A Two Flask Day!

Firstly I apologise for the poor piccy, it was taken in a rush in a break in the rain and didn't realise it was quite as poor!

With the bad weather there was predictably a no-show or two, and the pegs were chosen with the bad weather (and leaves ) in mind. Off all the pegs in the bag once again the one peg I didn't want came out in my hand, peg 35 which anyone who had read my ramblings for long enough will remember me labelling it as the worst peg on the lake!

When I got to the peg there were no leaves but with the swirling wind I found it impossible to plumb up past 13m, so I simply put up two pole rigs - one for down the track and one for down the margin to my right, down wind and nice and comfortable! I was quite sure of catching in the edge, as despite the rain it has still been warm. I had a nice depth of three and a half foot down the edge under some marginal overhangs, while down the track there was about 6ft. Line on the margin rig was .16 while the track rig had .14. Lakkys were a 12 latex for the track and Preston 15h for the margins. Lastly I put up a strait lead rod to fish across.

On the whistle I fed half a pot of chop and caster down the edge and a small amount of hemp and corn down the track. The lead rod was then baited with a single grain of corn and flicked towards the island. I have to say that it didn't land quite where I wanted, being a bit short. After ten minutes I re-cast and was much happier with the distance it landed from the island, about a meter short. With the rod settled I picked up my flask and poured a coffee. No sooner had I picked the cup up than the rod yanked round and in the process of putting the cup down I somehow managed to spill the coffee down my boot and burning my foot! Some shot in the tipping rain! After a very bream like fight a small common of around a pound and a half found it's way to the net. A liner two chucks later about sums up the next hour so I dropped onto the track line.

With nothing to show on corn I slipped a caster on and it didn't take long for a response, albeit from a tiny perch. No more followed so I topped up the pole swims and went back on the lead but with no joy. With no signs of fish anywhere I decided to flick odd grains of corn across with a catty. I'd have preferred to feed casters but in the wind it was impossible. After two hours it was time to try down the edge. Half a dendra didn't take long to get a bite, but again it was a tiny perch! Caster didn't get a response so it was down the track again but on maggot. Again little perch were the only things to respond and for a few minutes I was happy to put a few in the net before trying caster. This bought a change in species with a roach but it was no bigger than the perch!

With nothing going it's back on the tip but despite trying all along the far bank (and the coffee trick multiple times!) nothing was showing. With about an hour and a half to go the rain started to break and down the edge with double caster bought a response from a perch of about 6oz. Next drop gave a proper 'carpy' liner then I missed a bite. With the margin line looking promising disaster struck! With the clearing of the rain came a change in the wind, and with that came the leaves! As you can see from the pic it made things rather awkward, and they were worse than that at times!

With just over an hour to go the leaves were so bad I got up and took my near empty flask with me and went for a walk, wishing I had made two flasks! I sat back on my box with three-quarters of an hour to go and two un-fishable pole swims, the only gaps being near the far bank. The change in the wind had made the swim a little more sheltered so I plumbed across quickly with my margin rig (no time for a new one!) I found an area with a reasonably flat bottom and about 3ft of depth (the colour had dropped out so I didn't want less) and tipped in the little choppy I had left in the box. I had to ship across holding the pole up with the rig out of the water. Two quick perch were the first to respond on caster before a spell of drifting leaves meant I couldn't fish where I wanted. When I dropped back in I missed a bite then hooked a much better fish and lost it as it plowed through the floating leaves! I'm sure it was foul hooked mind. With ten minutes left the next bite saw what looked to me like an F1, although none have been stocked so it must have been a naturally occurring hybrid! Still, at about 2lb it was welcome. I did miss another bite before the whistle but that was it.

I packed up a little peeved at the day, sitting out in bad conditions is one thing, but with them ruining any chance of having a decent day it wasn't good! I also came home with the feeling that I just didn't fish well too. When I could fish across on the pole I had bites, and with just 12lb 8oz winning, narrowly ahead of 12lb 7oz and third being 11lb it wouldn't have taken much to have made the frame. Still, you have to take the good days with the bad, here's hoping the next one is good!