Presentation, presentation, presentation

Visited one of my local waters, hoping for some decent roach and bream. Weed luxuriant. I had left my catapult on the stages on my banker bream pond so feeder it was to be. Have yet to replace my broken Sportex tench rod  but given the limited open water available one rod didn't seem to be much if a handicap even if perched high on a recently jetty less bank. Several empty feeder casts to find some less dense weed saw the corn quickly taken by hand sized roach. Adding feed seemed to bury the rig in the weed and the strike dampened by the weed closing round the feeder. Couldn't get consistent feed out or work to  rhythm so just scratched the surface. Not the biggest fish of the shortish session in glorious sunshine but another water that has some intriguing hybrids Anal fin is far too long and dark and the whole shape just not roachy enough despite the blue tinting.

Spent time talking to one of the  publicity shy members who combined modern rig techniques  with a very old style presentation using that thick weed to good effect. Neither of us could understand how how the slack line presentation resulted in positive hook ups but it did.

Off to the river to try a longer glide for dace. River up and coloured, and plagued with canoes. Went with a waggler to have an option to  fish higher in the water to avoid the gudgeon this time round. Don't usually fish close in on running water with a waggler but reasoned that the float would more robustly pull the bait along and through the weed rather than hang up as it does with a double rubber float. For those who swear by shirt button shotting and holding back spend some time watching in clear water to see why that rarely works the way you think it does unless you fishing in-stream or directly behind the float or right down the margin.

I did bulk my shot down to make  a chain to drag over and  not into the weed. Bites were either the float speeding up, rising in the water or sinking like a dragging under stick float but different. Greatly increased dace to gudgeon ratio. Did have one decent perch on but canoe invasion knocked it off . "Sorry, I didn't see you there".  Plank.  BTW, lovely fresh plump white maggots from Harris Sportsmail which is just down the road

Red brick, pan tiles and flint

Big  warm Spanish Plume wind with the deluge forecast for 4pm. Woods and falling boughs not a good idea for little 'uns so into the walled garden at Felbrigg Hall. Less ordered than its Jacobean cousin at Blickling the kitchen garden is in part tended by locals who have the most glorious loam to go at.

 Not everyone's favourite flower but stunning today

Centred by an ornamental pool and this iconic dovecote the kitchen garden is drifting into its late summer fecundity.

Mysterious depths hiding newts and goldfish

No naked stemmed colchiums yet in the orchard but some wind skitty hens.

                                                          And some wind skitty little 'uns. Keep on the grass

Apparently they know their onions round here.

Some bizarre: love these spires

I guess the feudal system had something going for it after all.

Sedition in Southwold

Dodging the incoming front again, this time with little 'uns and @walshamboy down the coast to Southwold. Big wind meant sandcastles another day but on to the Pier anyway. Filed under heavy manners.

 Or from another viewpoint....

Southwold Pier has an eclectic mix of amusement arcade schlock, boho tried too much  tea rooms and the most deliciously seditious pound a go things.

You sometimes need to look a bit closer

View to the town, Sizewell's brooding dome to the East and the Blyth around the corner. That's for another day.

Orwellian daubings

And the home of (some) beer and more. Smell o vision would be good  near  a brewery and a distillery. I think if Greene king had Adnams design and marketing skills they would take over the world. Still think a proper Abbott is the best but I never say no to a Broadside.



Rather like this.

We didn't turn out too bad.

Went to a school reunion in Sandon on Saturday.  I was surprisingly one of the younger ones. Perhaps most of us from those later years have yet to have buried all the skeletons.

Given why most of us were sent there don't think we have turned out too bad. One in the eye for the system and the bad apples.

Stage set

Short session again, this time on the staging surrounded by pads. Swans are back so feeding again when they were distracted.  Wasn't that happy with the more expensive prawns, too soft compared to Sainos basics. Two rather battered bream did succumb.

Had a pike on but the weed masked the trebles I think. Lots of perch slashes at the rudd so must really go on a small livebait attack.

Captains is rather picturesque don't you think?

Ol stripey

Short session on the syndicate stretch tonight. Had been a glorious day, ice cream and park with the girls, Col U didn't loose first game of the season and of  course England have blown Australia away in two and a bit days. The sight of a kingfisher arrowing down the river set the tone for the trotting session with dace, gudgeon and a tiny chub a chuck. One summer lean pike  eventually bit  through  after an acrobatic tour of the swim before a dace was taken with a slashing take. This fish chose not to get ariel and one I was anxious at least to see before it came off given it's reluctance to show itself . Line slack then on again briefly.  A boil and what seemed to be a big roach or perch, then finally a perch came sliding to the net. Hooked firmly and well back on the tongue. Not sure what actually happened there.  I really can't think this bristly sergeant could have  made the first surging runs but it was not marked at all. Either way, 2.07 and what a corker.

As the bard once said, fool gudgeon

I had planned to spend a few hours looking for some trotting water and settle over some pellets into darkness. However tempus not only fugit but said sternly stet in Heydon, a chocolate box village exemplar which somewhat restricted my available "window".

 Posh car boot

So by the time I had arrived on the Syndicate lower beat it was almost this o'clock.

I decided that a sooner return would seem most chivalrous so the sit and wait would have to wait for another time. Plus, I wanted to be sure to catch. I'd discovered that the week old maggots had shrunk to pinkies and needed some recovery oats, garam masala and all spice. I pondered about stepping down to match the bait hatch but stuck with my current favourite pattern and size. I think perhaps that when playing bigger fish the wire might straighten then spring back once the hook has been shed late in the fight (Koi's for instance Scribbler) but generally a damn good hook.

The chosen glide ran deep between two bushes, and pleasingly free of the eel grass  common this time of year. This had spread itself over the shallower middle run.

Dace at first but these soon thinned out to gudgeon in their gold, blue and purple flecked splendour. The older we get the more precious things like these seem.

When I did find the dace again they were mostly small but tarpon silver scaled and a draw for the pike hanging in the cover and dashing out to strike..

Three pike were on but  lost, the last must have taken the line above my new fabourite Drenan 2bb stick somewhere in the strike. The Stygian gloom descending I decide to retackle for a live bait but couldn't bring myself to launch this red eyed beauty, all electric blue back out into the waiting pikey maelstrom so that was it.

Off home as the dew fell. What a difference a little HDR makes..toodle pip