River Huntspill (Super league) Sunday 22nd July.

Well its that time of the year again" I managed to get in on this round of the super league guesting for the local Sensas 88 team ran by Lance Tucker, only seven teams of seven fishing but always the chance of landing on a few of the resident bream" the areas to be fished were a section at gold corner, Four sections above woolavington & two sections below, I had managed to have a few hours on The first section below woolavington a week of so ago & had one big skimmer on the tip & plenty of rudd on the pole but bites on the pole can be hard when their a match on for some reason? Lance came back with the draw sheet for the team & spookily I ended up on the peg next door to where I had practiced! It wasn't classed as a match winning area but I remember it being quite fair when I drew the same area last year" The end pegs tend to dominate & with Martin Barrett from Thatchers on the first peg & Dave Mickalright" for Gordon League on the other end peg we would see? I had Steve (Stretch) Sanders Between Myself & Martin Who is always good company & the banter was flowing as we all set up. Quite simple really, I planned to fish the feeder 3/4 of the way across & had a selections of baits' Worms, Red Worms, Maggots, casters, dead maggots, Squats' you name it! & set up two pole rigs, One being a 0.3g rig in 5ft of water with an 0.10 bottom to a 20hook for small fish, The other being a 0.6g rig with an 0.11 bottom & a size 20hook to fish on the deck in the hope of some eels later in the day? I started the day cupping in a small ball of chopped worm on the pole line at 13mts, & had half a dozen quick chucks on the feeder to get a bit of bait on the bottom being a mix of chopped worms, a few casters some dead red maggots & some live Squatts, I added the hook-length & started with three dead red maggots on a size 16 B611 hook, I was surprized as I had a bite after a few minutes, It was a skimmer but not massive, I had done a major weed clearing job with the cutter before the start but had odiously missed a bit" I picked my landing net up to see a 1lb plus skimmers shed the hook as the feeder went around the weed! Great Start"...

Back out I was quite confident it would go round again, It did but I was a bit quick & bumped it off straight away" Third chuck I had calmed down & was ready... That was it, No more bites' I looked around & Steve, Martin & Andy Price below me were yet to get indications. It was time to start switching the baits from bits of worm, Cocktails Or even a small bunch of red worms but still nothing. On the hour mark with nobody catching it was time to try the pole where I had been feeding a few casters over the top with the catty & topped it up twice with small balls of worm twice more, I started on single white maggot expecting it to go straight under but it took a few minutes to induce a bite, A 3oz perch" but at least I had caught' Back out & a minute later I turned to see Andy playing a decent fish on the feeder, I looked to tell Steve Just as he struck into a fish! Soon Back out on the feeder this time with two bits of dendra on the hook which I switched to a size 14 after seeing Andy Net a bream over 5lb" first cast & it landed bang on' I joked with Steve that this cast was the one to catch up, Two minutes later I was playing a better fish which turned out to be a skimmer around 2lb safely netted with no weed issues" Buzzing now as you always think your going to get another, Nope.. no more indications, I had upped the loose feed on the pole in the hope of catching eels if need be as Steve netted another decent skimmer & within 90mins gone it looked like who was going to catch the most on the feeder?? It looked like Andy's Fish was a flash in the pan as a couple of hours later it was the same result, I hadn't had another indication on the feeder & with an hour to go had a 2oz skimmer on the pole but that was it, It clouded over slightly from the red hot day going into the last 45mins & I thought it might spur a few fish to feed on the tip, It didn't happen, I even took the clip off a few times in the day to search past the feed but it didn't help, They just didn't appear to be in-front of us as martin on the end peg went from last in the section to first when a few fish arrived in his swim later in the day on his feeder line. When the match finished Andy Had added a blade skimmer to his bream I had a decent skimmer, a blade, one perch an one 2oz rudd! , Steve had finished with the two bigger skimmers & two small blades so we hadn't exactly emptied it! Dave Was first to weigh on the far end peg & fished with 6lb 4oz, Next to him Ditch had 6lb 2oz, There was a 3lb weight before Andy's Bream & 2oz skimmer went 5lb 11oz' My fish totalled a massive 2lb 11oz", Stretch finished with 6lb 3oz before Martin Who landed a bream on the whistle finished with 11lb 4oz to easily win the section, So stone last for me Lol, Theirs one thing I will say though, Gone are the days of ever putting a weight of eels together like you used too as a back up plan, There just not getting caught anymore, Are section didn't have one eel & back at the results it seemed they were void in most sections except for the odd eel at the top end of the river. Don't know what more I could of done today to try & induce some bites on the tip but most of the day was sat motionless on the tip for all of us. back at the results I wasn't the only one in the team to suffer a last in the section as Lance had the same result as Did Paul Nichols so we didn't feel so bad after, On the opposite side of the coin though WE had the top two individuals on the day" Tony Goodland won the match from further up the river with 73lb of bream on the feeder" & travelling partner Punjab! was second overall from the next section opposite him with 66lb of bream on the feeder! Well done Lads" Just a shame I don't seem to draw these breamy filled sections on this place! Lol. Thatchers won the day & are leading the league with three rounds to go, Another match on here this Sunday & two rounds on the Bristol Avon, I still enjoyed the day, Good company & we had the added bonus of a nice breeze on an otherwise red hot day, There's always the chance of a few pull rounds on the venue, We just weren't in the right section today, The section below us was won with 14lb odd but the better weights all came from further up the river, I was going to be in for this weeks round but shot myself in the foot as I pulled out hoping to pair up with Paul Nichols for the two day event at Trinity waters but his partner still wants to fish so having a weekend off this week, Tight Lines..               

Landsend Fishery (John's Lake) Sat 21st July.

Last Saturday I headed to Landsend Fishery , When I arrived I found out it was on the third lake (Johns) I think? I haven't fished this lake for around what must be ten years so fancied the change & with another hot day forecast. A good turn out with 14 fishing, Ken Raynor tried to get in as a late arrival which beany was in the middle of sorting before Ken decided to turn around & go, We did have a giggle when Rod Wotton sang to the tune of he's going home, He's going home before a few of us joined in to add Kenny's going home!, It was a laugh but no harm intented Ken' Lol. Into the draw & I ended up on peg 58, the end peg on the far bank, I was told it was a good draw so hoped to catch a few? I got to the peg & there were already fish cruising right on the top so a mugging rig was first out the bag, I had the end of an island at 14mts so plumed up to find 2ft of water tight over but then found out it was only that depth all the way across the lake" You could see on the islands the levels were right down, It made it quite simple though as I didn't have to set many rigs up! the same 0.2 island rig would also double up to fish down the right edge around a metre off the bank, I could get closer to the bank but it meant standing up to fish over the bush but in the heat I just didn't fancy doing that unless I had too"

I had venue regular Russ Peck above me on peg 61 & Rich Lovering opposite me on peg 55 but he couldn't reach the point of the island. I started straight out trying to mug some cruising fish but after missing one take that was it & they just wouldn't have it & soon went from the surface with just the odd fish poking there head up, I gave it 30mins before switching to the island with the rig set half depth to start with pinging a few 6mms over the top with banded 8mm on the hook, I eventually had a 2lb fish but it wasn't happening for me, I decided to start feeding the edge with decent amounts of hemp & a bit of meat & just feed the odd pellet down the left hand side of my swim, I switched to fishing on the deck across this time cad potting a few pellets in, This got me another 3lb fish but then all I could get were odd foul hooked fish, I tried shallow around the point of the island where I could see fish backing off but with not being able to fish it wasn't helping my cause, I did hook one after swinging the rig in but it missed the hook boiling right over & causing a right commotion which put pay to that" after a couple of hours baking in the sun I was beginning to feel really hydrated, I had forgot take a cold drink & was sipping my flask to keep me going, I couldn't get it to work across so decided I would have a look down the edge on meat & if I didn't get early signs I was going to contemplate calling it a day as I didn't want to make myself ill, Typical, No sooner had I put the rig in I hooked a fish which turned out to be around 7lb" Rich had taken a coupe of fish & Russ could be heard netting a few but they seemed smaller stamp? back down the edge & ten minutes later I had another around 6lb but it really stirred the swim up with doubles of silt coming up everywhere! I had a feeling this would kill it for a while so had to feed a decent amount & wait for fish to return whilst trying other lines.

It did work for a few more carp including one on the whistle but I knew it wouldn't be enough to do much good as Russ seemed to catch the odd fish though the day & Rich had netted a few better lake fish but at least I made it to the end" I went to Russ after the whistle to see if he had a cold drink left, He handed me a bottle of water he had spare which lasted a few seconds & I was very grateful of! Leon Hubbard won the day from the first peg on the opposite bank with 62lb of smaller carp so well done mate & Russ finished second with 57lb so well done their, I ended up with 35lb odd, Most of which were down the edge, perhaps I should of fed the same to me left but I didn't really have enough to do so! Lol, Still enjoyed it being the first time on here for years & with a bit more depth to play with would of caught a few more I'm sure.

1st Leon Hubbard (Mosella Bathampton) peg 41, 62lb.

2nd Russ Peck (Thatchers Tackle) peg 61, 57lb 14oz.

3rd Mark Walsh (Acorn) peg 51, 53lb 11oz.

4th Alan Oram (Dynamite Baits) peg 46, 53lb 10oz.

5th Rich Lovering (Clevedon A.A) peg 55, 51lb 14oz.           

Acorn Fishery (Thursday Evening) Paddock Lake,

Bit late with this one sorry but would love to say I bagged up, Only ten of us but plenty of room & I ended up on peg 38, well had to move up one so peg 39 as 38 was in need of some repair" I didn't really fancy it to be fair but gave it nearly the full three hours before calling it a day with around 15lb" My lowest summer weight ever on this venue but I just couldn't suss it today, I ended up with signs of fish on every line I fed but as soon as I went near them they were gone! Maybe the wrong choice of baits today but that's the way it goes & enjoy the pleasant evening we had. Well done to Mark Walsh on winning the evening with 136lb odd from peg 12 ahead of Matt Culpin on peg 19 with 111lb, before two other 110lb weighs so it fished well really, Must of done something wrong! Lol.

Shiplate Farm Pairs Match (Canal Lakes) Sunday.

I ended up fishing this pairs event on Hawthorn & Westpool Lakes with team mate Gado Skarba, Ten pairs fishing & the format was you could choice what lake you each wanted to fish with the winners picking up a decent £200, Even The Gabo hadn't fished Westpool before he was happy to try it so it meant I would be on Hawthorns. I did the draw for us picking peg 12 which I was happy with & it meant Gabo had what I would say was a decent draw on Westpool.

I planned to keep it simple, A pellet line across to the far bank in 18inches of water, & a groundbait line to my left slightly again tight to the bank both 0.2g Stu Bartlett floats which are ideal & strong! both on 0.17-0.15 & size 16 hooks, one with a hair to fish hard pellet. I had a rig to fish on the deck down the edge in nearly 5ft of water on my topkit plus one section, I had a theory I wanted to try as I know you can catch shallow but it can be hit & miss & frustrating" & finally a small clear dibber for dobbing around or shallow down the edge if need be. My day involved around hard pellets across to the right, worm over G/bait to the left, & meat/hemp down the edges & down the track.

I started the day potting a full cup of G/bait over & a handful of hard 4mms on the pellet line, Fed a decent pot of hemp down my left edge with around a dozen cubes of meat. There were a few shadows lurking around so I started the day trying to dob a bit of meat of their noses before the disappeared, I did miss one bite but Resident peanut Howell below me on peg 10 was already catching on his favoured worm over Groundbait across so I soon followed suit', It wasn't long before I had a fish which was around 5lb, I had a 3lb fish hooked in the face ten minutes later but it wasn't happening, peanut was catching well but despite adding more G/bait across I couldn't get it to work? Onto the far pellet line & I foul hooked one fish after 10mins after cad potting a few hard 4mm over the top but again it wasn't happening, Jonny Page above me also appeared to be struggling so it wasn't just me but he said he would be winning the silvers race' I began to ping a few hard 4mms further left off the end of the grass which eventully show some signs of fish so went shallow on the dibber rig with meat & hook one straight away but after a couple more missed bites they were gone again, It wasn't happening at this stage & after nearly three hours I had around 15lb in the net! I had continued to feed decent amounts down the left edge of hemp & a few bits of meat & noticed it was bubbling away' Time to try it again after having a failed attempt earlier & this time I had a fish on 8mm meat within seconds around 6lb" I hooked another decent fish shortly after which I stupidly let get back in the edge & it took me behind the tree stump further along the bank! I did lose the hooklenght & fish but got the rig back, no more here so fed another decent amount & had another go over the G/bait line across as Peanut was still doing well with it, I couldn't get it to happen, All I could muster was the odd skimmer" with just over a couple of hours to go I started to put the odd fish in the net most of which were between 5-7lb, It seemed best to have a couple of fish then re-feed another decent amount, Just as I thought I would soon put a decent weight together with an hour to go & added another net just Encase the wheels came off slightly, I targeted around ten fish in the last year but fell a bit short as I only managed four but they were a decent size, I had two down the left edge on the heavy fed line & two down the right where I had fed lightly with the odd cube of meet by hand in the last couple of hours, Steve's peg had slowed up across in the last hour but Pagey above me was really motoring in the last hour & it turned out he was catching really shallow down his right edge on maggots but he fed a bit" Ten Pints! Lol, I hadn't a clue what weight I had but guessed around 70-80lb? I hadn't used the clicker as I was well behind peanut & was more concerned about trying to catch" John Hawkins was first to weigh on peg 15 of are lake ending up with 61lb odd, Pagey was next & finished with 109lb odd & I didn't think I had anything near that, My fish were bigger than I thought, My last four went 28lb odd to see me pip pagey with 112lb odd' Peanut was next & did well on his worn method again to finish with 121lb odd but Top weight on are lake was Rich Hawkins from peg 3 catching down his edge to finish with 129lb odd, I had heard Gabo had done well On westpool & with the overall winners being decided on weight it looked to be a close affair, So it proved as are total weight of 196lb 8oz was just enough to beat John Page & Titch Williams on 185lb odd winning us the nice pick-up of £100 each' A good day all round & the weathers still holding up, I'm back on The River Huntspill for the next couple of weeks Guesting for the Sensas 88 Team for the next couple of rounds of the super league which I'm looking forward too.

Full Results -

1st Rich Hawkins (Wormheads) peg 3 Hawthorns, 129lb 10oz.

2nd Steve Howell (Shiplate) peg 10 Hawthorns, 121lb. 

3rd Dom Sullivan (Mosella UK) peg 12 Hawthorns, 112lb 4oz.

4th John Page (Thyers Tackle) peg 13, 109lb 12oz.

5th Tom Thick (Tom Thick Baits) peg 1 Hawthorns, 98lb 2oz.

Pairs -

1st Dom Sullivan & Gado Skarba 196lb 8oz. £200

2nd John Page & Titch Wiliams  185lb 11oz. £100

3rd Julian Pinkett & John Hawkins 175lb 14oz. £80        

      

Colmic V Shipate Farm (Shiplate Main Lake).

I was asked by owner Steve to represent the home side for this fun event between fourteen of us, It was another warm day with temperatures expect to rise to 29", Their was a nice breeze blowing down the lake for a change when we arrived so was really hoping to draw in it for a change as I know it can make a difference on this lake except for stating the obvious pegs 1 & 15 that is, Although each side could only end up with one of these so that lessened my hopes even more" Lol, Are team consisted of Groundbait Guru Tom Thick, (More on him Later") His Dad as a last minute stand-in which was grateful, Star man Gary O'Shea, Venue Regulars Titch Williams & Gary Finders, Viaducts Dave White, good Mate Young Lewis Jones & Myself, The format was we would all be next to one of the other team spread around the lake & the idea was you beat your man & those who came out on top would win the day'

Titch did draw for the A or B pegs then we drew for are own numbers, I was gutted to be honest as I drew peg three at the end of the island which can be good, Even Mr Rixon will tell you that' The problem was the wind was howling at him that day which the fish loved but today with the wind blowing down from the north east it was flat calm & hot" & we didn't start until noon! Just to make it worse Mark Poppleton was on peg 2 but had some breeze in his edge going back towards peg 1 & I fancied him to catch there later in the day, He would be my guy to beat as pegs 1 & 15 were put together but knew it would be hard too today. Quite a simple set up, A bomb rod, Small method feeder rod, Pellet waggler,  Yet again it looked like I would have arms like Popeye by the end of the day as I found myself setting up 17mts of pole to fish to the island, Getting to old for this distance" Lol, two rigs, One to fish tight to the bank, 0.2g, 0.17-0.15, 16 hook & a smaller dibber styled swinging rig which I could fish in the slightly deeper water off the island if need be on the same line. Owe & a rig to fish just off the rocks in the slightly deeper water to my left down the edge at 12mts.

I decided on the all-in I would feed a decent amount of corn & pellets down the edge straight away, It was flat calm here so didn't expect many fish to be there so hoped to draw a few fish in by feeding odd bits by hand over the top through the day, I went straight across to the island in the shallow water with banded 8mm pellet feeding a few hard 6mms with the catty, I spooked a carp after 10mins but no more signs, Except for two small roach which went flying" I had began pinging a few hard 8mm's off the end of the island & after another 10mins switched to fishing the conker" (Paste wrapped around banded 8mm) on the bomb rod off the end of the island, I had four pull rounds in the next 20mins' Shame they were all skimmers around 12oz-1lb...

I tried off the point in the deeper water but still nothing, I even tried the method over the same line but just another skimmer, I decided to have a go on the shallow wagg past the point where I could see the odd fish cruising around in the sun, Well" they were their until I chucked to them! the Chap the other side of the bush had netted one carp shallow & the pegs below him seemed to be producing a few but they all had a ripple on the water" So frustrating I just couldn't get signs off carp, Mark had netted around three carp from across by the halfway stage but not from my direction" I kept trying all my lines, Even had a go in the deeper water at 16mts but still nothing, I kept feeding across off the point & the pole line & with around 90mins to go saw a tail on the mud line, straight across again on banded pellet I had carp pushing 12lb, At Last!, I hooked another 10mins later but it was fouled & came off straight away, That was it for the moment, I continued to feed it quite heavy & had another look down the edge I had fed all day, This time it hadn't even settled before I had a fish, A 2b Tench.. No carp.

Back across I had a fish around 10lb after 15mins of trying & with an hour to go thought I had a chance of catching mark up who was now catching down his edge", It wasn't to be, I had another around 6lb with 20mins left & missed a bite at the end, Nothing down my edge or off the point for the rest of the match.

Back at the results & it had fished harder on the far back except for peg 15 of course" But it was Dave White on are side so that's ok' but most of are team had beat are men, Back on are side Mark Wynne faired best with 92lb off peg 6, I ended with three carp for 28lb & 6lb of silvers which wouldn't compete with mark who finished with 61lb odd but a good team result come the end as it finished 5-2 in are favour, Money wise we all picked up as it was spread between the whole team so after are pools money back we gained £13 each" With Lewis & myself dually spend on a giant steak burger on the way home in the pub!"

I did attempt to attend the open on Westpool on the Sunday but it was limited to ten pegs which I didn't quite understand as in the cooler months last year I drew dreaded winter peg 2 & was between pegs 1 & 3 that day with just one empty peg on the 15 peg lake.. So off home after are hearty meal" for a few more Tinny's with no Sunday fishing. Not sure if I'm fishing this weekend, The footy's on Sat Afternoon so that's a must watch & next week I'm off to Manor Farm fishery for a few days which is a much needed break & should be a good laugh.

Full Results -

1st Dave White (Shiplate) peg 15, 93lb 8oz.

2nd Mark Wynne (Colmic) peg 6, 92lb 12oz.

3rd Ken Raynor (Colmic) peg 1, 85lb 4oz.

4th Gary Finders (Shiplate) peg 5, 66lb 4oz.

5th Mark Poppleton (Colmic) peg 2, 61lb 6oz. 

Shiplate Farm 5pts

Colmic 2pts.              

Shiplate Farm (Main Lake Open).

It was already a warm sunny start for the day with the late draw of 10.30am fishing from 12 til 6, There appeared to be some breeze blowing along the lake from the north & I fancied to catch a few if fortunate enough to draw in it? Seventeen of us with a couple of late drop outs so still a good match, Into the draw praying for the flyers or a peg on the far side for a change, I got my wish but not a peg I fancied, Being peg 10, its around 18mts across to the island, I didn't have much wind against it so had two rigs one to fish just off in 3ft or so of water & a swinging rig to go tight to the bank, I had put my box in the water to try & take some length off but still had 17mts & the dolly but added" It would be hard work but would know if fish turned up. I really fancied catching a few down the right hand edge around 10mts where it was around 20inches deep, so had a 0.2g rig on 0.17-15 & an 14 PR36 hook, it was the same depth to my left on my top kit plus one section so would feed this lightly, Apart from this I had a rig to fish the open water at 12mts being a 4x12 Roob on 0.17-0.13 & a 16 pellet hook wher I had around 4ft of water, I did get the small method" feeder rod out just in case.

On the all in I fed some micros & hard 4mms at 12mts in the open water, fed a decent amount of hard 6mms down the right edge with a pinch of corn added & with no wind to contend with went straight across just on the deck with banded hard 8mm feeding hard 6mms with the catty, I gave it around 40mins changing depth ect but with no indications I had to give it a rest at this distance its got to be worth while for me to sit on it. I Decided to have a quick look on the open water line with 6mm expander on the hook, I had a 8oz skimmer in seconds then missed a few dodgy bites which then resulted in a blade skimmer which fell off", I had to have a rethink. I decided to start pinging some hard 8mms off the point of the island back towards peg 9 inline with the aerator on peg 8, I gave it twenty minutes chucking the small method feeder over the top which resulted in just another 8oz skimmer, It appeared Kurt Pinkett next to me was also struggling for bites although he did have some breeze blowing into the end of his island & some signs of fish there, I continued to feed across to the island regularly with decent amounts of hard 6mms & kept looking for signs of fish along the mud line, I tried the open water again but nothing so a couple of hours in it was time to try the edge, I had topped it up a couple of times so went in on banded 8mm to start with, No early signs so I added a cad pot & switched to corn on the hook cad potting around ten grains over the top, It wasn't long before I saw a vortex in the edge & not long after the float shot under, It was a decent fish around 10lb which fought like mad! I went back in but no more signs so fed a larger pot of corn & 6mm pellet & left it to rest, I went back across to the island just off the deck when a tail appeared, A few minutes later I hooked a fish which I got back to the top kit before realising it was fouled & came off but it wasn't big, I gave it another 20mins & not a sign of fish, I could see a few in Kurt's swim but they wouldn't come round the point into the calmer water I had across, I tried on the in the deeper water off the island but still nothing, I would continue to feed it just encase they racked up in the last couple of hours? Back down the edge I had been continuing to feed a bit by hand & a few minutes later had a fish around 5lb on corn followed by a 6lb fish ten minutes later, I thought I was going to bag up but with no more signs fed a decent amount again, I had been dropping just a few hard 8mms down my left edge & gave it a go but was getting bitted out by small fish, I had kept pinging a few hard 8mm off the point & even tried the straight lead over it but nothing, I had another down the edge after seeing another vortex & going into the last hour would hope for a few more.

The lovely wife turned up with 50mins to go & I hooked a beast moment later, I had it out in the open water for a while before she asked how it was going, I didn't want to answer before netting it but seconds later it pulled out coming back with just a scale so didn't expect to get it in really, I switched to cad potting around a dozen grains which resulted in two more carp before the all out but did lose a double figure fish at the net when the pan frame snapped as I went to net it snapping my hook length!. Kurt's peg came alive in the last hour as the fish he had off the point swirling got there heads down as he caught on the method but there was only going to be one winner today when Rich Hawkins drew peg 15 & I was write as he romped the day with 122lb odd so well done to him, there were a couple of 60lb weights before I had 3lb odd of silvers & six carp for 45lb odd.

Back at the results & Kurt had come second with 62lb so just a fish or two between the back up weights, Julian Pinkett won the silvers from peg 4 with 18lb odd, I had quite an enjoyable day in the end, no signs of fish across right up to the end of the day, they just didn't want to come around the island with no wind infront of me it seemed, back on here next Saturday guesting for a Shiplate farm V Colmic match again on the main lake, Seven anglers on each side so a bit of room so lets see what happens. 

Full Results -

1st Rich Hawkins (Wormheads) peg 15, 122lb 14oz.

2nd Kurt Pinkett (Wormheads) peg 11, 62lb.

3rd John Hawkins (Wormheads) peg 5, 61lb 2oz.

4th John Dursley (Taunton Angling) peg 2, 58lb 14oz.

5th John Page (Drennan Thyers) peg 12A, 58lb 12oz.

6th Dom Sullivan (Mosella UK) peg 10, 48lb 12oz.

Silvers -

1st Julian Pinkett (Wormheads) peg 4, 18lb 8oz.

2nd Ray Wickham (Summerhayes) peg 3, 13lb 6oz.

      

Johno's Match Shiplate Farm (Squirl Pool)

Another one of Johno's Knock-ups with the lads which are always a laugh although he doesn't participate as he leaves me to do the whole set up including the weigh-in" Lol. Ten of us on what looked to be another glorious day so just happy to make the most of it", I sorted the pegging & ended up on peg 10 between Jinx Mick" on peg 9 & Jim Dounty on peg 11 just around the corner slightly, A rope separated are pegs but wasn't to worried as I planed just to keep it simple & fish up & down the far shelf to the island around 12mts, I had a rig to fish tight to the bank which was only around 10inches deep being a small dibber float & 0.2g rig to fish down the shelf at 11mts in 3ft of water.

I started the day not feeding & went tight over on meat, I did miss a bite but then hooked a roach so out went a decent pot of G/bait & I switched to worm on the hook, I had a carp around a 1lb but the fish were easily spooked, It didn't really go to plan for the first 90mins, I messed around trying to catch across, Had two or three 2lb fish but lost more foul hooked, it was taking to long & it appeared nobody was catching at are end of the lake so I switched to the deeper line with soft pellet on the hook, I had bites straight away from small 4-8oz carp & goldfish' but at least I was catching, I continued to top the far side up with pots of G/bait & started to ping bits of meat with the catty over the top whilst fishing the deeper water, The rest of the match was spent waiting for fish to appear across where I would drop in & nick the odd fish to 2lb, I had a good run here later in the day putting around 15lb of fish in the net in around 20mins before it slowed again at the end of the match, I thought I had around 45- 50lb but peanut Howell down on peg 2 with peg 3 empty who we couldn't see was sure to have had a few. So it proved as he admitted to 50lb but weighed 68lb odd, so looked the easy winner today, most seemed to have struggled before I put 48lb on the scales so close to my guess' Again the pegs above me didn't produce to well so hard for most but a good laugh all day was had by all" I picked up £45 so will pay for my match on the main lake today, Hoping the lake will have some breeze on it or it could be hard for some with the warm conditions but we will see".

1st Steve Howell (Shipate Farm) peg 2, 68lb 6oz.

2nd Dom Sullivan (Mosella UK) peg 10, 48lb 12oz.

3rd Jim Douty (Weston Angling) peg 11, 16lb.

4th Andy Light (Shiplate Farm) peg 12, 13lb 14oz.       

Chiltern Trinity (Ash Lake).

I had a message at the beginning of the week to say Titch Williams was running a match on the canal lake at Chiltern Trinity, I have only ever fished here once a few years ago in the winter & it was shite' but was looking forward to having a go in the warmer months but didn't really know what to expect. Was having second thoughts when I found out their were only five of us fishing! but me & the kit were ready so decided to at least have a go, Titch had to peg us around some pleasure anglers as no pegs were reserved for us" He had to peg a few either side of the bridge which leads over to the main lake but I did make a point of saying not to put one of them in as it was a jungle on the far side, We had the draw & off I went to my peg above the bridge, Low & behold where was I? In the F*****G jungle peg!!" I couldn't believe it, Titch had drawn below me & had a lovely clear far bank to fish to, as were the next few pegs above me & their I was with a bank of reeds to fish against, Don't get me wrong it looked fishy with a bay off to my right but to go anywhere near it would be suicidal as it had a tree hanging into it & stick-ups all over the place, I wanted to chuck the kit back in the van & do one but after parting with my £20 I had to give it a try but had that gut feeing it was going to end in disaster"??, I think Titch thought the two pegs above me were reserved but they weren't as I sat there setting up cussing the fact I could of been on one of them."

I kept it simple, A rig to fish as close to the far bank reeds as I could in 18inches of water where I found a small area around 4mts from the bay & hoped it to be far enough to be safe enough to steer them clear but had my doubts' I had a rig to fish a couple of feet back towards me in the deeper water around 3-4ft & finally a rig to fish down the edge.

This Is How My Day Went!"

I started with banded hard 6mm pellet set a couple of inches off the deck tight over, cad potting a few of the same to begin with as I didn't really know what to expect, I had bites straight away with a few carp to 2lb in the net before I had a battle with a bigger fish which was desperate to get in the snags but got it in around 5lb, A few more small fish in the next 45mins before I had a fish pushing 8lb, I basically hooked it & shipped straight back to my top kit to stop it doing me" Things slowed down after this, but when I did hook a fish they were of better size but everyone made a run for the bay area which cost me a whole rig & a few hook lengths in the process, Titch had managed just two carp & was struggling but below him John page had netted a few, I was already boiling up with the pain of trying to stop the fish when a couple of hours in the inevitable happened" I hooked a lump which bolted into the bay behind the tree branch & before I could even react, BANG" the pole touched the tree snapping my number 4 section clean in half !!!, The fish buried itself under the stick-ups the other side of the tree leaving my top kit, plus the number 4 sticking out the lake". Now I was really P****D Off'...

I couldn't do anything about it at this stage but hoped to retrieve it at the end of the day, The rest of the day was slow fishing but I was still hooking the odd fish but the ratio was around 3 lost to one netted! With around an hour to go I had another decent fish dive in the stick-ups behind the tree, I managed to keep the pole out but it was now tethered around them causing a right commotion & just as I thought it couldn't get any worse it disturbed the fish which appeared to be tethered to the sections I lost earlier & it disappeared" I managed a couple more before the all out was called which I was very pleased to here for a change' I assumed the sections hadn't gone far so after asking for the boat which couldn't be used had to do the inevitable & dive in! I got into the bay area & retrieved a top kit, Just a shame it wasn't mine!" I had a good feel around but nope' it had disappeared...

Well what a day that was.. I managed to win the day with 49lb odd & john was 2nd with 33lb so I picked up £45 in the process, Just a shame the true price of the day would cost me around £250 to replace the three sections! well that wont be happening anytime soon so the high-light of my day was a couple of pints to calm my nerves in the Bristol Bridge Pub on the way home with a few Lads who had been fishing the two day event on the other lake" I shouldn't get wound up but today was totally avoidable if I had just been slightly further up on one of the other free pegs" I Knew from the start the jungle peg was going to be testing, It was that alright & expensive in the process!!

1st Dom Sullivan (Mosella UK) peg 17, 49lb 12oz.

2nd John Page (Drennan Thyers) peg 15, 33lb 2oz.            

Landsend Fishery (Saturday Open) Match Lake.

Time for a change of scenery for me so at the last minute I gave owner Mike Duckett a ring to book-in, It looked like being a fair day weather wise still warm with the risk of a shower, I arrived in plenty of time to enjoy a bacon & sausage sarnie in the on-site café which was very nice' I didn't really mind where I drew as its been sometime since I've been here so just hoped for a days fishing' Into the draw & out come's peg 18/19 which meant I had the choice of which swim to fish either side of the split between the island on the far bank, I opted for peg 18 as it was a bit easier to fish the edges & I also had the edge of the island at 16mts. I set up two of Stu Bartlett's hand made 0.2g, one on 0.17-0.15 & an 18 PR36 hook to fish around a 1ft off the bank but it was shallow around 12 inches, the other on 0.15-0.13 to fish in the deeper water a few feet off the bank in nearly 3ft of water, I had a 4x12 chanti on 0.17-0.15 & a 16 hook to fish at 7mts down the track to my left in 4ft of water, & finally a 0.2g AS4 float to fish down doth edges again at 7mts to the left & 5mts to the right where I had a tree stump in the water to fish towards both swims just over 2ft deep.

On the all in I fed some hard 6mms down the left edge, Fed a decent amount of the same across to the island & began down the track on meat feeding just a couple of cubes by hand, I had a bite after as couple of minutes which I managed to miss" but had another soon after & netted a 5lb carp so up & running' I gave it another 15mins or so but added just a couple of roach so time to look across.

I started on banded hard 8mm cad-potting a few hard 6mms over the top, I managed an early fish on this but started to miss bites? I went a couple on inches shallower & began to ping some 6mms with the catty over the top, Again it worked & I had another then it appeared the fish were spooking all over the place across & I lost a couple of foul hookers, This didn't seem right & I was going knowhere fast, I changed to fishing tighter in to the island again with 8mm banded pellet this time cad-potting a few hard 8mms over the top, This proved best for a while adding a few more before I started to get fish in the swim but couldn't hook any", Around halfway through I had had a look down the edges but was getting bitted out with the float dibbing up & down so switched to feeding just a few hard 8mms by hand every now & again, No more fish on the meat line so had to try & catch a few more across at this stage.

I decided to switch to hard 6mm in the band & came off the point of the island where I hadn't fed with the rig set around a 1ft deep, I began by just swing the rig in to start with & after a couple of goes I was in! another fish around 5lb soon followed by another around 4lb" I continued to ping a few hard 8mms closer to the island & every now & then dropped in to pinch the odd fish, I started to slap the rig off the point without feeding here & although it wasn't hectic I began to add the odd carp, It was to good to be true though & from nowhere the wind got up & was howling down the lake" I even got an extension out to take the pole to 17mts to give me some more balance but I was spending more time just trying to hold it still for a few seconds before getting spun round on the box than I did putting anything in the net, It was so frustrating as I knew the fish were still their but just couldn't present the rig! I had no chance of trying tight to the island without hooking the foliage, Which I managed a few times! I wasted nearly an hour trying to make it work really before I had to give up for the time being.

I had been feeding the edge with the odd hard 8mm pellet so had to give it a try, I started to the left & within a minute had a 4lb fish the nothing so dropped in on the right edge again with 8mm pellet, Again an instant fish before I pulled out of another just after hooking it which caused a commotion" I had continued to feed the track/meat line with the odd cubes & gave it another try but missed just one bite, I managed another carp from either edge before one took me the wrong side off the tree stump on the right snapping my elastic in the process" with 20mins to go the wind dropped a little so I went back off the point shallow again on 6mm pellet, as soon as I gave it a couple of slaps I was in' & had a fish around 7lb the wind picked up again slightly but I managed one more before the all out just a shame the wind hadn't stayed off for the last few hours as I feel I would have done well without even having to feed off the point, Come the end I had 76lb on the clicker which today I thought would be close, I didn't really know what had been caught but I knew Eric Fouracre on peg 5 had done ok as he began the day catching some F1's on worm across then added some better carp through the day.

I gave Beany" a hand with the weigh board whilst he did the scales, Rod Wotton had a few carp & 14lb of silvers from peg 2, Eric had 20lb of mainly F1's which count as silvers here to add to his 59lb of carp for a total of 79lb odd, Weighing around the rest of the lake the weights were quite close as there were a few 60lb weights before it got to me, I had a massive 11oz of silvers to add to my carp & it was close by I just pipped Eric to finish with 80lb odd, Ray had 16lb of silvers & a few carp above me before Stu Barnett was last to weigh on end peg 24, He admitted having a great last 30mins adding what turned out to be 39lb of carp to go with his earlier fish & 6lb of silvers to finished with 85lb winning the day so well done to him, It turned out to be a close match with just one fish separating the top three, happy to finish 2nd picking up £40along the way & will be back for another go soon I'm sure.

Full Results -

1st Stu Barnett (Landsend/S.B.Floats) peg 24, 85lb14oz.

2nd Dom Sullivan (Mosella UK) peg 18, 80lb 9oz.

3rd Eric Fouracre (Sedges Fishery) peg 5, 79lb 12oz.

4th Dave Wescott (Landsend|) peg 13, 68lb 2oz.

5th Russ Pecker (Landsend) peg 11, 64lb.

6th Rich Lovering  (Clevedon. A.A) peg 15, 62lb 12oz. 

Shipate Farm (Squirle Pool)

Back on this little lake again today, It usually produces a few bite from the small carp & goldfish' with a few better fish in the lake if you can find them, 14 of us fishing so no spare pegs today, I fancied pegs 4 or 5 either side of the small bridge but it wasn't to be as I ended up on peg 13 at the far end off the lake with my back to hawthorn lake, It can produce a few fish but when I arrived at my peg I was disappointed to find it coated in pollen as the wind had blown it all down'. I struggled even plumbing up getting the rig coated it the stuff, I had a small dibber rig to fish close to the back of the small island at 9mts but with the water levels down it was shallow around 10inches deep, I wanted to have another line at 12mts behind the bull rushes further along the island but had no hope for the start of the match so had to hope it somehow cleared through the day? The only other rig I had was a rig to fish the deeper water off the island by a metre or so which was around 4ft deep, I Had Peanut Howell opposite me on peg 12 but he didn't have the pollen issues as it was all holed up on the rope my side", & Rich Hawkins on the last peg 14 next to me, On the all in I fed some hard 4mm pellets & some micros in the deeper water, fed a few 4mms down the edge by hand but again I thought it was a bit shallow? & began in the deep water with 4mm expander, I had a 2oz carp after 5mins but already I knew it wasn't right, Gary finders further down & Kurt Pinkett next to him on pegs 9 & 10 started right across & were already netting better size fish, I had to switch to the shallow water by the island, feeding a decent pot of G/bait starting with a bit of worm on the hook, I did net two carp over a 1lb but before they spooked off, Peanut had started to catch a few fish to the point of his island closer to where I wanted to try but I couldn't fish it so back to the shallow water feeding a bit of G/bait each put in with a cad pot, I was getting the odd fish but felt I was already falling behind with the pegs further along the straight & peanut, I had a look down the shallow edge but no early signs, I tried the deeper rig again but just another tiny carp on this, I plugged away for a few hours catching the odd fish with a couple close to 2lb, Rich seemed to be struggling but Gary & Kurt were still doing ok. I was really frustrated being limited to how far I could fish, the edge had now covered over in skum ect so that was now ruled out" so it was a case of fishing the 9mt line and making do".

I added the odd fish after switching to small pieces of meat on the hook instead of worm but you had to feed each put in to draw anything into the swim,  I was able to get further along the bank in the last hour but not close enough to the bank so fished meat shallow where I had been pinging a few pieces but this just resulted in a couple of small rudd" The last 90mins were a right struggle, I managed a decent 3lb plus fish but only added a couple of small carp before the all out. I thought I had 20lb odd as the fish were  on & off most of the day, I thought peanut had over 60lb as did Gary & I thought Kurt wasn't far behind? Me & rich were the last to weigh being on the opposite bank & when the scales arrived Peanut was leading the way but with less than I thought as he put 47lb on the scales, Gary again had less than I thought finishing with 41lb odd but Kurt had less than him finishing with 28lb odd, My turn & I was surprized to finish with 38lb odd for third on the day picking up £35 so a decent result in the end, I really didn't feel as if I was competing today & was surprized I wasn't to far off come the end, Frustrating when I knew I had the chance of catching more further along but I couldn't fish it so nothing I could. oddly I never had a goldfish today, most of the fish I had were carp from 10oz - 1lb odd. turned out to be another close little match come the end.

full results -

1st Steve Howell (Shiplate Farm) peg 12, 47lb 7oz.

2nd Gary Finders (Shiplate Farm) peg 10, 41lb 8oz.

3rd Dom Sullivan (Mosella UK) peg 13, 38lb 8oz.

4th Nigel Webber (Shiplate Farm) peg 5, 33lb 15oz.

5th Kurt Pinkett (Wormheads) peg 9, 28lb 15oz.         

Shiplate Farm Friday Evening Match (Hawthorns).

I mentioned last week to a few anglers about running a few evening matches on a Friday being short pole matches to level things out a little, Top kit plus two sections only, We drew at 4pm & would fish from 5 till 9. For this match only eight of us but simple pegging for me as it meant every other peg from peg 1 to 15,  I had the last in the tub ending up on peg 5, Gabo had drawn peg 1 which I fancied for a few on this type of match but I expected it to fish well & we all had an empty peg so the winner could come from anywhere?

A simple set up, A shallow swinging rig but the rule I had is it was only allowed to be the length of you top kit. A 4x12 Rube on 0.17-0.13 for down the track at the maximum length allowed which was around 5ft deep, Set the same float up on 0.17-0.15 to fish down the edge to my left a foot or so off the bank in 4ft of water, Any closer & I would be in the stick ups on the deck, And finally a rig to fish down my right edge in a couple of feet of water on my top-kit.

I started the day feeding a decent amount of hemp & a few cube of meat down the left edge at the max length, Fed some G/bait & dead maggots in the shallow right edge & started on the deck at down the track on meat feeding just a couple of cubes by hand over the top, I expected a few early signs but 15mins on this I switched to the shallow rig trying further along the right edge where I had fed the odd cube, Still nothing, Down the left edge on the deck it was then again on meat but I started on two 6mm cubes, At last I had a fish but only around 2lb' I had heard some splashing above me from resident Steve Howell on peg 7 & John had caught below me on peg 3 by the sound of it? I was really struggling to get bites & after 90mins I had added just one carp around 3lb, Terry Taylor who was behind me from the start went for a wander after 90mins or so, I had tried down the track again but still nothing, & even tried in the shallow water with a bunch of maggots after seeing a sign of a fish but  that soon disappeared, I had just gone back down the left edge on single meat contemplating what to do next when I hooked a decent fish which turned out to be around 7lb, Followed by a 5lb fish not long after, I was feeding the odd cube by hand over the top & tried the shallow rig over the top when I saw a carp swirl, I missed a bite straight away then nothing but it didn't seem right, Terry return to say Gary |Finders on peg 9 had around 20lb & Peanut Howell had netted seven carp' I had 26lb on my clicker.

We still had a couple of hours remaining so thought if I could get the feeding right down the left edge I could get some more, I started to feed with a big pot again hemp & a few bits of meat & leave it for 5mins whilst trying the track line, I started to get the odd fish here again decent stamp but they were few & far between, Down the left edge proved best in the end I had a few fish feeding heavier then sitting on it & a few when I fed the odd cube over the top but this seemed to cause a few fish to come off the deck so didn't feed much by hand, The last hour was slow with only three fish added to the net but I cursed losing a decent fish down the track & from down the edge, I had heard a fair bit of splashing below me & though John Hawkins on peg 3 had done ok & Steve above me, Whilst packing up Steve said he only had around 40lb odd & John said he had around 35lb? I had 56lb on my clicker so we would see. Word was it had fished harder than we all expected as most said the had 30-40lb, Starting with Julian Pinkett on peg 15 he ended up with 46lb odd as did Gary on peg 11, Peanut finished with 45lb before my turn, I had a little more then the clicker finishing with 63lb odd, John guessed well finishing with 37lb odd & Gabo was last to weigh, He said he had a mare & would have 40lb at best but had 47lb of carp & 5lb of silvers for 53lb odd. So a good result for me winning the day when I thought I had been battered picking up £53 along the way, 2nd went to Gabo meaning John Hawkins won the silvers pool by default with 1lb 14oz!"

It didn't fish half as well as we all expected but I think there were a lot of fish interested in spawning as they were crashing in the reeds across further up the lake but it lead to a close match in the end & a pleasure to make the most of a pleasant evening. I'm running another in two weeks on the same lake/same rules so if anybody is interested either contact myself or book in at the fishery, £20 entry, Draw time will be 4pm & fish 5 till 9pm weather conditions permitting.

Full results -

1st Dom Sullivan (Mosella UK) peg 5, 63lb 4oz.

2nd Gabo Skarba (Mosella UK) peg 1, 52lb 14oz.

3rd Gary Finders (Shiplate Farm) peg 11, 46lb 14oz.

4th Julian Pinkett (Wormheads) peg 15, 46lb 12oz.

5th Steve Howell (Shiplate) Peg 7, 45lb.

Silvers - John Hawkins (Wormheads) peg 3, 1lb 14oz.      

Shiplate Farm (Main Lake) Sunday.

After spending the day with the wife again yesterday it was back to Shiplate Farms main lake, It was going to be a warm day with the sun already out but little wind, I had felling unless you drew the fancied pegs 1 & 15 it would be hard fishing for most with the bright conditions, A good turn out with nineteen fishing again, I let a few go before me but Titch drew one of the flyers peg 15 when he had the first peg out" I wasn't surprized to find myself on peg 6 as I haven't drawn it for at least four matches & was over due being back on it! I didn't really fancy it for winning the carp, Most times I have fished it I've struggled for a few carp but its got me nowhere, Most times I see others on here the same thing has happened so would be more inclined to target some silvers if early signs of carp didn't happen.

I set up a 4x12 rube on 0.17-0.13 & a 16 B911 to fish on the deck at 14mts in 5ft of water, Set up two shallow rigs, Long & short lines, & a 0.4g rig to fish down the edge in 3ft of water just off the rocks to my left at 9mts, Finally I set up a small method feeder to chuck to the island in the hope of some early fish. I had Gary Finders next to me again on peg 7 & Jonny page on peg 6 & had a feeing they would go all out for carp? On the all-in I fed some meat/hemp & corn down the short edge line, & cupped a decent amount of hard 4mm pellets at 14mts, I started on the method with Micros & 8mm pellet on the hook chucking to the island, I gave it 30mins but not a sniff, I had seen peanut Howell catcha couple of smaller carp on the method from peg 13 on the opposite bank & Mark jones had mugged two early fish down on peg 9. Onto the pole shallow to start with but still nothing in twenty minutes of trying, Gary was yet to catch as was john, Onto the deck rig with 6mm expander on the hook I still couldn't get bites, I began to feed 4mms with the catty over the top & finally I had a bite & a skimmer around 1lb, In the next 45mins I added another four around the same size before I felt it was time to feed a bit more with a large cup & rest it, I had been feeding corn on a new line at 13mts to my left so gave that a try but no signs here so fed another new line at 10mts this time with some micros & 4mm expanders.

Back out at 14mts I managed a few more bigger skimmers one pushing 2lb, Things seemed to be going well as I had over 10lb of skimmers by 1pm & still had 4hrs remaining' I think I had one more decent skimmer & a couple of had sized fish then nothing, & I mean Nothing! I had one more bite on the long pole which was a carp but we parted company' I had one bite on the new micro line but missed it' Never had a bite down the edge & never had a sign over the corn line, I just cant suss why this happens on here, It wasn't just me as those who were catching silvers on the far bank had seemed to have there lines shut up shop" I tried shallow for them, mid depth & just of the deck but it made no difference I just couldn't get another skimmer for the rest of the match, John had a couple of decent carp shallow one pushing 20lb late in the day, And Gary had netted a few but most seemed to be anywhere but in the gob". maybe if I had took some maggots or casters I could of gave that a go but don't think it would of gave me any more skimmers just roach ect? Frustrating really if it had of kept going I thought I was going to be in for a cracking day but it wasn't to be.

When the scales arrived Glyn Wickham was leading the silvers from peg 13A with 23lb odd, I knew I didn't have that but the next best weight was 12lb odd so thought it would be close, The scales went 14lb odd which saw me pick up 2nd overall in the silvers worth £45 so a good out come after all. As I expected peg 15 produced the goods with Titch Williams winning with 142lb odd catching on the method & the pole at 10mts with Meat/Corn, A great peg but you still got to catch them so well done, Surprize, Surprize peg 1 finished 2nd with Rich Hawkins catching down the edge to finish with 71lb odd, looks like I made the right choice to target silvers today.

Right" I have Negotiated With Owners Steve & Carol to run some Friday Evening matches on Hawthorns starting this week coming the 8th of June, the draw time is 4pm, Fishing 5pm til 9pm, The rules are a maximum pole length of top-kit plus two sections With the rig length no longer than the top kit only". It looks as though it will be popular as only put the word out today & I'm up to ten names already for this week with the maximum being 15 so anybody who may be interested in this week or coming weeks please contact me on 07967243456 or Steve & carol at the fishery, I really expect the lake to fish well for these matches so looking forward to it along with the rest, The payouts will still be Carp & Silvers depending on numbers entry £20.

Full Results -

1st Titch Williams (Drennan Thyers) peg 15, 142lb 6oz.

2nd Rich Hawkins (Wormheads) peg 1, 71lb 4oz.

3rd John Page (Drennan Thyers) peg 5, 61lb 6oz.

4th Gary Finders (Shiplate) peg 7, 53lb 8oz.

Silvers -

1st Glyn Wickham (Tom Thick Baits) peg 13A, 23lb 4oz.

2nd Dom Sullivan (Mosella UK) peg 6, 14lb 12oz. 

       

Shiplate Farm (Main Lake) Monday.

The last of a five day stint back on the main lake with the wife for company so she was hopeful of a peg in the sun", nineteen fishing today so a good turn out, obviously pegs 1 or 15 would be first choice but the wind was blowing down the lake so maybe a few fish would be caught here today? Into the draw & I didn't get my choices but was happy to draw peg 2 again as a few fish have been caught off it lately, arriving a the swim I was having second thoughts as there wasn't a sign of fish from what I could see but further down they were boshing in the open water with the wind on it but you never know, I caught a few fish down the edge back towards peg one last time on was on here & hoped for the same today so had a 0.2g rig on 0.17-0.15 & a size 16 hook to fish 8mts along the bank in just over 2ft of water, Next up was a rig to fish across in a few areas, to the left by the bush hanging off the island at 16mts tight to the bank in just over 2ft of water, A swinger'/shallow rig on a longer line & finally a 4x12 rube to fish in 4ft of water off the edge of the bush between me & peg 3, I had Glyn Wickham on peg 1 who normally fishes for silvers but change of plan after drawing it" & Roy Ede on peg 3 but I couldn't really see him but he said he was silvering today.

I started the day feeding some hemp & meat off the bush down my left edge, Fed some hard 6mms again down the edge back towards peg 1 & fed a few cubes of meat right across tight to the bank towards the rope separating pegs 1 & 2 & started the day at dead depth towards the far bank bush just cad a few hard 6mms & fishing a banded 8mm pellet, 15mins later & not a sniff, I still hadn't seen a sign of carp & felt if anywhere I would hook one tight over, I tried the meat fed line across but still nothing so time to start feeding some 6mms with the catty to try & draw some fish in back towards the bush, finally I had a bite then had a skimmer about a 1lb a couple more followed in the next hour around the same size but still no signs of carp over, I had a quick try down the edge & on the short meat line but nothing here so fed a new line with some corn & meat closer to the rope at 16mts in the deeper water & left it to settle, Back across I had another skimmer but bumped two of shipping back as the elastic was a bit heavy for them but didn't want to risk losing a decent carp, At this point the Mrs who had been sat quietly in here deck chair reading the paper shot out the seat like lightning' asking here what the hell was the matter she pointed to he front of the swim whilst on route over the bank to hawthorns where a grass snake was basking right next to us!" Lol, It got it away but she didn't sit near me for the rest of the match!  Around halfway Mark Wynn had come for a wander & said it was fishing hard but Titch Had had one big carp & a couple of silvers & that was winning' I kept trying the shorter lines & the new open water line but nothing so decided to dump pot a larger amount of 6mms across & continue to feed over the top with the catty, I was getting the odd bite but foul hooked a couple more skimmers, I tried shallower but no signs so went back to fishing just over depth, The odd skimmer kept me interested but bites really had to be worked for, I had tried the edge with pellet a few times & with no signs switched to feeding hemp & corn in the hope of some tench if no carp showed, With 90mins to go I went back in with corn on the hook & had a 6lb fish in seconds, Back out I had another fish this time around 11lb' no more signs so re-fed it with a larger amount & went back across, I had a couple more bonus skimmers but pulled out of a better bream near the net around 3-4lb' Again elastic at fault but wasn't going to change it now as could get a few carp in the last hour, I fully expected a few more carp down the edge in the last 45mins but spooked just one fish in the last few minutes, I had a couple more late skimmers across finding it best in the end to feed a few pellets over with the catty & sit & wait for bites. I thought I had around 15lb of carp & around 10lb of silvers but lost track of how many skimmers I had netted? when the scales arrived the top weight was 53lb from Mark who had returned to his peg to catch a few fish down his margin in the last hour & the silvers weight was 11lb odd, I had more than I thought in silvers finishing with 16lb odd & my carp went 16lb, Glynn had chucked back a carp & a few skimmers on peg one so it meant I was fortunate enough to win the silvers pool picking up £60 along the way, It fished hard today for everyone but at least it was a close match & well done to mark for preserving which proved worth while picking up £100. was surprized not to catch anymore fish down the edge in the last hour but that's fishing & at least I enjoyed the day & a good finish to the last few days, & we met a new friend not that Yvonne was to keen."

Full results -

1st Mark Wynn (Colmic) peg 9A, 55lb 4oz.

2nd Rob Birch (Summerhayes) peg 15, 43lb 12oz.

3rd Steve Howell (Shiplate) peg 10, 35lb 13oz.

4th Dom Sullivan (Mosella UK) peg 2, 32lb 14oz.

5th Titch Williams (Drennan Thyers) peg 6, 30lb 14oz.

Silvers -

1st Dom Sullivan (Mosella UK) peg 2, 16lb 10oz.

2nd Ray Wickham (Tom Thick Baits) peg 9, 11lb 8oz.  

Shiplate Farm Open (Hawthorns) Sunday.

Back again for the Sunday open hoping to draw the somewhere around the middle of the lake but for once I ended up on peg 1" its probably the best margin peg & even though 30lb odd was off it the day before I hopped to catch a few, When I arrived it was flat calm with the wind blowing further down the lake & I never saw a fish move whilst setting up which had me a bit concerned' then disaster, I span my pole roller over not realising my pole was close by & managed to shave off the last 6 inches of my number five section!! FFS" head gone before we even start..." Luckily Lewis Jones rang his dad to drop a spare down for me to use & he arrived shortly after the start, I began across tight to the bank & had three fish on 8mm pellet over cad-potted 4mms but it was still a bit deep & soon how a few foulers, After an hour I started to see the odd shadow appear in the peg followed but more as the day went on, I spent the next few hours mugging a few before they drifted further down the lake & I couldn't follow them due to the rope going across which was a bit frustrating as Gary Finders on peg 3 started to get a few, I expected to catch shallow down the edge but it didn't really happen I had a couple but caught better when I fished on the deck late in the match with double meat but did it to late in the day & wasted to much time chasing the shadows which didn't really want to play ball, Steve Howells draw hand never lets him down & one peg away from where he was the day before he won the day with 139lb catching across in the shallow water on worm over G/Bait, I think?? but still got to catch them, I ended up with 86lb odd but felt the peg was worth a few more, Expected to get liners if I fished on the deck down the edge in 4ft of water as I saw fish swirl here in the day but oddly I didn't.

Back to Shiplate today for the late starter on the main lake & with my draw in the last two days being 1 & 15 then on this lake either of them again & I'm on a flyer so bring it on"

Full results -

1st Steve Howell (Shiplate) peg 8, 139lb 12oz.

2nd Russ Peck (Thatchers Tackle) peg 5, 118lb 4oz.

3rd Gary Finders (Shiplate) peg 3, 94lb 4oz.

4th Dom Sullivan (Mosella) peg 1, 86lb 8oz.

   

Summerhayes Longs Lake Silvers Only & Shiplate Farm Knock-Up.

Friday saw me at Summerhayes for the latest silvers qualifier, I drew peg 13 which was in the widest area & going on last weeks weights expected a few bites".

I had Tom Thick next to me on peg 11 who was being greedy as he wanted a quid on it just after winning the Avalon Festival the previous four days" Well done mate. Well it didn't quite turn out as we expected' I had two small skimmers after two hours & was winning the lake! Tom had a run of seven small skimmers mid match then nothing & called it a day with an hour to go, I kept plugging away picking up the odd small hand size skimmer on soft pellet but nothing of any size, I saw Bill Hopping on peg 17 net some good skimmers late in the day & Rob Birch was netting some better late fish on peg 8 behind me but it was rock hard today & the silvers just didn't want to play ball.

Full results -

1st Rob Birch (Peg 13) & Bill Hopping (Peg 17) (Summerhayes) 4lb 10oz.

3rd Dom Sullivan (Mosella UK) peg 13, 3lb 5oz.

4th George (HLS) peg 34, 2lb 12oz. 

Saturday saw me have a friendly knock-up for another Johno Mania match on Shiplate Hawthorns lake which is just a piss take among a few of us a couple of times a year, I ended up on peg 15 at the far end, Had a strange day, Couldn't really get more than one fish on any method, Managed to dob a couple through the day, Had one early tight across but soon scraped that due to the wind so fished up & down in the edge & 6mts on meat on the deck which got me some late carp & a few silvers, I ended up with 50lb odd but easy winner on the day was Peanut Howell With 138lb on peg 9 in the middle of the lake catching shallow down the track but don't ask him what he caught on cause it wont be the truth!! I ended up 2nd & did win the silvers but no double bubble so only £32 quid back, A small profit I thought but not to be as I snapped two elastics through the day Losing both fish & the entire rigs in the process so had to quickly make a trip to the tackle shop for some more!

Full Results -

1st Steve Howell (Shiplate) peg 9, 138lb 8oz.

2nd Dom Sullivan (Mosella UK) peg 15, 53lb 10oz.

3rd Andy Light (Shiplate) peg 1, 38lb 8oz.

4th Paul Hawkins (Pole Repairs Needed) peg 6, 35lb 4oz.

Update on the last Four days" Shiplate Main Lake, Summerhayes, Shiplate Hawthorns.

Been a busy few days so whilst I have five minutes Ile do my best to run through how things went, Thursday started with a last minute decision as I had finished work early not feeling great but didn't want to sit at home so got in just in time for the draw on the Cost-cutter on the main lake at Shiplate Farm, I let Steve's helper Jim draw for me & fancied a few bites on here for a change when he handed me peg 5, Titch had drawn peg 1 again' so fancied him to be the winner but was still going to target carp, I kept it simple, Shallow on the long pole, the pellet waggler, & a rig for down the edge towards peg 6 where I had around 3ft of water away from the rocks, I started shallow on the pole but no early signs, Saw a few fish on the wagg line but only two foul hookers in the next hour which both came off, Two hours gone & I was blanking, Gary Finders had had a couple shallow on the pole so spent most of the match doing the same, I ended up with six carp for 50lb odd but lost 12 through the day mostly fouled or not hooked properly?? Their is no ruling on how shallow you can fish here & even inches deep I was having problems, They were big fish as well. As expected titch won the day with 107lb, Gary did well to finish 2nd with 80lb including some late fish on the method & a few shallow in the tail"Lol, Silvers wise Dave Wride showed the way here yet again with 23lb odd, A funny day as they weren't keen to feed & tempting a few on the hook proved hard, I tried the edge but never had a bite here all day.

Full results -

1st Titch Williams, (Drennan Thyers) peg 1, 107lb 15oz.

2nd Gary Finders (Shiplate) peg 4, 80lb.

3rd Mike Owens (Sensas 88) peg 13, 78lb 1oz.

4th Dom Sullivan (Mosella UK) peg 5, 50lb 14oz.

    

Shiplate Farm (Squirle Pool)

After spending the day car booting with the wife yesterday I was looking forward to getting back on the bank, Only a knock-up with nine of us fishing but usually once this lake has warmed up a bit you get plenty of bites from generally small carp & Goldfish with the odd bonus carp thrown in' It was already a glorious morning with the sun out from the minute we got there, I had the wife in tow for a few hours who wanted to make the most of the sun". I fancied a draw on the low numbers today below the footbridge but ended up on peg 9 again which I just happened to draw last time I was here but it was a lot cooler then. Its just over 12mts to the far side so first up was a rig to fish at the bottom of the far side shelf as its quite uneven the closer you get to the bank, Being a 0.2g AS1 float on 0.15-0.11 & a 16 F1 Pellet hook where I found around 3ft of water. Next up was a small 4x12 float on 0.15 & a 16 B911 hook to fish in just over a 1ft of water tighter to the bank between two clumps of bull rushes off to my right, A rig to fish the track again a 0.2g AS1 on the same line/hook where I had around 4ft of water & finally a 4x12 rube to fish down each edge in 3ft of water.

My plan today was mainly soft pellet on the hook over micros, 4mms & G/Bait, & meat down the edge. I stared the day feeding a ball of G/bait with 4mms added down the track, Feed a handful of 4mms down my right edge at 6mts & began the day across on 4mm expanders over cad-potted micros & 4mms in the deeper water at the bottom shelf, It didn't take long to get my first fish being a 6oz carp, & a run of smaller fish after was interrupted when I had a bonus 3lb fish soon followed by another around 2lb' I had a good first 30mins & had around 10lb in the net before things slowed up a little, I was still getting odd fish including some chunky 6-8oz goldfish so was happy to keep putting the odd fish in the net at this stage.

I had a couple of carp just over a 1lb off this line along with some smaller fish for the first few hours & on the halfway mark thought I had a round 28lb in the net, I hadn't seen that much being caught above me around the island pegs but didn't know if they were catching down on the lower pegs. At this stage Simon Ryall who was struggling on the peg below me had switched to fishing the shallower water across with corn on the hook & had netted a few decent stamp fish. With things slowing up I followed suit fishing corn in the shallower water tight to the bank, I had a carp around 8oz then foul hooked a fish but it wasn't really happening, I tried meat across shallow against the reeds to my left which got me another 1lb carp & a 6oz chub but that was it, I had a look down the edges but no signs here & to be honest the 4th hour was wasted trying to chase fish around the peg looking for so bonus fish. I switched back to fishing the bottom of the far shelf again on soft pellet just adding anything to the net I could catch, I had to keep tweaking the depth & the amounts I was feeding but one thing I did notice was I had to feed something every put-in to induce bites, This was it for pretty much the rest off the match, I did keep trying the shallow water across & added a couple more small carp before taking two 2lb plus fish in the last two dob-ins, Simon had managed a few more better sized carp but was having to wait a bit longer for bites as the day went on so felt I still had enough to beat him? I ended with 46lb on the clicker but it went a bit to pot after struggling for an hour so thought I may have 50lb odd? I helped with the scales doing the board & first to weigh was Ray Wickham on end peg 14 who finished with 14lb odd as did Paul Faires on peg 13 so harder over that side today, Steve Howell did well on peg 12 in the top corner of are bank to finish with 40lb odd before Titch on peg 11 had 20lb odd, My turn & I was a bit out finishing with 67lb odd after two weighs, A Good days fishing with plenty of bites, Simon finished with 44lb then Dave White had 49lb next to the bridge on peg 6, last to weigh on peg 2 was Golly Jones who did well to end up with 59lb.

So back at the results & I picked up £50 for winning the day, A great little lake for plenty of bites in most areas & a lake you have to work hard at to keep bites coming, I used the white Mosella Ozone elastic for the first time today & found it perfect for this stamp of fish & plenty enough for the odd bonus. I was only 3lb odd off breaking the lake record today which would of been another bonus of £100 but don't think I could of had much more so not to worry & sure they'll be another chance. Another great day weather wise, long may it continue'?

Full Results -

1st Dom Sullivan (Mosella UK) peg 9, 67lb 12oz.

2nd Golly Jones (Shiplate) peg 2, 59lb.

3rd Dave White (Bait-Tech Viaduct) peg 6, 49lb 4oz.

4th Simon Ryall (Shiplate) 44lb.

5th Steve Howell (Shiplate) peg 12, 40lb 4oz.

          

Chiltern Trinity Woodlands Lake, Shiplate V Clevedon A.A.

Guesting for the Shiplate Farm Team Again today on a venue I don't get to fish enough to be honest, I think the last time I was here was in the winter a couple of years ago when I had my new lead rod & reel dragged in! Luckily I got it back somehow" More of a friendly event but the Shiplate side had taken the spoils in all the previous rounds when fished together so were keen to keep up the good work' Unfortunately The Clevedon Team were Short as Paul Faires couldn't get his car started but the top eight weights from each side would decided the out come, It looked like being a nice day but their was quite a breeze blowing from the north west down the lake, Into the draw & I pulled out peg 17, I was told it was a good area in the bottom corner of the lake on the right hand side, Apparently Peg 15 not far round from me had won a resent match with 200lb but I had good mate Nick Harvey who has just returned to the bank having hibernated for the winter on peg around from me on peg 14 which gave him the option of fishing down to 15 so expected him to do well but also hoped to be in for some decent action, I did warn him though if he started bagging I would slig the method his way! Lol.

A few options here that's for sure, I got the shallow wagg & Method feeder rods put first up, I do have to add I have used these Mosella Hardcases which fit into the Mosella holdalls for over a year now and their really sturdy, There as good as new with no issues with zips ect that usually break in time & all the stitching is still perfect.

Pole wise I set up a rig to fish shallow/Slapping with banded pellet, A 4x12 Rube on 0.17-0.19 & a size 14 hook to fish meat at 6mts which is fairly deep around 7ft, The same float/line to fish down both edges which turned out to be over 4ft deep so would fish at 6mts on my right towards the empty pallet peg 16 tight to the bank & 16mts past the pallet to my left again against the bank which looked fishy with the wind blowing are way.

I started the day pinging 6mm pellets in the open water to my left in the open water to try & draw some fish shallow whilst I started on the deck with 8mm meat at 6mts, I also cupped a decent amount of 6mms down the edge at 16mts & fed a few hard 6 & 8mms down my short edge by hand, I gave the meat line around 15mins but with no signs had a quick look infront of me on the pellet wagg shallow, This didn't work with no indications so it was time to try shallow on the pole where I had continued to ping some 6mms, It was a bit of a mare with the wind to get the rig in properly but after a bit of persistence I hook a fish which turned out to be around 8lb so I was up & running, Soon after I had a 3lb fish then lost another Decent fish foul hooked Near the net! I gave it another 40mins or so but again just two more foul hooked fish one I got in around 3lb. the wind had started to get stronger & I missed a couple of bite but things just weren't right & I was going nowhere, I had Terry Taylor behind me again today & after he had a wander around not much had been caught at this stage.

It was time to try down the edges, I started with banded 8mm on the short line to my right where I had been dripping in the odd pellet, I missed a couple of bites before connecting with a 3lb F1" A while later had a 3lb carp foul hooked then lost a bigger fish fouled again, I added a cad-pot and rather than throwing a few pellets by hand started to cup 3-4 8mms each put-in, I had a carp around 5lb straight away, By this time Nick who was yet to catch followed suit & started to fish down to the boards on peg 15. It didn't take long for him to start catching & they were decent sized fish by the look of it with the first one over 10lb" I noticed he was fishing corn but could see that he only had a couple of feet of water, I had another plumb around but still had at least 4ft of water to contend with so had to make do, I decided to follow suit & feed some corn down the edge when I couldn't get anymore signs.

Back out shallow I hooked & lost another fouler but soon slung it up the bank as the wind just wasn't playing ball" so time to try down the long edge where I had been feeding 6mms with the catty with banded 8mm on the hook. I had a 6lb fish in seconds,  then another F1 & a small carp before things went a bit iffy as I foul hooked two more in the next ten minutes so went out on the shallow rig, A couple of plops with the pellet & the elastic was soon out & a 5lb fish in the net, I thought I had sussed it & would start bagging" Wrong' I couldn't get a bite here after. I feed another decent amount of 6mms back down the long edge & though as soon as tried down my short edge with corn I would be catching as Nick was still doing well on it. Nope' Just small dinks on the float so I had draw in the small fish then" I tried had pellet again but nothing so was regretting feeding the better amount of corn here, I plumed a new line close to the pallet leg & started to drip feed 8mm meat here with a few 8mms. The second half of my match turned out to be pretty much a disaster" I managed to hook another decent fish shallow on the long pole which managed to dive between my nets & snapped my top kit in the process but I still managed to net it around 6lb" Then I managed to hook the bottom at 16mts" I got back to my top-kit with it still attached then managed to snap another top-kit just as the hook length gave way! FFS...

I did managed a few more fish down the edge at 16mts when I switched to cad potting a few 8mms over the top but they wouldn't stay here, The shorter edge was a waste of time where I had fed the corn as I never had another fish off this line & wished I had just continued to feed the odd pellet by hand, & the new line produced just one bite near the pallet leg but it turned out to be a 2lb tench". On the all-out I had 62lb of carp on the clicker & my tench & two F1's would go about 7lb? I had seen Rich Hawkins further along Nicks bank netting on the end peg netting fish through the day but new Nick would be the likely winner with over 100lb as he caught most of the match in the shallower water on double corn.

I caught up with the scales just up from Nick & Rich Hawkins was leading the way with a level 70lb, Nick was next & finished with 115lb, before it was my turn, I was a lot closer with my estimate today & finished with 73lb odd, back at the results & Nick easily won the day so well done Mate, Thankfully after my expensive day' I held on to second picking up £50 so not a total disaster' On the team stakes it was a lot closer today & Clevedon finally took the spoils after the top eight weights were added for each side with a total of 325lb odd to Shiplate's 305lb odd. I did enjoy the day, The wind ruled out the long pole shallow as I'm sure I would of had a few more on it? Have to say a big thanks to Titch Williams after he donated me some of my beloved Chanti's which will come into use in the winter months, A few people struggled for fish today in some areas so thankful for a better draw this week after missing yesterdays match at Acorn due to work.

Full Results -

1st Nick Harvey (Sensas 88) peg 14, 115lb 12oz.

2nd Dom Sullivan (Mosella UK) peg 17, 73lb 10oz.

3rd Rich Hawkins (Wormheads) peg 8, 70lb.

4th John Page (Drennan Thyers) peg 26, 63lb 6oz.

Silvers -

1st Mark Broomsgrove (Sensas 88) peg 27, 9lb 12oz.    

Shiplate Farm Main Lake, (Monday).

Back on the main lake again today & with 16 of us fishing fancied it to produce a few fish as we had a late start, 10.30 draw & fish 12 til 6pm, Obvious we all wanted to draw the normal two hot pegs but didn't mind being in the middle of the lake as a fancied a few fish shallow here? Into the draw & out comes peg 9, Dire!" I keep hearing of fish in the area of the lake but yet to see it produce in matches, Last time Mark Jones called it a day here so wasn't that confident of catching much? It looks inviting with decent margins left & right & an island chuck some distance away being sat in the bottom bowl on the lake but the level was down last from last time with much of the undercut back showing so new it was very shallow tight across, 

I found a couple of areas down the edges, 13mts to the right & 12mts along the end bank to my left which were the same depth around 2ft, Had a rig to fish the open water at 9mts in 4ft or so of water, a long line/slapper rig to fish at 14mts & just one rod, a Method Feeder!" Yep I am Finally going to succumb to giving it ago". I had Steve (Peanut) Howell on peg 9A & Glen Baily on peg 8 through the gap to my right, We had the lakes aerator on between us as well as an overflow pipe running water in at 17mts along the left bank but agreed to keep them on rather than risk things switching it off as it had been on overnight.

I didn't go into details of my rigs because simple my day went like this, started short with banded 8mm feeding just the odd hard 6mm, Not a sign after 15mins so my first try on the method" Banded wafter on the hook, Micros around the feeder, 15mins I missed a right pull round the rod nearly went in! 20mins later this time fish on, All 2lb of it" & that was it for the rest of the day!! I Lost another on the method & had another snap me late in the day, never had a single sign of fish on any of the pole lines despite seeing the whole match out, I never saw a fish move except for one fish against the island & that was before I had one" so guess it could of been the same fish, It was rock hard are end, Nigel on peg 7 had around 2oz's", Glen had called it a day with two small tench with a couple of hours to go & went on Hawthorns, Peanut had one small carp I could see & a few silvers & Rich Hawkins on peg 10 had a couple of silvers so loads of carp are end then!" Walking back around Rob Birch who was on peg 2 told me how many carp had been hanging around him all day, even hooking them on expanders short whilst trying to catch silvers' Next to him Paul Faires was admitting to around 100lb so certainly at the wrong end yet again today, Didn't get the results sorry as made are way straight home to attend the dog as was fortunate the have the Wife's company the last couple of days with the time off work & great weather to boot, I nearly wet myself though when she was saying she wished the day hadn't started after spilling coffee on her leg on-route among other things only for seconds later her bed chair collapsed..!" Perhaps it was an omen??.

Full Results -

1st Paul Faires (Sensas 88) peg 2, 138lb.

2nd Mark Jones (Shipate Burger Van) peg 4, 112lb.

3rd Tim Ford (Thatchers P.I) peg 14B, 85lb.,

Silvers - 1st Steve Howell (Shipate Farm) peg 9a, 20lb 12oz. (Had More Than I thought) Lol.

     

Shiplate Farm (Hawthorns Lake) Sunday.

Back on Hawthorns today with 13 of us fishing & what a weekend of weather we were forecast in are favour for a change with bright skies & plenty of sunshine, Steve put all the pegs in the tub today meaning someone would draw an empty peg but on this lake you cant really tell what peg will win which is a good thing'. Into the draw I ended up on peg 13, & guess what, 12 & 14 weren't drawn so had an empty peg either side", I planned a simple day, two rigs to fish across around 14mts, one tight to the far bank in 2ft or so of water & a shallower rig to fish over the top, A paste rig to fish down the edge which was deep around 5ft, & finally a swinging dibber rig for mugging if I saw fish milling around which I expected once the sun had fully come out, I thought I had some tins of meat at home but didn't so had to make do with pellets & paste down the edge instead & I planned to fish pellet across.

Just before the start I saw a fish surface down the edge so before feeding any lines I started on the swinger rig on my topkit plus two sections down the edge with banded 8mm pellet set around a 1ft deep, Bingo' Two carp for 10lb in the first 5mins! That was it though, I tried the left hand edge at the same distance but no signs so switched to fishing across. Again banded 8mm with the rig set a couple of inches off the deck, I didn't feed to start with which got me a 3lb fish but they easily spooked so started to feed a few 6mms with the catty, Straight away the fish were coming up in the water so switched to the shallower rig across, This worked for a while adding a couple more 4-5lb fish, I had another shallow down the edge where I had been dripping in 6mms, but still no signs to the left. after a while the fish were now chewing up the far bank" this sounds ideal but it was causing me a mare' I had managed a fish nearly 10lb on the swinger rig near the rope between myself & peg 14 & another around 6lb 20mins later but across to the bank where I had been feeding I just couldn't get to work properly, I would get the fish in the peg but as soon as the pole went out the were gone & I ended up waiting for indications but most no mater what depth I was fishing were foulers".

I wasted far to much time here through the day fishing it totally wrong in hindsight, I may of been better of cad-potting just a few pellets at a time to keep them down long enough to feed properly, I persisted fishing down the edge shallow which got me a few more fish later in the day but after a good start & around 40lb in the net after 90mins the middle few hours I put hardly anything in the net, I could here peg 15 catching well in the closing stages & I knew Rich Hawkins had done well again down on peg 11 as I could here him catching. When the scales arrived peg 15 finished up with 99lb, 46lb of which he had in the last hour down the edge, I knew I didn't have that much as I had 78lb on the clicker, A bit out as I finished with 87lb of carp & a 1lb Tench' But rich looked to have done the business again today finishing with 146lb mainly down the edge on meat", Felt I fished it wrong today there seemed to be plenty of fish around but getting them to feed was a different story, I should of tried the paste rig again in the later stages after having a go mid match without signs, & meat would have got me a few more fish I'm sure? That's fishing though & sometimes its better to admit you did it wrong rather than make up excuses' Lol. Back at the results & it was a day for the wormheads, Rich won the day again so well done to him, & the silvers went to Ray Wickham with 13lb odd But I don't think anybody else fished for them Lol'. I'm writing this blog just before making my way back to the fishery for the later start match on the main lake today so fingers crossed'.

Full Results -

1st Rich Hawkins (Wormheads) peg 11, 146lb 6oz.

2nd Julian Pinkett (Wormheads) peg 8, 120lb 4oz.

3rd John Hawkins (Wormheads) peg 2, 106lb 6oz.

4th Andy Bishop (Matrix) peg 15, 99lb 14oz.

5th Steve Howell (Tinder Love Match) peg 5, 93lb 6oz.

6th Dom Sullivan (Mosella UK) peg 13, 85lb.

Silvers -

1st Ray Wickham (Tom Thick Baits) peg 7, 13lb 12oz. 

    

Shiplate Farm Open (Hawthorns & Westpool Lakes)

With the Wife off today we enjoyed a nice breakfast at the wooden Spoon together before she dropped me up the fishery, It was still rather chilly with a north easterly win blowing up both the canal lakes we would be using today, A slight difference as far as the payouts went, Twenty of us fishing with ten on each lake, A little more to enter today at £25 but Owners Steve & Carol would be paying out the top winner on each lake As well as the top silvers but over the two lakes the silvers winner would pick up £75 & the overall winner a decent £100', I fancied a draw on Hawthorns as I though this is were the winner would come from & there were some decent weights on a knock-up here yesterday but Westpool coud also produce, I let a few go before me in an orderly Queue" Lol, I couldn't get the ticket open & was dreading ending up on the narrows on Westpool again but was relived to find myself in the middle of Hawthorns peg 9, It was around 14mts to the far bank but I could already see the wind was going to cause a few problems, I set up two 0.2g floats to fish tight across infront the bull rushes in just over 2ft of water on 0.15-0.13 & 16 PR36 hooks, one with a hair for banded pellet, A shallow rig again with a hair rigged hook, A rig to fish meat on my top-kit plus two sections which was a decent depth around 5ft & finally a 4x12 rube on 0.17-0.15 & an 16 pellet hook to fish again on my top-kit plus two sections down my edge but couldn't go further due to drawing next to an aerator rope again' which was just under 5ft deep.

For company I had Bristol's finest Paste Head' Glen Bailey on peg 10 so knew what he would be fishing" & Venue Regular, Wormheads Rich Hawkins on peg 7, I fancied Fellow Blogger Tim Ford to do ok on peg 1 of are lake as the peg is known to hold fish but any peg can produce on these lakes, At the start I cupped in some hard 6mm's & a few 8's down the edge, Just a few cubes on the short line, & fed a small amount of 6mm's right over, I started across & as I did Terry Taylor turned up behind me who was pleasure fishing the main lake, already I was struggling to hold a conversation As well as the pole in the wind & concentrate" I gave it 15mins but just felt it wasn't right already, I dropped in on the short line with meat whilst I had a re-think & missed a bite' Just a liner in the next ten minutes so I decided to feed a decent pot of hemp & a few cubes of meat to try & get some fish to feed on the deck & left it to settle. I continued to feed a few 6mms across with the catty & had a quick look down the edge with banded 8mm were I had been feeding just the odd pellet by hand, I finally caught a fish' Shame it was a carp around 1lb". I was going nowhere at this stage, I decided to venture back across this time with the rig set a few inches off the deck again with banded 8mm pellet.

At last I had a decent carp around 6lb but had some catching up to do as Glen Had netted a few carp & I could here Rich netting a few fish, It was akward in the win to try & hold the rig tight over & feed with the catty but at least I was getting signs of fish & began putting the odd one in the net, I ended up fishing the shallower rig after a couple of foul hookers, This worked for a few more fish for a while. I had noticed a few carp swirl the other side of the rope across the far bank so began to ping the odd few pellets over at 14mts my side in the open water in the hope of drawing a few down. Around halfway I thought I had around 41lb but knew I was still behind the pegs either side of me but didn't know how the rest of the lake was fishing? I was getting a bit frustrated fishing across but every time I was a bout to knock it on the head I would catch a fish which kept me persisting with it best it could, I dropped in on the 14mt line in the more open water & had a 5lb fish straight away followed by a slightly smaller fish but then they backed off again, I spent the next hour or so switching between the line tight to the bank & the open water, And managed a few more in between a few stressful moments including catching the willow tree after attempting to helicopter the rig in the swim!" I planned to go on the short meat line & down the edge which I had been feeding by hand through the day but even though Glen was still catching fish my far lines seemed to get a bit better so struggled with the wind & kept at it, I picked off a few more fish to 6lb as well as a 7lb fish the last dob-in in the open water" I had 111lb on the clicker but these fish can weigh a bit more than they look so we would see', Glen was admitting to around 100lb & Rich though he had around 120lb, When the scales arrived 70lb was winning are lake. Glen was first to way & finished with 110lb odd, I had a bit more than I thought finishing with 125lb going just over in one net so had 14oz deducted' Lol,

Rich had some decent fish in his nets to finish with 140lb mainly catching down the edge so well done to him, Back at the results & it turned out that Hawthorns had fished a bit harder with onsite chef" Mark Jones leading the way with 70lb odd, It turned out Rich's weight was enough to win the day picking up the £100 & it turned out I ended up 2nd but picked up the Lake win & £55 along the way so a good result, Overall the top silvers was won by Rob Birch again on Hawthorns peg 15 with 21lb odd, Apart from the wind making things hard to present things fishing across I was happy with the out come & was sure I would of had a few more conditions allowing? Haven't really done much of this hard pellet fishing an canal lakes often opting for the soft pellet approach but doing ok adjusting to it so it seems, It was important today to keep swapping between the rig just off the deck & the shallow rig to keep in-touch with a few fish. Bank Holiday Next week so missing the Saturday to spent with the Wife & back to Shiplate Sunday for another open on this lake & an open on the main lake on the Monday being a later start/finish so looking forward to them. Another enjoyable weekend with a few quid back in the wallet.

Full results -

1st Rich Hawkins (Wormheads) peg 7 Hawthorn, 140lb 2oz.

2nd Dom Sullivan (Mosella UK) peg 9 Hawthorns, 125lb 12oz.

3rd Tim Ford (P.I.Thatchers) peg 1 Hawthorns, 115lb 4oz.

4th Glen Bailey (Bathampton) peg 10 Hawthorns, 110lb 9oz.

5th Geoff Francis (Bristol) peg 6, Hawthorns, 105lb 12oz.

Silvers - 1st  Rob Birch (Summerhayes) peg 15 Hawthorns, 21lb 8oz.

Overall Winners - 1st Rich Hawkins £100.

Silvers - Rob Birch £75.

Lake Winners - Dom Sullivan & Mark Jones £55.

Silvers Lake Winners - Ron Stark & Ray Wickham £45.