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big roach?

After hearing of a local day ticket water that holds some big roach and perch I decided to have a shot at targetting them.   The plan was to catch them on the float, I missed a couple of bites early on then some noisy t**** set up the other side of the tree I was fishing to and starting hammering banksticks and shouting so I moved to quivertipping a maggot feeder to the far side. This produced 3 roach to 12oz.   Another group of loud irritating types showed up down the other end of the lak

viney

viney

PB List (with Pictures!)

My PB List. Haven’t done one of these for a while and it seems an appropriate way to ‘celebrate’ my 400th blog post. And I’ve even dug out and scanned a few old photos (rather crappy ones I have to admit!) which are appearing on the WWW for the 1st time.   Best Carp – 27lb 6oz. 15 August 2008. Blue Pool – Burghfield. Method feeder – hair-rigged hemp bogey. I usually spend all summer trying to avoid carp as I pursue tench and crucians but this was caught on an IAC fish-in

Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

Rusty's retrospective

Disruption is the word that springs to mind when I look back over the past season. After a bone dry winter relief (from an angling point of view) came in the form of heavy rain leading up to June 2012, as you would expect this bolstered levels and provided some temporary respite for the struggling Kennet. Only the respite didn’t turn out to be temporary, I kept expecting to see the water drop back during the dry spells but there weren’t many of those for the rest of the season. As a consequence

Rusty

Rusty

Roach from a 'commercial' 18.3.13

Court Farm, near Aldermaston 3.45 - 6.30pm A.T. 8degC dropping, W.T. 5degC After all that snow yesterday I wasn't too optimistic, specially when the only other anglers on the lake when I arrived said they hadn't had a touch all day. But I think they had been mainly targeting the normally very willing carp. My challenge, however, was how to avoid said carp. I fished fine, float-fished maggot and caster, and although it was never bite-a-chuck I managed 9 roach, the best about 12 oz, and several

The Flying Tench

The Flying Tench

Season's Bests 2012-13

Plumby's Annual Round-up!     This time last year the word on everyone’s lips was drought. We’d had 3 dry winters on the trot – hosepipe bans were already being introduced and the chalkstreams of southern Britain were drying up. The springs feeding the Kennet didn’t ‘burst’ at all during the winter of 11/12, the river was looking very ‘threadbare’ and I feared for what conditions I’d find in June. What a difference a year makes!! April 2012 was one of the wettest on record – the s

Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

14 March

Middle Kennet Estate - Kintbury   0715 - 1800   Cold and frosty start - bright and sunny morning with some cloud in the afternoon. Cool but light breeze. AT -3ºC->6ºC but felt much warmer out of the wind and in the sun! Almost spring like and a vast improvement on Monday (and last Friday!)   16 Chub; Only 1 under 2lb, most over 3lb, biggest 5lb 2oz. Over 55lb in total!. 3 dace - 1 goodun of 11oz, 1 Roach (small), 1 Grayling circa 12-14oz. 7 Brownies to 2½lb. 1 Ra

Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

Cracking end to the season :).

Well, that's it, another seasons over but I'm glad to say I've seen it in with a couple of really good sessions. This close is going to be one of the most difficult for me I think. I've really enjoyed being away from the lakes in the past few months and although I can still fish a few bits of canal it's going to be a long 3 months.   13th March - Hamps. River   I arranged to pop down to a local stretch of river with a mate after work to see how the pike stocks were looking. To be honest i

tomhaggett

tomhaggett

That's more like it

The penultimate blog entry for this season recounting two trips to the Kennet, one venue a day ticket water between the months of October and March the other a last minute invitation to fish a Middle Kennet Estate.   Barton Court, Tuesday 12th March 2013   A long arranged trip with Paul, a work colleague who’s just bought himself an Okuma Sheffield and he was keen to try it out. Although we both had the week off Paul was limited to the day he could fish, Tuesday it was come rain or shine. We

Rusty

Rusty

13 March

River Kennet - Speen Moors   1030 - 1530   Bright, cool (5ºC) and breezy with a few snow flurries on a stiff northerly. WT 44ºF. River still high but down over a foot on my last visit of 5th Jan. This... was halfway up the 6...     4 Chub; 4lb 4oz, 2lb 15oz, 2lb 5oz & a chublet. 5 Roach (all small), 1 Dace & 1 small Brownie.   Came with the initial intention of targetting the perch - but my favourite perch slack wasn't. (Slack that i

Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

12 March

River Kennet - Newbury   1130 - 1430   Cold (2ºC) with stiff NE wind - Brrrr. WT down to 41ºF   3 Grayling; 2 smalluns and one close to a pound. 22 Dace, 1 Roach & 11 Gudgeon.   I had great plans for this week - however they all involved mild, misty spring mornings (and evenings!) by the canal in pursuit of monster perch. The cold, Siberian blast over the last couple of days as put paid to those thoughts. I did dither about going at all today - but needed some bait - so a couple of

Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

11 March

Middle Kennet - Nr Newbury   0715 - 1745   Cold and RAW, with frequent snow flurries and a mini blizzard around lunchtime. Strong and dessicating NE wind. Temps 0ºC or below all day (line freezing to rod ALL day), wind chill must have been minus loads! Spring is here - NOT! WT a balmy 43ºF.   17 (!) Chub; Almost all over 2lb - biggest 3lb 14oz, 4 Perch; 2 'gooduns' at 2lb 2oz &1lb 14oz. 23 Dace - quite a few chunky ones and 2 real corkers; a female fish of 13oz

Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

Dumbfounded

K&A Canal, River Kennet and then back to the canal, Saturday 9th March 2013   This is why I don’t gamble, I would’ve bet every item of fishing tackle I own on today’s session being successful. If you could order perfect perching conditions from a menu what greeted me on arrival is exactly what you would’ve ordered, I was that confident that even on the journey to the venue I was compiling witty PB blog narrative in my head.   Setting up did nothing to dispel my confidence, the ledgered l

Rusty

Rusty

8 March (parts 1, 2 and 3!) Free Fishing Friday!

River Itchen - Twyford Meads 0800 - 1100 Itchen Navigation - Winchester 1130 - 1430 River Lambourn - Shaw - 1530 - 1700   WET. Rain, continuous, unrelenting rain. Mild - 10ºC and no wind (so that's alright then).Did I mention the rain?   Twyford Meads - 9 Grayling, best 2; 1lb 5oz & 1lb 3oz the rest all small.16 Salmon Parr, 1 Brown Trout. Itchen Navigation - Blanked. Lambourn - 4 Grayling 1 small the other 3 12-14oz. 1 Brown Trout, 1¼lb   La

Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

Left it a bit late

Kennet & Avon Canal, Thatcham, Wednesday 6th March 2013   A short bonus trip courtesy of my boss and the need to use up annual leave before the end of March.   I’m still trying to work out this stretch of the canal. Early January I had a couple of great back to back sessions which produced six perch at an average weight of just under 3lbs. That success was followed by a blank and then a couple of weeks later Chris Plumb caught a monstrous ‘four’ with a 2-15 cameo from me, our only perch

Rusty

Rusty

Biggest pike of the season and another pb perch.

7th March - Hamps. River & K&A canal   I've just returned from another fantastic days lure fishing.   A mate of mine is the keeper on a lovely stretch of river in Hampshire and after seeing a few big pike recently (one so big it's been christened, Big Bertha) he invited me down for a quick go at them. It was flowing pretty hard, but by sticking to the deeper water we managed 4 between us and a few obligatory trout. Unfortunately "bertha" didn't put in an appearance, though he did

tomhaggett

tomhaggett

7 March (part 2)

River Kennet - Newbury   1100 - 1400   Overcast with drizzle. AT&WT both 49ºF. River still high with little colour - has dropped very little in the last month.   2 Barbel; 2¼lb & 3½lb. 2 Grayling; both 8-10oz. 14 Dace a few chunky ones but nothing particularly big. 1 Roach ½doz Gudgeon.   Trotting session for what ever comes along - but hoping a barbel or a chub or two would put in an appearance - so jolly happy with a brace. Could have been so muc

Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

7 March (part 1)

Kennet & Avon Canal - Thatcham   0600 - 1030   Mild, overcast with continuous drizzle. AT has averaged over 9ºC for the last 48 hours and the WT is catching up (48ºF) which is 9ºC in new money!   2 Perch; 3lb 15oz (and a bit - if it had swallowed the lob and not spat it out it might have tipped 4!), 2lb 2oz. 1 Pike 2¼lb.   1st part of a 'Reverse Rusty' session (Dawn on the canal - midday on the river). And conditions absolutely screamed perch so it was

Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

A little catch up.

I've been back to the canal a couple more times since my last entry but only for an hour or so per session. The first was spent checking out a new stretch that proved to be a bit of a struggle. Only one 50yard area produced, but the result was well worth the effort. I had a nice perch of approx 2.4 in the net but before I got a chance to weigh it the old man shouted that he was playing a bigger one. Sure enough, in the net it went and at first sight it was indeed a better one, we guessed aro

tomhaggett

tomhaggett

Blanko ergo sum

.....as the great French mind-angler Rene Dust-carts once said.   I wondered whether to report on my latest blank, and decided that, if I didn't, you might think I no longer exist.   Well I haven't caught much this winter - a mixture of other commitments, minor back trouble, and of course downright (and totally undeserved) bad luck! I've chucked a few spinners, impaled a few lobworms, caught one or two roach and perch, but nothing really worthy of comment. Yesterday was a typical example. Th

The Flying Tench

The Flying Tench

Chalkstream

No fishing this weekend - building up brownie points with Jaq - for the last week of the season - I even went clothes shopping with her yesterday!!! (and we're still talking).   Also got lots of reading to catch up on - just finished a wonderful anthology by Charles Rangeley-Wilson which as ever I've reviewed for AN (see below too). Next up will be The Glorious Uncertainty by John Aston - just started it and I'd have to say that so far its even better than his first book (A Dream of Je

Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

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