to feed this way until the end or until circumstances require me to do something different.
The bites I'm expecting are the same every fishery which contains carp they never seem to differ,You will start by the float moving,dipping,slowly going under but you're not going to hit these bites,i know it's tempting to strike but don't, you will either miss the bites or foul hook fish and lose them, the bite you're waiting for is a quick almost violent, slamming of the float under then you know this is a proper bite, so you have to be quick to hit these bites miss it and you miss the fish.Like i said before sometimes you will have adjust you're shotting etc to get these proper bites and sometimes it also helps when hitting the bites.
really the be all and end all is Practise and perseverance and you will do the "Ton" if you haven't before and will get more coin.
I have unless I've forgotten anything given you my advice on how i fish the paste but ultimately it's up to you to put them into practise. The biggest part of paste fishing is confidence, use the tackle you find best and the rest will come with practise.
I look forward to my 50% of you're winnings when you win with paste lol
Don't forget any questions please ask (I'm a good liar)
Anything I've forgot let me know and I'll add it in another blog
Andy, I know I asked you to do a Paste Fishing info sheet, but, I never imagined you would get RSI writing it, thanks. I think the thing that comes out of your ramblings is exactly what I expected, it is the "Confidence" thing, if you have that you will catch because with fishing, nothing is ever wrong, fish are crazy things and how can one person say you are fishing a swim incorrectly when you have more in the net than others!! I hope members enjoy reading your informative Blog as much as I did, some things I do the same as you, somethings I dont, but, as you say, its preference - I just wish I had more time to actually go fishing but, I am sure that will come. Thanks again, Paul.
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