A tragedy on the bank.

It with a heavy heart that I report the death of one our Fenland Rods members immediately after our match on Sunday.

Les, in happier times.

Les Bedford had been on oxygen for the last year, but that didn’t stop him and his wife, Wendy, from attending all our matches if they could. A covered trailer towed behind their car meant that they could load and unload two sets of tackle more easily. They would always be given the two most easily-accessible swims, and set off before the rest of us had drawn, to allow Wendy time to help Les get ready. Together, they were a real inspiration.

When I joined the club many years ago Les was one of the best anglers there, and always did the weighing-in. And even with the handicap of having to be linked up to an oxygen tank he was almost always well in the mix, and somewhere near the framing positions. In fact on Sunday, he was sixth with 52 lb 3 oz, only 16 lb less than the winner.  

Les was on Elm peg 1, close to where his car and trailer were parked, and the first to weigh. I understand that when the weighers-in got to Les he found it impossible to stand and walk up the bank. Two members helped him into his chair while they weighed in. Soon afterwards Mick Rawson (ex CID) came along the bank, took one look at Les, who was not responding, and immediately called the emergency services.

The first paramedics came in an ambulance and started CPR; then two emergency ambulances turned up, and then an Air Ambulance helicopter. They all worked on Les for over an hour, but he never responded and  they eventually had to declare him dead at the scene. He was 78.

Before the match started Wendy was telling me that Les had had a really good year fishing. It was probably one of the main things that had kept him battling on. And despite the heartrending circumstances I think all the club members, and probably his family, will be so relieved that the end came quickly and that Les died literally doing what he loved the most.

But, Oh how we will miss him.

Surprised to nick third spot - Damson, Decoy

Damson, Decoy, Peg 10

Just nine of us in this Spratts mid-weeker, and we were greeted by a stiff breeze into our faces – not particularly cold, and nothing we couldn’t handle. I had sort of decided to fish the deep water – seven feet at the end of a top two – but there are always fish to be caught shallow to start with, so I tried that. The average here is around 1 lb to 2 lb, with odd bigger one mainly in the first three pegs, which we did not use.

A stiff breeze at the start,  almost in our faces turned to a nasty, blustery day.

Trevor, on my left, set off like an express train, shallow on a top two out in front. But in the first hour or so, also fishing a banded pellet, I managed about eight fish for 6 lb while he must have had at least 30 lb! I was determined to catch shallow, but in the end I had to give up – so I had virtually wasted an hour. Next I looked down the side, feeding a few very old casters and baiting with them, and immediately I found fish to 2 lb. I fancied that they were a little larger than Trevor was catching; and he was still flying.

I stick to the margins 

I spent the rest of the match fishing the margins, up to about three feet deep – then it drops down almost vertically to seven feet. I had a rig ready for this, but stupidly never used it. Fish came steadily for the next two or three hours, by which time the wind had increased and became colder, and the fish seemed to be moving about, from a few inches deep out to the edge of the drop. Caster was good, and maggot brought mainly small roach so I quickly gave that up. Half a dozen barbel to 2 lb gave me real problems in the wind on my 13 Hollo elastic, and the purple Hydro I changed to eventually, to fish cat meat, felt much better.

Peter Harrison took 100 lb - he
never seems to have a bad day,

My best carp was about 4 lb, taken in less than  a foot of water next to the platform on cat meat. I had a good spell on this; then I had to try corn, which brought a quick run of several fish. With 80 minutes to go I went for a third net (Trevor had been for his almost an hour earlier) and when I returned I had to wait ten minutes for a fish. I had been feeding every minute or so all day, and obviously they had wandered off; but the cold seemed now to slow them down.

Winner was Peter Spriggs, with
209 lb 3 oz of small carp and barbel.

Towards the end I tried 6mm expanders, loosefeeding some, and that brought four or five quick fish to 1 lb 8 oz. But they wouldn’t stop in the same place for more than a few minutes at a time. The last 15 minutes were dire, and by this time even Trevor had had to come inside, with occasional tries shallow, so I knew he was struggling. When the shout went up to end the match the wind suddenly increased again, and became colder, I think we were all ready to pack up.

The weigh in

Peter Spriggs had five nets, fishing cat meat and paste on his top twoin front of him in the deep water. I am sure I would have done better if I had done this instead of sticking to my plan, but I didn’t...

He weighed a magnificent 209 lb 3 oz to win, and told me his best fish was around 7 lb. Along to Trevor, who had 136 lb 10 oz, much less than I had thought, so his fish must have been slightly smaller than  mine, because I estimated he was catching two to every one of mine all day. 

I weighed 113 lb 14 oz, for third, and my final net, taken in the last 75 minutes, weighed only 20 lb - so my catch rate had really sropped towards the end. Terry Tribe was fourth on 100 lb 2 oz, and Peter Harrison, who was over in both nets, had 100 lb taken mainly on hard pellet, with a few on feeder.

Terry Tribe, former National 4 Champion,
beat Martin Parker, former Veterans
 National Champion, by 24 lb...

A runaway win for Peter Spriggs.

...but he had to plead dire poverty in order to get an unimpressed
Martin to pay him the golden coin they had wagered at the start.

That first disastrous hour when I couldn’t catch shallow was my undoing; but I still think I would have done better looking for better fish in the deep water first. The one bit of good news is that the £100-plus Golden Peg, drawn by Bob Barret, is still intact.

Damson is a cracking lake, and still produces in the cold weather. A great place to take a youngster. I look forward to challenging it again in the future.

A difficult Autumn day - Decoy, Cedar

We thought we were on Oak, but it looked like a mistake somewhere at our end, and we were happy to fish Cedar. I would have chosen a peg at the car park end – 22 to 26 or 1 to 4 – but ended on 19, towards the far end, and on our £100 Golden Peg.

The night had been cold, but things were warming up and there was a nice breeze, into my face. However the sun on my left  made it difficult fishing that side. I started on The Method with maggot, as it looked like being difficult, and put in a few pellet and corn at six pole sections; but within a minute Dave Garner, on peg 7 on the opposite bank, landed what looked like a barbel, which made me think it might not be as diifficult as I had feared, if the barbel were already prepared to feed. 

So after 15 minutes I tried the margin to my right, where I bait-droppered maggot and hemp, and fished with a 0.14mm rig straight through to one of the newish Guru black fine-wire hooks (I forget the name) baited with a bunch of deads.

No prize, but I caught a couple of good barbel...

...as did Kevin, to my right.

First drop-in saw a 2 lb F1 in the net, followed by a 3 lb mirror. But then I could get only knocks from roach, some of which clung to the maggot before dropping off and I could see they were about ten to the ounce. In the next 45 minutes I had a couple of roach and a gudgeon, but on the opposite bank they all seemed to be catching, while Mel Lutkin, opposite me, seemed to be landing a 4 lb carp or a barbel every ten minutes.

The opposite bank was bagging!

A look in the longer swim brought two 2 lb carp to corn, but it took an hour to get them, and during the next hour I managed just a barbel and another 2 lb carp from the margin swim on maggot. So halfway through the match I had about 14 lb while Mel opposite must have had 40 lb or 50 lb, Dave Garner to his right also had several fish, and Tony Nisbet on 13, in the far corner, had also been catching regularly.

Mel had a great start, but had to wait some
time for each bite. He ended with 97 lb.

Tony fished peg 13 - and
it wasn't unlucky for him.
 He won with 106 lb 11 oz.

Later I found out that John Smith, on peg 4, had also had a great start: “I might as well have gone home at 12 o’clock” he told me. Yet to my right Kevin Lee, after taking the odd fish early on, was really struggling, like me. Odd fish now came from my two swims on corn until I had a look down in the deep-water margin to my left, where a barbel on corn made me swap over to cat meat. This brought intermittent carp to 5 lb and several barbel also to 5 lb, some foulhooked,  until I changed to a heavier 1.5 gm rig, which instantly upped my catch rate.

In the last hour things started getting better, and with half-an-hour left I hit three fish very quickly and looked to be headed for a cracking last 20 minutes. But then the wheels came off – I must have missed 15 bites on cat meat and I lost six fish, all after being hooked for about two seconds; I’m not convinced they were all foulhooked. With 30 seconds left, in frustration, I dropped back into the right margin and promptly hooked my final 3 lb barbel which I landed after the whistle.

Bill Foster calculates all our
weights and records them on the
board (gotta keep in with him!)

Dick, fourth from peg 24

The weigh-in

I estimated I had 60 lb-plus, which I was sure was definitely beaten by Les Bedford on 1 with 78 lb 4 oz, Dave Garner with 89 lb 8 oz (including a carp of 14 lb 4 oz), Mel with 97 lb and Tony with 106 lb – these all taken from the end bank on about 13 metres.

So round the end of the lake to pegs 15 and 17, both of whom had struggled to 40 lb-pus, and I was surprised to weigh  77 lb 2 oz, which was beaten on my bank by Dick Warrener on peg 24 with 83 lb 14 oz. He hooked five good carp in his first five casts, though the biggest one came off at the net.  I finished sixth, but if I had managed to land just a couple of the fish I had lost I would definitely have framed.

The result. This club has just one match left this year.

I should have had a look in my lefthand margin earlier; and I should have tried worm to see if the fish took it better at the end, when I was getting dodgy bites on cat meat. It seemed the fish wanted to feed but weren't taking the bait properly. 

Still, I was second on my bank with four of the top five weights coming from the opposite bank, so I can’t be anything but happy. And everyone else was happy as it was a Golden Peg rollover. But, Boy those barbel do fight!

Bream in the wind - Beastie, Decoy

Beastie Lake, Decoy, peg 3

Wind – lots of it, with some huge gusts – greeted the 17 of us, though it was warm. A few days earlier our secretary, John, had been mulling over the pegs to put in, and was insistent that 9 and 18, which are either side of the bridge to the spit, would be left out, on the grounds that big carp can shoot under the bridge and round the corner and break you. In addition with the strong Southerly wind forecast he wasn’t going to put in the pegs immediately facing it – 14 to 18 – and he was going to leave out the pegs 9 to 13 on the grounds that they are not very good.

After speaking with John at the fishery on the morning he put in 13 (which has been very good in many matches this summer) , 15, 17 and the dreaded 18...and promptly drew the one peg he wouldn’t have wanted – Peg 18! And in fact it was the windiest peg on the lake that day...but I would have loved it. It’s my favourite peg on Decoy, and I don’t think I’ve ever fished it without framing.

Peg 3, my home for the day, was sheltered compared to some others.

I drew the one I wanted least of all – 3, which was sheltered. I wanted the windiest peg possible, especially as rain wasn’t forecast, because in those conditions big carp feed in the margins. My peg 3 was comparatively calm, sheltered by a penisula sticking out on my left, and a high bank behind me. The wind was from the back over my left shoulder – whistling straight into peg 18 in the far corner - and  had more of a swell than a ripple. In addition the last time I fished Beastie I had peg 2, and Mick Linnell, who has fished for some cracking match teams, didn’t weigh in from peg 3.

Gotta keep in with Mel - he
organises our Christmas dinner.

A problem

I followed the plan John Smalley, at the fishery, suggested to me when I told him where I was pegged – micros and a few grains of corn out towards 13 metres near the end of the penisula, followed by a cast on The Method halfway across; then feeding the pole line before another cast. You’re allowed to feed a pole line here while feedering, though our club rules have banned that. It’s dodgy anyway – on the last match here Mike Rawson lost a rod and brand new £80 reel, pulled when he wasn’t paying attention.

Alan found fish on peg 30,
but not quite enough of them.

Plumbing up I encountered a problem – my plummet got caught in a load of line at about 10 metres out. I put on another section and shook the plummet free, but it made me wary of fishing nearby. I also put on a rig for the left, near the pennisula at just four sections, and another for the margins under the tree to my right. I went round with a long-handled hook to try to find the rogue line, and although I could feel it rasping, I didn’t manage to actually hook into it to remove it.

Underway

I stuck to the plan, baiting about four times in the first three-quarters of an hour, and taking just one 3 lb common on The Method. Swapping to the pole, I tried first at just four sections, a little  to my left near the peninsula, and immediately took three bream about 1 lb on corn over micros. I had to change the elastic from a tight 16 to Preston 13 Hollo, hoping I didn’t hit a big carp which took me into the loose line just a few metres away.

Club Champion Dave Garner with
a cracking common on peg 15.

In fact I carried on catching bream, plus one F1. The bites were tiny, and I ended up putting my bulk shot three inches from the hook, which probably stopped the bait swinging about in the strong undercurrents. Occasionally I went out to my long line, and the fishing was similar here, but most of the time I stuck inside. At one point I put in a couple of handfuls of 6mm pellet and some hemp and cat meat right in front of me, and hit a 3 lb common and a 2 lb F1 immediately. Then nothing. I suspected I needed to keep baiting to draw in the odd carp, but didn’t want to mess up my bream swim which was only two metres away. So I went back to the bream, baiting only occasionally with a small pole cup,  and at least was putting fish in the net regularly.

Gradually bites petered out and I found they were gradually moving down the slope into deeper water. I suppose I was taking a bream, mainly up to 2 lb, every four or five minutes, but had no idea whether this was any good on the day as I couldn’t easily see anyone else. However, it was very enjoyable. But then Mike, on peg 4, pointed out that John our secretary was already fetching a third net. I wondered if his opinion of that peg 18 might now be changed...

A good last 50 minutes

Callum's 17 lb 6 oz munter.

Another couple of small carp also came in, and with an hour to go I felt I had to look in the margin to my right. Dead maggots under the tree produced a couple of small roach, and with 50 minutes left I put in dead maggots and hemp next to the bank, beside a rather attractive-looking clump of weed growing over the surface, hoping there might be barbel there. There were! The first one took me by surprise as I broke down to the top two, and shot under the bank to my right. I could just see the float – the fish was at least a metre under the grass! Hook gone.

The next four I successfully beat by adding a section, pushing the fish out, then breaking down and pulling the purple hydro, as quickly as I could, until there was very little stretch in it. Those four ended in my net, best 4 lb. Then a 10 lb mirror took a lump of cat meat on the drop, and that, too, ended in the landing net. The final drop-in saw a seven-pounder foulhooked and landed just as the shout went up to end the match. My two best fish in the last few minutes.

The weigh-in

I was first to weigh in – 103 lb 11 oz, of which at least 60 lb was bream. A quick visit to the toilet (one of the results of my on-going prostate radiation) and I got back in time to take some pictures. The toilets here are really good and clean – there’s even a shower!

How about than, then? Winner
John on a peg he didn't want.

To my surprise The weights on the board were much lower than I had anticipated. John Garner, on 13, who had easily won the Spratts match on peg 30 earlier in the week, struggled on 13 and weighed only 24 lb 11 oz, so it looks as if, at least for the six hours of the match, the carp hadn’t favoured that area – these strong winds set up all sorts of undercurrents which so often govern where the carp feed.

Dave Garner, our current champion, was on 15 with part head-wind, fishing a waggler, which is a big disadvantage in winds this strong. It simply doesn’t allow the options of presentation that a pole gives you – basically all you can do is fish the margin or drag a bait well overdepth farther out. He totalled 54 lb 10 oz.

Les weighed over 80 lb without
including his oxygen cannister!

Next to him Callum – after whom I reckon the storm had been named – had a whopper of 17 lb 6 oz in one of his three nets; but he finished just 13 oz short of my weight. Then to John, who was an easy winner, fishing to his right away from the bridge two to three metres out, with 139 lb 8 oz; and he lost his best fish five minutes from the end when it went round one of the platform posts. Credit to him for getting such a good weight from a peg he didn't even want to put in.

Les - Man of the Match?

Then round the lake, to Les, who was fifth with 80 lb 9 oz, mainly on long-distance feeder. I reckon that, with the wind in his face and his oxygen bottle plugged in beside him, that was a fantastic catch in difficult conditions.

Mat collates our final Club Points.

I had expected peg 26 to produce – it’s a noted swim -  but it was sheltered from the wind and Mat, one of our best anglers, struggled to 52 lb. On peg 29 (a noted swim which was even more sheltered) Tony Nisbet had mainly small carp and bream for 88 lb 10 oz and fourth. It did seem to me that, as I had suspected, the windier pegs had an edge.

I finish second

The final, windswept, result.

So I ended runner-up, which I was very pleased with. My decision to keep putting fish in the net instead of searching for carp, was vindicated. And it’s a long time since I caught more than 60 lb of bream.

 With just two matches to go – Oak and Elm, both on Decoy – it looks  to me as if Tony may end as club champion as he’s been so consistent.

A frustrating rod-and-line-float-only match - Kingsland Silver

Kingsland Silver Lake

There were just ten of us in this ‘waggler’ match. Last year, as it was called a waggler match, I used ...wagglers, fixed bottom only, but found that lifting a dropping a bait in the margin didn’t work very well.  Afterwards I found  that any float could be used – including pole floats. So this year my initial plan was to target the small carp – up to 4 oz – with a 13-foot waggler fished to hand with a pole rig, for the first hour or two when the bigger fish were not  likely to show.

So it was definitely now described as a ‘rod-and-line-float-only’ match. Then a curve-ball – we were told on the morning that we could use a pole to cup in. Unfortunately I had left my pole behind so I could not be accused of using a pole in a rod and line match. Seemed reasonable to me! Not that it would have made a huge difference to the result – but at least I shall know for next year.

I admit I wasn’t looking forward to the match as I’m not much good on the waggler, and hadn’t fished one since the same match last year. I was also (still am) feeling a bit fragile after having had 12 of my 20 sessions of radiography for my prostate cancer; in fact the previous day I had rung to say I would probably not be there. But on the morning I thought I could manage. However I decided  I’d forget about winning, and just enjoy myself if I could, and hopefully catch a few on pellet waggler. Then I drew the £100 Golden Peg! But I accepted I couldn’t live with Tony and some of the others  on the float,  and forgot about the money.

Kevin had most of his fish on bunches of dead reds
fished in 18 inches of water in the margins.

My plan works

My plan of going for small fish with a single maggot worked well for the first hour or so, and I put about 10 lb in the net. Then I tried pellet waggler with 6mm pellet for half an hour, and didn’t get any indications at all. Tony, on the bank to my right, was getting some, though – mainly small fish. His feeding must have been better than mine.

All the time there were carp from 5 lb to 8 lb feeding in ten inches of water just a couple of metres out. Everybody had some in their swim, but few were caught. The fish seemed to be sucking up the mud, and not moving much. I later suspected they were after bloodworm. I caught three, all hooked properly in the mouth. But I never saw a bite. I remembered where my cat meat was, and when I saw a tail above it I struck, more in hope than expectation as the clouds of mud obscured the fish’s head.

Frustrating

But I wasted hours trying for more. Even dead maggots didn't work. Frustrating. Another five took cat meat over pellet and corm farther out, among some more carp about 4 oz which somehow sucked the lump into their mouths. I interspersed this with more small fish on the maggot, and quite enjoyed it all. Another try on the pellet waggler for the best part of an hour again produced nothing. At the end I had 20 lb of small fish and 41 lb of larger ones – eight fish around 5 lb each -  and to my amazement it was good enough for third! Dave, to my left, our Club Champion, fishes a waggler in every match, and he struggled. So I was quite happy with my 62 lb 3 oz.

I was surprised to take third spot, from peg 9.

There were just 4 oz between Tony and winner Kevin Lee, who was three swims to my right. He fed dead maggot in the margins and fished a bunch of deads for 132 lb 12 oz,  while Tony used mainly pellet for 132 lb 8 oz. If I had had a pole cup with me I think I would, in fact,  have vastly improved my weight. If nothing else it brought home to me the huge advantages a pole can give in many circumstances.

Saturday sees me on Beastie Lake at Decoy if I’m still fit enough to go. My favourite pegs 9 and 18 look like being not pegged, so I hope for 2, 7, 8, 26, 29 or 30.

I managed third in a cool wind - Decoy, Cedar

Cedar Lake, Decoy, peg 8

There were 12 in this Fenland Rods match, and I would have liked pegs 1 to 5 or 26 back to about 22, at the car park end of this strip. But 8 stuck to my hand, and as I walked to my peg I realised that 24, 25 and 26 were all pegged and occupied, and I mentally accepted that fourth was probably the best I could do, as these three pegs traditionally produce well.

A dull day, with occasional sun, but no ripple near this side bank.

There was a very cool South-Westerly over my back, but although it meant I was probably warmer than those opposite it meant there was no ripple for those of us on this bank, and the wind tends to push a margin rig out, rather than into the shallower water, which is almost always preferable. So I started on the Method, while pinging out 6mm pellets to six metres. After 40 minutes with only liners I went out on the pole to six metres, with a 6mm expander fished on the bottom. Immediately I foulhooked a fish which came off.

Over the next half hour I took two small F1s then, having had several liners, switched to a light strung-out rig fished a foot off the bottom. First put-in a 3 lb F1 took, and I had cracked it! Err, no – inevitably it was a false alarm and another 30 minutes trying all depths proved fruitless. After two hours I had about 10 lb, and went to the left deep margin with a bunch of dead reds over read reds and hemp. This didn’t produce even a bite, so I went back to six metres.

Me with two double-figure fish.

There I lost four fish in succession; came in to the left margin, and lost another. Carp – 5; Me – nil. But the next carp of 8 lb stuck, only for me to lose another next drop-in. They were probably all foulhooked, and I could see some anglers on the opposite bank also losing fish. But slowly, very slowly, the fish started to feed properly, and several carp to 98 lb came over the next hour mainly from the left margin. I had about 45 lb when Kevin, opposite, went for his third net.

A switch to the right margin produced two double-figure fish quickly to cat meat over pellet and corn, then I foulhooked a 5 lb barbel, which ended up in my landing net...eventually. I concentrated here and in the next 45 minutes managed to hit another double-figure carp foulhooked near the tail which somehow, through gritted teeth, I managed to land, and then a couple of smaller fish.

Alan, with sunglasses because
the sun came out at the end!

With 20 minutes to go I went for a third net – though now both Kevin Lee opposite on 17 and Tony Nisbet on 24 had four nets and I had revised my best possible result to being top on my bank of six anglers. On my return I dropped in and immediately hit another fish on a bunch of deads that felt very big; but after a couple of minutes the hook pulled out. I think it was properly hooked. Just one more fish came on the last cast, a 2 lb 10 oz ide to corn which was lonely in that last net.

I was surprised, when I went to the car to get my extra net, that only Kevin and Tony appeared to have more than two nets out. So that made me wonder whether I might have managed unexpectedly to scratch third spot. I was top weight down to me with 98 lb 13 oz, having managed to not go over the 50 lb limit, though the first two nets were perilously close, at 48 lb 14 oz and 47 lb 5 oz.

Callum, in corner peg 13. He's
 a neat angler and a neat writer -
just look at his results sheet.

Tight at the top!

Then round to Kevin who weighed 168 lb 8 oz, taken on cat meat, to lead the match, and he looked to be the winner. But in a nail-biting weigh-in Tony on 24 managed to pip Kevin by just 13 oz. Tony started out at about eight metres with pellet but, like me, couldn’t keep the fish feeding, and then came in to the deep-water margins taking most of his fish on corn. And he lost four really big fish one after the other.  John Garner, next door, surprisingly hadn’t managed to find the fish, and Mike Rawson on 26, who hasn’t been in the club long, took 38 lb, mainly on feeder. So I finished third.

Mel Lutkin with the best fish of
the match, weighing 14 lb 5 oz.

I noticed when I walked round to the opposite bank top watch the weigh-in and take pictures, that although it was even cooler there, the ripple did look nice, and I fancy that if the wind had moved round and given me some, I might have caught more. When there are 10 lb-plus fish in your swim you don’t need many to really give you a big weight in a short time. The fish came late, but not quickly enough for me. So I suppose third spot and top on that bank was a good result, really.

Kev with a 13 lb 15 oz mirror.
 "That's the way to do it!"

The result,

Tony lifting one of  his nets out.

The winner, Tony.

This barbel was almost 5 lb.

Mike - loves his fishing!

Next match is a rod-and-line float-only on Kingsland Silver Lake. If the water is still down it will be difficult, as the margins are shallow and clear, and I wouldn’t expect fish to come in close unless it’s a warm day. I will have pellet waggler ready.