I have to admit the weather had me a little worried about the fishing on the morning, as what seemed just a chilly morning in my back garden turned in to a progressively harder frost the nearer to the venue we got! The day was supposed to be pleasant enough, but after three or four mild days and nights I did wonder what effect it would have.
Walking around before the start I could see that the colour had dropped out a touch from last week, but I was a little unsure of where I wanted to draw, although with the pegs around the back of the island being missed out I skill fully managed to avoid any of the four end-pegs the gap created! I was happy enough with peg 44, as at least with the remains of the large lilly bed in the peg I had some cover to fish to.
I put up three rigs for the day, although in the end I never picked up the shallow rig that I put up. What I expected to be my main catching rig would cover me for two areas of the swim - for 6m near to the lilly's, and for 13m at the bottom of the slope up to the small island. That slope is very un-even, else I would have fished up it slightly to cover more depths. This rig was a 4x14 Preston Chianti (with the cane tip replaced by a plastic one), with a .14 hook-link to a size 16 B611, and matched to Preston 13h elastic. Depth on both areas was the same to within a inch, at around 5ft. The last rig was for 6m to my left in the edge. The float was a 4x12 Chianti, again with plastic tip, while the terminal gear was the same too. Depth here was about 3ft.
On the whistle the margin and the 6m line both had a pinch of hemp and corn, while the longer line would be built up from drip-fed corn and and odd grain of hemp. Form peg 42 to my left was in to fish instantly, and had three before I had my first bite about half an hour in. I'd had odd liners, and the fish (a small common about 2lb) was hooked in the pectoral fin.
After that fish the liners faded away in my swim, and while peg 42 to my left was catching, so was everybody on the opposite bank that I could see. They were all basking in pleasant sunshine, while mocking those of us on the other bank who were all still sat with coats on!
After an hour I had my first look near the lilly's but had no joy. I tried the margin and had an odd knock but they seemed from small fish. I tried maggot out long which bought me a 1oz roach strait away, so carried on plugging away on corn. The two pegs to my right were fairing no better than me, so I elected to just plug away and hope some fish would turn up. Meanwhile, I had to get up and get my neck gaiter as I was feeling a bit chilled. Peg 70 opposite was sitting in a t-shirt!
With a little over two hours to go I was nine carp behind peg 42 to my left, while end peg 72 on the opposite bank wasn't catching fast, but their fish were much bigger. I dropped in near the lilly's and had my first bite there, and a small ghostie gave a lively account of it's self. Topping up with just two grains of corn carp number three fell soon after, again only around 2.5lb. That fish however decided to run in to the lilly's instead of away, and caused a bit of a disturbance that led to no bite on the next drop.
Back out long and two fish fell in quick succession, and they were about 3lb a piece. Again though, after two fish the swim went off. I topped it up with a small pinch of bait and tried in the edge. I did miss a bite here on corn, but nothing followed after.
With an hour to go I dropped back in near the lilly's, and was away instantly! This time the swim kept going and for the last hour I had a steady run of bites on corn. The fish weren't big, but from five fish with an hour to go I finished on fourteen carp. I was topping up with just two grains of corn each time, and never missed a bite until the very last minute! I'd over taken peg 42 in terms of numbers of fish too, as their peg had faded in the last ninety minutes, although I suspected peg 72 opposite would have more weight. They had less fish, but much bigger!
At the weigh in peg 42 put 36lb odd on to the scales - it was going to be close! My fish totalled up to 37-8 and gave me the lead for a little while, until the first end peg on the other bank (peg 62) put 39-1 on the scales! If only I hadn't missed that last bite! The were a few 20lb weights on that bank until we got to peg 72 on the end who put a couple of ounces over 40lb on the scales - less than 3lb more than me! Doh!
While being so close but so far, I'm not sure there was a lot else I could have done really - I never lost a fish. It was just the usual story for that peg - plenty of fish, but smaller. Both pegs that beat me were end pegs on the much warmer bank so I suppose to make the frame (and over take peg 42 after being nine carp behind at one point) wasn't a bad, but I guess when you're only one fish away from winning it's easy to look at a missed bite last chuck and think "if only!"
I think next week is back on the new lake after a few matches in a on the old lake, so the fishing will be a bit different. With no matches having been on there for a month there's nothing to go on too. Hopefully, it fishes okay!
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