Viaduct Fishery Silvers League Rd 3, Cambell, Cary & Lodge Lakes.

The Wife kindly was on hand to do a couple of bacon sarnies before I left today now Hilltops has closed & Nowhere on route as such to get breakfast now, Bless her, As always I was one of the early birds & condition wise not much had changed overnight with no wind & warm temperatures but I thought after yesterday things could be quite hard in places. I was chatting to Paul Faires in the draw queue & we were taking of where we fancied drawing as you do, We were saying peg 123 on Cambell had to be on the short list with its resent tench form among others, Are Turn came to draw & I was joking to Paul how grab a good un' He said to do it to his hands & low & behold he promptly pulled 123" I wasn't as fortunate as I ended up nearly opposite where I was yesterday on Cambell 116, & after yesterdays results I expected things to be quite hard?

For company I had that man again Nick Ewers on peg 118 but couldn't see him due to the tree but he wasn't in my section, & Roland Lucas on peg 115, Below him was Gary Webber, & on the end peg of are section guess who'? Des Shipp! who was standing in for Matt Tomes today, Just my luck he had to be in my section let alone the end peg' He wasn't going to have it easy though as he was going to have problems with the fallen leaves, I got to my peg which is set back quite some distance from peg 115 as you can see by Roland stood on his pallet,

 

I had a decent bit of water to work with so again planned a few long lines,

 

Without going into all the fine details the rigs were the same as I used yesterday with the exception of a 4x10 chanti to fish on a long line down under the tree, I plumed up a swim at 14mts in the middle shadow of the tree & two lines at 13mts either side in the shadow of the lighter water & a line at 10mts just off to my right.

I started the day feeding four balls at 14mts with casters & a few dead reds, fed a ball of casters & pinkees at 13mts left & some wetter mix with chopped worm & just a pinch of casters 13mts to the right, I had fed a few casters on the 10mt line to start with so began the day here, It wasn't a good start as the first 30mins produced just two small roach, Nigel hadn't had anything & from what I could see things were already looking like things could be hard, out onto the long lines starting with maggot on the hook just gave me another two blip roach' I switched to fishing caster on the hook which gave me a skimmer of 8oz out of the blue but I could hardly get an indication anywhere I was just thinking of starting a new line & looked at my watch when I had a proper bite on the positive long line which turned out to be a 2lb plus skimmer on single caster'  by now it was 12.15 so after this fish I expected a few more over the next few hours or so, Nothing followed so back to the 13mts lines, The left hand side just didn't produce for some reason but the right hand side started to show signs of fish.

I switched to fishing a small piece of worm on the hook as getting through the tiny roach was causing havoc. I saw a few bubbles on the 10mt line so dropped in again with maggot on the hook,  I gave it a few minutes & was just about to switch when the float slid away & I had another  decent flying" skimmer, Roland was still yet to catch so it proved just how hard things were, I new every fish would be vital but not expecting another bite on the 10mts line had me surprised when a few minutes later I had another big skimmer/bream which managed to say good bye as I reached for the net" Not what I wanted!. I gave it another 5mins before topping it up going back to the long lines, I had another 1lb skimmer on the worm at 13mts right on a segment of worm the 15mins later had another 2lb plus fish on the maggot off the 14mt line, Owner Steve came around with just over a couple of hours to go & I thought I had around 7lb which so say was good in the section at this stage, The next hour saw me add a couple of smaller skimmer at 14mts before I took another decent fish back on the 10mt line but again as I expected things didn't get better & going into the last hour I was struggling to find fish off either line. I hooked another decent fish at 14mts which again shed the hook" before hooking another at 13mts on the worm & managed to lose that half way back.." frustrating when you know they could make a big difference at the end of the day, Roland had had a real struggle  with just two smaller skimmers & some blip roach before he hooked something decent with less than an hour to go which although we thought was a carp turned out to be a very nice Tench" I really tried to add a couple more big skimmers or even a  Tench on the shorter line but it didn't happen, I managed one more off the 13m line but pricked' another decent fish moments later, All I managed in the last hour was another near 1lb fish so it proved to be a hard day after all.

Roland didn't take anymore tench & Nicky the other side of me had said he had struggled, I was first to weigh in are section finishing the day with 11lb 11oz, Roland ended up with 6lb as did Gary Webber, their were a couple of 10lb weights before we got to Des who after his slow start managed to finish with 18lb to win the section, Still a good result for me points wise finishing 2nd in the section to keep me up the top with Bobby Gullick & now Matt Tomes after having Des as his stand in' picking up another £25 for the weekend. Only half way threw so a long way to go & things are going to get harder in some areas, The match was won by good friend Gabriel Skarba from fancied peg 68 on lodge lake with 42lb of skimmers, catching first off on expanders then on worm & pinkee over G/Bait so well done to him.

Winner Gabo (Right) & Runner-up Chris Davis.

 

Back in two weeks for round four but a change of scenery next Sunday having already put myself down for an open at Shiplate farm.

full result -

1st Gabriel Skarba (Mosella) peg 68 Lodge Lake, 42lb 10oz.

2nd Chris Davis (Frampton Cotterill) peg 102 Cary, 27lb 9oz.

3rd Tim Clark (Avon Angling) peg 77 Cary, 25lb 14oz.

4th Phil Harding (Avon Angling) peg 100 Cary, 23lb 5oz.

5th Tony Rixon (Mosella/Veals) peg 56 Lodge, 22lb 10oz.

6th Glen Calvert (Maver) peg 69 Lodge, 22lb 8oz.

 

 

 

            

 

        

Viaduct Fishery (Saturday Open) Cambell & Cary Lakes.

Two blogs to get through tonight after going out with the wife when returning home yesterday, I skipped breakfast today arriving first again as normal' Proves how keen I am' Lol, We were going to have a pleasant day weather wise as it was overcast with no wind & very mild, 24 of us fishing today & as normal I would choose what to target depending on my draw? close to the front today & ending up on peg 124 on the far side of cambell lake, Not a bad area for silvers again so would again use today as a bit of a practice for the next round of the league tomorrow should I end up on this lake. For company I had Nigel Easton on the end peg 123 which Jacko" won the silvers off of on Thursday who was also going to target them today & Fisho finalist Roland Lucas next door on peg 125 who was thinking of a silvers attack until he bumped a couple of carp plumbing up" With the conditions ideal I planned most of my faith on a long pole attack so set up a 0.3g pencil float to fish at 14mts slightly to the left on 0.11-0.09 & an 18 Guru maggot hook, A lighter 4x12 Chanti with a strung out style set up on the same line with a size 20 hook to fish the same distance infront of me & finally a 0.2g pencil on 0.11-0.08 & an 18 PR412 to fish off to my right at 13mts which would double up to fish at 9mts, On the all in I put a small ball of G/Bait with a few casters & pinkie's on the 9mt line, Fed four balls with a few of the same in at 14mts to the left, fed one ball packed with casters infront of me & fed some loose G/Bait & chopped worm on 13mt line.

I started on the 9mt line with single caster but struggled to get more than a couple of small roach in the first 30mins so soon on the longer lines, Starting where I fed the one ball with dead red maggot I had my first skimmer all of 4oz's' I switched to caster on the hook which got me three more in the next thirty minutes from 8-12oz. Nigel had slow start with just a few small fish so even at this early stage things were looking harder than we had expected, This line soon dried up so time to try the other long lines after topping up with just another small ball, Strangely I expected to get some fish straight away off the line I put the most feed on at the start but never had a bite here despite trying various baits, I had a look at 13mts but still no signs nor on the short line I had been topping up regularly.

Back on the long one ball' line & again I had a small run of smaller skimmers along with one around a 1lb before I bumped a fish & they were gone again' The heavier fed 14mt line finally produced one 12oz skimmer but then nothing before I gave the 13mt line another go, Starting with red maggot on the hook I had a near 1lb fish followed by another couple of 8-10oz in the next 15mins again on maggot, Nigel was really struggling & hadn't had any better sized fish & looking around the lake those fishing for silvers seemed to be in the same boat, I keep plugging away just picking the odd fish of each line it seemed with no sort of pattern but kept changing the baits to try & induce some bites, I expected the last 90mins or so the fish would have a go but unfortunately for me it went the opposite way' I went from picking off the odd fish to really start struggling for bites, To make things worse Nigel had now managed to take a Tench & decent Perch off his 9mt line & the bulk of Jackos weight on Thursday on the peg was made up of tench so I fancied Nigel to hook some more? I kept trying my short line but the best I could manage was a couple of hand sized skimmers, I spent the last hour chasing around my lines just trying to put something in the net but only managed another 1lb fish off the 13mt line & a coupe of 8oz skimmers fishing past my feed at 16mts, With seconds remaining I hooked what would of been my best fish from the 13mt line only for it to shed the hook' Nigel had a much better finish as he added two more tench & another decent Perch & in the end I thought he had enough to come out on top.

When the scales arrived the best silver weight was 8lb odd before I managed a level 14lb, As expected it was close between the two of us but it turned out in my favour beating him by a mere 2oz" but it turned out to be a good battle between us come the end, back at the results & I was surprized to find myself with the top silvers weight on the day picking up £50 but more importantly my place booked in next years silvers final already so a good day all round, The match was won today by venue regular Mark Wynn from peg 112 with 156lb odd catching on the bomb & pellet & some better fish later in the day shallow on the pole followed by a couple of 140lb weights. Hopefully todays effort will put me in good stead for Sunday's match depending on my draw?

Full results -

1st Mark Wynn (Colmic) peg 112 Cambell, 154lb 11oz.

2nd Dave Hayward (Wilshire Angling) peg 86 Cary, 145lb 10oz.

3rd Paul Bell (Un-attached) peg 96 Cary, 145lb 1oz.

4th Lawrence, (Un-attached) peg 77 Cary, 132lb 15oz.

Silvers -

 1st Dom Sullivan (Maver) peg 124 Cambell, 14lb.

2nd Nigel Easton (Bait-Tech Viaduct) peg 123 Cambell, 13lb 14oz. 

                    

Viaduct Fishery (Thursday Costcutter) Cary & Cambell Lakes.

With the chance of another Thursday off I wasn't going to waste it so grabbed a bacon roll on route arriving in plenty of time to stick my name down before draw time, As I've said before being a cost cutter & only £5 of the entry going in the pools these matches aren't about the money more of a days fishing in what is usually a good turnout, Today was no exception with over thirty fishing I fancied a day on Cary again today & after letting a few jump in I ended up on peg 105 which happens to be the first peg up the causeway today backing onto lodge lake, I had a but of a swap around with Colin Dyer again today as we were on these pegs in the silvers final but the other way around" We are never far apart'. He struggled that day with around 7lb here & with the lake being shallower at this end I didn't rate it to catch many of the lakes bigger bream which seem to like the late 90's' a simple four rigs today, A 0.3g pencil to fish at 14mts on 0.13-0.09 & an 18 Guru F1 Maggot hook, A 0.2g pencil to fish at just over 13mts off to my right on the same line with a 20 F1 maggot hook, A 4x10 chanti to fish on my top 2 + 2 on 0.11-0.08 & an 18 PR412 hook & finally another 4x10 chanti on a long line on my topkit to fish the inside margins in the hope of some bonus perch or hybrids?

I started the day feeding 4 balls at 4mts with some micro's added, fed 3 balls at 13mts with some casters & dead reds added & just loose fed some casters on the shorter lines by hand, After 5mins of cupping in bait having to break down the pole each time I expected to get a few indications on the 2 + 2 line with caster on the hook after dripping a few in from the off, Nope" in the first 20mins I had one bite & one small roach' I had a try down both insides on the long line rig but never had a sniff so it was time to try the long lines a bit before I really wanted to but I had to try & catch something as Kev over on peg 78 next to the tree seemed to already putting a few silvers in the net, I started on the 13mt line with maggot but only had two small roach in ten minutes so it was out to the 14mt line with expander on the hook, I had a skimmer straight away but only about 8oz, The next 20mintues produced 2 more but they were slightly smaller, I topped it up again & tried caster on the hook back at 13mts.

I had a skimmer around a 1lb straight away fully expecting a few more fish to follow but it didn't happen so stuck another ball on this line, back on the 2+2 but still nothing here so back on the pellet at 14mts, I was catching the odd skimmer between 6-12oz but had to wait a while for any indications, We were now a couple of hours into the match & I thought I had about 4-5lb, Just as I happened to see Kev netting a 3lb plus bream" he was well ahead at this stage & I had to do something if I was going to stand a chance of catching him up although I didn't know what silvers were being caught on cambell, It was awkward trying to fish at 14mts with soft pellet as I had to break down each time but it was one of the only places I could see at the start but now the sun had moved around & clouded over so decided to feed another G/bait - micro line at 11mts where I could ship to in one go. I tried the 13mt line again where I seemed to catch one or two fish to 10oz then nothing, I managed a near 2lb fish on the 14mt line but it appeared to be the rouge one as I didn't have a sign after.

After leaving the new line for about 30 minutes it was time to see if it would produce, I did have a few more skimmers but the problem was nothing was bigger than 6oz' but it was easier to fish for sure, I kept topping up the long line with small amounts as it seemed to produce the odd better skimmer to 12oz but I had to really wait for bites, The 13mts line again just produced a couple of 8oz fish so it seemed best to fish out the new line catching what I could until nothing happened then adding another small ball, This is how I spend the rest of the match really, trying the long lines for the odd slightly better stamp fish before catching what I could at 11mts, I did try my inside lines again & the only one to produce was on my left hand edge but it was only small roach so didn't waste much time here, I did manage a near 2lb fish off the 11mt line & a couple of 12oz to 1lb off both lone lines before the end of the day but to be honest the last hour was quite slow when again I expected it to get better, Kev's match had also slowed in the last couple of hours but I felt although I started to catch up I hadn't quite catch well enough later in the day. I was first to weigh & put just over 22lb on the scales, I even had to give Ziggy a pound of his back today as he managed to beat me by 7oz" from peg 94, Back at the results & kev had finished up with 25lb odd so I was right their but not far away but top silvers went to Steve Jackson over on Cambell end peg 123 with 27lb odd catching Seven Tench & some bigger skimmers. Winner on the day went to Jim Butcher on peg 102 taking 176lb mainly on the waggler & pellet at depth. I managed to pick up 5th in the silvers pool' Lol getting £10 back so didn't have a dear day out, Was quite pleased to what I ended up with & should I end up here in the next round of the silvers  league this Sunday I don't think I would do much different, back here again on Saturday For the open on Cambell & cary again but as normal will decide what to target once I've drawn.

Full Results

1st Jim Butcher (Wiltshire Angling) peg 102 Cary, 176lb 2oz.

2nd Dave Romain (Bait-Tech Viaduct) peg 126 Cambell, 168lb 12oz.

3rd Terry Gilbert (Thatchers Tackle) peg 128, 122lb 5oz.

4th Tony Williams (Drennan Thyers) peg 78 Cary, 112lb 15oz.

5th Roy Worth (Bait-tech Viaduct) peg 99 Cary, 110lb 8oz.

6th Steve Shaw (Mosella) peg 130 Cambell, 101lb 6oz.

Silvers -

1st Steve Jackson ( Garbolino) peg 123 Cambell, 27lb 13oz.

2nd Bobby Gullick (Mosella) peg 127 Cambell, 26lb 9oz. 

 

           

Viaduct Fishery Sunday Open (Cambell Lake).

After spending the whole day in a classroom yesterday for part of my Drivers CPC I was keen to get back to fishing, I had what would be my last Breakfast at Hilltops before arriving in plenty of time again, Only fourteen fishing today so Steve would peg seven each side of the lake, I had a wander around before the draw & on the far side their was a strong north easterly wind blowing into most of the swims which would make fishing the long pole difficult should I end up there? I let a few go before me as normal before taking my turn ending up on peg 127, The far side with the wind in are chops" The pegs just above me always seem to be a decent area for silvers so using the day as a practice should I draw this lake in the next round of the silvers league I would spend the day targeting them.

Fishing the long pole was going to be awkward because with the wind blowing at us, & I went as far as I could without making things to difficult & my furthest line was 13mts slightly to my left, I set up a 4x14 Wire Wonder on 0.13-0.08 & a 18 Guru Maggot hook to fish in just over 3ft of water, Next up I had a 0.3g pencil on the same line with an 18 PR490 hook to fish at 10mt just to my right which was about 6'inches shallower, A 4x10 chanti to fish at 6mts with a 20 PR412 hook & finally a 3x8 chanti to fish along the inside bank in 2ft of water but didn't really expect this to produce much? For company I had Nigel Garrett on peg 128 next to the spit who was also going to target silvers & terry Leney on peg 126 who was going down the carp route. I started the day feeding 3 balls of G/bait with some dead reds & casters at 13mts, fed the same amount at 10mts containing chopped worm & casters & began the day at 6mts on caster feeding a few by hand, I had a few early roach & a skimmer of 6oz in the first 30mins or so but bites were getting hard to come by, Nigel had only managed a few small roach off his 10mts line so after having a try down the edge without any signs & just a couple more small roach from the 6mt line it was time to venture out to 13mts, I hadn't been out long when I had a bite on dead red maggot only to lose a 1lb plus skimmers shipping back" I expected to get some more action but after another 15mins I had just another 8oz skimmer, I decided to add another ball & switch to the 10mt line.

I had near 1lb skimmer straight off , Missed another bite soon after then pricked a better fish soon after before it died here, By now the wind had picked up even more & it was hard enough to keep the rig still at 10mts let alone 13mts!" I had switched to fishing nearly 6'inches over depth with a double bulk but the wind & tow coming at us was making the long line near impossible to fish. back at 10mts & even here I was having to lay some line on the deck but did manage another near 1lb skimmer, The middle couple of hours were a right gruller as I only managed to add a few more smaller skimmers, I had been topping up the 10mts line a bit more positively & with a couple of hours to go hooked a decent fish on caster which I first thought was a small carp but it turned out to be a tench around 2lb' fifteen minutes later I had another around 3lb before feeling it was time to top it up again, Thankfully the breeze had let up a little to give the 13mt line another try. Starting on caster I had three skimmers in as many put-ins a couple pushing 2lb before it died again, I tried past where I had been feeding but this didn't produce so topped it up & tried the 10mt line again.

I had another 1lb skimmer then hooked a carp" I was hoping to catch another skimmer of tench after but it just didn't happen I had a couple more 1lb fish off the 13mt line in the last hour but it was hard going, I expected the peg to get better later in the day but it was the opposite, Terry had called it a day with a couple of hours to go, & Nigel had struggled for a couple of 1lb size skimmers & some roach & wasn't going to bother weighing, When the scales arrived Fred Roberts on end peg 131 had managed 19lb of tench, I didn't think I had anywhere near that but was surprized to end up with 18lb 5oz, but top silvers went to Steve Jackson with 21lb odd from the opposite bank peg 112, catching most of his fish on the long pole aided with the wind off his back & an empty peg either side" Lol, The match was won by Jim Morrison from peg 114 with 199lb taking all of his fish on the bomb & pellet so it looks like the carp are already heading for their favourite winter haunt" A bit disappointed the weather put pay to the fishing today but it happens hopefully it will be in more favourable conditions next week.

Full Results -

1st Jim Morrison (Tackle Trader) peg 114, 199lb 2oz.

2nd Jack Billett (Viaduct) peg 123, 186lb 11oz.

3rd Chris Davis (Frampton Cotterill) peg 118, 141lb 12oz.

Silvers - 1st Steve Jackson (Garbolino) peg 112, 21lb 6oz.        

Viaduct Fishery Silvers League Rd 2 (Cambell, Cary & Lodge Lakes)

Back to Viaduct for this second round of this popular league after yesterdays Silvers Final, Travelling on my own again I did manage the normal breakfast on route, When I was putting the kit in the van this morning it was chucking it down but thankfully when I arrived the skies were already clearing & the forecast was for quite a pleasant day with bright skies but with the amount of rain we had overnight I thought it may well have an effect on the day ahead, Close to the front of the draw again today & with the random draw I could end up on any of the lakes, I was hoping for Cary again today as I was confident of doing ok on it but wasn't to worried where I drew as long as could avoid what seem to be the dreaded numbers at the moment with the zero's on the end 80 & 90 on Cary, I did manage one with a Zero but thankfully it was peg 60 on Lodge lake which backs onto the pathway leading to Spring Lake, I have never draw this area before but from what I could gather it was quite a fair area, Bobby Gullick happened to draw it yesterday winning the section with 20lb odd just a couple of ounces ahead of Steve Jackson who was next door on peg 59, His catch consisted of mainly small skimmers on the maggot but I felt confident I could still catch a few on the soft pellet or worm/caster mix on the long pole as I was told they struggled to catch much short here yesterday.

I set up two pencil floats 0.3g for 14mts slightly to my left & 0.2g for 12mts just In-front of me both on 0.13-0.09, One with a 18 Guru F1 pellet hook the other with a 18 PR434 hook, Apart from this I set up a 4x10 chanti on a long & short line to fish at around 6mts on the same line with PR412 hooks & finally a 3x8 Chanti to fish at 4mts down the edge but to be honest I couldn't see this producing much?

For Company I had Poland's finest with Ziggy Slowski next to me on 59 & Thatcher's Nick Ewers on my right peg 62 so good company & the chance of a good micky take a some stage", I started the day feeding four balls of fishmeal ground-bait at 14mts with hard 4mm's & some micro pellets added, Fed two smaller balls with casters & a few pinkees at 12mts & at the last minute fed a good amount of casters & chopped worm behind it again at 14mts, I had done the usual, feeding a few casters on the short lines whilst feeding the long lines & this is where I started, I didn't have to wait to long for some small roach to 3oz to show up but it soon started to slow, I had a bonus 8oz hybrid but after about 30mins I was struggling for a bite, Ziggy had started slow & I had myself ahead of him until he caught a perch over a 1lb down by his tree" & I had notice Nick who had started at around 8mts had already netted some 8oz skimmers, I started on the 12mt line with caster on the hook but only had a couple more small roach, I switched to double pinkee which gave me one skimmer of 8oz but nothing followed, I had five minutes at 14mts with a piece of worm where I had fed loose W/C but no early signs. Time to try the expander over my fishmeal line & was pleased to take a 1lb skimmers straight away before adding a few smaller samples, Ziggy threw the spanner in the works by netting a good 1lb plus roach followed by a 2lb skimmer & to add to the pain Nick had netted a few more skimmers off his long line. I had another go on the short lines but after just a small roach I could pretty much forget these for the time being but would keep dripping some bait in on them.

I went back to swapping between the long lines but I could only catch the odd fish & by now it seemed the three of us were now struggling to catch, Except for Nick who managed a near 3lb bream... In the fin!" Things weren't quite going to plan, I was struggling for bites at 12mts & the only interest I had here now appeared to be carp" Trashing one rig when I parted company with one!. By now time had shot by & we were approaching the halfway stage, Ziggy Had managed a couple of skimmers to a 1lb But Nick had netted another decent fish, this time in the mouth" I had to do something to try & catch some decent skimmers in the last few hours if I was going to catch up, I decided to start a new line at 13mts off to my right, Feeding it with a new mix of Groundbait with no fishmeal in, Feeding 3 balls with just a pinch of casters & dead red maggots in & left it to settle, Back at 14mts I tried a few different baits on the hook but pellet still seemed to be best for the odd smaller skimmer so decided to add a cad-pot & fed a small nugget every put-in, It was hard work at this distance but it seemed to do the trick as I would take a couple of skimmers before the carp appeared & I had to rest it, I let the new swim settle for about 30mins before dropping in with double dead red maggot on the hook a few inches over depth. After about 10mins I was just about to give up when the float slowly slid away resulting in a 3lb flying skimmer" which thankfully I netted, After another ten mins I took a 1lb fish before topping it up with a  another small ball.

Back on the 14mt line I took a few more smaller samples but Ziggy had also netted a few & another better fish & Nick had managed a couple more better fish & we already had him down as the section winner at this stage, High light of the day went to Ziggy no question asked" He managed to hook a decent skimmer which made its bid for freedom towards the rope, he managed to stop it slowly easing it back towards him, I kept telling him it was obviously foul hooked but he wouldn't have it slowly playing it down to netting range" Well I nearly fell off my box when he went to net it" As for the last minute he had skilfully managed to play a decent sized..... Branch!" I had a job to breath but it certainly gave me & Nick a good laugh"

Back on my new line again with two dead reds saw my add another 2lb plus fish along with a similar sized fish soon after before the carp played ball again" I lost it at the net but went straight back on the same line & as I've often found was rewarded with another near 3lb bream, Nick had managed to add another decent bream, Again in the fin" just to rub salt into the wounds but he had had a slow last couple of hours & my bonus fish were soon catching up, With time running out I fed another ball & had another try on the pellet line which gave me just one more fish around a 1lb, with less than ten minutes remaining I was back at 12mts sticking to dead reds which had produced the others & I missed a bite as soon as it settled, I led the rig back in & took a 2lb fish on the drop" Getting back out with seconds to go I had another as soon as it settled" by the time I netted it Steve had shouted the all out which was a shame as I was enjoying that" Lol. I felt although Ziggy managed a decent bream at the depth I had another to take another quid off him today but still had Nick down as the section winner, Are section was one of the first to weigh, The pegs in are section In-front the Lodge on the lawns had fished hard with the best weight just over 8lb, Ziggy managed to finish up with 17lb odd before my own estimate of 20lb wasn't far of as I finished with 22lb 14oz, We walked up to see how Nick ended up & I couldn't believe it when he put 22lb 13oz on the scales with the result being me winning the section by a mere 1oz...!" Not what Nick would of wanted but the three of us had a right battle today & good banter with it'. Back at the result & regular framer Sam Powell did the business again today from peg 78 on Cary topped the day with 35lb catching most of his fish at 7mts over casters so well done to him, Runner up was another regular framer Bobby G' from peg 98 also on Cary with 30lb catching big skimmers & fish to 4lb later in the day on the long pole with maggot. My weight wasn't enough to make the main frame finishing 6th but more importantly another section win of £50 to keep me at the top of the table after two rounds with a number of others but a long way to go yet . An enjoyable days fishing as my original plans didn't quite work & making the decision to start a new line with a different mix certainly played dividends as I'm sure I wouldn't of caught the otherwise, It always feels better when you know you've made some good choices along the way.

  Top Three , Sam (Centre) Bobby (left) & Glen.

Full results -

1st Sam Powell (Preston Innovations) peg 78 Cary, 35lb 3oz.

2nd Bob Gullick (Mosella) peg 98 Cary, 30lb.

3rd Glen Calvert (Maver) peg 123 Cambell, 27lb 6oz.

4th Dave Burns (Viaduct) peg 71 Lodge, 24lb 3oz.

5th Craig Edmonds (Mosella) peg 114 Cambell, 23lb 8oz.

6th Dom Sullivan (Maver) peg 60 Lodge, 22lb 14oz.

                

Viaduct Fishery Silvers Final (Cambell, Cary, Lodge & Spring Lakes).

That time of the year again when the winners of the silver fish pool from the matches throughout the year all ascend for the Silvers Final worth a cool £750 to the winner" as well as good payouts for the top six & section winners. I was looking forward to today & made sure I had plenty of hook-lengths made up this week'

  It was a normal stop off at Hilltops for breakfast whilst its still open, I met up with Gabo & had a chat where we fancied being before arriving in plenty of time to whisk' up are Ground-bait for the day. A good turn out with sixty-one fishing with the who's who of quality silvers anglers lining the banks, I fancied a draw on a couple of the higher numbers on spring which can produce good bags of big skimmers or perhaps the 120's on cambell which seems to be a consistent area along with the rope pegs on Lodge. I let a few draw before me before I found myself on peg 103 on Cary, Its a few pegs up in the narrower section backing onto lodge lake & I happened to draw this swim on the first round of the silvers league last year & had a good day finishing second with 33lb odd of smaller skimmers, Over a year ago but I still felt the peg could produce a few so was looking forward to the day, Gabo happened to draw behind me on the first peg up on Lodge, 73, & for company I had resident Colin Dyer on peg 105 to my left & Dave Roper on my right peg 102 who was already cursing after leaving the bulk of his top kits at home". peg 103 is right next to the tree & with a bit of cover in the water my first two rigs were to fish on my topkit down my inside left bank in 2ft of water using a 3x8 chanti on 0.11-0.09 & a size 18 Guru Maggot hook, & a 4x10 chanti to fish off the end of the tree in the deeper water on 0.13-0.10 & a 18 PR490 hook. I set another 4x10 chanti on a long line to fish on my top 3 infront of me on the same line with a 18 PR412 hook, But most of my faith would be fishing the long pole with a line at 14mts to my left & a line at 12mts slightly right which I would feed differently, I set up two 0.2g pencil floats on 0.13-0-09 & Guru F1 size 18 pellet hooks, Both lines were on slightly different in depth at nearly 4ft so had one rig with a strung bulk & a couple of droppers the other with a double bulk to fish over depth. I started the day feeding 4 balls of ground-bait off to my left at 14mts & 3 balls laced with chopped worm & casters at 12mts, Whilst feeding these lines I had been flicking a few casters on the shorter lines & began In-front of me on the longer lined rig just touching the deck, I wasn't quick but I was soon adding the odd roach to 3oz on single caster, I couldn't see much being caught so stuck at for nearly the first hour putting about 3-4lb of roach in the net, I did hook a better fish but it managed to shed the hook after a few seconds but that was the only sign from the short lines before it switched off, Time to try the long lines & I began at 14mts with pellet on the hook, I hooked & bumped off a decent fish after a few minutes then had a near 3lb bream ten minutes later on a segment of worm but then only had a few smaller 8-10oz samples in the next 20mins so added another ball before trying the 12mt line again with a piece of worm on the hook, I didn't have a sniff on it here & only managed a small blade skimmer when trying caster on the hook, I took a few more small fish off my short lines before going back to the 14mt line, Another 1lb plus skimmer on the pellet before I hooked another decent bream which this time came off shipping back" It wasn't what I wanted to happen in the shallower water as it soon causes the fish to back off, A couple more small skimmers in the next ten minutes had me topping it up again before trying short again.

I had a couple more roach on the long line rig before trying down my left hand margin in the shallower water on the lighter 3x8 rig. I had a few chucky 3oz roach before I hooked something much better, After steering it out from under the branches & a bit of a scrap I netted a near 3lb hybrid", Only a couple more small roach followed & with just over two hours remaining it began to soon cloud over & begin to rain, I felt that the long lines would produce more in the last part of the match so was back out to 14mts, It seemed to be a case of catching a couple of fish before topping it up again, Most fish were between 8-12oz but I did manage a couple more 2lb plus fish but frustratingly I managed to lose another two big skimmers & bumped two off on the strike" Going into the last 90mins the wheels fell off" I had now managed to draw the attention of the lakes beasty" carp hooking & trashing two rigs & snapping one lot of elastic' along with netting two in the process" Dave had called it a day & had soon packed up after the rain arrived & I couldn't see anyone catching to much opposite so stuck at the long lines, It seemed to be a case of hooking a carp before going straight back in & catching a couple of skimmers before the carp arrived again" I did manage to catch a few small roach down the edge in between but couldn't get the worm/caster line at 12mts to work as I never had another fish over it" I managed two more decent skimmers in the last 30mins at 14mts on small pieces of worm but again lost a few more, It was hard to get them to settle with the carp being present but I new they were in the peg & I think I was foul hooking a couple in the process, I had a job to see the float in the last hour & had to take a shot off the rig which was giving false bites which didn't help. My last decent skimmer came seconds before the all-out just as it had stopped raining, As soon as I hooked it I thought it was a carp so skied the pole in the air only to realise it was another near 3lb bream" thankfully I netted it just after the all-out.

I was first to weigh on my bank as Colin had admitted to around 7lb but had tipped back, I was quite surprised to end up with 25lb 6oz but was cursing losing a few along the way, The next best weight in my section was Dan Squires with 14lb odd so at least I would pick up some section monies. Back at the results & it turned out the high numbers on Spring was the place to be, Well one peg at least as Stuart Wilson on peg 18 took todays top weight with just over 50lb of big skimmers on worm over ground-bait so well done to him for walking away with the top prize of £750. Their was a 40lb weight off of Cary Then the weights were close with only the odd fish between the rest of the main frame, It turned out 29lb odd was enough to sneak into 6th so only a couple more fish for me would have seen me go home with some decent coin but was happy to take £55 for the section win, back again tomorrow for the second round of the silvers league & to be honest I wouldn't mind drawing the same area as I felt the peg was worth a few more fish if  change things a little?.

Winner Stuart centre, James (Right) & Des.

Full results -

1st Stuart Wilson (Cwmbran Nobblers) peg 18 Spring, 50lb 14oz.

2nd James Allen (Frenzee S/W) peg 99 Cary, 40lb 2oz.

3rd Des Shipp (Preston Innovations) peg 66 Lodge, 32lb 1oz.

4th Stu White (Premier Angling) peg 115 Cambell, 31lb 6oz.

5th Bela Bakos (Silverfox) peg 69 Lodge, 30lb 2oz.

6th Fred Roberts (Sign Solutions) peg 125 Cambell, 29lb 7oz.

                

Viaduct Fishery Open (Cary Lake).

After keeping the Wife happy yesterday taking her to Brean to see the rodeo's who had spend a week in the resort all dolled up in their cowboy kits with plenty of live music if that's your sort of thing' Fair play to them they go the hole hog & to be honest all the pubs ect had a brilliant atmosphere so would recommend visiting the annual event. Back to today & travelling on my own I made full use of the extended opening of Hilltops for breakfast again before arriving at the fishery, I had a quick walk around & noticed what breeze was in the air was coming from the north slightly blowing into the pegs on the spit between Lodge, I was going to decided what to fish for once I drew my peg & with seventeen fishing I was midway in the queue ending up on peg 96, Gary Etheridge had a weight of skimmers here on Thursday fishing the waggler & banded pellet but with the wind blowing straight at us I ruled it out as apart from being hard to see I new I would suffer with tangles trying to cast a light set-up into it, I had draw this area not long ago & fished for carp but it hasn't really produced enough to frame so rather than chance it I decided on a silvers approach again today with the Silvers final next Saturday I could use it to try & work a few things out just encase I end up here come the day.

With the conditions the way they were I decided to fish two long lines & feed them differently, A 14mt line with an 4x14 Wire Wonder on 0.13-0.10 & an 18 PR434 hook in nearly four feet of water, It was the same depth at 12mts but here I had a 0.2g pencil float on 0.13-0.09 & an 18 PR490 hook. Apart from this I set up a 4x10 Chanti on 0.11-0.09 & an 18 PR412 hook to fish on my top three down the edge slightly off the bank in a couple of feet of water & the same set up on a long line to fish past my loose feed, I began the day feeding 4 bals of ground-bait worm & casters at 14mts & two balls of micro & some hard 4mm pellet at 12mts, whilst feeding these lines I began to feed a few casters down the right hand edge & on just my topkit distance down my left hand side.

I began on the right hand side with single caster & in the first 20mins managed around 2lb of roach but it was a bit slow, I tried the top-kit to my left but never had a sniff, I wanted to leave the long lines so any fish would settle so went back down my right hand side on the longer lined rig which by the first hour had given me around 4lb but it was getting slow so time to try the long lines.

I started at 14mts with a small segment of worm which got me a 12oz skimmer straight away but after another 15mins all I managed was another 4oz skimmer, I switched to the 12mt line with a 4mm expander on the hook fully expecting a bite but after 10mins I hadn't had a sniff so it was time to chase a few more roach down the edge after topping up the longer lines, Starting back on the shorter lined rig I had a run of chunky roach to 5oz before I had to switch back to the longer rig to add a few more. After a couple of hours regular visitor Phil who was also targeting silvers on peg 97 hooked & landed a 2lb Tench then a decent 3lb bream from his 12mt line which signalled me to give it another try, Starting with expander on the hook it didn't take to long to get a bite & I soon netted a fish over 2lb but after that it was back to nothing as neither of us had another fish here for the time being.

I fed it again & had another go at 14mts which produced another 10oz skimmer before I hooked a carp which managed to strip the elastic from my pole taking the rig the lot with it!" Luckily I soon had a new rig resembled but again nothing more from this line. Back down the edge & another run of fish before I hooked something better which shed the hook after a few seconds" before adding just a few more roach, I kept trying my top kit further off the bank to my left but all I managed here was a few tiny roach, The right hand line proved best but I had to keep putting the rig in different areas to keep bites coming, I kept my eye on Phil who had managed a couple of smaller samples on his longer line but I felt by adding fish from down the edge was keeping my Infront, It wasn't until the last 90mins the longer lines showed signs of fish & had another 1lb skimmer at 14mts & had another 2lb plus fish at 12mts before hooking another carp on each line" down the edge improved in the last hour as I had around 5lb of roach & a bonus 1lb plus perch in between trying the long lines in the hope of some more skimmers but it didn't happen, Phil managed another 1lb plus fish before taking another 3lb fish on the whistle but I still though I had a bit more come the end estimating to over 20lb. I had a £1 with polish national Ziggy before the start as he was going for silvers today & he came straight up to me after the all-out giving me the nugget as he was admitting to 15lb? When the scales arrived he was slightly out with his weight, weighing 25lb 2oz" Phil weighed 14lb odd before it was my turn, 25lb 6oz" That will teach him to under estimate or tell porky pies" Lol, Back at the results & their were some decent weight of carp still caught most of which were on the Bomb & pellet for those who did well topped by Jim Morrison with 215lb odd from peg 88 ahead of Phil Hardwick over on peg 77 with 141lb catching from his margins, It turned out my weight was enough to take the silvers pool picking up £48 so another enjoyable day, Think I could have caught a few more bigger skimmers if I had changed the feed pattern but would be more comfortable to catch on the long pole if on here next weekend either in the final or on the Sunday in the second round of the silvers league. Looking forward to both so hope the weather holds up. Owe & just a quick little tip, When Fitting new bungs in your top-kits you always have to cut some of the cone off, I cut them down & smooth them off to used as home made pellet cones which not only works saves me over £5 to buy a set from the tackle shop" Bargin!.

Full Result -

1st Jim Morrison (Tackle Trader) peg 88, 215lb 8oz.

2nd Phil Hardwick (Viaduct) peg 77, 141lb 1oz.

3rd Steve Shaw (Mosella) peg 90, 139lb.

4th David Turbenville (Wales) peg 78, 124lb 4oz.

5th Sean Clayton (Wales) peg 105, 114lb 7oz.

6th Colin Dyer (Viaduct) peg 100, 104lb 1oz.

Silvers -

1st Dom Sullivan (Maver) peg 96, 25lb 6oz.

2nd Ziggy Slowiski (Garbolino) 25lb 2oz.

                   

Viaduct Fishery Thursday Costcutter (Cambell & Cary).

With an opportunity for match at Viaduct whilst some work was being done on my trailer I was keen for a day on the bank, I stopped off at Hilltops for a breakfast as I found out the last day of trading is now Sunday the 23rd before arriving in plenty of time to have a wander around Cambell. It was certainly an Autumn morning with a chill in the air from the slight easterly breeze, I happened to take a photo from peg 129 then noticed a paste float sat dead still in peg 130 At about 6mts, It wouldn't be my choice of peg but at least I would claim the float if I did happen to draw it' A good turnout again with 31 fishing & at the last minute Team Captain Chris Hook put in an appearance, We were near the back of the draw & yep I picked it" Peg 130!"

At least I had a new float & yes I did get it". I decided straight away I would have a day fishing for silver's & went to purchase some caster before Chris said to weight & see where he drew as I could have his, Where did he end up, Next to me on 129 so it was off to till to purchase a couple of pints". Mr small fish & silvers supremo Gary Etheridge Was also with us today & had drawn peg 96 on Cary, I told him it was Crap for silvers but that was to try & throw him off the trail as I new he would be trying for them as well as some of the silvers regulars.

Arriving at are swims with Chris being on the spit decided to target the carp & the other side of me Roy worth on the end peg would put his faith in the bomb & pellet approach also for carp so that suited me. I was going to do things a bit different today & decided to put all my faith in fishing no further than 9mts as we had the breeze getting up towards us already, I would fish worm & caters over W/C & ground bait at 9mts being a 0.2g pencil on 0.13-0.09 & an 18 PR490 hook, Feed Another line at the same distance to my left with G/bait & dead maggots, Fish caster on the hook over caster on my top kit plus one on a longer line In-front of me being a 4x10 Chanti again on the same line with an 18 PR412 hook & the same distance down to my left under the tree with the same set up on a short line,

 & finally a 3x8 Chanti to fish just off the bank on my top-kit but I only had about 18inches of water a couple of feet off, I had a nugget with Chris but to be honest I would have to pray he didn't catch many & me empty it Lol.

I began the day by feeding two balls of G/bait with caster & worm at 9mts slightly left, Feed a ball with dead reds at the same distance left & fed the other lines by hand with a few casters, I started on the depth rig on my top3 down towards the tree which soon got me a few roach but the were a bit on the small side to begin with. I began to up the amount of casters I was feeding here as a look on the other short lines showed no early signs which got me a few more chunky" roach but no signs of any bonus Perch or Tench, After an hour I had around 4lb but things were starting to show up so it was time to try the longer 9mt lines.

I started over the W/C line with a segment of worm on the hook which got me an 8oz skimmer straight away but only a 4oz skimmer followed a few minutes later I tried dead maggot on the hook on both longer lines but again only another same skimmer so I topped them both up & went back down under the tree this time on the longer line rig set a few inches off the deck, I had another good run of small roach before it went a bit quite & I thought some bigger was present so switched back to fishing on the deck with double caster, I was right a few bubbles appeared before I had a Tench just over 2lb, nothing bigger followed just the odd chunky roach among the smaller size fish.

Back to the 9mt pole & this time I had a skimmer around a 1lb followed again by a smaller 6oz fish but couldn't get a bite over the line I had fed dead reds, I took to long to get indications of fish at 9mts on either bits of worm of caster so again I tried the short lines, I couldn't get a anything In-front of me & could only muster the small roach in my left with the topkit rig over hemp & casters & most of the action seemed to be by the tree for the first few hours, I did manage a monster Perch on single caster & just as I was telling Chris how big it was he looked around just in time for it to shed the hook!" I managed another one about 40minutes later pushing 2lb but the other was bigger for sure, In the last two hours I began to get signs of better fish on my 9mt line with a few bubbles appearing as well as the odd bubble down under the tree, I went back on the shorter lined rig with a piece of worm & had a better 3lb Tench before it went quite again so with 90mins to go decided to try the 9mt lines again.

I had another 1lb skimmer straight away, Then 5mins later I had a flyer" over 2lb, This disturbed thing a little so re-fed it & had another go under the tree with double caster, I was glad I did as I had a 3lb Tench as soon as I went in, Had another of similar size the next dob in before losing another bigger Tench in the inside bank on my left!", I managed another 2lb plus fish shortly after before the roach returned so fed it a bit heavier & went back out to 9mts on the worm. I had a slightly smaller flyer" First put-in again before a couple of 1lb samples followed then the carp arrived" I managed another 3lb Tench down the edge but only another 1lb skimmer on double caster at 9mts & some small roach on the dead maggot line to my right before the all out was called, After taking approx. 10lb of Roach in the first four hours with the odd bonus I thought with the good late run off bonus fish off both lines later in the day had put my weight up to about 30lb? I was first to weigh & was pleased to finish up with just over 36lb of silvers, After a slow few hours catching bits the better fish put a look in & it turned into a really enjoyable days fishing, I fed all but a handful of my two pints of casters most of which went down towards the tree, I only had a palmful left at the end & really I could of done with another half pint as I'm sure I would of at least had another Tench as it wouldn't take them long to mop up what I had fed". In the end I had around 12lb of roach to go with the better fish.

              My Catch.

Back at the results & top weight on the day went to Tony (Sorry didn't get your second name) who took 161lb of carp from peg 119 on Cambell on the bomb & pellet ahead of Chris Fox from peg 80 on Cary also catching on the bomb to finish with 156lb. My weight of Silvers was enough for top on the day ahead of Gary Etheridge who finished up with 32lb odd catching on the waggler with banded pellets. These cost cutters aren't about the money pick-up but the £20 I picked up paid for the day as far as the fishing went, Owe I did get the £1 off Chris as the carp didn't want to play ball at are end today really, He managed four but that wasn't going to be in contention today so cheers mate". I really nice days fishing & if we don't have a drastic change in the weather their should be some good weights come the silvers final a week Saturday. I'm back down here for an open match on Cary this Sunday with no fishing Saturday this week.

Full results -

 1st Tony (Bait-Tech Viaduct) peg 119 Cambell, 161lb 5oz.

2nd Chris Fox (Silverfox) peg 80 Cary, 156lb 6oz.

3rd Adrian Jeffery's (Avon Angling) peg 85 Cary, 142lb 9oz.

4th Paddy (Northen Boys) peg 115 Cambell, 141lb 12oz.

Silvers 

1st Dom Sullivan (Maver) peg 130 Cambell, 36lb 1oz.

2nd Gary Etheridge (P.I.Thatchers) peg 96 Cary, 31lb 5oz. 

    

Viaduct Fishery Silvers League Rd 1 (Cambell,Cary & Lodge)

Woke up with a lot of thought's for my old travelling partner Donald Sutherland today as normally we would be dead keen to get this popular league underway having both had decent results in this last year, Sadly I would be travelling on my own this year but I did take a stop off on route for 5mins to have a good think of the memories. It was certainly a fresher morning of late & arriving at the fishery their was close to a ground frost although it looked like being a pleasant day with the sun breaking through & no wind, Something I hadn't seen at the fishery before were two hot air balloon's overhead as I was getting the kit from the van, I took this pick as it came across the top of Cary Lake,

 It wasn't half fitting for it to read Tribute" I though!.

 

   I hadn't quite got my kit fully prepared rig wise so arrived in plenty of time to assemble a few with a cuppa. A good turn out as always with 51 of us fishing, The talk was either a draw in the 120's on Cambell or the noted rope pegs on Lodge but to be honest I didn't really mind drawing on Cary having done well on it in the first round last year , I shuffled back in the draw queue a little & let a few others dive in before taking my turn, I ended up on Cary but it wouldn't of been a choice peg as I ended up on peg 74 being the first peg up backing on the Cambell lake, I've drawn this in the warmer months but have always targeted Carp as its very shallow with not much more than 3ft of water with the deepest spot off towards the end of the tree at just over 3ft,

 My first rig for here at 12mts was a 0.3 pencil float on 0.13-0.10 & an 16 808 hook where I would fish soft pellets over  fishmeal groundbait & Hard 4mm's, Next up was a 0.2 pencil to fish at 6mts again on 0.13-0.09 & an PR434 hook but I was going to put most of my faith in catching down my inside margins in just over 2ft of water, I didn't think the peg would compete for skimmers as much as some other pegs in the section as my section finished on peg 86 so I had in mind to try & catch roach with the chance of the odd bonus fish so set up three 4x10 chanti on different length's of line so I could work up & down the inside bank all being on 0.13-0.09 & 18 PR412 hooks. I started the day by feeding four balls of fishmeal & some pellets towards the tree at 12mts, Fed a ball of worm/casters at 6mts & began to feed both inside margins, one with casters & the left with casters & a little hemp, Starting down my right hand side I began to catch the odd small roach from 1-3oz but was just feeding 3-4 casters to start with as I was feeding more to the left so I could try & work out the best way to feed,

After an hour I though I had around 4lb of bits with the odd 4-6oz roach but as yet no bonus fish, I had began on the short line rig but already it appeared the fish would sit back after taking a couple from each side, I switched to the slightly longer line rig which saw me add a few more chucky roach & a bonus 1lb hybrid before thins slowed a little.

After 90mins it was time to try my other lines, I stared with a 4mm expander on the 12mt line but after 5mins without a sniff switched to the 6mt line with a small piece of worm, a couple of minutes later I had a 3oz skimmer on dead maggot but that was it, Looking around I hadn't seen to much caught so re-fed the longer lines & concentrated on catching what I could down the edge as I had know idea on what was being caught in my section although I did see the chap above me netting the odd hand size skimmer.

It was a case of catching a couple of fish before having to chase them slightly further along each inside, I kept my eye on those I could see & nobody appeared to be catching much on there longer lines so making the most of the edges was looking a wise choice? I managed a few more chucky roach on the longest lined rig along with a 10oz perch & another 1lb hybrid before I hooked one around 3lb, I know this because as soon as I hooked it swam towards the branches of the tree hanging in the water & for some reason shot out the water straight through the branches!"

Thankfully I only had to add a new hook-length but even worse the next dob-in I hooked a tench over 3lb which shed the hook as I went to net it.."

Back to catching the roach for a while but 20mins later I managed a 2lb tench again down the right hand margin, I had been feeding the left hand side a bit more positive all day & although I would catch the odd fish it was slow most of the day until the last two hours when I began to catch more 3-6oz roach but you would catch a few before they backed off, I did have another try on the longer lines but it didn't happen so stuck to catching what I could back down the edges, I did manage a couple of 6oz perch but mainly it was smaller roach gracing the net, The last 50mins were a struggle as all of a sudden both my insides were showing signs of carp with plumbs of mud wafting up, This really put the smear fish off & pushed them out the swim, I managed a few more roach on the longest line rig away from where I had fed & was thankful of another 1lb hybrid with a minute to go but did manage to hook & trash three rigs before the all out. I was the first in the section to weigh & was pleased with 23lb 12oz, I helped do the section board Whilst Colin Dyer did the scales, Their was another 20lb weight from peg 81 above the spit & a 19lb from peg 78 before Phil (Fabio) Harding put his fish on the scales, Colin called it, 23lb 12oz' then Fabio found a rouch in his keepnet" We added it back in the weigh-net & let the needle settle properly' 23lb 12oz!" So that was it, Fabio & myself ended up joint 1st in the section so the best result for both of us recording a section win in the first round as well as picking up £37.50 each after splitting the section money, Top weight on the day went to Bob Gullick over on peg 124 Cambell with 40lb odd catching on the long & short pole with a few back up weights over 30lb so it fished well really considering the colder night & bright sunny day, I've booked-in in for an open match on Cary next Sunday as I'm taking Saturday off next week so I will decided what to fish for depending on the draw?. An enjoyable but very busy day today, but by working the lines I managed to keep regular small fish going in the net & a result that proved worth while & look forward to the next round in two weeks.

 Winner Bobby G centre, Dan right, & Sam Left.

Full results -

1st Bob Gullick (Mosella) peg 124 Cambell, 40b 14oz.

2nd Dan Squires (Sensas) peg 118 Cambell, 38lb 14oz.

3rd Sam Powell (P.I.Thatchers) peg 115 Cambell, 36lb 10oz.

4th Mark Saunders (Exeter) peg 60 Lodge, 36lb 9oz.

5th Craig Edmonds (Mosella) peg 97 Cary, 36lb 4oz.

6th Matt Tomes (Avon Angling) peg 73 Lodge, 32lb 10oz.

                      

Shiplate Farm (Westpool Lake) John O'Mania"

Once a year we have a small get together for a knock-up between a group of friends which is usually more of a p**s take than anything else, We named it John O'mania as its organised by Lewis's Dad John Jones who will be the first to admit he's more of a deck chair angler than anything" but we always have a right laugh regardless of the fishing.

We met for breakfast at the Copper Kettle in Weston beforehand but I struggled to get it down as I was very worse for wear after a works night out for a game of skittles' which turned out to be a free bar" I didn't go mad mixing drinks but drank my quote of lager!" before deciding to walk home. It wasn't such a great idea as took me around ninety minutes, most of which wasn't in a straight line".

Back to the fishing & John gave me the honours to sort the pegging so we could all be a close as possible I decided to peg it from peg 15 back to peg 5 as their were eleven of us fishing so we would all be in the wider part of canal style lake, Paying the top three & the top silver's weight it spread the money out a bit giving us all something to fish for, I ended up on peg 11 which happened to be one of the widest at 16mts but with little wind it would be easy enough to target some fish tight to the far bank so set up a 0.2g home made slim float on 0.15-0.13 & an 18 PR478 hook to fish in just over a couple of feet of water, Next I set up a 0.2g pencil float on 0.15-0.11 & a 16 808 hook to fish down the track at around 6mts in nearly 4ft of water with a line to the left for pellet & off to my right with caster & Worms.

For company I had resident Steve (Peanut) Howell on peg 10 & once a year specialist Paul (Chimney) Hawkins on peg 12 with Lewis below him on peg 13 so a good laugh was in order'. I started the day feeding a mix of worm n caster on the short right hand swim & fed a small ball of micros off to my left with a few hard 4mm's , I started the day right across with banded 6mm hard pellet feeding hard 4mms with the catty tight to the far bank, In the first 20mins I foul hooked two carp which both came off before getting a 3lb fish in the mouth" it wasn't right though so switched to fishing around 4inches of the deck which produced another fish before I drew the attention of the duck which on this lake do not disappear easily" After 45mins I decided to have a quick look on what I had planed to be my silvers lines starting over the micros with two dead red maggots, I had a 4oz skimmer but the next three fish were two daddy Ruff & a small roach, trying the W/C line with a small piece of worm on the hook only produced a small roach so I was back fishing right across again with banded 6mm, I took a couple more fish before the ducks spoilt it again as you had to feed to get the bites but the noise of the pellets was loved as much by the ducks" Paul had already had us in stiches as it appeared he was happy to feed another bunch down his inside & was cursing like F**k" I switched back to fishing on the deck across this time with a large piece of worm on the hook which got me another smaller carp but it wasn't really working, I tried a couple of areas along the bank where I hadn't fed but that didn't work so after  I noticed some bubbles on the shorter pellet line where I had been feeding a few 4mms by hand it was time to give it another try, I had a near 5lb carp first put-it again on dead red maggot before catching a couple of tiny fish again so decided to try a segment of worm over the top, This got me another 3lb fish before things went a bit quiet, The short caster line still only got me blip fish so I had another try across.

I foul hooked two more carp in the next ten minutes so decided with just over 90mins remaining I would be a bit more positive so fed half a large pot of casters tight across & left it to settle, From what I could see nobody was catching much, Apart from Lewis that is, Who after starting the day on the pellet feeder was now fishing across on the long pole & catching really well, Peanut was now targeting silvers down the track but wasn't catching that much & Paul was still cursing the ducks as well as losing some fish down his deeper margin" It was turning into a comedy show & he had us all in fits.

I spent the last hour switching between the long & short line sticking to worm on the hook, Feeding the casters across seamed to work as I had three chub & the same amount of carp in a 15min period before feeding another decent amount I took a couple more of the short line pushing 5lb which was good fun as I was only using my favourite silvers elastic, Middy 4-6 solid, it was taking a bit longer to net them but I never lost a fish on the set up all day.

Lewis was catching right up to the all-out & we all had him down as the winner & I reckoned on having between 50-60lb which I thought would be pretty good on the day, We started the weigh-in from peg 15 but not much was had before it was Lewis's turn, He finished up with 110lb out which would easily see him win the day taking most of his fish on hard 6mm's tight across on the deck feeding the same so well done again to him,

 Lew with part of his winning catch.

 Paul was still on one" before weighing in & finished the day with 21lb odd before my total weight with 3lb odd of silvers went 60lb odd, Peanut finished up catching a few carp down the track to go with his silvers for a total of 38lb, But it turned out his mere 5lb odd was enough to pick up the silvers pool with Manchester George picking up last in the main pool by default with 22lb odd, I had an enjoyable day really, It wasn't hectic but by having a bit of a play around day I ended up 2nd picking up £40 which more than paid for the day, Lewis managed to snap a top kit & Johns friend mick managed to break his pole losing the top two on a carp in the process but all round we had a right good banter with all of us getting ribbed at some stage' A good bit of fun & a laugh.

Off to viaduct tomorrow for the first round of this years silvers league which I'm looking forward to & hopefully I wont get plagued by carp".

Full result -

1st Lewis Jones (Drennan Thyers) peg 13, 110lb 2oz, £50.

2nd Dom Sullivan (Maver) peg 11, 60lb 8oz, £40.

3rd Steve Howell (Shiplate Farm) peg 10, 38lb 12oz.

4th  Manchester George (Moss Side Hard Nuts) peg 5, 24lb 1oz, £30.

5th Paul Hawkins (British Duck Breeders) peg 12, 21lb

Silvers - Steve Howell , peg 10, 5lb 10oz, £45.