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The Newbury & Port Talbot Blanker

29.12.22 - Marsh Benham

Having suffered a wet day on the Kennet at Speen Moors and Enborne Canal for a solitary 1lb perch which did not merit its own blog entry, but have pictured here, on Thursday I made my way to the more reliable syndicate. As alluded to by the revered CP on his blog, it was a delight to see him and the majority of our small number of members fishing this short stretch between days of pouring rain. Usual disasters for me: firstly, I'd forgotten to pack my boots in my new, smaller car so had to
Chris Plumb's Blog

29 December

Kennet carrier (& main river) - Marsh Benham 0815 - 1330 Bright and breezy with a few light (& one heavy) showers. AT 5º-7ºC. River at normal levels - carrier still a little on the low side for winter. 1 Chub: 2lber. 20 Roach & Dace (slightly more roach - nothing note-worthy). 3 Brownies and a Rainbow - all 2½ - 3½lb - with the Rainbow at the top end of that and possibly pushing 4lb... A morning spent playing (and largely failing!!) at avoid the trout. Got off to
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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Chris Plumb's Blog

26 December

River Kennet - Brimpton 1030 - 1330 Bright and sunny. Cooler than last couple of days. AT 4º - 6ºC. River at normal levels and with a tinge of colour. 1 Chub: 4lb 6oz. 2 Brownies; Biggest a brute of a fish - must have been close to 4lb but unweighed - the other around half that size. Impromptu trip based on Jaq announcing she was hitting the sales!! Bright winter sunshine are not the ideal conditions for a spot of chub fishing but I reasoned the recent rise in river levels an
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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The Newbury & Port Talbot Blanker

24.12.22 - Marsh Benham

When you're told by your spouse that your request to help with Xmas preparations will add to her concerns and not detract from them, the only thing to do to overcome the emasculation is to go fishing. Yesterday's rain brought more flow and depth to the carrier which boded well. Once again I went first to the weir swim, anticipating the fish shoaled in the deep eddy, primed to leap through the crease to pluck passing tidbits. Wrong, and had no bites in 45 mins. Moved to the far end with the
The Newbury & Port Talbot Blanker

23.12.22 - Dobsons - The Great Adventure

There's the difference, you see.  While other bloggers on this site were catching bream, chub and gudgeon on the rivers, I decided to go piking at Dobsons. I'd found it hard to sleep last night thinking of a swim I knew, with snags to the left and an overhanging tree to the right that screamed pike.  I arrived in the back end of pouring rain to pop up a shad on one rig and flat-bottom a mackerel on the other: whichever proved the most irresistible, I'd swap and have both rods  pulling
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in Dobsons

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Chris Plumb's Blog

23 December (Part 2)

Kennet and Avon Canal - Woolhampton 1330 - 1615 Bright and VERY breezy. AT 11ºC 1 Perch; 1lb 11oz That was a bit below expectations to put it mildly - especially after starting with a semi decent perch in the first 10 mins (and in bright sunshine)- it would prove to be my only bite!!! Wind was a nightmare and way stronger than this morning - made accurate casting and good presentation all but impossible. I fished on hoping that the witching hour would rescue proceedings - but
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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Chris Plumb's Blog

23 December (Part 1)

River Kennet - Hambridge 1000 - 1230 Bright and mild after heavy early morning rain (over ½inch). AT 11ºC. River at normal winter levels with a tinge of colour - looked in really good nick - hooray!  Was up a good 6 inches on my last visit here . The Kennet is at last seeing the benefits of a wet autumn - the springs on the the downs broke during the recent cold snap (the river gauge at Winterborne Monkton started recording on the 15th Dec) so winter rainfall will now start having more
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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The Newbury & Port Talbot Blanker

20.12.22 - River Kennet - Newbury

I've been threatening to go evening chubbing for a number of Tuesdays now, and tonight was the night. With heavy rain on Sunday/Monday, the river was travelling faster than last when I came and scouted swims last week, and with no weights over 3/4 oz I could only fish with those with near bank slacks and eddies. I travelled up and down them in turn, spending about half an hour in each, prebaiting the next swim to come with balls of mashed bread as I went before walking back and settling down. 
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in kennet

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The Newbury & Port Talbot Blanker

19.12.22 - Bulls Lock

After my morning's gardening customer put me off with a 5:30am email, and with the pint of maggots in the beer fridge taking up room required for festive victuals,  I managed to squeeze a bonus 2-hours fishing in. The frosts of the last 2 weeks had been replaced by wind, rain and double-figure temps making me think the fish would be up for a feed. Hmm. Trotted for  45 mins before losing a fairly decent fish after my first bite. The second came half an hour later at the far extreme of the swim an
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in kennet

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Chris Plumb's Blog

17 December

River Frome - Wool 0830 - 1345 Bright, milky sunshine - very cold start - the thaw arrived mid morning - which I was very thankful for - line freezing in the ferrules had made for a tough couple of hours prior to that. AT -6ºwhen I arrived ->+6ºC when I drove off. River at normal levels - 1.05m at the East Stoke gauge. 13 Grayling: 8 over a lb - the 3 I weighed went 1lb 14oz & 2 X 1lb 10oz (different fish!) most of the others lbers around 1lb 6oz. 3 Trout - a lber, one half
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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The Newbury & Port Talbot Blanker

16 & 12.12.2022 - Speen Moors & Marsh Benham

Friday - Its always a good idea to try and repeat a success isn't it, so back I went to the scene of Tuesday's great pike.  Walking across the field it was minus-6 as I crunched through my own frosty footsteps of Tuesday. No one else had been bonkers enough to go there in three days. in the low winter sunshine, I legered a popped-up shad in all areas to my left, and a cheese wafter wrapped in chill-flavoured cheese for chub to my right. Yes, I know I should have chosen one species or another, ta
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in Speen Moors

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The Newbury & Port Talbot Blanker

13.12.22- Speen Moors

Almost a week of consecutive frozen days have put a literal cap on the lakes and canal so I took my deadbaits for a chilly couple of hours on the Kennet. Rather expecting a session of feeding the crayfish, they were pleasantly absent. An hour in the rod tip trembled, making me wonder if my shivering had knocked into it. But then it did it again, quite subtlety. On the third tremble I struck and was into a fish. It didn't feel big, but as a blank-buster I wasn't going to argue, when it woke
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in Speen Moors

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Chris Plumb's Blog

12 December

River Lambourn - Newbury 1045 - 1445 Cold and cloudy. AT around -1ºC all day. River low 14 Grayling; 8 over a lb and as they got progressively bigger throughout the session I ended up weighing 5 of them - at 1-06, 1-07, 1-09, 1-10 & 1lb 12oz. 1 Brownie - small. I love days like this - wrapped up warm against an iron hard frost - which froze my landing net between each fish landed! As ever the Lambourn Ladies were very obliging despite the cold - fished the length of the v
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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The Newbury & Port Talbot Blanker

2022 12 09 - Old Bury Hill Lake, Dorking

A Christmas do in Surrey on Thursday allowed me to undertake my Fishing Friday at a venue I last fished two or three as a teenager circa 1978. I have a few key memories of the place: - It was a lot weedier than it is now - I remember the smell of a long dead carp in the undergrowth behind me which caused me to gag much of a hot afternoon afternoon - The bailiff was an angry fellow with a Desperate Dan beard and green tank top seemingly knitted from barbed wire. You didn't want to get on
The Newbury & Port Talbot Blanker

6.12.22 - Willows

Pulled on my snowman suit for the first time this winter, a prudent decision with the beautiful afternoon sun becoming a chilly moonlit evening, 3-degrees when I left. Not a touch before dusk, though the glow of the trees in the evening sunlight was beautiful - my photo has not been filtered. A 9lb 10 Common came in as the last of the light failed, followed by an old friend - Blinky, the one-eyed Common who I've caught a good 6 times. He's become a real pal and has put on 8 ounces sinc
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in Willows

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Chris Plumb's Blog

3 December

River Kennet - Marsh Benham 0900 - 1400 Cold and overcast with a chilly breeze. AT 4º- 6ºC. River still low and threadbare. 3 Chub; 2lb 7oz and a couple of chublets. 3 Dozen Dace & Roach (mainly dace - all quite small). 1 Perch; small. 3 Brownies - a couple in the 2lb class and a brute of a fish @ 4½lb (with a size 12 in its gob)! 2 Rainbows both around 3lb (and I suspect were the same fish!). Brrrrrr 🥶 Winter's here, though the cold, alas, hasn't suppressed the trout's a
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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The Newbury & Port Talbot Blanker

2.12.22 - Brimpton and Collins

I had reason to be in Thatcham first thing so decided on a rare trip to Brimpton. I'd convinced my wife the night before that liquidising a loaf of bread with a tin of corn was a prime use for her mixer, and I delivered several balls of the luscious confection in six chubby swims to fish in turn. The three pieces of betaine-soaked corn link-legered on a size 6 hook would surely be irresistible. Sadly, it was, and no matter how stealthily I moved and cast, I didn't get a bite. The good thing was
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in Brimpton

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The Newbury & Port Talbot Blanker

29.11.22 - A mixed week

Tuesday 22nd, I felt a little better after a heavy cold over the weekend and took my stuffy headed self to the fresh air at Marsh Benham with the intention of completing my recovery. Lasted about 3 hours with worsening headache until I could barely hold my rod. Managed 15 roach of fair dimension, 9 dace, 3 perch and a 2lb 10 brownie before going home to bed. Slept most of Wednesday, came through a bit on Thursday and re-pitted my wits against MB on Friday. The water was very low if a bit fa
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in Willows

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Chris Plumb's Blog

26 November (Part 2)

River Lambourn - Newbury 1230 - 1430 Mild, dull and overcast. 11ºC. River low. 18 Grayling - with around half a lb or better - the two I put on the scales went 1lb 8oz & 1lb 6oz and had a few more not far shy of these two. 1 Brownie - small. With 3 other anglers working the venue I was very pleased with this return - clearly managed to find a few spots that hadn't already been visited and like this morning's session further upstream managed to get a couple of shoals compe
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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Chris Plumb's Blog

26 November (Part 1)

River Lambourn - Shaw 0900 - 1230 Mild with milky sunsine - clouding over.AT 7º - 11ºC. River low and clear (of course). 15 Grayling with 5 an ounce or so either side of 1lb with the rest half that or smaller. 3 Brownies; 1½lb and a couple of parrs. Whilst the rains have had little impact (so far) on the local chalkstreams they have certainly stuffed up the Frome judging by the river gauges so whilst I had planned a trip to Dorset this weekend I had to make do with bothering
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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Chris Plumb's Blog

20 November

River Kennet - Speen Moors 0800 - 1400 Bright and sunny morning after overnight rain, clouding over with heavy showers after lunch! Cooler than of late 5º - 9ºC River still low. 180mm of rain (and counting) since the start of October hasn't made a blind bit of difference to the river - so far! 4 Chub: Biggest 3lb 6oz - the others between 1¾ - 2¼lb. 6 Dace - a couple of chunky ones, 3 Roach - all small. 1 Perch c½lb, 1 Brownie c¾lb. A successful  morning on the weirpools (so a
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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The Newbury & Port Talbot Blanker

15 & 17.11.22 - Willows and Dixons

(1) My usual Tuesday evening session. With the rivers so low, I've stuck to the lakes, particularly as the temperatures have been mild. Arriving to find no one fishing but two cormorants, I managed a par two carp. The first, just before dark was a mirror of 6lb 8 was 'orange spot'. My pal Steve who surface feeds in this swim regularly in the summer says he catches it every session. Do you recognise him? He certainly didn't put up much of a fight, adopting a 'come on then, let's get this over wit
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in Willows

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The Newbury & Port Talbot Blanker

14.11.22 - Hambridge and river Lamborne

With my morning customers enjoying a holiday, I have a consecutive bonus Monday few hours fishing. Take my waders to the river Kennet at Hambridge and fish three swims. The river is very low which, along with angler failings, contributes to only modest returns of 7 dace, a roach and a beautiful gudgeon. On the plus side, no lost big'uns as tends to happen to me here. On the downside, no big'un's to lose. Realising it's not going to be a great return, I squelch my way over to the Lamborne. N
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in Hambridge

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