Excitement in the wind - Six-Island, Decoy

Peg 22

Fourteen of us fished this Fenland Rods club match, with each of us choosing a peg to put in, as Six-Island Lake has 25 swims.

Mel draws for all of us, under the Covid rules.

The wind was a strong North-Westerly and I put in Peg 9, as it was the only one with a back wind which also allowed you to fish to a bank with the wind blowing on to it – the end bank. Callum Judge drew our names out of a bag, and Mel Lutkin drew our numbers. Dennis Sambridge drew 9 and wasn’t at all impressed with my choice!

I drew 22, chosen by secretary John Smith, and I wasn’t impressed either – only because I’ve fished it several times and can’t remember having a really good catch there. In previous years there has been a big bed of reeds in the margin to the left, which look fine. But in fact they have been floating, and constantly move a foot or two in any direction  if there’s a wind.

The pegs I fancied were from 4 to 9, as the wind was blowing down towards  that end of the lake. It was cool, with rain forecast, but they gave back wind.

When I got to Peg 22 the large reed bed had gone, giving me bare bank both sides, except that to my left at about eight metres there was a small reed bed. During the day it appeared that this, also, was floating, and moving around slightly.

I started by fishing to the reeds on the left, about four feet from the bank.

I forget my tin opener

First problem was that I had left my tin opener at home, and needed it to open my sweetcorn tins. I guessed that Dick Warriner might have one, as several years ago I remember lending him one. Luckily Dick was on 24, just round to my left and yes, he had one he could lend me.

I was so sure that I wouldn’t catch much that I put in only one keepnet. And instead of starting well out on pellet, as I normally would, I decided to put in maggot in case the cold wind had put fish off feeding. I had found a nice little flat section near the floating reeds, and first drop in with a bunch of five maggots  I fancied the float kicked a little. Around that time Mat on peg 18 netted a good fish and as it’s a noted swim and he’s a very good angler I thought I might be in for a bit of a beating. But at least it told me fish were willing to feed.

A fish early on!

Next drop in the float seemed to vanish (I was fishing it very sensitively with a fraction of an inch above the surface). More in hope than expectation I lifted the pole, and the elastic stretched as a big fish lumbered out to the island opposite the peg on my left.

That weighed around 10 lb, and was followed by a couple of small roach and then another fish about 5 lb. A good start. Meanwhile Dick on Peg 24 had two or three early fish and looked to be on for a big weight.

Wet but still smiling - Dick Warriner got me out of a hole
by lending me a tin opener. Otherwise I would have been
gnawing at the tins to try to open them! 

As an insurance I started putting pellets out just in front of me to my right as the wind was over my left shoulder. But I couldn’t fish there at the time as the sun was straight into my face when I faced that way. So I kept fishing to the reeds and every now and then I’d catch a carp – all were between 10 lb and 5 lb. So after two hours I had about 40 lb, with one or two on cat meat. I then put out two more keepnets. We have a club rule of 50 lb max, with the net disqualified if it’s 55 lb, so we have to err on the  low side of our estimates.

I change swims

After one fish I decided to drop the bait, on a top two, out in front of me, and within seconds I had a small knock and pricked something, probably foulhooked. From that moment I made that my main swim, and every 15 minutes I’d get a bite and possibly a good carp. And I changed to corn, as the fish seemed to want a dropping or moving bait rather than heavy cat meat. In fact at one time I moved all my shot up to my float and fish were taking the bait on the drop.

I had to put in bait before every fish – pellet, corn and hemp. The wind seemed, by now, top be a little warmer, but the rain had held off.

Fish from the margins

With two hours to go I wondered if fish would come into the really shallow water to my right, and first drop got a liner. Next drop and I was attached to a leaping 6 lb carp foulhooked in the fin. That finished in my keepnet, but no more came in the next five minutes, though I had it mind to try there again if I became desperate, as obviously fish were willing to move in there. So I decided to have a look in the left margin, on a top two, where the water was a little deeper.

The margins to my right were bare bank, and only a foot deep, but held fish.

That brought one or two fish, and one or two lost, obviously foulhooked as fish seemed to be off bottom, but would not feed there. They were coming down, and giving me lift bites.  I then alternated between that swim and the one on a top two in front of me. The smallest fish was 3 lb, and several were 7 lb-plus. Then the rain started – not heavy, but persistent, and the fish seemed to go off. 

With an hour to go I put in a fourth net and added about four more fish, around 4lb each. With five minutes to go I added one of about 10 lb, and with three minutes to go went out and promptly hooked a scale! In again, and yet another foulhooker came off. That actually cost me. Then the match finished, and I estimated I had about 150 lb, but had no idea how others had got on, except that Mike, to my right, had only about seven or eight fish.

The weigh in

When I got back to the van with my gear Peter Spriggs said that he had 128 lb and there were two around 160 lb So I guessed I hadn’t won.

The scales came round to Mat on 18, who in fact hadn’t emptied the lake – he weighed  57 lb 5 oz. But when the anglers saw I had four nets out there was a general excitement – because I had forgotten I was Golden Peg, with £100 at stake. Top weight was 160 lb 6 oz – from Peg 9, which I had chosen. Perhaps Dennis has changed his mind about that swim!

Dave Garner was only 6 oz behind Dennis, with Kev on 131 lb, which I was sure I could beat. So my weighs were watched with bated breath. First was 27 lb – the last net. Then 40 lb, 43 lb, and 47 lb – not enough to win; total 157 lb 12 oz, for third place. But just ONE more fish would have won me the match and the Golden Peg.

Still raining, but I had a photograph to take...and I do believe that's my winnings hovering top left!

What I did wrong

Apparently Dennis fished worm – I had worm with me and never put one on the hook. I do think that during those times when I knew fish were in the swim but would not feed worm might have taken the odd one. Also I didn’t try using corn skin, which would have sunk more slowly that a full grain. And neither did I try a bunch of maggots during the second half of the match as a change bait – it works so often.

But with five big weights from 4 round to 10 (where Kev sat in a facing wind) I was pleased to be top weight from the rest.

Next match probably in two weeks on Kingsland Small carp lake, where the fish are big.  Not sure what the rule is about net weights there as we have to use their nets, and in the past we have run out fishing to 50 lb per net.