Keep The Faith

We join Des Shipp on the banks of an icy Shatterford La kes, for a lesson in considered feeder fishing.

Water temperature,more than any other factor, has the ability to make or break your winter session. It is probably the biggest single deciding factor as to how much you catch, and sadly you have no control over it.

Today, you join me on Masters Pool at the beautiful Shatterford Lakes near Kidderminster, for a lesson in making the most of the toughest winter days.

The first thing to note about the lake that we are on today is that it is very, very deep – over 20 feet in the middle. Deep lakes like this often take longer to cool down in the winter than shallow venues, meaning they can often fish better when the temperatures take a sharp turn for the worse. However, in the springtime they take longer to warm up – so the effect is reversed.

Today, the weather really couldn’t be much colder. Half the lake is frozen, and the temperature isn’t predicted to rise above freezing. We have had a good run of cold weather too, so the water will be about as chilled as it is likely to get. But I am still very confident of putting a nice net of fish together for the camera.

Crucially, I know that this lake holds a good head of mixed silver fish. Roach, bream, perch, carp and plenty of hybrids generally mean that good sport is available – it is simply a matter of getting the fish competing.

However, when you consider the curve ball that the weather has thrown at us today, with ice on one half of the lake, it is going to take a very considered, disciplined approach to achieve this goal.

Why Fish The Feeder?

Cold weather affects fishing in two ways. Firstly, it slows the metabolism of fish, so they need to eat less and are less inclined to swim about.