Orchard Lakes Bank Holiday Open

It was Orchard again for a bank holiday open, and after the customary coffee and bacon butty I drew peg 9 out of the bag, this is 16m wide but all I pulled out of the bag was 3 sections of pole.

3 rigs a paste rig on 0.19-0.17mm bottom and a 12 B911, red Vespe E2 hollow and a 0.5g Maver ice paste float, this was for fishing at 2+1 straight in front in 4 feet of water. I also set up a pellet rig consisting of 0.17mm-0.15mm and a size 16 B911; this again was on red Vespe but the float was a slim bodied Durafloat. I also plumbed up a margin line at 2feet deep on both sides again at 2+1, this was 0.19mm-0.17mm and a 14 Margin Carp, this was on orange E2 hollow and the float was a doctored 0.4g Sconezone Double Deez.

At the all in I shipped straight out and fed 30 4mm pellet over the top, after 5 mins I had my first fish but it was small, and this continued for the first hour with me taking about 10 small carp and a number of tench and bits. I started to suffer numbers of liners as I was loose feeding 6mm pellet over the top so I quickly set up a shallow rig to fish over the top, this consisted of a Sconezone slapper on 0.19mm finishing in an 18 Pr36 with a micro bait band. A 6mm pellet went out and I slapped and fed for about 30 mins, in that time took another 6 carp but then hit a run of skimmers and tench that saw me abandon the 2+1 line completely and I decided to concentrate on the margins. I potted meat and hemp in on both sides and managed to take a few fish but they would not settle, this saw me change the bait I was feeding to pellet and the transformation was instant with numbers of fish attacking the bottom in the edge. Missed bites saw me change to a paste rig and hookbait to increase my bite to fish ratio and I lost a few fish by pulling too hard so swapped my elastic down to a red E2 Hollow. Over the next 2 hours I was able to keep fish coming by feeding a swim and fishing the other and also by swapping between types and consistency of paste on the hook. With an hour left to go I started fishing just on my top 2 to the left of my keepnet and this saw me have a really good catching spell with the fish averaging 3lb and the biggest fish of the day coming in.

At the all out I felt as though I had managed to turn my day around but I did not feel as though I had done enough as the guys to my left and right had seemed to have been bagging all day, that and the fact I was guessing that my 80 carp plus bits would be about 150-170lb, 6 weighs gave me 206lb and second in the match so my poor start had definitely been turned around. This was my first double ton so to say that I was happy was an understatement.

MFS, Tober Park Lake

I was looking forward to this match for a while as it meant that I didn’t have to get out of bed at stupid o’clock for the first time in a while. From the new food van a coffee and bacon butty were procured for a second breakfast and then it was down to the lake for the draw. At the draw I could see alot of faces that I knew and all the talk was about how well the lake had been fishing on the run up to this match. I drew peg 3 on the top arm and nearly ran to my peg, there was a straw bale in both margins and a cut out on the far bank that was alive with carp eating silver fish spawn. My original plan was to keep things simple with a 4X12 float on 0.17mm main line to a 0.15mm bottom and a 16 B911 for fishing meat across, this was attached to Green Vespe E2 hollow on a puller bung so that I could land F1’s and Carp. Also for this line I plumbed up a KC Carpa Margin float on 0.17mm straight through to a 10 Margin Carp, this was to fish paste across and was attached to red Vespe E2 Hollow. Finally I plumbed up around both margins and decided to fish them both halfway up the slope in 3 feet of water, this rig was a 0.4g Double deez to 0.17mm main and a 1.15mm bottom with a 16 B911 again for fishing meat so it was set up on red Vespe E2 Hollow.

I was ready with plenty of time to spare so had a chat with a few of the other guys and before I knew it we were starting, I fed my margins from the start with hemp and meat and went across with meat. It was a steady start with a couple of decent carp before the scourge of the F1’s and Rudd moved in so I tried paste across and got seen off by silvers. After about 45 mins I tried the margins and had a few carp so then I decided to concentrate on the short pole for the rest of the day and plumbed up a paste line at 2+3. This rig was a 4X10 Big H paste on 0.19-0.17mm and a 10 Drennan Margin carp all attached to red Vespe E2 Hollow, I potted in some bait and the bottom erupted and for the rest of the match it was a case of trying to take a couple of fish from each line before rotating and trying to get some more.

The whole lake did not fish as expected and I experienced long periods of inactivity on all 3 swims but after the 6 hours was finished I had ended up with 115lb 8oz and this was enough for 4^th overall although it was tight with 114lb and 112lb both coming from my section.

A thoroughly enjoyable day that I hope to repeat again.

Orchard Open,

Time for an open at Orchard again, and on turning up I found it easier to face the usual suspects on a full stomach so a bacon butty and a brew were consigned to my stomach and the pre match banter and chat began. Everybody was expecting it to fish well as the conditions were HOT and calm, the main tactics it seemed, were to be short pole and pellet or paste. However at the draw end peg 28 was in my hand and I knew that there are usually a few better fish down this end of the lake, armed with this info and my limited knowledge of the place I decided to fish a paste/pellet line at 2+1 and meat in the edge. Peg 27 to my left was pegged in so I only had about 5 meters in that direction to play with so I plumbed up to see the depth but didn’t expect to have to use it. To my right in just under 2 feet of water was a tuft of grass overhanging the water and looking like the sort of feature that should act as a refuge for the fish when it got hot later in the day. Margin swim sorted I plumbed up in front of my platform and looked for 4 feet, a paste rig and a pellet rig got set up for this line and just before the start I also put up a shallow slapping rig in case the fish were up in the water.

At the all in a pot of hemp and pellet went in on my paste line followed by a pot of hemp and meat under the grass to my right, out went the paste rig. After 5 minutes and a couple of liners the paste rig was dispatched up the bank, I was 3 fish behind to most people to my left already and trying not to flap. Out went a pellet and a micro carp responded, then two bites on the drop so out came the shallow rig, I was feeding 10 6mm pellet every 30 secs and slapping the rig a little but the fish I was catching were quite small so when I saw the margin getting ripped up I tried an early look.

An 8mm cube of meat was put on the hook and a 2lber was soon in the net and followed by a few of its brethren, I had problems with keeping the fish in the swim as for most of the match I found myself concentrating on that right margin as it was still producing fish. Over the next few hours I fished meat and paste on the deck and when the carp came up in the reeds I started fishing shallow with pellet or meat. Coming into the last hour everyone for about 4 pegs to my left started struggling so I started a new swim to my left in the margin and this helped as it gave me somewhere to rest the swims in between fish but I still found the fish responding to alot of bait and noise.

At the end of the match I weighed in my best net of the year with 178lb 12oz but even that was only good enough for 4^th overall with Big Baz taking 217lb on paste from peg 18 and Knocker having a great first visit with 191lb on pellet from peg 5.

Kennet and Avon Teams of 4, Round 2, Great Bedwyn

So it was time for the epic journey up to the Cross Keys pub in Great Bedwyn, once there the traditional bacon butty and a brew were dispatched. John the captain did the draw again and managed to give each of us exactly the same sections as last time, I was in a peg that was 200m to the left of the last peg I fished in section B, B13.

It was typicl of the bottom end of the stretch with a gap in between two boats opposite and a decent depth close in, I decided upon a 4 prong attack that saw my normal bread line going in at about 4 feet deep on a 2+1 line. Due to the depth of the peg however, I decided to fish my squatt line in about 3 1/2 feet of water at 11.5m, I set up two rigs for here: 1) a 0.4g DS14 on 0.10mm mainline to a 0.07mm bottom and a 24 B590, this was for fishing on the deck so had no.3 elastic and a bulked shotting pattern. 2) A 4X7 Mick Bassett on the drop float on the same line and hook but with a strung styl shotting pattern and no.2 Vespe elastic. I also plumbed up a worm line at 14.5m down the track to my left and right and a backup bread rig against the downstream boat in cast things got difficult.

At the all in I fed the normal Bread close and 4 balls of groundbait with squatt, hemp and caster in it at 11.5m; I also put a few worms in on both of my worm swims. I put a 4mm punch on the hook and had a look in close, it took about 4 minutes before my first Roach was swung to hand and after 45 mins I had only had 10 fish from it (including an 8oz hybrid) so I refed and that only gave me another coupe of fish so I was soon onto the squatt line where by working hard I was able to keep putting some fish into the net all the time. I had no indications on my worm lines but boat traffic saw paid to them and I spent 15mins trying under the boat across on bread for 4 Roach but it was not quick enough and the tow was proving to be problematic. The end could not come fast enough and after the end pegs doing the biz the weights through the middle of the section were quite close, to the left there was about a pound and a half, to the right 3lb 8oz and I weighed in 5lb 8oz. This gave me 6^th in section and when we got back to the pub it turned out that again we had a single blowout, with the rest all getting middle of the section. If he had cot 4 more points the team would have got 3^rd or 4^th so it was close but no cigar again for Vespe Army A.

Next time my worm line will go in across and I may try to concentrate on catching a couple of skimmers, this is because 8oz would have seen me 4^th in section!

Interservices Championship, Heronbrook

This event started with nearly a week’s worth of practice, this saw me fishing on Bridge peg 9(twice), Canal 11 and 15, Match 35 and Meadow 13. This period saw weights from 56-96lb on a variety of tactics across the lakes and included a day’s pleasure fishing on Match that saw me mug out 4 carp for around 60lb.

But to the event itself, the Inter services is a competition between the Army, RAF and Navy and this year it was being run by the current holders the Navy, the Army had not won the trophy since 2005 at Porth Reservoir and since we knew the venue well this was seen as our best chance of picking up the trophy for the last couple of years.

I had Meadow 4 drawn out of the bag for me and this gave me just over 13m to a gap in the far bank reeds that was about 2 ½ feet deep, this depth could be found in a few other spots along the far bank as well. I set up a 4X12 Big H Border float on 0.15mm mainline and a 0.13mm hook length with an 18 B911 attached to the end, this was set up on yellow Vespe E2 hollow elastic on a pull bung. I set up a 2+2 corn rig and a paste rig to go on the same line and a deep margin rig to fish at 13m down the lake to my left but all I had from these lines was a small Tench.

At the all in we had planned a bit of deception so the whole team potted in either nothing or as in my case 6 pellets and a bit of water in their biggest pot across. This worked and the RAF angler pegged on peg 1 potted in a whole pot of maggot across on to his far line, then the same again down the edge and other spots. I put a bit of hemp and corn in on my 2+2 line and also the same on my margin line before I shipped across to my far line and kinder cupped in a few micros. It took about 3 minutes for my first bite that led to a Gudgeon but after a few more minutes I started to put a few F1’s into the net. By the end of the first hour though the wind was worsening and I was about 10lb adrift from the peg to my left who had had a couple of decent carp early before his constant dumping of maggots saw him losing a few foul hookers. With this in mind I decided to move swims a few feet to my left under a canopy of reeds and this saw a marked improvement in sport, I started to pick up F1’s and small carp quite regularly for the rest of the match and it was only when I wanted to take a break from the wind that I would try my margin or 2+2line.

After 5 hours of fishing I had ended up with 16 Carp, a couple of Gudgeon, about 25 F1’s and a small Tench for a combined weight of 83lb 4oz, this saw me nearly double the next best weight in my 3 man section for a comfortable section win and also take 4^th overall in the match. The Army won with 7 section wins and a total of 18 points, we also had the top 4 individuals all from the same lake, Meadow. All in all a very good day.

K&A Teams of 4, Rd 1, Great Bedwyn

This was my first foray to this stretch of the K&A and I have to say that my route from the satnav was interesting, but, I arrived at the Cross Keys with plenty of time before the draw so that we could sort out bait. This time also saw me being regaled with tails of regular double figure bags of prime roach and skimmers so I was more than a little excited when John my team captain came out and told me that I was drawn just off the marina in the village on B4.

As you can see I had a multitude of options but decided to feel my way into the match, my first line was at 4m for bread and consisted of a 0.6g Garbolino DS14H on a 0.11mm mainline to a 20B511 on 0.08mm hook length. This was shotted with a bulk 30cm from the hook and a single no.10 dropper and was set up on no5 Vespe solid through 3 sections. I decided to put a Squatt line in at around 11m and this had a 0.2g Preston Classic 6 on 0.09mm mainline with a 0.07mm hook length to a 22 B590, this was rigged on no.3 Vespe solid through 2 sections. Finally, I set up a chopped worm rig to be fished behind the boat on the far bank at 15m, this was a 4X14 KC Carpa Chimp on 0.15mm mainline and a 0.13mm hooklength to a 16 B611, this was rigged on green Vespe E2 hollow (just in case) and plumbed up in the depression where the prop had dug out the bottom.

So I was ready to go and as the all in sounded (the quietest one I have ever heard) I put a Satsuma sized ball of Liquidised bread at 4m, 3 balls of groundbait and squatt at 11m and about 10 chopped dendras on the long line. Then I slipped a 4mm punch on my hook and dropped it in at 4m expecting great things, after 30 mins and 5 fish it was apparent that it was not going to be the bagging session I had been promised, although, after I topped up with a thumbnail ball of bread after the first boat I had a quick run of 10 fish before the bread line died. So at an hour and a bit in I shipped a worm head out to 15m in the strengthening wind and started to count, I got to 5 before the float disappeared and the hefty strike saw a small Perch catapulted from the water. Next put in and the same happened but that was it so I topped up and tried my squatt line, and although it was not solid I was able to put a few fish into the net including two skimmers both of which I had to save from a marading pike that also seemed to kill off my squatt line. Another, look on the worm line gave me a small perch and a quick feed and look on the bread saw another roach in the net, so, I was sat there with 3 dead lines and needing to catch a few quick as the guy on the end peg to my right had taken a couple of decent fish on worm. I decided to go all out for a few roach for the last hour and a bit as there were a few topping in the area, so I set up a punch rig consisting of a 4X12 KC Carpa F1 float on 0.11mm mainline, a 20 B511 on a 0.08mm hooklength all hanging off Vespe solid no.2. The reason for the light elastic was to try and reduce the splash on the surface when I was striking in the now breezy conditions. So I fed a small ball of Licky across against the boat and shipped out straight on top, 3 seconds later Roach no.1 from the new line was on the way to the net and it continued like that until the end of the match with me only needing to top up twice.

I finished with 8lb dead and this was enough for second in my 16 man section and I beat the guys either side of me only to be done by a squatt weight of 11lb two pegs away. The lack of bonus fish in my section helped me no end although the main list was made up of mainly Perch weights from the other sections. My team of Vespe Army A finished joint 5^th on the day with one of our guys blowing out from a poor area, but considering the competition we did well.

Interservices Championship at Heronbrook next so back to the commercials.