A game of two halves

Monday and  a quick drop by on the commute ticket, this time on the adjacent Wensum. By now the stretch  is mostly weed but the shallow bridge pool is worth a go.

It's almost stalking as you can see shapes sidling out to intercept loose feed or  approach the bait, under  a very shallow set float. Dace were first to show.

But pretty quickly spotty things muscled in. Some were quite small.

And a few were a bit bigger. Either way most spent more time out of the water than in, they were all incredible to look at and all wild bred.

Some of the views were quite ornamental

And others a bit more urban. The town stretch is free and in autumn comes into its own.

I slipped in untroubled by the sentries and was told more or less to bugger off out fishing as Ton Ton Macoute wanted to watch England uninterrupted and that I'd get a steak  when I got back. Never look those gift horses in the mouth I say.

Island it was and an hour and a bit on the Source under  a waggler. Again. Wind in same direction as last night but several degrees warmer and more slashy rudd surface action than porpoising bream. Managed one of the tench with a pinky hue

And a last gasp bream. Spawning bumps again. It's been on and off for a couple of months

Got home to thumbs up from Ton Ton Macoute as Kane had just sealed the win and  a juicy steak with a simple pepper sauce. Result.

Just the two Mrs. Wembley

Back on the island after Saturday's river opener for the traditional hour or so. Overcast with a warmish wind the bream were rolling everywhere so it wasn't a surprise that this one slipped up. 

I was given a little more of a tussle by this very long female tench, that didn't quite make 5lb. Lovely buttercup undersides.

Follow those hunches.

Got the nod for a couple of hours yesterday evening  so off the the river. Thought I'd start in the bridge pool as it well oxygenated and has some nice shade cover. Greys 15 footer with an Advanta Ikon centre pin and  a fairly sturdy stick. Had some caster but went with red maggot to start. Action not as brisk as I had hoped but enough to make me smile.

Think the gudgeon, my season opener would have just about been manageable for this brightly coloured perch. They're always this pretty in the clear water.

I kept thinking about a another spot,  much broader  with a good deep run close-ish in. I'd seen one of the white haired and whiskered members, you know the sort, safari hat and  a bucket of mashed bread  and a tin of Werthers on the dash getting into some decent back end roach but when I had a couple of looks afterwards it was painfully clear or flooding through. I had tried it the winter before for pike but had too much bother with belligerent Halfingers. 

Last night though it was looking spot on, with some cabbages close in but a good depth of water. I figured the 15 footer and heavyish float would be ok and so it proved., first swing in and the float dithered and stabbed under. Not a big fish but it was the roach my hunch was telling me would be there.

Given the depth the float stabbed under I raised the float a good 18 inches and settled into a feed, swing, mend line and strike routine and most times was into a fish, darting and twisting with flashes of red. Pretty indicitve of the stamp of fish caught.

Absolute jewels.

The wind became troublesome and the dace more insistent so called it an earlyish night. Think the area will be just right for autumn or back end dusk sessions with bread or maybe a lob tail. Worth following that hunch.

Just the one Mrs. Wembley

Quick commute sortie, still the same jacuzzi but over a tighter bed of smaller pellet with a smelly and oozy 8mm pellet bait. Lost a mudpig when the pre-tied knot slipped, pulled out of a very decent crucian or brown goldfish and landed this bream. A well spent hour. Perch rumours  confirmed in the flesh so to speak by the bloke 3 or 4 pegs down on meat.

I'm hoping for some peaceful and productive trotting at some point tomorrow. Got those casters to use  up after all.

Caster blaster

My turn to cut the hallowed and manicured turf on the blue lagoon yesterday. It would have been rude not to take a rod for afterwards.  Just so happened the tackle shop had a few casters left. Mostly taken in the drop but if the double bait got through to nestle on the bottom weed a better fish usually resulted.  

Only had a scant hour but it was a bite a chuck.Mostly roach with a couple of hybrids and this eel.

Probably saved the largest til last. Most enjoyable.

Jacuzzi time

Its fairly simple. Put in some pellet, or a mixture of particles and bingo. Jacuzzi time. The float dips, bobs, sometimes moves along. A carp  feels the line and spooks, a massive boil and sheet of bubbles. or  a pike arrows through  the shallow swim. Guess the silt, crap, and feed  is being stirred up all the time.

What's not simple it seems is converting that to fish on the bank. 

Source in every combination. Natural corn (Rudd magnet) . A pop up. A wafter. Banded pellet. I haven't tried the method yet , partly because it's very shallow and often silty. OK, rarely a blank and mostly hooked in the mouth like this one. Gob full of a 12m Source

Often though its like holding  a tiger by the tail as the hook is stuck in the tail. Or a pec. Great fun but not confidence boosting or problem solving.

It's not just me thankfully. Rob the Plasterer was similarly jacuzzied up on the dam. And when the strike did meet resistance off it fizzed.  Hooked in the pec. He's got the Drennan 13 ft Tench and Specimen Float too. Cracking rods.

I'm thinking about a swing tip. If I can still find one. Still got an Avon with a screw tip ring.

Next stop though the Machine and some internal probing and poking. The joys of ageing..

Living on the edge: litorraly

Largest Bureboi had me on a mission yesterday. He needed some stills for a piece he is writing on the (mis)managed retreat of our edgelands here on the East Coast.

This was once a road and that's a long way down.

Who decides whose home is worthy of saving?

Still, there's always time for a nice cup of tea. Or so it seems. At some point unreasonably soon that lighthouse may well be on the beach.