Aston Magna Pool - 17.03.12

Decided to give a pool in Aston Magna a try, it's part of the Shipston-On-Stour book, apparently the club has done lots of work there, as just a couple of years ago the pools were completely overgrown. A lovely setting and you wouldn't really know it was there if you were passing through the village. There are three pools and I fished the main pool, the larger of the three.

Over 1,000lb of additional fish were stocked in Spring 2010 and during that summer the middle lake was drained and desilted and Spring 2011 saw a healthy stock of fish returned to this lake, mainly rudd, crucian carp and tench with a few small carp as well. The main lake also now has fishing positions as all the way around and provides excellent fishing with Carp, Rudd, Tench and the occasional Chub and Roach. 

I float fished float maggot and also had a sleeper rod out with worm hookbait. Fished for four hours and despite the water still being cold caught steadily from the off. A couple of Tench took fancy to the worm on my sleeper rod and I also managed to hook one of the resident larger carp which took me into a snag and bumped the hook. The far end of the lake I was fishing was only about 4ft in depth, the end nearest the car park is over 6ft apparently. Nice variety of fish, and it's nice not to be pestered by tiny perch.

Probably managed 30 fish in total, mostly small but some gave me a half decent fight on light float tackle. The carp were showing on the surface too, in-fact a carp angler turned up opposite to where I was fishing and managed to land a small carp on floating hook bait, didn't look very big though, dwarfed in his massive landing net. I'd probably not rush to go back, it's 40 mile round trip for me, the cost of fuel I might as well fish one of the local commercial fisheries. Cannot knock Shipston Angling Club though, easily one of the nicest club pools I've fished and well maintained too.

Anyone else got the close season blues ? even though I caught fish, pool fishing just doesn't do it for me as much as River fishing does, the 16th of June cannot come round fast enough.