What?s the Swale (North Kent) like to fish?
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Hi Mate, The swale used to be really good at Kingsferry Bridge years ago when i was a kid. Not as good now but you do get a lot of bass down there. The best place to fish is under the bridge or at Ridham Dock for the bass as the bigger ones come there. Best bait is peeler or rag, and fish couple hrs down and up under bridge is best ive found. Can be a bit snaggy in places but not to bad. Will get eels and flounders as well but not really under bridge, just move up a bit. If its a calm day you can see the mullet swimming about as well near the water edge at low tide.
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end of Faversham creek , Harty Ferry, Conyer all fish and and all underfished, super mullet sport.
www.kentcharterfishing.com
www.kentcharterfishing.com
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There are a few good marks to try near the old Kingsferry Bridge.
The slipway under the bridge, which can be located just off the road that takes you to Ridham Dock. This is used to launch the many speedboats and jet ski that frequent the Swale. :sad2:
There is some parking but this has changed lots since the new bridge.
The best way to fish this spot is to work a plug, red gill or some similar sort of lure to draw a bass. The bass do grow to some decent sizes because of the regular food source available to them. If you should decide to leger for other species, then be aware that there are a few snags to grab your gear. Or trot a float rig down towards the bridge for the bass. Some wrasse have been caught here in recent years.
The Dock Wall can be found by following the Ridham Dock road to the end where there is a sort of industrial estate where you can park the car up, just before entering the site. Look to the river side of the road where you will see a gap in the hedgerow with some steps leading up the bank. Follow this track to the river and then head off to the left where you will see a point on the mouth of a dock. The water here is very deep, in fact, up to 80 feet in places. So if you like deep water, this is the mark for you. Despite the depth of water, it is recommended to lure fish for bass that live there as well as the usual legering for all other species. Eel also play a big part of the catch, so bait up with crab for best results.
Flounder Bank is a bit trickier to find carry on over the bridge on the A249 until you see a little turning on the right-hand side, signposted Nature Reserve. Take this turning and follow it to the end where you will reach the Swale. Park up anywhere around there and walk to the left where you will see a point creating a kind of bay between it and the car park. Fish anywhere along this stretch for flounder that feed there on the flooding and ebbing tides. This spot is in fact a favourite match venue for the locals who hold regular flounder matches here. Tactics are simple as all you need is lug, rag or crab on a three-hook flapper to tempt the flatties.
These are just a few spots. As scorp has said its not as good as it once was, but there are still fish there. Some big (doubles) bass, lots of mullet in summer.
The slipway under the bridge, which can be located just off the road that takes you to Ridham Dock. This is used to launch the many speedboats and jet ski that frequent the Swale. :sad2:
There is some parking but this has changed lots since the new bridge.
The best way to fish this spot is to work a plug, red gill or some similar sort of lure to draw a bass. The bass do grow to some decent sizes because of the regular food source available to them. If you should decide to leger for other species, then be aware that there are a few snags to grab your gear. Or trot a float rig down towards the bridge for the bass. Some wrasse have been caught here in recent years.
The Dock Wall can be found by following the Ridham Dock road to the end where there is a sort of industrial estate where you can park the car up, just before entering the site. Look to the river side of the road where you will see a gap in the hedgerow with some steps leading up the bank. Follow this track to the river and then head off to the left where you will see a point on the mouth of a dock. The water here is very deep, in fact, up to 80 feet in places. So if you like deep water, this is the mark for you. Despite the depth of water, it is recommended to lure fish for bass that live there as well as the usual legering for all other species. Eel also play a big part of the catch, so bait up with crab for best results.
Flounder Bank is a bit trickier to find carry on over the bridge on the A249 until you see a little turning on the right-hand side, signposted Nature Reserve. Take this turning and follow it to the end where you will reach the Swale. Park up anywhere around there and walk to the left where you will see a point creating a kind of bay between it and the car park. Fish anywhere along this stretch for flounder that feed there on the flooding and ebbing tides. This spot is in fact a favourite match venue for the locals who hold regular flounder matches here. Tactics are simple as all you need is lug, rag or crab on a three-hook flapper to tempt the flatties.
These are just a few spots. As scorp has said its not as good as it once was, but there are still fish there. Some big (doubles) bass, lots of mullet in summer.
G
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·hi goosey,
as scorp said,it used to be exellent there when we were kids.not anymore though.still worth a go for the bass.there are untold in the swale now and a few do go a half desent size.loads of mullet about too at times.but for flounder's.....more or less a waste of time for them now.
i'll still be fishing the swale this year as it's still a fave of mine.shall take my boat down there too this year.and as for the jet ski's.....:yucky: :yucky: :uhuh: ...dave.
as scorp said,it used to be exellent there when we were kids.not anymore though.still worth a go for the bass.there are untold in the swale now and a few do go a half desent size.loads of mullet about too at times.but for flounder's.....more or less a waste of time for them now.
i'll still be fishing the swale this year as it's still a fave of mine.shall take my boat down there too this year.and as for the jet ski's.....:yucky: :yucky: :uhuh: ...dave.
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Goosey after yr question i decided to give it a go yesterday, fished at the docks to get outer the wind for 3 hrs. Had lug rag and crab and only had 1 small bass, my old goldfish was bigger!! Had loads of little bass knocks but just could not connect. Do like ya say wait till gets a bit warmer 
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i used to fish the swale for a number of years and it certainly has gone off the boil, we had a nice mark at elmley which threw up loads of flounders but even that mark doesnt produce, we used to fish jan - mar with bunches of maddies. I dunno how the bridge fishes now theyve built the new one.Used to produce Bass on large peeler crab baits a number of years back though also, the last time i fished it (about 4 yrs ago) me car got broken into, havent fished there since.
G
Guest
·OI!!what about that nice sized bass u told me u got on lug then eh?:uhuh: :uhuh:Goosey after yr question i decided to give it a go yesterday, fished at the docks to get outer the wind for 3 hrs. Had lug rag and crab and only had 1 small bass, my old goldfish was bigger!! Had loads of little bass knocks but just could not connect. Do like ya say wait till gets a bit warmer
G
Guest
·hi mate and welcome to the site.i know elmley very well,and blackett's too.i think the bass are still about over the bridge,also they seem to have taken over from the flounder's.someone on here(thames rover i think)said that because of the amount of bass now they will be eating a lot of the young flounders.makes sence that....dave.
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Fished for mullet in the creeks a few times (Instead of heading towards Ridham Dock wall, go the other way).
Plenty of fish, but pre-occupied on feeding on algae.
(They just swum over the bread groundbait, and around our floats, without a second look - all day long! Well throughout the tide at least)
(I've caught loads of mullet elsewhere!)
I didn't do much good on lug either, just one tiny bass
Plenty of fish, but pre-occupied on feeding on algae.
(They just swum over the bread groundbait, and around our floats, without a second look - all day long! Well throughout the tide at least)
(I've caught loads of mullet elsewhere!)
I didn't do much good on lug either, just one tiny bass
G
Guest
·hi leon,
when was it that you fished the swale,was it recent?i know of a cracking place to fish for mullet near conyer and was going to grounbait it for few days with bread and then have a fish as the tide fill's the creek.you've put me off now!.....dave.
when was it that you fished the swale,was it recent?i know of a cracking place to fish for mullet near conyer and was going to grounbait it for few days with bread and then have a fish as the tide fill's the creek.you've put me off now!.....dave.
G
Guest
·just read the text again.niced sized male peelers not the bass!sorry mate....dave.:banghead:Cant remember sayin it was a nice size, just mentioned a bass
G
Guest
·easy tiger!what about some of that crappy aldi bread?lol
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Interesting to read that the bass seem to be taking over from the flounders. There are several nursery stations throughout the SE to re-establish bass populations (Quite a lot of info on the CEFAS site). Although there definitely seems to be significantly more bass around, it would be a shame if another, less glamorous species was to suffer.
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