Another blow-out - Emily’s Lake, Fraser’s Fishery, Ely

Permanent peg 12,

The ‘hot’ pegs here tend to be 16 and 1 to 5, with 10 also fancied, and I was hoping for anywhere from 16 round to 5. But I was on the other side of this oval-shaped lake. Heavy rain greeted us, but it changed to a light drizzle for much of the day.

One foulhooked carp on a shallow rig fished at 12 metres to the island was all I had in the first 20 minutes, but small fish were knocking the expander all the time, and the wind got up so I came to the inside, where I fully expected to catch.

But I was horrified, when I threw in some cubes of luncheon meat on the left, to see hordes of small fish attacking them as they sank. Indeed some small rudd impaled themselves in the first few minutes, and I seriously considered swapping to maggot and concentrating on them, but realised I was unlikely to actually win doing that.

So I tried corn to the right, with the same problem, and it was more difficult because the wind and rain were from the right. However eventually a 2 lb carp took a grain of corn, and then I lost one. After three hours I had hooked 11, mainly from the right, and landed just five. They may have been foulhooked, as other anglers had the same problem.  But even those hooked properly fought like tigers.

The fish felt so hot

The fish were hotter than I can ever remember in 65 years of fishing – the water was also exceptionally warm. You would think that the fish would feed well, but they seemed to be playing with the bait...or it might have been the rudd knocking it and then suddenly a carp coming in and taking the bait. Expander proved useless as fish took it from the hook as soon as it hit the water. 

Halfway through I put on a 1 gm rig to try to get the bait down quickly, and to a small extent this did work, and in fact I had a fish first drop on a bigger cube of luncheon meat.

I finish fifth

The rest of the day was similar – paste took two or three fish from the left, and then a big cube of luncheon meat took two or three more. At one point I put on a big cube - they were almost an inch square and within 15 seconds had hooked a 3 oz rudd! But I kept hooking and landing - and losing - occasional carp, and finished with about 15 for 45 lb 7 oz, for fifth spot, and estimated I had lost as many as I landed. To my left on 14 Dick Warrener struggled to 20 lb, but on peg 16 Callum Judge took two or three early on a feeder fished across, and ended second with 51 lb.

The result - Mike on our peg 1 was on 1, then we fished  roughly
alternate pegs. Our 6 was 9 round to Callum on permanent peg 16.

The winner, on permanent peg 10, was Tony Nisbet, who is a cracking angler and fished expander for 97 lb 8 oz – how he managed to get it through the hordes of roach I do not know. This style of fishing suits him down to the ground. Peg 10 is also a fancied peg, and I won on it the first time I fished a Tuesday Open here. In the end I finished fifth only 5 lb behind Callum in second, so just landing two of those lost fish would have really boosted me. A disappointing day on a lovely fishery.

Car trouble means I have had to miss the midweek match with Spratts, and I hope it will be repaired by Saturday for the Fenland Rods match on Decoy.

I see Decoy has been announced as the venue for the next Veterans’ National, which is something to look forward to.

Outclassed - Vet's National, Tunnel Barn Farm

Martin Parker and I travelled up to Tunnel Barn Farm near Warwick for the Veterans’ National on that really hot Tuesday, and managed to catch the open weighing in. 

Harry Billing (who has won two recent Vets Nationals) won with 127 lb fishing shallow. with maggot. Ridiculously, the fishery allows anglers to fish with a heavy bead instead of a float, which means you can fish shallow just as if you had no float at all – yet they fishery insists you have to have a float or indicator. How the bead can indicate a bite when it’s a foot under the surface ten metres away is beyond me.

Not a draw we wanted

Anyway, next day I was looking forward to the match, despite the heat, as I finished seventh last time the National was here. But Martin and I drew four pegs from each other on the one ten-peg section we wanted to avoid – High Pool 40 to 50, where the water is 8 feet deep two feet from the bank. I had intended to fish the margins, but for some reason decided to start on a feeder. I had a Method feeder attached, but within 15 minutes Garry Bell to my left from  Essex had had four F1s on a pellet feeder cast to the far bank 16 metres away.

I then realised I had no pellet feeders with me (I had pared my gear down as we had to get two sets of tackle in Martin’s car) so put on a maggot feeder, with no bites at all on that. I had also left my two pole extensions behind to save space so I couldn’t fish 16 metres to the far bank. Instead I had a go fishing shallow with maggot.

Garry had several F1s like that but I could manage only small roach. Most of which dropped off. After two hours I estimated he had well over 30 lb and I had about 3 oz!

So it was down to the margins (which is what I do best). The depth varied every foot or two – six inches next to a clump of grass then two feet a foot past that, and it fell away steeply farther from the bank. I had a bite first drop in, but  it was difficult.

I find occasional F1s

 However over the next three hours I managed to find the occasional F1 on luncheon meat to my right with not a bite to my left. I had quite a lot of bites, but missed 4 out of every 5, and lost five or six fish. A bit of a nightmare and I finished with about 16 fish for 28 lb 11 oz while Garry struggled during the last half of the match, switching methods and catching odd fish shallow, then a couple on the feeder,  and finished with 66 lb for probably second in section.

Martin had 30 lb 13 oz, with the section won with about 70 lb taken on a 16-metre pole to the far bank on corn. We left before the results were announced, as the cafe was closed and the smell of hot dogs from a burger van didn’t appeal to me as all I wanted after five hours in the baking heat was to sit with a decent cup of tea .But we suspect there were several weights over 100 lb in the other lakes.

A day to forget. If I had fished the margins from the start, as I had intended, I think I could have had a lot more fish – I started there at the same time as bites seemed to dry up in the other swims. And afterwards several other anglers in the same section told me they caught hardly a fish in the margins all day. I really should fish to my strengths.

Next match
Next match on Frazer's Fishery, near Ely, on Emily's Lake. I'm looking forward to this as although it's quite deep, it's only about 14 metres wide, and has great near-side margins. Tony Nisbet is favourite to win in my book...but then what do I know? My luncheon meat approach in the margins could do the trick!

Happy with fifth from a dead-calm swim - Elm, Decoy

Peg 1

Before this match organiser Trevor asked Ted (91) if he wanted his usual peg close to the car park. With the wind blowing down from the car park end of the strip lake down to the Northern end, as it had been blowing all week, Ted said No – He’d take his chance and walk to whatever peg he drew. Very sensible, since the two pegs at the near end were both calm, and the farther down the lake you walked the more ripple you got.

Ted drew 18, six pegs down the lake and Muggins drew peg 1 – the one swim nobody in their right mind would have chosen. Still, I had a job to do.

The water was really green with algae, and when I plumbed up I couldn’t find any nice flat margin – there was a gradual slope down to about five feet, then it levelled out, dropping just a little more. I started on a Method feeder and in the first 50 minutes took five small bream from 1 lb to about 6 oz. But opposite on 24 John Smith had had two or three good fish, and he seemed to be fishing quite deep in the margin.

Green and flat calm - my swim did not look inviting.

However I had been pinging 4mm pellets out to about ten metres, and in the heat I thought it likely that fish would feed shallow. However, after half an hour I had not had a single take on my banded pellet, and I could see Martin Parker also fishing shallow, and he didn’t seem to be catching. . So it was down the side four sections to my left in front of some straggling reeds.

In the next two hours I managed to take an 8 lb carp there and lost another; and then a near-5 lb barbel managed to hook itself...in the base of a pectoral fin. It came in eventually, at which time Trevor, on peg 20, who was fishing a shallow margin, went for a third net! I looked at my watch and it was 1.20 pm and I had about 15 lb in my net...

I saw Trevor clearing surface weed from his
margin after about an hour and knew
it was likely he would find fish there...he
always does. He finished second on 158 lb 6 oz.

John Smith's best carp weighed 14 lb 2 oz.

Knowing that there were barbel about I put some cat meat and hemp into the deep right margin, towards the corner, and after a few minutes another barbel came in. Bob Allen then went for a third net and I think I managed to catch one more carp in the next 45 minutes, at which time Bob went for a fourth net!

A great last hour for me

However, with an hour left fish started to come, and I had four or five carp around 4 lb, then four big carp in a row in my second net, all on cat meat and a barbel. I estimated I had about 36 lb in that net, with the same in the first net, so I went for a third net at 3.30 pm (Trevor had already been for a fourth and Peter Barnes for a third). In the last 20 minutes after I had got settled I managed four more fish for 17 lb, and they were really feeding.

Four good carp and a barbel  that
surprised me by weighing only 31 lb.
 I will have to take a trip to Specasvers!

The weigh-in

For probably only the second time ever, I had OVERestimated the weight of the fish and those four carp and a barbel went just over 31 lb, and I ended with 88 lb 7 oz after a really good last hour. My swim had been calm all day, and as I expected the swims towards the other end fish consistently well. 

Mike Rawson was third - he's on
a bit of a roll at the moment.

Trevor found a shallow margin on peg 20, and that was always likely as he was on the Eastern bank which has the prevailing Westerlies blowing into it. This has, over the years, caused bank erosion  but there are still clumps of reeds there, and if you can find a spot where the two meet you are likely to find fish in the summer in anywhere from 12 inches to three feet of water, Trevor told me he was catching in just 12 inches.

Winner on  peg 11 was Bob Allen with 175 lb 9 oz, with Mike Rawson, who is on a roll at the moment, third behind Trevor. I ended fifth and frankly was pleased with that from that swim.



Here are the results as shown on the bank:

24 John Smith        68 lb 5 oz       1 Mac Campbell   88 lb 7 oz
22 Martin Parker   26 lb                 3 Mick Ramm       73 lb 1 oz
20 Trevor Cousins 158 lb 6 oz       5 Wendy Bedford  34 lb 6 oz
18 Ted Lloyd          55 lb 14 oz       7 Peter Harrison    29 lb 2 oz
16 Mike Rawson    98 lb 1 oz         9 Peter Barnes       92 lb 9 oz
                                                       11 Bob Allen         175 lb 9 oz

A slow start but a good finish for third spot – Lou’s, Decoy

Peg 10

Eleven of us fished this Fenland Rods match, with Peg 6 the favoured draw, as it has form, on feeder, pellet waggler, and pole – the Spratts match was won there a month ago.

But Peg 10 stuck to my fingers, which is on the other corner, and I wasn’t unhappy with that as it offers a feeder to the corner, and lots of spots on the far bank. I put up my feeder rod first, fully intending to start on it, but as I tackled up carp could be seen moving in my right margin, and sipping the surface. A small gaggle of other competitors eventually built up behind me, all telling me how lucky I was to have carp already in residence, but experience has taught me that when that happens they hardly ever drop down and feed there.

 

My swim, giving lots of options to the far bank. In fact most
of my fish came from the tiny area between the platform and the irises.

On Ten Mile Bank, which I used to fish a lot, if roach and bream were rolling and splashing before a match the chances were it would be dire in that area; and I feel that the same applies to carp. But I couldn’t resist the chance of being proved wrong, and put some pellet and corn out at top two plus one, and  some cat meat into the right margin. Within seconds I was playing a 1 lb bream from the longer swim, but then nothing. Cat meat in the right margin produced only roach nibbling at it, and a couple hooked – about 2 oz each.

A couple of roach came long on corn, and eventually a 3 lb carp from the right margin on meat. But things were very slow – though Wendy Bedford on peg 12 to my right had had several in the first hour on a feeder cast about one third of the way out. Two or three bream to almost 2 lb then came on corn from the left margin, only about 18 inches deep. I hadn’t thought this would be very good, as the cover here is a bunch of irises, while I would have preferred reeds.

John  Garner took fish on both pole and
feeder to Wendy's right. At the end he pushed
my trolley up the hill back to my car!

Wendy started off really well using her usual
feeder tactics, and was well ahead of me, but she
 then  had a poor spell in the middle of the match. 

I was about to swap to a feeder when I had the bright idea of dropping a rig down beside the platform – so close my pole was actually touching the platform. Amazingly this produced an 8 lb mirror first drop! Then a smaller carp some ten minutes later.  But by now almost two hours had gone and when John Smith came over, saying he couldn’t catch, I estimated I had about 15 lb.

I try pellet waggler for 15 minutes

Fish were moving under the surface near the corner about 50 yards away, so I took a pellet waggler rod out of the holdall and rigged up a 7gm waggler, set about two feet deep. Just as I did this the wind got up a little and the fish disappeared! Fifteen minutes casting to towards the corner saw not a take, so I put that rod down, though I was still prepared to use the feeder if I had a blank spell.

Dick Warrener was on my left. I
thought he had me well beaten!

The rest of the match saw me move round the three pole swims, with the left margin only a metre away from the platform yielding occasional carp from 2 lb to 5 lb, on meat over corn and hemp and some 8mm pellets, but the right margin still apparently holding only roach (I tried paste here which the roach couldn’t dismantle, but no carp came either). The longer swim would produce two or three bream or carp and then nothing.

John Smith, our secretary, struggled
on peg 1, which was calm all day.

Dick Warrener, next to me, started his second net while I still had about 30 lb on my clicker, and very soon afterwards Allan Golightly went for a THIRD net. Wendy had had more fish on a feeder, but was now getting fewer and fewer, while Kevin Lee to my right had also slowed.

I get a good ripple

Worm brought a couple more bream from the left margin, and then a switch to corn saw several more carp. By now I had started my second net, and the wind had got up and given me some ripple.  I then had a good spell on meat, losing just two foulhooked, and Allan Golightly went for a fourth net. 

The new Coshida is fine

At one point I opened a fresh tin of Coshida cat meat which I kept in its own cool bag, so the meat was firm. I, and every other angler I know, stopped using Coshida about three years ago because it floated. But I am happy to say that the Coshida currently on sale is as good as the original stuff! 

Dave Garner (R) waits for his total.

My fish seemed to be dropping down into the deeper water from the margin. Wendy had now started to catch fish again and yet again putting her feeder close-in. I thought about swapping to feeder, but whenever that had happened a carp obliged on the pole!

I go for a third net

With 25 minutes left I had 35 lb on my clicker for the second net but felt that I probably had more. We had brought some spares down, but they had all gone, so if I wanted a new net I would have to drive back to HQ for one. Unsure, I thought for half a minute and decided to go, in case I suddenly had a double-figure fish.

The winner by just 10 oz - Allan Golightly.

When I got back and settled there were 16 minutes left, and in that time I managed three carp on corn around 4 lb from the left margin in about a metre of water, and lost one, which actually snapped my elastic. I can’t remember when that last happened. So I really had the fish going at that point. It had been strange during the last couple of hours – a good spell on meat, then a lull, then a good spell on corn, so back to meat.

The weigh-in

John Smith had really struggled in peg 1 next to the reeds. His swim was flat calm in the North-Easterly wind. Tony Nisbet had caught well, but his fish were on the small side and he weighed 95 lb 7 oz, followed by Dave Garner with 126 lb 13 oz. Then came the excitement as Allan Golightly weighed in his four nets. He’d erred on the safe side and each net held just over 30 lb – the final total was 127 lb 7 oz – his first win with Fenland Rods...by just 10 oz!

Runner-up Dave Garner, 126 lb 13 oz.

Allan told me he had started at top two plus two feeding maggot but baiting with 4mm hard pellet. Later he put maggot into the left margin and he saw fish come in to take them. He then targetted them with an 8mm hard pellet. I think I should have tried that in my right margin, where the roach were. Maggot would undoubtedly attracted carp, but the roach could not devour an 8mm pellet, and probably wouldn’t even try.

Me, third with 113 lb 4 oz.

My first two nets went over 50 lb (again!) and the last three fish weighed 13 lb 4 oz, total 113 lb 4 oz for third spot, but even with the extra weight of about 3 lb it wouldn’t have made a difference to the result. However, the nine minutes I spent getting the third net might have given me another couple of good fish...we shall never know. And I am delighted Allan has chalked up his first win with us.

The result - pegs 2, 5, 14 and 15 were left out.

Welcome back, Joe (he's well into his 80s).

Happy with third

I was happy with third spot as I really fancied the swims 3 to 7 before I started, because there were fewer fish swimming around near the surface, and none in the margins, and the reeds there give really good cover.  I had Kevin Lee to my right, who has won the club championship more times than anyone else, and was rweally chuffed to beat him.

Welcome back, Joe

Peg 7 saw Joe Bedford weigh only 14 lb 14 oz – but he’s had an 18-month lay-off and he is in his mid-80s! I hope he enjoyed his return to the bank, and am sure his weights will rise during the season as he gets back into the swing of it.

Fifth, but happy with that - Yew, Decoy

Peg 7

Another hot day on Yew, which I think is the most difficult of the four strips. The wind was mainly South-Westerly, which gives the far end and the far bank a bit of a ripple, and I would have liked any peg past 9 or 10, down to 15, then 16 back to 20 or 21 on the far bank, as these often have an edge. The far bank pegs would have been preferable for me because of the wind. So when 7 stuck to my fingers and I had seen the lake I suspected that my main aim would be to be top of the four pegs down to me – 1, 3, 5 and me on 7. And with Trevor on 3 that would not be easy.

Hot with the over my back, so not much ripple most of the time in my swim.

Fish were moving around under the surface, swimming quickly often in twos and threes, which looked as if they were preparing to spawn. So while I threw 4mm pellets into the deep margin to my left I started fishing shallow at 9 metres with an expander, over a pot of corn and pellet. This produced nothing after about 20 minutes so I had a look on the bottom in 9 metres, still with nothing. A quick look down the deep margin and I was back fishing corn at 9 metres.

About an hour after the start I had a bite from a 1 lb F1, then half-an-hour later I hit a good fish which came off.  Meanwhile Martin Parker, on my right, had not had a fish, but Peter Spriggs on my left had had a good carp and lost another, fishing the deep margin. Beyond him Peter Harrison was catching steadily fishing shallow well out. I learned later that he was fishing maggot.

Wendy's last two fish weighed over 20 lb between them.

Wendy loves that feeder

I could see Wendy opposite catching occasional fish using her corn topped with red jelly pellet and casting a feeder alongside the margins – a tactic that really works for her.

I looked at my watch at 20 minutes past one and I still had the one fish. I had had a couple of tries 9 metres to my left in the shallow margin, but never had a touch. I had also had about 45 minutes fishing banded pellet shallow at 11 metres, still without a touch. So it was down to the deep margin with cat meat and eventually a near-10 lb carp took the bait and finished in my net.

Somewhere around this time John on 16 went for a third net, and a little after that Peter Harrison did, too. Peter Spriggs was now catching occasional good fish, mainly from the deep margins.

I finish with an F1 and just eight carp

Martin included barbel in his 40 lb 6 oz.

The rest of the match saw me concentrate on the cat meat swim, and every ten minutes or so I would hit a fish – unfortunately five of them came off, of which probably four were foulhooked and one was hooked somewhere near the mouth and I almost had it in the net three times, but eventually the hook pinged. Peter was now catching the occasional fish, and Martin’s swim perked up in the last 90 minutes.

I managed, however, to land seven more good carp to double-figures and was playing one when the match ended. The fact that I wasn’t getting liners early on made me think that the fish suddenly became mildly interested in feeding around 2 o’clock and that the foulhooked fish had been messing about with the bait. All except one came when I lifted or moved the bait. One came from the right margin.

The weigh-in

Ted Lloyd on 1 had two bites; Trevor on 3 had just eight. Martin had made a last-hour sprint to 40 lb 6 oz, and my F1 and eight carp weighed 66 lb 3 oz.

My weigh-in was accompanied by broad smiles from the assembled company – apparently I was Golden Peg, though I hadn’t realised. And it was obvious I would not win. That weight also just beat Peter to my left. Then the weights got better, as I had suspected might happen.

John with a big barbel from the corner peg

...and a double-figure common carp.

Peter Harrison weighed 110 lb 5 oz of assorted species and sizes including ide; and this was top weight round to John on 16, who pipped Peter by 1 lb. Then to Bob Allen on 20, who took most of his fish on paste, in the deep margin, and pipped John by just 2 oz, giving him the win. Several of the carp being weighed along  here were well in double-figures, and some of the barbel were 4 lb-plus.

A huge smile from Bob who included several double-figure
carp in his winning bag of 111 lb 8 oz - 2 oz ahead of John Smith.

Bob Barrett also had several double-figure
carp in his fourth-placed 91 lb 10 oz net.

Mike Rawson did well to take this catch
of 33 lb 15 oz  from Peg 30.

Next to weigh was Bob Barret on 22 with 91 lb 10 oz for fourth, and as we walked back towards the car park the weights fell away, with Wendy best of the rest on that bank on 59 lb 12 oz – an excellent catch from there. 

So I was fifth and actually top in the first half of the lake – the car park end. I was well satisfied with that in the end.My eight carp had averaged over 8 lb, with the best at least 12 lb. The fish have grown big in Yew.

The result on a hot day.