The beasts went AWOL on Beastie lake

 Peg 15, Thursday, April 28
I was looking forward to this Spratts match on Beastie - last season I beat my personal best match weight with 231 lb from Peg 18. But things were different this year - a bitterly-cold Easterly greeted the 13 of us, and a really big weight was never on the cards.

That Easterly wind, from my left, put a nice ripple on the surface of my peg 15, on the spit. And I fancied it for a few fish at the start. I decided to use maggot because it was so cold, and in fact fishing a pole at 2+1 and feeding every 30 seconds by hand I had a decent start with a gudgeon within a few minutes - my favourite fish the gudgeon. Whenever I catch one it brings back memories of my youth, and catching them on the North Level drain, and of frying six or eight at a time to eat - they taste delicious. I wouldn't do it now, but in the 1950s they were plentiful and food of any type was at a premium.

After the wind turned our swims became becalmed.

Soon after that gudgeon I had a perch, some roach, and a bream around 2 lb, with its head covered in those rough breeding tubercles. Only the males have these. In the next couple of hours I had three or four more bream, and a 1 lb F1, only for bites to have slowed when the wind went round towards the North, giving the three of us, on pegs 15, 17 and 18, calm water. The only way of fishing in the ripple would have been to cast out a feeder to the island, and since Bob Allen on 17 had tried that and not had a fish, I stayed on the pole.

Fish were arriving at platform 16
Another bream or two, plus some small roach, came from the deep margin on a top two to my right, and I decided I would have to look at fishing the platform to my right, Peg 16, which was unoccupied. This brought a bream immediately, and I stayed there for the next three hours or so, picking up a bream perhaps every 20 minutes on a 4mm expander or a grain of corn,  plus two more small F1s, but losing the occasional fish obviously foulhooked. All the time I was seeing what looked to be liners, so I stayed there hoping for more F1s. I also got snagged in the same place four times, luckily losing my hook only once.

A late carp around 10 lb on the pole boosted Bob Allen's catch.

Bob on 17 seemed to be catching some good roach, about 4 oz - they would come in fits and starts. After the match he showed me that they were not roach, but small carp. Strange that I never had one. My bream wouldn't take a static bait on the bottom - it had to be drifting or pulled along slightly, or lifted. Worm, which I had expected to work, didn't have a sniff.

Where was the sun?
The cold never let up, and the sun never put in an appearance - heavy cloud stayed with us all day, and with about 50 minutes to go proper bites had dried up completely, so I went back to the original swim, but this time potting in about six grains of corn at a time, with corn on the hook.

 

Carp!

Another couple of bream showed there, and soon I was playing a carp which I assumed was foulhooked when it suddenly shot off almost in front of Bob, stretching the 17 elastic around 20 yards. In fact it wasn't foulhooked, and must have been stacked with the fishy equivalent of testosterone, because it weighed only 6 lb, but it finished in my net.

 About the same time Bob hooked, and landed a carp around 10 lb, and soon after I had another of about 4 lb. They were coming on! But not in my swim - I spent the last 20 minutes with just one roach, but did have a frisson of further excitement when I hooked what I assumed was a bream because it didn't take much of my 13 hollo elastic out.

Bob Barrett  on 3 had several carp with his bream.

Then I decided that bream was an F1, because it became a little stronger; and then I realised that it was, in fact, a big carp when it swirled mightily on the surface. Finally it showed its muscle and shot off towards March, eight miles away, taking the whole of my rig with it. I can't remember the last time that happened to me. 

No last-second excitement
After that fish broke me there was then one minute left and I had time to drop in a spare rig and...it would be nice to say I hooked another, but no, the shout went up to end the match and my dream of a last-second bonus ended with it;.

I hadn't seem many fish caught by the others - Dick Warrener on 18 had certainly had some carp, though they turned out to be small - up to 3 lb mainly. Two days earlier Tony Evans had had 197 lb from Peg 26 in he Open (not in today), on maggot on a short pole and in the margins, which included a 22 lb 7 oz grass carp! That sort of fish had stayed away today.

The weigh in
It turned out that the anglers in the 20s had had mainly bream, while those opposite from 2 to 7, had contacted some carp. When the wind had turned it gave both those areas a good ripple, which shows we know so little about how carp react to changing weather. Peter Harrison on 4 had the leading weight round to him - 60 lb, with Peter Spriggs going 3 lb over the club's 50 lb limit, and being knocked back to 50 lb. which cost him a place.

Peter Harrison  - winner with 60 lb 15 oz on Peg 4,
taken on pole and feeder (but not at the same time).

Putting my 15 bream at 2 lb each I estimated I had well over 40 lb, but I thought that the largest three or four bream might make 3 lb, giving me perhaps 55 lb in total including the two carp, three F1s, and 2 lb or 3 lb of bits. In fact they must have averaged around 2 lb, as my total was 50 lb 13 oz for a surprise second place. I was happy with that on a difficult day, and my tactics of targetting the bream, and putting whatever I could in the net, rather than sticking it out on big baits for carp, was clearly the best one on the day in that swim.

THE RESULT

2 Martin Parker        26 lb 4 oz

3 Bob Barrett            36 lb 5 oz

4 Peter Harrison        60 lb 15 oz     1st

5 Peter Spriggs         50 lb               3rd 

7 Shaun Buddle         44 lb 12 oz    4th

15 Mac Campbell     50 lb 13 oz      2nd

17 Bob Allen            26 lb 6 oz

18 Dick Warrener     35 lb 13 oz

22 Trevor Cousins    37 lb 10 oz

23 Alan Porter          29 lb 7 oz

24 John Garner        31 lb 8 oz

29 Mike Rawson      19 lb 2 oz

30 Joe Bedford           4 lb 7 oz     

Next match
Next match Saturday on Cedar peg 14 to 26. The wind is forecasted to change from North to South West during the morning, in which case we are likely to end with it in our faces, which is fine by me. But fish often don't like those quick wind changes, so it could be difficult again. I would like a high number please, at the car park end; Peg 26 would suit me a treat! There are lots of barbel in Cedar, so dead maggots will be on the menu.

Perhaps I cudda, shudda won on Yew, Decoy

Peg 29, Sunday, Apr 24
It was all-change at the last minute for the ten of us in this Fenland Rods match, when we were told that instead of the pegs 1-15 we had been given, we could fish the whole lake. So the decision was made that because of the North-Easterly wind  that was blowing we would fish it with the wind at our backs, on pegs 16 to 30. I am afraid I rolled my eyes at this, because it meant that a) our bank would have less ripple than the opposite one, and b) the end two or three swims (16 to about 18) would have no ripple and without that wind it would become uncomfortably hot there. I knew this because I had had 16 the previous Wednesday.

Not much ripple on our side at the start, but it got better.

But my musings were cut short when my name was first out of the bag, and 29 was drawn for me. At least it was at the windy end of the lake. Now the wind was cold at that point, and I think some of the anglers assumed that the fish would want to be out of it. But the water has been warmed by many days of almost unbroken sun, and the wind has been in that quarter for a week or two - all of which hamade for a settled spell of weather so far as the carp are concerned.

You need that Raspberry Ripple
So to my home for the day, and gradually the wind seemed to move round so that we were getting a good ripple on our side. You can't beat a good Raspberry Ripple, as Bryan Lakey used to say. I started on a hybrid feeder with a wafter but had no takes, so it was down the deep margins to the right, where I had been flicking some corn. Sure enough first drop in saw a 5 lb common carp come in; and next drop I had another fish on which came off.

Kevin Lee was on 28, to my right, and fished
all day with his usual bait, cat meat.

I bring out the Big Guns

After another drop with nothing I brought out my big guns - mussel, to the left margin.  This worked well, and in the next 50 minutes I had four carp all around 10 lb each. But then they vanished. meanwhile Kevin, to my right, who had struggled in that first hour, had a big fish or two.

A blank hour followed until I changed to corn fished just touching bottom in the left margin, which brought three quick fish all approaching double-figures, and two more which came off, probably foulhooked. Then into the right margin for a 2 lb barbel on corn.

Foulhooked in the tail! 😟
Another blank hour followed, with Kevin, like me, getting fish in twos or threes, all on cat meat. So after another try on mussel I changed to cat meat for another two or three more, one of which looked to be around 15 lb. But I was snookered when, in the middle of a good spell, I foulhooked a fish in  the tail, and after about 15 minutes it came off just as I was about to net it. While I was playing that Kevin landed two! All these carp were around 10 lb. I also managed a barbel of 4 lb.

Peter Spriggs won with 138 lb 11 oz on Peg 25. 

I am an iriot

A quick look out at 11 metres where I had put hemp and corn saw a fish hooked first drop, but unaccountably it slipped the hook after a few seconds. No more came so I had to assume it was foulhiooked, although it didn't feel like it.

I was now getting liners in both margins, and should have tried a change of bait - I had hard pellet, paste, worms and maggots with me, but never thought to try them. Afterwards Mel on Peg19 told me had had most of his fish on worm. I am an iriot!

The occasional fish swam past, usually accompanied by others so I assumed they were hoping to spawn, I didn't have a mugging rig by me, but I doubt it would have worked. On the other hand fish were turning out in the middle, and I probably should have rigged up a pellet waggler, which had been in my original plans. But when there are big fish in the margins anything can happen if you have a 15-minute purple patch.

A last-minute loss
Nine minutes to go and I estimated I needed another big fish to catch up Kevin, and sure enough I hooked it! At first it seems not particularly big, but then suddenly became turbo-charged and shot off to the middle of the lake before coming close and charging off again.

Me with the sort of carp which were average on the day.

Ice cream anyone?

After several minutes fighting that fish, during which time an optimistic ice cream van drove down to our lake ringing its bell, it had managed to take enough elastic out to dive under the platform on Peg 30, and broke me. Possibly a foulhooked barbel, but I fancied I had needed that to stay with Kevin. I grabbed a spare rig and dropped it in, but 30 seconds later the match ended.

The weigh-in
John on 16 was first to weigh - three fish for 37 lb 11 oz, taken in three casts when a small amount of ripple appeared in his swim, and yes, it had become so hot he had really suffered, while at our end the temperature was just right. Next to him Shaun Buddle had a similar catch, taken early in the match, and weighed 39 lb 5 oz. I felt sorry for them, as on that day I don't think they had a chance of winning.

Peter Spriggs with a cracking 17 lb 14 oz mirror. You can see that the swims at the far end
were still very calm even after the match finished.

Mel Lutkin, always very consistent, had his 75 lb 13 oz on worm, and then after a few more average weighs it was along to Peter The Paste, who had fished very close in for 138 lb 11 oz, including one cracker of 17 lb 14 oz! Kevin to my right totalled 134 lb 7 oz, and I finished, as I had thought, one fish short with 127 lb 1 oz for third spot, having landed 14 fish and lost six more. The 'fifteen-pounder' I had actually weighed 13 lb 7 oz.

The result.

So ended a match I probably should have won. But it was good in that it was a re-introduction to warm-weather fishing after months and months of relying on maggot and waiting for hours for the odd bite. Next match Thursday on Beastie, where some of the platforms are down steps - something which becomes a bit of a problem at times the older you get. But we will have plenty of time to get ready, so bring it on and draw me peg18, 22 or 30!

The gods giveth and the gods taketh away - Yew, Decoy

 Peg 16, Wed, April 20
Peg16 on Yew - the sort of peg I dream about. Tucked in the corner at the Northern end of the lake, it's produced a lot of big catches in its time, including 180 lb to Peter Spriggs last year in a Fenland Rods match. And it was drawn for me in this Spratts match! The gods smileth upon me...

My swim - like glass in the heat.

But walking down to the swim I slowly became loaded down with foreboding. I walked past swims with a beautiful ripple, down to the end, where the water was like glass, reflecting the burning rays of an early-Spring sun melting down from a cloudless sky. The gods had played a trick on me. The wind was from the North-East, with the high end bank, and bushes, protecting these end swims.

The early swims to our left, which we walked
past had a welcoming Raspberry Ripple on them.

To be fair, there were four of us in that predicament - Peter to my left and John Garner and Bob Barrett opposite. But I had a decent start - a 3 lb common on my first cast with a hybrid feeder and a yellow washter, while on unfancied peg 3 John Smith had an even better start - a double-figure fish from his margin first drop. Even so I think we all realised things were going to be difficult, with fish mooning about in pairs under the surface clearly hoping to start spawning at sometime in the future.

A tench!
Opposite, John Garner had an early fish or two, while I managed to land an eight-pounder foulhooked on corn on four sections of pole. I kept looking towards the corner, and managed to foulhook a fish at 11 metres near a cut-out in the end reeds, which came off. But never had a bite anywhere else until I put  some dead reds into the deep water some three metres out from the bank and landed a 3 lb tench. When the tench show it's likely to mean that carp are off the menu.

Peter Maskell, who was pleasure fishing, came round for some mussels as his had gone mushy. I gave him half of mine, but in fact I never tried putting one on the hook today. Then Terry Tribe, who has been poorly sick all Winter, came round for a chat, but had to move on because of the heat. Good to see him raring to start fishing again.

John Garner, opposite on 15, used some sort of
magic to winkle out fish like this on cat meat.

No Raspberry Ripple
So halfway through, after three hours, I had three fish. John opposite was struggling, and Peter on my left had about the same number of fish I think. The sun was incessant and I had to liberally smear more suncream on my face; and still no welcoming Raspberry Ripple on our swims, while Trevor in the ripple was managing to mug the occasional big fish, with others taken fishing shallow.

Another tench showed in the deep swim but after another 90 minutes fishless and just over an hour to go I moved away from the righthand swim and had a look to the left. Should have done it earlier - a 3 lb F1 came on cat meat so I changed to corn, expecting possibly another F1. Nope - a 10 lb mirror took it. John opposite now had a good spell (he said later he took all his fish on cat meat), then two fish quickly on corn left me, with 20 minutes to go, with eight fish in my nets, and hoping for another big one or two. But no - that was my day finished, while I sat and watched Peter land another couple of good fish to end his match.

Best fish of the match, at 17 lb 6 oz, fell to John Smith.

A switch to feeder did wonders for Alan Porter.

The reason I didn't catch more?
Peter told me later that when he had his big catch the wind was blowing into that corner, as it would with any West or South in it. But I kept hoping the fish would be around the end reeds, and clearly they weren't. I wonder if that was because the fish were intending to spawn there? 

I tried mugging a few fish on bunches of maggot, but although they didn't seem to be scared by it, they never took the bait. I should have concentrated on the deeper water away from the corner, I think, but in that heat you tend to think that the fish will move into the bank at some time. Even so my weight wasn't last in the match.

The weigh-in

Highlight at the start was John Smith's best fish which we weight at 17 lb 6 oz. He hooked some on a pellet waggler at the start, though some came off. Then his deep margins paid off, to the tune of a total of 63 lb 10 oz.

The winner, with 106 lb 14 oz Trevor Cousins, with a yet another big'un
which we weighed at 15 lb 3 oz..

Next to weigh was Alan Porter, who struggled for ages until in desperation he went out on the feeder in the middle and ended with 83 lb 15 oz for second place. Bob Barrett on 13 also fished the  feeder, but down the margins, as is his wont, and ended with 58 lb 3 oz, while John Grner on 15 in the corner opposite me had caught 73 lb 67 oz. 

My eight fish went 49 lb 13 oz, which was more than I thought and, I judged, a respectable weight on the day. Peter next door beat me with 57 lb 7 oz - only the equivalent of one fish. But on peg 22 Trevor Cousins had worked so hard for his 106 lb 14 oz, which won, and deservedly so. Just past him Shaun Buddle came third with 82 lb 4 oz, taken mainly on 2+1, with his best fish taken from the margins on a bunch of ten maggots.

So I ended halfway, but with my next match again on Yew, on Sunday (pegs 1-15), and with North-Easterlies forecast for the next ten days, I think I would plump for a swim in the ripple rather than towards the higher numbers, which would normally be favourite.

Shaun Buddle, with 82 lb 14 oz, was just pipped
for second place by Alan Porter.

THE RESULT

East bank                                                                                    West bank 

26 Dick Warrener        28 lb 13 oz                                      3 John Smith        63 lb 10 oz

24 Shaun Buddle          82 lb 4 oz      3rd                            5 Alan Porter        83 lb 15 oz        2nd

22 Trevor Cousins      106 lb 14 oz    1st                             7 Martin Parker    27 lb 8 oz

20 Peter Harrison        22 lb 12 oz                                       9 Joe Bedford        17 lb 2 oz

18 Peter Spriggs        57 lb 7 oz                                          11 Mike Rawson    DNW

16 Mac Campbell        49 lb 13 oz                                     13 Bob Barrett        58 lb 13 oz  

                                                                                          15 John Garner        73 lb 6 oz        4th

Last to weigh, but with the biggest smile,
Dick Warrener with 28 lb 13 oz

I come first and second in the same match - Six-Island, Decoy

Peg 9, Sat, April 16
Covid had hit one of our members, and Peter never turned up - we suspect he had forgotten this match was on a Saturday - so just nine of us competed in a cool South-Easterly for the Fenland Rods' Handicap medals. Now I have always found that if there's any East in a wind then things are likely to be difficult in a lot of swims; the poem about West is Best has  a genuine foundation.

Our draw system - Mel makes the draw for the peg and
drops each one of his balls into Allan Golightly's hands.

We fished Pegs 4 to 14 and whatever the weather, I would have liked Peg 11. It's won a lot of matches this Winter, and Martin Parker had won on Tuesday fishing mainly near to the patch of irises, while Peter Harrison had won the Under-55s the previous day on the same peg fishing 2+2. In fact Mel drew me 9, which has for years been my favourite on Six-Island; I've never fished it without framing. Even so, for some years Fenland Rods nearly always left it out. Then today Kevin Lee drew 11, which must have made him favourite.

I start in the margins
Down to the swim and the wind was a little from the left into our bank, with my swim to the left sheltered by a high bank, making it almost flat some of the time. The rest had ripple, and I opted to start in the margins because I reasoned I'd probably end up there fairly quickly anyway, as this is so often a margin lake, and on this bank the margins are a nice two to three feet deep..

The cool South-Easterly wind was in my face, but it was never strong
enough to make fishing difficult. The side bank to my left, which I had
strongly fancied before the match, produced only one fish properly hooked.

I fancied fishing to the end bank at some time, but found on plumbing that it was only a foot deep right next to the bank, and I didn't think there would be fish in that depth in this cold wind. So I put the rig at three feet and found where that was - about six feet out from the bank at 13 metres. I also had two margin rigs, for cat meat and corn, and another for 2+3 in about five feet.

The first fish
Within minutes of the match starting Allan Golightly on 10, opposite me, had a fish in his net that looked to be about 12 lb, taken at about 10 metres, and I wondered whether I should come away from the margins. But I had had a liner or two on cat meat to my right, in about three feet of water a foot from the bank, and two minutes later a 1 lb F1 took it. I changed immediately to corn and had another quickly. Then a 7 lb common on corn from the same swim.

As as happened so many times this year, with the water clear, that swim dried up, though I lost a couple obviously foulhooked, and I went out to the 2+3 swim with corn, intending to leave the left margin until later. Nothing there so I eventually went out to the left bank. First drop I pole-potted a few 4mm expanders in, with one on the hook, and before the float had settled it shot away and I was playing a 5 lb mirror.

I try light elastic
I had 10/12 hollow elastic in, trying out lighter elastics than I usually use, and indeed although the fish was able to swim farther away from me after the striker I did like the way the elastic felt when the fish came closer to me. I never felt I was in danger of pulling out of the fish once I had had it on for a minute, although it took me longer to land them than it does on stronger elastic.

Callum Judge, on 6 with 30 lb 1 oz, has the neatest
writing of any weight recorder I have ever seen.

I had several liners in the swim, but no more fish so tried the 2+3 line again, without a single bite. Back in the right margin another couple of fish came in - both around 8 lb, but it was slow work. Then I had a bite in the left margin on corn, so put some corn in and left it for a little while. Now suddenly lots of big fish started showing, tracking under the surface up to the swims to my right, following the wind; scores of them, in twos, threes, fours, fives or even ten at a time. It looked like they wanted to start spawning, but surely the water is not yet warm enough?

Mugging
I eventually mugged one of those passing fish on sweetcorn and later wondered why I hadn't got a shallow rig ready for that purpose. After the match Martin Parker told me he had had margin fish on maggot -- I should have tried that and used the rig baited with maggot to try mugging others. But my brain must have slipped out of gear!

From that point on I got lots of liners in the margins, and I could just see dark shapes moving through the swim, so these liners were not fish at the bait. I just had to ignore them. Back out to the end bank and I had three more fish on, all of which came off, almost certainly foulhooked. So it was back to the margins for the last two hours.

Nothing on mussel
The left margin about two feet from the bank brought another three or four fish on meat and corn, and I had a good look on mussel in the right margin, but never had a touch. Peter Maskell is apparently catching lots of fish on the strips here on mussel, so I will have it with me for the forseeable future.

I also changed my elastic from 10/12 hollow to a stronger orange solid, probably around 18, as one of the earlier fish had dived under my platform and snagged a small branch, and it was impossible to do anything with the light elastic except hang on and pray. My float was right under the platform at one point. Unbelievably my prayers were answered, and the fish, all 8 lb of it, eventually ended up in my landing net. Frankly it was a bit of a miracle. That never happened after I had changed elastics.

Martin Parker, in his first year in the club, had  a fish or two on a feeder,
which made me momentarily wonder whether I should have tried it.

A Minor tragedy!
Around this time I had a problem with my landing net - the end ferrule broke off as I was lifting a fish. The same thing happened to my newest 4-metre landing net three weeks ago, and I hadn't got that back from Will Hadley, who was mending it for me, so I was using a spare, strong one (strong as I thought). When that broke I was forced to use an extending bank stick to land my last three fish, which was awkward because it was only about five feet long, and it meant I had to get the fish in very close; but somehow I managed it without losing any.

Was my goose cooked?

With an hour to go Kevin Lee, who I had seen land some good carp, had three in about 20 minutes while I had a blank spell, and I assumed my goose was now cooked. But another couple of fish around 10 lb came from the left margin before the end. 

While packing away I told John Smith, when he came along, that I had between 70 lb and 80 lb, but both Kevin Lee and Mike Rawson next door asked why I had used only two nets, thinking I had over 100 lb and should have started a third. I was sure they were wrong...but it leaves doubt in your mind, doesn't it? Soon I would find out.

The weigh in
Catches were not huge - that cool wind must have affected the fish, Mel on 4 had 45 lb 15 oz and Martin on  62 lb 4 oz, though his fish looked to me to be weighing light and I began to wonder if I had over-estimated my weight.

Kevin on 11 was overall second and the Handicap winner by ounces.
PS. Can you spot the minor error I made on taking the picture?

Mike on 8 had three fish for 20 lb 5 oz and mine totalled 77 lb 12 oz - my estimate had been OK. But I knew Kevin Lee had fish, and after his two weighings Mel said I was still ahead - Kevin had 71 lb 1 oz including a fish which John said later was weighed at 11 lb, while I thought they shouted out 13 lb! One of us has suspect hearing...but it was a good-un whatever it weighed.

The winner! (sort of)
The last two, Dick and John couldn't match my weight so I ended as the winner. BUT this was a handicap match with our weights for that altered according to our position in the 2021 Club Championship, and the top three today being awarded medals. The pools were also being handed out on the result of the handicap result. 

The handicaps
I won the Club Championship last year so I was fishing from scratch, while Kevin, who was second, was added 10%. That went down the line - an extra 10% added to each succeeding position (though newest member Martin Parker also had to fish from scratch this year). And it quickly became clear that the winner was between myself and Kevin.

I had to double-check, which left me declaring that the winner - by a matter of ounces after having 10% added - was Kevin, I was second, and Mel (on +60%) third about 4 lb behind. So I had a first and a second, as did Kev!

THE RESULT

The match result counts towards the club Championship this year. But
for the Handicap medals only, the weights were adjusted.

The Bluejays come top in my book
I had to miss the first match this year because of Covid, and I know I have to miss another later this Summer (we're going to see the best Rock 'N Roll band in the world, the Bluejays); and because every match is taken into account, and some anglers hardly miss a match, I'm probably almost out of the running for this years Championship. 

No matter - it's a good start for me as I get full points by winning this match. But miracles do happen...and if they don't then seeing the Bluejays again will make up for it.

Next two matches are on Yew, which can be very frustrating, but I MUST have a mugging rig handy.

Covid came a-calling

 Wed, April 13
Not fished for several days as, after visiting one of my brothers who is waiting for a bone marrow transplant, my wife and I spent a little time walking round nearby Arundel. We went into a small local art display and came out with a painting and - probably - Covid. Luckily it's little more than a very bad cold, but I have missed some matches. 

For me things were made worse when I sprained my back carrying some tulips. The tulips weren't heavy, but the earthenware pot filled with wet compost was! However I've been able to walk without sticks for a few days now...

I've forgiven the tulips, so below are some other pictures from our estate to lift your hearts on a dank, dismal April morning

I have the result of the Spratts match fished on Six-Island yesterday. Peg 11 dominated yet again, as it has for several months, and Martin Parker won here with 84 lb 14 oz taken mainly on meat at about 8 metres, best fish 8 lb. Bob Barrett on 18 was second with76 lb 6 oz on Method feeder with wafter and pellet fished in the margins, which took fish to 12 lb.

 Dick Warrener, opposite the winner, on Peg 8, had fish to 7 lb in his third-placed 73 lb 12 oz taken on pole and meat close in. But yet again the swims nearest to the car park didn't produce a lot of fish. And if I am well enough to fish Six Island on Saturday in the Fenland Rods Handicap match (we have been allocated pegs 1-15) I hope desperately to avoid pegs 1, 2 and 3, which have not been able to compete with the middle-numbered pegs for months.

A roller-coaster weekend for Mike
Mike Rawson has just had a bit of a roller-coaster weekend. On Sunday he fished on Willows in the first Fenland Rods event. I don't have the full result, but I know he did OK. Next day he won a Police match on Horseshoe with 66 lb from around Peg 18. In the Spratts match he was unlucky enough to get Peg 24 at the car park and DNWd. 

THE RESULT

1 Peter Harrison        33 lb 4 oz
3 Peter Spriggs        16 lb 8 oz

4 John Garner         63 lb 6 oz

6 Bob Allen            35 lb 9 oz

8 Dick Warrener      73 lb 12 oz        3rd

11 Martin Parker      84 b 14 oz        1st

13 Alan Porter          72 lb 1 oz   

15 Trevor Cousins    59 lb 15 oz

17 Peter Chilton        38 lb 11 oz

18 Bob Barrett        76 lb 6 oz         2nd

22 Joe Bedford        7 lb 13 oz

24 Mike Rawson        DNW

Happy day in the wind on Cedar, Decoy

 Peg 10, Mon, April 4
Twelve of us, prepared for rain in the morning and wind all day, met with hope in our hearts, and I hoped I would get a low number near the car park end of Cedar. After re-reading my blogs of Cedar in March and April I plumped for Peg 5 as a banker, but would have been happy with any of the first half-dozen swims used - we used 2 to 13, with the fierce wind behind us.

Nine names out of the bag and "Mac C" was still inside, together with pegs 4, 5 and 10. Would my stars align at last, as forecast in the astrology column of the Daily Mail (I just happened to notice it)? I had a 66% chance of a peg I fancied. Next out was Trevor Cousins...Peg 5. No matter, 4 and 10 were left, 50/50, and I was due some luck. Next: Mac C - Peg 10. Bugga - a bit of a walk and the platform would probably be underwater... 

Peg 10 - my fish came from the reeds just to the left of the platform opposite and to the right of my swim.

 With a forced smile on my face I sauntered down to Peg 10, which was well above the water. But there was an 18-inch gap between the bank and the platform, which had been filled in with bricks and gravel, but when I trod on it, it sank down and I quickly withdrew my leg. The wooden platform was wet, and it was a bit of a trial getting everything set up, necessitating a very careful stride across that gap a few dozen times.

Not that I'm complaining, 😟, but actually that awful wind did me, and the others, a favour by drying out the platform so that quite soon it was almost dry. Once set up I felt great, with a day's fishing ahead, and back wind. "Blow, Blow though Winter Wind" (Shakespeare, not Daiwa); conditions looked OK and it wasn't freezing.

I start right across
I found I could easily polefish at 13 metres, but put in bait at 11.5 metres before starting on a maggot feeder cast 40 yards across to reeds on the far side, expecting barbel because I know those swims can hold them. Within one minute the tip wrapped round but there was nothing there. A liner. 

Peter Barnes had a big barbel we estimated at 5 lb - bigger than mine.
But why is the water sloping down while Peter is kneeling upright?

Next cast it wrapped right round and I picked up the rod to feel a solid thumping. But the fish wouldn't move more than a few feet and within 20 seconds the line went slack.

Hooklength broken, probably by a big fish diving into the reeds. Hooklength renewed and next cast the tip went round and a barbel over 3 lb came into my waiting landing net. Next cast I hadn't had time to tighten the line before the rod flew round and a slightly smaller barbel came in. What a start, particularly as Martin Parker on my left and Peter Spriggs on my right hadn't had even a bite on their poles.

More barbel come in
Then there was a gap and I went out to the long pole line with expander, and then corn, but never had a touch. A look on maggot on an inside line brought a 6 oz roach. So it was back to the feeder and in the next hour three more barbel of 2 lb-plus came in, one of which tangled in Peter Spriggs' pole rig, but he came over, disentangled the mess, and I landed the fish. Apart from that I was enjoying it.

Bob Allen, on the right, is always up for recording
the match weights, thankfully. His writing is immaculate.

Inevitably the bites dried up and two hours later, after testing the pole lines, I was back on the feeder. Peter had had a carp on the pole but was now on the feeder himself. And to my right I could see fish being caught in the low numbers, all on feeder. To my left the three anglers hadn't had a fish. On one occasion as I was reeling in I hooked a fish which gave me a real run-around. It turned out to be a carp about 7 lb hooked in the tail, and it came off just as I was about to net it. I sighed aloud.

The next hour saw three more barbel over 2 lb, all on four live red maggots on the feeder, followed by a blank spell and then a couple more fish, quite out of the blue, though I did have one or two pings on the line. Meanwhile Peter had had a barbel on feeder, but Martin, who also tried feeder, had not had a single bite. The wind was a real pain, blowing my cushion off my seat every time I stood up (and I kept forgetting, and doing it again and again. Eventually it ended up in the water.).

My Last-hour change
To his left Mike Rawson and Shaun Buddle had both had a couple of fish on feeder, but a few more had been landed in the low numbers. With an hour to go I was about to change to a hybrid feeder with micros and a yellow wafter, hoping for a carp, which would probably be much bigger than the barbel, when the tip went round again and a 3 lb-plus barbel came in on maggot. At that point I simply had to walk to my van and drive round to the toilet. Peter Harrison on 2 told me he had 50 lb, so I was obviously not going to win. 

Winner Peter Harrison with 81 lb 2 oz from Peg 2.

When I got back, with half an hour left, I made the change. The feeder lay there for 15 minutes and with five minutes left, Wonder of Wonders, the tip went round again. A hard fight resulted in...another 3 lb barbel! End of match, and Martin had still not had a single bite. At least the forecasted rain had held off.

The weigh in
Peter Harrison won the match with 81 lb 2 oz, mainly on feedered pellet or worm,  Joe next door, suprisingly didn't catch a fish, although he would have feedered in those conditions. He's over 90, but can still catch. Bob Allen on 4, Trevor on 5 and Alan Porter on 7 took the next three places.

I weighed in nine barbel and that roach for 24 lb 10 oz, with Mike Rawson just behind me and Shaun Buddle in the corner peg 13 just in front, with his fish taken on a feeder cast to the end bank, not the far side. So I was out of the frame, but to be honest, how many other anglers in the country caught nine barbel on that horrible blowy, cold Monday morning?

My day was made when Joe (90-something), without saying anything, helped me carry my net bag with the three wet nets inside back to my van. Compared with him I'm a spring chicken at only 79! But on a more serious mote, for all my mates who know I can struggle at times, my latest diagnosis is that the anaemia which has been slowing me down needs no more investigations, because the cause is almost certainly the damage done by the prostate cancer radiation (as I had assumed), and all I have to do is to Carry On Taking The Tablets. And I'm happy with that (that's Iron tablets, not Ecstasy).

Shaun Buddle had his four fish for 25 lb late in the match.

RESULT

2 Peter Harrison        81 lb 2 oz        1st

3 Joe Bedford            DNW

4 Bob Allen               27 lb 12 oz      4th

5 Trevor Cousins       54 lb 7 oz        2nd

6 Peter Barnes           10 lb 8 oz

7 Alan Porter             45 lb 8 oz         3rd

8 Bob Barrett             20 lb 5 oz

9 Peter Spriggs            DNW

10 Mac Campbell        24 lb 10 oz

11 Martin Parker         DNW

12 Mine Rawson         23 lb 3 oz

13 Shaun Buddle         25 lb 11 oz

Shaun makes himself useful after the match holding the results so I can
photograph them. He has had to have his name embroidered on all his clothes, including
 his nice new Halkon Hunt jacket, fleece and bib and brace, in case he forgets it. 
Bob Allen is pointing out his name tag in case you missed it...

Next match possibly Friday in the Over 55s at Decoy, if I can sneak out without She Who Must Be Obeyed noticing. If not, then Sunday on Willows, in the early numbers, in Fenland Rods' first match of the season. Peg 15 is the banker there.