I've just spent a week (ish - 20 to 25 May, to be precise) in Carlton Miniott, N. Yorks, so as to fish Woodland Lakes - a venue I've fished many times, which I'd chosen this time partly because of my familiarity with it; and partly ... Read More

Nothing is ever straightforward, is it? I recently took delivery of the Okuma Custom Black CB-60 reels I talk about here. And they're great: good-looking, smooth, well-built - and they come with a freespool-to-locked-up-in-3/4-of-a-turn drag. I'd ... Read More

Well now that's a pisser...  Everything had been going well with my BPX reel quick drag conversions, as I discuss here.  Last night I was having another play with the reels - as you do - and I noticed that one of them ... Read More

I mention in another post that I like a bargain when it comes to my fishing tackle. So although I could easily have sprung for something more expensive, when the urge recently struck for a (mini) "big pit" reel (or three) - an urge ... Read More

As part of my plan to get back to being an active angler (this is not a contradiction in terms...) I'm going to have a serious crack at single-hook pike rigs. Treble hooks on pike traces have been the norm for as long as I've fished ... Read More

No, a big step. But I had my reasons. Obviously... In one sense it's a no-brainer: most people would - I reckon - be ready for something new after forty-odd years of earning a living. and I certainly fall into that category. But ... Read More

I've never bought into the intellectually lazy meme that "you get what you pay for..." I've lost count of the number of times I've landed some piece of gear that has punched way above its pecuniary weight... So it ... Read More