Chasing Shadows

I was quite looking forward to this Sundays match, which had a late draw time so we could fish 12-6pm, hoping that the fish would start feeding later in the day at the time they hopefully thought we'd be going home!

At the draw I was a little less optimistic as with 21 people fishing it tends to make life a little harder. I was hoping for a draw in the fancied 20's, either that or peg 33 but it wasn't to be and I wasn't that over joyed when peg 17 came out into my hand. To make matters worse as I was loading my gear up on my back the heavens opened and I had to walk to the peg in the rain! When it's not happening for you something really lets you know doesn't it!

The peg sits on the point of the island, the front of it being about 15m away (looks further in the picture!) and goes into a bay in front. With no cover on the island and the fact that right into the bay is perhaps 18.5m away and due to the brambles hanging in make it hard to fish tight to it. I put a rig 4ft long on and started to plumb up along the island. It didn't matter how close I got to the island, even at 17.5m I couldn't touch the bottom with the rig! In the end I had a rig near 5ft in depth to fish at 16m up the side of the island next to some overhanging grass. I wasn't optimistic of being able to hold fish on the deck against the island in that depth at this time of the year and so put up 2 shallow rigs to fish close to the island too, one at 12in deep and one at 2ft. I had a fair bit of room to my right so set up a rig to fish at 7m along there behind some lillies in 3ft of water. Lastly I had a rig to fish near a weed bed in the deep water at an angle of about 11 o'clock, fishing about 10m. Here the water was near 7ft deep, more than I'd like but the peg does have some form fishing to the weed.

I fed very little across (hemp and corn) but put decent pots of bait on the other two lines, albeit a couple of minites after the all-in as I wasn't ready! It didn't take long to get odd liners from fish that were obviously high up in the water. I tried the deeper of the 'up' rigs but had only one sharp dink on double caster. The shallowest rig produced nothing yet as soon as I went back on the deck I got liners again. This game of chasing the fish followed for just over an hour. In this time nobody I could see had a fish. With only odd dinks on the deeper 'up' rig but nothing on the shallowest I decided to try the deeper rig 6 inches shallwer. This didn't take long to get what seemed a proper bite but with the extra line above the float I missed it and got the rig stuck in some far bank hidden vegetation! Rig sorted (with a shorter line!) and the next bite see's black hydro streaming out. After a short but very lively fight a common of about 4lb was in the net, foulhooked in the pectoral fin. Back out and I barely had time to tip the few casters out of the toss-pot when the floats gone and I'm in again and after another lively tussle a slightly smaller carp about 3lb finds it's way to the net. The next drop and after a slightly longer wait another 3lb'er finds it's way to the net.

After the far bank rush I took a minite out to top up the other lines before going back across, but no more bites followed. I decided to rest the swim and try the other lines but ten minites on each of those were fruitless. Back on the far line and nothing happened but there was definitely some movement right back in the bay. I put another section on and tried as near the jungle as I could. After a few minies I had another bite but I must only have had the fish on for a second before it got stuck solid in the brambles and I lost it.

Losing the fish proved to it for the swim for the next few hours apart from an odd 'dink' shallow which I was sure were from small silvers. At this time an air display had also started at near-by Duxford airfield, and bugger are those low flying jets loud! The noise was so loud that it vibrated on my pole! I'm sure it can't have helped the fishing. This went on till around 5.30. Up to this point I tried everything I could think of on all lines yet the float never moved on the middle and margin lines, although odd fish could be seen swimming along the far bank. Five minites before the end I tried again at 17.5m and managed another carp of around 3lb. I just had time to get back out again and the float 'dinked' and my strike was met with a tiny rudd that came flying out of the water before coming off!

Nobody near me (that I could see) had done any good but and my four fish went 13lb 4oz but alas the favored 20's produced the 3 frame places all in a line, 27lb winning and 18lb and 15lb being the others and with someone else managing 14lb 4oz I had to make do with 5th, although the lost fish did probably cost me 3rd.

One thing that I did notice was that all the fish I had were very rough and I'm sure the reason for the poor fishing is because the fish are now waiting to spawn. Still, no matter that it had been frustrating, at least I caught unlike last week! Hopefully next week will be better still, I was catching more fish in the winter!