Rob Wootton's Guide to Feeder Fishing

This entry was posted on 21st March, 2018

We all know how devastating feeder fishing can be. Whether it’s pleasure angling or a match, it’s certainly a great tactic for amassing a large number of fish. Sometimes it’s a case of slinging out a feeder and your tip won’t stop going round, at other times bites can be hard to come by. I met up with England International feeder angler Rob Wootton at Heronbrooke Fisheries to look at his guide to choosing the correct feeder approach.



 

Story Of The Day

We were fishing Peg 4 on the match lake at Heronbrooke and due to conditions being freezing, interspersed with rain and wind, Rob opted for a maggot feeder approach on the day. The main targets were F1s (up to 7lb) and carp (up to double figures), but as he was using the maggot feeder, roach and other silvers were possible. Rob was casting tight to the far island, which fish were clearly patrolling around. Throughout the course of the day Rob worked his swim, sometimes casting to his left and right, even dropping the feeder short of the island. This steady searching approach kept bites coming and after a few hours fishing Rob had well over 50lb of F1s and carp, which was a brilliant result on a freezing cold day.





 

Choosing The Right Feeder

Rob illustrated three basic types of feeder fishing approaches;

1) Maggot Feeder as used on this session

2) Cage Feeder filled with micro pellets

3) Method Feeder filled with micro pellets



Rob then talked me through the situation and tackle that would constitute when he would use each approach, and how he would set it up.

Maggot Feeder





This is the go to approach when “the water temperature is cold, fish aren’t moving a great deal and you are targeting venues with F1s and carp. The perfect winter feeder approach”

The tackle Rob would use for this is as follows:

Rod- Middy XK55 11ft feeder

Mainline- Middy MTech 6lb

Hooklength- 2ft 0.12mm Middy lo-viz hooklength, Hook- Size 18 Guru LWG hook. Feeder- Drennan 15gr maggot feeder Rig- A running rig

 

Cage Feeder (filled with micro pellet)



Rob would suggest using this approach when “when the fish aren't feeding aggressively but want pellets rather than maggots. Fish can back off from the main pile of bait and feed more cautiously”

The tackle Rob would use for this is as follows:

Rod- Middy XK55 11ft feeder

Mainline- Middy MTech 6lb

Hooklength- 10inch hooklength of 14mm Middy lo-viz hooklength. Hook- Size 16 Matrix carp rigger tied knot less knot Feeder- Micro Drennan cage on a running rig. Hookbait - hair rigged expander pellets or sweetcorn

Micro pellets- soaked in lake water for 20 minutes until soft, and possible flavouring added.

 

Method Feeder (filled with micro pellets)



Finally the Method Feeder would be used by Rob when “when the fish are feeding aggressively and are coming to the feeder. This is perfect in the summer months, when fish are more active and on the feed”

The tackle Rob would use for this is as follows:

Rod- Middy XK55 11ft feeder

Mainline- Middy MTech 6lb

Feeder- Small Preston method feeder Hooklength- 4inch 0.14mm Middy lo-viz hooklength Hook- Size 16 Matrix carp rigger Hookbait- hard 6mm pellet or sweet corn

Don’t forget to head to the Angling Direct website’s dedicated coarse section, where these components are available for you to buy.

Rob has perfectly illustrated his success in choosing the correct feeder approach not only by making it to the England Feeder Fishing team, but by winning numerous high profile matches, putting faith in the feeder approaches he has highlighted above. Next time you are on the bank with your feeder rod, consider these pearls of wisdom from Rob, and select the correct approach. Who knows - it could lead to a match win, or your largest bag of fish!