Looking Back On The Year.

Well, the year is up again all ready, so it is time to take a look back at 2011! Unfortunately, it's been a short one in terms of angling for me as various things in life conspired to get in the way of my bankside time. At the moment, temporarily at least, I'm stuck in Milton Keynes and not really able to get out. I do hope that changes soon!

So, what happened this year then? Well, January started as 2010 finished, fishing through the ice and not catching anything! It was Sunday the 23rd when I caught my first fish for about two months. The first fish I hooked actually came off near the net and I have to admit I wasn't sure if I should cry or jump in after it! I only had three carp that day and finished just out of the frame. It did however get me back in the swing of things for the winter league.

The winter league started well for me, as not only did the draw bag be kind to me, but I was also the golden peg! Just a shame it was a new one for the league. On that day I switched between the reeds in the edge of the peg and fishing at 13m in to the open water and managed eleven carp and a brown goldfish to comfortably win the match with 32lb 10oz, about 20lb ahead of second place!

With the coming of February and it started well on the New Lake at Westside. It was the first match on there since the end of November the previous year when everything froze over. This first match boded well for me with the winter league the week after, winning with just shy of 33lb taken on punch shallow. The winter league the next week was a kick in the privates though as I struggled from an unfavourable peg and managed just one perch of 1oz. Fortunately, you can drop the worst result and this didn't cost me.

The week after that match saw me draw a peg I didn't want on the old lake, and had blanked off of two times not long before. I wasn't best happy with it, but fished it different to before largely ignoring the island in front and fishing the deepest water I could find. The result? I managed to pinch a few decent fish from the deep water coupled with a lump from the margin and a win from a peg nobody wants in the winter with 38lb. The winter league the week after saw me scrape in to second place on the day and good points, but the weather had warmed up enough that it was impossible to get through the roach on maggot and I ended fishing on corn. A decent end to the month.

With March coming in the weather just started to perk up a bit. The open before the fourth winter league saw me draw a consistent winter peg, and I managed a third place. The winter league saw me draw a peg I wanted and the day ended far better than I ever could have imagined! Twenty carp and a skimmer on bread punch shallow saw me walk the match by a country mile with a total of 96lb 1oz, a fair bit ahead of the second placed 18lb. If I hadn't had to go get another net I may have managed the ton! Oh well!

The week after that, again on the open the week before the winter league, saw me celebrate my 30th birthday with a win, again by fishing corn in the open water. The fifth winter league match saw me draw a peg which I quite like but it had been a struggle for those that had drawn it previous. I managed to eek a few fish out catching both deep and shallow on the long line, plus a couple of small fish at 5m and a bonus margin lump. I managed to scrape third on the day and the winter league seemed to be shaping up nicely!

Going into April and it was the last round of the league. I'd worked out that a top four finish would be enough to clinch the title, and I managed to go one better on the day and bought home the trophy. I didn't have much time to bask in the glory mind as it was away early the next morning to Belfast to get married the weekend after!

My first match back was a disaster while the last match of the month saw me finish in second place but just 3lb 6oz off first. I was left to rue having to make rigs on the bank which saw me starting the match late, but I'd had an enjoyable days fishing and the fish seemed to be starting to munch in the warm summer like weather.

May bought the annual bank-holiday pairs match. This day saw me struggle for fifth on the day with the wind a complete pain, but my partner saved the day with a third on his lake which got us third placed pair and a pick up!

The next two matches proved to be a bit of a struggle, and nothing to write home about with very little caught. The two weekends after proved more eventful after slow starts - firstly with a win on the Old Lake with 52lb odd of carp taken mostly late on in the margins, and then on the New Lake with 29lb which was taken mostly in the last half an hour on worm. It does help when you pan a 12lb'er with about a minute to go!

June started a week late for me, and was probably the wettest day I've ever sat out in in the summer. Despite the weather (and a slow start!) I managed another win with 50lb 10oz caught mainly on pellet fished long feeding with a catty. In fact, June was a good month for me as I fished three matches and won all three, the first time anyone has won three opens in a row on the fishery since it opened about twelve years ago! What was most satisfying was that they were won fishing differently, with pellet, corn and worm all being the winning baits.

July didn't start so well, with me tipping back after a day struggling. I however got back to form with another three match winning streak, and managed to take the golden peg in the process! Again I didn't catch all on one method, with a win on the hottest day of the year on corn at 5m on the deck, and a predominantly margin approach with corn took the golden peg. Over on the New Lake it was again worm that done the damage. The weights were good too, with 63lb, 68lb and 70lb nets. The month then finished off as it started with me having a right struggle - one foul-hooked fish was all I managed.

August started off in true bagging style with me winning off the Old Lake with 114lb 10z, taken from the 5m line and the margin. I ran out of net space with a few minutes left else I may have managed the lake record but I wasn't complaining as it was my first ton off the lake! The next week on the New Lake wasn't such a bagging spree and I scraped out a level 24lb for second. The next two matches saw a spell of deja-vu with me drawing the same peg twice. Nobody likes peg 64 on the Old Lake and but I managed two results that pleased me massively with a third with 61lb 2oz taken from the margin, and then the next week I totalled 83lb finishing narrowly second taken from the 5m line. I did perhaps spend too much time chasing spooky margin fish but it was still a top result off the peg. The only downer was the first time I drew the peg I got mauled by ants - I was bitten more than forty times up my legs, not nice!

September started in a winning style with me weighing just over 74lb taken rotating the margin and the 5m line on a rather wet day. The next week wasn't such a good result but was probably as good an effort as I'd put in. On an unfavoured peg round the back of the island that's not often used (and I'd never caught a carp off) I managed a predominantly last hour 35lb weight taken off the 5m line on corn. I just scraped in to third with that, but I was in a row of five pegs were just two or three other carp were caught! It was a good example of keeping going and having confidence in yourself.You can't always win but to frame when the pegs either side had one carp between then aint a bad result.

The last two matches of the month were on the New Lake, the first one was a bit of a struggle off a peg that was again not very often in. I was just pipped for third place, but I perhaps didn't get the peg quite right and I should have managed a frame place. The last match was a win from a peg I didn't want, but I scraped out 29lb 4oz for a win. They say you're only as good as your last match, and that was my last match as since then life has managed to get in the way.

Looking back at it, it has been a good year for results. A win in the winter league, a golden peg and in to double figures of wins for a nine month season seems pretty good to me.

While the year started very slow I seemed to get in to the flow of things well. I didn't have just one or two ways of fishing which pleases me - catching on a variety of baits tactics on the pole with corn, meat, pellet, worm, caster and breadpunch all being used. Perhaps the most pleasing thing for me is getting the hang of catching better from open water. It always seemed to be something I struggled to get right but I just seemed to get the hang of it this year and didn't feel the need to either try and force the fish shallow (a method I like fishing) or chucking the feeder.

Getting that right I think helped me turn a few pegs that I perhaps would have finished second or third off in the past in to winners this year. Just as pleasing is some good results of not so good pegs, helped I think in large parts by becoming very confident in how I was fishing. Okay, I still had one or two bad days but by and large it was a good year. It's just a shame my fishing had to stop at a time when I was enjoying it so much.

I'd like to be able to tell you what it was that clicked but it's just seemed that I was in tune with the venue. Once the weather warmed up to the point you could influence the fish with feeding I just seemed to have the knack of knowing when to force the pegs or make a change, meaning that I seldom came away from a peg thinking it was worth a lot more weight. I honestly can't pick one day that I think was the best - 96lb on a damp drizzly March day stands out, but so does my first ton off the Old Lake. Equally, I've had some good results off poor pegs which I equally enjoyed.

As soon as I'm back on the bank I'll update the blog, even if it's just a days pleasure fishing. I'd still like to get a few guest blogs up, so if you fancy writing about your days fishing (good or bad, regardless of the venue) drop me a line via the comments option. The same goes if you're in the Milton Keynes area, be nice to get a few pointers on where to fish.

Lastly, I'd like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Thanks for reading my ramblings - after all, if nobody reads it it's not worth writing!

Fancy Writing About Your Match?

Just as an idea I thought that while I'm off the bank I'd offer some people a chance to guest here!

If you fancy the idea leave a message here with contact details (in the comments, and I won't publish your e-mail address to avoid spam) and I will get back to you and we can arrange something. It would be nice give those that keep dropping in something to read, so if you fancy writing up about your match (regardless of how you get on) drop me a line!

Out Of Action For A Bit!

As it say's I won't be on the bank for a few weeks (and it's killing me!), but hopefully I'll be out on the bank before the winter sets in properly.

Sunday September 25th

Hmm, the weather seems a bit confused now, it really doesn't seem to know if it's summer or autumn!

Walking round the lake before the draw and I wanted a peg round the sides or the back of the lake (from 13 round to 33), although lately I always seem to draw along the front. When I went in the bag pretty much all the pegs on the front of the lake had gone, so my hand goes in and out comes peg 5! Still, at least I didn't have to walk far.

In all honesty, while I didn't want a draw round the front of the lake (it's not the form area), if I had to choose one swim in that area in warmer weather it would be peg 5. It couldn't be any worse than the last time I drew it anyway, when I had just one perch off it in the second round of the winter league.

The rigs that went up were pretty standard really - a small Nick Gilbert XTM on .17 to .15 for across, finished with an 18 Fox Series 2 hook and matched to Preston 15h lakky. I was very pleased when I managed to find about 18in of water almost right against the bank, which is a non-existance on most pegs due to the low water level at the moment. Fishing tight to the bank stops the liners from fish swimming behind your float. It also meant that if I wanted to feed with the catty any over-shot the pellets would either be right up the bank out of the way (feeding the moorhen) or would drop off the steep bank onto my float! The other rigs up were a .4gr Nick Gilbert Decker for fishing the 2+2 line. After catching late on this line not that far away last week I was quite confident of nabbing a fish or two on it. Terminal gear was the same as the far-bank rig, fished in about 6.5ft of water, but matched to Preston 13h lakky on a pull-bung. Last up was the margin rig. This was 0n .19 to .17 and a 16 Fox Series 2. Float was a .2gr DC5 fished in about 2ft of water, and was matched to purple Hydro. If fish show on this line they're animals!

On the whistle the far line was fed with a small pinch of pellets and some loose crumb, while the 2+2 line and the margins had half a pot of bait each, a mixture of hemp and corn with a small amount of meat. Going across with a 6mm expander on the hook it was about ten minutes before I started to get any signs, and I'm sure they were from small fish. Given that I was getting small knocks I started to feed about ten pellets and a small pinch of crumb across to keep some bait going in. There were a few carp milling about so I was sure some would have a munch at some point.

It was on the 45 minute mark when I had my first bite. I was re-filling the toss-pot and could actually see a fish feeding across, so I lowered the bait slowly down and it was away instantly, and I tapped the bait out of the pot as the fish swam out of the swim. Isoon had a 4lb common in the net, and had a liner not long after that but then the swim faded away and I couldn't buy a bite.

On the hour and a half mark I decided on a try on the 2+2 line which I'd been feeding by hand but couldn't get a bite here. I decided to start introducing a few casters across, and tried half a worm. This got a bite strait away from a tiny perch, not really what I was after! At this point, of the five anglers I could see I'd only seen the angler on peg 39 (the end peg and the golden peg) hook a fish, although it turned out that they'd lost it. I tried caster across but couldn't get a bite off any line. I had one liner on the 2+2 line but nothing else ever developed, even though I could still see a few fish cruising.

It was on the half way mark of the match when I had a bite out of the blue, and this gave me a ghostie of about 4lb. I had another bite next drop which gave me a mirror of about 5lb. I'd started to feed with the catty but nothing more came after that brief flurry so I topped it up via the big pot, giving it about twenty pellets, the same of casters plus some loose crumb.

I was still dropping in on the other lines but couldn't raise a single indication from them. I fed a couple of pots of loose crumb down the edge, as I figured I had nothing to loose. Plugging away across I could get an odd liner so I spent most of my time here as at least odd fish seemed to be present.

With just over an hour to go I tried half a worm across and had a bite not long after lowering it in, with the resulting fish a common of about 6lb. The next drop produced another bite to the worm, with this fish a touch bigger at around 7lb. No bites followed next drop so I topped up with the big cup again but the next bite saw me bump a fish. I thought I'd got away with it when I had a 3lb ghostie soon after but my thoughts of a last hour bonanza were done with and I had no more indications until the last few minutes of the match when the fish came back but I didn't have enough time to nab one.

For the second week in a row I was on the scales so everyone had to wait while I packed away, although it was apparent there were a few DNW's. Peg 31 was supposed to have caught a few, but depending on who you listened to it varied from 6-9 carp, and they're not always the most honest at saying what they have either!

With me the first to weigh in (the angler on the peg to my right blanked, as did the one to my left) my fish totalled 29lb 4oz. Peg 11 was the next to put anything of note on the scales, with 11lb of pasties and one 8lb'er which turned out enough for second, pipping peg 15 by just a few ounces. A few double figure weights followed, but also a few DNW's and peg 31 then put a weight of just over 18lb on the scales, but was less than what peg 15 had so had to be content with 4th. The last to weigh in was peg 37 who put one fish of 11lb 4oz on the scales, probably one of the most perfect commons you'll ever see.

So, a win from an area I didn't want wasn't bad on what turned out to be a hard day for all on the new lake. Next weeks open is back on the old lake, and a club booking on that lake was won with 104lb so it's fair to say most are looking forward to being back on there!

Sunday 18th September

First off all I'll apologise for the lack of picture, I meant to take it after the match but totally forgot until after I'd loaded up the barrow and I wasn't taking it all off to get to my camera!

I was a bit bemused with my peg when number 9 came out, it's seldom used and in actual fact I had to rummage to find it as it was just a tiny gap in the bankside vegetation! It's not now, after I spent about twenty minutes of frantic chopping with secateurs!

It's one of the few pegs on the lake where you can't reach the island with the pole which meant a feeder chuck to the island (about 20m). The far bank vegetation was a bit fun until I got my eye in (think it was four months since the tip rod last came out!) I fished a small method on this line, and then set up two pole rigs - one for 11m to my left in the margin and a rig for fishing 2+2. I'm pretty sure you know what the rigs were by now!

I was a touch late starting after my little Sunday morning gardening session, and my first few chucks were a bit wayward! On the thirty minute mark I had my first bite, falling to an 8mm S-Pellet. Not a massive fish at about 3lb. Next cast I nearly had the rod pulled out of my hand, but the fish came off and I'm sure it was foul-hooked by the way it was kiting. Then the next drop I had a little bubba of a carp of about 1lb. I was just harbouring thoughts of putting a run together when the swim totally died.

It was a while before any more signs, and I found myself glad of my little £3 Asda radio so I could listen to the football! I'd had fruitless tries on both pole line and was back on the feeder when the rod did it's best to jump in the lake while I was celebrating Luka Modric's opener for Spurs against Liverpool! Another followed not long after but my thoughts of a run of fish ended when I lost a fish that pulled off right at the net.

After that flurry the swim was totally dead unless I tried worm up the side where I could catch perch, but I was enjoying the football and wished I was watching that instead as Spurs thumped Liverpool 4-0 (sorry Carl!)

With just twenty-five minutes to go I missed my first bite on the 2+2 line. I didn't give it long as I could see a carp feeding up against the far bank, but a few chucks on the method gave me only liners. I went back on the pole on the 2+2 line for the last ten minutes and wished I'd stayed on it after that first bite as I added a brace of 4lb'ers to the net in the last few minutes! You'd think I'd know better than to chase the fish after the last couple of matches...

I was on the scales and the second to weight in, so for a brief while I was winning the match with 20lb 4oz! Peg 14 put just over 39lb on the scales and the chatter suggested it would be close between them and peg 27 who was on the golden peg. When we got round to them they put 38lb 12oz on the scales to just miss out! I managed to hold on to 3rd place until the very last person to weigh in put 21lb 6oz on the scales. I was kicking myself a bit, not just from those lost fish but also for coming off the pole for that spell near the end. Perhaps I should have caught a few more perch on worm in the edge......

Sunday September 11th

Well, Autumn has arrived with a bang! The wind has been blowing all night and I was woken at 6am by the rain lashing down. Not a good combination for a days fishing.

With another near sell out there were a couple of pegs I fancied as they had room; pegs 66 and 68, which also had no wind in them, and peg 44 which also has a large lilly bed in it that always holds carp. I really didn't want to draw round the island as all the pegs were in, although at least the ones round the back of the island were out of the worst of the wind.

When my hand went in the bag I was very disappointed that 55 came out- a seldom used peg with no form. I've sat on it before and am yet to catch a carp from it! Still, at least it was out of the worst of the wind.

The first rig up was for the bay in the island in front of me at about 15m. A Nick Gilbert XTM on .17 to .15 with an 18 Fox Series 2 matched to Preston 15 hollo was the gear for that line. Second up was a rig for the 2+2 line. In about 5ft of water I found that I could get away with a .3gr Nick Gilbert Decker. Terminal gear was the same as for the far bank rig but matched to black Hydro. Last up was a margin rig. At 5m to my left I had a nice marginal shelf with just over 2ft of water. A .2gr DC5 float was matched to .19 line to a .17 hook-link and a size 16 Fox Series 2 hook, with the rig matched to purple Hydro. Despite not having loads set up, I wasn't ready at the start for some reason, so I apologise for the hashed picture taken after the match just as it started to rain again!

When I started I fed the 2+2 line with half a pot of hemp and corn, while the margin got the same. I went across with a toss-pot on the pole and sprinkled a few 6mm pellets on the float. I carried on doing the same every few minutes but strangely even knocks from roach were few and far between. On the half hour mark I started topping the pot off with groundbait. This led to a few more knocks from small fish but no sign of any carp.

On the hour mark I dropped in on the 2+2 line. At this point the only fish I'd seen caught was a small roach. After about five minutes I had a bite on a single grain of corn which produced a carp of about 3oz, but no more bites followed. I went back across (but carried on feeding the closer lines by hand), and had a liner across but from a fish that was visibly cruising.

I had a while across but with no joy so I dropped back in on the 2+2 line, but had nothing here. I decided to have a brief look in the margin and had a bite pretty quick on double corn but from a pastie carp of about a pound. The activity was short lived and I couldn't get another bite here so I went back across.

On the half-way mark, and with no joy from either of the other two lines I dropped in the margin and promptly missed a bite on double corn. The next drop gave me another bite and I connected with this one, a carp of about 3lb, but again no more bites followed.

With just over an hour and a half to go nobody I could see had a 'proper' carp, so with nothing to lose I upped the feed in the edge, while giving the 2+2 line a quarter of a pot of hemp. I dropped in down the edge and hooked a fish that felt decent, but after twenty seconds or so the hook pulled. I topped the swim up and left it alone for a bit but I couldn't raise any signs from anywhere.

With an hour to go I lowered the rig in over the first bubbles I'd seen from the 2+2 line and as I lowered the float in it carried on going! Joy! I managed to do the same for about thirty-five minutes, taking my tally from one carp up to nine. A mixture of sizes from 2lb up to about 5lb but I wasn't concerned, the float was going under and I never missed one!

After the fast run the bites slowed a bit, and my attention was taken by some large fish grubbing in the edge. I lowered my margin rig in and it buried quickly, followed by lots of elastic! What looked to be a big ghostie roared around, and while it didn't look foul-hooked the lack of control suggested it wasn't hooked in the mouth. I'll never know for certain as after two or three minutes the hook pulled. The next drop down the edge the float goes, and my lift is met by a 4lb common leaping clear of the water and through the marginal brambles, leaving me hanging up the marginal cover! That was the last action in the margins but I managed one more carp off the 2+2 line.

At the end of the match I'd only seen two other carp caught so was pleased with how I'd plugged away and caught a few. When the scales came round it seemed that while peg 44 had bagged up, putting a level 80lb on the scales, the only other peg to have caught well was 66. My fish totalled 35lb 6oz and was good enough to scrape in to third place behind a near 50lb weight from peg 66, a result far beyond what I thought I could manage.

I believe next week is on the new lake, so it's a change of scenery!

Sunday 4th September

With the two days before today being nice and warm I was quite optimistic that the lake would fish well, and the weather this morning was even nice with it being mild, overcast and with a slight breeze... looking good!

Walking round before hand I didn't really know where I wanted to draw, apart from 64 that is - I fancied a change of scenery! Thankfully, when I dipped my hand in to the bag that number was gone but I managed to get the same two numbers on my ticket, with 46 coming out in my hand. I was pretty happy with that!

There were a few fish cruising about so I set up two shallow rigs for long, one for between 1-2ft and the other for less than that. My 2+2 line was only about two inches shallower than it was long, so I could use that for trying on the deck here. That rig was a .3gr NG Decker on .17 to .15 and an 18 Fox Series 2 in about 6ft of water. Terminal gear was the same for the two shallow rigs and lakky on all was Preston 15h. Last up was a margin rig for 6m to my right along the bare bank. In about 2ft of water the rig was a .2gr DC5 on .19 line to a .17 hook-link and a size 16 Fox Series 2. Lakky was purple Hydro.

On the whistle the 2+2 line had half a pot of hemp and corn, while I decided on a positive attack for the margin giving it a whole pot of the same. I started on the deeper of the shallow rigs and started pinging a few pellets in. I didn't expect to bag off this line, I was more hoping to get a few early mug fish before the other two lines hopefully came on. An odd fish started to look a little interested and I came up on to the shallowest rig. After about forty minutes I briefly hooked a fish but I'm not sure if it had just rolled in to the line.

On the hour mark without a fish I decided on a quick try on the other lines (I'd topped up the 2+2 line by hand, while I carried on attacking the margin with half a pot every half hour). I had no signs on the deep line so I baited the margin rig with double corn. It didn't take long for the float to vanish and I was in to my first fish.... which then came off! Not the best start, and with no more indications I topped it up and left it alone.

I had a brief try on the shallow line again, but now the pellet was getting knocked by roach so I gave that up and came back on the 2+2 line. I think by this point practically everyone I could see had caught, and peg 66 had five or six carp. With no joy I rotated between the two lines and it was just after the two hour mark when I had my first bite on the 2+2 line, which I missed! I didn't miss the next two mind and was off the mark, albeit with two small fish for about 4lb. The third came after stopping to top-up the margin line and was probably bigger than the other two put together! However, just as I was thinking of lining up a few fish the line died on me.

Dropping back in the edge I was pleased to get a bite strait away and from a decent fish too, a common of about 5lb. By now it started to rain, just steadily at first before increasing to a monsoon! I found that instead of toss-potting it was better to feed half a cup of corn and catch two fish before feeding again. Despite the rain (and a very noisy F15 jet doing aerobatics over the top for the Duxford display) I was putting a steady run of fish together. Bites were by no means fast but I was catching up on everyone I could see. I had to fish double corn to get a bite (and I was missing odd ones) and the one bite I had on a 10mm cube of meat gave me a mirror of about 1oz!

With an hour and a half to go I was on fifteen carp, with a few decent fish up to 7lb in the net too. Then the rain stopped, the sun came out and the wind dropped and I couldn't buy a bite! Fish would still come in down the edge, but they wouldn't settle properly. A spell on the 2+2 line gave me one small carp of about 2lb, but it seemed that everyone had stopped catching! I guessed that the only person I could see now with more fish was peg 70 opposite, but they looked smaller.

The last hour was hard work, I had one more fish down the edge of about 7lb again, but after that the only line I could get a bite off was an occasional one well away from the feed on the 2+2 line, and they were small fish of about 2lb each. I finished the match on nineteen carp, although perhaps I could have had an extra fish or two had I not kept chasing the odd fish that came in the edge to feed, but they always melted away when you put the pole near them!

I was the third person to weigh in, and when the scales got to me the two weights were 53lb 8oz and 49lb 12oz. My fish went just over 74lb, while those coming back from round the island were only admitting to four or five fish each. I carried on packing away (I was doing it slowly and leaving stuff in the sun behind my peg to dry!) and walked up just as the last angler weighed in. I was right about my fish being bigger than peg 70's as theirs totalled 54lb 3oz, leaving me clear at the top! The rest of the weights were close mind, and a few people were cursing lost fish who'd just missed out.

I think next week is back on the same lake again, so here's to hoping it keeps in good form and the fish are after a good feed up before the winter, which doesn't seem so far away now....

August 29th, Bank Holiday Monday

Isn't it frightening to think the next Bank Holiday will be Christmas! That said, the summer Bank Holiday seemed to have a very Autumnal feel to it which nearly resulted in me lifting my fleece in the morning, and I actually wish I had!

Walking around before-hand I fancied the pegs around the back of the island, as while the wind was pushing round there they were sheltered from the wind by the island and felt a couple of degrees warmer. Those that are eagle-eyed enough may notice that I didn't get my wish as I ended up on the same peg as last week! While I caught last week off if it's really not the best peg, plus I wasn't looking forward to the ants! I didn't notice it last week, but the buggers had a bit of a feast on me and on Monday morning I counted over forty bites up my legs, not nice! Tuck trousers into sock time it was...

I only put three rigs up for the day - a far bank rig, a margin rig and a rig for the 2+2 line. It didn't take me too long to set up as I still had the tippex marks on my top-kits from last week and the three rigs were quickly checked and re-plumbed, exactly right first time as the lake level hadn't changed! The far bank rig was a NG XTM float in 16in of water on .17 to .15 and an 18 Fox Series 2 matched with Preston 15h. The 2+2 rig was on the same terminal gear and the margin rig was the normal stepped up .19 to .17 and a 16 Fox Series 2 hook matched to purple Hydro.

On the whistle and after feeding the far line with a pinch of pellet the both the margin and the 2+2 line were fed with half a pot of hemp and corn. My reason for feeding the margin early when I hadn't last week was that I expected it would be my main catching line, and I hoped to get more than one good hour off it.

Going across on an 8mm banded pellet and the float did it's usual small fish dance before plinking under, and like last week my first carp was about 4oz. The wind was a touch awkward, although at times it would be flat calm at times it was also a job to hang on. Lifting and dropping the rig would invariably get knocks as the pellet settled but they were from smaller fish. Wondering if a 6mm banded pellet would be able to catch me a few of those smaller carp I gave it a go. This meant the float actually went under more, and when I eventually hit one of the bites the result was a bitterling!

I was flicking a few pellets across via the catty as and when the wind let me, but after about forty minutes all the indications faded so I took this as a signal to feed again with the pot. I still wasn't getting many knocks after and I was contemplating trying one of the other lines (both were getting a few grains of corn by hand) when a better bite saw me hook and land a proper carp, a dumpy mirror of a good 4lb. I plugged away on the line for a bit longer and did hook another carp about twenty minutes later, this one ripping the lakky from the pole while I was lowering the rig in! Unfortunately, for whatever reason this one pulled off as I lifted the top-kit to net it.

Indications seemed to stop totally after that across so just over the hour mark I re-fed across with the cup and dropped in on the 2+2 line. I lowered the rig in slowly, and as the float touched the water it was away - this is what I was after! Or it wasn't, as after a couple of seconds the hook pulled again. I checked the hooks on all the rigs after, they were all freshly made rigs but you never know, but they all seemed to be fine (they went in to my thumb okay!). I plugged away on the line for another ten minutes but indications were iffy so I left it alone, after topping both the close lines up with a bit of hemp and corn via the cup.

When I went back across the far line was getting increasingly awkward to fish in the wind that was swirling in the trees, and with very few signs of fish I didn't give it too long, a decision helped by the tail patterns in the margin! Double corn dropped in here and the float was away, and a decent ghostie mirror of about 5lb was in the net. I hooked another fish after that, only a few minutes later, but that one pulled off too! I was not best amused and changed the hook-links on all the rigs regardless.

I left the margin alone for a bit and dropped in over the 2+2. I was getting signs of life there and was tinkering with the shotting and depth trying to make some hittable bites. The tow was fairly strong against the wind and the majority of my knocks were coming about 2ft to the right of where I was feeding, but my first hittable bite came when I lowered the rig right down the feed, and resulted in a crucian of about a pound. I'd had to spread the bulk out a bit to get that, but when the wind really gave it some the rig wasn't quite right. The odd knocks carried on and I went back to fishing just the bulk of shot, about 10in from the hook. Lowering the float slowly in down the tow got me another bite, and this carp too was a decent stamp at about 4lb.

After that last fish I decided to rest the swim and gave it a decent amount of corn and no hemp. From what I could hear peg 57 was catching very well, although nobody else I could see had a lot more than I did. In the margin I was getting signs of fish and a switch to one large grain of corn got me a bite and another decent fish of about 4lb, followed not long after by it's twin. I then bumped a fish down the edge so I decided not to push it and went back on the other close line.

Feeding just the corn here seemed to have done the trick and I started to pick up a few fish off this line. I was having to work the rig a lot, and most of the bites were coming just after the rig had been lifted a foot clear of the water and slowly lowered back. They were coming in one's and two's either down the tow or directly over the feed but they wouldn't settle on one place. Still, by fishing a single grain of corn I was steadily plodding along with fish averaging about 3lb, and hopefully I still had a last hour margin bonanza too! I did try a cube of meat every now and then in an attempt to nick a bigger fish but I never had a bite doing this.

With an hour and twenty minutes to go I found myself with fifteen proper carp and starting my second net. I'd still been feeding the margin by hand, and as the last few bites had took a bit longer to come by I gambled on having a look down the edge. I could hear talk of peg 57 already having 100lb, so was hoping on a bag-up spell myself down the edge! I did manage to nick one decent carp down the edge, but I probably spent more time than it was worth to catch it after missing a few bites.

With an hour to go and I dropped back in on the 2+2 line, but while I'd left it alone I'd carried on feeding it by hand. Unfortunately, the fish seemed to have faded away rather than come back and it took a few minutes to get something going again. The first fish came by fishing the wrong side of the bait in the tow. I then got distracted by a tail in the margin so dropped in down there, but only had a missed bite to show for it. I managed to get another carp, again fishing the wrong side in the tow, but both those fish that side were smaller. I then again got distracted by a tail in the edge, but this time I nabbed the fish on a single grain of corn. This led to me staying on the margin and while I was getting an odd bite here I was missing them. Just as I was lifting out the float went and I had another carp, but I decided just to feed the swim and go back to the 2+2.

This line seemed to show a few more signs of life and with twenty minutes to go I should have got my head down here. The wind had settled a bit so I spread the bulk out and it seemed to work. The fish were smaller at about 3lb each but twice I decided to have a sneaky look down the edge for two or three minutes, but only managed to miss a bite while going for a margin lump to catch 57. I finished the match on twenty-two carp, the last ones taken from the 2+2 line.

I could see a few other people had caught, and most of them had double figures of numbers in the 40's (the pegs I could see on the opposite bank in the open water, the best area last week) I knew I had more than all of them. As I got packed away quickly I went and followed the scales. Peg 57 was admitting to thirty carp so it was clear they'd win as everyone who could see them said they had 100lb. I'd guesstimated mine to go about 75lb. While walking up the other bank it was noticeable that it was much warmer out of the worst of the wind, I'd sat with a coat on all day and would never have said I was warm. It was a mistake to have left my fleece at home!

When the scales got to peg 57 the top weight was 47lb. They comfortably topped that, but didn't have as much as everyone had been suggesting when they put 88lb 9oz on the scales. Hmm, this was closer than I thought! When I'd finished my weighs I'd totalled a level 83lb. In the end, those were the top three weights.

On getting walking back I couldn't help but be a bit disappointed at being so close, even though I'd worked very hard at the swim to get that weight I'd perhaps chased the margin fish a bit much and it'd cost me. The wasted times towards the end in the edge perhaps would have given me the extra weight, but then so could have one more lump from the margin! And then there was those couple of lost early fish.... so near yet so far and I have to admit it's overshadowed what's a fantastic weight off that swim.

Next week my blog will be back at around it's usual time, and hopefully starting September in style!

Sunday August 21st

No complaints about the weather today, it was pretty nice this morning! Not so happy about the spiders though, why do they always have to weave their webs at face height near the shed so I get a sleepy face full of web in the morning?

Walking round and the fish seemed to be all round the lake, but more so on the earlier numbers. On queuing at the draw-bag the person in front of me walked away from the bag as peg 64 was still in and they'd struggled off it last time. My hand goes in the bag and out comes 64.... I didn't really want it either! They promptly drew after me and got 66 and moaned about that too, some people are never happy!

I had four rigs up, two for across, one for 5m and one in the margins to my right at just 4m. The bankside vegetation doesn't allow you to fish much further on either side but the right was against some reeds and a touch shallower than the left. The far bank rigs were at about 13.5m, one to fish in 14in of water and one right up the bank in about 9in of water. Both were identical otherwise, being NG XTM's on .17 to .15 and an 18 Fox Series 2. Both were on Preston 15 hollo. The 5m rig was a .3gr NG Decker in about five and a half foot of water. Terminal gear was the same and the lakky was black Hydro. Last up was the margin rig. In about two and a half foot of water the float was a .2gr DC5 on .19 line to a .17 hook-link to a size 16 Series 2. Lakky was purple Hydro.

There were a few fish moving so I was confident I could catch a few fish. On the whistle the far line was fed with a palm-full of pellets, while the 5m line had half a pot of hemp and corn. I didn't feed the margin to start with as I could easily do that by hand at any point, plus experience told me that if that line goes it'll be very late - no point wasting bait feeding the small fish!

As per usual I went across on a 6mm expander which immediately gave me a roach. Not the usual micro one, but about 2oz - better, but not what I was after! A switch to a banded 8mm pellet and the float did it's dancing trick before vanishing. This gave me a little carp of about 4oz, so the right species, but the wrong size! I had two more carp of the same size in the next twenty minutes before I saw some movement very tight to the bank. I had been feeding pellets via a catty and some bait was going tight, so it was on with the very short rig!

Going tight over gave me a few knocks but no proper bites, and the tail I could see had gone as I shipped over. With no joy I decided to feed tight over with the pot and leave it, so a quarter of a pot of 6mm pellets went across before I had a quick try on the 5m line, but this gave no joy.

On trying up the island I had nothing there either, so I went back on to the original rig for a short while but all the happened here was the float danced around while the roach played head tennis with the pellet. When I shipped back in the pellet was round in the band!

On the hour and a half mark I decided I'd need the margin sooner rather than later. I could see those pegged on the opposite bank in the open water catching well. I'd had odd bubbles start on the 5m line and was fishing here on a cube of meat when I started to feed the margin by hand. I gave it one big handful of hemp, and just as I gave it one of corn the pole yanked as a carp hooked it's self! Off the mark with regards to proper carp, a lively ghostie mirror of about 5lb was the culpret.

Despite that one carp I couldn't raise any more bites off that line, but I was at least starting to get indications off it. On the two hour mark I decided to have a go in the margins where I'd been flicking about a dozen grains of corn every five minutes. A bite strait away saw me attached to a decent fish that charged out of the swim before pulling off! I fed it and rested it, going back to the 5m line. Here I hooked a decent mirror on corn that looked a good 7lb, and that pulled off just as I went to net it and fired my rig up a tree. A new hook-link was required after!

I couldn't get any more bites off the 5m line after so I dropped back in on the margin on double corn. A quick bite here saw me land a small common of about 3lb, and feeding just after I hooked it saw me hook a fish almost strait away after dropping in again. This did the same as the first fish I hooked down the edge and charged off and the hook pulled. This was not amusing and I have to admit I was rather peeved. I changed the hook-link, even though there was nothing wrong with the hook, but the bites stopped after.

I had a brief try over, where I had still been feeding via the catty but even the roach had got bored of mullering the pellet - probably they had a jaw ache! The match was passing by and frustratingly too. I fed a big pot of corn on the 5m line to try and boost it, as I could get odd indications on it. It worked to a degree as the float buried with a single grain of corn as bait, but the result was a crucian of about a pound. I carried on plugging away, changing the shotting to try and make hittable bites from the odd knock. I did manage to nab another small carp of about 3lb off the line, fishing well away from the feed but with two hours to go I had just three carp.

I found myself back in the margins and was getting odd bites but could not connect with them. I'm not sure if the missed bites were smaller fish or because the wind was blowing the rig back towards me a touch, as I do find then that having the float closer to you than the pole tip seems to result in missed bites for whatever reason. Still, the increase in movement was encouraging!

With an hour and a half to go I had a try on the 5m line again, and thought I had it sussed when when I managed two fish in a row, each taken by moving the shot well away from the hook in a much less positive spread-bulk and two droppers pattern, and then lowering the float in very slowly. It didn't work for a third time though! In fact, even the knocks lessened after.

With an hour to go I dropped in the edge on double corn and the float was away instantly and soon a slightly better fish of about 5lb was in the net. In fact I found myself going from relative inactivity to motoring! By feeding after I hooked a fish bites came very steadily. I'd like to claim it went like a dream and I hit them all but but I did still miss a couple. With just under an hour to go when I put carp number six in the net I found myself putting carp number fifteen in the net about twenty seconds after the whistle - what a complete change of a swim! The average stamp was good too. I did have two smaller fish, going about 5lb the pair of them, but the others were bigger and the best being number thirteen, a common of about 8lb.

When the scales got to me the other bank had fished very well, with weights of 92lb and 70lb being top and a couple of 40lb weights too. My fish went 61lb 2oz in total, and in the end that was good enough for third place, with nobody else challenging the frame after me.

In the end I was pretty pleased, as while the lost fish cost me second I got a result off a peg that nobody really likes. It's just a shame I packed all the action into one hour rather than spread it out!

Next weekend brings the August Bank Holiday, and while I won't be out on the Sunday I shall on the Monday, so the next update will be a bit later. Tight lines until then!

Sunday August 14th

After last Sunday's fish filled day I was hoping that the new lake was going to fish a bit better than it had been.

When my hand went in the bag a few of the numbers I wanted were still in, but when 35 came out it wasn't the best option in the bag. In fact, I think I described it as the worst peg on the lake last time I drew it!

Plumbing up gave me 15in of water at 16m, but this was probably 2ft off the island. If I went any tighter the water was very shallow, just 3-4 in. This wasn't ideal as I like to get as tight to the island as I can to stop liners, but with the water low this isn't possible on some pegs now. On a more heavily stocked water I'd have put a rig up for it. The rig was normal for fishing across; a NG XTM on .17 to .15 and a size 18 Fox Series 2. This rig was matched to Preston 15h. The only other rig I put up was for the margin at about 8m down the bank to my right. I had a nice sloping area with 2ft of water near to the bank here. The rig was pretty much the same as for across but the float was a .2gr DC5.

On the whistle I fed a small pinch of pellets across, while the margin got a small pinch of hemp and corn. I wasn't going to feed a lot here and if it didn't go with half the match gone I had some groundbait to feed.

I had a liner more or less from the off, and after about ten minutes I started to drip a few pellets in via a toss-pot. Pretty much dead on the half-hour mark I had my first proper bite on a 6mm expander which gave me a carp of about 3lb. This wasn't the kick-start to the day I hoped and the fish that had been present started to fade away.

On the hour mark I decided on a change, as while there wasn't as many fish present there were still some. I had a few worms with me so took a small handfull plus some of the peat they were in and gave them a liberal dose of liquid worm before mixing them with a few pellets, casters and an odd grain of corn. The first drop feeding this via toss-pot gave me a small perch and the next half an hour gave me a couple more small perch before any activity faded. The next bite gave me another carp of about 3lb before the swim totally died on me.

On the halfway mark I'd had no more bites so I fed the margin with two pots of loose crumb with a few small cubes of meat in. I then noticed an odd movement under a tiny bush to my left. This needed me to just hold a top-kit and a foot of the no4 to reach. I decided to flick just an odd pellet here after I'd plumbed up to find it about two inches deeper than the other margin. After a fruitless try across another movement to my left saw me drop in on a pellet and the float went away as soon as I lowered it in. A carp of about 3lb was in the net before it even knew what was going on as I'd hooked it so close to me!

No more bites came so I tried both the other lines but with no joy. Another movement under the small bush saw me about to try there but just as I was going to the angler on the next peg (who'd not caught) threw all his bait in down that margin as he packed up. That was that down the edge after then!

I plugged away on the two lines I'd originally fed and with an hour to go I had two bites in two drops from across where I'd still been feeding the worm mixture. Both these fish were bigger at about 5lb each, but the last hour bag-up I hoped would happen didn't and the bites faded, funnily enough as the angler the other side packed up noisily....

I kept the bait going in and with about ten minutes to go I managed my sixth carp, a smaller one than the last two at about 3lb again. I hoped I'd had enough time for another but while I had fish in the swim I never managed to get another bite before the whistle.

The match had been hard for all those that I could see, with the four anglers I could see one having one, one having four and the other two were the pegs either side that had packed up carp-less.

Walking round following the scales peg 14 was the first person to put a weight on the scales around what I thought I had with a 20-14 total. A couple of other weights around that mark came to the scales with the best being 22-10, until peg 27 put their fish on the scales and totalled 32lb odd, with more fish than they'd admitted to! I knew I didn't have that so it was second I was hoping for but I knew it was going to be very close. A couple of double figure weights went on the scales before they got to me, and when I put my fish on the scales I totalled a level 24lb and narrowly pipping the last peg to weigh in who had 23-6 into second place.

In the end I was quite pleased with the result, and I'm not sure I could have scraped much more out of the peg in the end, certainly not through my own errors anyway, although I wasn't best pleased with the anglers either side and they way they packed up as I'm pretty certain they cost me fish. Still, next week is back on to the old lake and that's fishing much better!

Sunday 7th August

I was looking forward to getting back on to the old lake after last weeks struggle, and with the warmer weather during the week it's fair to say most people were optimistic of a decent days fishing. I have to say I was too on walking round, as while the wind was on most of the pegs the water seemed much more coloured - hopefully due to fish feeding!

I did fancy a peg round the back of the island where the wind was pushing, as like most lakes the fish follow the wind. Pegs 57 and 59 were at the windward end but flat calm as the island sheltered them and seemed a perfect draw to me, but by the time I dipped my hand in the bag they were gone and 48 came out in my mitt.

I was fairly happy with the peg despite it not having great recent form as it's fairly shallow (4.5ft at the deepest), and therefore easier to concentrate fish on the bottom in. I put up three rigs for the day and first up was the rig for the island at 13.5m, which was manageable in all but the worst of the wind. In 16in of water the float was a NG XTM on .17 line to a .15 hook-link with a size 18 Fox Series 2 hook and matched to Preston 15h lakky. The second rig was for the 2+2 line. In just over 4ft the float was a .3gr NG Decker with the same hooks and line as the island rig, with the lakky being black Hydro. Last up was a margin rig, fished at about 5m to my left. Depth here was 2ft and a standard margin set-up of a .2gr DC5 float on .19 to .17 matched to a 16 Fox Series 2 hook. Lakky on this was purple Hydro.

On the whistle the far bank line got a palm-full of 6mm pellets, while the 2+2 line got half a pot of hemp and corn. Last up, the margin had a whole pot of hemp and corn. The first drop across on a 6mm expander and it produced a small roach after a host of knocks, so it was on with a banded 8mm pellet. The small fish still knocked the pellet but with a few carp milling about I was sure they'd settle so I started flicking pellets across with the catty.

On the hour mark I was just about to come off the far line as others were catching when a series of liners led me to stay on the line for a bit, but after another fifteen minutes I came off the line and dropped in over the 2+2 line. This gave me my first fish, a common of about 2lb that was hooked outside the mouth. When my next fish, a 4lb ghostie was also hooked outside the mouth I added another inch to the depth so I was on the bottom by about three inches as the wind was increasingly bad. This had the desired effect and by the end of the next hour I was on six fish, all falling to single corn.

Starting the third hour and I found I got bites quicker by fishing above the direction of the tow and was now catching steadily, feeding a whole toss-pot of corn each time. Again, all the fish were taken on single corn and I'd got myself into a good rythm of feed, bite and fish and by the half-way point of the match I was on thirteen carp with the fish all in the 3-4lb stamp. As tends to happen on "unlucky thirteen" I lost the next fish (the first one I'd lost) when it ran along the bank to my left and the hook-link parted on a root. This got even more frustrating when the next fish pulled off as I went to net it, putting the rig up a tree and requireing a new rig after I'd retrieved it.

The two lost fish slowed the swim a bit so I topped it up with half a pot of hemp and corn and dropped in down the margin. I'd originally intended to put half a pot in every 45 minutes but with the fish looking in the mood for some grub I'd stepped it up to feeding it every 30 minutes. It didn't take long to get a response from another chunky 4lb'er but no more bites followed so I gave it another pot of bait and left it.

Dropping back on the the 2+2 line and I picked off two smaller fish about 2lb each on meat before I found bites hard to come by so I dropped in down the edge again. This followed the same pattern as the first time with a fish falling strait away but no more bites following.

Going back on the other line again and I decided to feed corn by hand to increase the noise, so both the margin and 2+2 line were getting small pinches of corn every few minutes. With two hours to go I found that fishing right in the middle of the feed was better as it got me more bites, but I was missing a few of them so I put the bulk of shot right on the top of my six inch hook-link. This had the desired effect and I started to catch steady again and in half an hour I put four more carp in the net including one about 6lb before tails waiving down the edge got my attention.

Two drops down the edge on double corn gave me to fish quickly but they were smaller so I gave it a hit with the pot again and dropped on the other line. A couple more quick fish of that line saw me up to twenty three carp with an hour to go when bites went off. A switch to meat led to a flurry of missed bites before giving me a tiny carp of about 4oz.

The last hour in the margins gave me a steady run of fish down the edge, and a switch to meat down the edge seemed a better option than corn. The fish averaged about 4lb a piece until carp number twenty eight which was a ghostie mirror of about 7lb which I put in the net with just under ten minutes to go. In those last couple of minutes I put two more carp in the net but smaller, in the 2/3lb bracket to be on thirty proper carp with a minute or so to go. With the tails waiving at me I think had I dropped in again I'd have got another but I was at the net limit of fifteen carp per net. Had I any longer I'd have emptied the net with my roach and micro carp in it!

I was the fourth to weigh in and about 40lb was top weight when the scales got to me, my five weighs (one of them 5oz from the silvers net) totalled up to 114lb 10oz and comfortably enough for the win. The two pegs round the back of the island that I'd fancied originally filled second and third with a 70lb and 50lb weight. Not a bad days fishing in all!

Sunday July 31st

I was optimistic of a decent day's fishing today, with a nice warm morning and decent weather forecast too! Hopefully the fish would be obliging....

I had a walk around before the draw and there were not many fish visible cruising, hopefully a good sign. Hand in the bag and out comes peg 40, a peg I've never drawn, and to be bluntly honest, one I didn't ever want! There were some mumblings about me drawing it but it's got no form what-so-ever this year. Being drawn out as the golden peg made the mumblers a bit more vocal too!

Sitting down on the peg it's a long way across, 17m or so to the island. I could get about 2ft off the island in about 18in of water, but no tighter due to roots and snags. I thought this could be a problem as I find when fishing to islands you don't want to leave room for carp to get behind the float. Standard rig for here - an Nick Gilbert XTM on .17 to .15 with a size 18 Fox Series 2 matched to Preston 15h. Second up was a 2+2 line fished to my left past the point I was fishing on. A .3gr Nick Gilbert Decker float was on the same terminal gear as the far bank rig, fished in about 6ft of water. Last up was a margin rig for the right side. I had to spend a while plumbing along here. In the end it was a touch closer to me than I wanted but the bottom had a better slope. The rig was a bit lighter than my standard margin gear in an attempt to get bites as the margins have been poor on this lake. Float was a .2gr DC5 in just over 2ft of water, terminal gear was the same as the other rigs.

On the whistle I fed a pinch of pellets across, while the 2+2 line had a third of a pot of hemp and corn. I decided to leave feeding the margins till later but had knocked up some groundbait to try feeding down the edge, being as my normal approaches hadn't worked and it seems to be the 'in' way of fishing the edge.

Trying a 6mm expander across gave nothing after ten minutes so I started to to tap in a few pellets via a toss-pot. I didn't want to feed with the catty across due to the water behind the float - I didn't want to feed the fish in to the roots. It took half an hour or so before my first indication, which I missed! I suspect it was a liner anyhow.

On the hour mark I decided to start introducing a few casters and a bit of crumb across via the pot. The only person I could see who'd caught was peg 33 and nobody else was getting bites. It took until two hours in before I got my first proper bite, a small perch on double caster!

On the half way mark peg 37 had a carp and 33 was still nabbing odd fish, and with the far side lifeless I decided to feed crumb down the edge, giving it two pots with a few small cubes of meat in. This was going to get another whole pot every thirty minutes in the hope of dragging some life in to the swim!

With two hours to go I saw odd signs of life across, and lowering the rig in saw the elastic streaming out. What I thought was a good fish turned out to be about 4lb and foul-hooked in the tail. How did it do that?

The next two hours was totally lifeless where ever I tried, and with the sun in my eyes fishing across (the picture is from after the match as I was ages getting ready) so in the last forty minutes I plugged away down the edge. With half an hour to go I had a liner down the edge, and with just a few minutes to go I could see a large mirror easily into double figures mooching over the groundbait. It wasn't really troughing though and despite my best attempts to trick it, it wasn't interested in either the large dendrobena or a couple of small cubes of meat and I finished the match with my one foul-hooker!

The front side of the lake where I was fished hard for everyone (one carp to my right and none to my left). the weights were close with the top three separated by not much more than 2lb, with just 31lb 14oz needed to win. Next week is back on the old lake, and hopefully it'll be much better!

Sunday July 24th

The theme of my drawing lately seems to be deja vu, with not much variety in the pegs I draw! That said, I was quite happy with my draw of peg 66 on the end of the island on the old lake, it's got good recent form and it was off the worst of the wind (what's happened to summer!)

It was a pretty standard affair with regards to rigs for the day - the far bank rig, tight across at 16m was a Nick Gilbert XTM on .17 line to a .15 hook-link and a size 18 Fox Series 2 hook and Preston 15h elastic. The depth here was about 16in. The second rig was for the 2+2 line using a .3gr Nick Gilbert Decker in about 4.5ft of water. Terminal gear was otherwise the same for this as the far bank rig. Last up was a margin rig. This was fish about 12m to my left under some overhanging branches. Depth here was about 2.5ft and the rig was a .2gr DC5 on .19 to .17 and a size 16 Fox Series 2, with the lakky being purple Hydro.

On the whistle I fed a palm-full of 6mm hard pellets across, while the 2+2 line got half a pot of hemp and corn. I didn't feed the margin to start with for two reasons, firstly I've never caught much in the edge off the peg, and secondly, I hoped I wouldn't need it! It didn't take long for a response on a hard 8mm pellet across and I can't have been in much more than sixty seconds when I was shipping back with a carp on. Not a bad start either, a fish of a good 4lb.

The next few drops were met by nudges, most likely from small fish so I started to flick a few pellets with the catty. The nudges eventually led to me catching a carp of about 2oz on the pellet so on the half hour mark I fed a similar amount to what I'd started with. This again had the desired effect and a common of about 3lb was soon in the net. Not wanting to introduce a large amount again early I carried on feeding with the catty but the next fish was a roach so after quarter of an hour I went across with the pot again. This again had an instant response and another 3lb'er was in the net, so I tried a small pot on the pole, allowing me to introduce a similar amount of pellets but not use the big cup. This didn't have the desired effect though and with the swirling wind plus the fact that I had to un-ship twice on the long pole it made things awkward.

Back to feeding with the catty with the occasional cupping of pellets to keep a tight base area of feed had fish in the swim, but I couldn't get a proper bite! Eventually a bite saw another carp on but this one charged down the island and the hook-link broke. The second hour was frustrating and saw me lose three more carp. I wasn't lifting into the bites either as they were yanking the lakky out, with two pulling off near the net and one more coming off halfway across. I'm sure people thought I was bagging, but in reality I was getting very frustrated! Especially when I had to do a monkey up the tree to get my rig back! At least one of the fish was foul-hooked but I don't think the others were.

On the two hour mark it was time to rest the long line try the 2+2 swim. It took a while to get a response here and the first fish was a big crucian, and then I had a small carp of perhaps a pound and a half. I gave the swim half a pot again (I had been feeding it by hand) and went back across. No sooner had the pellet hit the bottom than the lakky ripped out! Thankfully this one didn't come off and another 4lb'er was in the net, but no more followed.

With three hours gone (halfway) it was time to feed the margins, as it looked like I did need it after all! No messing here and a whole pot of hemp and corn went in. I then topped up the far line via the big pot, giving it half a cup to try and kick it in to life. I had a drop in on the 2+2 line but didn't give it too long as I could see tails waiving at me down the edge. First drop in on double corn and I missed the first bite almost instantly. The second bite wasn't long in coming though and a 6lb common gave a good account of it's self before going in the net. I got odd liners after but didn't want to push it so soon after starting the line so I gave it a hit of bait again and left it.

I couldn't really see anyone else unless I craned right forward off my box, but I could hear a fair bit of splashing from up the lake and the banter suggested someone was catching. I managed to nick another fish from the far bank but still frustratingly I couldn't line them up. The 2+2 line seemed a little better now with more indications. I had two 3lb fish off it on corn, then trying a large cube of meat hoping for a better stamp of fish (or quicker bites) gave me just a missed bite. I decided to drop the rig in the wrong side of the bait (up the tow) on single corn and this did get me a bigger fish, with a common of about 5lb being the result.

With just under two hours to go I was plodding on steadily, not ever lining fish up but nicking an odd fish across before nabbing one or two off the 2+2 line. The margin was weird as it was lifeless unless I gave it at least half a pot, but when the fish came in the were right in the bank in just inches of water, not on the feed! They were good fish too but I couldn't get a bite from them.

The last hour started with me getting two fish in a row from the far bank line putting me up to eleven or twelve carp, but then the fish went iffy so I left it again. The margin fish were still in a weird mood, mooching right into the bank so I found myself back on the 2+2 line. A small carp of about a pound came from here, then another chunky crucian but the next bite after that was a 2oz roach on corn. I gave it half a pot and went back across but for the first time after resting I didn't get a fish from the line.

Coming back on the close line and I started to put a run of fish together in the last thirty minutes, with an odd good fish in amongst them too. With ten minutes to get I found myself on either fourteen or fifteen proper carp in the net, so erring on the side of caution I went with the higher number and put the other net in. That last ten minutes was probably my best spell of the match too, with a 4lb'er and then a 2lb'er going in, then with about a minute to go I hooked a better fish and just after the whistle a fish nudging 6lb went in the net too, all falling to single corn.

When the scales got round to me just shy of 40lb was winning but the end peg was admitting to nineteen or twenty carp too, but apparently they were small fish. My couple of weighs totalled just over 68lb, with my last ten minute net contributing 11lb 12oz to the cause! I was humping my gear past the end peg just in time to see their weight tallied up to 52lb something, so they were all small fish.

The win was more than I thought I was going to manage to be honest, though it was that last thirty minutes really on the 2+2 line that sealed it. I also wasn't the only one to suffer from a few lost fish too, with two or three others getting the same and one person also having the bites pulling the lakky out but losing them. Interestingly, they were hair-rigging on the pole and all mine were on banded pellet, so in both cases the hook was exposed and I'm tempted to think that has something to do with it. I did find myself earlier thinking I'd probably have done better on expanders across when the fish aren't feeding properly, but with the amount of tiny fish it's just not really an option so I guess it's just plugging away as it was and hoping the weather picks up enough soon the get the fish eating properly.

Sunday July 17th

Ahh, back to being able to to complain about the weather! The wind and rain gave the morning a rather autumnal feel and I have to say I was a little unsure about what the day would hold, both in terms of the rain upsetting the fish and with the forecast storms too.

I really wanted a peg in the open water where I find it's easier to catch short but I found myself on peg 62 in the corner round the island. I have quite fond memories of the peg as it's where I caught my first fish for two months back in mid/late January! Just as I was walking off with my gear someone told me I was also the golden peg, which is normally a curse to the days fishing...

Looking at the peg I was confident that I'd catch from it late down the margins where I had a few stick-ups. Fishing 13m down here I had just over 2ft of water, and the standard margin rig was set up for here - a .2gr DC5 float on .19 line to a .17 hook-link and a 16 Fox Series 2 hook, the lakky was purple hydro. The far bank rig was at 13m too, but I couldn't tuck this as tight to the island as I wanted due to the vegetation. In 2ft of water a NG XTM float was on .17 line to a .15 hook-link and finished with a 18 Fox Series 2 hook, while the lakky was Preston 15h. Last up was a rig for 5m. In 5ft of water I could get away with a .3gr NG Decker despite the wind. Terminal gear was the same as the last rig and matched to black Hydro.

On the whistle the far bank got a pinch of pellets while the 5m line had half a pot of hemp and corn. The margin line got a whole pot of bait - I had to attack this line as it's the one I needed to go for the best chance of taking the golden peg. Going across on a banded pellet small fish started to knock the pellet about. I started to flick a few 6mm pellets across with a catty to try and draw some fish.

In the first twenty minutes the next peg had two early from their margin, then my first proper bite saw me catch a crucian of about a pound and a half, before the next drop produced a tiny 1oz carp! With signs of fish in the margin I allowed myself a quick drop down the edge on double corn. It didn't take long to catch here with a fish of about 2.5lb falling. With no bites coming quick after I re-fed it with half a pot rather than push it too early.

I had a quick try on the 5m line but had only a liner to show for it. On going back over I again only had knocks from little fish, with the regular cattying of pellets failing to attract anything bigger. On the hour mark I dropped back in the edge and again had an instant bite but again from a smaller carp of about 3lb. Again nothing followed so I topped it up with half a pot again and left it alone.

The far bank wasn't going and I could only get liners down the edge. I carried on topping it up as I thought the fish would get their heads down at some point. On the two hour mark with the wind a bit gusty I bulked the shot up a foot from the hook on the 5m line and dropped in with a 10mm cube of meat. A sharp bite which took the lakky with it saw another smallish carp, followed by another about ten minutes later before that line faded, which led to me giving that half a pot boost what I'd fed by hand there.

I dropped across again and had an instant bite from an even smaller carp of perhaps a pound and a half before the mad indications (and the increased wind) led to me leaving the line again. Dropping in the edge saw me attached to carp number five, but this one led to a bit of a merry dance before I mugged a fish of about 4lb hooked in the tail. Nothing more followed so that was again topped up with half a pot.

On the 5m line I lost a fish on the meat but I think that may have been foul-hooked. With the wind dropping a touch I went back to a spread bulk and corn on the rig and this seemed to do the trick. The next hour gave me a run of fish, all in the 2-3lb bracket but they were coming steadily and with two hours to go I was into double figures of fish.

I'd kept an eye on the edge, and had been topping it up every thirty minutes and could see fish moving there. I gave the 5m a small pot of bait and left it to drop in the edge and was instantly into a bigger fish. A 5lb'er was soon in the net, but topping up via a large toss-pot didn't seem right so I gave it a quarter of a cup. This had the desired effect and soon another decent fish fell. Keeping to the pattern of feed, drop in and bite with just over an hour left I was on fifteen carp and motoring, with all the fish being twice the size of what I had been catching.

All the while down the edge I'd been keeping an eye on the dark cloud moving in ominously behind me, and with an hour to go a rumble of thunder was followed by a deluge of rain that made the frequent showers we'd already had seem like a misting! With my jacket on and hood up I plugged away but the indications were fading away. I did lose a fish from the edge that felt bigger still but may have been foul-hooked. Eventually the rain slowed and I then hooked another fish but the line inexplicably parted midway down the rig. Putting on a new rig I topped up the margin and left it.

A brief spell on the 5m line saw another small carp on corn before the wind picked up, so I bulked the shot up again and put on a big cube of meat and another small carp fell to that. Back in the edge and I was getting some indications and in the last ten minutes I managed another two carp, albeit much smaller than those I was catching.

I finished the match on nineteen carp, but very little idea of what others had caught. I packed my rain soaked gear away and went to find the scales just as they got to peg 53, which according to others was the only peg to challenge what I had. On pulling their net out they had less fish than me but all big, but on the scales when they went to 51lb something I knew it was looking good! My fish totalled 63lb 1oz on the scales and the best weight after I weighed was 32lb.

On reflection, given the weather it didn't fish too bad, we'd had over an inch of rain on Saturday, and a fair bit on the day too, but going home with soaked gear was a little less painful with a little bonus!

Sunday July 10th

Well, what a change it makes not to whinge about the weather! This morning was about as near a perfect morning as you'd pick to fish; not to warm, a slight breeze plus a bit of cloud..... I have to admit I was optimistic! Walking round the lake beforehand and the marginal lilly bed looks wrecked and there were a lot of lillies drifting loose so it looked as though the fish had spawned too.

I wasn't overly picky with regards to pegs apart from the fact I didn't want pegs 15 or 40, so I was happy to see both of them gone before I got to the draw bag! I was very happy with the number that came out in my hand, I've a good relationship with peg 25! It's a peg I knew I'd be able to get right up in to the shallow water of the island, and while it's not the narrowest of pegs, it's one where I can leave the 17.5m section in the bag!

Nothing too complex for the day in hand tackle wise, I had two identical rigs for 16m to the island fished just to my right, plus a margin rig. The far bank rigs were Nick Gilbert XTM's on .17 line to .15 hook-links and size 18 Fox Series 2 hooks, both matched to Preston 15h lakky. Depth here was about 18in. The other rig was for the margin to my right at about 5m. I had to do a bit of gardening to be able to pull my rig right in to the bank into about 2.5ft of water. Float here was was a newer.2gr Nick Gilbert XT Series Margin float coupled to my normal margin gear of .19 line to a 17 hook-link and a size 16 Fox Series 2. Lakky on this was purple Hydro. Unusually I was ready well before the whistle so I also put up a rig to fish shallow against the far bank, but I never picked it up!

On the whistle I fed a small palm-full of 6mm pellets (about 25-30) across while the margins had just a small pinch of hemp and corn, plus I was going to flick corn there by hand too. On going across on a 6mm expander I had a carpy like indication that I think was from a fish spooking before catching a roach of about 2oz. The next chuck I again had a roach of the same size before the indications got a bit silly and then died away. On the half hour mark with the indications fading I cupped in the same amount of pellets that I started with and had a bite almost the instant the float settled which produced a carp of about 3lb.

With the first carp in the net I picked the catty up and started pinging a few pellets across but the indications were few and far between so on the hour mark the cup went back across. This again bought an instant response from a carp bigger than the first at about 5lb. That fish was quickly followed by a smaller carp of perhaps only a pound before the indications faded again. I expected that going across with the cup would bring a fish again as had been the pattern but it didn't, and the swim seemed to be going downhill rather than getting better with indications fading away.

On the two hour mark I started to introduce casters in with the cupped feed while still pinging pellets across in three's and four's every few minutes. I took the chance to have a quick drop in the edge as I'd seen signs of fish but all I had was a couple of liners. Going back across, but on double caster and at last there seemed to be a bit of life with an occasional indication. I managed to catch two perch before my first carp fell to the change, a dark koi of about 4lb. This was followed by a chunky mirror next drop of a similar weight. After that fish the indications again faded so I again fed with the bigger cup, about a dozen each of caster and 6mm pellet before having another quick try in the margins.

As happened the first time in the edge I only had a liner so I didn't waste too long there, and on dropping back across the lakky was ripped out as I lowered the float in, this resulted in another chunky dark coloured koi but this one was probably nearer 5lb. I was still getting indications after this so I held back from cupping in again and just flicked a few pellets in, and eventually carp number six fell. A quick drop in after that and the indications weren't really there so across went the cup again. At this point someone walked round and bought news that the lake was fishing hard, with the most anyone admitting to being three carp. The fish came back to the feed but were most definitely edgy, I suspect at least in part due to the walker!

The fish did come back, after I'd had another brief (bite-less) spell in the edge. Steady rather than fast I was getting two fish off a feed before having to cup in again. I did try toss-potting rather than catapulting and using the big cup but it wasn't right and I think the fish felt more comfortable grazing rather than with the feed super tight. The fish were worth waiting for, all about four pound mark.

With forty minutes to go I was on thirteen carp and steadily working towards a good weight when a hooked carp ran along the island to the left, much the same as the others had. This one however hit a branch and broke the hook-link off against it, but I did get the branch out! The lost fish seemed to upset the swim a bit and it took a while to get the fish going again. A change to half a worm managed to get me three more carp in the last twenty minutes, the first two a bit smaller than average but the last one, netted just on the whistle was a beautiful black, gold and silver koi of around 6lb.

I couldn't really see the other anglers but had heard a bit of splashing late, but when the scales got to me 25lb was the top weight. My fish comfortably topped that and went a bit more than I thought nudging the scales to a total of 70lb 12oz, comfortably finishing ahead of the second placed weight of 29lb.

Overall I have to say I enjoyed the day, I worked hard for the fish and felt satisfied with the result. It was also nice to be rid of the lost fish that have been a problem on the lake in the last few weeks too, not that I was doing anything different!

Sunday July 3rd

Well, on getting up this Sunday it looked like it was going to be another scorcher! Thankfully, at least the new lake has shade on most of the pegs - I didn't fancy baking again like last week.

Walking around before hand I thought the earlier numbers looked better, the water seemed more coloured and there were more fish moving around. I'd have been happiest with any peg up to number 20 (15 in the corner excepted) but it wasn't to be with peg 33 coming out. A bit bitter-sweet, as I'd won of the peg a few weeks ago, but on the downside that was with just 29lb! I was hoping it would fish a bit better this time.

Only two rigs up this time, nice and simple! The far bank rig was in about 16in of water and the float was a Nick Gilbert XTM. Line was .17 to .15 with an 18 Fox Series 2 on the end and the rig was matched to Preston 15h lakky. The other rig doubled for two margin lines; one at 11.5m to my left and the other at 6m to the right. Typical margin jobbie for me with a .2gr DC5 on .19 line to a .17 hook-link and a size 16 Fox Series 2. Lakky was purple Hydro.

On the whistle I fed across with about a dozen 6mm pellets, while the left hand margin got just a quarter of a pot of hemp and corn. I elected to not feed the other side until later, and this was going to be fed a touch lighter still, unless of course the fish were showing that they wanted a lot of bait!

On going across I had signs of life instantly and just a quarter of an hour in I was putting my first carp in the net. It didn't take long for a bite next drop either, but totally in-explicably the fish came off as I was shipping back while under very little pressure. The swim slowed a little after this so I topped up with a similar amount of pellets to what I'd started the swim with. The signs of life returned instantly and carp number two was soon in the net, perhaps a touch bigger than the first at about 4lb. The next drop I had a very short wait for a bite but again, for no real reason the fish came off after a short while.

An hour in to the match now and the even feeding again failed to bring the fish back. I could see three other anglers and the end peg had suffered a similar fate, catching two fish early, then after losing a fish it died. I started to introduce a few casters a this point via a small pot, while also still pinging a few pellets across with the catty which has served me well lately, but the swim seemed totally barren of life after the early flurry which is something I always worry about after catching from the off.

On the two hour mark I decided on a look in both margins, trying the dump fed longer one first before starting to toss-pot a little hemp and corn into the other but neither showed any signs of life. Infact the going up to the halfway point in the match all I'd added to the tally was a single liner across and nobody near me was catching either.

With all the lines lifeless I decided to try something else in the long margin, giving it three whole pots of loose (damp) groundbait. Don't ask me what the mix was as I'd had a tidy out of the bait store in the shed on Saturday and put all the bottom parts of bags in to one big bag mixed together to use them all up!

Leaving the margin line alone for a bit I went back across on caster and the float barely settled before it went. This fish went along the island before again coming off! I was not amused, but the next drop the same happend and another 4lb'er was in the net. With no more bites in the next five minutes I topped the swim up with a pinch of casters and again went over on double caster. A short wait was ended when I hooked what felt like a much bigger fish which ran along the bank, down the shelf and strait in to a snag and left me without a hooklength.... It was definetly one of those days!

The lost fish spelled an end to the action so I dropped in over the crumb on a cube of meat. I had a couple of liners so decided to put a whole worm on, but this didn't bring a response so I topped up with more crumb and left it again. Going back across was lifeless so I made the decision to try feeding chopped worm across. Half a worm burried strait away and gave me a 2oz rudd and a similar sized perch before again going off, and no matter what I tried I couldn't raise a response again from any line.

The match finished with me in a line of five anglers who didn't weigh in, while the other side of the lake had fished a touch better and a later text message (I was long gone!) told me that 46lb had won, with 35lb second and 28lb third. I have to admit I'm very frustrated about the lost fish but everyone seems to be suffering the same, but it's no coincidence that once you lose a fish the rest seem to vanish! I saw the first fish I lost and that was hooked outside the mouth and lighter lakky may be an option, however, with the root's and lillies in the lake I like to have a measure of control. I really don't know! This fish still haven't all spawned in the lake (which I've never known to happen so late) and I think thats a big contribution to them not feeding properly. Nothing I can do about that!