Float fishing is one of the simplest methods of fishing and in my opinion it's one of the most effective methods of fishing. In my personal experiences, I have caught multiple personal bests while float fishing and the canal is an incredible place to fish because of its wide variety of fish species, its easy accessibility and no license or membership is required to fish at the canal.
The set-up I use
When I float fish on the canal, I like to use a 12ft waggler rod with a 6bb waggler float and a size 12 or 14 hook. I feel that this setup gives me enough casting range and enough sensitivity in the float. To create this setup, you will need your rod of choice, a 6bb waggler, some bb splitshot and your choice of size 12 or 14 hooks. Start by putting the line through the eyes of your rod and give yourself around three quarters of the rod length’s extra line to work with, then thread the float on your line and put a bb splitshot either side of the eye to hold your float at the desired depth, then tie on your chosen hook and finally, put three or four splitshot leads on the line between the hook and the float.
Once your setup is ready
When you have your setup ready you need to do three things before you're ready to fish. First cast your float into the water with a bare hook to check your float is sitting correctly. Personally, I like just the orange tip exposed out of the water but, some people like parts of the body of the float exposed too but either way works. If your float is sitting too high, add another splitshot to the line between the hook and the float and if it is sitting too low remove one. Once your float is set, you then need to plum the depth of the water. Watch my video attached below to learn how to plum the depth. Once you have done this, you're almost ready to fish, all that's left to do is pick your bait. Personally, I like to use maggots or worms when float fishing on the canal, but sweetcorn and bread also work well. Now that you're ready to fish just cast in your float and wait for it to go under.
Bite indication
When I get a bite indication on my float I count to three before I strike. I do this to make sure the fish has got the bait fully in his mouth. If you don't do this, it can lead to losing a lot of your fish. You also must take wind into account as the ripple on the water can make your float move and show a false indication.
My own experiences with float fishing on the canal
I have spent a lot of time float fishing on the canal. I have learnt a lot from doing it and I will continue to learn more. My favourite experience float fishing on the canal was when I caught a carp on the canal while fishing for bream and Tench. I was fishing a spot my cousin had fed for a few weeks and the reeds were freshly cut. After catching about 30 bream, I hooked into something big and when I saw the fish go into the net and realised it was a carp, I knew the trip was really special. I quickly rang my uncle who first got me into fishing, he quickly told my cousin who fed the spot for me, and he drove down to see the fish straight away.