In The Scissors.

Saturday and Sunday of last weekend was spent on the Coventry canal between Hawksbury and Bedworth. On the Saturday afternoon, I'd walked up to the first bridge at Bedworth, having a good look for Zandery looking spots on my way there before fishing my way back, there's loads of good spots along this stretch and lucky for me the first spot brought a bite on the first cast but it took a second cast to hook the fish.

I've had the same problem that Lee Fletcher's (This Angling Life) been having with bobbins not hanging correctly when resting on the uneven bankside vegetation so brought one extra item of hardware on this trip, a bank stick with twin glow in the dark rod rest heads on a short buzzbar.It came in useful for keeping the line out of the near bank greenery and it allowed me the choice of where to place the bobbins depending on how thick the vegetation was. The two choices being either in front of the rod rest or between the rest and reel.

The second fish of the session came from a spot near a large overhanging willow tree, the dark shadow cast by the tree looked really good for a take but it was a cast away from the tree that found the fish, another smallish Zed of around a couple of pounds.

As the evening grew darker I noticed some surface movement just down from the spot I was fishing and kept one eye on things, there was something definitely being chased. I made a move a bit closer and put both baits in the area. Half an hour passed before I got a good positive lift on the bobbin and struck but there was nothing there, I quickly recast to the same area but nothing else developed.

On Sunday afternoon I started the session at the Navigation Bridge in Bedworth heading back to Coventry. Along this stretch, just where the gardens that back onto the canal finish, there's a very dark enclosed section with tall overhanging tree's and high banks on both sides, the first fish of the day came from here but I only noticed the slightest of movement on the bobbin, it dropped back about half an inch and then didn't move until I had to reel in for a passing boat, as soon as I lifted the rod and tightened up I felt the distinctive head shake vibrate up the line letting me know a fish was on.

I continued along this stretch until I ended up where I'd started on Saturday, I tried the same swim that proved lucky for my first cast on Saturday and would you believe it, the fish was still there.

One thing I did notice about all the fish caught at the weekend, they were all hooked either in the top jaw or right in the scissors, I'm liking the single hook traces!