Landsend winter league

I was looking forward to this as I had a very good series last year, so it was on the road nice and early to get a breakfast and into the draw early. I pulled out peg 42 on lake three. I was more than happy with as its been good for a while and I won the lake in the opening match last year from it. Well things weren't so good this time. To keep it short it was crap. With an hour to go all I had was 6 bits that was my silvers weight for 1-12. Then I managed to get one carp down the edge after dumping a pint of maggots in, that took my total to 9-10 for last but one in the section. All I did most of the day was watch Bob Gullick catch steadily from the start next to me. Strange thing was we were fishing exactly the same for a large part of the match and I couldn't buy a bite. That's fishing for you. Well that's my dropped point out of the way. 5 section wins required now.

.

Landsend Saturday open 17/11/18

Back to Landsend Fishery for the last bit of practice before the winter league starts next week. I was a bit late getting there but a call to Mike had me in the pot and when I got there I was told I had the last ticket in the bucket. I had peg 8. A peg I`d never fished before but after being told it was quite a bit deeper than the pegs either side I was quit happy about it, Pegs 7 and 9 are notoriously shallow and not what you`d want when the water is so clear. For company today I had Beanie to my left on 5, Rod |Wootten on 11, Russ Peck opposite on 17, Leon Hubbard on 15, and I could hear Laughing Mark Walsh on 13. So sarcasm and banter was going to be at an all time high today. 4 rigs were assembled. A .15 slim to fish just out from the island in about 15 inches of water on banded pellet in two spots. A .4 Slim to fish corn with no feed  at the bottom of the far shelf. I watch Russ do this a couple of weeks ago and it worked great for him that day. A .3 SS margin to fish to the pallets both sides of me, but I never had a touch on either side so wont mention that again. And a .3 Slim to fish 2+1 on maggot over micros in case the carp didn`t play ball. I was late starting so I fed the lines sparingly while I finished getting ready. Out on the corn line to start with and after 10 minutes I had a fish of about 5lb in the net. 10 minutes later and no more bites I picked up the pellet rig and dropped it in. First drop and I was into another carp. It was a good move as in the next hour or so I put 5 more in the net for about 35lb. a good start so I hoped It would keep going. It slowed a bit but by half way I had 10 in the net and as the rest of the lake was fishing hard I was in front at that point. Rod had started getting some decent skimmers but was struggling with the mass of leaves that were down that end of the lake. As was Mark opposite him. Russ had a couple of carp and the same of F1`s, and Leon had a couple of carp I think, but hes not gobby like the rest of us and doesn`t say too much. My peg went a bit quiet so I gave the silvers a try but the only thing I could get was tiny perch and roach and I had about 20 in 30 minutes for probably just over a pound. Bugger that when Rod is getting 2lb skimmers. That`s the difference in fishing maggot and soft pellet. So it was back across to the island and I started picking off the odd carp, with a few lumps chucked in.The last hour really picked up and I had 7 or 8 for about 50lb before the all out was called. My guesstimates are pretty crap lately and I thought I had about 150lb. but was surprised when it only went 122-01. Told you my guessing was crap. But It was enough for a clear win today. First for a while. Plus I finally won a quid off of Russ, something I hadn`t done for a while as he`s been on a brilliant run of 6 wins in a row. Mike Duckett got second with 61-08 from form peg 1, and third was Adrian Clark on 24 with 58-14. Top silvers as was expected was Rod with 20-02 of good skimmers and a few decent roach. Full results below.

Double blog. Landsend and Windmill

Two in one today. Saturday I went down to Landsend. Haven`t been there for a month, due to other commitments, and I was going to be late to the draw today so a call to Mike was made and i would have the last peg in the bucket. Got there 20 minutes late and was told I had peg 3. Not too happy with it. as its the wrong side of the lake and peg 1 is where you`d want to be on that side. But Russ Peck had that so the quid was on. Wont go into much detail as bugger all happened for me. One carp foul hooked after ten minutes and one other bite three hours later for a single perch. And as I dont believe in flogging a dead horse I left at 2 o`clock and went home to watch football. Russ was catching wherever he wanted so the match was his for the sixth in a row, Go Russ you super star. Don`t know any other placings as interest was at zero.

Windmill on Sunday and the forecast was for a miserable day. And yep it was. Constant misle all day. As Peter Kay would say, " that rain the soaks you through". drew peg 18, which was the golden peg, so pressure on again. Whenever I draw the golden peg it guarantees ill have a shite day, and today was no exception. It was two hours to my first bite on my silvers line, and it was the only bite I had there. Then a bit after I started catching small carp at 11 meters on corn. And I mean small. I had 16 by the end of the match for 34-02. Every body had at least a couple of lumps. So i`ve no idea why I was stuck with the nursery fish. No bites in the margin and only one bite and one fish from my shorter meat line. Overall a crap day. Winner today was Bob 'Bread Head' Price from peg 22 with 77-9 taken on corn. Must have forgotten his bread. Results below.

Windmill Sunday open 27/10/18

Not been for a few weeks as myself and the lovely other half went away last weekend in the caravan and the week before we were busy, so I was gagging to get out on the bank and drown a few pellets. So I decided to go to Windmill fishery as its close and not much else around open wise. The weather forecast was for bright chilly weather.with a stiff breeze. The day didn`t start too well as I got to the old Severn bride and it was shut, so I had to back towards Newport and turn around and go across the second crossing adding about 20 minutes to the journey. So I got there late, but Dave Haines had put me in the pools and drew for me. Everybody apart from Dave had gone to their pegs when I got there. So I was directed to peg 24, which meant I had a nice short walk. The good thing about this peg is in the deepest part of the lake and with the temps being pretty low this was probably a good thing. the bad thing was I had a really cold wind blowing straight in my face  and it never stopped all day. It was bloody freezing. And to top it off I was in the shade most of the day so the sun we did have never got a chance to warm me up. I set up with the intentions of fishing mainly for silver for a change today but I did set up for carp as well. A .3 edge rig. a .75 slim to fish pellet in 8 feet at a 10 oclock angle at 10 metres. And a bomb rod to give my hands a chance to warm up in my pocket when needed. The silvers rig was a .75 slim fished at either 2+2 or 10 meters. The good thing is the lake bottom is totally flat here so easy set ups. I had got my hands wet so at the start they were already freezing so I went out on the bomb for half an hour, but apart from a few liners nothing graced my nets. I then spent 90 minutes on the silvers lines but it was a dead loss and all I had was 3 roach. At the end of that time I tail hooked an 8lb carp on the longer line,and on 4 elastic and a size 20 to .10 it was hard going but after 10 minutes I got it in the net. that was followed next drop in with a 6oz perch. but that was it for those lines, so it was back on the bomb for 15 minutes to warm the hands up. No indications on that line so it was out on the pellet line to my left. After 10 minutes of no indications I lifted to move the float and I accidentlly hooked into a carp. Fouler number 2. But this one had the better of me and slipped the hook. so back on the same line and after a while I started to get indications. Very small dips on the float. then a proper bite and carp two was netted. again my hands got wet so I dropped the bomb on that line and it ripped around straight away. I now had three in the net for about 25lb. by the end of the forth hour I had 6 in the net and they were all big fish, and lost four. But that was it for my day and the last 90 minutes were biteless. I was guessing at around 50lb at the end and was very close as I just topped the 52lb mark for third on the day.  First on the day was John Smith on sheltered peg 11 with 92-06. second was John Osborne on peg 14 with 56-12. I was glad to get back in the car at the end to warm up. the wind was relentless and I was chilled to the bone. Couldn`t wait to get home for a hot meal tonight. Weigh sheet below.

Mathern Mill occasional saturday open

I was gonna go to Landsend today but the weather forecast was for a horrible day, so I decided to stay closer to home and after an invite from Craig Challingsworth I decided the 5 minute drive to Marthern was far enough for today. The day started badly. Went to get my gear from the storage, where I keep it, and found my nets were at home so my 5 minute drive turned into 45 by the time I'd sorted myself out. 10 fishing today so everybody had empty pegs left or right or both. Second into the draw and I pull out peg 9. I've been fishing this place for 6 years and never had this peg before as it's only been used in matches for a short while now. For company I had Andy Gard on 7, who took the wrong turn for Acorn and ended up here 😂. It was carp only for me today as I had drawn the golden peg, so the pressure was on. Four rigs were set up. Two margin rigs, as there was a foot difference either side. A .3 Slim to fish 2+1. And a .5 to fish the full 8.5 meters of my margin pole on pellet. Plus a bomb rod as this can produce plenty from open water on the right day. Fed all lines and started on the bomb pinging 8mm's. 30 minutes in and not a touch. But I'd seen a couple of scalely horses in my left margin so it was into there for a go. After 5 minutes I hit one and the first carp was netted, all of 15lb. They are big in this place. But that was it for a while. There was plenty there, but they were skillfully avoiding the hook bait and clearing up all the loose feed. I had a problem after an hour. With the wind in my face and the non stop rain, I had now lost dexterity in my hands. I was struggling to put pellets or corn on the hook, and I couldn't grip my pole with my right hand. They didn't feel cold but we're swollen from the non stop soaking. So things were hard. And to be honest I couldn't wait for the end already. I was proving to be hard with the fish being cleaver in their feeding and after 3 hours I only had 3 that went around 35lb. Andy though, was catching very well on the silvers and was putting a good weight together. The second half of the match improved a lot and I started to catch a few. Even the sun tried to pop through when the rain eventually stopped. And feeling in my hands nearly returned  to normal. Theft margin was the only place I could get a bite with all other lines void of fish. Even though the size of fish got smaller I managed to put 15 in the net, all but two on pellet, for 132-9 for 4th on the day. So the golden peg lived on. The match was won by Zac Williams on peg 20 with 200-9, caught half at 14.5 meters and half down his margin. Second was Craig Challingsworth on peg 14B (?) With 148-8. And third Norm Sterry  with 147-7 from peg 5. Overall it fished well but it was a miserable day with crappy weather. Full results below.

Landsend 3 day festival.

This was the first time Ive fished a three dayer for many years and I gotta admit it was hard work.  I drove down on Thursday evening with my caravan and stayed on a small camping park about 90 seconds from the venue which was very handy. But the weather was atrocious. Gale force winds and torrential rain. and it was to continue into the weekend. the first night I thought the caravan was gonna take off and the rain kept me awake most of the night. first day of fishing and i was at the venue cafe early for a big breakfast. The rain had stopped mostly but the wind was howling and blowing in all directions. Into the draw bucket and out pops 42 on lake three. I was pretty happy with it but this lake can be temperamental and the weights could come from anywhere. The series was run on an open draw first day then rotate around the other lakes for the next two days. But you were with the same anglers each day. I had Tom Thick next to me on 41 so plenty of chatting would be going on, and Ken Rayner opposite on 70. To keep the blog short it will be a quick run down on each day. I caught early at 13 meters to the island taking 8 in the first hour but with the wind switching around it blew a load of surface crap down the lake and it became almost impossible to drop a rig in, plus the tow was terrible. I was thinking of putting a crow quill avon on. So it forced me to come into the left hand edge fishing pellet or maggot over ground bait and it proved to be a good move. I caught well in the middle two hours and put a big enough lead on to make sure Toms strong finish didn`t peg me back. So I had a section win first day with 146lb. Second day I went from hero to zero in one quick move. I drew peg 25 on Speci lake, which is a killer of a peg that is just about impossible to do any good from. It is barren of any aquatic life. Well it proved to be that way. I had 2 carp and an F1 for 10lb and the end of my chance of winning anything. and with it pouring with rain for the whole day without a break it made it a miserable day. Tony Rixon opposite did better taking just over 50lb from the hay basket along the end bank but did loose alot to the basket. Tom again had a good day and won the section so he was well in contension. Day three and with the weather vastly better today I was on match lake which is my favourite lake at the venue and I drew peg 1. I fancied the other bank as thats the most consistent on the lake but peg 1 was a good peg so I wasnt to displeased. I started against the end of the island and caught well for a while and had about 40lb in the net in the first 90 minutes. but I lost a couple in a snag that I managed to drag out of the reed and it became a real pain to avoid it. so I came in on the top 5 meat line I had been feeding and stayed on that line for most of the remaining time. It wasnt hectic as I had to play the waiting game for bites but at least I kept going all day. I did try the margin line several times but it didnt fire up like I hoped it would so most of my fish came on the short meat line. I finished with 138lb for another section win. but with the dissasterous second day it wasnt enough to win anything.lake winner was Bob gullick on 21 with just over 200lb. Tom again had a good day with over 190lb and it was enough to take the individual honours for the festival. sorry I haven`t got all the results but ill try and tag them to this when ken put hem up. A good few days was had by all and it was thanks to Mike Ducket and Ken Rayner for running it.

Windmill Sunday open.

Not been to windmill for a while as its been bit of a balls up match scene there for a while. The regular anglers have been messed around with which lake they are to use. But today was on match lake. 13 fishing today so plenty of room and I manage to pull out peg 6. I was pretty happy with it as its a decent peg. Opposite in the Island gap I had Tim Ford, so plenty of chatting would be going on, and to my right was Ryan Brushneen on peg 4. 4 rigs today all for carp as all I had on me bait wise was Pellets and corn. I thought I had a tin of meat in my bag, but nope, not there. So I set up a .15 Shalla Slim to fish the far side at 14.5 metres. But when I plumbed up I had about two inches of water right across. So I ended up coming back out by 2 metres and still only had 8 inches. I also set up a dibber for long lining across in the shallow water. A .5 slim to fish 8 metres on corn down the deepest part of the peg. And a .3 SS margin for both sides down the edge. Tho it was a lot shallower to my left I couldn`t be bothered to set up two rigs for that so id just slide the float up and down. I also set up the usual bomb rod for this place. Its always good for a few. At the start I went out on the bomb at the point of the island.

There were loads of carp there and half their bodies were out of the water and they were going nuts for the loose fed 8mm pellets but they were skilfully avoiding my hook bait. Tim started well and was straight into fish doing the same as me. as was Ryan casting to the shallow shelf across to the island. But me, I couldn`t get a sniff. every time I fed a few pellets carp were crawling up the shelf to grab them. Still not a touch. Tim was on three when I decided to change to the long pole and feed the shallow line. It worked and i had a couple in the next 15 minutes, but they were very spooky and bolting when they saw the pole. Tim was storming ahead of me but his fish were a bit small. The first half of the match was slow for me and after three hours I only had 6 all on the long pole. The margin had started showing a bit of life but they were so spooked all the time. They were scared of their own shadows.

The corn rig had only produced a skimmer first drop in then no other bites. Another try on the bomb and finally the tip pulls round and I managed to get one to the net. followed by another 10 minutes later. But then it was back to loads of fish showing and no pull rounds. Tim was catching pretty regular by now after an hour where he had nothing and Ryan was netting a few. At that point they were both well ahead of me. I did keep Tim informed about the mighty Bristol City demolishing Blackburn, I just couldn`t help it after he said how bad the Gas were yesterday. So with just over two hours to go I started to get the odd fish in the margins and they were good fish. I was nowhere near Tim numbers wise but my fish were a lot bigger so I started to peg Tim and Ryan back. A couple more followed when I tried the bomb again but the last two hours were spent mostly in the margins. At the end I admited to Tim to having just over the ton mark, but that was to bite me in the arse when I weighed in. First to weigh in was Matt Collins on peg 2 who put a mighty 218lb on the scales, and that was top weight on the day. Ryan was next and weighed 74.15. I was next and my bad guess was way out and I weighed 87-15. Which amused Tim as I was nearly 20lb out on my guess. I must have clicked one of the double figure fish twice. NUMPTY lol. I didnt follow the scales round so didnt see much of what was weighed, But Tim did let me know that he had whooped my arse by 5lb with 92-15, dave Wilmot had a good day too with 135-13v for second place. dave haynes won the silvers with a nice net for 17-9. Full results below.The sheet is a bit messy but you can see most of it