Cheesed off?

How often does a carefully formulated plan,  clinically executed come to fruition? Read on.......

Time is counting down to the end of the coarse season on the river. I will be out and about from the 1st with a trout rod but still have so much I want to get gone before Sunday. Saturday saw the now obligatory 2pm start, this time on the lowest Syndicate beat below the iron bridge, armed with a bucket of mash and paste. Dropped into the first swim which is quite a challenge with the main push coming off the riffle right into the near bank. The near back eddy already holding a fair few inch long fry.

A two 3sssg link held better than I thought and interest shown fairly quickly. Spent a fair bit of time taking an opportunity to watch the behaviour of the mash in the varying flow patterns. One unmissable pull unsurprisingly missed and several indications on the drop almost. Spent longer than usual in the swim, partly because the swim I'd been looking m forward to more was visited by a couple of local tyros wielding jigs. Took a couple of casts before signs of fish in the swim but nothing to really strike at. Time pressing on and the deadbaits in the bag were beginning to burn a metaphorical hole in my back. A slight overcast with a large lump of paste on on retrieving it to swing back out. I was startled by a healthy swipe at the paste by something with teeth. Decision made and out with two halves of a sardine. Had just settled down when the bait runner alerted me to a fast moving fish heading into cover. A fair push here which was put to good use before the net proved a more enticing refuge for the pike.

Out again to the spot with the same sardine tail and seemingly a smaller fish had already moved into station. Less of a tussle but a fish  none the less.

Dropped below  the feature, reasoning there may be more fish below the cover. Now, here's the hatched, matched and dispatches plan. Twitch the near rod a couple of turns. Rod back on the rest and bob, bob, bob.. couldn't resist the movement I

guess. Nice when you get it right. Kingfisher flypast as I slipped fish back. Result.

Back up to the first swim as had to be off the river by 5. Above the iconic iron bridge and below the cover over the main push with a big eddy on the far side.

A very large disturbance on the riffle in fast water. Pike striking at the dace in fast water. Everything away except the last rod over to the slack laying on the grass. Bait runner away for the best fish of the day.