While the weather seems to have perked up now in the day the ice still seems a little reluctant to leave us totally! Jack frost had visited a couple of time in the last few days, leaving us with what I've found to be some of the worst conditions to fish in; bright, warm days and frosty nights. Coupled with quite high air pressure I wasn't expecting a great days fishing, especially coupled with a full house as there is an upcoming Clubman Supercup round on the venue.
At the draw I really wanted a peg with a bit of cover in it, as I was sure the fish would be wanting to move out of the way. What I actually got was a peg that's in an area I've never drawn before! Peg 49 is the first peg down one arm of the island, and is the shallowest part of the lake. While it has no recent form I did think the shallow nature (I didn't realise how shallow it was mind!) may work to my advantage, as it would warm up quicker. What did then put the mockers on it was that it was drawn as the second golden peg- a sure curse!
First task was to have a bit of a plumb round- firstly in the margins as there was an inflow pipe tricking water in to the right. It was very shallow here, less than a foot and I came away from it a touch, fishing just past it and about four foot out, in about two and a half foot of water. This is where I found out how shallow it was, as when I swung the margin rig (just over a meter long as I was plumbing) I found I could just touch the bottom with it down the middle! I also used the same margin rig for the left margin. Here I had a slight point away from me and at 5m I was fishing in the edge, tight to the grass, at an angle of about 11 O'clock. The margin rig was on pink Middy Hollow elastic (similar to black hydro or Preston 15h) for no reason other than I've had it ages and decided to use it! Line was .16 to an 18 Fox Series 2. My track line was at about five and a half meters (taking it just past the point but angled to my right away from it) This was on the same hook and line as the margin rig, using a .2gr diamond bodied handmade float. Lakky on this was a soft 14 latex. Lastly I had a rig up for the island. After much plumbing in the end I plumped for an area just in to the small bay opposite. Nice and easy at just over 13m, it was about 16in deep (in the sun all day, and with the colour I thought I'd get away with it) Again this was on .16 line, lakky was Preston 15h with a size 20 Fox Series 2 hook. Float was a small Preston Durafloat, pattern number I can't remember! Quite positive gear really, but when the area produces it tends to be bigger fish. Plus, no point fishing for second on a golden peg!
On the whistle I fed a decent pinch of 4mm pellet across, where as the track line got about a dozen grains of corn and a pinch of hemp. The right margin got half a pot of hemp and 6mm cubes of meat, while the left (on the point) would just get a few pellets and grains of corn flicked on it by hand. The first two drops across were on a 4mm expander, but this just got shredded instantly by tiny fish; not a good sign! In fact, there were very few signs of carp in the area. I gave the far line perhaps half an hour on corn, getting odd knocks off roach. I was flicking pellets across in two's and three's, hoping the noise would attract a carp, but all that seemed to be in the area were tiny roach.
The next hour was the same on whatever line I tried. I was bite less on corn where as meat or pellet would be stripped off by tiny roach, occasionally leaving one of about half an ounce hanging! As midday came odd carp started to cruise about, bringing a bit of optimism to those of us in the area- five of us in a line had only odd tiny roach between us. On the half way mark I took what turned out to be my only chance of a carp. While fishing down the track on meat a common of about 6lb was taking bits out of the drifting surface scum around my float. I dangled the meat just in front of his nose and he took it! After a lively scrap he was in the net- the only carp caught (apart from one about 2oz) for about six pegs to my right! The angler to my left, on the end of the island, had just one carp too. I don't think any of us there did anything wrong- they just weren't there! I never had a liner all day and in the last 90 minutes I never saw a carp cruise. Some days you just know your flogging a dead horse! I did up the feed a lot in the last hour, but in my heart of hearts I just knew that there were no carp there.
As a whole the lake fished hard (as did most of the country from the results I've seen) with two 26lb weights being first and second- taken from pegs with good cover in them. I think there was a 24lb weight too, as we were all beaten by the conditions. Still, as the days edge past the summer gets ever closer, and so (hopefully!) does some good fishing!
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