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....