Inadvertent waggler

No into dark sessions this week so the Dream Liner sized chub will have to wait. Monday very blustery so set about the Mill Pool with a fixed spool. Found some farm labourers hand size wiry dace and an acrobatic spotty but the wind was still a nightmare with the shorter 13 footer and the useless 3lb bs Drennan Floatfish and as the school busses began to arrive I moved down two meadows to the respite of the high bricked banking of the Noddy Bridge. Poplar leaves visible on the river bed, no daytime chub to be had here. Back on the 15 footer and pin,  it's usually the nursery pairs of eyes or the afore mentioned big hand sized wiry jobbies here but today I found some namby office worker hand sized and less wiry inbetweener dace  instead, despite having missed a rod ring above an already broken ring (I can't abide not having rods broken down and banded ready to go and I am clumsy. Very clumsy). The timid pair of skittery jittery little grebes I'd watched on Sunday had moved  up, drab little things in contrast to the darting brilliant azure and rich ochre kingfishers.

I'd intended to try the upper Yare today to try and tempt a few more modest chub out of their undercut sweet rush sanctuaries with a constant stream of mash but on the spur of the moment diverted to a stretch of the Bure I've been thinking about for a while with untapped (by me) roach and perch potential. I rounded the first fishable  bend behind the church vaguely hinted at by Bailey in an article (a bit like the rod rest lost by Miller on a bend  and rediscovered 30 years later on at least three different bends)  and saw several fish topping. Decision made. The neatly stacked logs from a  substantial fallen tree,  and as is often the case with tree pools a reasonable depth.

Roach from the off, pretty fish 

and dace too, one with the scale stripped flanks only a perch can produce. My hunch was right.  Several fish in, the battered chubber crafted by the Loafer lay flat. The top rubber had split, producing an inadvertent waggler. Note the respliced middle section and immaculate and complete ringing, courtesy of the excellent rod builder at Gorleston Tackle Centre, where my knackered other Greys 15 footer from yesterday is going tomorrow. 

A few from 45 minutes, with as many again missing the landing net.

Moved down a bit for the last half hour, fewer fish but this lovely perch  might have been putting them off. Some nice looking bends and a very perchy lock pool, camp sheathings and all to explore further next time. Happy days.

Time for a change

Out with the chub rod yesterday and into dark which is something I haven't done for a while. Wind dropped and weed not too bad now.

Bigger  (much bigger) chub on this stretch, the chublets have yet to catch up with them so trying something a bit different with bigger hookbaits, the occasional bag of pellets. 

Third spot and head torch on, twang and nothing developed, next cast tap and pull but missed it. Knowing what swims here could have been a 6 or a 7 but that's just an if. More importantly I enjoyed it, didn't loose anything in the dark and the bites were a confidence boost. Gonna give the pike a go again this winter as well which I've not been that fussed with for the last couple of winters

Washed up and washed out

Prep

Most of the day to make the most of, no rain forecast and fish reported in the town reaches. Long old trek and an hour had fallen off the clock. If all came to nowt always the pub. Water clear as gin with non existent flow and a nasty swirling wind. Over to the boats, 28 gramme cage feeder holding with virtually no bow in the line. Roach were there, but too big for the perch/zed rod, tiny perch down the edge which might have to do. Rain, lots and lots of unforecast rain, everything soaked in an instant, groundbait now soup. Too wet too pack up, still getting roach on an empty feeder but felt miserable and too wet to face the pub. Chicken soup from the flask was cold and these pies were the most disappointing thing I've ever eaten. Pickle my arse. Ate half of one, the rest in the bin.

Worst thing on these occasions is the mountain of wet stinking tackle to dry off back home.

Game of two halves

Two halves is a pint. I had one (a pint). Norwich went 4-4-2 after going 1 down and equalised. Second half went back to 5 at the back, conceded and took off  the striker . They lost. Good riddance. Unloaded the charabanc and walked the 10 paces to the river. One flattened maggot, Cold, bored, packed up.

Kept the bib and braces on, just in case as I planned to check if Storm Benjamin had dumped too much cold rain water into the non-tidal. Stopped on the bridge, fish rising and pike attacking. An intense feeding period with fish taking whatever was hatching all around the pool and a way downstream too.  A roach or dace on every trot. Hands got too cold to be able to bait the  #16 B560. Neoprene gloves and the big coat next time.

Pint, pin and the lurking pike.

I had a short window from 4.Well, after a riverside pint anyway.

Inside of a bend and the top of the tide and I had an hour or so, double reds an easy swing out .

Plenty of bites, all roach bar two tiny perch. 

Pike quite active and eventually one took off downstream towards Wroxham having snaffled a roach on the way in. The line parted above the float and the red tipped Loafer chubber continued still attached.

A short time after I thought I was seeing double as two Loafer chubbers buried together. The pike had headed back up to it's feeding zone on my maggot line. I snared the returning chubber and it pinged off the line and I was able to retrieve it.

A pleasing post pint hour in fairly mild conditions made sweeter by news of a 4th consecutive win by the U's.

Dank and gloom

A week of high pressure, no rain. My arse. Well, in my corner of Norfolk anyway. Cold, fine and instantly soaking through mizzle from a low cloud base. Do I stick with what I know and build  a up a good net of dace and roach or check out some areas for big roach? These S bends on an otherwise long slow meander must be worth  a go on dusk surely?

More indecision and more rain, Clear the 'best room' for the carpet man tomorrow, chicken soup and focaccia courtesy of LIDL and pack up the charabanc, pissy rain or not. To a different part of the syndicate, but still looking for roach. Nasty down streamer, cow shit wherever I put my hand or feet and of course rain. A few better dace and one lovely roach that needed the net but evaded the camera (there will be more I thought) then this long, lean acrobat. I rarely notice if fish have tongues or not  but trout (and perch) do. The # 16  B560 was firmly lodged in it.

There were no more so upped sticks to try the banker. Local Barbel Hunter (it says so on his car form a previous barbel paradise life) perched on my favourite dug in tank trap block featured in a Bailey and Miller perch book. Bugger.. Home to dry every thing off.

The carpet man is here earlier than expected. The non forecast rain has stopped. Perhaps an hour later?

From Beasley Street to Beasley Boulevard.

Cracking Thursday evening up in that there Fine City with the Global Head of Content. Not long till the Greater Anglia Trains are rebadged as being part of Great British Railways.

Down past the Edith Cavell 

and over the Wensum to the perfectly adequate Glasshouse (Spoons) with perfectly adequate food and beer. Good bogs too.  We hadn't come out out just to put our money in Tim Norman's pocket. No, we'd come to Epic (shocking beer prices and shocking bogs) to see the (once of) Salford Stick Insect and he'd circumnavigated the globe ten times to perform for us.  No longer de riguer in the glorified Beasley Boulevard now he'd gained an ounce post non-recreational drugs he told us. Firmly ensconced in 'East Anglia' (Essex) and picking up the lingo. Fahking cahnt and all that.

Yes, they are sitting down. Faux shambolic searching for lines aside he still is a spindly wordsmith of the highest order. Well worth a watch. Cheers son. I might catch Hugh Cornwell next month.

From Amy to balmy

Little Un played football on Saturday in Storm Amy whipped up 50mph gusts. Made for some interesting ball trajectories. Still battering us till lunch ish Sunday as the Canaries capitulated (Upper Towen) but noticeably dropped enough for me to find  a sheltered spot to winkle out a couple of tench, boy do they go on float gear. I fancy one or two last bashes before the pads die down.

Chores done Monday fancied a change after catching up with the gardening in unseasonable warmth so headed down to Noddy Train bridge with some none too fresh reds. 

The roach and dace didn't seem  to mind with a bite a trot. Put a few in the net for a pic, nearly had to tip them back sans photo  as a pike, which had been harassing the fish on the retrieve hung on a while before the dace escaped, another bit me off so I called it a round 90 minutes and headed off

Prompted me to set up a just in case rod to stick in the holdall

Didn't have to get it out of the holdall today but absolutely bagged up on dace, some quite decent and roach in the mill pool. Perhaps the riddle and maize meal helped. Bite a trot again, but many more hooked than yesterday, fantastic sport in the faster water on the pin.

You expect a brown on  many rivers these days and this belter really tore me up in the clear water. Haven't seen these markings before, almost sea trouty. Happy days.

Mediocre at best

Desultory couple of hours on the river to start the weekend, raging toothache, sinusitis and a painful earache not made better by endless tangles and small (tiny) dace and roach in every swim I tried. Sunday not a lot better heath wise but some nice roach, pigs and this stonking tench, all on corn in between the showers. Getting dark early these days.

Not the bag fest I hoped for yesterday and just dull nagging discomfort. Nice to get a hybrid for variety amongst the not quite netter roach. 

Boring morning behind a pair of bobbins today, some mud pig rod bending 

but the best bit was the endless tea and this egg and bacon toastie. 

The un-cremated bacon hidden from the Loafer who claimed from afar that it was almost raw. Still wincing when I eat.

Back to Blighty

Summer is over and the signs of  a mellowing into Autumn mists and the sweet damp smells of dank decay.

Tench  still occupy my thoughts and when I can on the float and a pin. I can forgive this one for picking up my down the edge wafter 45 minutes after the first slip up  to a 'proper' method. Greedy fecker.

I'm picking up 4 or 5 most short sessions  and they really do test the tackle to the limit insisting on heading for the pads every time. Love 'em

The river is still there and closer to home but the bankside vegetation is a nightmare and  if you do beat down a gap the reeds are often bank to bank. The fish are there in numbers though  which hasn't been the case for a few years. Lets hope these horrid v marks don't herald  waves of the black plague croaking in on an unfriendly East wind.

Often though the fish are scale perfect. There are roach everywhere.

Perch, chub and dace too.

'Proper' dace too, I didn't weigh this one yesterday but I'd like to catch it again in the back end of the season for sure 

Sunny climes

Two weeks in Corfu, an all in jobbie as I refuse to drive there what with it being absolutely terrifying  as the countless vertiginously perched cliff edged shrines will testify. A  shame as its a lovely island. Didn't pack any travel rods for the girls as the local area is pretty much fished out though the Ionian Sea further off shore can sustain markets and local fresh fish stalls (which are plagued with wasps and hornets).

I'm not a fan of cinnamon in savoury dishes so ate mostly fish when off site in nearby Roda.

This is one Big Fat Greek Wedding I would have liked to attend at the beachside Taverna.

Beer was plentiful on site

 and when we stepped out it was often an Alfa and a litre of rose

Good hotel complex.

, 

Albania ahoy, which like a lot of the Med was on fire for a couple of days.

Corfu Town is a lovely place

A lovely relaxing get away. From Norwich Airport too so no long drive, home in under an hour of landing.

9 years apart by chance