Hampton Lucy Brook - 28.08.12

Probably my last 'till dusk' fish on the Warwickshire Avon this year so with the river up a tad, coloured and dropping I only had one real option, a couple of rods out with static baits for Barbel. With only about 2 hours of the bait being in the water if there were any around hopefully they will pick up my bait.

I've been struggling keeping the luncheon meat on the hook, I suspect hit and run chub being the culprits so I swopped for a Odyssey XXX boilie on both rods, I've done well with these recently, maybe the Green Lipped Mussel additive helps or the fact they are light in colour.

As suggested by a fellow blogger I kept the hair length to a minimum so if a Chub didn't pick it up they would struggle to get rid of the hook. I've also been moulding scalded pellet around the lead, gives off a nice sent trail as well as being easy to do.

Wasn't long before I was getting indications a within half an hour a fish hooked itself and the rod violently bent over. The swim is pretty snaggy so I applied considerable side strain and eventually turned the fish in to open water and I caught sight of it, a nice Chub. It's mouth looked a bit deformed and a Pike much have grabbed it at some stage as it was scarred on one side. It was long and lean and weighed 3lb 15oz.

No Barbel this evening but I did catch another Chub at dusk, this time 3lb 7oz. Chub have a habit of disturbing the swim, maybe that didn't help.

I've been following Joe Chatterton's http://joechatterton.blogspot.co.uk/ blog with interest so when I fish the Avon next I plan use more of a roving approach and try some moving baits, I've some large chubber floats that I've never used, and they would be ideal.

I'm fishing Barston Lakes match pool in a few days, it's one of the regular Shanghai Anglers Club matches. The Avon will have to wait another week.

Snitterfield Reservoir - 23.08.12 - PB Carp on the float.

With rain due the weekend I decided to wait till next week to go back to the Avon, it should have some much needed colour by then. Back to Snitterfield for a couple of hours before dusk, the usual set-up sleeper rod for the carp and a float fish small bits of meat for the crucians.

Fishing tight to a weed bed I caught some nice roach from the off, the biggest I weighed and it was 1lb 3oz's, seems everything likes this garlic spam, I saw the tins reduced in Tesco to a quid to I bought a job lot. I've been impressed with the quality of CC Moore bait so I've bought some different pellet mixes to try, the scalded pellets wrapped around the lead on the sleeper set-up also makes a nice loose feed and I fed the float swim with small balls every 5 minutes.

Around 8.15pm, with half an hour fishing left and with the light was slowly fading I was getting crucian bites. You can tell crucian bites, their mouths are small so they mess around with the bait for ages before deciding to take it, however the crucian bites stopped for a few minutes and the float dived violently under, a fish hooked itself and the rod bent double and I was hanging on for dear life with the clutch screaming, this was no crucian but a King Carp. I gave it as much sidestrain as I dared to try and keep it out the weeds. With 5lb mainline and a 4lb hooklink with a size 14 hook it the set-up I was undergunned to say the least, I was winning though and eventually got it out in to the open water.

A memorable fight and a PB carp that after leaving resting in the landing net for a while I weighed and photographed, I'm no self take expect and shame it was nearly dusk as the flash doesn't show the background, oh and I should smile next time :)

18lb 7oz's

 



Snitterfield Reservoir - 20.08.12

With the light fading at around 9.00pm my time on the bank is getting limited, a couple of evenings a week , for a couple of hours just isn't enough now, I might have to swap to weekends again.

Back to Snitterfield to try and catch another decent Crucian, I had a float rod out with Krill pellet as hook bait and a sleeper rod with scalded pellet wrapped around the lead with 18mm Boilie as hookbait. Within 10 minutes one of the resident large carp had taken a liken to the bright pink pellet and made off with it, with a size 16 hook I had no chance and as quickly as the fight started it had finished. I set-up again and the float was bobbing up and down like a good'un as soon as the bait had hit the bottom.

Fish were topping all over the shop and with only a couple of crucians and missed bites I hooked and landed a bream. Maybe they bulled the crucians out the way as I couldn't catch anything else.

Within minutes of a chap on the gate side bank landing a 20lb leather / mirror carp my sleeper rod screamed off, with my float rod still in the air, by the time I got to the rod the fish had snagged itself. It eventually managed to free itself from the barbless hook, and I left gutted, felt like a good fish, maybe my PB carp.

Snitterfield Reservoir - 16.08.12

Snitterfield holds some specimen crucian carp, however catching them is another matter, apart from the usual frustrating delicate bites the big'uns, well at Snitterfield anyway send in the smaller ones for a reccy before feeding themselves, bit like an underwater pit canary. I have found just before dusk is prime big crucian feeding time.

Under the dotted down float I had 6mm cubes of garlic spam secured to a Korum quickstop hair rig on a size 16 hook slightly overdepth, I loose fed a few feed pellets and sat and waited. Within an hour I missed a few bites and with the float constantly played with it was getting frustrating, then again that's crucian fishing. Good things to some to those that wait though, the float went under and I eventually connected to a fish. A decent fight and a nice crucian graced the net. 1lb 10oz.

The swim was a bit disturbed but a soon as the float was in position the bait was getting interest again, not a crucian this time though, a slimey bream. With the light fading, I called it a day. A nice way to spend a couple of hours though.

Only 5 minutes from my house, I should spend more time here. It's a great venue, quiet, scenic and I'm sure there are some specimens that's grace it's deep waters. 

Hampton Lucy Brook - 14.08.12

Will the River so low and clear I'm not sure why I bothered, however it was a nice warm evening though and the Wife said why don't you go fishing so I did :)

It's always a nice walk down to the river from the carpark and the sky was very dramatic, I could see the bottom on nearly every swim and with decent fish spotted I baited a few swims and did a bit of roving, now I love the countryside and I seem forever picking up people litter, there must have been a match the weekend and on peg 5 someone ( gene meddler, no doubt ) couldn't be bothered to take it home, really does pee me off.

Anyway back to the fishing, with no luck for an hour or so I settled into a swim that had reasonable pace on it and an overhanging tree, a few bait droppers and the usual garlic luncheon meat for bait I planned to fish an hour into dusk.

About 10 minutes in the rod tip started to rattle and I was in to a fish, strange fight though and yes when I caught sight of it, yes an eel. It was foul hooked in the side, so I quickly unhooked it and put it back.

I buried my luncheon meat in the hook this time and as soon as the light faded I was getting indications on the rod tip, no strikeable or proper decent bites though but then as soon as I got to the river I thought I'd do well to even catch anything. Fishing when the light fades doesn't bother me, but for some reason for the last half an hour it was very very eery, bats, moody swans, big slugs, gnats, huge flying dragonflies and even a bird of prey were seemingly sharing my swim. With the river low might do some maggot dangling at Snitterfield reservoir.

Hampton Lucy Brook - 07.08.12 & 08.08.12

I've been trying a more roving approach trying to catch another elusive Avon Barbel,not sure about everyone else but a month ago they seemed easy to catch, nice big lump of luncheon meat and job done. Last week I hooked a couple but didn't land them. I've modified my rigs a bit, effectively beefed them up. As you can see from these pics Hampton Lucy Brook has some narrow and very snaggy swims. On an evening not sure if it's because the Olympics are on but I've been the only angler down here.

I've said before the witching hour is the key on this stretch, get your rig settled in a nice location and sit and wait, no bites within 20 minutes move. I'm still having trouble hooking fish though, I usually use a big lump of hair rigged garlic luncheon meat.

I'm still for some reason not connecting to the fish even though I've had proper bites. Maybe it's Chub rather than Barbel, who knows but I've switching from a safety clip to a running set-up and also altered the hook length but still only hooking I'd say 1 out of every 4 proper bites :( anyone got any ideas ? Maybe hooking the meat directly to the hook might help, rather than using a hair rig. I they are Chub then maybe that would have more success. I've still caught though, that's the main thing.

I've said before it's nice to see the Avon with small fish in it again, just for fun before dusk, i've been using a small quiver rod with a small feeder and a couple of maggots, bite every chuck, with some nice dace, chub, roach and perch. In nearly 5 hours of fishing I've only managed one Barbel this week, not worth weighing but a decent fight all the same. I've not tried the weir in dusk, maybe I'll give that a go. There are double figure Barbel on this stretch however I think a bit like Wasperton they are few and far between.

Oh and Stratford AA have fixed the rickety gate, they have cemented in a nice new one. I've been neglecting the Leamington AA waters a bit, and after reading the recent newsletter they seem to be fishing well.