Broadlands Lower Lake-open 3/10/09

After a two week break I was raring to go for a return on Lower Lake at Broadlands. If you are a regular reader you will know that I have fished the lake twice before,with a section win and a section 2nd. Both times I had caught on the pole,with 37lb the first time and 54lb the second. Both times I had mostly caught on long pole and pellet whereas most other people seemed to catch on the method. The last match I fished I had no island chuck so this time the match was capped at 20 anglers meaning everyone would have an island swim should they wish to fish it. Whereas last time the match had been split into 2 sections of 12 this time it would be simply be paid top four overall.

As usual I was the first to arrive and had a quick walk around with a cup of coffee. I was a bit dismayed to see a few bivvies on the lake but they were soon cleared when the match organiser arrived. After paying my pools we were ready for the draw and out came....peg 23.

I was quite pleased with this peg as it was near where I had drawn on my first visit and was on the side with a shorter chuck to the island. After getting to my peg I had Andy on the end 3 pegs to my left so a pound side bet was hastily struck up. My approach was going to be pretty much the same as last time as I caught well on the pole and if it aint broke don't fix it. My main line was straight out at 14.5m where I had around 5 and a half feet of water. I set up 3 rigs for here,all were 4x14 KC Chimps on 0.16 mainline. The only difference being the hooklengths. I had an 0.10-20 Tubertini 808 if it was hard,an 0.12-18 Gama pellet which would be my main rig and 0.14-18 B911 if I was getting carp. The first two rigs were matched to double 5 slip and the heavier rig was matched to yellow Drennan Bungee. All 3 rigs were shotted with a bulk of 9's with two no:10 droppers. They were all plumbed accurately to just touch bottom and shotted to a pimple,with around 6 inches of line from tip to float.

I also set up a method rod- 11ft AX Beastmaster with a 3012 Daiwa CU,8lb matchwinner,a small 30g inline feeder and a 4 inch 0.18 hooklength to an 18 PR36. I had a good few casts with a lead to get clipped up as I knew it was important to get as tight to the island as possible which was some 35m + away. For bait I had a bag of soaked 2mm pelllet which would also be used for the method,a tin of corn,expanders (3mm,4.5mm & 6mm) and half a pint of red maggot. I ummed and arred about setting a waggler rod up but decided to keep things simple and left it in the bag.

The 'all-in' was called at 10am and I fed a full medium pot of micro pellet at 14.5m before loading the feeder and casting to the island. Well,not exactly......it fell about 5m short! The next three casts were the same and every time I brought it straight in. I finally found my range and my next few casts were all bang on the money within a few inches of the island. The fish were unimpressed however as apart from a few liners I had nothing to show for it. As far as I could see no-one was really catching so after 40 minutes I was scrambling up the bank and quickly setting up the waggler rod (same set up as last time). I plumbed up at 20m,set the depth at 3 inches over and filled a baitbox with a pint of 6mm pellet. I felt it was right to set the waggler up for a few reasons. Firstly,no-one around me had set it up so I would have the 20m line to myself. Secondly,there was no ripple atall on our side of the lake which I felt was the main reason the method wasn't working. Finally,although I was hoping to drop in on the pole and catch if I didn't I would need somewhere else to go,so by priming a waggler line it would give me another option should I be struggling,as well as allowing me to search more water.

After firing out around 10 pellets to 20m I baited the 0.12 rig with a 4.5mm expander. After lowering the rig straight down the float settled for all of 10 seconds before dipping and the resulting lift was greeted by the satisfying sight of 3 feet of double 5 slip exiting the pole. A 1lb + skimmer was soon in the net and I was up and running. In the last match it was crucial to keep some bait trickling in so I attached a small cadpot to the pole,filled it with a small pinch of micro's and repeated the process. After a few lifts and drops the float dinked and a similar sized skimmer was soon in the onion sack with his mate,with another following next cast. I then hooked a carp which although it took a while (and a top 4) to get in on the lightish gear at around 5lb it was a useful fish. I went straight back out and immediately hooked another one,this time around 3lb. I then went 10 biteless minute's so refed with a golfball of micro's and spent 5 minute's on the waggler without a bite. Back on the pole and it was back into the skimmers. Although I was not catching as fast as in the last match the fish were of a better stamp,and after about 2 hours I slipped the net under a right old warrior of a bream that must have been nudging 5lb. I then had another carp of around 4-5lb out of the blue and after safely netting it I went back out with the heavier rig. Five biteless minute's on this saw me reaching for my regular rig and no sooner had the pellet touched down the float dipped and a decent skimmer was the culprit.

By regularly tickling in small amounts of micro pellet after each fish I was catching steadily whereas most around me were picking up odd fish on the tip with nothing on the pole. Whenever it went quiet I would refeed a golfball of micros and have a throw of the waggler (although I never had a bite in four or five casts). With the peg seemingly slowing I fed positively with half a pot of micros and had a biteless couple of casts on the method. This brought the pole line to life....with carp! I had a spell where I lost 3 or 4 fish in succession,all foulhooked. What was most interesting was whenever I went out on the heavier rig I wouldn't get an indication,yet I was hooking a few carp on the lighter rig. I cut the regular feed out and after 10 minutes or so I had a bite and soon netted a 5lb carp,nicely hooked in the top lip. After this I started to pick up some more skimmers and had a nice fish of around 3.5lb.

With 90 minutes to go I had another spell where I lost two carp,again foulhooked. The same thing happened again with regards to the heavier rig,although I did eventually manage two bites on it- a 2lb skimmer and a decent skimmer that I bumped due to the heavier elastic-DOH! At this point I decided to leave the heavier rig as bites were far far slower on it,and although it was taking me a good 5-10 minute's to land the carp, I was getting the true hooked fish in,whilst also catching the skimmers. I then hooked a carp that was probably just outside the mouth as I pulled out of it when it was nearing netting range-and my rig pinged out into the trees above me. Rather than getting worked up I freed the rig,attached a new hooklength and went back out. With 30 minute's to go I started to feed a full small cadpot of micros every few minute's and caught a 4lb carp with 20 minute's left. No bite's followed so I fed a final golfball with 10 minute's to go and as the clock ticked down I hooked a decent fish that plodded out of the swim. A few minute's later the whistle blew and I shouted 'Fish On' as I questioned whether the fish was foulhooked. 10 minute's later and with a top 5 in the air I slipped the net under a fighting fit mirror carp of around 5lb-hooked squarely in the top lip.

I felt sure I had similar weight to last time (54lb odd) as although I had only caught 22 skimmers to the 33 of last time,they were of a bigger average stamp and I'd caught 6 carp to the 4 from last time. When the scales got to me 39lb was winning my side of the lake. My net of skimmers went 33lb 14oz and my 6 carp went 25lb dead,giving me a 58lb 14oz total. Roger on peg 31 said it would be close between us and with rumour of a decent weight caught on the other side I thought I might struggle. The anglers either side of me weighed less than 20lb-all on the tip. Andy weighed in with around 40lb so begrudgingly handed over a quid...cheers mate!

Roger then put 72lb on the scales to take the lead. He drew next to where I was last time,but crucially the 2 pegs either side were left out meaning he had loads of room,more than anyone else on the lake. Marcus Paige on one of the early pegs (4?) caught a load of smallish carp on the method to the island for 77lb and the win-well done mate.

So I had come third overall which wasn't too bad considering. Once again I had caught well on the pole while those around me had struggled. If I had managed to find 3 or 4 carp early on the method I probably would have won. I really need to sort something for the first hour while the pole line settles as those extra few fish can make all the difference. Lifting and dropping wasn't as important this week as I caught a few fish keeping the bait dead still. It was also important to lower the rig down through the last foot of water as I caught most of the better fish as soon as the bait touched the bottom. Yet again I feel my decision to exclusively feed micro's paid off as those that fed 4mms really struggled....coincidence?

After packing away I picked up £40 (which I split with my mate Nick) and headed home. I am not fishing again until Sunday 18th October. This sees the first round of the winter league at Whinwhistle. After comfortably winning the summer league I am raring to go looking to do the summer/winter double. It won't be easy as there are 23 other anglers keen to take the title but I'm looking forward to the challenge

A mixed weekend....

MFS Rolfs Match- 19/09/09

Well seeing as I didn't think I would be able to fish for a month after the last match a change of plans meant I had a free weekend...time for a double header then! I was down as a reserve for the matchfishing-scene match at Rolfs fishery near Oxford and after a few drop-outs my name was down and I was fishing. Now Rolfs is a venue that seems to attract more attention than most due to it's potential for collossal weights. Now anyone that know's me will be aware that it's not my sort of thing,as I would rather win a match with 5lb than catch 200lb for nowhere. Nonetheless I decided to give it a go and see what all the fuss is about! The Wednesday open that had just 8 anglers fishing was won by venue expert Jon Walker. It had fished very hard by all accounts...yet he had won with 220lb! Saturday's match was expected to be alot harder with far more anglers fishing but there was still a match to be won and I personally would rather it being a bit harder as it would be very difficult to keep up with the venue regulars if it became a fish race. I ummed and arred about fishing the match as the lure and cost of staying local appealed to me but in the end I decided to fish Rolfs......big mistake!
To cut a very long story short it was dire! I drew peg 38 in the little lake and I was told that it was either a bagging peg or a blanking peg with little middle ground. I had one bite out long about half way through the match that was foulhooked and I managed to avoid the blank with a 6lb carp down the edge with just 8 minutes to go. I had venue expert Jon Walker to my left and he managed just two carp-both in the last hour on worm out long. Trouble is his two carp went 34lb odd!! It had fished hard throughout and most of the weights were made up of foul-hooked fish from what I can gather. The winner had 96lb odd fishing a boilie shallow in the main lake,it certainly wasn't a day for feeding much that's for sure!


Open-Broadlands Lower Lake- 20/9/09

Sunday saw me fishing the open on Lower Lake at Broadlands. I had only fished the lake once before,back in March, when I won my section with 36lb of skimmers on pole & pellet. Apparently all recent weights were being won on the method tight to the central island,with 60-70lb of carp generally doing well. With 24 booked in (and a few on reserve) it was decided beforehand that three of the pegs would not be allowed to fish to the island to avoid any potential arguments. This would be a major handicap for the three unlucky anglers as all weights had been caught fishing tight against it,so come the draw we were all praying to avoid these. Still,with 21/24 pegs having a chuck I thought I'd be OK. Into the bag I went and out came....29: NO ISLAND! The two words looked to be about 6 inches high,I couldn't believe it. The bloke who drew peg 30 next door decided he wasn't going to bother. He eventually changed his mind and hastily arrived at the peg with 10 minutes to go,cursing as he went.

I decided to get all negative thoughts out of my head and do my best. The match was simply split into two sections,and with top 3 being paid in each I hoped to find a few skimmers on the pole and possibly sneak a pick up. The first thing I set up was a waggler rod. This was a 13ft Preston Sentient with a Daiwa 2503 CU reel with 3lb maxima. This was set with a 2.5g drennan crystal tip waggler with a 12 inch hooklength of 0.14- 18 Drennan eyed barbless with a band on a hair. I planned to fish this for the first hour while the pole line settled and hoped to find a few skimmers. I spent a good 30 minutes plumbing around with the waggler and found a flat area about 7ft deep at 22m. I set the rig 3 inches over depth and shotted the float to the merest pimple (it was flat calm). I then set up 3 rigs for my long pole line at 14.5m. The first was my main rig- a 4x14 KC Chimp on 0.14 to a 6 inch 0.12 hooklength and an 18 Gama Pellet. This was matched to double 5 slip and shotted with a bulk and two no:10 droppers. The second rig was for if things were a bit harder- same float and line but the hooklength was 0.10 to a 20 Tubertini 808 for 3mm pellet. The final rig was for if the carp were showing and was again a 4x14 chimp this time on 0.16-0.14 and a 16 B911 matched to yellow drennan bungee. Finally I set up a throwaway line at 6m to my right under a tree where there was around 3ft of water. This was a 4x10 Chimp,0.16-16 B911 and red vespe. I decided to leave the method rod in the bag as it wouldnt be very effective in the open water. For bait I had a bag of soaked 2mm pellet,some 3mm & 4.5mm hookers,6mm pellet and a tin of corn.

The all-in was called and I fed a medium pot of micro's at 14.5m. I had already decided not to feed any 4mms as I felt it slowed things down- something I'm sure killed my peg on the racetrack lake 2 weeks earlier. I then baited the waggler rod with a 6mm pellet,cast out to 25m,sunk the line and fired 3 pellets over the top. After a minute or two a quick turn of the reel twitched the bait and a second later the float dipped and a 1lb skimmer was soon in the net. Another followed next cast before a small carp of around 1lb took the bait. I was feeding 2-3 pellets every minute or so and if the bait was left still I wouldn't get a sign. Every bite was either just after casting or as soon as I moved the float. After half an hour or so the dimple dipped and I hooked a fish that tore off. It was clearly a foulhooked carp and just as I had it under control the hooked pulled. Next cast I hooked a decent skimmer that I lost on the way in. I decided to change hooklengths to a 16 hook as I didn't want to take any chances. After an hour I had 6 skimmers and a small carp in the net and with the waggler line quiet it was time to look on the pole. 15 minute's of lifting and dropping without so much as an indication satisfied me that there were no fish present so re-feeding wouldn't do any harm.I cupped in a golf ball sized ball of micro's and after 10 minutes on the waggler it was back on the 14.5m line. After a few lifts and drops the float settled before disapearing and a lift was met with the satisfying sight of 3 feet of double slip exiting the pole tip. No more bites were forthcoming so it was time to attach a cadpot and trickle some bait in. After a few put-ins this brought the peg to life and after a while I couldn't get the bait out fast enough with net skimmers regularly taking the 4.5mm hookbait. After 3 hours I hooked a carp which although I got in (and at about 5lb it was most welcome) it upset my rhythym some what. Next drop in I had a similar sized fish that soon joined his mate in the net. No-one was really catching much apart from the odd fish on the method and from what I could see I was doing well.

After the second carp I went 5 minutes without a bite so fed another golf ball of micros and went back on the waggler where I had been regularly feeding 6mm pellets in two's and three's. No bites saw me back on the pole and the skimmers had returned. They all seemed to be 1.5lb- 2lb fish (at the weigh in they weighed alot less than expected,and alot of people commented on this!)

With a couple of hours to go I foulhooked a carp on the pole and after 5 minutes it went on a final run and broke the hooklength. I went straight back out and had another,again about 5lb.

With an hour to go I had a quick look down the edge but with no bites I decided to stick with the long line. The bloke to my right had started to find a few on the method in the last hour and was catching well. When the all-out was called my clicker told me I had 33 skimmers and 4 carp in the net. I guessed I must have had 70lb as I wasn't to know that the skimmers would weigh so little. When the scales got to me the two pegs without islands had weighed 20-30lb odd of mostly carp down the edge. My four carp went 16lb and I was disapointed that the skimmers only went 38lb 8oz- giving me a 54lb 8oz total. The bloke to my right then put 72lb of method fish on the scales to knock me into second place. I followed the scales all the way round and was pleased to hold on to second place,although there were two other 50lb odd weights. After packing up I picked up £35 and reflected on the day. If I had the match again I wouldn't have done anything differently to be honest. I lost two foulhooked carp and just one skimmer. I was always going to be up against it without an island to throw to as the 4-5lb carp that are caught there soon build a weight. It was crucial to keep moving the bait and if I didn't trickle some bait in I wouldn't get a sign. It was a very enjoyable match and I learned a fair bit which is always a bonus. I felt my feeding was pretty much spot-on on the pole line although I would have liked to pick up a few more fish on the waggler when resting the pole.

Im not fishing this weekend but will hopefully be back for the open on Lower Lake on Saturday 3rd.

Catching up.....

Firstly I must apologise for my lack of blogs of late. I have been so busy at work that I've hardly had chance,and I've only managed to fish three matches in the past month or so. The first of these was at Greenridge Farm. I fancied one more crack at the surface fishing as I was 2nd on Canal 2 when I fished it last time with 122lb,mostly caught when I switched to the bread at the halfway stage. I felt sure that if I fished it for the duration I could do a bigger weight. This time I drew peg 7 on canal 1. I set up fairly standard rigs- 0.22 line to a size 16 fox series 2 hook and red vespe bi-core. I started on paste at 3m but apart from a foulhooked fish that I lost it was very slow. It was hard work fishing on the top across as it was a bright day and I had bare bank,the fish were definitely shying away from the pole. It was only when,with 2 hours to go I moved further to my right towards some over hanging grass that I started to catch....and quickly! I ended the match with 42 fish but they were smaller than those on canal 2 as I weighed a total of 118lb. I was kicking myself for not moving to the cover earlier,a real schoolboy error! For the third time in a total of 3 visits I had come 2nd on my canal.... must try harder!!!!


The Sunday match saw the final round of the summer league at Whinwhistle. It was really strange as I simply couldn't motivate myself to fish as I had already won the league with a match to spare. I contemplated not going but with the promise of a post match BBQ I made the effort. Normally I really look forward to all matches and spend ages preparing gear and thinking things over but no matter how hard I tried I just couldn't be bothered. I drew a good peg (27) but for some reason fished a poor match. Instead of doing what I have done all summer at Whinwhistle I decided that I might as well go sh*t or bust and subsequently bust. I weighed in 7lb odd for 8th (they paid top 6 as the golden peg money was spread about) I can honestly say I have never endured a match like it and didn't enjoy myself for a minute. The highlight was hooking an 8lb+ common that I played for 10 minutes before the hook pulled right at the net. It was foulhooked but would have been most welcome and would have been worth £40-50 on the day. The end of series BBQ was great as always and I took a box of beer along for all the lads. After picking up my trophy and winnings I headed home in a bad mood and fancying a break from fishing.

Last week I had a phonecall from Andy Shanks informing me that there was an open match being held on the match lake at Broadlands. I duly booked in and was quite looking forward to it. I had fished the match lake a couple of times around 7 years ago when I stayed with family during the summer holidays. I had only been fishing for a couple of years but caught a load of carp fishing a bomb to the central island (it's about 14m away on most pegs)

After getting as much info as possible from Andy I established that there were two main cathcing areas- at the base of the far slope at around 9m and tight across to the island. It was around 7ft deep down the middle with a foot or so tight across. Arriving at the venue at around 7.45 I had a chat with the owner,who I have to say is one of the nicest fishery owners you could wish to meet. He also sells Skretting pellets at a bargain of £2.00 for 5 pints! Come the draw there were 23 of us ready and I went into the bag and pulled out peg 26. This didnt mean a great deal to me except it was in the middle of the far side.....probably the longest walk,great!

Arriving at my peg it looked to be around 16m wide. After shipping my pole out it was only around 13.5m wide...I was quite suprised,as were the anglers either side of me who also had 16m of pole out! I decided to set up one rig for across to target the carp and two rigs for down the middle where I hoped to catch skimmers and the odd carp. For across I set up a 4x10 KC Chimp on 0.18-0.16 and a 16 B911. This was shotted with a bulk of 10's and matched to red vespe bi-core. I spent ages plumbing up to find the base of the slope at around 9.5m. I set up two rigs for here. The first was a 4x14 KC Chimp on 0.16-0.14 and a 16 B911 set just touching bottom. The second rig was a 4x16 KC Chimp on the same gear but set 4 inches overdepth. For bait I had a tin of corn,some micro pellet,4mm pellet,dampened crushed expander and hooker pellets. I also had a tin of meat for a throwaway 5m line where I had the same depth as the 9.5m line.

The all in was called and I potted a decent ball of micros and a full pot of 4mm pellets at 9.5m along with a pot of meat at5m slightly to my right. I shipped across with a cadpot of crushed expander and corn on the hook and despite plenty of lifting and dropping I couldnt buy a bite. After shipping out a with a new cadpot of crushed pellet and 2 grains of corn every 5 minute's I finally had a bite after 25 minutes or so and had the welcome site of elastic pouring from the pole. A fat little carp of around 3lb was soon in the net. It was fishing quite hard so I dropped down to a 0.14 hooklength,an 18 B911 and spread the bulk out. I went out with a 4mm expander and some crushed pellet and hooked a fish as I lifted the bait- foulhooked. I carefully played it all the way to the net before the hook pulled- ROLLOCKS!! I then had a similar sized carp before losing one on the way in that definitely wasn't foulhooked- the water was so clear I could see it was in the mouth when it was 6m out. I then had a tench of about 2lb before the line went quiet. Not to worry,this was my cue to sack up on skimmers at 9.5m......

I dropped in with a 4mm expander ( I had already changed to an 18 B911 as the far side was fishing hard). No matter what I did I couldn't buy a bite. The lad to my right was filling it in across with a big pot and the catapult. I couldn't believe it when he started to catch as the only way I could catch across was by feeding light and moving the bait constantly. I decided to put a pot of bait over the far side and give it 10 minutes. Well I didn't manage another inidcation here all match,hmmmph!! Despite the lad catching by feeding heavily it wasnt right for me as I hadnt managed a bite down the track and the far line had died. I plumbed up a new line further along the shelf to my left at 11m and cupped in four pellets. Straight over the top and the float dinked and a 2lb skimmer was soon in the net...sorted!! Errr,not quite. Despite trickling in small amounts of bait I didnt manage any more bites here either. It was time to plumb a new far bank line to my left at 15m,out with some crushed pellet,single grain of corn,lift,drop,dink...fish on! Another 3lb carp was in the net with his mates. It was really hard going and I was at a loss to why. The two lines where I had fed a potfull hadnt given the merest sign,yet the lad next door was filling it in and spraying bait all over the place and catching.

I took one more carp from the left hand line and despite trying all over the peg I didnt manage any more fish. I finished with just four carp,a tench and a skimmer that went 19lb odd for nowhere. I was battered either side by a 30lb and 36lb- Andy on my left had 30lb of skimmers up the slope over groundbait and the lad to my right caught carp and bream across by filling it in. I was not in a good mood and after loading up the car (and taking plenty of stick!) I headed home.

I'm booked in for the match on Lower lake in 2 weeks but might be struggling to make it,and if I can't fish that I won't be fishing for another month! To be honest after my last two matches a break might not be the worst thing....roll on winter!!

A couple of evening matches

Last Wednesday saw the penultimate evening match at Whinwhistle. The match was to be held on The Square and with 9 fishing there wasn't a great deal of room. We didn't draw until 5.15pm and with a 5.45pm start it was a bit of a rush to say the least!I drew peg 20 on the spit,a peg that used to have a bit of form but since the changes to the lake I wasn't sure what to expect. I quickly assembled two rigs,one for meat at 5m- 4x12 KC Chimp,0.16-0.14 and a 16 B911 matched to yellow drennan bungee. I then set up a rig for fishing at 10m to my left towards the tree on the corner. This was a 4x10 Scone GAZE on 0.18- size 3 Tubertini 175 matched to orange wilkie hollow. For bait I had some damp micro pellet,a tin of corn and a tin of 6mm meat. I was just about ready for the all-in and cupped in 20 odd cubes of meat and a pinch of pellet at 5m before shipping down to my left with a single grain of corn and a pinch of pellet in the cad-pot. All the while I was flicking 2-3 cubes of meat at 5m and after 5 minutes I dropped in at 5m and took a 1lb skimmer straight away. I then picked up a few smaller skimmers but it was pretty quiet. I then hooked a better fish that tore off and I soon netted a carp of around 2.5lb.

It then went quiet again and I couldn't buy a bite off either line. I notcied the reeds twitching slightly to my left at 4m so dropped in with a grain of corn and a pinch of pellet and caught a similar sized carp straight away. I dropped back in without feed and caught another similar sized fish before things went quiet. I took my final fish off the 10m left line but frustratingly lost two more that I pulled out of trying to get them out of a snag.

The all-out was called and I knew I wouldn't beat Colin opposite as although we had a similar amount of fish he had caught a vital lump of 7-8lb. My fish pulled the scales around to 14lb 8oz which was enough for 2nd place to Colins 22lb. The rest of the lake had fished hard with 7lb enough for third.

Wednesday 19th August saw the final evening match of the year and this time it was on Keepers lake. Again there were 9 fishing but this time we got the draw done just before 5 meaning it wasn't such a rush. There were two 'open water pegs' with all the others having a feature of some sort. I was first into the bag and pulled out peg 6...one of the two without a feature,great!
Peg 6 used to have a good edge to fish but on arrival I found that the post at 10m to the right had been moved to around 4m....double great!! I plumbed along at 11m to my right but it was very snaggy and hard to find a clear spot. I set up a 4x10 Scone Gaze on 0.22 to red J-Range as I wanted to ensure I landed anything I hooked. This was tied to a size 3 Tubertini 175 and shotted with a bulk of 10's. I also plumbed to the post at 4m and found a flat spot with the same depth. My other swim was meat at 5m (usual rig,4x12 chimp,yellow bungee).

The all-in was called and I cupped in a small amount of meat at 5m before shipping out at 11m with a grain of corn and some pellet and meat in the pot. A bite after 5 minute's saw a carp on before it swirled on the surface and the hook pulled. It was very snaggy which didn't help matters. After a while the sun made fishing down the edge impossible so it was to 5m on the meat where I caught a few small skimmers but it was very slow. Andy on peg 10 had caught a few tench and skimmers and was doing OK. With 90 minute's to go I put a full pot of bait at 4m and decided I would give it 20 mins before dropping over it and if I had no signs I would pack up.

With nothing at 11m or 5m I drooped in to my right with an over-soaked 6mm expander and missed a bite instantly....small fish. I dropped straight back in and the same thing happened but this time the strike saw the elastic pouring from the pole...maybe not small fish then! A few minute's later I netted a fat common of around 9lb...nice! While I was playing the fish I was flicking meat in to my right and went back out with a full kinder pot of pellet. After around 3 minutes I had another bite and soon netted an 8lb common. It then went quiet so I fed a full pot of pellet and meat and went back long. With no bites I dropped in at 4m and again a quick bite saw a 5lber in the net. It then went quiet so another pot of bait went in and a few minute's later the float buried and a beautiful 7lb linear mirror was soon in the net with his three mates.

The last half an hour was pretty uneventful and despite re-feeding I didn't manage another bite. Andy netted a fish after the whistle to go with the lump he had caught with half hour to go...all 14lb of it! This would be close.....

I tipped 30lb 8oz on the scales to take the lead. Vic on peg 8 then put 17lb odd on before Andy's two carp and silvers went.....30lb dead! 8oz....hard luck mate!

So that concludes the evening matches for another year. It has been an enjoyable series and quite profitable for me personally. I was pleased to finish with the win and will be back at Whinwhistle on Sunday for the final round of the summer league. It is a no-pressure match as I have already won the league but I will still be going all-out to win on the day.

Whinwhistle Summer League Round 7: 9/8/09

Sunday saw the penultimate round of the Summer League at Whinwhistle. I have been either first or joint first since the first round and going into the penultimate round I was 5 points clear of Andy Shanks in 2nd place. I wasn’t resting on my laurels as I knew that a blow-out for me and a good result for Andy would throw everything wide open. I arrived at the venue at 7.15am…a bit early for the 8.30 draw! I had a good walk around The Islands where today’s match was due to take place. After sitting down to a breakfast it was time for the draw. The two worst pegs have been 9 and 10 due to the fact they are so cramped with little water to fish. As there were a few no shows these were left out. The only two pegs I really wanted to avoid were Peg 1 and Peg 6. I was second into the bag and my lucky left hand pulled out …..peg 6! Not so lucky then! I was very disappointed with the draw, especially as Andy had pulled one of the flyers, peg 11. I felt sure it would be a case of damage limitation today and I just had to finish as close to Andy as possible and hope I could keep the lead going into the last round.

The only weight peg 6 has ever thrown up was in the last round when Nigel had two lumps caught down the edge to his left for 18lb. The worrying thing was there wasn’t anything else to go with them, not ideal in a league match. I just hoped I could snare one or two at some stage. This plan went out of the window when I arrived at the peg as Roger on peg 8 decided he would fish 15m to the far bank which was about 7m to my left, exactly where Nigel had caught in the last round. His argument was that it was opposite his peg (8-THE flyer on the lake) even though he had it in the last round and blew out. I couldn’t be bothered with an argument so decided I would just fill it in at 5m every half hour….if I couldn’t fish my edge then I wanted to make sure he didn’t catch there!! I still set a rig up for there just in case but with Roger fishing so close I knew I wouldn’t catch there (I didn’t even try it through the match).

As you can see in the picture there was an island at 14m straight in front of me. I often find on these small islands you can catch a couple of early fish in the first hour or so and then really struggle. I set up two rigs for fishing to the island, one on the corner and one slightly to the right in front of it. There was a depth variation of around 8 inches so two separate rigs were assembled. Both were 4x12 KC Chimps on 0.16 to a size 2 Tubertini 175. Both were shotted with a bulk of 10’s and one dropper and matched to red vespe bi-core. I also set up a shallow rig although again I didn’t actually use this during the match. I also needed a back up as I knew the island wouldn’t produce throughout the day. I planned on fishing pellet relatively light for the skimmers. I set up a 4x12 Chianti on 0.14-0.12 and an 18 Gama Pellet matched to double 5 slip. I plumbed up two swims where I found the same depth- around 4ft. The first was at 10m straight out and the second was at an angle to my right. I spent a good while plumbing up to ensure the rig was set at dead depth. This rig would also double-up for fishing caster 2 inches over depth at 3m to my left. This was a bit of a throwaway line but would be useful if I was really struggling. Finally I set up a shallow caster rig- 4x10 Chianti,0.12 to a drennan eyed barbless and double 4 slip. This was set at 12 inches. Every rig was slightly over-shotted and brought to a pimple above the service with some Vaseline as it was very bright without a breath of wind. For bait I had a pint of caster, a tin of corn, a tin of 6mm meat some damp micro pellets and some 4mm hookers.

The all-in was called at 10am and I cupped in 3 grains of corn,6 cubes of meat and around 50 micro pellets to the point of the island. I then cupped 1/3 of a cup of micro pellet at 10m. I would only feed the one line initially to gauge the response with the line to the right as a back-up line. I kicked off on a single grain of corn to the island and after 5 minutes of lifting and dropping the float dinked and a 6oz skimmer was soon in the net. I went back out and repeated the process and after one lift and drop the float dinked and a lift saw a few feet of elastic came out. A couple of minutes later I netted a small carp of around 2.5lb- BONUS! After 5 biteless minutes I cupped in a similar amount of bait and went straight back out. After a few minutes of lifting the pimple disappeared and not long after a 2lb common was in the net-DOUBLE BONUS! I then took a 3oz skimmer before it went quiet. After 30 minutes I cupped a pinch of pellet at 10m and a similar amount to the island. After 45 minutes I took a small carp of about 1lb from the island and after an hour I probably had 6lb in the net-not a bad start as everyone else was struggling. As expected the island line died and after feeding it again but remaining biteless I decided to rest the line without feed.

All the while I had been flicking casters at 3m and dropped over on the deck rig. I took a small perch followed by a couple of dumpy roach before this too went quiet. I went out to 10m with a soft pellet and started to pick up a few small skimmers. I changed hooklength to a 16 Gama Pellet as I lost a couple of 3oz skimmers on the way in. This did the trick and I started to put a few fish together- by no means bagging but as everyone seemed to be struggling a bit I was hoping I could sneak a top 5 finish. I attached a small cadpot to the pole and fed a pinch of micros after every fish. This worked for a while but I felt I was overfeeding the peg as I started to get a few iffy bites. I felt it was best to rest the line so it was back on the caster at 3m where I had been regularly flicking in two or three casters every minute or so. After taking a roach on the drop I picked up the shallow rig. First drop saw an 8oz roach followed by 7 roach and rudd between 6-12oz. Nice weight builders! Then like flicking a switch the line died. I got off my box and set up a slightly deeper shallow rig on a longer line but this proved fruitless. I even added a few sections but the fish had disappeared. The 10m line was proving very iffy and I hadn’t managed a bite off either island line….hmm, decision time. I felt sure the fish wanted pellet but even though I had fed pretty small amounts I was pretty sure with the blazing conditions I had overfed the 10m line. This was where the line to my right came in. I cupped in just SIX micro pellets and went over the top with a 4mm expander. After a couple of minute’s of lifting and dropping the float dipped slightly (not fully) and I lifted an inch or so and was pleased to see a bit of elastic come out. A 5oz skimmer was soon in the net. I went back out without feed and after a minute or so the float again dipped and this was a better fish. I gingerly played it to the net where a decent skimmer of some 2lb+ came to the surface before the hook agonisingly pulled….ARGH! I put another 6 micros into the cadpot and went back out. I got into a good rhythm of catching small skimmers feeding (and yes I counted them) 6 micro pellets every other fish- depending on bites. As there was no wind atall I was able to have the float touching the Dacron connector allowing me to lift at the tiniest movement. I then went 5 minutes without a bite and I was considering a re-feed when the float dipped and a lift saw a few feet of elastic came out. I carefully played what I thought was a decent skimmer to the net and was a little surprised when a fat little 2lb common carp popped up. I netted it before it new what was going on- BONUS! I could see Andy on peg 11 and he was struggling big time. I decided to spend the remainder of the match on the negative pellet line picking up the odd small skimmer until the all-out was called at 3pm.

I had 46 fish in the net for an estimated 14-15lb. When the scales got to me Richard Allin on peg 3 was winning with 15lb 10oz. This was going to be close! My silvers net went 9lb 8oz before my four little carp went 8lb 2oz for a 17lb 10oz total giving me the lead. I then followed the scales round all the way and was still winning when we got to Phil Timms on end peg 16. His all silvers net went 10lb odd meaning I had won. I was very surprised with this as I felt sure the pegs I couldn’t see would have had a few but it had fished hard for most. Andy weighed in 8lb odd for 7th on the day which meant I had won the league with a round to spare! After 7 matches I had a total of 16 points with no drops. As you are allowed to drop your worst result and Andy had 20 points including a dropped 7 I now couldn’t be caught- HAPPY DAYS!

I couldn’t believe I had managed to win the league, especially after the draw today. If you had offered me 5th place at the start of the day I honestly would have taken it as it would have meant we were going into the last day on level terms. As it happened it had been a very hard day and by fishing a few areas of my peg in different ways I had managed to winkle out a few fish that proved to be good enough on the day. In the end I was fishing winter tactics with very negative feeding and constantly moving the bait to entice bites.

After heading to the lodge and collecting my winnings (and having a good laugh with Phil James- mostly about sheep and us welsh!) it was time to head home. Everyone was talking about where Roger in peg 8 was fishing and everyone said I should have told him where to go! In trying to cut off my edge he had actually neglected the areas in peg 8 that make it a flyer and caught one small carp for nowhere. As it happened I didn’t need the edge anyway…..

On the top....

I would have posted my blog about the Wednesday evening match at Whinwhistle but it was a bit pants! I drew plum peg 15 that I have always wanted to draw. I set up one method rod as I was sure it would work....it didn’t! With 20 minutes to go I tipped back around 5lb of small skimmers without having a single sign of a carp! I can’t remember the last time I took an early bath and the match was won from peg 12 with 16lb odd.

Greenridge Farm Open- 8/8/09

With nothing on this Saturday I decided to fish the open at Greenridge Farm near Romsey. It is only 4 miles from my house yet I have only fished there once before- back in early April when I managed second place on Canal 1 with 96lb on shallow pellet. I had heard that surface fishing had been dominating recently with one angler in particular, Pete Newman, having the method sussed. He had won the last 3 matches in a row on floating bread with weights of 210lb, 240lb and finally a new venue record of 280lb! Not bad when the fish average around 3lb....

I’ve never fished a match with surface baits so when I heard that it had been banned at Greenridge I chose to fish there as I would always prefer to fish shallow as opposed to on the top as I feel there is generally more skill involved. A day or two before the match I found out that although it had been banned it would not come into place until the end of September. This didn’t change my plans much as I was sure I could compete shallow- although I did take a loaf of bread and a few floating pellets in-case I was being battered by the bread boys.

I arrived at the fishery at around 8am and as always had a walk around. The match was to be held on canals 1 & 2 and they both looked very similar, around 13-14m wide with 11 pegs on each. After meeting Pat (red-hydro) and his mate I tucked in to a few of the free bacon rolls and cups of tea as everyone arrived and awaited the draw. I went into the bag and pulled out peg 13....unlucky for some? Whilst unloading my gear in the car-park I heard somebody mention that Pete Newman had drawn end peg 12 next to me...great!! Pat had drawn two to my right on 15 so the obligatory quid side-bet was soon struck up.

My match plan was quite simple really with two paste lines at 3m and down the edge and pellet shallow across. I hoped to spend the first 30 minutes or so on the paste whilst priming the shallow line with a few 6mm pellets every 20 seconds or so. I set-up a few rigs to cover my options. My two paste rigs were on 0.18 to a size 5 Tubertini 175 and matched to Orange Wilkie hollow. One was for 2 feet of water tight to the bank on my left and the other was for the base of the near slope at an angle of 11 o’clock. I also set-up 3 rigs for across. The first was a malman MTD1 dibber on 0.18 to a size 20 Fox Series 2 with a ban on a hair. This was set at 18 inches. I also set up a Korum blob on the same terminal gear but set at 6 inches. Finally I had a 2ft length of 0.18 line to a size 16 Fox Series 2 for fishing the bread if I had to. All three rigs were matched to red vespe bi-core elastic. For bait I had some paste, a load of 4mm & 6mm pellets, a loaf of bread and some SonuBaits 8mm Oily floaters.

By 10 o’clock the sun was blazing and there wasn’t a breath of wind- hardly ideal fishing conditions. The all-in was called and I moulded a piece of paste around the hook and dropped in at 3m with no feed. The float sat there for all of 5 seconds before disappearing and carp number 1 was on.....for about 5 seconds! I suspect it was foul-hooked but after firing a few pellets across I dropped in at 3m and the same thing happened. I netted a small carp of around 3lb whilst everyone else was still potting in bait. I dropped straight back in and waited for around 30 seconds before a similar sized carp took the bait and was soon in the net with his mate. This is going to be a bagging match! Errr....wrong! Despite introducing a few 4mm pellets after 10 biteless minute’s I hadn’t added another fish after half an hour. Pete to my left was picking up odd fish on the bread and I was falling behind. All the while I had been pinging 6mm pellets across and with no bite on the paste I fed half a cup of 4mm pellets at 3m before picking up the 6 inch shallow rig and shipping across. After a few slaps the blob dipped and a small carp was soon in the net. Despite fishing my heart out pinging,lifting,slapping I couldn’t buy a bite. Pete was now surging ahead on the surface and although I added another small carp on the 18 inch rig I knew I wouldn’t compete the way things were going. To make matters worse Pat was catching fishing tight to the bare bank in his peg. His rig looked to be about 6 inches deep so I was convinced he was catching shallow but I later found out that’s how deep it was right across. He seemed to be suffering with foul-hookers and lost fish but either way my pound looked like it was heading his way! I couldn’t buy a bite across or on the paste at 3m so I plumbed a new paste line straight out at 6m. First drop with no feed saw a quick carp followed by another next drop. However as with the first swim it then died. Although I hadn’t fed anything except the hook bait there was a lot of blowing in the peg but I couldn’t get any signs. I eventually caught another fish across but after 3 hours I had just 7 fish in the net for around 20lb with Pete surely having close to the ton.

With nothing to lose I accepted that I was never going to frame on the pellet I cupped out a dozen floating pellets and a few bits of bread to the far bank. After 5 minutes or so there were a few ripples and after a while the carp were happily slurping away. The sun was blazing down so I decided to shorten the line right down to 10 inches and poke the small piece of crust under the tree. After a few seconds there was a large boil and the pole was yanked down and carp number 8 was soon in the net. Over the final 3 hours I managed to catch faster than Pete and I also found some bigger fish. Although it was too late to catch him I knew 2nd place was up for grabs as Pat had slowed down a bit. I got into a nice rhythm of hook fish, ship back quickly fire out 3 floating pellets, net fish, fire out 3 more, ship half way across, fire out 3 more. By doing this I always had fish waiting and was able to catch quickly. Whenever it went a bit quiet I would cup out 6 or 7 pieces of bread and a few pellets which always brought the fish back. I often found it best to ship out a metre or two from the far bank and hang the bait out of the water. As soon as I saw some movement I would plonk the crust where the fish were as they kept moving along the far bank. It was imperative that the bait was within an inch or two of the rushes, most of time it would be up against them. Something else that was effective was waiting just off the fish after I had cupped bread out. As soon as the last piece vanished I would drop my hookbait in the same place and it was usually taken instantly. When I was just feeding floating pellets this was less important as the bread stood out more. At one point I had a fish tear under the tree and snap me so I stepped up to 0.22 as it makes no difference to presentation when fishing on the top.

The all-out was called and I had finished on 36 carp with 29 coming in the last 3 hours. I guessed on having around 120lb. Whilst it was clear that Pete had won I hoped to nick second but I thought it might be close with Pat. Pete was first to weigh and totalled 174lb....a bad day apparently! After 3 weighs my total was recorded at 120lb 4oz...a new best match weight. I don’t usually fish bagging matches as most of the waters I fish you are looking for 20-60lb to do well. My previous best was an agonising 99lb 15oz,followed by 99lb 8oz,97lb,96lb and two 95lbs,with loads of 80’s to boot! I followed the scales down and Pat took third place with 87lb odd. I was pleased with the result although a little frustrated as I felt I could have won had I fished on top all match.

After packing away it was back to the BBQ area for a refreshing beer and to collect my winnings. Pat ‘didn’t have any change’ so it’s double or quits next time!! All in all an enjoyable day and there is a lot more to fishing on the top than I had previously thought. I will be heading back to Greenridge in a couple of weeks for another go on it as I’m sure I could do 200lb if I fished it for the duration and like all aspects of fishing those that fish it best will come out on top.

Whinwhistle Summer Series- Round 6

After a nice result at Withy farm the day before I was looking forward to the sixth round of the summer league at Whinwhistle- so much so that I was up half an hour before my alarm was due to go off! I arrived at the venue at around 7.30 (it takes 8 minutes from my house!) and duly sat down to the obligatory breakfast. Going in to this round I was 3 points clear of Andy Shanks at the top,with 3rd place quite a way off around 10 points behind 2nd. Come 8.30 we were ready for the draw and I pulled out peg 16. There are atleast 5 or 6 pegs I would have chosen before peg 16 but there were certainly one or two pegs I really wouldn't have wanted! Andy had drawn peg 10- not good. With it only being about 6m wide in places it is a bit like fishing in a broom cupboard and he would have his work cut out from there. To my right on peg 15 was Phil James and a £1 side-bet was soon struck up. I have only ever fished peg 16 once before and that was an evening match a few weeks ago. I managed to win that by fishing the method feeder to the island in front of peg 15 (it wasn't drawn) with 3 carp and a few skimmers for 15lb odd. With Phil on 15 I obviously couldn't fish the same area so had to alter my approach. The first thing I set up was a method rod for throwing up the side of the near island hoping to snare a carp or two. Despite having a side-bet with Phil he kindly lent me an extension off his Tourney-Pro allowing me to reach the small island at 17.5m. (I've got my own extension on order!) The peg was like a snooker table from under my feet right the way across which meant things were kept simple.

I set up 3 rigs to cover my various lines. Firstly I set up a 4x12 Chianti on 0.14-0.12 and an 18 Gama Pellet matched to double 5 slip. This was for fishing pellet and caster if it was quite tough and was set just touching bottom. My 2nd rig was similar but stepped up slightly- a 4x12 KC Chimp on 0.16-0.14 and a 16 B911 matched to yellow drennan bungee. This was set 2 inches over-depth as the wind was steadily getting worse. My final rig was for in case the carp were showing- a 4x12 KC Chimp on 0.16- size 2 Tubertini 175 matched to red vespe bi-core. I had a swim at 5m slightly to my left for fishing meat. This was a bit of a throway line and I didn't actually have a bite here. My 'main' line was at 16m straight in front and my back-up line was to the island at 17.5m. I plumbed all over the peg and had about 3 foot everywhere. For bait I had a pint of caster,a tin of corn,a tin of 6mm meat,some damp micro's,4mm and 6mm pellets along with some 4.5mm expanders and some mini white boilies for the method.

The all-in was called at 10am and I cupped in some pellet and a few casters at 16m before flicking a few bit's of meat to my left at 5m. I then baited up the method feeder and cast to the front of the far island some 25m away. After a couple of minute's Phil was into a carp fishing at long range up the side of the other island and although he lost the fish he was into another on the next cast. Meanwhile after 5 casts in twenty minute's all I had to show was a small 'rattle'- probably from silver fish. I came off the method and shipped out to 16m on the lighter rig as the wind had eased a bit. I was getting instant bite's on 4mm expander but they were mostly 2-3oz skimmers and 16m is a long way to go for fish of that size,especially as 1 in 2 would fall off. After an hour I had less than a pound in the net and despite the wind now howling from left to right I had been pinging the odd cube of meat at 17.5m. It was time to go over the long line with the 0.16 rig and a single grain of corn. First drop saw a skimmer of some 6oz and next drop-in the float barely settled before disappearing and a 3lb carp was soon in the net. I decided to clip on a small cad-pot and fed 4 bits of meat and shipped back out. The wind was making things difficult and at times I actually had to float the pole on the surface in order to keep the rig still. In the next 15 minute's I added a 2lb carp and a 1lb tench but I was finding things increasingly difficult in the wind.

After around 2 hours I added a small 1lb mirror and a couple of skimmers but I felt the line was going away from me. I fed half a pot of pellet and meat at 17.5m but had great difficulty presenting a bait there. With the method not working for me I switched to the straight lead with a 12 inch hooklength,16 GURU QM1 and an 8mm pellet. With 2 fifteen minute casts producing nothing it was decision time. By this time Phil must have had getting on for 20lb and the quid was looking like it was already his. However,I had to focus on the league and ensure I got good points so fed half a cup of micro pellet and caster at 10m as I wouldn't be able to catch the small skimmers fast enough at 16m. After spending 10 biteless minutes at 5m on the meat I baited up with a 4mm expander on the chianti rig and shipped out to 11m. I was pleased to see the float settle and disappear straight away and a 3oz skimmer was soon on the way. At this time I also started to loose feed caster at 5m to my right. In the next 35 minute's I caught 28 skimmers and although they were small they were coming quite fast and by feeding a pinch of micro pellet every 3rd fish and shortening the line rig down to two inches I was hitting almost every bite. I could hear that the venue was fishing very hard so kept plugging away. I hooked a lump of a fish that tore off at a rate of knots before the rig pinged back- almost certainly foul hooked and better it come off straight away then waste a load of time playing it on light gear. With an hour to go the wind dropped slightly so I cupped in a pinch pf pellet at 10m and went out to 17m where I didn't manage a bite.

It was now decision time, do I spend the last 50 minute's sat on the lead with my fingers crossed or do I keep putting the small skimmers in the net? I chose the latter as although I knew I wouldn't catch first place I hoped that I could make a top three finish. The trouble with peg 16 is I could only see two other anglers so it was a bit of a gamble. A quick try with meat saw a longer wait for a bite from a similar sized skimmer so I stuck with the expander. I kept picking off the skimmers and also managed a few dumpy roach at 5m on the caster. The all-out was called at 3pm and I reckoned on having around 12lb in the net.

I was first to weigh and my net of silvers went 8lb 4oz with the three carp only going 6lb giving me a 14lb 4oz total. Phil then put 25lb odd on the scales to comfortably take the lead. I decided to follow the scales round and soon realised it had fished hard for most with mainly low single figure weights. We got to Andy and his 8lb 12oz took 3rd spot before Nigel on golden peg 6 had two lumps fors 18lb odd,knocking me into 3rd. There were no more weights until Jumper Collins on peg 3 put 10lb odd on the scales to take 4th spot,crucially knocking Andy into 5th.

I was happy with 3rd place and would have gladly taken that if it had been offered when I drew peg 16. The decision to target the small skimmers with 2 hours to go proved to be the right one as although I might have snared a carp on the lead it would have been risky,especially as I didn't even manage a liner when trying it occasionally throughout the day. After eventually packing away I made way to the lodge to pick up my winnings. With just two matches to go I am now 5 points clear of Andy as I am on 15 points with him on 20,although we can both drop our worst result( both 5 points). I also have a weight advantage of some 40lb or so which could prove decisive overall. I'm not fishing atall next weekend as I'm in ireland but if the weather isn't too bad I'm hoping i can sneak in an evening match on Wednesday.