Elliott Gray's best 'forgotten' edges...

Question

Forgotten edges: there are loads of these, things we all used to do but don’t tend to do now and then suddenly you are reading from a relative newcomer of this incredible trick they have developed. So: what are your best ones…

Answer

This has really got me thinking, but I’m struggling to think of anything? I’d like to think that things are moving forwards rather than backwards, and if something is really an edge, I won’t forget about it, or stop using it!

I’d say the one that stands out most is probably the proper use of a marker rod and float – I often think to myself, ‘why aren’t I using my marker float that much these days?’ There was a time where I took it, and used it everywhere I went.

I often wonder if I should use my marker float more – like the old days

The answer to my question is pretty simple: distance sticks, rod wraps and the diary I carry have taken over. Of course this is beneficial a lot of the time, but I do wonder what I’m missing. Since making the changeover to braid, the marker rod is rendered almost useless at times, as I can do pretty much all of my feature finding with the fishing rod, but one thing I’m unable to do is measure the depth with precision. Don’t get me wrong, I still use a marker float, particularly when starting out on a lake, just not as often as I used to, and I’m sure I’ll have missed all sorts of little depth changes and stuff without it. Has it done me any real harm? I’m not sure, I don’t think so, otherwise I’d be using it every session again, but it can’t have done me 100% proud.

The rod wraps etc. are great, they make life much easier, it’s quicker getting the rods out, but there’s something about putting that float out there that I actually miss. When I’m looking for pinpoint accuracy, I’ll use both the float and a braided main line, an unbeatable combo, but should I do this all the time, as standard, providing there isn’t a load of fish in front of me? Probably.

If there’s any more of these then I guess I’ve still forgotten them and am waiting to read something to jog my memory!