Gravel Pit Bream on the Window Feeder

There is some great fishing to be had on my local Kingsbury Water Park, and one of my favourite lakes on the complex is Bodymoor Heath Water; a large mature gravel pit with a good stock of bream. These slabs often feature in matches on the venue, and if you get your tactics right, can be caught through the day, enabling some impressive weights to be put together. This is classic bream fishing at its best, and although sport tends to slow down in the colder months, a considered approach can still catch some lovely fish. 

This is a shallow lake, despite its size, averaging around two metres deep. It is also clear of weed, so the fishing is relatively straightforward and it is possible to fish with quite light balanced gear, which can prove the difference between success and failure when fishing during the middle of the day. Bream being bream, they tend to be found at range, but there is no need to fish at extreme distances along the bank I am fishing today. I will set out to fish two lines, one at 25 metres, the other at 35 metres. Both rods will be clipped up to ensure that I hit the same distance every time. 

To begin with I will prime both lines by making two casts with a large ‘bait up’ feeder filled with caster, dead maggots, a little sweetcorn and a pinch of pellets, topped off with groundbait. This is enough bait to attract the attention of the bream, and get them browsing, without giving them too much to eat, which can make them difficult to catch. 

Waiting Game

Bream fishing can be a waiting game. It may take an hour or two for the fish to arrive, so it pays to be patient. One of the biggest mistakes you can make is to lose confidence and not fish consistently. I use a timer to ensure that I recast regularly and to plan right through my session, as it is easy to lose track of time. Initially, I recast every five minutes for the first hour. This lays down some more bait and will inevitably create a little more spread. In hour two I switch to recasting every ten minutes, as I don’t want to overfeed, especially if I haven’t had any signs of bream in front of me. By hour three I may switch to recasting every 15 minutes, if the bream haven’t appeared. If I am catching though, or getting liners, then I will continue to recast more regularly. 

I am loading my Window feeder with a combination of casters and a little chopped worm. This is sealed with a pinch of my quite sweet fishmeal groundbait. I find the bream like a groundbait that has this sweetness to take the edge off the fishmeal. Because the water is quite clear I don’t want to put too much bait on the bottom. Just enough to attract the fish to my line and hold them a while is my aim. The Window feeder ensures the bait gets to the bottom in the feeder, giving a real focal point for the bream to home-in on. 

I will alternate hookbaits to see if one stands out. Two dead maggots is a good opening gambit. Three pinkies are also very good if the fish are a little finicky. I also have with me some red worms, collected from a muck heap. Whilst this might be an almost forgotten bait, they are absolute gold for bream and will often bring a bite when all else fails. 

Red worms are a brilliant bream bait.

Sink the quiver tip to avoid drag on the line.

The Sphere Medium Feeder is brilliant for this style of fishing.

A big bream falls for the red worm hookbait.

I like to ensure I add the same amount of feed every cast.

Add some casters, before filling the window with a little groundbait.

Cold wind

There is a cold wind blowing down the lake this morning, so I am glad to be tucked slightly back. The positive is that the fish will feed more confidently with a ripple on the water surface. After the first couple of hours without any indications it is easy to lose confidence, but from past experience it is just a case of plugging away. When the bream arrive I will catch them. 

My rig is quite simple, although I have been experimenting with a variation on the traditional paternoster set-up. I have attached the hooklength to a Browning Feeder Connector Swivel, which allows me to change the rig instantly. The swivel is fished helicopter-style, running on the main line with two stoppers set about 12 inches up the line. The feeder is attached via a powergum link, which acts as a cushion for the loaded feeder on the cast. 

My hooklength consists of one metre of 0.13mm, 3.5lb breaking strain fluorocarbon to a size 18 Sphere Match hook. This might sound a little light when big bream are the target, but my gear is very well balanced, thanks to the superb action of the Sphere Medium feeder rod, which absorbs any lunges of the bream. With no snags or weed in front of me it is just a case of taking my time and slowly leading the fish towards the net. 

Fishing with quite fine lines and small hooks can make a massive difference to your catches. If you are getting line bites, but not catching then be prepared to scale down, fish lighter and try a smaller hookbait.

After swapping to a little red worm on the hook the tip of my Sphere feeder rod pulls round confidently and I am into my first bream of the session. From the heavy nods on the rod tip it feels like a good fish, and I am not surprised when a bream of about 7lb pop-ups in front of the net. It is a little bit bigger than the average stamp on this lake; a nice fish indeed. 

The next cast is almost a repeat performance. The feeder settles and shortly after sinking the line the tip pulls round confidently once again. This time the fish feels faster, with less weight to it, and so it proves as a fish of a couple of pounds finds its way into the waiting net. 

And as soon as the fish have appeared they are gone again. Despite ringing the changes that is it for today, with no more bites coming my way. All bream fishing, but especially on gravel pits, can be a game of nerves, but if you stick to your plan the rewards are there to be had.

Tight lines! 

Pat Cuddy