There really isn't going to be much content in here about the days fishing, I could describe set ups, terminal tackle, rods, pole anything, but at the end of it, I would have come back with virtually identical points if I had just taken a crabline.
I am wondering if there is much point at all in sitting here tapping away at the keys, I started this blog as a diary & something to get me thinking about my day, with the aim of the analysis improving my thought process. I am at a loss trying to analyse my day.
Mark Broomsgrove was tasked with drawing the team a decent quintuple of pegs, he managed 118 for himself, 85 for me, 56 for Paul, 24 for Glenn and Fred got the unfavoured 9. Well I couldn't be too upset, it hasn't been quite the flyer it was, but should still be worth decent points, if not more. The weather forecast was pretty horrendous and the rain had been lashing down, with the wind increasing, 40mph+ being promised by the BBC.
First stumbling block was the Cary bank, there have been machines along this bank working on the lakes during the week, given the amount of rain that had fallen, that meant trying to push a laden trolley to the peg was akin to a strongest man competition. My old team mate Nicky Ewers was on the next peg and had abandoned his trolley, handballing his kit to his peg. The mud was getting everywhere, both myself and Nicky, along with Nicky Collins who was on 88, were taken back to winters long past, on the Kenn, the Axe and the Huntspill when the levels were dropped down and all our clothing and tackle were a nice shade of grey clay all winter......
The wind was pushing down into peg 90, where Bunghole himself was sat, moaning about it!! The wagglers stayed in the bag, I set up two lead rods, one for popped up baits, one for meat on the deck. Two topkits completed the tackle, one for meat at 6m, another for down the edge, where 3' away from the bank I had 2' of water, seemed OK given the colour, which was much more opaque than of late.
On the all in I chucked out the bread and then heard Nicky landing a fish, I brought it back in and dropped a little shorter, the tip did move in what could have been one of those finicky bread bites, a strike and fish on, almost immediately I knew it was a good fish, but foul hooked. It came off after a couple of minutes. Nothing else on the bread, so out with the meat, another finicky bite and a small fish was hooked, initially I though skimmer, but the jagged fight soon gave away it was a Tench, all 14oz of it.....
By 1pm I had tried red, yellow and natural meat, corn, bread discs, bread crust and prawn, all with the same result - nothing, not even a liner. I was bored stiff by now, so reset the bread rod up as a small cage feeder, 0.12 hooklength with a 18 hook and fished this with GB and dead maggot, I had two bites on this, one I missed a rattle on the tip with maggots sucked dry - roach I guess. Next bite was a 2oz skimmer and that was it. I had been feeding the edge with maggot - nothing, the 6m line had seen 6 cubes of meat every 20 minutes or so and that too appeared to be as barren of fish, as the Sahara.
Pegs 82 and 81 to my right were equally struggling, but they did both manage a couple of hybrids to beat my dismal total of 1lb dead. I have absolutely no idea what I could have changed to get me a fish, Nicky had 3 fish in virtually as many chucks, then didn't have a bite for the rest of the match, as neither of us had any indications or liners, either the fish were led dormant, or they weren't there, I can come to no other conclusion.
Team wise we had a poor first match, but had gradually clawed our way up towards mid table, that was halted and we slid back down after a pretty meagre 32 points on the day. A very different feeling from last year, when we won the league, had the individual champion in the team and had all caught a few fish. Oh well, maybe we can make a better fist of it next year.
Thanks to Steve, Matt & Helen for running it, Clayton for taking the pools money, of which I didn't see a penny back this year, - poor show on my part - and well done to all those who took our crowns.
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