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.

    

       

Acorn Fishery Saturday Open (Paddock Lake).

A return trip to Acorn for there latest open, I stopped off for a great breakfast roll from the burger van set up on strode road in Clevedon arriving early as normal, I had a wander around before the draw & it appeared fish were showing in some areas, Fourteen of us fishing after a couple of no shows & again Walshy was left to peg the match, I et the normal keen ones have there pick before I had my go, I wasn't to disappointed to draw peg 7, Normally peg 6 near the bridge is used but I could fish that direction if need be & I could go as far as the corner of peg 5 but it was a fair distance at 15mts. Plenty of options with lots of open water but with all of us spread out we all had the same. It was a lot colder in the air today & I predicted around 70lb would be a good weight even though peg 11 produced over 130lb on Tuesdays open, I had a 4x12 malman on 0.17-0.13 & a 16 hook to fish the top two plus two back towards peg 6 & would use the same rig to fish 12mts towards peg 8 a couple of metres off the bank in the same depth of water around 4ft, It was shallow in-front of me tight to the bank at 14mts around 2ft or so but thought it would produce so set up a 0.2g rig on 0.17-015 & again a size 16 hook, Finally I had a 0.4g rig to fish off the point towards peg 5 & found a flat area just over 14mts around 3ft deep.

For company I had Tim Whitchurch on peg 9 who fancied his draw with the island in range at 12mts or so, Chris fox below him on peg 11, & Walshy the other side of the bridge peg 40, My day would mainly involved around pellets, On the all in I fed some hard 6mms on the 12mts edge line, fed some hard 8mms & 6mms off the point & a small amount of the same down my right edge a metre off the bank.

I started across to the island cad potting a few micros & 4mms with 4mm expander on the hook, By the time I had fed some lines Tim & Chris were already netting fish"  I expected some early signs but after 15mins I knew it wasn't right, I decided to try my short line back towards peg 6 as Tim & Chris were into fish again, I started with a bigger 6mm expander on the hook, Straight away I had a bite which resulted in a 5lb carp so off the mark' I had a tiny hand size tench & a carisso?? so after fed another better amount & tried the 12mt inside line.

Nothing here so over to the point of peg 5 with banded hard 8mm pellet. No early signs of fish here which surprized me as I had it down as a banker area, Back down the edge on the short line & a couple of fish around 3lb were added before more nuisance small fish, I couldn't seem to string a few bites together other than down the edge, I decided to feed a decent amount of micros tight over in the shallower water with a few hard 4mm's added, I thought I had a round 18lb after 90mins but knew Chris & Tim were ahead at this stage, I had been pinging a few hard pellets off the point & started back on the deck with hard 8mm, I missed what seemed to be proper bites but saw signs of fish so got a shallow rig out, I spent 4omins or so trying to get it to work but it wouldn't happen, Shallow I couldn't get a bite & on the deck I would wait ages then foul hook a fish, I wasn't going anywhere at this stage...

Back down the edge & another 3lb carp & a decent F1 then nothing, we were over halfway through & I had to hope something would happen, I noticed a fish move in the shallower water across so went back over with 4mm expander, I had a few indications before having a 3lb carp but was missing bites, I switched to a bigger expander just touching the deck feeding a few hard 4mms & micros each put-in with a cad pot & waited for a proper bite.

This seemed to work a treat' It wasn't fast fishing but I was soon adding fish between 3-4lb & appeared to be doing ok from what I could see as Tim & Chris had slowed up, I found it best to feed a few hard 4mms with the catty over the top to draw a few fish but as soon as I found the fish to come off the deck fed a better amount with a larger pot & leave it a few minutes. With around an hour to go the wife turned up after visiting the mother in law who lives close by, Not to say she jinxed me but the next 30mins were a mare! I lost two fish at the net for around 9lb" managed to hook the far bank vegetation but luckily didn't trash the rig' & put one fish in the net around 1lb"  I got my head back together for the last 45mins Adding a few more fish to 5lb in the closing stages. I had around 50lb on the clicker but think I missed a couple after the stress time". I gave Dan a hand with the weigh-in as he had a customer just as we were about to weigh so started with Walshy on peg 40 who finished with 21lb odd, We had are own thoughts when Harry said this morning that are missed friend from above Charlie Barns had told him how to win the silvers today on a Ouija board" Perhaps Charlie was thinking of someone else as Harry didn't trouble the scales"! Lol, On peg 36 Steve Rolfe put 58lb on the scales which was the top weight with me last to weigh, I had 3lb odd of silvers & my first carp net went 39lb odd, The next net went 31lb so I finished with 74lb to make it three open match wins here in a row so chuffed with that even more so when I picked up £90 in winnings!" An enjoyable match here again today, I have a lot of faith in expanders in the cooler conditions , I tried to make hard pellets work today but it wouldn't happen, Even on my short line all I fed in the end was the odd hard 8mm but could only get bites on the bigger expander, enjoy this type of fishing when you don't need massive weights to win & can always claw your way back if you have a slow start. The silvers weights were effected again in the cooler conditions with Jack Jones taking the spoils with 12lb odd, Off to Shiplate Tomorrow for a match on both Canal Lakes.

Full results -

1st Dom Sullivan (Mosella UK) peg 7, 74lb 14oz.

2nd Steve Rolfe ( Team Poppetts) peg 36, 58lb 10oz.

3rd Chris Fox (Maesknoll Angling) peg 11, 52lb 4oz.

4th Glen Calvert (Sensas 88) peg 21, 49lb 8oz.

5th Tim Whitchurch (Team Poppetts) peg 9, 45lb.

6th Andy France (Cadbury Angling) peg 13, 29lb.

Silvers -

1st Jack Jones (P.I.Thatchers) peg 31, 12lb 2oz.

2nd Mike Owens (Sensas 88) peg 24, 10lb 2oz.

               

Shiplate Farm V Clevedon A.A (Shiplate Main Lake).

Back on my doorstep today Guesting for the Shiplate Farm team again today, Its just a friendly thing held a couple of times a year at different venues which also boosts the attendance a little, Another fine morning greeted us & after a nice breakfast in the café by the rugby club in Weston for a change I got the kit to the lake way before the draw.  I spotted a decent pole float near the edge in peg 2 which I tried to retrieve but got a wet foot instead so that will teach me".Their were 22 of us fishing on a random draw basis & the overall winner decided on total weight, obviously pegs 1 & 15 would be my first choice, As well as everybody else's" but not to be as I ended up on peg 2 so at least I could get the float with my cutter now!..

It wouldn't be my choice of peg but I never fished it before so was looking forward to the day really, No rods required though as I could reach the island at 14mts directly in-front of me & 16mts to the left & right, To the left I had a bush over hanging the water at 16mts left so had a rig to fish tight across around a metre off it being a 0.2g hand made float on 0.17-0,15 & a 16 hair rigged hook where I had just around 3ft of water which was the same depth the same distance to the right but didn't want to go further than this as a rope runs across the lake to the aerator & the near bank from around 17mts I set up a 0.1g rig on the same line/hook to fish shallow over the same lines, A silvers rig to fish expanders over micros at 12mts left down the track if need be, & finally an inline float to fish down the edge in just over 2ft of water at 12mts on 0.17-0.15.

I had Clevedon's match organiser Aide Baker on peg 1, & Wormheads John |Hawkins on peg 3 who was also fishing for the Shiplate side, I started the day feeding a few hard 6mms towards the bush at 16mts, fed a decent pot of micros at 12mts down the track & just a few 6mms down the edge, I started the day on the shallow rig towards the rope after seeing a fish move across whilst setting up, It didn't take long to get a bite after a minute or so of lifting & dropping the rig which was a nice start with a fish around 7lb soon in the net, Nothing followed so I started to ping the odd 6mm pellet over the top with the catty as well as pinging a few over the line towards the bush, It wasn't fast action but after 40mins I had added two more fish around 5lb, One from each line both shallow & things were going nicely, Terry Taylor had come for a walk around & returned just in time to see me land a fish around 12lb' Then all hell broke loose again, It must be my after shave as yet again I had issues with the geese.." One was having a right sulk at anything that swims so it seemed & when another of the same arrived on the scene it wasn't a quiet outcome & when they finally took off they took me & the pole with them..!

I couldn't believe this had happened to me again' I feared the worse & so it proved as all I added in the next 40mins was a decent skimmer & all the signs of fish I had across seemed to have disappeared, I added a couple more skimmers across again a decent size but no more carp at this stage. I went onto the deck rig starting over by the bush & had a 6lb carp straight away, Back out & a decent skimmer followed then nothing again, By now we were around mid match, Any signs of carp to my left were now the other side of the rope into peg one but I keep pinging a few 6mms my side in the hope so would return to feed, I had been pinging the odd hard 6mm & 8mm pellet down the edge so after having a quick look on the silver line without a bite had a look down the edge, I was just about to give up when I hook a fish which turned out to be a tench around 3lb but I lost it between the nets" I had another go but with no more signs cupped in a better amount & went back across, I had fed a decent amount of micros at 14mts so went in with the deck rig & banded 8mm pellet, Another carp & skimmers then again nothing' As the day went on I couldn't get a bite nearer the bush which I put down to the shade now covering the swim nor on the 14mt line, With 90mins to go I went down the edge with banded 8mm cad-potting a few of the same, I had a decent fish in minutes but when I went to unship the number 4 section It shot out my hand & took off across to the island with the carp attached! It went along the island around the rope & around the island in peg 1" Minutes later Aide shouted he had it attached on his bomb rod, I went round to him & after a few iffy minutes it popped its head up just in time for me to net it & get my top four back!" Result' Thanks Aide! It turned out he had hooked it in the top fin" How it didn't come we will never know!.

Back to the swim & I had another down the edge ten minutes later but got a bit keen when it got near the net & trying to bully an 8lb common I smashed the rig" That will teach me... Prob Not??.

I had a bit of a nightmare last 45mins, I foul hooked two down the edge losing both & trashing another rig in the process" & I hooked two more proper lumps shallow late in the day which hardly moved when I hooked them & both shed the hook! I did manage to net a couple more along with a few more skimmers & a Tench before the all-out. I was one of the last to weigh before Aide who I thought had around 90lb come the end, When the scales arrived Tom Light as I expected had done well from fancied peg 15 catching on the method feeder to the lawns & down the edge on the pole later in the day to finish with 128lb odd but the next best weight turned out to be 44lb odd, I thought I had around 50lb of carp & 10lb of silvers, I ended with 12lb odd of silver & the carp were bigger than I thought going 66lb odd. Back at the results & after a tasty burger from the on-site van after, Tom had easily won the day, It was close for second though as I just had enough to beat Aide on peg 1 who finished with a bit less than I thought finishing with 76lb odd, Silvers went to Julian Pinkett who finished with 14lb odd. On the team front the Clevedon lads took another thrashing today as Shiplate's total weights did them by nearly 200lb!" A good bit of banter though even though the score now stands at 7 - 0 ...! Lol.

I had an enjoyable day really, Its a shame the wild life spoilt things as I'm sure it unsettled things for the day, The same happened later in the match only this time I wasn't so fortunate as pushed the rig up into the tree as the goose took off snapping the elastic... but at least I picked up £55 in the process & it probably needed changing! Well done to the Shiplate side a good day all round.

Overall Results -

1st Tom Light (Shiplate Farm) peg 15, 128lb 7oz.

2nd Dom Sullivan (Mosella UK) peg 2, 78lb 10oz.

3rd Aide Baker (Clevedon A.A) peg 1, 76lb 4oz.

Silvers -

1st Julian Pinkett (Wormheads) peg 7?, 14lb 14oz.

2nd Mark Jones (Marco Smith Catering) peg 9, 13lb 2oz.

3rd Dom Sullivan (Mosella UK) peg 2, 12lb 6oz.     

Viaduct Saturday Open (Cary Lake).

What a joy to wake up to what looked like being a really pleasant day weather wise with the sun out already, Arriving early as normal it gave owner Steve chance to rack his brains as to how I can get the end of my broken number 8 section out the end of my perfectly good no.7, Now I've had this stuck for around 3mths & tried allsorts from frozen peas to using the wife's hairdryer (Wouldn't be mine would it!") but nothing worked, Steve managed to find a section which fitted into the broken bit & with another chap & myself on each end & Steve in the middle with his rolling effect' He had it apart in two minutes!" Legend.. Lol.

Seventeen of us fishing today & after a walk around before hand there appeared to be a lot of fish on the spit back around pegs 74 & 77,78 so hoped to draw here for a change, I let a few go before me before taking my turn & couldn't believe it when I drew peg 102 which I was on a in the last match here a couple of weeks ago" I found it hard going that day for carp & finished with just under 70lb catching a few on the long pole with meat, I would try this again & if it didn't work would switch to fishing hard pellets long so set up a 0.2g rig on 0.17-0.15 & a 16 hair rigged hook, I would also use the rig to fish short around 8mts with meat. I set up a rig on the same lines to fish shallow if need be & apart from this just got out the normal bomb rod & waggler to fish out in the lake, I was going to have a rig to fish infront of peg 103 until a chap I hadn't met before (Chris Kitchin) turned up to fish it! It turned out he was on route to Whiteacres for the next festival & had stopped off on the way through for the match.

I started the day short on the meat but after 15mins switched to the waggler & banded pellet on the deck to start with towards to middle of the lake, I gave it 30mins or so but couldn't get signs on or off the deck, Already things weren't going to plan, Onto the long pole with 8mm meat at 16mts where I had been pinging the odd cube, I missed a couple off bites before eventually found the culprits to be small skimmers & did catch one around the 1lb mark which got me off the mark after two hours", Onto the bomb & pellet but this failed to produce a bite but I did have a decent fish around 14lb casting off to my right on meat feeding just a few cubes over the top but it was a one off, Around mid match a few fish appeared near the surface further out in the lake where I had continued to ping a few hard 8mm pellets so switched to the wager again this time fishing shallow, I had a carp around 7lb straight away then lost another near the net minutes later then couldn't get a sign' Chris next to me had faired a bit better after having a few early good fish on the long pole but now like me was searching for fish, This was hard work.

I was hoping things would get better going into the last couple of hours but it didn't really as I managed another carp on the wagg shallow & just two more carp on the long pole with banded 8mm pellet after switching from meat here to feeding just a couple of pellets at a time over the top. It appeared that the fish wanted to be in a bit of ripple on the water again today to feed more confidently which we struggled to have, Next door he had a few more late carp on the long pole after Ginge" on peg 105 called it a day & packed up early. I think I got it wrong again today & perhaps should of concentrated on catching shallow on the long pole but not so sure that would have worked as the pegs either side of me tried but failed to catch on it.

Back at the results & Roland Lucas had another good day catching on the long pole & pellet Shallow from peg 85 to finish with 175lb to win the day so well done to him ahead of John Mills on the opposite bank from us peg 78 next to the tree who finished with 148lb odd, The silvers was won by Nigel Bartlett from peg 88 with a small fish net going 26lb odd.

In hindsight I should of maybe targeted silvers again today as I didn't really expect to have enough carp to compete with some pegs but that's fishing & at least I gave it a try, My 45lb odd wasn't going to get me anything today but there's always tomorrow'. Truly thankful to Steve for getting my section free which got the day off to a good start, We did have some down pours of rain after the first hour but it cleared into a cracking warm day.

Full results -

1st Roland Lucas (Wiltshire Angling) peg 85, 175lb 6oz.

2nd John Mills (Bait-Tech Viaduct) Peg 78, 143lb 7oz.

3rd Jamie Bowden (Unknown) peg 94, 126lb 3oz.

4th Steve Denmead (Keyford) peg 96, 97lb 2oz.

Silvers -

1st Nigel Bartlett (Bait-Tech Viaduct) peg 88, 26lb 13oz.

2nd Mark Hannon (Summerhayes) peg 74, 17lb 9oz.    

  

Viaduct Fishery (Cambell Open).

After a nice breakfast on Burham-on-sea I arrived in plenty of time, There was a club match on Cary Lake & a silvers only match on Lodge Lake today so it was a sell out again with twenty of us fishing, Apparently a few were saying the fish seemed to have moved up the lake a bit from the last week, That's ok then as I always seem to draw up there lately so should be on a few', No such luck as I ended up on the winter flyer peg 110 in the corner' I wasn't to put off until I realised that peg 135 on the end bank to me was in,

As well as being told the guy on my peg didn't even weigh-in yesterday! Sounds about right for me here..

I had no intention of targeting silvers so first out the holdall was the normal bomb & waggler rods to fish the open water, Obviously I still had the option of fishing down into the corner at 16mts if I wanted too but then remembered that Steve Jacko' Jackson who had his toys out the pram a few weeks back decided to deposit all the branches he had hooked in here through the day straight back in after the match!!" I found what appeared to be a clearer area around 12mts so would start this far down the edge & go from there so set up a 0.2g gram rig on 0.17-0.15 & a size 16 hair rigged hook to fish in just over 3ft of water, Apart from a shallow rig if needed the only other rig was a 4x12 chanti on 0.17-0.13 & a 16 hook to fish meat at around 8mts in 4ft of water. I had good company with Clint Wojtyla on peg 111 who is always guaranteed to give you a laugh at some stage, Martin Preston on what has been the hot area peg 112 & Ben Broxson on the end bank peg 135.

I began the day feeding a handful of hemp & a few cubes of meat at 8mts, Fed a smaller amount down the edge of the same & began the day on the wagg at depth towards the middle of the lake with banded 8mm feeding a few of the same, 15mins in & nothing, the wind was off are back to start with but turned around slightly blowing up the lake which kept towing the rig out of place so had a quick look on the bomb over the same line but even this didn't produce, It was first blood to Clint at are end as he managed one on the wagg but things weren't looking to promising at are end already?.

After 40mins or so it was time to try down the edge with hair rigged meat, Fishing 12mts was just over the stump you can see below,

I had a bite straight away resulting in a 7lb fish after a bit of a battle to get it out the corner' soon after I had a 4lb fish after cad-potting just a couple more cubes over the top then the fish backed away, I decided to have a look at 16mts down the edge & missed a bite but then found myself attached to a branch which I managed to drag out the swim but ruined any more bites here for a while. The first couple of hours were slow, just one more small carp & a decent tench at 12mts again but did lose another decent Tench between my keepnets shedding the hook in the net in the process".  Ben was struggling on peg 135 with just a few carp & it seemed to be the same for Clint & Martin with them both just taking odd fish although Clint was ahead of us at the halfway stage, I managed a 5lb fish on the bomb & pellet whilst I was having a cuppa but it was a one off, I had been topping the 8mt line up with hemp & a bit of meat every 30mins or so & after another carp down the edge decided to have a look, I missed a bite then had another decent tench around 3lb before I managed a 6lb carp here but that was it for the time being.

Back down the edge & a managed a couple more carp to keep ticking over, It seemed best to feed small amounts with the cad-pot & if I couldn't get indications over the bait I would pull the rig further into the corner which seemed to work better, Going into the last couple of hours I expected to catch on the shorter meat line & after Martin had a couple of fish off it I gave it another try, I hooked a decent lump which I saw a couple of times but had a hell of a job to try & get it up, It turned out to be hooked outside the mouth & ended up snapping the hook length after 5mins of struggling with it". Things did improve late in the day as I managed a couple of decent fish on the short meat line & a couple of lumps down the edge late in the day one around 13lb, I though I had around 80lb of carp plus my sivers come the end but we had heard the other end had fished well on both banks with the wind in that direction, Typical", Ben had managed a couple more late carp but decided not to weigh-in so I was first to weigh, I wasn't far off as I had 11lb of silvers & 83lb of carp to finish with 94lb odd, Clint finished with a level 80lb & Martin ended up with 72lb odd, Unfortunately that was going to get us nowhere as from peg 115 up they all broke the ton mark as did some pegs opposite.

Back at the results & it turned out Gary O'Shea won the day from peg 125 With 190lb odd catching mainly on the pole with meat as well as a few on the bomb earlier in the day so well done to him, there were some decent back up weights but they all came from the far end today, It looked like the fish had moved up in the warmer wind as those of us in the calmer water didn't compete but I still enjoyed the day & felt that I had a good result considering, I did have one result today as when playing one of my carp it must of brushed along the bottom causing a catapult to waft up from the deck, I don't quite know how but it managed to swim through the elastic & frame & when I netted the carp there it was threaded up my rig" Result!! One decent Preston Catty to add to my collection!" Lol.  Might be back for the open match next Saturday but fishing Shiplate Farm next Sun in a Shipate v Clevedon.A.A match on the Main Lake.

Full Results -

1st Gary O'Shea (Bait-Tech) peg 125, 190lb 5oz.

2nd Mark Cullerton (Viaduct) peg 118, 181lb 1oz.

3rd Tom Magnal (Mosella UK) peg 116, 166lb 15oz.

4th Leon Hubbard (Mosella Bathampton) peg 119, 159lb 11oz.

5th Adrian Jefferies (Avon Angling) peg 128, 133lb 1oz.

6th Paul Blake (Viaduct) peg 127, 128lb 1oz.

Silvers -

1st Chris Davis (Westerleigh) peg 124, 35lb.

2nd Clint Wojtyla (Future Networks) peg 111, 12lb 1oz. 

           

Acorn Fishery (Saturday Open).

Overcast skies greeted us on arrival this morning but it was Forecast for us to see some sun & warmer temperatures so we would see' Only twelve of us fishing spread around the lake leaving out the island pegs, It had fished quite hard on Tuesday so I was told with only 39lb winning so would go steady at the start wherever I would end up? I let a few draw before ending up on peg 34 next to the bridge, I've draw here before a couple of times & done well Usually catching somewhere over to the far bank around 13mts just off the bridge or along the far bank & I had plenty of room with the island swims empty, I set up a 0.1g hand made float on 0.13-0.11 to fish near the bridge which was just over a foot tight over and nearly 2ft or so about a metre off the bank which was the depth all along the far bank to 14mts, I set up a rig 4x10 to fish the slightly deeper water around 3ft at 13mts to the left & set up a 4x12 Malman to fish just into the deeper water around 4ft on my left hand margin at 5mts & tight to the bridge at the same distance. It was nice to see Andy France back on the back after suffering an injury to his (Cant spell it but its in your leg!) behind me on peg 37 & I had Darren Wilton on peg 31 to my left the other side of the bridge, Gabo was also with us, Well sort of but the previous nights alcohol contents was still evident"   

 After feeding a bit of corn down the edge & some micros & 4mms on the 13mt line I was just going to start the day dobbing a bit of bread but felt it was a bit murky for that so started across tight over on soft pellet fishing around a metre off the bridge feeding just a few hard 4mms & a pinch of micros, It wasn't long before I had a few bites & after 30mins had three carp for around 10lb' This is usually the case on here before you end up searching around for fish when they move off, Just as I thought it wasn't long before things went funny so switched to fishing banded hard 6mm pellet feeding just 4mms, I couldn't get this to work at all & after 30mins of trying went back to the soft pellet & micro approach, After about an hour or so I had around 16lb adding just a few small stockies' A goldfish", I decided to try the slightly deeper water off the back which did give me a couple of quick 2lb fish then nothing, I had a feeling the fish were backing off under the bridge with nobody on peg 33, Darren had also started well on peg 31 catching a few early fish across but now seemed to be struggling for bites. I decided to start pinging a few hard 6mmts at 13mts across right off to my left looking to drop in on it now & again of for signs of fish here.  I gave the far line a rest & had a look down the edge lines, I foul hooked a decent fish on the corn line to my left the couldn't get a sign, I tried next to the bridge with 6mm expander on the hook & had a bite straight away which was another 1lb stockie then nothing.

Back across I had another 3lb carp as soon as I went tight over where I began then had a decent F1 dropping the rig closer to the bridge where I hadn't fed' This set the pattern up for the day really, I couldn't catch over the area I had been pinging 6mm, All I had was a couple of small skimmers to show here, there didn't appear to be fish showing themselves anywhere along the far bank to my left with any indications coming nearer the bridge as I expected but after a couple of indications I knew they were backing off under the bridge, I did managed one fish on the corn to my left down the edge & really expected to catch here later In the match but it didn't happen & I just missed one bite at the same distance next to the bridge. Andy Had been netting the odd fish threw the day & a couple of bigger fish later in the day, Halfway through I said I had around 20lb & Andy was admitting to 25lb so the last hour it was all to play for between us but didn't know what else had been caught, I had a feeling I would get a couple more better fish across later in the day after catching any size from 10oz to 2lb on & off  through the day, & so it proved with a 3 & 4lb fish in the last ten minutes"

On the all out I had 52lb on the clicker along with just a few silvers & Andy was admitting to 50lb so it would be close'? I caught up with onsite Cadbury Anglings Match organiser Dan doing the weigh-in helping him do the board & at this time 35lb was leading the way, Mark Walsh over on peg 21 did well to finish with 27lb of F1's included in his 49lb total,  A couple more weighs before it was my turn & I wasn't far off finishing with 58lb of carp & 2lb of silvers for just over 60lb, Andy's turn & I still had him down as the winner but it was closer than I thought as he finished with a total of 56lb odd, A good result for me then picking up £70 along the way on which I treated myself to a new pair of sunglasses' I even had time to pop-in the bookie on my way home to have a small flutter on the grand national & returned in time to watch me gain another £20' Result! Lance Tucker took the silvers with 11lb 4oz which is lower than the recent weights again here.  

It turned out to be a glorious day with a decent few hours of sun for a change, I had loads of options today but just kept trying to add fish to the net on the lines I chose regardless of size which worked for the best, I did have a few when I new fish weren't in the swim to try close to the bridge without feeding which worked a few times. Off to Viaduct tomorrow for another crack on Cambell Lake but mind already mind up on its carp or bust!" Lol.

Full Results -

1st Dom Sullivan (Mosella UK) peg 34, 60lb 9oz.

2nd Andy France (Cadbury Angling) peg 37, 56lb 10oz.

3rd Mark Walsh (Acorn) peg 21, 49lb 4oz.

4th Rich Heatley (Clevedon A.A) peg 11, 35lb. 

5th Dave Carroll (Burt Baits) peg 9, 30lb 6oz.

6th Lance Tucker (Sensas 88) peg 15, 29lb 2oz.

Silvers -

1st Lance Tucker (Sensas 88) peg 15, 11lb 4oz.

2nd Wayne Trimmings (Burt Baits) peg 18, 11lb 2oz.   

Viaduct Fishery Cambell Lake.

A Full house today with the pegging limit to twenty of us, It had fished well on a few pegs here yesterday in the fisho Qualifier but the numbers of carp still seem to be in the pegs at the lower end of the lake so hoping to avoid the top side far end after drawing here last time when it was a struggle for all of us, Into the draw & no such luck' I drew peg 125 next to where I was last time I was on here". A few Carp had been coming from peg 127 down of late but I couldn't see us beating the dominant pegs on the opposite side so already had my mind set to try for silvers again".

Like a magnet I drew next to Phil Hardwick again on peg 127 who would go all out for carp & Roland Lucas the other side of me on peg 126, I planned on two lines one at 13mts & won at 11mts slightly left so set up two rigs, A 4x14 wire wonder & a 0.2g pencil on 0.13-0.10 with 18 & 16 F1 pellet hooks. I did get the bomb & waggler rods out just to have a look for carp if need be, I got a pint of casters before the start which I planned to feed short.

At the start I fed two balls of G/Bait with micro & 4mms added at 13mts & some loose micros at 11mts, I started short on caster over casters but one roach in 5mins this was soon scraped. I had a quick look on the bomb with pellet but not so much as a liner, I could see Team mate Tony Rixon Catching a few on peg 113 on the waggler so soon switched to this. I foul hooked & lost sa fish shallow but most casts the float just sat there". 45mins gone & I was onto the longer pole lines, I started to catch the odd skimmer on soft pellet but most were small & I seemed to get a few bites then they would move off or become un-settled, It was the same case when I switched to 11mts, I did try hard pellet but couldn't get a response on them. This was a gruller for me already' I could see carp being caught further down & Phil had had a couple of fish but bites for him were few & far between.

I kept swapping lines taking a couple of small skimmers off each but Roland & Nick Ewers above him were catching a few decent size 2lb skimmers but I just couldn't get any better fish, I tried maggot & casters on the hook but this didn't improve things, I struggled for most of the day taking just two better skimmers with a couple of hours to go, just as I though a few bigger skimmers had turned up the carp appeared from nowhere & suddenly started to take a bit of notice on bait going in at are end for a change', I had three carp in as many put-ins all on the lighter silvers rig & got them all in in next to no time", This basically killed my silvers lines on the long pole for the rest of the match, I landed another carp of each the long lines & pulled out of another two at the net but they weren't what I was intending to catch! I ended up fishing on my top three where I added a few more skimmers including another 2lb fish but was never going to catch Roland or Nick as they were fairing better although nick was now having carp issues, It appeared Roland had made the right choice fishing his top-kit down the edge over cloudy G/bait as he had some bream down there but still managed a few carp from there! Phil Was doing his best to slay as many carp as he couple on the wagg before the end of the day but didn't think he was going to catch the guys who were catching earlier in the day, when the scales arrived Phil was leading are bank with 115lb mostly caught in the last 90mins all on the wagg, My silvers went 20lb odd & five carp 38lb which was going to win me nowt" Roland had 33lb of silvers just beating Nick who 32lb of them, Back at the Results & the match was won By Tony Rixon from peg 113, He told me he had most of his fish on the deck with pellet but did suffer with a few foulers, His full report will be on his blog, As Far as the silvers went Paul Faires surprized us all after catching 49lb mainly down his edge on casters so well done to the pair of you. Didn't really have my head on it from the start today, Should of really switched to carp maybe when the skimmers got pushed out, After all it paid off for Phil as He finished third on the day picking up the section monies. A bit fished out again after the five days! Lol.

Full Results -

1st Tony Rixon (Mosella) peg 113, 140lb 8oz.

2nd Gary O'Shea (Bait-Tech) peg 110, 138lb 1oz.

3rd Phil Hardwick (Burt-Baits) peg 127, 115lb 8oz.

4th Adrian Bishop (Summerhayes) peg 112, 114lb 14oz.

5th Paul Blake (Viaduct) peg 128, 104lb 11oz.

6th Chris Davis (Westerleigh) peg 114, 101lb 8oz.

Silvers -

1st Paul Faires (Sensas 88) peg 116, 49lb 9oz.

2nd Roland Lucas (Wiltshire Angling) peg 125, 33lb 1oz.

3rd Nick Ewers (P.I.Thatchers) peg 124, 32lb 14oz.         

A Pleasure Session On Taunton & Bridgwater Canal.

I was looking forward to this day out with long time friend Darren (Big Bird) Greenwood, He doesn't get out much nowhere days with his boys growing up & being an avid Bristol City Fan" He's Not into the carping seen so we decided to go back to the Boat & Anchor stretch we have tried before, I had a good look at the canal yesterday & the colour looked spot on, Not Chocolate but a nice ting to it, We had a nice breakfast in the Burnham Café before stopping of for a day ticket at Thyers of Highbridge where Birdy Wanted to buy a brolley as it was raining quite hard but they had none in stock! Lol. It had died of when we arrived & thankfully the canal still had the ting' to it & we looked to be alone on the bank so really fancied us to catch some of the canals lovely Tench".

We took a short walk past the pub towards wide waters in the trees area & chose what looked like two inviting swims, We got close to the water easy enough & Thankfully the northfulk reeds had been trimmed allowing as to see the cyclists & Walkers. It was just short of 13mts to the far side bramble bush entering the water, Pluming up I had to come away from the bush a couple of feet due to the under water weeds ect but still had just over 3ft of water, I set up two rigs, the one across being a 0.2g float & the other for down the track which was around 6 inches deeper, Both on 0.15-0.13 & an 18 Silver Fish hook.

I started the day feeding a small amount of chopped worm/Caster across, Fed some of the same to my left down the track at 6mts & fed a ball of G/Bait, Choppy & casters off to my right at 10mts again down the track. I started across as did Darren, Single caster saw me connect with a small roach after ten minutes so switched to double caster, After 25mins I fed a small nugget of casters in G/Bait back across & went straight back over it" Five minutes later I had a proper fish on which I soon got back to the top kit as you cant let them find the weed or snags, A nice start with a Tench Around 5lb", We fully expected to soon start getting a few more, I switched to corn on the hook after a couple more small fish bites & missed a proper bite, I thought I had sussed it but couldn't get another bite & nor could Birdy, We spent the next couple of hours starting new lines nearer the cover across but still couldn't find any more Tench, I had topped up the track swims from the off & had a couple of looks without bites, But noticed after about three hours some bubbles appear over the G/Bait fed line at 10mts, I went in with single caster & after less than a minute had a proper bite & landed a fish over 3lb, I went straight back over it this time with double caster & a few minutes later had another fish around 4lb, Straight after this fish I fed another ball of mix on this line & switched to the shorter line which I had been feeding with tiny amounts of casters by hand, I had a couple of chunky Rudd before taking another Tench on single caster with the hook buried, Much to Birdy's disgust as he was still to catch one' He got one back soon after though which cheered him up".

I just kept topping the short lines up with small amounts of feed & switching between them, I had a good afternoon catching the odd tench to 5lb, One perch around a 1lb a couple of rudd to 12oz along with some smaller samples, All my fish came on single & double caster all down the track as I never hooked another Tench across, I forgot the camera today which was a shame but Darren took a photo on his phone which hopefully I can get added to here in due course. As far a Darren's day went he did hook two more Tench but managed to lose them at the net" We'll say its because he rusty Hey" I Had to Laugh though'. He still enjoyed the day catching a decent net of smaller fish & I really enjoyed the change of scenery & to Catch ten Tench out the Canal is a good day by anyone's standards.  

 

As you can see I've now added the pic that Darren took for me on his Phone, Shame he just didn't get the jist that I was supposed to be looking at him but never mind" Lol.

   

Summerhayes Silvers Match, Friday & Pleasure Session, Taunton & Bridgwater Canal.

Friday saw me take a trip back to Summerhayes for the start of their silvers only qualifier with the match winners going to a final sometime in Oct, Bit disappointing with only eight fishing including Team Mate Gabo so it would be run as a rover match although we only had the choice of Longs or Sellicks Lake, ended up with sixth choice which would rule out the me ending up around the high 30 pegs on longs which I fancied to produce as someone was bound to go on there & the rule was you all have to have an empty peg either side, Sure enough When Gabo had 2nd choice opting to go on peg 34 it ruled out anyone going on peg 35 or 33 & with Gary butler going below him I wasn't quite sure were to go? I haven't fished Sellicks for some time so didn't know how it was fishing for silvers so chose peg 38 on Longs looking down the lake from the carpark which is the narrowest bit being only 12mts to the far side.

I set up a 0.2 pencil float on 0.11-0.10 & an 18 F1 maggot hook to fish maggot on the hook if needed but hoped to catch on soft pellet really so had a rig on the same line with a size 16 F1 pellet hook, The depth was pretty even at around 4ft so had a line at 10mts left & right down the middle around 6mts off the near bank, I plumed two lines across at 11mts which was a bit un-even but did find a couple of flat areas.

At the start I fed a ball of casters & dead reds to the left down the track & a small ball of micros & some 4mm expanders to the right, I fed a small ball of G/bait across slightly right with some micros added & some oose micros to the left hand side across. I started the day down the track to the right with 4mm expander which was inline with Gabo from where I was sat, This wasn't a good thing as he soon netted a couple of decent near 2lb skimmers & was getting plenty of indications by the look of things' I did have a bite which was a blade skimmer after 30mins which came off then I couldn't get a bite here, It didn't help with the wind changing direction blowing right round the bend at me which was getting stronger", I had a look on maggot on the other track line but no signs here so time to go across on expander starting over the micros, One bite here in ten minutes which turned out to be a small carp" Over to the ground-bait fed line again with expander but I just could not catch a thing..

Rob Birch was around from me on peg 2 & was catching smaller skimmers across to the sheltered far bank where he was & Jeff Sparks below him was getting a few fish, It took me nearly two hours to get bites", I started to cad-pot neat G/Bait across in the deeper water & from nowhere had three skimmers on the trot for around 2lb so at last something in the net, I kept adding the odd nugget & after another 20 blank minutes started to get a run of had sized skimmers, I topped up after every two fish or as soon as I couldn't get any signs, I kept having a quick look on the other fed lines but not a bite on anything to my left hand side across or down the track, I even started a new line infront the next pallet but not a sign, I managed a 1lb skimmer from down the track back towards Gabo but had to ditch this line as the wind had got up that much the rig was just towing back at me to much even with line on the deck, I began to feed the odd tiny nugget of damp micros down the track just past my top kit in the hope of a few ate fish here, I kept working the far line but they kept drifting out the peg, I began to catch the odd carp but usually when I went back on the same line I would get a bigger sized skimmer soon after, Going into the last hour I was beginning to make in roads on Gabo & Rob who's swims had slowed up a little, With an hour to go I dropped in on the short line I had been feeding & had a 12oz hybrid straight away, Soon followed by a 1lb skimmer before a carp put an appearance in", I fed another small amount before back across to add acouple more skimmers to 8oz. In the last 45mins I added a skimmer over 2lb short with a few more to 10oz on the far line. I new Gabo had caught well at the start but didn't do much in the last few hours apart from play carp" I was first to weigh & was pleased to finish with 15lb odd considering I was miles behind at one stage. Gabo struggled later in the day but did enough early with his big skimmers to finish with 17lb odd & we thought that was the way it would stay but we forgot Dan Pither who was late arriving had chosen to be the only one on Sellicks Lake, He was admitting to 10lb but was a bit out finishing with 16lb odd" This meant it pushed me out the money but a close match in the end which resulted in Gabo taking his place in Octobers Final.

Full Results -

1st Gabriel Skarba (Mosella) peg 34 Longs, 17lb 2oz.

2nd Dan Pither (Royal Marines) peg 2 Longs, 16lb 10oz.

3rd Dom Sullivan (Mosella) peg 38 Longs, 15lb 1oz.

4th Jeff Sparks (Summerhayes) peg 4 Longs, 13lb 4oz.

5th Rob Birch (Summerhayes) peg 2 Longs, 12lb 6oz.             

Viaduct Fishery Costcutter (Cambell, Cary & Lodge.

A good turn-out today with fifty fishing so using the three lakes again, What a pleasure it was to see the sun out this morning' It was still chilly in the air but much better than of late, A quick chat with welsh team mates Lee Peanut' & Steve (The Bomb) Shaw' before the draw but got caught out a bit when it was done outside but wanted to be near the back for a change, I ended up with peg 102 on Cary & the wheels would off come off the trolley drawing this in the winter league but the fish seemed to have moved a bit from the middle of the lake in the last week or so but would still be hopeful of a few & would skip the silvers today, I set up the normal bomb rod then a waggler to fish towards the aerator in the middle of the lake at depth to begin with, Apart from this just one pole rig to fish on the deck at 16mts in 4ft of water being a 0.2g hand made float on 0.17-0.15 & a size 16 hair rigged hook, This rig would double up to fish short on meat at 9mts.

For Company I had team mate Vince brown on peg 100 & I didn't know the chap on peg 103 but he seemed a happy chap, I started the day having a quick chuck on the bomb & pellet hoping for a quick fish or signs of liners, Nothing for 20mis so began to ping a few hard pellets in a couple of areas trying the bomb over the top, I switched to the wagg again with banded pellet & missed a bite on the hour mark' I gave it another 15mins but nothing, At this stage Vince & peg 103 were also yet to catch. I had been pinging meat at 16mts so decided to give it a go.

First dob-in & I had bite straight away which resulted in a fish around 7lb in the net, Next put-in & a few minutes later a slightly smaller fish, Out again & I missed another bite but that was it, I gave it another 15mins even trying off the deck but no signs so dropped in on the short line after seeing a couple of small bubbles, I had a bite soon after but it was a skimmer over 2lb, I had kept pinging a few hard 6mms & some 8mms in a couple of different spots in the open water so had another look on the wagg & the bomb for 30mins but still no signs here.

back on the long pole I had another carp around 4lb then a skimmer around a 1lb but bite were still hard to come by, I had another skimmer at 9mts & did prick' a better fish, I really thought a few fish would switch on longer pellet fed lines with the bomb but it didn't happen, I did have one proper pull round which caught me off guard as I was pinging a few pellets elsewhere but even this managed to spit it out before I got to the rod", back on the long pole with just an hour remaining & I had a proper lump on' I did eventually get it in Which weighed separately went 19lb 4oz" I had one more on the long pole in the last hour again a double figure fish & a couple more skimmers on the short pole but nothing on the bomb, Vince had called it a day with a couple of hours to go & the chap on 103 tipped back just a few pounds of silvers, Scott Russell had done ok from peg 105 from what I could see catching a few on the bomb & a few down to the next empty platform, When the scales arrived Dan White was leading are lake with 89lb from peg 98 above the tree, My five carp went 57lb odd & silver added another 5lb odd for 62lb 12oz but Scott won the lake with nine carp from peg 105 for 109lb odd, Cambell proved the lake to be on again today with Team mate Steve (The Bomb) Shaw showing us how its all done again from fancied peg 112 winning with a massive 221lb" Well done mate' All caught on his normal bomb & pellet approach. Kev Dicks was next to him & finished the day with 156lb to finish runner-up, The silvers was won from Lodge Lake again as I had expected although the weights were down a little with Nigel Easton taking 38lb from peg from the monk peg 64 on Lodge which included 18lb of hybrids down the edge & skimmers on the longer pole.

Not in the frame but still enjoyed the day funnily, I did miss a couple of bites on the long pole & with neither guy opposite on pegs 77, & 78 bothering to fish the open water just sticking to the pole may have made a difference as to why the bomb wouldn't produce? I'm back Sunday for the open on Cambell which is already full & has a waiting list but at east I'm guaranteed to be on it".

Just to say had a few hours on Westpool at Shiplate farm yesterday, caught well across taking carp to 10lb before getting bored so switched to fishing the track & catching around 28lb of silvers including skimmers, a few tench & a couple of roach over 1lb on the corn so a fun few hours.  

Todays Results -

1st Steve Shaw (Mosella) peg 112 Cambell, 221lb 11oz.

2nd Kev Dicks (Mosella Bathampton) peg 111, 156lb 12oz.

3rd Steve Woolloff (Un-known) peg 131 Cambell,  140lb 5oz.

4th Luke Hancock (Bait-Tech Viaduct) peg 132 Cambell, 128lb 11oz.

5th Scott Puddy (Tackle UK) peg 105 Cary, 109lb 3oz.

6th Dan White (Garbolino) peg 98 Cary, 89lb 3oz.

Silvers -

1st Nigel Easton (Langport) peg 64 Lodge , 38lb.

2nd John Gray (Mosella) peg 60 Lodge, 33lb.

3rd Chris Jones (North) peg 69 Lodge, 25lb 12oz.     

 

 

 

 

Viaduct Open (Cary & Lodge Lakes).

Twenty odd fishing today so both lakes being used, I found myself near the front of the draw queue again, I had to think when drawing peg 73 before realising I was on Lodge Lake, The first peg on the spit between Cary & Lodge, This swim has an inviting margin to fish down under the tree for carp but I was told they have struggled for carp here the last couple of matches so would give it a miss & try for silvers again today, Leaving Nick Ewers on peg 53 Opposite me to wave the long pole to the back of the tree his side' I'm not going to rant on but the day turned into a disaster for me' I had a quick 2-3lb of good roach & hybrids down the left hand edge on caster before this dried up so went out on the lone pole with expander over a G/bait fed line & another fed with micros & hard 4mms, I started to catch the odd good skimmer on each line but after a couple of hours the breeze got up a little & I found it impossible to see my float at times! I persisted for as long as I could but with John Fudge & Fred Roberts both catching really well I was never going to match there weights & called it a day with a couple of hours to go, A frustrating day as I had to break the pole down every put-in with a bush right behind me which made things awkward but not being able to see the float most drop-ins was more painful" I had a chat with Nick before I left who had two carp & a few good silvers but then hooked another carp which was tethered to some line on the tree so left him pondering on what to do next" Lol, I also saw John before I left who was admitting to 45lb of silvers & had put a second net in so well done to him.

It turned out Carp Tamer Trig had done the business again today with 189lb odd from peg 81 along the spit on Cary & John fudge easily won the silvers from peg 56 on the lawn bank of Lodge Lake with 54lb odd so well done to the pair of um' Full Results with be on Viaducts facebook page. Totally fished out after four days on the bank which haven't turned out to be my best days but that's fishing & will be back trying again next week hopefully'     

Shiplate Farm (Main Lake Open).

Back on my doorstep today for this latest open as I haven't been on here for a while, It made a change to wake up to a pleasant morning weather wise & the forecast of rain to hold off until late in the day & little wind condition were in are favour' As normal pegs 1 & 15 would be my first choice but seeing as I always seem to draw the bottom end I was going to leave it to Owner Carol to do the honours for me in the draw, Mark Poppleton was having his first visit to the venue today so I had a feeling that one of the flyers would end up in his mitt the way he draws". I wasn't wrong" he went & drew peg 1..! Unbelievable" Carol handed my ticket which turned out to be peg 7 so no change of scenery for me again' I had Rich Hawkins next to me on peg 6 & Mark Wynne the other side of the bush down the edge on peg 8. If it had been a bit later in the year I would of expected a few fish down the edge but didn't really fancy it to be honest, I had an island chuck but having been in the lake I know its all very uneven close to it so opted to fish the waggler a couple of metres off the island in the deeper water around 5ft, I set up a pole rig to fish soft pellets over G/bait, pellets in the open water being a 4x12 malman on 0.15-0.11 & a 16 F1 pellet hook where I chose to lines at 13mts & one at 8mts to my left, Finally a 0.2g rig to fish down the edge at 13mts in nearly 4ft of water a metre or so off the bank as any closer I would be plumbing up on top of the rocks along the inside bank.

I started the day by potting some micros & hard 4mm pellets slightly left at 13mts & two balls of G/bait & dead red maggot the same distance to my right & a few 4mms on the shorter line, I began the day fishing the wagg at dead depth with banded 6mm pellet feeding hard 4mms, 20mins in & I hadn't had a sniff, I whipped back to get my cap from the van before coming back & dropping in on my long pole line with expander on the hook on the right hand swim, still no signs so switched to the right with maggot on the hook but this was the same result' Things were looking bleak, mark had managed a skimmer & a pastie carp down the edge & rich was also yet to catch, I had a look down the edge but no early signs.

Another try on the wagg still didn't produce so back on the long pole, I missed a bite over the micro fed line after a few mins but had another shortly after which was a decent 1lb plus skimmer, Soon after I lost another decent size one shipping back so soon switched to a lighter elastic, I managed a smaller sample before deciding to top it up, I had another look down the edge on corn & had a dip on the float so left it a while before having a proper bite which was a carp but only small around 3lb, No more signs so back to the long pole on expander again, I had another decent skimmer then pulled out of another shortly after then couldn't get a bite again, I tried maggot on the other G/bait fed line which produced a small roach & a small perch but that was it from this line, Un-be known to me it was mating season for the geese & when two outsiders arrived" There was a right commotion on my waggler line which ruled out trying this again for a while" I did manage another better skimmer on the long pole but was having to sit & wait for bites, pinging a few hard 4mms in with the catty over the top, I missed another bite before all hell broke loose" One of the geese caught up with another in my swim & it went ballistic" It was attempting to climb on top the other which resulted in the pair of them completely submerging each other right at the end of my pole line! They weren't the only thing going ballistic by the time they had finished" FFS..

Owner Steve assured me not to worry & my bites would return' Did They F**K!" That was the end of my day as far as the pole went! I did manage a Tench over a 1lb on dead maggot when I went to 14mts late in the day but any skimmers had long gone, I never had an indication short & no more signs of fish down the edge. Was really P****D off with all the commotion putting pay to any hope of catch more, It turned out the lake had fished hard, As expected pegs 1 & 15 dominated again being first & second again but just 11lb 15oz was third on the day, I finished with 8lb odd of silver & my carp for a total of 11lb 2oz so one more skimmer would have done!! Really felt I could of had a few more skimmers in the last couple of hours but couldn't do anything about it. Mark finished with the two fish & Rich had 7lb. Mark Poppleton won the day with 45lb odd ahead of Mark Lehay on peg 15 with 32lb. Silvers went to Nigel Wickham with 11lb 4oz.

Cancelled my trip back here for the match on Hawthorns Tomorrow deciding to make another trip to Viaduct to end the extended weekends fishing. It must of been April Fools Day For Me Today..!

Full Results -

1st Mark Poppleton (Colmic S.W) peg 1, 45lb 4oz.

2nd Mark Lehay (Summerhayes) peg 15, 32lb 14oz.

3rd Rob Birch (Summerhayes) peg13a, 11lb 15oz.

4th Nigel Wickham (Tom Thick Baits) peg 14b, 11lb 4oz.

5th Dom Sullivan (Mosella) peg 7, 11lb 2oz.

Silvers -

1st Nigel Wickham (Summerhayes) peg 14b, 11lb 4oz.

2nd Julian Pinkett (Wormheads) peg 3, 9lb 2oz.