Slipped on leaves in the garden while carrying my seat box to my car this morning, yep right on my arse and boy did it hurt. I am limping about like a 90 year old. So, no fishing this weekend for me. Next weekend (Sunday) I am off to Sweden for a week to do a bit of Trout and Grayling and a day of big perch fishing. Normal service will be resumed on Sunday 3 November, which will be my next outing on the Bank Side.
A little 4×10 Dibber. Going to give it a test on Sunday, at Lagoon, and put it through it’s paces. All up 55mm long; 32 x 1mm carbon stem (takes 0.8mm rubbers perfectly), 9.5 3mm bristle.
I have chosen the shot pattern in the pictures so it gives me options on bulk weight, fishing very shallow and slapping the rig or strung out shot, fishing a bit deeper and allowing me to ping pellet or maggot as the line drops through the water. Added bait and maybe another No11 stotz will bring the bristle to just a dot.
Thanks to Brian for again giving me the opportunity to be the test pilot and the first to evaluate one of your floats.
Wasn’t expecting too much today after all the rain we have had. This week theFlash had been in flood, then levels dropped, then back in flood then again levels dropped slightly. The water level showed signs it was rising slightly as the match progressed as well. Drew Peg 1 on the tow path, well dissapointed, until I was told that permanent Peg 8 had been pegged as 1 for this match. Permanent Peg 1 to 7 underwater! Set out 3 rigs and my 4m whip.
1. GORTINI 4×10 chianti, 0.09 main line to 0.06 hook length and 24 fine wire hook.
2. GORTINI 4×12, 0.11 main line to 0.09 hook length 22 wire hook.
3. GORTINI 4×12 chianti, 0.11 main line to 0.09 hook length 20 forged hook.
Whip. GORTINI 4×12, 0.09 main line to 0.06 hook length 22 wire hook.
Hook bait was 2mm expander soaked in Burt Baits red glow liquid and caster.
Burt Baits Natural Silvers light ground bait fed from my cad pot. Fished shallow all day at 7 and 10m on my 1 rig, just bits with a few fair size stamp and a couple of skimmers 10 mins before the All out. 60 roach and skimmer for 1lb 9oz and a thanks for coming, as was expected the twangs produced the heavier weights. Brolly blew inside out and has bent a few prongs and the stay, but still a good day in my book. I am consistently framing in the middle of the pack so at least my fishing isn’t getting worse 😂😂😂.
I was looking forward to fishing ‘the flash’ again, although it is hard going it really makes you think about the tactics and methods you deploy to get a good result. Absolutely pissing down when I got up this morning and it didn’t let up until the All in! 2 tracks and a margin plumbed up @10m out, thoughts here were that the warm Friday and Saturday will keep the fish in the shallower water. However it soon became apparent that they had pushed out @13.5m. 67 roach for 1lb 12oz, they were there just not the good stamp I was expecting, biggest I had was close to 3″ 😢 . Fished Big Red, 2mm expander, worm and caster, just nothing with some weight wanted it. 2 top 2 set up with GORTINI 4×12 0.09 mainline to 0.06 hook length 20 forged hook, set shallow, 20″ and 16″. Tried during the match to bring it in closer but nothing was happening short, so 13.5m all day. Again wasn’t last, mid table and was happy with that. 4lb 10oz 12dram took the win, so it was a hard day for everyone. Thanks again to Tony Smith for running this series of matches on ‘the flash’.
Bait; Burts Bait feed pellets, polony 2mm, Sweet F1 4mm, Choc Orange spray on 2mm expanders. Natural Silvers Light and Blood Worm Glow 80/20 ground bait
Big Red, Worm, Caster
My second week attending the “Old and Bold” match scene due to being off work for a few weeks holidays. Drew Peg 28, first peg on the back bank Beech Pool. Never fished this peg but was told it was OK with plenty of Carp to feet and down the dam between Beech and Oak. Not so for me today though, fishing was good and productive but no Carp or skimmers/bream. For 79 all roach 4lb 14oz. Wasn’t last but nowhere in the frame, with 20lb odd of Carp and silvers taking first place. It was a learning experience on a complex I don’t fish that often and a peg I had never fished. Good silvers practice for the Havannah Flash Match on Sunday 😀 .
3 tracks set up plus a margin;
1. 10m @10 o’clock, 2 foot from the dam (and all them snags) GORTINI 4×14 0.10 main line to 0.9 6″ hook length 20 forged hook, 18″ depth set.
2. 10m @12 o’clock, GORTINI 4×12 0.10 main line, 0.09 hook length to 18 forged hook, 20″ depth set.
3. As 2. but GORTINI 4×14 johny paste float, dead bottom 4′, 0.16 main line to 0.10 hook length 14 forged hook.
Margin. GORTINI mini margin float 0.16 main line to o.10 hook length 18 forged hook.
Bait.
Burt Baits; Natural bream red and crushed xpander 70/30 ground bait, sweet F1 pellets soaked and hooked with Krill additive. 2mm Choc Orange and 4mm Polony feed pellets.
2mm expander pellets, big red maggot, pinky, worm and mainline 1 to 1 natural paste. Next match is on Havannah Flash, Sunday, then back to work <sad face>.
Eddie Marcroft and I fished these pools today to carry out a census on stock levels. Started off on Park 1 and after knocking up another platform we seem to have scared all the fish away. Moved to Park 2 and had a fish a chuck all day for 6 hours solid. Eddie was getting some good size roach and a few skimmers, I was pulling out roach, a nice perch and a ~1.5lb skimmer. I fished big red, pinkie and caster alternating throughout the day. Simple rig, 2+top 2 GORTINI 4×10 chianti to a 22 wire hook. Finished the day with over 150 roach, a big perch and that skimmer, a good day. Eddie had a fair few more fish than I and also had the bigger stamp. But it wasn’t a competition and was just to gauge the stock, condition, size and quantity.
And I don’t think I will be back anytime soon.
I decided to give the Sunday Canal match a go, had no intention of taking a pole and having to deal with fat men in lycra who think the tow path is the domain of bikes. Drew peg 28 on the ~20m wide, barren, featureless, stretch of the canal. Meant nothing to me as I have never fished the canal before.
5m whip, GORTINI 4×10 pole float, 0.07 mainline to 0.06 hook length 20 forged hook.
Waggler rod, 4BB slim waggler.
8′ Shakespeare Omi feeder rod.
Fed, Burts Baits 2mm choc Orange at 5m and F1 sweet 4mm pellets at 16m. Hand tossing Natural silvers light nuggets over my float.
At the all in I was catching perch, I had 32 in the first hour. Then nothing for over an hour, swapped between whip and waggler, not even a bump. Threw out a hybrid feeder with worm and then expander on the hook for nothing over 30 mins. Last hour I had a roach on waggler and a few more perch on the whip. All out, was 35 perch and 1 roach for maybe 2lb ish. Didn’t weigh in. Not an impressive day by any stretch of the imagination and I honestly don’t think I could have done any more to make improvements, the fish just weren’t there.
