Two days in the wind at Magpie and on Beastie

 Peg 2, Magpie, Wed, Feb 21

With rain forecasted for the first few hours, I was one of the lucky (!) ones (again) to get it in my face in this Pidley Pensioners match on Elm Magpie and Raven. The wind was into me from the left, and as it grew stronger the rain kept falling. It was bitterly cold, as well. It didn't help that the battery on my trolley, which I hadn't charged for  couple of weeks, was flat!

On my right, no-one was on peg 1, but after the match I saw it had been drawn by Paul Abbott. As I had been unloading my van before the start I had noticed that a white van which was near me suddenly drove away, and I wondered why. Now I realised - Paul had parked, walked down to peg 1, seen the conditions, and decided not to fish...and I can't blame him!

Peter picked out wet and windy peg 2 for me!

A decision
At my peg I had a decision to make - put on my side tray, or put up the umbrella?  I wouldn't normally put up an umbrella, as I have perfectly good waterproofs, but this was exceptional. The umbrella won. It didn't shelter me completely from the stinging rain, but it kept some off my face, and kept most of my gear dry. I had to utilise one of the storm guides, by screwing an extending bankstick into the ground, and fixing the other end to the umbrella. Then I started fishing.

Lots of umbrellas were put up, and later the gusts became really fierce.

This won't take long - two hours after the start I had caught two carp about 2 lb each, on a bomb, one on bread and one on corn, cast across to the far side or to the bridge. At this point I walked up to Allan Golightly on 5, who had one tiny perch. He had now taken down his umbrella, because the wind was so strong. And back at my peg I had a problem - I have an extending umbrella arm on the box, and the wind had loosened this, and was pulling the extension out, so the umbrella now leaned well over.

A second erection
It took me probably 20 minutes to take everything down, including the three guy ropes, and erect it all  again. The wind had also broken the thick, strong wire holding the storm guide in, but I found some wire and did a hasty repair. I was feeling decidedly chinkered, but had a look, on a pole,  in the right margin, where to my surprise I quickly had three F1s on corn.

Across from me on peg 36 Vic German had found fish very early on, and was catching steadily on a pole fished right across to his far bank, near the bridge. 

Fish close in
When bites dried up in my swim, and the wind kept blowing the pole over the bank, I went to the left margin on a top two. This was now facing the wind, and I could get much better presentation, though my wet hands were very cold. Here, fishing first corn and then maggot, off the bottom, I found about 15 F1s. If I tried fishing on the bottom against the reeds I often picked up weed or twigs - and in any case the fish needed the bait off bottom. The fish were messing about with the bait and many times the float dipped slightly, and if I struck at that I missed. So I had to leave the float to go under and stay under.

 Although the rain stopped an hour or two before the finish the wind picked up, and several times I had to lean out and hold the umbrella pole steady. And when the match finished the wind, of course, started to die right away! I believe that is The Law Of Sod.

The weigh in 
I was first to weigh - 36 lb 2 oz, which I was happy with when Allan didn't weigh. But later I saw that a lot had weighed in more than that, which tempered my enthusiasm somewhat! But most didn't have that nasty wind. I didn't fancy taking any photographs, as I just wanted to pack up and get in the warm.

Magpie was won on peg 25 - Pat Neale with 105 lb 12 oz - which looked to me as if it was facing right into the wind, but Ron Clark, on 24 had told me, before the match, that it seemed to be a backish wind there. So perhaps things weren't absolutely wicked there, after all; the wind does funny things. Raven was won with 69 lb 6 oz on peg 12, which I would hve thought was also facing the wind.

I finished 11th out of 16 on my lake.

Marks out of  ten
I actually enjoyed the second half of the match, and wished I had started on the pole earlier. But the rain and wind picked up before the start and I couldn't have fished far out, and I hadn't expected to find fish so close to the bank.Still, I give myself 7/10 because I thought I fished it OK once I went on to the pole. Next match the following Sunday on Beastie, the ay after the Winter League final, on Decoy.

THE RESULTS

Magpie 1-22

Magpie 23-36

Raven 1-22

Raven 23-28

00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Peg 8, Beastie, Sun, Feb 25

The ice on my windscreen was so hard I couldn't scrape it off, and had to use de-icer (which I dislike doing). Then I was lucky enough (again!) to have the wind in my face at the start of this JV club match...but my swim, somehow, was calm, with the nearest ripple far out of reach with a pole. However, later the wind  moved round to where it was forecast to come - ENE over my right shoulder, and it was biting, even though my swim was still calm most of the time. Those poor souls Carl White and Eddie McIlroy, who I could see on the back of the spit, now facing the wind on pegs 13 and 9, must have been frizzed to the bone.

To be honest nobody, including me, fancied these swims anyway. For weeks the best weights on Beastie have been in the main basin, and mainly from 14 round to about 23. But after the wind had moved, at least the high bank behind me gave plenty of shelter, although it was biting. This peg used to be a brilliant tench peg, but I haven't caught a tench from the lake for years. Where do they go to?

No ripple at the start, and even when the wind swung round I still got hardly any!

A hazard

The steps are a hazard if you're my age, so I took my time. But I was mighty glad we weren't fishing on Oak, where work has just finished sheeting the margins to prevent bank erosion, and where new platforms have been put in. I've seen a picture of the mud that the Winter League Final anglers had to negotiate there, and it was HORRENDOUS - almost up to the tops of the trolley wheels, and it's fair bet that some anglers left their wellie boots sticking in the mud as they fell over.

I'm surprised the Angling Trust didn't move that section, at least, on to Willows, or even to another fishery. It really was unbelievable - not the fault of the fishery, who tried to start the work in October, but who were handicapped by the weather from the start. At least it's now finished, with new platforms all the way along. But nobody will want to fish from those banks for months. Sean, the fishery owner is considering putting down bark to make it navigable, but will have to wait until the weather hardens it. Rather his decision than mine.

The water is clearing

Back to my match, and  the water was clearer than it has been recently, and when the sun shone I thought I would be able to see any carp moving near the surface, but in fact saw only two all day. In the Winter League final Horseshoe was won by John Arthur, who said he could see carp moving three feet down!

On my corner peg 8 I started dobbing around with bread, but moved to maggots fished deeper when I had no touches, and eventually a small roach came from the swim out to my left. After taking a few more roach, and some gudgeon - all just off bottom - I started a second swim to the right. Then a 1 lb bream came from the lefthand swim, and another from the right. If I laid on the bottom (my rig, not me) I'd almost always bring back a twig or leaf, so I fished most of the time just off bottom, or up to eight inches above it.

Dave Parson won my section with 18 lb 1 oz, with the help
 of that big ole mirror carp.

That brought another bream and three F1s, plus a few more 'bits'. But at no time did I feel that I was going to catch a load, or even two fish in successive casts. The first big carp that swam through, was moving a bit too quickly for me to grab my mugging rig. But the second one obligingly drifted around for a minute or two, and I was able to drop a piece of slowly-sinking frozen corn in front of it three times. And three times that fish completely ignored it! That's been the story of my life.

I'd not see Carl or Eddie catch much, and I bet they were even more pleased to hear the match end that I was.

The weigh in

These anglers are all better than I am, so I was pleased that my 10 lb 12 oz was not last in the first four weighs. In fact if Dave Parsons hadn't had a near-10 lb carp in his 18 lb 1 oz (which won the section) I would have been second. 

Rob Goodson won the last section with 21 lb 2 oz from peg
29, managing to find some fish on the bomb cast to the aerator
and then on a pole in his right margin. 

As we all rather expected, the best weights (top six came from these seven swims) came from 15 to 23. The exception was poor Ivy Tilsley, on 18, which is a bit of a specialist swim - can be brilliant in Summer, but dodgy in Winter. He was so cold he packed up early, but still stayed and weighed. Lee Kendall won peg 17. taking mainly F1s on pole no more than about five metres out, and maggot ,for his 56 lb 12 oz. I understand he fed the best part of four pints (which I suppose you can do, even in Winter, if you're getting bites). I got through about half a pint. Sean Buddle, third on peg 22, took all his fish on bomb and bread cast to the island.

Marks out of ten

As so often happens you needed to be in the wind to have the best chance of catching fish,  and I wasn't. But I thought I fished a tidy match in the circumstances, making changes when I needed to make something happen, and not just sitting there hoping the fish would start feeding. So I give myself 9/10, as I don't think I could have done any better.

Next match Wednesday on Jay and Raven at Pidley. I'm not bothered where I get so long as I have a good wave or ripple. In Summer you often need to fish long on both lakes, but at this time of year that far bank (even if you can reach it) is often non-productive, even for the best anglers, and fishing down the track or in the margin is often your best chance. I will just concentrate on presentation, with maggots my probably banker bait, but with 4mm expanders if I start catching the odd carp.

THE RESULT

A late spurt on Elm, Decoy.

 Peg 15, Elm, Sun, Feb 18
With rain forecasted for the first few hours, I was one of the lucky (!) ones to get it in my face in this JV club match on Elm, Decoy. Not a bad draw, but anyone would have preferred peg 8, or opposite on 17, which can be hot pegs on this lake...however neither was in the draw. I had Tom Wilson on my left and Chris Saunders opposite on 10. All of us had lots of mud to trek through - more than I can remember ever seeing at Decoy.

I earmarked that bush for my barbel swim (but nobody told the barbel).

With a bush a few feet to each side it left me with very little margin to play with but I started on the pole on corn to the left bush. Soon Tom was playing a fish taken at about 11.5 metres out. Having had no bites I also went out, on corn, but try as I might I couldn't get a bite, while Tom was landing or losing several. Opposite, Chris Saunders had earlier played a fish for a long time and I soon realised it was foulhooked. But eventually he had it almost in his net.

Drama
Actually the fish appeared to have the wrong half in Chris' net - the back half. Chris stood there, unable to shuffle the fish into any farther in, and I had time to bring my pole in, park it, pick up my camera, and focus on the drama in front of me. But as I looked up the picture had changed - Chris was now playing the fish again. the fish was now playing Chris again.

I watched as the elastic stretched out, then retracted and Chris managed, somehow to coax the fish into the net again and this time he managed, very slowly, to pull it in. As he bent down and lifted it I could see it was a big 'un - probably near the 15 lb mark. Well done, Chris. 

Second attempt and Chris has most of the fish in the net (headfirst this time)...

...and up, up, up she comes.

Phew - that was the only excitement I had in the first three hours, because a change to maggot had brought just a few roach and perch from the righthand bush - not IN the bush, you understand, but from the water nearby. I had been hoping for barbel, and after Eddie McIlroy on my right had four I kept fishing there, expecting a barbel any minute, on a size 14.

A tackle change
But those pesky barbel never came and when I found a huge area of snags there I sat back and decided something had to change. All I could think of was to cut off the size 14 hook I had on, tied direct to 0.22 nylon, and substitute a size 16 to 5 lb line. The result was incredible. And first drop back at 10 metres, more than three hours after the match had started, I had my first carp, 5 lb.

I made Shaun turn into the sun so I could
see those lovely barbel he took on peg 18.
Live maggot brought roach - the barbel wanted only
dead ones!

By now the rain had stopped, and the wind was quite strong, but at 10 metres, fishing directly into the wind (which is almost always better than taking it on sideways) I could get reasonable presentation. And ten minutes later in came another carp. Then there was a long lull, with some liners, but fishing off bottom brought nothing. Tom had been taking the occasional fish, though, and I was in for a beating.

A late spurt
With 90 minutes left the fish decided to start biting and four came in in a period of about 30 minutes, best around 10 lb. Perhaps I could catch Tom yet. Then another lull, and with just 15 minutes left I put the rig out in front of me and more in hope than expectation potted in some maggots. Result! Two more carp in the last 15 minutes on the 'barbel' rig was the result, and I was unhooking the second one when the match finished. So I ended with eight carp after fearing, at the three-hour mark, that I would be absolutely hammered.

Tom Wilson, next to me, started taking barbel on maggot, 
but had too many roach among them. So he changed to
 a banded pellet to take the rest of his second-placed 75 lb 9 oz.

The weigh in
Tom was, as I had expected, top weight down to 16 (from 24), with 75 lb 9 oz. I was happy to weeigh in 49 lb 5 oz, and with Eddie McIlroy on 14 having packed up a couple of hours before the end, I was second on my bank. However, there were four weights to beat mine on the opposite bank, including Peter Molseworth's winning 86 lb 7 from peg 5, and Chris Saunders had ended with nine arp, beating me with 56 lb 14 oz, and winning my section by default. So I ended sixth.

Marks out of 10
I obviously should have changed my hook earlier, but with double-figure fish around, and always the chance of foulhooking one, I tend to favour strong gear...though I have been told many times that it's essential on Decoy to go lighter in Winter, even if the water is heavily coloured, as it currently is. But I still give myself 7/10, having had those six fish in the last 90 minutes, which was more than I could see anyone else catching at that stage. Next match the Pidley Pensioners on Magpie and Raven. 

PS I was busy taking as the results were read out and two minuteds later realised Carl had gone home, before I had photographed them...luckily Sir Christopher Saunders was more on the ball as I was, and had taken his picture. So I lift the result from his Facebook page. Thanks, Chris. But I did manage to photograph the Decoy Winter League and the Open results, though Karen at Decoy now puts all the Open results up on the Decoy Facebook page.

The result                                                                Sec

1 John Knight 16 2                 A

3 Carl White 11 5                A

5 Pete Molesworth 86 7 1st        A

7 J Haynes 66 3  Sec win B

9 D Pettigrew 54 2                B

10 Chris Saunders 56 14 Sect win C

12 Steve Tilsley 29 11                C

14 Eddie McIlroy DNW                     C

15 Mac Cambell 49 5                  C

16 Tom Wilson 75 9 2nd        C

18 Shaun Buddle 39 8                   B

20 Pete Harrison 13 2                 B

22 Ron Cuthbert 17 15               A

24 Earnie Lowbridge 18 7 Sect win A

OTHER RESULTS

Winter League Damson

Winter League Six-Island

Open Lous

Open Beastie

Open Willows

Open Horseshoe

A slow start doesn't help me on Crow, Pidley

Peg 9, Wed, Feb 14
Back with the Pidley Pensioners, with me on Crow, and some of the others on Magpie.The wind soon picked up and made fishing a long pole difficult. I had intended to start on a feeder, but it wasn't cold, and I had a quick look on the pole, just over the margin in the dep water. The rig settled nicely, but I had to take off a No 13 shot because of the waves. That done I dropped back, fished for about a minute, and looked to my right to see Marcus Wareing on 7 aleaady reeling in a fish taken on a feeder.

Five minutes later I put out a maggot feeder to the far bank. In the next 40 minutes Marcus landed about 6 or 7 more fish, and I had not had even a liner. Half an hour later I switched to a small hybrid feeder (similar to what Marcus was using), trying maggots, an orange wafter, and a pink wafter, still without even a liner. 

The bank was squishy with water, but thanks to the artificial turf 
all the pegs at Pidley are virtually free of mud. The wind picked up
considerably after the match had started, and 14 metres was out of the question for me.

Maggot was best
To my left the angler on 11 had had a fish or two on a maggot feeder, cast about three-quarters of the way over, so I tried that. Nothing. Almost two hours had gone before I gave up and went back to the pole, trying expanders. Then a switch to maggot brought a bite and a fish...attached to about two feet of a broken pole rig. Somehow the l F1 ended in my landing net and I was at least not fishless.

The rest of the match saw me using a cad pot every other cast, putting in maggots, and every 15 minutes I would get an F1. However, I knew that there were fish in the swim beause I could see tiny jigs on the float as the bait sank. I had one fish well off bottom, but had to drag bottom to get a bite. Very strange. 

Of course between the big gusts I had a look well out at 10 metres with corn or maggot but never had a touch there, so stayed on a 2+2 or 2+1 line. A few minutes from the end, with about 12 F1s in the net I hit a better fish which proved to be a 5 lb mirror. At the same time Marcus, who had been switching between feeder and pole, was playing an eight-pounder. Two minutes later the match finished. He told me he had had taken fish on mainly expanders on the pole, with a switch to maggot closer in in the later stages. Well done on the win, Marcus. 

The weigh in

Will Hadley on 5 had 60 lb 8 oz, but Marcus, thanks to that late big carp, pipped him with 67 lb 14 oz to win the lake. I had a miserable 23 lb, beating only two, who were in the deeper water in the higher numbers. Interestingly  Marcus was on peg 21 last match, and had put on the same rig, set at the depth for peg 21, only to find that his swim on 7 was two feet shallower. We assumed that the better weights would be at the other end, but we were wrong.

Marks out of ten

I started on expanders, which I have a lot of faith in, but never had any sort of  touch. Then when eventually I went back on the pole with maggot I felt I was fishing OK. Why I never had a touch on the feeder is still a mystery. The pole rigs seemed to be working perfectly, though towards the end I lost about five fish, which I thought were probably foulkhooked. Then I realised that several of those I had landed were hooked very lightly in the lip - I was amazed they hadn't pulled off. So I have to assume that they weren't really feeding, and I give myself 6. I've fished much worse and caught much more in the past!

Magpie was won from favoured peg 36 by Rob Heath, who always seems to outfish his nearby competitors. Give him a flier and he's way out in front. Well done, Rob.

Next match is Sunday somewhere on Decoy, which means a change from 8 and 10 elastics to around 14, as the fish can be well into double figures, especially after this prolonged mild spell.

THE RESULTS

Crow 1-12

Crow 13-25

Magpie 1-22

Magpie 23-36

FENLAND RODS 2024

 Hi, everyone. Our first match is on April 14th, on Yew, and it's the Club Cup. Best if you can let me know you want to fish, on 07941 291076 or by email: mcampbell672@aol.com I have Kev, Allan G and myself in already but there are 15 pegs so we should be OK.

The day ticket at Decoy has gone up to £10, so Kev will be wanting £16, including the £1 Golden Peg and the main £5 pools (paying top 3) . 

I will be collecting the £2 section fee - sections normally being of 3 or 4 anglers (the end result being that more people will be taking home winnings than previously). I will be paying sections out.

I hope to have a board up before the draw showing the sections.

Oak has been sheeted, to prevent the banks deteriorating any further, and it should be available for fishing very soon. Apparently the Environment Agency said it should not be dredged!

Remember it's aiming for 50 lb per net (someone has to lift it out) but we will allow up to 60 lb. No cupping in while pole fishing (it is allowed when using a rod).

Good luck (but not as much as for me).

Mac

I've been framed on Willows (plus W/L and Open result)

Peg 29, Willows, Sun, Feb 11
There has been plenty of parmy this Winter (it's what us Wisbech boys call water when it fills up all the lakes and lays all over the land) and there was plenty of mud on the banks of Willows, with some platforms unfishable. But there were enough pegs to accommodate the 13 idiots who turned up for this JV club match. Mind you, five other lakes were also in use for the Decoy Winter League and the Open, so we were in good company.

My peg 29 can be a flier, though I was told that the previous day Tony Evans had had just 20 lb from it while the match was won on 27 with 150 lb-plus. So nothing is guaranteed on peg 29. At the start there was hardly any wind, but soon the forecasted Westerly came in, and it became cold enough for me to get up and out on my Imax jacket.

Lee Kendall had told me to dob to the island, which I would have done anyway, iprovided conditions allowed. But first I had to negotiate the slippery hill down to the end pegs. Everyone taking their gear down on their trolley was offered help, which I gladly accepted. Next time I will go in from the other end - past peg 35.

Peg 29 - about 14 metres to the island. The wind got up soon after the start.

My new pole
I've just bought a lovely hardly-used Browning Xitan Z8 (its sections will interchange with my Z12) which slid through my hands really easily, and I was out to 14 metres  with no problem at all, using bread about 2 feet deep. There's a bank behind these pegs, so I had to break the pole down one before grabbing the top tewo, but that was no problem as the sections meshed beautifully (unlike my Z12, which is coming to the end of its life, I fear).

It took half an hour for me to get a carp about 6 lb, on the 8-10 elastic. I swapped over to a slightly heavier elastic, and went down to 3 feet before coming back to about 2 feet again. After 75 minutes I had four carp for about 18lb. 

There was a lull then, and I tried a small piece of frozen sweet corn, as two or three time my bread hd disapeared after what I though was a liner; possibly a fish slapping the bait off with its tail, which they do. The corn worked well, especially when I shallowed up to about 12 inches, and in the next hour I had another three or four carp.

Island problems
I daren't go right up to the island, with the float touching the grass, as I know there are snags there. And there were a couple of overhanging brambles which I accidently hit three times (thankfully the line didn't tangle with them). That meant I had to fish a very short lash to keep the rig about two feet from the island, and when the wind became stronger I couldn't hold the rig still. So eventually I had to look elsewhere.

I couldn't fish in front of me because of the low sun, so went out to the right, with corn, and second drop, after adjusting the float (which had been too low in the water) I hit a fish. After a couple of minutes I saw the line jagging back and forth and realised it was foulhooked. But a few minutes later, after a Fred Karno performance, it lay in my net - 6 lb of mirror hooked in the tail!

Fish in the deep margin
Nothing more came from that swim so I had a look in the margin to my left, on a top two, against some reeds, where it was about four feet deep. Unbelievably first drop saw a bite, and an 8 lb mirror come in, hooked in the snout - so it had obviously taken an interest in the corn. Soon after that another eight-pounder tried its luck, and with about 90 minutes left I felt I could get a big weight. Then I hooked another big fish which snagged me under the underwater tree stump to my right. Entierly my own fault - I should have added a pole section as soon as it got anywhere near it. The rig was securely snagged and all I got back was the float.

Paul Faulkner kept catching when I stopped.

Back to the margin swim and after that lost fish I saw nothing except bite after bite, all missed except for two fish lost after a few seconds, probably foulhooked. I would put in a little hemp, plus some micros and corn, and a minutes later down the float would go - nothing! So the fish were still coming to the feed. I must have had 20 missed bites or liners there.

Paul Faulkner starts flying

During that hour Paul Faulkner, to my right on peg 33, started to catch big fish fast. Some came from the aerator to his left, on corn, with others on maggot in front of him. He told me later he was throwing maggots out (he had back wind). Then he would pot in about 40 maggots, drop a rig down, and a fish would take it straightaway. I realised that I could now never catch him, and it was so frustrating to know that I had big fish in my swim but couldn't catch them.

With five minutes left, in desperation, I pushed all the shot down to within six inches of the bait, dropped in...and hit my last fish, which I landed after the whistle, at about 7 lb.

John Emerson had 31 lb 5 oz from famous peg 25.
(I like peg 24 just as much as 25).

The weigh in
Paul came up to me and generously took my big, heavy Xitan holdall (containing my pole, umpteen tops, half-butts, landing net handle and bank sticks plus the 16-metre section which I hadn't used) and carried it back up the hill to my van, also saying he would help with the trolley. I pushed the trolley there and he managed, with my help, to get it up (nearly everyone needed help).

The board showed me that the earlier pegs has fished very hard, with Peter Harrison on 5 catching, I believe, just one skimmer bream. Shaun Coated, using corn, which he loves in Winter, was top weight with 40 lb 8 oz. I was just in time to see Eddie McIlroy on 24 put back his 50 lb 7 oz - now the leader. I said I thought I had between 70 lb and 80 lb, and that was correct - 76 lb 14 oz. But Paul Faulkner easily won on 33 with his 121 lb 5 oz. I followed the scales to 35, where I knew Peter Molesworth had some carp, as I had seen them splash whne he landed them. He had just 62 lb 2 oz for third place, which included a nice perch that I photographed. That left me in second place. Not for the first time the pegs round the back of Willows had fished better than the earlier pegs.

Pete Molesworth shows that nice perch.

Marks out of 10
That last 90 minutes let me down. Obviously I should have  had another swim to go to. The one a little to my right was soon in the direct glare of the sun, but I could have easily started another in front of me, and slightly downwind. I didn't even look in the margins against the platform. If there are fish there you are likely to get a bite very quickly, so i have no excuse for not having a quick look there. Also I didn't try worm, which can often tempt a big fish. So I was worh only 5/10, even though I was second.

Lee Kendall said: "Well done Mac", but I know I should have done better. Next match due to be at Pidley on Wednesday - on Crow and Magpie. The forecast is for rain. How surprising.

THE RESULTS

WILLOWS

WINTER LEAGUE

John Arthur won the Winter League held on Six-Island and Horseshoe, with 194 lb 7 oz from Six-Island peg 11, fishing 16 metres with maggot. He fished the bottom, and included three barbel, and a 2 lb 4 oz perch.

SIX-ISLAND

HORSESHOE

THE OPEN

LOU'S

BEASTIE

 

DAMSON

At least it didn't rain on Jay lake, Pidley

Peg 19, Jay, Pidley
With so much wind in the Fens, it was so unusual, and a bit of a shock, to see the lakes almost flat calm for this Over 60s match on Jay and Crow...and the fish must have been traumatised because not many were caught, and that includes my swim. Peg 19 can be very good, especially when a West wind blows into the corner, to the left, when fish can be found alongside the stick-ups in the margin.

Not often you see this in the Fens...

I asked Tim Bates to draw for me, as whenever someone else draws
for me it seems to be a decent peg. I'm a terrible drawer.

But today I started, as did a lot, by dobbing bread over the far side, at 13 and then 14.5 metres, and at the end of an hour I had managed just one liner. I tried maggot for a time, but eventually had to give that up, and fish the deep water. On a 2+2 with corn I fancied I saw one or two tiny movements of the float, so spent a long time adding No 13 shot to get the tip right down to a pimple.

A fish!
Suddenly that pimple vanished and I was playing a 1 lb F1. Twenty minutes later another came in, then a long blank spell. A walk up to Shaun Buddle on 25, and he told me he had two carp, three F1s, and a load of small perch, fishing right across. So I toddled off back to my swim and had a sudden brainwave - groundbait. It's allowed only in a feeder on Decoy, but here you can use it. So some cool-water F1 groundbait went in (just a little) and within a minuite or two my first proper carp was on its way in, foulhooked.

That weighed about 6 lb, and I tried fishing off bottom, which saw just the tiniest of movements, obviously liners. An hour later, after more groundbait, I lost two more good fish, obviously foulhooked. In the last hour, corn accounted for another big fish about 6 lb, and another F1. To my right on 17 Malcolm Roberts had had one or two small fish (probably on maggot) but then I saw him with a good carp, which he landed. That was his only carp.

Malcolm Roberts plays his one and only decent carp, hooked late.

I wondered, afterwards, whether I should have tried maggot, and I definitely should have tried a bunch on the hook. But I didn't fancy feeding maggot after Shaun told me about his littple perch. In Summer I am sure that small fish feeding can attract carp, but when the water is dead I get the feeling that any flashing of hooked fish - even tiny perch - puts carp off.

The weigh in
Pegs 1 and 6 had, as they have done so often recently, produced some carp, and my two carp and three F1s weighing 17 lb 14 oz was fourth out of that section of seven. I was delighted to beat Shaun Buddle, though by only 1 lb 4 oz.Then weights got better, with Roy Whincup on 25 and Chris Neal on 38 both lucky enough to see fish knocking their margin stick-ups, and coming second and first, respectively, on Jay lake with weights of 43 lb 2 oz and 52 lb 13 oz. 

Tim Bates wheels the specially-designed weighing system along to end peg 47, by the bridge.

I caught up with Colin Walker on peg 47, who had
32 lb 24 oz, mainly on maggot.

Steve Tilsley caught late on Crow to win overall with 58 lb, with Mark Waring beside him second on that lake with 48 lb 4 oz. The payout was on the Continental system.

Marks out of ten

I was very pleased with the way I fished. I felt I kept it simple, but kept making changes whenever I felt I had to try to make something happen. I felt the time I spent getting the rig really sensitive was time well spent, and I give myself 8/10. 

Next match Sunday on Willows, Decoy. It was scheduld to be on Oak, but it's probably prettty muddy on the banks there, following the work Sean Reilly and his team have done. The banks have been cleaned up and sheeting put in, to prevent further bank erosion. There's a short video on Decoy's Facebook page showing what has been achieved so far. It will probably be ready to fish in the very near future. 

The wind is forecast to be Westerly, which is straight into pegs 24 and 25 on Willows. Of those two I would prefer 24, but a draw in Dead Man's Bay (16 to 23) would suit me. Ben Townsend won off 3 recently, but he is quite exceptional. However, I would be happy with peg 1, which usually holds a fish or two.

THE RESULT

Jay 1-22

Jay 23-47

Crow 1-13

Crow 14-25

Gudgeon Galore on Beastie

Peg 3, Beastie, Sunday, Feb 4
Twenty of us fished a JV match, all on Beastie, Decoy, and I wasn’t particularly pleased with peg 3, as that bank hasn’t fished as well as the ones opposite recently. I had Peter Harrison on my right on 4 – recently Shaun Buddle posted, on Facebook, that Peter could catch fish in a bowl of soapy water, and that’s not far from the truth! He started on a pole, and I started on bomb and bread, and I don’t think either of us had caught a fish after an hour.

Beastie 3, looking across to peg2 25 and 26. The wind soon became stronger.

Then I saw Ernie Lowbridge on 6 net a fish and went over to pole, 11.5 metres out. The wind was now fairly strong, and 11.5 metres was the longest I could easily fish a lot of the time. Shaun Coaten on 5 looked to be fishing about the same length, although at times I am sure he went out to 16 metres.

To cut a short story even shorter I couldn’t catch on corn, so tried dropping the rig closer to the reeds beside the promontory on my left, though I know it’s snaggy there. The float went under, and I hooked a big fish, which came off after two seconds – definitely foulhooked as the corn was still in place. So I tried dobbing bread there, about a foot off bottom, and had a bite, which I missed. Next drop in came a 2 oz carp!

Gudgeon, roach, gudgeon, perch...and gudgeon
Next were some roach – all on bread and eventually I had to try maggot, which brought lots of gudgeon, and some perch on worm, and roach. At one point I fished on a short top, close to my nets, and had more roach and lots more gudgeon, all on three maggots on a size 16. but they never came fast enough to give me a decent weight. Peter seemed to be struggling, as well. A switch to maggot feeder brought me one small roach and a couple more which came off halfway in. Then, half an hour from the end Peter hooked into a really big fish – well over 10 lb, that eventually finished in his landing net. Soon, using maggot at 11.5 metres, I had a 3 lb F1, and hoped that there would be more there, but no.

Peter Harrison hit this double-figure carp late on.
That's not a halo round his head - it's a lifebuoy.

I was on scales and later I found out that a lot of the carp taken were landed in that last 30 minutes. But not in my swim!

The weigh in
I was first to weigh in the first ten pegs – 7 lb 6 oz. Then the weights got better as we went along – Peter had 17 lb 14 oz including that big carp; then 36 lb 4 oz of carp and bream on corn; then 31 lb 6 oz of largely bream; then 63 lb 10 oz in peg 8, of big carp. From peg 15 they got even better – the fish seemed to like the rough water, Tom Wilson won the first two sections on 17 with 77 lb 11 oz, on bomb and bread, then four on pole in the last half hour. Overall winner was Dan Pettigrew with 154 lb 10 oz taken on a waggler shallow, casting to peg 1.

Shaun Coaten - 35 lb 4 oz.

Peter Harrison with his big mirror carp.

He hates them meeces to peeces        

On 15 Steve Tilsley admitted he should have done rather better than his fourth-placed 63 lb 11 oz, but was broken by some carp – he blamed mice which liked the taste of his elastics while he was sitting in the sun last week, in Warmer Climes (that’s somewhere near Spain!) He spent the next couple of days checking everything in his pole holdall and his nets! 

Yet again peg 22 produced a good weight.

 I ended near the bottom. Probably worth 5 out of 10, as I don’t think anyone would have had a big weight on that peg on that day.

Ernie Lowbridge - the fastest bream
angler in the West!

Paul Faulkner's 63 lb 10 oz from corner peg 8.

THE RESULT

Beastie 1-17

Beastie 18-30