Ringing the changes (slight return)

As well as a go over a raked spot for bream I had wanted this weekend to have a go of the front of the island, where I had found a clearish spot with a reasonable bottom when out on the boat on Wednesday.So, having been instructed first to get the achofrol I ended up standing on the island  yesterday night, again after 7pm looking out at a bit more weed than I remembered on Wednesday...

Target area was the gap ahead of the left rod, one of a pair of old Sportex 11' 1.5lb tc rods, and Cardinal 4x's. I set up an open end feeder to fish meat and one with a bomb and corn closer in. The first cast found more weed than I hoped for. I recast with no bait or feed  to see if I could find a clearer spot and hooked a rudd fair and square in the mouth on a bare size 4 Drennan Specimen hook. No blank then. The alder tree above my head was a bit in the way and I was loosing patience. A quick look at the gap just  to my left below and I moved one of the rods in there, close in with corn, no feeder. By the time I had moved my chair the indicator was stuck up tight to the alarm and a reasonable roach was soon splashing in over the shallow margin.

They could not get on the corn quick enough, Both these two  seem to have a bit more than roach in them, mostly about the dorsal and anal in the first, and general shape of the second I think a trip back with a  pole, fished to hand is in order. Far more practical than two rods fishing about 10 yards out.

Ringing the changes (slightly)

Having raked a small area of the first jetty on Wednesday thought  I would have a session on Friday before the pond weed  grew over the spot. Warm evening, on the jetty by 7ish. Macca tucked away in Dead Man's Hole. Must be colder in that corner out of the sun as he  was well wrapped up.  Cast about around the raked patch, not much room for error as the pond weed was quite thick around. Spot is the second indent from the left of the swim.

Satisfied I had a target area catapulted in 10 pouches of hemp and a few handfuls of corn, to fish corn on the lift. Using Shanus' old 12' Kevin Ashurst blank with a Cardinal 154. Some what thicker than the  Drennan Waggler rod (and Mitchell 300) I was going to use to snatch a few roach and rudd whilst I waited for a bream or two to find the hemp and corn.

A lot of activity all round the pond with plenty of movement in the area over the weed to he left in the first frame. Well out of rake range. A couple of perchy fry raids in the lillies. A coconut every shy on the maggot on the drop. Some blade roach but mostly hand sized fish like these rudd and roach. Dropped the biggest as I didn't want to wield the 36 '' net in the background and couldn't quite swing it in without the hook pulling.

A few small bubbles, more so when hemp went in and missed the first unmissable bite on the corn, a lift and slide, tip hanging under the surface like a red beacon but in reality hung up on a frond of weed. Second time round and no mistake and  an enjoyable circuit round the swim from this bream of about 4 lb. A bit light on the lower lobe of it's tail but quite thick across the shoulders.

Several dithers, either liners or rudd knocking the red float rubber at the base of the waggler, and one more missed bite, and after a natter with Macca, despondent after 2 blanks, (are they off the bait now  he pondered) it was as he said wine o'clock and off the pond to rinse the net and unhooking mat of bream slime. I would have liked to fish a spot a bit further out and put in some crumb over a wider area but by this time of the summer, even with our climate warming cold spell un-rakeable from jetty at least weed would have made presentation other than a no shot down approach or a buoyant disc of bread just supporting a shot and that would have been mullered by the rudd and roach.

A different perspective

Just a hint of evening sun picking out the far bank detail.The island has been quite a busy spot of late for the bivvy boys and some of the weed has been cleared which opens up an opportunity to get the feeder rods out perhaps.

I took the boat out for a prod round last night. Found some surprisingly firm areas, and nearer the dam towards the jetty bank it was much siltier. This is a slightly different perspective of the pond from the boat

The pond weed is starting to respond to the sun,but fortunately is not present all round the pond. Cleared a couple of spots of the first jetty for a bash over the next couple of days perhaps. Need to balance a big enough rake to make a dent in the pond weed and being able to throw it with some accuracy. Was coming back with more silt than weed after a dozen throws.Plan to fish float fish corn over a lot of hemp.

The last of the sun  as seen from the boathouse

Call that a bait dropper?

Glorious weekend. Feel the heat of the sun in your bones again.

 Short trip on river  after tea on Saturday. Maggots seem to last a lot longer these days. Best fish this bristly sergeant, surprised sneaking past chub bloke "I didn't expect to see that".

Sunday evening even warmer. Planned to bait a few swims with hemp and corn. Found bait dropper in tackle bits. Seems to have shrunk. Put some black cap feeders in as well to see if hemp would wash out quickly enough.

 Walking through the first stile had a mill pool itch to scratch so that was as far as I got. That weir pool smell and the roar of the water. Decided to go with a 50grm Black cap. Lots of dacey knocks and one proper pull (missed).No snags though. I've scratched that itch for a while so it's further down stream next time and dropper several spots.

That's not a chub....

Another sortie in the river after tea, 10 degrees warmer than last weekend. Planned to explore a bit further down but irrigation generator on so stayed up-earshot of it. In hindsight should have dropped in below the bridge  for a wider sample of fish though did find mostly small gudgeon on the shallower run mid river, along with the good sized dace I have come to expect though no larger ones this time.

Glimpsed a good fish on the gravels just above the bridge, though I think it  was a brownie not a chub, white mouth and quite quick to inspect morsels. What ever it was didn't fancy my meat. Ended up for the last half hour on the mill pool itself. A few dacey tweaks on the meat then a twitchy, persistent bite at the end of the main flow.. Connected right at the back of the strike. I could feel ,it wasn't a barbel but had  I lost it I  would have said a chub. Knowing that at least one 6 had come out earlier I was keen to get it to the top to see it, and then I realised just what sort of twitchy bite on the tip it was. Pike do tend to take an age to decide that perhaps that small cube of pink stuff is food and give a characteristic bite. Not that big but it did go well in the flow.

Back soon but with a bit more  thought though the pool bed is quite snaggy so I'll have to think how to get the hemp and corn in and present the bait without taking shares in Angling Direct.

Walking it off

Out for a look on Tuesday, Captains car park rammo. Liam basking (actually very level headed) about his lake record 23 right out of the margins with another couple of doubles over the weekend just gone and pitching in with Macca (remember Steve Mcmanaman? Macca's early permy curtains made him a ringer at the time) to put in a new internal gate and a couple of others on the water.

Looks a treat at the mo on the Pond.

Saw a glimpse of this through the trees just up the road. Jurassic pond. Very silted up but who knows?

Happy dace

Well, that's it, the nights are already drawing in......Not sure if that is what the druids, crusties and  middle englanders thought as a very dreach dawn broke over the sarsons of Stonehenge on Friday. My best remembered mid summers day was at that other hallowed ancient bowl at Milton Keynes watching U2 when it did actually snow. Guzzer man brought a bivvy, or at least a 50 inch brolly. How we envied him.

I did sneak on to the Pond for an hour of the longest day, Macca had a belter of 18 (common) from a tight hole in the weed after changing his presentation after 3 dropped fish a couple of days earlier.I  must either put a decent amount of hemp and maples in, or buy some "carp" rig making stuff. Do I really need lead core, rig putty, back leads, pva foam, bags etc? I don't hold with the mudpig smear,I had forgotten in honesty just how big a carp can look but I am not sure I want to change much either. I had some fish moving over the meat but with out much more that that out here it was more an excuse to enjoy the late evening sun.

Saturday dawned as it must have done down in Wiltshire on the Friday and didn't pick up much till late afternoon. I was on the Bure by 7.30pm, with a worsening sinusitis but an urge to fish. No chub present on the gravel above the bridge so down to the long glide I had seen last week but not fished. Plenty of marginal cover with a dearth of streamer weed. At this time of the year the only swims are those we decide to open slightly by flattening a few reeds and nettles  and I don't think anyone had been on this area since I looked last week  For once I tied the 20 first time with spade end tier (my eyes can't cope with an eyed 20 anymore) and it was dace a  chuck from the off. The was a massive hatch and the swallows were out in force despite the blustery, cold wind  and I had been tempted to feed and fish higher given the dace surface activity but really the amount of fish taken a little way down the run meant that there were enough fish on the maggots nearer the bed of the river. Flow enough to take the line smoothly of the 300 spool and the bale closing sweetly and the Drennan Waggler rod does really bend in the tip section.

I am not sure that  this is all dace as it didn't have the real toffee flanks and is little deep, however  I think that I might just weigh a few of the better fish in future.I did loose one that was a lot bigger. Definitely not a small chub and if you saw it quickly you would think that's a nice roach. It wasn't. Would have definitely been a weigh job and that uncomfortable for a small fish Dave Plummer pose and  a few yee-hahs over the floodplain, nor my illness dampened  curse. The sinusitis and the cold wind (why just a tee-shirt?) were winning over the regular dip off the float and this brief burst of late sun and unusually for once the last cast was just that and I was off the river by 9, despite bemoaning the "turn of the year".

I don't know if you get that cold inside feeling but even when I got in a hot  bath I still had goose pimples.I called it man-meningitis, it was enough for me not once on Sunday to even think about getting the rods out again. And no wine for two days. Did have a medicinal Glenfiddich last night though.

Back on flow

First trip on running water since March. Noddies on the bush swim complete with matching kids put paid to a chub dabble (they did have at least 4 decent chub circling over the gravel which I uncharitably did not point out for them) but I had really only intended to spend a couple of hours trotting for dace though it would have been a pleasanter afternoon without the noise from the afore mentioned brothers of the angle up stream. Never mind, they were enjoying it so no more bah humbug. Well, only a bit. A cry of "barbel" repeated by a sprog had me inwardly cursing, they had seen one from the bridge, and sure enough on my way past as I headed home I had a look over the parapet and a barbel was flashing under the bush.

I worked a reasonably deep glide with red maggot under a stable stick and had a good few fish including:
this unusually  plump dace..

a couple of strongly coloured perch...

and this chublet.

Found a couple of clearer glides and of course that tantalising barbelly glimpse. Heard an oyster catcher and an increasingly forlorn cuckoo (only second heard this summer ).

Let out for half an hour on good behaviour

Not a bad little spot. I'd been out on the boat for a prod round to see how deep the silt was and fish were  moving over the disturbed spot within a few minutes

Sea's up

A bit of a blow on Walcott Wall this morning.

Not sure Norfolk'n'Good would be chucking a Dexter in this