Corny

Haven't been on Golden Pond for a while, and the rhodos are out, but not the flag iris yet. 

Cold enough to wish I'd got gloves  and some pissy rain meant I wasn't on long. Any amount of feed going in attracted the chats which in turn attracted the puke, churning up the shallow swim but the (too long) waggler slid away a few times. Proper bream (a two tone the best of the bunch) and some hybrids. 

        

Closeness (under ten minutes from leaving the house to first cast) has sometimes bred a little contempt  but I have got my Golden Pond Mojo back.

 

Bird app eal

Another quick raid, another plump tench. increasing the season heaviest by 4oz at 6lb 6oz. Two other chances, one shed the hook after running back under my feet and a pig that did the customary 50 yard dash before transferring the hook chub like in some vegetation.

Given the abundance of birdlife round the lake I often set Merlin running and here is a screenshot of some of what was recorded whilst playing and returning the tench.

I've also been trundling round with the tribe: footie, cricket, eats and views.

Just after this a nasty haar blew in.

 

Brace, pigeon pair, a left and right etc

Brace, pigeon pair, a left and right etc. I added a small sprinkling of the new kids on the block to my Spicy Sausage and let them do their thing whilst setting up the Merlin App for a quick species count. Faint shrilling to my right in a snigger inducing thick bush. I wondered fire or gold crest, Merlin told me gold crest.

The bottom was turning over but some of the bubbles were fizzes, the first bite and the new kid, being softer was pinched off the push stop. No such nonsense the next two times, and the 13 footer and pin were pressed into service for this lovely male and female pair. Job done and back at BureBoi Towers just over an hour all in.

Brand loyalty

I've used Source now for what seems donkeys years. With a bag down the side as a wafter and most sentimentally in 12mm under a puddle chucker. This year the 12mm have been harder to find and my last bag bought were 14mm dumbbells. Not 'quite' the same and less likely to pick up a bonus roach possibly.  

To my shame a new kid has entered the block, yellowish, pineappley and has already been added to my bag adown the edge armoury in 15mm and 14mm wafers. Essential Cell and the tench and carp seem to like them. Dilemma time as the new kid minis seem only to come in 10mm not 12mm .

Down to my last few Source 12mm I walked the nearest arm of lake and back where I had put the gear down the swim  was a cauldron. The bag rods abandoned and the trusty Spicy Sausage 4mm pellets and one of my last Source 14mms was impaled on the push stop and swing out into the mass of bubbles. The puddle chucker dipped, lifted slightly then sank away.. The strike almost hit home but not quite. The second chance resulted in a tench scale on the QM1.The next and a tench definitely on, surging strongly left under the trailing willow fronds. then off. Slime on the line above the anchoring BB. Straight back out into a patch of bubbles. Bingo.  Cracking scrap and a recapture with a split tail and 7 oz more belly (roe developing?) than last time from a different swim. 6.02 and my best of the year so far.

Spots of rain and I  ceremonially fed the last half-dozen of my Source 14 mms, the new kids already stashed in the bait bucket for next time.