February 2013 part 2

Tuesday 19th February

 

Woodlands Lakes, Spilsby.

 

Just a quick afternoon session after the Perch on Hawthorn. Fished peg 15 for a change and had a one dead on two pounds within an hour. I struggled after that first fish. Some other chap was bagging up on Roach and Skimmers though. Young Jack came down down for a natter towards dusk. I thought as the light faded I might have snared another. We both watched for bites expectantly but it wasn't to be. Eric (the owner) was as welcoming as ever and I'll be going back for one more try for a 'three' before the Carp start waking up mid-march time.

 

 

 

 

 

Thursday 21st February

River Bain.

I decided to try a new stretch of the river closer to Conningsby for a couple of hours. A had worms for the Perch and some bread and cheese as back-ups. I tried a few likely looking spots on the worm to no avail. Nothing doing on bread either. A switch to cheese produced a fish within five minutes. A nice Chub just under four pounds. That , once again, was the only bite of the day.

Tuesday 26th February

Withern Mill, Withern.

I've written loads about my Perch and Chub exploits hence the brevity of the last two entries. Not wanting either you or I to get bored I decided to go Trout fishing. A quick dig about in the shed revealed my- untouched for three years- fly fishing gear. Back when we used to have a proper close season I used to do a bit of fly fishing. There is no mystery to it. I could teach you in half an hour. A bought a few new flies from the tackle shop in town. It has recently been taken over and the stock levels are immense. They have all sorts in there now. Well worth a look if you are passing.

Withern Mill has been taken over recently too. I perused their website www.withernmilltroutfarm.co.uk and was eager to get down there. Five lakes sit beside the Great Eau and you can fish either the lakes or half a mile of the river. Trout fishing has always been thought of as a bit elitist and I have to say I was a bit unsure how I would be received. A rugby match a few days prior had left me looking a bit rough. Anyway I needn't have worried. The owners gave me a very warm welcome. I bought a two fish ticket (£20) and made my way to the lower car park.

I decided to fish the lakes first for Trout and then have a go for the Grayling in the river. I took me a while to get my casting right, not helped by my aged fly line. A couple of follows kept my spirits up as I plugged away. After an hour or so I found a few fish in lake three. I lost two before finally banking a couple. Both fantastic fish, full finned and tremendous fighters. Shame I knocked them on the head. 'Didn't you feel bad?' Mrs P asked later. I had to think about that one. I never normally kill my catch but these fish aren't wild, they're farmed. Besides I'd be eating them and it's a reality of life as a meat eater. If I'm honest I did a bit but then again I am bloody soft!

With my two fish limit reached I could have carried on and released any others but I was keen to try the river. I stopped off at the riverside hut. Tea and Coffee are provided and I must say it was rather nice touch despite the worlds slowest boiling kettle. I peered into the river wondering how many big Roach I had walked past during the afternoon. Refreshed, I headed down to the mill pool to try my luck. As you know the river hasn't been kind to me this season and today was to be no different. I think the Grayling must move around a lot. What I really wanted was a pint of maggots! It was a cracking day though and one I can thoroughly recommend. Maybe one day I'll strike a deal to coarse fish the river there.

 



Afterword

I did sneak a couple of other short sessions in. The first was to Partney after Pike. No luck there. The second was yesterday. I went down the the Great Eau a short distance below the Trout Farm. I can't tell you exactly where because as always I'm not entirely sure I should have been there. Anyway I picked a lovely looking glide and trotted maggots for a good two hours with not a single bite. I've lost count of the blanks now but mark my words it is not going to beat me. I will catch something from the Secret River by the end of the season. It's bloody war!

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

February 2013

Friday 8th February

Hob Hole drain

I was hankering after somewhere new to try after my Bain exploits and I recalled a place that Tony had told of a few months earlier- a place on the Hobhole drain that he said was thick with Perch and some big ones too. Now give me a stretch of natural river and I can read it, I was brought up on them. Drains are totally alien to me and miles and miles of arrow straight water doesn't really appeal. Having been a match angler in the area for the last twenty odd years Tony knows his stuff and I always listen when he tells me something. And so it was that Friday morning I found myself eagerly heading down to the spot dreaming of Perch so abundant I could walk across them!

I hope nobody is fishing there I thought as I got closer. It was with a sigh of relief that no cars were parked in the area as I pulled up. Someone was fishing though- a bloody great Cormorant body surfing in the flow just down from the pumping station. Not a problem I thought as it flew off reluctantly. I took it as a good sign that there must be some fish present. I set up two tip rods and fished all the likely looking spots with worm while feeding maggot over the top. Three hours passed without a single touch. Now although the spot looked the part my confidence began to wane. About half an hour later the workers in the yard opposite started a fire at the base of the big,tall chimney. You can just make it out in the photo. Anyway I was downwind and big bits of partially burnt catalogue pages started landing all over the water and the bank, one hitting me as it smoldered away. It was all to much and I packed up. Looking back at the photo maybe it was a bit too coloured for Perch so maybe I'll try again. The Cormorant was a pain but they know no better. The owner of that yard? He undoubtedly does. Shameful really.

 

Tuesday 12th February

 

Secret River and Wolds Grift

 

My favourite venue the Secret River. A fairly long drive and not a single bite. That's six visits without a touch this winter. The locals are blaming Cormorants but the river has been in a terrible state on every visit. It was really low this time (the sluices were fully open again) but very heavily coloured. Also the banks were strewn with debris from the higher water levels. All kinds of rubbish from beer cans to plastic bags. Remember - this is meant to be a beautiful chalk stream. As before I am sure man is doing as much damage to the fishing as the birds. Maybe next season will be kinder.

 

While I was in the area I stopped off at the bridge over the Wolds Grift. In the 1500's it was known as the Alford Eau before they made it a catchwater drain. Again not a single bite and it looked like someone had fly-tipped directly under the bridge. Ho hum. Don't let this put you off. I am fishing for big fish with worms and bread. Maybe if I were fishing maggot I would have caught. The Wolds Grift-

 

 

 

Wednesday 13th February

 

River Bain

 

I didn't really want to go to the Bain again as I wanted to give you a bit of variety but with the disastrous week before I needed to catch some fish. I went to my normal stretch and walked right to the top and settled in the weir pool. I had cheese as bait and also bought a small loaf before setting off  to try and find some decent roach. A bite less first hour didn't do a lot for my confidence. A few dog walkers said their cheery hello's and I responded with warmth. It's really important when fishing to be friendly although a lot of the time you just want to be left alone. The first time an angler is rude then we all get tarred with the same brush. Anyway I love dogs so having a friendly little spaniel trying to eat your cheese is all part of the fun up here.

 

After another twenty minutes I reeled in to try somewhere else. My second rod, however seemed to have something on the end-

 



 

 

Sodding Signal Crayfish. Bless it, it was giving me the international signal for surrender! Now I no they are a so-called 'invasive species' but I didn't have the heart to kill it. I went sea fishing with peeler crabs once and it was really quite upsetting. Soft bugger I know. Anyway isn't it just evolution? Bigger, better than our native ones. Like grey squirrels. Our red ones are cute and all but as a squirrel the grey is a lot better. I digress. I moved down to the tree and caught a Chub straight away. 3lb 10oz-

 

After that I moved again to a glide I hadn't tried before and caught another Chub after a few minutes around the same size as the previous one. It was turning out to be quite a good session and I continued on with renewed enthusiasm. I had a few really strange bites that I was sure were from Roach when I heard someone shouting behind me.

 

Now I should say now that if you do see me on the bank then you may need to shout to get my attention as I usually have my phone in my hood so I can listen to the radio. This was the case on this occasion and I fumbled with my hood and phone so I could hear whatever this person was trying to say. I turned around to see a tall, old, country type bloke on the top of the bank. "You do know this is private now, don't you?" he bellowed. "Really? How long has it been like that?" I asked calmly. "About two years.". "Oh". I turned back around to show I wasn't really bothered. "Who's got it now then?" I asked while continuing to fish. "Waltham Chubbers or something, they had it off me a couple of years ago". From this I took it that I was speaking to the land owner. "Oh well, I'll have to get hold of them," I replied. "I don't mind paying," I added and I meant it. "Well you can't pay me cause they have already paid", the farmer added. I didn't reply. "Er....try and get hold of them then and don't come back unless you have," he said as he wandered off.

 

Right where do I start with this? I was angry after he left but now I can be more pragmatic. He was old and I have alot of respect for my elders but saying "This is private now" to me will only end in tears. Private basically means we have parties here and your not invited to any of them. I'm simply not going to have it. A stretch further down is run by Boston AA. It's clearly signposted and I fully intend to join next season. Until then I wont fish it. If Waltham Chubbers do exist (which I doubt) then may I suggest they don't lease a stretch of river next to a public footpath thirty miles away. For a start where are the local kids meant to fish? Secondly if you rent a piece of river then it is up to you to police it and put signs up etc. Lastly if  you want to catch someone poaching then pop down next Monday, I'll be in the glide below the tree.

 

Back to the fishing. I stopped long enough just to let the farmer know I was less than bothered by his rude interruption. After his outburst I didn't get a bite but the seed had been planted. Those bites were from Roach and I will be going back. After about half an hour I moved right down to below the road bridge. Having never had a bite here I was slightly surprised when one of my tips started twitching suspiciously. I few missed bites later and a small roach came to hand. I was disappointed with the size but sometimes it's enough to just achieve your aim. I'll leave you with a picture of the last swim I fished and while I'm not promising , I really hope I have something better to show you in the near future.

 

 

 

 

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

January 2013 part 2

Thursday 24th January

River Bain

I was eager to get to the river after my previous exploits. The snow was still thick on the ground and the reading on my in car temperature gauge was minus two. I headed to a new stretch I had sniffed out on the ubiquitous Google earth.

What Google earth didn't show was the large metal gate blocking the access road. Two heavy padlocks were dangling from the chain but luckily the chain wasn't all the way around the gate so I swung it open and made my way to the river. I didn't really take any notice of my surroundings as I parked up and dashed down to the waters edge. The River passed through a big sluice and this produced a big swirling pool of water that looked very inviting. I set up my tip rod and cast a big bit of cheese right into the fast water. I watched this while setting up a float rod to do a bit of trotting down to the end of the run.

Nothing was doing on the float but I regularly dribbled some maggots in to try and tempt something as I plugged away. On about my tenth trot down with the float my tip rod went limp. Flow must have dislodged my swan shot I thought. I struck anyway to deposit my cheese in the swim. To my surprise I was met with a heavy thump on the end of the line. Whatever was on the end was going nuts in the wild water. After a couple of minutes my line went solid. Bugger. I carefully applied as much pressure as I dared and it came free. A minute or so later a very big Chub came thrashing to the surface. With a deft flash of it's tail it headed upstream again and I felt a faint grating on the line. You know what's coming next. The line parted.

I set up again although I was fairly certain I had blown my chance. A bite-less hour followed to confirm this. Couple this with my little travel chair disintegrating I decided to have a wander about to check out some other swims. I clambered up the slippery bank and made my way upstream. Oh dear! There were big private signs all over the place. Couple this with two farmers working in a nearby field and I began to feel severely unwelcome. Seems I had been fishing in the only spot not overlooked by a stern warning. As if to rub it in I saw a group of tiny fish scatter behind a weed-bed just inside the private bit. Almost certainly a big Perch hunting. May have to bring my gum shield when I target that one! (Only joking) 

I looked at my watch, it was 2pm. There was still time to get in the car and head up river to the section that had produced for me on the Monday. I trudged up to the top of the stretch and popped a few bits of cheese into a few likely looking spots on the way. Now chair-less I cleared a small area of snow and sat on the cold grass. I had a few casts before eventually the tip trembled before it pulled steadily round. I had my scales with me this time and I was slightly disappointed that it wasn't the same stamp of fish I had caught a few days before. Still at 3lb 2oz it was a fine looking Chub and brightened up my day no end. A few quick shots were taken before I slipped it back into the icy depths.

 An hour later and I was on the move again. About a hundred yards downstream a big tree hangs nearly all the way across the River. Having baited up earlier I expected to get a bite straight away. It wasn't until the light faded though, about half an hour later, that I got a bite. It was a delicate affair and I was unsure on how long to leave it before striking. I must have timed it right though because after a tense tussle I had a four pounder in the net. 4lb 9oz to be exact. A fine end to a cold but very enjoyable day.

Friday 25th January

River Bain

A short but ultimately fruitless afternoon session. I will say this though. We can all be macho and a bit single-minded in our quests sometimes but winter fishing can be unpleasant bordering on dangerous. It wasn't any colder than my previous two visits and while hunkered down in the tree swim I was quite happy. My hands were cold but not unduly so. After missing what was probably the only bite I was going to get I decided to move further downstream.

I got to the top of the bank and the strength of the wind became apparent. A sharp, blisteringly cold wind. Within thirty seconds my hands were becoming painful (I had gloves on). My intended short walk had turned into a bit of a hike to get back to the car and get warmed up. It was a savage head wind and a deeply unpleasant experience. The temperature gauge in the car was reading minus two, no colder than the previous day. Most of my gear is windproof apart from my gloves. It took half an hour to get full feeling back in my fingers.

Thursday 31st December

River Bain

The snow melt had put paid to a visit earlier in the week although I did walk the full stretch with Mrs P and the dogs. We walked further downstream than I had been before and a couple of spots in the village took my fancy.

Thursday came around and I was in the Village at around half past eight. I parked up at the church and started to get my gear together. Unfortunately it was also a drop off point for the local primary school and I did look a bit out of place among all the kids and mums! Anyway I walked through the graveyard and tried a couple of spots with no success. The wind was super strong and although it wasn't cold it did nearly blow me off the top of a stile. It was so strong that most of the stretch was unfishable. I headed back to the car and drove back the short distance to my normal stretch.

The wind was a pain here too. Nevertheless I stuck it out for a couple of hours with just a small Chub from the weir-pool to show for my efforts. It was about a pound and a half and looked like it had just been minted. Probably never been caught before. I did have a couple of trembles in the tree swim but they produced nothing. I had been on the river probably four hours and gave best and vowed to return on another day. As I walked back to the car I noticed some of the colour was dropping out of the water. I would need to return soon. Upon getting back home this didn't seem likely as my new river obsession had got the better of Mrs P as she demanded I spend more time with her. Ho hum.

Friday 1st Feb

River Bain

"What you doing today?" I asked Mrs P. "Got rehearsals in Grantham and then an audition in Leicester," she replied. "What time you leaving?". "2pm."

By 2.30pm I was parking up by the Bridge. I was a bit disappointed to see the River was still heavily coloured. It had been my plan to try a few spots for Roach as Neil from the tackle shop had told me of some big fish on the stretch. I had some bread mash already prepared and intended to fish small bits of flake.

I headed straight for the weir pool and set up a small feeder and fished as planned for about an hour. Bread mash in the feeder and a size 12 hook with a small piece of flake for bait. No bites were forthcoming so I set my Chub rod up with a three swan shot link and a big piece of cheese. I was a bit paranoid about the noise of the feeder going in so I swapped that too for some swan shot. Another hour passed before I had the tiniest of bites on the bread rod. I connected and I initially thought it was a Roach, then it woke up! Five minutes later I had a Chub in the net. A big one too.

I quickly weighed it and took a few snaps before returning it to the depths. At just two ounces off five pounds it is the biggest Chub I have caught to date. Shame it wasn't a 'five' but still a fantastic fish from such a small river.

Footnote

I have realised this blog is popular with people like Neil from the tackle shop and my mates Rob and Steve. All people that would love to have more time to fish but due to family commitments and work can't. So this is for all my friends that can't get out there as much as they would like. I've been bloody freezing, wet, muddy and in trouble with Mrs P. The fact that this blog will bring you some enjoyment makes it all worthwhile. Thanks for reading.

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

January 2013

Monday January 21st 

River Bain 

You could probably tell by the last the instalment that my interest in getting out there was waning. I needed some inspiration and it came the strangest of places- facebook. A precession of pictures of anglers holding Chub in the snow were posted. It seemed to be de- rigueur and I needed to be part of it. One venue sprang to mind. I had walked a short section of the river Bain with the dogs in the summer and seen a few small shoals of Chub. Nothing big but I just wanted a catch picture in the snow. 

I peered out of the window to see snow eight inches deep in the garden. That'll do I thought. "What you doing today?" asked Mrs P. "I'm going fishing," I replied. "Be careful.......have you got full charge on your phone in case something happens?". She soon changed her tune when I raided some cheese from the fridge along with the last few slices of bread. I shot out of the door and headed to the river.

Turning of the main road I parked up and headed towards the bridge. It looked stunning, 

This was where I had seen most fish in the summer and I settled behind that big tree on the left and cast down into the tail end of the pool. That is my rod lent against the post. You might not be able to make it out as it is my new Mach 2 tip rod and it is super slim!

I had a few casts with bread to no avail so I tried a piece of cheese, again with no success. After around half an hour I wandered downstream but couldn't find any likely looking spots. I returned to the bridge, passing a friendly dog walker on the way and decided to go upstream. It was hard going in the snow so I dumped my tackle bag and rod tube in the car. The snow was untouched on this stretch and I walked for about half a mile until I came to a big sluice gate which had an inviting run below it with some slack areas.

I started off with the bread again with nothing to show for my first two casts. I recently downloaded some editions of desert island discs on my phone so I decided to cue one up. Sitting there surrounded by pure white landscape with the radio for company was bliss. I didn't even notice the cold.

Third cast, this time with cheese, was plonked under my feet in a slack area off the main flow. I was daydreaming when the bite came. A tentative affair I waited for as long as I dare before striking and then all hell broke loose. I was amazed that I had hooked anything at all let alone something so substantial. A few heart stopping moments were endured before I netted my prize. A Chub, big one too. How big I will never know as my scales were in my tackle bag in the car. Hey ho. I still had my new camera to try out.

A week prior to my outing I had purchased a camera adaptor that meant I could screw it into a bank stick. This coupled with the Cameras self timer meant I could now take picture of myself. As I seemingly have no friends this may be £3 well spent! Anyway here are the results including one of the many dodgy ones as my camera takes ten shots at a time (must look in the manual).

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

Winter 2012

Winter 2012

I went into the tackle shop the other day. "What's happened to the blog?" Neil asked as I was perusing around. So I guess you could say it's back by popular demand!

We left off last time by me telling you I needed to win back a trophy I won in 2011. The annual charity was held in mid October, a little later than the previous year. Same venue though- the Woodlands complex in Spilsby. After a late Saturday shift at work I arrived at the draw having had only a couple of hours sleep. A quick coffee perked me up a bit and I was one of the first to delve into the drawbag. Peg 23. The same peg I won off the year before. Whenever pleasure fishing Hawthorne lake I invariably end up on this peg too.

The match itself was a bit of a nail biter. Fish were hard to come by and I could only see about a quarter of the field. I kept plodding on though, casting a small method feeder towards the far bank reeds. Two or three small Carp would oblige and then I had to hunt around for them again. When the match was over and the scales reached me there had been two twenty four pound weights. Nobody to my left had caught much so it was down to me. I thought it might be close until I lifted my net. I'd beaten them by nearly ten pounds. Undoubtedly one of the highlights of my fishing year and the Trophy is back again for another twelve months.

October

Back to the normal fishing for the rest of the month and it started off quite well. Woodlands was the venue again but this time I was after the Perch. I fished trusty peg 23 again and baited up with prawns in the morning before returning with my gear in afternoon. I added some predator liquid to the prawns, not so much for the flavour but it dyes the prawns dark red which I think gives a better silhouette in the murky waters of a commercial. Returning at around two o'clock I was soon into them catching nine in total up to 2lb 2oz. The biggest can be seen here.

A couple of carp also made an appearance including this 11 pounder which gave me the run around for a bit and also only just fitted in my landing net!

I had four more visits but couldn't better the first session. I was pretty determined to catch a big one from Ash lake but I just couldn't seem to crack it. I also tried Hawthorne right into darkness but the big Perch just don't seem to be there in the numbers they were last year. Maybe I'll try again in the spring. The mild weather didn't help as the carp kept robbing my prawns on a regular basis.

December

A ventured out to The Secret River a couple of times when I thought it would be fishable and while it was I didn't have a bite. Couple this with my lack of Perch success at Woodlands and my passion for angling was on the wane. Maybe I needed some company to perk me up I thought. Tony kindly agreed to take me over to Boy Grift, a drain near Sutton on Sea. As luck would have it we had arranged to go on the coldest day of the year! Minus three all day. Still we caught a few little Roach and we had a cracking time despite the cold. We even wandered over to The Great Eau later on but neither of us had a bite. Boy Grift,

The amount of rain we have had this year really has put the dampener on both the river fishing and my enthusiasm. It is more or less a fifty mile round trip to the Great Eau and every time I go they seem to have the sluice gates open to run it off at a hundred miles an hour. I'm sure the fish are still there they just aren't feeding when I am trying to catch them. I've even tried further downstream in the sea trout peg to no avail. Very demoralising.

The New Year

Mrs P bought me a new camera for xmas specifically for this blog so I can't wait to get out and try it. I've also just taken delivery of a new tip rod. Shakespeare Mach 2. It looks superb. Like a more refined Sigma Wand. I'll let you know how I get on.

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

September 2012

6th September 2012

Kirkby-on-Bain Fishery

I sneaked out of the house at around 4.30pm. Having only fished matches in the previous two months I was keen to get out and do a bit of pleasure fishing. Coupled with this Mrs P had bought me a new pole for my birthday that I just couldn't wait any longer to try it. I had set up the elastigate system in one of the top kits and ended up super glueing most of my fingers together. Basically a puller kit, I had never used one but was eager to try it out as soon as I had separated my digits.

I'd been to Kirkby-on-Bain fishery once before and done really well, catching lots of skimmers and also heard stories of some bigger resident bream. Rambler Rob had recently been and caught a couple of five pounders which was encouraging..

Pulling into the car park I was confronted with an impossibly long list of rules. Normally I don't entertain anywhere like this but I suppose the adjoining caravan site necessitates it. Gathering all my gear together I walked up the right hand side of the pond away as far away from everyone else as possible. I still ended up with someone opposite me but he was fishing his margin so he would not be a problem. A bit of a Shimano fan (I only use their reels) I had bought a Technium 13m pole last year. It has been really disappointing. Weak walls and a bit on the heavy side I think they really messed up with this model. Luckily the Beastmaster margin I got for my birthday is a different animal all together and I set it up to fish at about six metres. Shame then that my cupping kit of the Technium didn't fit. Never mind I cupped in four 250ml cups of groundbait and pellets with five sections of my old pole.

 

 

To cut a long story short my swim went mental. Bubbles everywhere! I fished paste to try and get the bigger Bream. I ended up catching lots of small skimmers and about six or seven small carp. "Have you stocked this place?" I asked the nice owner lady when she came round for the money. "No, the Carp have just bred naturally," she replied. Not sure if I believe her but she was very pleasant all the same and only charged me £3, which is good value. If you are looking for a few bites then this place could be for you, just don't expect to have it to yourself.

 

 

 

 

09 September 2012

 



The Secret River, Lincs

 

This is one I really wanted to tell you about. My favourite river. I took Mrs P and the Chaos twins over to the coast for a walk around the nearby nature reserve. It wasn't very dog friendly so we popped over to the River. The water was gin clear and the streamer weed glistened in the midday sun. It was everywhere and totally unfishable. The dogs played happily for a while and we decided to get some lunch. We drove down to Saltfleet and The New Inn which I can recommend highly for a Sunday lunch. On the way back I spotted a turning towards the river. We stopped just short of a small bridge and I got out. Mrs P soon joined me and we both peared down into the depths. The River passed under the bridge and it opened out below it. Thick rushes lined both sides and the water was deep. Too deep to see the bottom. I simply had to go back home and get my gear!

 

 

A quick trip to ever helpful Eric at Woodlands for some maggots and I was soon back to the spot at about half past five (a forty plus mile round trip). Only another angler would understand this. I eagerly threw a few maggots in and watched them fall through the water column. Something was attacking them about four feet down. I couldn't quite see what so I hurriedly set up a small waggler and made my first cast. The float had barely settled and It rapidly disappeared under the surface film. I struck and a small silver fish flashed as it made a bid for freedom. Bringing it to the surface a big Perch had a go for it. Slightly startled I examined my catch. A small Dace.

 

A few more micro Dace followed and then I had a rather strange bite. I struck into something more substantial but no fight was forthcoming. To my surprise the culprit turned out to be a crab! Being only about a mile from the Sea I suppose it was not that unusual. Strange to catch coarse fish and crabs in the same spot though. The Dace were becoming a pest and I was pleased when Roach came to hand. Not big but very welcome. A couple more followed and then the biggest shock of the day. The float buried and once again a fish was on. What the hell is this I thought as it careered all over the place. A Sea Trout! Again not very big but my first in over thirty years fishing.

 

 

 

I fished on as the the light faded in the hope of a Perch or two but they didn't show, just loads more Dace. What a fantastic little spot though and I am very much looking forward to going again. I'm not entirely sure what the fishing rights are. I suppose I should find out really!

 

What next then? Well I have one more match to fish this Sunday. I have a big gap on my bookshelf where the Trophy from my win last year sat so I would really like to get it back. Watch this space.

 

Till next time

 

 

 

 

June 2012

I had big plans for this months Diary but alas my phone decided to expire. Such a shame because I had some beautiful photos that I had taken with it to show you and now they are lost forever. I'll do my best with words though and I promise you some great images for July provided by my shiny new phone.

Something more positive is that the blog passed a thousand page views this month so I really need to thank you for all your support and interest. Hope you enjoy the latest instalment and tight lines!

Hawthorne Lake, Woodlands Complex, Spilsby, Lincs

Wed 7th June

As I unloaded the luxury sports van I looked down at Hawthorne Lake from the carpark. It had been a while since I last visited and the banks were covered in lush vegetation. A rainbow was visible in the distance after a short downpour. The rest of the sky was looking very moody and I reluctantly packed a big, waterproof jacket into my bag. Another angler was just loading up his car and as I looked over he said, "the owner has just gone out, you might get a free one!". "Oh, right.......great!" I replied.

I wandered down to my favourite perch peg. I wont give you the peg number but think twisted willow tree and you'll be in the right area. Unfortunately it proved a bit fruitless as all I could catch were carp. Small ones up to about five pounds were caught virtually every cast in. Frustrating when I was trying to catch something else but good fun anyway. I stopped for a couple of hours before the threat of rain and the unlikely prospect of any perch saw me retreat back to the van. There was no sign of Eric the owner as I left and the chap proved to be right, a rare freebie.

Rivers Soar and Trent, Leicestershire/Derbyshire/Nottinghamshire

Mon 18th June

I had been working at my parents house putting up a heavy duty fence. It had been warm all day and a majestic summers evening was unfolding. I had it in my mind to go to a spot on the River Soar that I used to fish years ago. In the middle of nowhere access was tricky but the fishing used to be great. Big bream/ Chub and Carp sheltered from the main flow of the river behind a big, long island known as Toones Island. I finished up at the house and headed eagerly down to the river.

Pulling up at the side of the fairly remote country road I opened the big five bar gate and drove my van in and a short distance down the track. I got out and returned to shut the gate. The track is used regularly by a local gun club. I passed a small hut and a bag of spent cartridges. You know those giant bags you get sand or gravel delivered in? There was one of those massive bags brimmed with thousands of cartridges and another half full. There have been wars with less shots fired! Leaving shotgun central behind the track disappeared into the undergrowth.

I pushed on in my poor little van. The grasses and vegetation got taller and eventually I could see very little. The greenery was lashing high up my windows as I flattened all that stood before me. The trees that lined to non existent track narrowed and I stopped and considered reversing out. That was not really an option so I carried on gingerly until I reached the open field next to the river. The grass in the field was still three or four feet high. In the past I had driven right up to the side of the river but I gave the van a break and walked the last couple of hundred yards. The River looked perfect. Plenty of flow and colour. The worst thing about living in Lincolnshire is the dearth of natural, unspoilt rivers. I had missed the old girl.

Walking upstream on the high bank I made my way up to my favourite spot. A large tree was situated on the near bank about twenty yards from the back of the island. The River flowed over some lillies and cabbages with various holes and eddy's. Small fish were topping all over and River looked to be teaming with life. To much really as a big horse fly landed on my arm and bit me! I shuffled around for a while taking in all the sights, sounds and smells. The place was rich in memories having spent so much time here in the past. I looked keenly for somewhere to fish. Nobody had been here for some time. The whole bank was wild. The reality of fishing faded as I walked downstream getting pushed further away from the river by the greenery. I was happy enough just being there. I've dug out a couple of old photos for you- sorry about the quality.

One of my very first fishing memories is a trip to the River Trent. With two of my brothers and their friend. We travelled at break neck speed in my brothers light blue Mk1 Escort. I had never returned to the spot we fished. I remember it fondly. It was over 25 years ago. Fast forward to Toones Island and I checked the map on my phone. Barrow on Trent was half an hour away. I could be there by seven pm! I hurried back to the van and forced my way back to the road. Turning out to be a proper little adventure this.

It was about fifteen miles of expectation and anticipation. Would it be the same? I really hoped so. A couple of missed turnings and I found the right road. It dipped and wound around through the tiny village until the road drew level with the river just as a remembered. The Trent looked fantastic. Powerful and relentless it powered along at a fair old pace. The side of the road was lined with bollards and in the middle of the green was a sign on a big wooden telegraph pole- NO FISHING AND NO PARKING it said bluntly. I stopped briefly and took in the atmosphere and recalled the events that I could remember. Curiosity satisfied I moved on. I went to several other old haunts that night and returned home without having taken my gear from my van. After a days work and a night reminiscing I slept soundly.

Nanpantan Reservoir

Tuesday 19th June

Sound familiar? That's right this is the place I wrote so fondly about in my first looking back post.

I travelled out of town to the tackle shop to get a day ticket. It is also where my old friend and boss works part time. He owned the fishing tackle shop I worked in when I was younger. Alas he wasn't there but I left a blog card in the hope that he might have discovered the Internet. He probably hasn't but I'll say hello anyway.

"Eight pounds fifty?" I exclaimed to the man as he wrote out my ticket. I looked again, yep that was the price on the corner of the ticket. "Two pounds forty when I last bought one" I said. "Crikey that must have been a while ago" the man said. Not kidding I though as I left the shop feeling thoroughly violated.

The place hasn't changed. The banks are still ridiculously steep. Three sets of Carp anglers were fishing. One of them in the first group almost continually spodded randomly to no effect. The two just down from where I settled were smoking large, pungent roll-ups. The other group were noisily chatting. I fished opposite the water tower which looked as if it hadn't been switched on for some time and two ducks had made their home. Strangely and despite being surrounded by idiots it was nice to be back. The sun was shining and it was bouncing off the water with a shimmer.

I set up a method feeder and wondered if I could make it work in fifteen feet of water. It took twenty minutes to find out as the tip sailed round and a Bream of about two pounds came in. They came in spurts but I ended up with about ten bream and a few roach. I saw a couple of people I know walking around and they stopped for a chat. I have another blog which goes into a bit more detail about this day as it ended up being a bit emotional. Be warned it sometimes gets a bit sweary and I haven't actually posted about that particular day yet. It'll be up soon though and you can find it at daisydo100.wordpress.com

Ash Lake, Woodlands complex, Lincs

Wednesday 27th June

Mrs P always takes some persuading to go fishing. I don't know why because she is good, a natural. She never goes for long though and we left the house at around six pm. Pulling up in the carpark we made our way over to the hut bumping into Eric on the way. He looked harassed.  It's a busy time of year for him and the recent weather was conspiring against him. We paid for our tickets and unloaded the van while Eric returned reluctantly to his grass cutting marathon.  Hawthorne Lake would have been my first choice but looked a bit busy so we settled on Ash which we would have to ourselves.

We settled on the near bank with the evening sun on our faces. Mrs P fished the float while I honed my feeder skills. Even fishing corn she was getting pestered by small fish. I soon built my swim up and she ended up sitting with me where she caught a few nice carp. By way of making up for the lack of photos I've uploaded a video of her in action here last year. I hope it's worked!

Toad Hall, Candlesby, Lincs


Evening matches

Thurs 8th June     Peg 6   12lb 6oz for third.
Tues 12th June    Peg 1    9lb 12oz for next to last
Thurs 14th June   Peg 17  DNW last
Thurs 21th June   Peg 2   10lb 1oz for next to last
Thurs 28th June   Peg 16  15lb 4oz For forth

What a disaster! I just couldn't catch anywhere near enough. Never looked close to winning and well of the pace. Put in perspective though the place is fantastic. Catching ten pounds of quality fish in three hours is still a good little session. Many anglers have lost sight of that among all these mega weights of semi- tame Carp you see in the press. The down side is that the pegs seem to change every week. Take Don for example. He's won twice and come last twice in four matches. Must be my turn soon. Ok, ok I won last Thurs but you'll have to wait for next months Diary for that one.

Once again thanks for reading

Till next time