First match after an enforced break of nearly 6 weeks, work, some debilitating virus and then a nice holiday in India - so after enjoying wall to wall sunshine and temps up to 35°C, its been a bit of a shock coming back to this grey, dismal and wet weather.
I did consider going to Acorn yesterday, but saw the weather forecast and whimped out, right decision looking at the result and seeing how much it rained.
Onto today, minimal prep, took some maggots out the freezer, along with pinkies and checked my worms, they seemed alive, so all well and good. I did have to wash the mould and fungal growth out of my bait boxes, but that was it for prep, nice and easy.
Only 10 booked in, but some good quality competition, so a decent draw was required, I had no complaints when 18 came out of the tub, off I went, expecting to catch a few skimmers on at least a couple of methods. First rod set up was a 10' wand, to fish a cage feeder at about 20m, with the option to unclip and go closer to the island if necessary. Next was two wagglers, one peacock waggler to fish right across to the island, plumbing up it was nigh on full depth within a couple of feet of the island. The other with a Drennan glowtop waggler, the shape of the old canal blue, these are lovely sensitive floats for caster fishing.
3 topkits to complete the set up, one with a HB Frostie (0.3) to fish at 14m over some GB, a NG Gimp to fish caster over caster at 7m and another HB pattern to fish double caster sport in front of the tree/brambles to my left - hoping for a big perch or two.
Bait tray would be simple, GB, casters, maggot and pinkie and a tin of corn. On the all-in, I put one ball of GB in at 14m and started on the feeder, 3 casts and 3 bites indications with nothing to show for it, 4th chuck the tip twitched and a 5oz hybrid was netted, the bites dried up after this and I had one small roach in the next 20 minutes. A look on the pole next and a small skimmer, then a roach, then nothing. A switch to the waggler and caster brought a few small fish, roach, rudd and another small skimmer, but it wasn't possible to get more than a couple of fish from one area.
I just kept rotating lines to put odd fish from micro rudd to 5/6oz hybrids in the net, the perch line in front of the tree was devoid of fish, but I half expected that given the water clarity, it was too slow to be doing any good in the match. Steve Kedge to my right and the guy to my left was struggling as well, yet Martin on 16 was catching steadily, not too far out either.
Last hour I decided to sit it out on corn across, I had 5 better stamp fish doing this to the island and bumped a couple!!! After bumping each on it took at least 10 minutes to get a bite, I did have one over 2lb, but that was 5 minutes before the all out, I think the light just went too late for the bigger skimmers to switch on.
I beat either side, didn't get wet (bonus) and that sums up the good points, downside is that I am not sure what I could have done differently, it just seemed as there weren't many fish there. Well done to Martin on the win.
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