September 2015- Rutland special

Blind faith

After a full day on Rutland Water and less than fours hours sleep the night before I was ready to kick back and relax. It was dark by the time we had disembarked and loaded the cars. I made my way to the carpark exit where Andy and Dave were waiting for me. I already had the campsite cued up on my sat nav. It was apparently only eight minutes away. Andy wanted to lead the way though and as Dave leaned out of the passenger window he said with a reassuring degree of confidence something in his Measham twang that led me to believe they knew exactly where they were going. I turned my sat nav off and followed.......and followed......and followed. After a good twenty minutes blindly chasing them down increasingly remote country lanes it dawned on me they didn't have a bloody clue either where we were or where we were going.........

Apologies

I'll try and keep this brief and apologies to my regular reader for this is not aimed at you. For some insane reason a few in the lure angling world are incredibly narcissistic. The 'been doing it longest' or 'I can catch more than you' brigades. The ones that massively overvalue the act of fooling creatures with brains millions of times less powerful than their own with bits of rubber they neither designed or produced. Some of these poor souls may have wandered onto this post to have derogatory sneer. Hi guys (waves arms). It's mainly just a story about some blokes going fishing and having fun, for which we make no apologies..............

Rutland Water

We did the whole introduction to Rutland last year on our first visit, you can read that here-

http://everyday-angler.blogspot.co.uk/2014/10/october-2014.html

In the weeks prior to our most recent visit the news coming through wasn't great. A guy that had caught nearly one hundred (yes, that's right) Zander in a day the previous year had been back and caught six. The Zandermaster competition was also a lot tougher than many anticipated. Leo and Phil fished it though and had a great time, Jamie less so thanks to an errant boat partner but all struggled to catch consistently. Despite this we were all very much looking forward to a couple of days afloat.........

The alarm went off at half past five. As is always the case when looking forward to a fishing session I was already awake. A couple of hours later I arrived at Rutland Water. Martin and Nate were already there, in the car park. If you hold up your hand you can probably count the number of anglers in history who have had both a genuine Lincolnshire 7lb Chub and a number of 10lb Tench from the county and still have some fingers left. Martin is one of them but had never done any jigging or dropshotting. Full credit to him for trying something new and he was both excited and a little reticent. Nate on the other hand had endured a rough night. He'd slept in his van in a remote layby somewhere, one eye constantly open for fear of being interfered with. Despite his overactive imagination he was quite chirpy. When Neil arrived we had a good old natter while we waited for Andy and Dave.

The dynamic duo soon arrived and we set about unloading all the gear near the lodge. Dr Paul Garner was there, waiting for the shutter to open. Always strange seeing someone you've seen in print so many times but a regular occurrence at the big waters. nice chap too. Anyway after a frustratingly long wait in a queue to purchase boat tickets (£31 each for the day) we were set to go.......

Being the most experienced, Andy was paired with beginner Martin, Dave and I were in the next boat with Nate and Neil bringing up the rear. We all headed into the North arm and we soon dropped the others off as we headed a good distance up to an area I had seen a truly giant Perch caught the year before. Sure enough almost first drop down in 35ft of water I had a Perch, albeit a small one. My tactics would be the much the same throughout the day. My favourite Gold Glitter mini fry attached to 0.08 Braid with jig heads varying from 30g to 10g depending on the wind and drift. In the really deep water or when it really blows 50g heads are needed. I always like to use the lightest head possible, I find it easier and more natural to work small shads with a lighter weight. Besides that, who wants to catch an eight ounce Zander on nearly two ounces of lead? 

Despite our best efforts the next few drifts were disappointing with just a few plucks to each of us. Word came through from the others though and it seemed Martin under the guidance of Andy was having a good deal of success with some small Zander........ 

With Martin happily catching his mentor could get among some fish himself........

Dave and I headed over to them and added a couple of fish each. The fish were quite small though and we decided to try and find some bigger specimens. After a brief foray into deeper water (80ft +) we headed around to the south arm. Neither of us really wanted to bring fish up from such depths. I mentioned it last year and I still have the same opinion. If a fish is one of ten thousand when do they become precious? When there are a thousand left? A hundred? One? To me every fish counts and so they should to Anglian Water. Nobody knows how many fish have died at Rutland due to being winched up from extreme depths. To err on the side of caution is sensible.

Over in the south arm in thirty five feet of water I latched onto something quite spirited. In fact it had me wondering whether I had hooked a massive Perch for a few minutes. The fight was quite un-Zander like and I took my time bringing it up through the water column. Sadly it wasn't a Perch but a rather fine Zander........ 

After that the action was fairly steady. My small jigs ever so slightly outfished Dave's dropshot lures although we were both getting a massive amount of dropped takes and plucks. Had we employed stingers I'm sure we would have benefited. The fish were in very small pockets and the wind was making it tough to stay on the fish, even with a drogue. We were drifting forty yards with nothing and then for a few moments all hell would break loose before going dead again. We did however find a spot with a big depth change from forty feet down to nearly sixty feet that produced the most fish. With more boats booked for the next day, it would be one to head back to in the morning. 

Andy and Martin had done really well and stayed more or less in the same area all day. Nate and Neil did less well but like Dave and I they were fishing on the hoof so to speak. Nate did take a rather lovely photo though and with everyone catching it was a fantastic day for all concerned.......

After waving goodbye to Neil who sadly had to work the next day the campsite debacle ensued. This must have been frustrating for Jamie who not fancying the morning rush-hour drive had already found the campsite long before those of us who had the shortest distance to travel. Eventually we got there though and I soon departed for the nearest town for the food and beer run. From what we could see in the dark the campsite was very nice with excellent facilities.....

http://www.winghall.co.uk/camping.html

On my return we eagerly devoured some pies and chips while the beer started to flow. The magnificently ebullient Carl joined us at around ten o'clock having found the campsite by pure fluke. Nate and Jamie had us all in stitches, fishing stories were told, the world was put to rights. It was a night you wish could freeze in time to revisit at will. I was massively tired but with such fantastic company I stayed up late, too late. I tried to tell the lads I normally sleep with a mask on which fell on deaf ears. Sleep apnoea is something you only suffer the effects from when you wake and the next day I felt terrible, really terrible. My car alarm going off in the middle of the night didn't help either. I can't think of a morning I less fancied a day afloat than that morning. We had people to meet though and boats to load.

There were ten of us that second day. Andy was paired with another reservoir novice in the shape of Lee. He was in safe hands though and looked remarkably at ease fishing happily away.......

Dave was first to strike though in the south arm. He had beaten me to the drop off and he and his boatie Martin were soon into fish including this five pounder on the very first drop down of the day. After a quick interrogation Dave swore blind he hadn't caught it on the lure I gave him the day before. A likely story. Whatever he caught it on it was a fabulous start...........

I was paired the Phil on that second day and to be honest I should have handed the motor duties over to him. With my lack of sleep I wasn't really on the ball. We also had no drogue which was a big disadvantage especially as the wind was quite strong. We had a few plucks and missed takes though to keep us interested. A short distance from us Nate and Leo were faring slightly better although with Leo's fish you can see why hook ups are so difficult without a stinger......

As ever Andy was finding consistent action. His boatie for the day Lee was catching a few too. One of Andy's fish........

Jamie and Carl had caught too but it was soon time for a get together mid-lake for lunch. I'm not sure if the Trout anglers approved but unlike Pitsford where we happily landed next to the picnic area we weren't allowed to at Rutland and had to stay afloat..........

We even had a little fish together, nothing serious, just for the hell of it............

After lunch we all went our separate ways again. I finally gave in and went to sleep curled up in front of the boat while Phil took over the controls. I wasn't the only one who needed a lie down. Nate stretching to his full height.........

When I finally awoke Phil had found some fish.........

After a few minutes of being awake I was feeling half normal and started fishing properly. Again we were getting lots of plucks and sitting here now I'm kicking myself that we didn't employ stinger hooks. Hindsight eh? I must have had nearly forty enquiries and Phil probably had the same. We both managed to land a few though. The main problem for us was the speed of our drift. Even those with a drogue were struggling. I tried to hold in areas using the trolling motor and while it was reasonably successful initially it was also incredibly hard to maintain. Despite the challenging fishing I was beginning to enjoy myself........ 

All too soon it was time to return the boats. Everyone had enjoyed a great day. Martin and Lee had caught well, in fact everyone had caught again. Dave had the biggest though and like Andy said, if we are right and Zander are suffering from being caught at depth then those that are left may just get bigger. In a few years it could be a real mecca. Whatever happens it's a thoroughly pleasant way to spend a day. The staff are great, the boats superb and if you have never tried it then why not give it a go? This could be you..........

Andy's Top Tips

Andy is a bit of an enigma. Incredibly modest and a far far better angler than he'll ever admit. He has very kindly put together a few tips for us. The first one shows how utterly selfless he is. Not easy to condense down but there is something here for everyone.........

1. The success or otherwise of a trip is achieved by the boat not the individuals in it, so, fish as a team. Communicate, work together, share the tasks required during a day afloat and feed off one another with a coherent plan of attack.

2. Use an echo sounder. Boat fishing a large body of water without this valuable aid simply becomes one big game of chance and guess work. I rely on the echo sounder for depth and feature finding primarily. Identifying target fish and even food fish with most 'fish finders' is not always accurate. Many is the time I have caught fish with nothing showing on the screen.

3. As with all types of angling 'location' is paramount. Look for signs of food fish visually or on your screen. Keep an eye open for fish eating birds, other anglers catching or if all else fails use historical catch reports as a starting point.

 4. Keep on the move, use a drogue, or natural drift (if the wind is light) to fish the wind lanes, until bites are forthcoming. Then waypoint the spot if your finder has gps or use a physical marker such as an 'H' block and work the area thoroughly.

5. Until a winning method is achieved you and your boatie should be trying different lures and techniques of working them, and different depths in the water column. Once a combination of the above proves successful both get on it and work it.

6. This is going to sound a little Zen like, but the angler at the surface needs to become one with the lure. Know your lure and what a lift or twitch of the rod tip will impart on it, you need to be conscious of how every type of rod movement will be reflected in your chosen lure. This can be learnt by playing with it in the margins of a clear lake or large tub of water at home. Chance is once again introduced to the equation if you take a lure out of a packet without knowing its characteristics.

7. Be erratic. It's very easy during a long day afloat to let your mind drift and slip into what I call 'predictable mode' up down, up down, up down. Once it becomes rhythmical and predictable you can be sure that's how the fish will see it and soon become dismissive of it. Concentration is the watch word, even on slow days fish with the conviction that every twitch you make will be the one to trigger a take. Small, sometimes subtle, but unpredictable erratic movements, making it quiver on the spot before making it dart from the spot and then resting it motionless or even letting the lure drop to the deck for seconds at a time are all things which can wind a fish up. If you have been working your lure in an area with no response, suddenly lifting the lure many feet out of the zone before slowly returning it to an area can work. The above applies equally to jig fishing or dropshotting.

8. Fish as near vertical as conditions allow as this will make you efforts at the rod end more effective at the lure. I try and fish the lightest jig head I can get away with to achieve this.

9. Try and match the hatch with your lure if you can ascertain what is being predated, but above all fish confidently. A lure you have great confidence in that you know works, fished well, will always out fish the latest wonder wobbler fished with doubt.

10. If you experience a missed take, a nip of the lure or a fish quickly falls off, don't panic but return the lure to the spot as quick as you can and very often they will have a second go.

11. Always, always check your lure is sitting in its intended position on the hook/jig head. Check your hook point frequently and always carry and use a hook sharpener. Sharp hooks catch more fish.

12. The big reservoirs can be deep or have deep areas if you feel you must fish them, bring your fish up as slowly as possible and try and pause at least a couple of times as the fish comes up. Quite often doing this you will see bubbles coming to the surface above your fish, this is good news.

Other News

Carl had a great month elsewhere. First off he tempted a few bullheads on lures, great fun....

And then some magnificent Perch including this fabulous three pounder.....

Another fantastic fish to fall and new PB for Ash was this stunning Zander. Well done mate....

Finally we have the unassuming Jamie who has qualified for the British Lure Angling Championship final on Chew Valley. Best of luck Jamie........

Tackle Talk

Luring on a budget is fairly easy and I'll take you through a few money saving tricks. First up are the essentials. Martin acquired the same model of rod I first started with- the Shakespeare GX2 Ugly Stik. His must have been priced wrong because he only paid £10. Normally they are around £25. Not the most refined tool by any means but really tough and a perfectly usable rod. I've caught some really fabulous fish on mine and Martin more than held his own on Rutland with his.

My GX2's made way by chance for some Okuma Dead Ringers. They have full Carbon blanks which are super slim and some neat touches like the cork handles and hook retainer. Again aim to pay around £25 each. Absolutely lovely rods for the money. I really can't fault them.......

Next up are reels. I've learnt to live with my Okuma Trio. It is as smooth as the day I bought it and again I've caught some great fish with it. My initial problems with tangles has been cured by under filling the spool. After a year of usage everything still feels really positive. Aim to pay around £40. Forget the Fox Rage Ultron, that reel is seriously flawed. Mine went almost straight on eBay. A decent alternative to the Trio in the same price bracket would be the Quantum fire. Dave swears by his. My Trio..........

'Nice reel,' shouted Nate as they drifted by on day two. He was right, what he was looking at is a very nice reel indeed. The ABU C3 Was the smallest in the range and perfect for lure fishing. They are pretty rare and you can no longer buy them new. Mine is a good twenty years old and at around £25 they are better than any new reel in that price bracket. Superb engineering.......

An even cheaper second-hand alternative are the Mitchell lightweights. Again they aren't particularly common but if you do come across one aim to pay around £10-£15. A Mitchell made in France that are perfect for jigging.......

Ok now onto braid. It has its detractors and although strictly speaking it isn't a proper braid I like Nanofil, especially in 0.12. It casts really well and is pretty tough. At that diameter it is slightly thick for deep reservoir use. It does have a tendency to twist up, especially in the lower diameters so a good cast with a lead is helpful every now and again. Aim to pay around £12 for a 125m spool. A 'proper braid' alternative to Nanofil is Finezze Braid from Savage Gear. Again it is around £12 a spool. The yellow coating can wear off but mine has taken some abuse without any loss of strength or performance. Last up is the really cheap stuff from Fox- Torque braid. At just £7 a spool it is in line (get it?) with normal mono. I haven't used mine yet but some of the lads have. Reports range from 'ok' to 'I hate it, it's no good'. Maybe not a good investment then, despite the low price. 

Lures are fairly cheap compared to hard baits but often have quite a short life. It's really tempting to fill boxes with the blooming things too. After a while you'll soon get to know what works for you and what doesn't. Andy's tip about watching them in use is really helpful though. The patterns I use most are Mini Fry. If they are pulled steadily up the water column they flutter enticingly. Lift too fast however and the action gets lost. It is often a fine line so watch your lures in action. The money saving tip I have is on the boxes themselves. No branding, in fact mine come from Wilkinson's. At between 90p and £3 each they are great value.......

Moving onto jig hooks and after trying all sorts I now only really use the Ultra Points from Mustad. They stay sharp and have a bit of flex in them which is handy should you ever get snagged. They come in a massive range of sizes and weights. Most of all though they are reasonably priced. Aim to pay around £1.50 for a pack of three......

If you are going on any Anglian Water reservoir then they will supply you with a life jacket. If like me you have a small boat of your own or intend to go afloat on a regular basis then you'll need your own life jacket. I wouldn't recommend anyone skimp on a piece of safety equipment but you can get a decent model for under £30. Try to avoid the really cheap ones (especially those on eBay) as they just aren't up to the job. I got this branded one for £25..........

Ok, over to the non-essentials now. Fishfinders can be a real help on big waters. If not to highlight fish then at least fish holding areas, depth and temperature etc. People tend to upgrade quite often so you'll find some great bargains on the auction sites. I however plumped for a new model. At just over £100 it didn't break the bank and is perfectly adequate for my needs.......

I also have a trolling motor. Again they are something you can find on auction or selling sites quite easily. I got a £200 model that some guy had bought a couple of years ago and only used twice for £75. Bargain. Andy kindly attached my finder transducer to the motor housing too which saved me around £40 on having a separate bracket.

You'll need a battery to run both a finder and motor and this is probably my best tip. If you have a motability shop in your area then pop in and ask if they have any second hand batteries. Often they'll get part exchange scooters and one battery will be faulty so they replace them both, leaving one perfectly good battery just lying around. Sounds unbelievable doesn't it? Well I got one one this way and it cost me precisely nothing. You can't get cheaper than free..........

Last but not least is a drogue which some may argue is essential. Phil and I certainly needed one. Neil and Nate had trouble with theirs too so getting a decent isn't as easy as it may seem. I won't pretend to know a lot about them but Dave rated this quite highly from Wychwood...............

As ever you can contact me here, your tips or questions are more than welcome-

the.power@tesco.net

Afterword

Since our group visit Phil and Leo returned to Rutland. They hit a spell of settled weather and although the conditions were warm and bright they had an absolutely fantastic day. With light winds they could stay on the fish and use light jig heads with great results. Well done guys.......

Till next time...........

August 2015

The Holy Grail

For as long as I can remember catching a Roach of 2lb has been an ambition of mine. Led by my early fishing mentor Simon in my early teens it was never far from our minds. We'd stay on the Banks of the River Wreake in Leicestershire well into dark trying in vain to get one. Simon eventually realised his dream before he sadly passed with not one but two fine Roach over the arbitrary but hugely significant two pounds. They always eluded me though. In fact my first ever blog post was about the pursuit of a big Roach (I'll post the link at the end along with a piece about Simon).

When I moved to Lincolnshire at the turn of the millennium my hopes were raised upon finding the secret river and there were even whispers about the potential of a local drain to produce a specimen. Still, a frankly ridiculous fifteen years later I still hadn't caught one or even seen a picture of one from any of my local drains and rivers, In fact I don't even know why I'm bringing this up now because this month I was taking part in a species hunt competition so I had absolutely no chance of catching one........or did I?

Competition gone mad

Myself and the usual suspects arranged a species hunt for the whole of August. Size of fish was irrelevant and to be honest what started out as a relatively simple format got progressively more complex. Without going into too much detail the more common of our fishes counted for 10 points rising to 50 points for things like Sea Trout, Salmon and controversially, Bass. The list of species was taken from an old freshwater fishes book of mine. Strangely it had Flounder and Bass in there. Living on the coast this suited me though and I approached the competition with a fair degree of confidence. We were all allocated a number which you'll see appear in all the catch shots to ensure fair play. What started out as a bit of fun and a chance to do something a little different angling-wise soon turned into a fierce battle........

A Slow Start

The first two fish I caught in August (from two different venues) were Hybrids which was most annoying as they didn't count. Bugger.

On my next day off I had a plan. Off to the secret river to catch Perch and Pike and maybe a Sea Trout then head downstream to the coast to get a flounder and high-scoring Bass. As expected the Perch wasn't a problem.......

With the river running clear I could see there were no Pike present so I wandered downstream. I couldn't see any there either but I did see a massive shoal of hybrids and strangely a dead swan. Even further downstream the Sea Trout pool was disappointingly lifeless. After departing the secret river I stopped off at a couple of drains on the way to the coast in hope of a Pike. No chance -they were absolutely choked with weed. Rather oddly I saw another dead swan by the drain side. I didn't really think anything else of it and made my way down to the remote beach. After the usual slog down to the water I fished hard for a couple of hours at low tide with not a single bite. This competition was not going to be as simple as I thought...........

I remembered Mrs P telling me of a pond she had encountered one day while out with the dogs. I set off to find it with a short float rod, some maggots, a loaf of bread and of course, the dogs. It certainly looked promising.........

After spraying a few maggots it was clear that all the fish were well up the water so I quickly switched to tiny pieces of floating bread. First to fall were a couple of tiny but perfectly formed Carp followed by a decent Rudd...........

I was having great fun but to be totally honest it did strike me that I wasn't really meant to be there. It had the feel of a stock pond rather than fishery. With a few points secured we made our way home. Sadly the Carp only counted once despite being different varieties.

Next up was an unexpected visit from our old friend Phil Kenny. He was keen to have one last go for the Smoothounds from the beach and with a favourable weather forecast I was happy to join him. After making the two hour journey we headed first to the excellent Big Catch Tackle (not sponsored, not interested in being sponsored- just a bloody good shop) and then up to the beach. The forecast was accurate- it was absolutely glorious and we spent a very pleasant afternoon on the sand. Sadly fish were very thin on the ground but I did manage to score some points for the comp with this plucky little flounder.........

With the first week of the competition over I had a rather paltry 60 points. Dave Owen had streaked into the lead with 160. I had a lot of ground to make up.

Week 2

I travelled up to the upper reaches of the Bream river mainly with the intention of catching a high-scoring Brown Trout. The first peg I fished was a bit of a dead loss, too weedy. I wandered off and soon found a lovely little spot below a small weir and happily trotted a small stick float downstream.......

A welcome Dace soon came to hand.............

I was thoroughly enjoying teasing my float down the crease of the flow when a family of Swans came down the weir. Although only small it was still a good drop for Dad, Mum and three youngsters. A few minutes later they reappeared from downstream and something wasn't quite right. The male Swan headed straight for me which I found very odd. On reflection I was sat in the only place they could climb out and get back above the weir. Anyway all of a sudden an angry Male Swan came into view and he wasn't happy. All hell broke loose. 

Dad and one of the cygnets made it out as I moved back. The angry Male attacked the female Swan with a viciousness I'd never witnessed before in these otherwise regal birds. It was trying to drown her. I stepped in and poked the male away with my landing net. The female quickly got out and joined the Dad and their baby upstream. That left two cygnets at the mercy of the angry male. It was relentless in attacking them. I stepped in again and again but he was really determined. It went on for far too long and although in a busy area the apathy of the general public that morning was irritating to say the least. Realising nobody really gave a toss and as a last resort I netted a cygnet in my landing net. I say cygnet but they were more like teenagers, it was bloody heavy as I lifted it to safety. It displayed absolutely no gratitude whatsoever the miserable sod. The other one was exactly the same- hissing and lunging at me as I set it free safely upstream. Quite an ordeal for one and ruined my swim for another, Then I remembered the two dead swans from the week before. Most people probably blame Otters when they see such sights- I'd like to bet most of the time it's the actions of another Swan. Vicious bastards. Little did I realise the angry Swan had just done me a massive favour........

I moved a good distance upstream in search of another weed free area when I stumbled upon a small clearing in the bank-to-bank rushes. After firing in a pouch full of maggots I cast the stick float over to far bank. Remarkably the float disappeared straight away and a bristling perch was landed. After a couple more Perch I finally added to my points tally with a fine looking Roach.........

On my very next cast I hooked something far more substantial and I had a few nervous moments as I steered it away from the lush vegetation. It didn't feel like a Trout so I thought it was maybe a big Perch but then it didn't really feel like one of them either. What the hell could it be? It flashed in the water and I took a sharp intake of breath. Surely not? It couldn't be could it I thought as I slipped the net under its silvery flanks. It bloody was...............my dream, the holy grail...........a two pound Roach.........

I still can't quite put it into words. It is strange though. Normally when I catch a big fish I want to get a bigger one or catch more. The reality of this capture though is slightly different. It was obviously and old fish, undisturbed and unknown for its whole life. A one off or if not, one of very very few in the entire twenty mile stretch of the river. A very special capture and without any shadow of doubt- a fish of a lifetime. Will I ever get another from a river locally? Probably not. 

I went back to the car slightly dazed and regathered my thoughts.......oh yes, Brown Trout. I knew just the place. A short journey down the river valley and I was soon beside another weir, albeit bigger than the first. I cast a worm out on a 4AAA link and waited. No bites were forthcoming and I decided to have a recast. Upon retrieval a bloody great Brownie lashed out at my shot as I brought them in. Arrrrg! I dashed back to the car for my lure gear but despite covering the whole weirpool with a variety of lures I never saw it again.........

On the way home I stopped at another river and was left most frustrated when a Sea Trout leaped straight over my stick float. The plethora of Perch and Gudgeon I caught were scant consolation......

The day after I had a plan. My local drain is usually carpeted with Eels this time of year. I selected a spot that I usually fish near a big bush, I should I say ex bush, someone had cut it down. With just a few chippings left I made my way down the steep bank and sat where it used to be. It soon became apparent I had sat atop a massive ants nest. It really was most unpleasant but I'd already cupped in a couple of pots of chopped worms and thought it wouldn't take long to catch an Eel (worth 30 points). As I shipped out I reached for my fourth pole section and just clipped it with my hand. I watched as it slid in and sank straight to the bottom. The word Shimano was staring back at me in four feet of water. I went in for it. With a good six inches of silt by the time I got out I was pretty much saturated. At least it held the ants off for a bit as I fished on in vain. What an idiot.

I did manage to catch a Stickleback after work one night in the margins of a boating lake which brought my score to a round hundred. Dave had moved the goalposts slightly by progressing to 180 while Martin, Jamie and the old caged panther Andy were all ahead of me too. Speculation began to mount about a winning total. 220 was thought to be a good score...............

Week 3 

After having another go for a Brownie with no joy I decided to to bite the bullet and travel over to Withern Mill Trout fishery. I paid a reasonable £15 for a catch and release ticket. To be honest I didn't really enjoy it. I hadn't fly fished for a couple of years and had to endure a multitude of tangles and lost flies in trees and vegetation. In addition to that my first fish was a Perch. I then found some Grayling in the river. I actually had my fly taken twice and quickly spat out again much to my annoyance. Two Brownies in the Lakes did the very same. I did catch three Rainbows though. Sadly only worth 10 points.........

I had a lovely chat with the owner on the way out, mainly about the river. She too had seen the giant Dog Otter I had seen the season before......'As big as my Labrador' she said. Now without getting into the whole Otter debate she did say she had five hundred goldfish in a stock pond....had being the operative word. A local Otter family had eaten the lot. They also prefer Brownies to Rainbows I learnt. She was great though, she said she hears them playing on her lawn regularly and seemed resigned to sharing the river with them. The local Cormorants received a different response though. Still even though she has a licence to shoot them she always fires just to scare them off. Where they are concerned I'm not sure I could show the same restraint. On that particular river they are a real problem. As she rightly stated- 'They are no longer a sea bird'.

I spent the rest of the week trying for some of our more diminutive river inhabitants. The Bullhead was relatively easy to come across and scored a valuable 30 points............

The Stoneloach was an entirely different proposition though and (I hope Mrs P isn't reading this) I must have clocked up 100+ miles looking for one. It sounds rather silly now but I fear I was engrossed in the competition. Besides I was getting messages from some of the other guys and they were also in streams all over the country in wellies, getting 'wet sockers' while turning over stones. In truth, it was great thinking of some really great anglers going back to their roots. Martin, Jamie, Nate and Lee managed to catch the elusive Loach while myself, Dave and Andy struggled. Lee's Loach.........

I had another go for for the Eels in the local drain and thought I had them bubbling nicely. When the float dipped I thought I had cracked it. Unbelievably I wound in a Flounder. This coupled with another failed attempt at a Sea Trout and another impromptu dip in a small river hunting for minnows left me in slight despair.

Andy was the first to 200 but was soon overtaken by Nate, Dave and Jamie. Martin was on 180 while I was severely lagging on 140. 

Final Week

One final attempt at a Sea Trout I thought as I mad my way down to the secret river. My confidence spiked on arrival as the pool seemed to be bristling with life. After a few fruitless trots through I had a bite on the drop just after casting in. Surely a good sign of a Trout? Although obviously only small it was certainly fighting like one, twisting and turning rapidly in the flow. It turned out to be a giant Dace, probably 12oz+. It went back with a curse (I told you I was engrossed). With no more bites forthcoming I made my way to the headwaters, not catching a Sea Trout was one thing but surely I could get a Brownie?

As I peered over the bridge the water was too murky to see if my quarry was present. I peeled back the lid on my bait box and extracted a small worm. As soon as it hit the water a small Brownie shot out and engulfed it. The next one had a size fourteen in it............ 

With my tackle back in the car I had a wander around, throwing worms in likely looking spots and watching seemingly lifeless spots explode into life. There were absolutely loads of them. Fantastic to see.  

Competition wise Jamie was flying having registered the competitions first Salmon. Andy had stalled, while Nate and Martin were catching all manner of things. Dave was still scoring heavily too and his Ruffe gave me an idea...........

The West Fen in Boston had given me Ruffe in the past and they weren't difficult to catch...........until I really wanted to catch one. Bloody typical. I did manage to score with a Bleak and small Bream though..........

Next on the list were Chub and Pike, again two species I never normally have a problem catching. With the lower reaches of the Bream river totally choked with weed I gave up and headed to the middle reaches. The Chub was relatively easy although it weeded me and I had to go in for it. Wet up to my waist again. Simple link-legered bread its downfall. Never known Chub fight as hard as they do in that river, mind you, check out the paddle on it..........

The real big scorer that day though was from my local drain. After returning home I picked the dogs up and took them to the beach. I stopped off at the drain on the way and baited a spot with half a pint of red maggots. Half an hour later I returned and had one straight away........slithery bugger......

My final fish was an Ide from another local pond, decent one too. It only took about ten minutes to catch and about the only target that had gone to plan. Even though I had scored comfortably over 200 I had spent too long trying for everything really. I didn't get a Sea Trout, Bass, Ruffe or Stoneloach and god knows I tried. Sometimes you just need a good old fashioned dose of lady luck. I think I had used all mine up on my Roach. 

The final Table, top six............

Nate Green 360
Jamie Potts 290
Dave Owen 260
Martin Barnatt 250
Me 240
Andy Wilson 200

In the end Nate destroyed the field. Hardly the most prestigious competition but some very good anglers were trying very hard so he deserves a good deal of credit. Well done Nate, a fine display........

Some thanks- Everyone who took part and local anglers Paul Johnson and Chris Smith for venue suggestions.

Afterword

While some of us got embroiled in the species hunt some of my other friends were happy doing their own thing. Pick of the bunch has to be the usually publicity shy Neil (he'll probably kill me for this). A childhood dream was realised for Neil this month with a trip offshore in search of Blue Sharks. Did he catch any? You bet he did. Well done mate.........

Links

Simon-  https://daisydo100.wordpress.com/2012/11/15/the-waggler/

First Blog- https://daisydo100.wordpress.com/2011/12/30/best-plans/

Nate's facebook page- https://www.facebook.com/CompleatDangler?fref=ts

Leo's Blog- http://fishermans-journey.blogspot.co.uk/

Lee's Blog- http://thisanglinglife.blogspot.co.uk/

My email- the.power@tesco.net

Photography

This months photographs come from the very modest Andy Wilson. He visited the Lake District in the hope of sneaking a high scoring Char or Vendace (I told you they were trying). Sadly he didn't get any but he did take some absolutely stunning photographs which I'm sure you will appreciate.......

Till next time................