The turnout was very disappointing on Wednesday evening. Perhaps it was the extremely high temperature or the fact that Andy Murray was on the box in the Wimbledon quarter finals? I really don’t have a clue as to why, but we only had a few anglers turn up and they were keen to fish so fish we did. I spread us out on two lakes and decided to pay the winner on each lake rather than a winner take all. Christine Booth was going to watch husband Roy fish and I asked her to pick my peg for me, she had a dip and came out with 19, I was well pleased with that draw. Roy asked her to draw for him and out came peg 54 another flyer I wish she came more often, she can draw for me anytime!
One hundred!
After 107lb coming from the peg on Saturday all caught shallow, it will be no surprise to know what was going to be my main line of attack. There was a nice ripple on the water and it looked perfect. I also set up a paste rig as I wanted a back up should my shallow extraction not work! Starting on the paste was disappointing with only a couple of fish, so I went on the shallow rig and that was again slow to say the least, the wind had dropped and the heat even late in the evening was uncomfortable.
The fish did start coming but those F1’s were noticeably by their absence however, the tench wanted to have a little go along with some small carp and skimmers. Even though it was slower than it is normal, I was quite enjoying myself it really is a pleasant place to fish. I think I had eight species of fish in my 40 fish total so you never really knew what was going to take a fancy to the bait next. The weighing didn’t take long and I was pleased to have top weight on my lake but once again it was very close, I had just over 39lb the next weight was 38lb plus it makes it interesting when it’s that close. Roy Booth had the top weight from the bottom lake with 45lb he seemed slightly surprised as he didn’t think he had caught that much.
On my travels
Friday morning arrived and I did in reverse what countless hundreds of anglers do every year, I started on a trek to Yorkshire from Cornwall for a few days fishing. It was a trek as well the traffic was appalling with quite a few accidents along the way. In the end it took around 8 hours to get to young Toms house. Once there I had a great meal that Mrs Scholey had slaved over but to be honest I was rather dehydrated from the journey and was pleased when Tom declared it ‘Beer O’clock!’ Oh man, that Yorkshire beer was gorgeous and I couldn’t believe the price in one pub 1.80 for a pint of real ale! Fantastic price, I did fancy saving some money, so had loads!
Fishing time
Saturday morning dawned and I woke early with rather a thick beer head for a 40 minute journey to Little John lakes in Nottinghamshire. A breakfast stop was in order and I have to say I had a brilliant breakfast at a cafe minutes from the fishery. Onto the lakes and I was looking forward to the days fishing but was feeling totally unprepared as I had nothing ready and what’s more, was in effect fishing a new venue blind. I did have some information from Tom but on my last jaunt up here last year I nicknamed him ‘Duff man’ for the quality of his information I wasn’t feeling too confident about what he told me.
Before long it was draw time and I dipped into the bag of dreams and out came peg 1, I immediately had visions of a corner peg and suddenly felt confident. I walked down to the lake and asked one of the other anglers where peg 1 was situated, I was surprised to have a peg pointed out in the middle of a straight bank. Well, I suppose they have to start pegging a lake somewhere! The lake looked really nice, it is well cared for with comfortable pegs I wish I had taken my camera but unfortunately that is 300 miles away. My peg had an island which was around 19 metres away. The first thing I did was put the pole up to see if I could reach. I am not sure whether or not I was disappointed when I was a metre short of the island! I had also left one of my extensions behind but knew if I had it with me I would have been tempted to fish it long, with the wind sideways on it would have been very hard work and as I was feeling delicate, a shorter approach was called for!
With my plan to keep it simple I got a few things ready, I was going to fish paste at 7 metres with a .14 float in around 6’ of water. A shallow rig to fish banded hair rigged pellet at 12 metres and an edge rig. I also decided on a pellet feeder tight to the island and with a six hour match there was plenty of time to try everything. That was the only thing I wasn’t looking forward to 6 hours! As much as I love my fishing I guess I am just used to fishing 5 hour contests and was dreading that extra hour. Personally, I find if catching, 5 hours is enough and if not 5 hours is definitely enough! Anyway when in Rome…
The match started and I cast tight to the island and was pleased to see the tip fly round and a 2lb carp opened my account. Out again and there was obviously loads of fish in front of me as the tip would not stay still I had a couple of smaller samples followed by a string of lost fish, foul hooked I suspect. I noticed that my next door neighbour to my left was catching using an inline feeder so thinking that was the answer I decided to change, it worked but I still foul hooked several. I didn’t realise but you are allowed to tuck your bait into the feeder that will teach me for not checking the rules fully.
I stayed on the feeder but it slowed down dramatically after the first 45 minutes and after an hour I was not getting any indications at all, it was time for the paste. I decided I was going to use yellow toffee paste as I was told there are some huge bream in the lake and I know that carp like it as well it seemed to cover all options. A two pound carp first drop gave me some hope but all I managed in the next 40 minutes was a handful of smaller carp. I had been pinging pellets out to 12 metres and was keen on trying that.
Before long I was catching quite well on 6mm pellet on the shallow rig and was starting to enjoy myself. There was the odd 2lb fish but most were much smaller but they certainly put up a good account for themselves. It really is quite a fishery with a good head of fish, a number of methods seem to work. As an example the guy to my left was catching down the edge and the guy to my right was catching on paste at 8m whilst I was catching up in the water at 12m! Fantastic fishing on that Maid Marion lake.
With 30 minutes to go I trashed my shallow rig so I decided to go down the edge where I had been throwing a bit of bait. I fished paste and was instantly into fish with some better samples showing as well. I was starting to bash myself up for not going sooner down the edge but in reality I was catching reasonably well on the long pole so mustn’t grumble too much.
The moment of truth arrived and I was first to weigh my fish recording 76lb beaten for the section with a 91lb bag for my next door neighbour on peg two. But, I had learnt a bit and I had really enjoyed my days fishing. My old mate hindsight reckoned that I had fished the feeder too long, the paste too long and the shallow approach too long, he may well have been right!
On Sunday we were booked into Kiveton Water and I was up for this match, really looking forward to it. The previous evening we had a rig making and beer drinking session and I was now well prepared. I had listened intently to Mr Duffman on how he and Matt approach the water and it sounded right up my street, we were apparently looking for 20 bites in the match for about 40lb and that would see us in the frame places. I must admit looking for just over three fish per hour didn’t sound very thrilling but I was looking forward to working hard for the fish.
Now, be careful out there.
I drew peg 22 and was told it was a good area so that cheered me up. I walked round to my peg with Tom as he was further round the lake, when we got to my peg he reminded me that this was not a heavily stocked commercial and that I was looking for 20 or so fish so go careful with the feed. Setting up a minimal amount of tackle didn’t take that long so I was ready at the start. My choice for the day was a 4 x 12 rig to fish expander pellet over a few micro’s a 0.30g J13 shallow rig to fish a 6mm banded hair rigged pellet and a paste rig as back up. At the start I cupped in a few pellets and watched everyone else around me cup in balls of ground bait! Great, I thought they have all done it wrong!
Slipping a pellet on and going out to 6m I waited for my first bite, whilst I waited Brian to my left was out on the long pole and was soon playing a carp that he caught shallow. Just ignore it I thought a lucky fish. Next put out and he had another ‘lucky one’. Tom phoned and said ‘Forget what I told you these fish need some bait, there hungry. He had quickly worked out that the original method was not going to work! I put the phone down as Brian was playing another carp. I fed a big pot of micros on my pole line and went out shallow.
Blinker time
It was one o f those matches when you just know that it is not going to work for you! I pinged pellets at my float, slapped the rig and tried a host of things to get a bite but all I could manage on that line in well over two hours of fishing was one carp, one big skimmer and two foul hooked fish that I lost. In the meantime, Brian was on something like 20 carp, not big ones granted but he was walking the match and from the golden peg as well! The chap to Brian’s left was suffering the same fate as me, getting the very odd fish, in fact he packed up with a couple of hours to go, I know how frustrated he must have felt.
It was time to put the blinkers on and try to get some fish to salvage some pride. I decided to fish pellet and paste on my shorter pole line. I did manage 6 or so small carp and a few nice skimmers to finish with 25lb coming precisely nowhere! Brian won the match with a creditable 85lb and went home with a fat wallet after winning the golden peg, well done mate you fished it exactly right. My mate Paul Gorman known locally as ‘Niblet’ came second with a carp and skimmer net of fish that went in the region of 65lb
Last chance saloon
Last match up north and it was to be an evening match at Fusion lake, I don’t think Tom wanted me to fish anywhere twice in case I found out something that worked! We were a little late getting to the draw as the weather had turned rather wet. They had saved two pegs for us and mine was to be 52 which was an end peg. The lake was idyllic, an old mill pool by the look of it and another that was not artificially stocked. Tom told me that a big teen would win. It was a shame we didn’t get there earlier I would have loved to have had a look around the place.
I had made my mind up to fish my own match this evening and after I had a run down on the lake I decided it was going to be caster, looking for anything that swam, but just in case I took some paste with me but that was it, two rigs both to fish on the deck. Groundbait was going to be Yellow toffee with a few micros and casters. Just as we got to the peg it started to rain, and three hours later it was still raining! I had about 5’ at 7metres and that was where I was going to fish about a metre passed a tree that was in the water slightly to my left. Plumbing at around 2pm I found an area with the same depth so that was my swims sorted, simple!
Two balls of GB was cupped into the left swim at the start and I started with maggot on the hook I didn’t initially feed the left swim as I wanted to see the reaction to GB. About 10 minutes into the match I had a bite and lifted into a nice simmer of 1 ½ lb, very welcome. This was followed by some small stuff before I had s couple of smaller skimmers. I guessed that GB was not putting them off so they had some more on my other line.
In the bag
I managed 5 small Bream, three skimmers, two Crucians and some small Ide and crucially I lost a bream after it had been on for a few seconds, I also had a few Roach and Rudd plus a stripey that went 13lb in total for joint second! All the fish taken on single caster, I tried maggot and double caster and expander but found caster the real master. Unbelievably I had drawn with Tom who had exactly the same weight and we ended up sharing the second and third place money. I said to Tom that I was pleased that I lost that Bream as it was a good way to end equal second. The winner and I’m sorry I didn’t catch his name won the match with a big bonus carp he had 19lb in total. Tom mentioned that he lost a 4oz roach and he was mad about it! Oh well, mustn’t grumble Tom, it was a great match even though it did tip down most of the night. On the way back we stopped off for the steak night at Witherspoons in Sheffield and both ate heartily on the ‘folding we had received earlier.
Thank you
I had a great break away in a mostly sunny Yorkshire and I would like to thank Tom and his mum for their very generous northern hospitality it was ‘reet’ good. I am only joking about Tom and his duff information, he is a very talented young angler who is well respected by his peers in these parts, quite right as well, he frames in more than his fair share of matches, it’s only a shame he didn’t manage it this weekend when we were sharing! Oh well that’s it for this week as I started my journey back to the South West I left Tom with the words ‘we must try harder’ ringing in his ears. Oh, and before I forget I did enjoy that!
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Your more than welcome up here anytime Stewart, thanks for an enjoyable weekend.
To those who don’t get the ‘Did you enjoy that?’ thing, it seems to be a common question after a match around Nottinghamshire. I don’t really notice it anymore, but Stewart did when we are at Little John at Saturday, he was asked the same question by 4 different people in the space of ten minutes!
After answering in the affirmative 3 times he got fed up, and told the fourth bloke that asked him he hadn’t enjoyed it at all!
‘on my last jaunt up here last year I nicknamed him ‘Duff man’ for the quality of his information I wasn’t feeling too confident about what he told me.’
That wouldn’t be the old chopped worm at 4 metres routine would it Stewart?!
You’re right about Tom he is a top host and a top lad and always makes you feel very welcome.
Lol, the old chopped worm at 4 metres chestnut. Can’t believe you all fell for that one!
Thank you for that Sir Ben, you know you are welcome to spend a night on me anytime. Looking forward to squeezing you in again sometime soon…
Your stuff is in the post by the way choz.
I didnt fall for that one but I seem to recall you fell for it yourself before you looked up and saw a bush full of 10lbers screaming for bait
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