Trinty Waters, 31st December 2010

As I have been working all over Christmas, I was hopeful that a few others would fancy a day at Trinity, especially as the ice breakers could stay in the van. As it was there were six of us, so a decent little knock up, with £40 & £25 to fish for in the overall and a silver payout of £25.

I was pacing round my garage before I left, convinced I'd forgotten to put something in the van, but I walked round it half a dozen or more times and couldn't think what it could be...... until I got to Bridgwater, my dead maggots. So that was the plan down the pan before I started.

We had pegs 9-15 and peg 12 left out, I took the last card from the hat and opened it to reveal 15, not a bad draw, but on such a cold day, I'm not convinced the draw was crucial, all the pegs in can produce fish. Water temp was 2.5°C at the start and didn't vary all day.

I set up two rigs to fish at 12m, both Jean Desque wire stemmed floats, one standard, one with a hollow tip added to it. 0.9g and 0.13 to 0.11 and a 18 808 for the one with hollow tip and 0.75g 0.11 and a .08 flourocarbon hooklength and a 22 B611 on the standrd float rig. A margin rig on 0.15 and a 18B911 completed th pole set up. I did set up a straight lead, but it stayed on the bank and was put back into the holdall unused at the end.

I fed some softend 4mm, caster and micro at 12m on the whistle and waited half an hour for a bite, which was a small roach. Not much to tell about the day, it was hard work to keep the bites coming, alternating between soft pellet (couldn't catch on 4mm, but had some skimmers on 6mm) and maggot at 12m. The margins didn't produce, the peg died for 10 or 15 minutes after every bait top up, except when I just fed maggot, then I was plagued with microscopic Rudd.

I did chop a few worms and tried worm on the hook, but that was just a waste of time and worms, as the float didn't offer any indications of hungry fish when a worm was on the hook.

I could see Mike West on peg 13 and knew he had a couple of carp and a few silvers, I didn't have any carp, nor any sign of them, Andy Hembrow had also caught carp, to go with his silvers, along with Darren 'Noddy' 'Nuddy' Vowles who had two carp and a skimmer on the brain dead lead.

1) Andy Hembrow 21.14 peg 10
2) Mike West 12.14 peg 13
3) Chris Fox 9.07 peg 15
4) Darren Vowles 4.14 peg 9
5) Glen Calvert 4.01 peg 14
6) Dave Baker DNW peg 11

Silvers

1) Andy Hembrow 14.04
2) Chris Fox 9.07
3) Mike West 5.10

Happy New Year

Well, the snow and ice have really hit the match calender, I've been fortunate enough to have spent some of December in Goa, basking in the sun (34°C), drinking Kingfisher and cocktails and filling my face with Goan seafood and curry. We even had three extra days holiday at Thomsons expense, as Gatwick was closed.

Anyway, Happy New Year to those of you that follow my inane ramblings, lets hope for plenty of success stories in 2011, I'm looking forwrd to April/May and the warmer weather already!!

Just a reminder, if anyone is interested, there is an open at Trinity Waters (Woodland Lake) on Friday 31st Dec 2010, 08.45 draw, fish 10-3, so plenty early enough to get home and start the New Year piss up. Ring me on 07973 790719 if you want to fish. (The forecast looks like we'll have had three days warmer weather by then)

Lunacy at Landsend, Wednesday 8th December 2010

Eight hardy souls (or bloody lunatics) braved the icy conditions to fish Landsend today. I arrived and there was already an advance ice breaking party, Dean was throwing a 30lb dumbell in to break the ice, which was over 2" thick in places. Some pegs were thicker than this and left alone, it would probably take Mike to get down there with the slew machine to break some of it.

Three corners in, as 11/12 were in the corner which was thick to break, but I managed to pull peg 3, not my favourite peg on the lake, but if we'd catch at all was more relevent than what would be a decent peg in normal conditions. It's thanks to Tim Clark that I got there at all, the alternator packed up on my van last week and Tim came out in the ice and snow last Friday to fit a new one - thanks Tim.

I managed to finish off Dean & Tony's good work, breaking myself a LH margin and a channel in front. Tony had peg 5 drawn for him and was soon into a small hybrid, I followed this with a roach on pinkie and thought that I'd get a few bites, that was the only one for a long time. About 11.30 I got my thermometer out and put it about 15" deep into the water, the water temp was probably the coldest I've ever fished, at 0.5°. Tony was catching odd perch by swapping from in front to his margin, whilst a few others were blanking.

The cat ice kept forming over the clear area, meaning constant clearing, all the while I still could not get a bite, at around 1pm, Mike Duckett appeared, bearing gifts of hot coffee and twix bars, very much appreciated, thanks Mike. I managed two small perch from the margin, as by just after 2pm the channel in front was unfishable. The general consensus was that the 4pm finish was overly optimstic, as the lake would be frozen over again by then, the air temp was -2°.

So with everyone agreeing, well nearly everyone, Dean was sitting it out for a carp - thats real optimisim - the match was shortend to a 3.30pm finish, at 20 past I landed fish No4 and my best perch, but I was a long way behind Tony, John Bradford on peg 1 who foul hooked a chub (not that I'm bitter...)and Matt Tomes on peg 7. I was determind to weigh in, as I'd sat there, but I knew there'd be no beer tokens for tonight.

I do wonder as to the sanity of going fishing in these conditions, but its better than working.

1) Tony Rixon 5.12 peg 5
2) Matt Tomes 3.12 peg 7
3) Alan Oram 2.13 peg 21
4) John Bradford 1.10 peg 1 (Did I mention that was a foul hooked chub and 1 2oz perch!!)
5) Chris Fox 13oz peg 3
6) DNW