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River Bend

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      Coarse Fish

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      Carp

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      Game Fish

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      Sea Fish

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  • Techniques
    • Coarse Methods

      Float Fishing for Beginners Feeder Fishing Guide Method Feeder Fishing Pole Fishing for Beginners Match Fishing for Beginners All coarse methods →

      Carp Fishing

      Boilies Guide Carp Surface Fishing Margin Fishing for Carp Zig Rig Fishing Winter Carp Fishing All carp methods →

      Predator and Lure

      Lure Fishing for Pike Lure Fishing for Zander Pike Deadbaiting Spinning for Perch Drop Shot Fishing for Perch All predator methods →

      Fly and Game

      Fly Fishing for Trout (Beginners)

      Species Tactics

      Barbel Fishing Tactics Dace Fishing Tactics Stalking Chub Tench Fishing Tactics Mackerel Fishing Guide
  • Bait
    • Natural Baits

      Maggots and Casters Worms Bread Luncheon Meat Sweetcorn

      Particles and Boilies

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      Attractants and Best Baits

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  • Gear
    • Rods

      Choosing a Fishing Rod Buying Your First Rod Rod Test Curves Explained Top 10 Carp Rods Top 10 Coarse Rods Top 10 Trout Rods Top 10 Sea Rods

      Reels and Line

      Fishing Reel Types Explained Top 10 Spinning Reels Top 10 Baitcaster Reels Fishing Line Guide

      Terminal Tackle

      Fishing Hooks Explained Fishing Hook Sizes Fishing Leads and Weights Terminal Tackle Guide Fishing Floats Explained

      Lures, Nets and Kit

      Types of Fishing Lures Landing Nets Guide Top 10 Landing Nets Top 10 Carp Bivvies Best Fishing Baits PowerBait for Trout All gear and tackle →
  • Knots
    • Essential Knots

      Palomar Knot Improved Clinch Knot Grinner Knot (Uni Knot) Blood Knot

      Carp Rigs

      Knotless Knot Hair Rig Carp Rigs Overview
  • Locations
    • Rivers

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      Lakes and Reservoirs

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      Canals

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      By Region

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  • Rules and Law
    • Licences

      Do You Need a Fishing Licence? Do Children Need a Fishing Licence?

      Close Seasons

      Coarse Fishing Close Season Freshwater Fishing Regulations

      Catch Rules

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      Other Rules

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  • From the Bank
    • Getting Started

      First Fishing Session Checklist Fishing Etiquette Getting Started with Lure Fishing

      Water Reading

      How to Read a River How to Read a Lake

      Tactics and Tips

      Seasonal Fishing Guide How Weather Affects Fishing Overnight Carp Fishing Unhooking and Handling Fish Safely

      Blog

      Why I Stopped Fishing Boilies Reading Water: 20 Years of Pike Fishing Why I Switched From Bait to Lures All blog posts →
  • Start Here
    • Getting Started

      First Fishing Session Checklist Fishing Etiquette Getting Started with Lure Fishing

      Water Reading

      How to Read a River How to Read a Lake

      Tactics and Tips

      Seasonal Fishing Guide How Weather Affects Fishing Overnight Carp Fishing Unhooking and Handling Fish Safely

      Blog

      Why I Stopped Fishing Boilies Reading Water: 20 Years of Pike Fishing Why I Switched From Bait to Lures All blog posts →

Avatar photoRob Hadley

Rob Hadley grew up fishing the rivers and drains of the Norfolk Broads, and it was inevitable that pike would become his species of choice. He's been targeting predators seriously for over 20 years - starting on dead baits, moving through live bait rigs, and eventually landing on lure fishing as his preferred method about eight years ago. These days he fishes the Broads through winter, travels to Chew Valley Lake each spring for its outsized fish, and spends the warmer months working soft plastics on rivers across the East Midlands for perch and zander. He's had pike to 31lb and perch to 3lb 9oz, and reckons both records are beatable on the right day with the right set-up. At The River Bend, Rob writes the predator species guides, lure fishing technique articles, and most of the winter fishing content. Covers: Pike, perch, zander, lure fishing, winter fishing, predator rigs

The Best Baits for Perch: Worms Win, But Not Always

August 23, 2026 by Rob Hadley

Perch are predators with an obvious favourite food, and most anglers overcomplicate it. Here is the short list that actually catches them.

Categories Techniques

Loch Awe Fishing Guide: Ferox, Pike and Brown Trout in Argyll

August 20, 2026 by Rob Hadley

One of the few Scottish waters where you can buy a day permit for pike and trout online, with a protection order, a hatchery and a clear set of byelaws behind it.

Categories Locations

Loch Ken Fishing Guide: Scotland’s Big Pike and Coarse Water

August 21, 2026August 18, 2026 by Rob Hadley

Pike, perch, roach and bream in Dumfries and Galloway, with a permit and access situation that genuinely needs checking before you travel.

Categories Locations

Is There Really a Trick to Catching Fish? My Honest Answer After Twenty Years

August 18, 2026August 5, 2026 by Rob Hadley

People want a secret hack. The real answer is less exciting but far more useful, and it’s taken me years to fully trust it.

Categories From the Bank

The Best Conditions I’ve Ever Fished (And Why I Now Plan Around Them)

August 18, 2026August 4, 2026 by Rob Hadley

Certain conditions consistently produce my best sessions – here’s the pattern I’ve come to trust and plan trips around.

Categories From the Bank

The Worst Time I’ve Ever Gone Fishing (and What It Taught Me About Conditions)

August 18, 2026August 3, 2026 by Rob Hadley

A genuinely miserable blank taught me more about reading conditions than most of my good sessions combined.

Categories From the Bank

What Smell Actually Attracts Fish? Separating the Real Science from Tackle Shop Myth

August 18, 2026August 2, 2026 by Rob Hadley

Fish rely on smell more than most anglers appreciate – here’s what actually seems to work and why, based on what I’ve seen work over the years.

Categories From the Bank

If Someone Asked Me the Easiest Way to Start Fishing, Here’s What I’d Say

August 18, 2026August 1, 2026 by Rob Hadley

Twenty years in, this is the advice I actually give people asking how to get into fishing, stripped of everything unnecessary.

Categories From the Bank

Why I Switched From Bait to Lures for Zander

August 21, 2026July 6, 2026 by Rob Hadley

Zander fishing used to mean deadbaiting for me. A slow shift to lure fishing changed both my catch rate and how much I enjoy targeting them.

Categories Techniques

What a Bad Session Taught Me About Watercraft

August 18, 2026July 6, 2026 by Rob Hadley

Sometimes the sessions that teach you the most are the ones where nothing goes right – here’s what one genuinely miserable blank taught me.

Categories From the Bank
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From the Blog

  • The Best Baits for Perch: Worms Win, But Not Always
  • The Best Baits for Carp: What I’d Actually Put On After Twenty Years
  • Loch Watten Fishing Guide: Caithness Wild Brown Trout
  • Loch Awe Fishing Guide: Ferox, Pike and Brown Trout in Argyll
  • Fishing Scotland’s Lochs: The Highlands and Argyll

View all posts →

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The River Bend Fish it properly.

UK fishing knowledge, written properly. Species, techniques, locations, gear, and the rules - all in one place.

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