I have been fishing short day sessions on a Lee Valley water recently and have been lucky enough to have some fantastic fish, all off the surface on Oily Floaters.

This lake is around 65 acres and in all the years I have fished there I have yet to see someone else floater fishing so either  everyone else knew something I didn’t or they were missing out, as I had already landed 15 fish including a brace of 28’s in less than 24 hours fishing.

Floater fishing this type of water isn’t for the faint hearted and yet, with confidence and the correct approach, anything is possible. As always, location is key, but that is only the start. Next you need to get the fish feeding and this year, using Oily Floaters I have been able to get the fish ’going’ on occasions when I would have given up in the past.

As there is nearly always a breeze or wind on larger waters the 11mm Oily Floaters come into their own as they have a weight to them allowing them to be catapulted into the wind, and also due to their oil content they can be introduced consistently to create a slick of attractants that will pull the fish in from a wider area. Once the fish have locked onto the food then by increasing the amount of free offerings, you will be able to get the fish feeding in front of you.

Tackle needs to be strong yet balanced at the same time as although the art is in locating and getting the fish to feed, don’t forget that you are fishing for naturally wary creatures that have been around the block so to say, and they wont tolerate huge hook baits and heavy hook lengths. As a rule you will do well feeding the 11mm Floaters and either using one as a hook bait or the smaller of the two artificial chum mixers that are available, balanced with a size 10 Korum S3 hook.

Combining the above will get you a few extra bites on those hot afternoons when those around you keep muttering that ‘the fish just aren’t having it’….. music to my ears.

On a sad note, the fish I had set my heart on catching this year from this water died last week, so just a quick thank you to a fantastic creature that has given so much pleasure and frustration over the years. I feel like I’ve been in limbo over the last few days after hearing the news and its going to take a while to get my head straight, and onto another venue. So, R.I.P Smokey and tight lines.