Warwickshire Avon - Mud Pits and Malapropisms

With the Warwickshire Avon dropping nicely and with literally 2.5 hours to fish, or two hours if I went further afield I decided that I'd try for a chub at the stretch of convenience. I arrived at dawn where as I was approaching the parking area another car was already parked there, and an angler was out the car and all ready to go. 

For a split second I did think about another stretch as I wanted to rove about but having driven past I made my decision and double backed on myself. What I didn't expect was that angler ready to go was fellow blogger Baz Peck who like me, has fished this stretch for many a year and comes back to it, because well, it's just a nice bit of water to fish. 

After a quick natter Baz headed off to the lower end of the stretch and I turned left and headed up towards the middle and upper reaches. The river to be honest looked a little higher than expected but as I'd concentrate on some slacks the 1 ounce tip fitted should be sufficient.

Now a bankstick had fallen out my bag last time I was here, and what I didn't expect was that the bankstick was in plain sight when I battled through the thick and claggy mud and got to the first swim. It's one of my favorite ones and also one of the most costly ones I have. Happy days !!!

Anyway I primed a few swims with mash and got on with the fishing. I gave the banker swim a good forty minutes or so before deciding to get on the move, because it's a small and intimate stretch this and bites usually come with fifteen minutes or so if there is any fish in the vicinity.

It was a decent colour for a bite or two and I'm sure it was the case of just dropping on to a fish and I'd be holding up one of the nice chub that reside here for a trophy shot. 

Swim after swim, though, mud pit after mud pit the fish just didn't seem to want to play ball. I changed to bread at one point but like the cheesepaste I was biteless, just one of those days. Baz was on the rove too and he at least had hooked in to a fish however sadly lost it when it did him in the dead reeds I believe. There is plenty of that here to be honest and I've lost fish exactly the same way.

Anyway after a half hour chat with Baz in one of the swims we both went on the rove again. With the diarymakers curfew forty-five minutes away I fished another two swims without even a nibble and sadly headed home with a blank.

That's fishing for you though because if you asked me whether or not I'd catch a fish looking at the river initially, I'd have said "YES" it looked perfect colour for a bite, but it just goes to show doesn't it, we cannot have it our own way. I've plenty of fishing time now so lets hope I can winkle a few more fish before Santa pops his head down the chimney. 

There is more rain on the way sadly, I'm just hoping it's not as bad as it has been of late. The ground is saturated, you only have to look at the muddy banks for that so it might get worse before it gets better. I hope Baz banked a fish in the end, because he was closer to one than me when we were both bankside.