A good day in the sun on Kingsland

Peg 6, Kingsland, Sunday, May 19
Last week we had 14 entries for the Fenland Rods match. But, like in an Agatha Christie thriller, they kept dropping out until by Sunday we had just six members and a guest line up at Kingsland, on the small lake. Will the others re-appear? Or are they lost forever in the ether?

That was all forgotten, however, as I walked to my peg 6, one short of the first corner, and a cool Northerly greeted me - in our faces but a little from the left. Our guest was Jason, an airline pilot, and he had drawn the one I would have picked - first on the end bank. I suppose (pun alert) you could call it a 'flier'. Geddit? Please yourselves.

A small lift of the heart came when I saw two Orange-tip butterflies before the start. When I was a nipper me and my mates used to collect 12 butterflies in a jar, let them go, and collect 12 more, and we did that for hours. They were mainly small tortoishells, Peacocks, Red Admirals, White Admirals, Brimstone, Orange-tips, Commas, and small blues, from what I remember. We didn't collect the Cabbage Whites - there were so many of them because nearly everyone used to grow their own cabbages. Shall we ever see them that proliferous again?

A good start!
For the first time I can remember for ages the box sat absolutely level on the platform, without my having to spend minutes adjusting the legs. A good start, and today I had a plan! A good'un. And it worked. I started dropping just a grain of corn  (on a hook) down in the margin where plumbing had told me there was a firm patch. Down went the float and on was a 2 lb mirror. 

Owner Richard has made access to the platforms much easier than it used to be.

Back out, and a smaller carp came in. I was worried that putting in loose-feed would attract those pesky 2 oz-and-smaller fish, so carried on without it for a couple of hours, just fishing the top two and corn. It was difficult fishing any farther down the margin because the platform is cut back. The cold wind became warmer and it was like fishing in Summer! The main problem was that the fish fought like tigers - everybody had the same problem. Presumably full of unreleased testosterone.

Mel Lutkin, on my left, had some  fish on the feeder before changing to pole.

To my right, in the corner, Dick Warrener had one or two better fish, as did Jason, fishing a waggler to the stick-ups on the end bank. Eventually, having perhaps 20 lb in my net - all carp except for one rudd - I tried putting in some loose-feed to the left, which had produced only a couple of carp, and it worked! Some 1 lb carp came a little more frequently, and the little fish were not a nuisance.

I change to cat meat
Halfway through the six-hour match and I suppose I had around 40 lb, but Dick said that Jason had got several of those better fish. So I tried cat meat at last, and that brought big carp into the swim, but they came to the surface beside the platform and wanted to eat the grass. At least I knew they were on the move, so concentrated on putting in mainly hemp and hard pellets, and dropping cat meat on top.

Dick Warrener found some better fish soon after the start, in corner peg 7.

That tactic brought some better fish, mainly 3 lb to 5 lb, and I had a good couple of good hours. The bigger fish came in more quickly than the smaller ones, I reckon it must have been because they had just had sex. The landing nets here are big, and towards the end, when the wind increased, it blew the net around, but caused no other problems when landing fish. One fish dived under the platform and fouled a keepnet, but that was the only one - I made sure I added the third section when they were hooked, to keep them away from the nets.

A change to mussel kept the better carp coming in - not frantically, but steadily. They gave liners all the time, but I managed to foulhook only six all day - and I landed four of those. When I could, I fished my special method, which helps avoid the foulhookers, and on this occasion picked up several fish which I think were just holding the bait in their mouths, without giving a 'proper' bite. I landed my last fish seconds before the hooter (nothing so common as a whistle for us). My best was about 5 lb, though much biggher ones were mooching around the swim towards the end.

Like me Roy Whitwell started off catching smaller fish
 but took an early lead with 141 lb 3 oz.

The weigh in
We were all given three nets, with no spares, so we had to just split the catch. I did use my clicker, though, and as usual underestimated the weight. My problem is that when I'm catching, I concentrate just on the next fish. That was a lesson hammered home to me by the late, great, Eddie Townsin. Using a clicker breaks my concentration, and I think sometimes I am more focussed on catching, and just forget to click.

I estimated I had 35 lb in each of the three nets. So when Roy Whitwell weighed in 141 lb 3 oz I guessed I was beaten. Kevin Lee, who is a whizz on the cat meat, had a double-figure fish, but said he hadn't got a lot, and indeed totalled just 92 lb 13 oz for second spot, which I thought I could beat.

Mel Lutkin was the recorder for the day - thanks, Mel.

My last net was the first to be brought up. I'd started it with a little over an hour to go, and was astonished when Ken struggled to lift it out for me. "Some 35 lb!" he said, giving me an old-fashoned look, as the scales went round to about 62 lb. The next one went 54 lb, and the first net of small fish was around 49 lb - total 165 lb 11 oz. Honestly, I was genuinely surprised. 

In the corner Dick also topped 100 lb, and on the end peg Jason Lee, who fished a waggler all day, ended with 128 lb 10 oz, and said he had lost some in the reeds. So I ended as the winner. And as I prepared to leave I heard a cuckoo - not the first this year, but always nostalgic for me. I guess I may be one of the few people in the area who has actually seen a male and a female cuckoo together, when I was about ten, on a bike ride with my brother. Happy Days. (It was me on the bike ride, not the cuckoos).

Kev Lee's best fish - twice as big as any of mine.

Marks out of ten

I give myself eight, as there was one special rig I had with me which I didn't use, simply because I was catching. If I'd used it I think I would have had a lot more. But pleased I didn't feed too much, which helped avoid the foulhookers.

Next match is Wednesday on Oak, Decoy, when rain is forecast, so it will be Muck boots at the ready, with my best Goretex. I just hope the bank is not too bad after the work done on it at the beginning of the year, which left it like a quagmire.

Jason Lee - our guest on this lovely sunny day, was third with 128 lb 10 oz.