There used to be a time when the arrival of cooler weather meant sport would slow down considerably, but the boom in quality silverfish in commercials means that’s a thing of the past.
Big numbers of bream, perch, roach and ide are widespread in these venues, and when the carp and F1s go off the boil, the silverfish remain more than willing to continue feeding.
Your tactics will need refining to capitalise on this fully, with more finesse in the rigs and bait department, especially when trying to pick out the better-stamp silvers.
So, adapt to the changing conditions and the action doesn’t have to stop just because autumn has arrived!
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Get the bait down
A bulk of shot set 2ft from the hook with a couple of smaller droppers spread below is the ideal shotting pattern for autumn silvers. It gets the hookbait down quickly, before slowing it considerably in the bottom water layers. Terminal tackle-wise, 0.15mm mainline to a 0.08mm fluorocarbon hooklength and a size 20 hook is about right.
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Never bump a fish
Selecting the right elastic for the job in hand is very important. A solid grade five provides the perfect balance, because it is strong enough to set the hook securely, yet sufficiently forgiving to avoid hookpulls when playing species like bream and perch. It’s the perfect complement to the fined-down terminal tackle that you’ll be using.
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Feed two lines
Set up two long pole lines on parallel angles but feed them differently. Cup in five large balls of groundbait over one and let it settle for a couple of hours. On the other, feed a small nugget with a few maggots and casters included. The negative approach often produces early, with the more positive line coming into its own later in the session.
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Come short late-on
Bigger silvers are likely to be willing to come close to the bank in the final hour, and a caster approach is the way to tempt them. Feed a dozen every few minutes at 6m throughout the session and leave that swim alone until the golden hour arrives. Once it does, you can expect action there from quality roach, perch and skimmers.
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