Just a “Thanks for Coming” – Frazer’s, Ely

The forecast was for rain and wind, and unfortunately they got it right! Fifteen of us turned out for this Pensioners match, and I drew peg 10 on Emily’s Lake, which was the same peg I won from about six weeks ago, when the weather was much better.

Emily's Lake result

Long pole right over, with maggot off bottom, saw some small rudd, and as I had no bread with me I changed to pellet, which resulted in just one more small rudd. I remembered that last time I had caught gppd fish close in to my right, so put some small pieces of luncheon meat there; within minutes the wind got up and the rain started, coming from the right, into my face. Within half an hour I was so cold I gave up fishing to the right, and I hadn’t caught anything there anyway.

From that moment I started fishing mainly in front of me, at just over top two length, in between four and five feet of water, where I had put in some maggots and pellets. Frazer had told me to fish the edge of the margin shelf, so I did. But in the whole of the rest of the match, though I eventually started getting timid bites, I managed to hook just six carp on pellet, and lost two of them, one of which was definitely foulhooked. A look in the deep water farther out produced a couple of tiny bites, almost certainly from carp and not roach or rudd, but no fish.

Mark's Lake result

The rain started less than an hour after we started, and continued for four hours, hard at times, and stopping with an hour to go. But at one point I was shivering really hard, even with an umbrella up – and the angler on 12 said he was, also. The sun came out as we packed up!

That angler on my left on peg 12 had had two fish across, early on, and then caught on four sections in the deep water on pellet, while Frazer and Robert Edmondson, past him, had caught slowly but steadily most of the day. Robert won the lake with 51 lb 12 oz and I was a measly sixth on the lake with 11 lb 14 oz, the best fish a lovely gold common of 4 lb.

Perhaps I should have taken bread, as some fish were caught on it, but I hadn’t realised the weather would be so cold.

Mark’s Lake produced similar weights, with pegs 2, 3 and 10 dominating, as expected. As with any water, I will have to learn by my mistakes; but I look forward to going again. The fish are not big, but it's a challenging water, the anglers are very welcoming, and the platforms are brilliant.

Left:A drenched Paul Firman, third on Mark's with 30 lb 6 oz from Peg 10, shows the sort of fish you catch at Frazer's, mainly to 2 lb to 4 lb, with some larger ones. There are also chub (I've had them to 3 lb), plus barbel and tench.