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About this blog

I started this blog in March 2021, having blanked in over half of my fifteen winter trips to various waters of Newbury Angling Association. The rivers, canals and lakes are fine, I'm just not very good at catching the fish in them. Oddly, i seemed to get a bit better for a while, but 2023 has undone all that. In July I moved to South Wales, not entirely for the weather, but to enforce a change in my fishing luck.

Entries in this blog

Willows

Willows - 5th, 9th & 10th October 2021

Autumn is here, and while the books will all tell you that the carp are feeding hard, sensing the forthcoming winter, the continued unseasonable warmth has maybe stopped the message getting through. Little to report from 3 sessions frankly, with a mirror and 5 commons cross the piece - or should it be 4? - I caught the photo'd fish an hour after dark in single corn float fished about 2ft from the bank. It didn't give much of a fight, and was particularly well behaved on the unhooking mat. M
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in Willows

2
River Kennet

Two evening's riparian entertainment

When Barry Murrer offered to take me fly fishing for the first time, I could hardly say no. I wrote about my experience from my position as editor of the Newbury AA Quarterly Newsletter and copy the two resultant articles below. Cheers, Barry. Evening #1 When I have occasion to flick through the Newbury Angling Association’s  Rules and Regs Book I see ‘3.1 Trout fishing, with artificial dry fly only, shall commence on 1st  April and close on 30 September.’  I’ve always wondered if
various

May 23 - Various

OK, OK, so I've been remiss in keeping this up to date. Hope you haven't missed me too much. A number of reasons - the main one being the preparation for our move to South Wales taking up so much of my fishing time, my getting together the Newbury Angling Association's latest quarterly newsletter and a rubbish set of catches when I have been. The meagre summary for May was: 2nd May and 29th April - Treoes lake, Bridgend - on the Glamorgan Anglers Club ticket. A lovely, very well p
Willows

A tale of Three Blanks

For those who don't have a Newbury AA ticket, Willows is a small, shallow lake without enough vegetation but with a central island that the carp, typically 6-12lbs like to swim around. It has also recently stocked been stocked up with bream and also tench of around 6lbs. Totting up, I've had around 260 commons and 150 mirrors since joining the club in 2021 with the odd decent crucian between them. You can see that it's what they call I a 'runs water' (I'd not heard of this phrase until recently)
Willows

9.9.22 - Willows

A slightly better than par day at the Willows. With the air as still as can be and at a lower pressure after heavy rain most of yesterday, I had hoped for better. With nothing happening on float, I defaulted to the method feeder and through the day found pulses of fish at different ranges - commons of 4lb 8, 6lb 5, 5lb 15, 6lb 9, 5lb 9 & 6lb 5, with mirrors of 6lb 6, 7lb 12 and two bream, both under a pound. I've caught plenty of feisty carp here in recent times, but no doubles for aaaa
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in Willows

0
Kennet & Avon Canal

9.8.21 - K&A - Hambridge

With an afternoon off and a pint of maggots bored in the fridge, I took them to Hambridge for a quick session. Having been dry and sunny all day, the heavens opened as soon as I got bankside and left me soaked, making every bend down to toss in a few maggots in the swim an exercise in soggy bottomed unpleasantness. It got the fish feeding in order with a 1lb 2 brownie sandwiched between 4 small roach and 7 dace to a hunky 7 ounces. The last of the maggots coincided with a final la
Alders/Greenham Mill

9.7.21 - Alders and Greenham Mill runoff

Part 1: an early start in 'Dead Carp Corner' at Alders with the SW breeze blowing into my face. Had four tench between 3lb and 4lb 14 through the day on artificial corn/orange wafter (1 on float close in, the others on method feeder, all up against the lilies. Also had a hard-fighting bream, yes bream, of 5lb 8. This represents a par day at Alders - it seems impossible to peg down a shoal of the bream. I swapped to light float and maggot for an hour and caught 14 feisty perch (up to 6 ounces) an
Willows

9.4.22 - Willows

Another frosty start, and having had a 'meh' day at Dobsons yesterday, I made for my default lake of Willows. Here the water temp at 11 degrees was down a degree, and I wondered if it would have any effect. Maybe it did, because after fish at 9:20am (a pretty Mirror of 6lb 6, 10:20am (a Common of 8lb 9) and 11:20am (a 1lb 3oz tench), the old '20-minutes-past-the-hour' trick evaporated and so did any more catches. The surprisingly few anglers around the bank also struggled. The morning
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in Willows

0
Dobsons

9.4.21

A lovely day to be out in the early Spring sunshine; unless you were a fish, who kept well out of the way. No bites all day (yet again) on pop-ups, bread or pellet. My get-out-of-blank float road was also untroubled all morning. I had some bites when set overdepth but no takes, which made me think that the crayfish have woken up again. Come the afternoon, the clouds rolled in, the breeze started and I scraped nine roach, the biggest a welcome three ounces. Ah well.
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in Dobsons

0
Willows

9.3.21 - Willows

What with it having been a glorious early spring day. I managed to sneak one-and-a-half hours in at Willows before sunset this evening. As soon as I arrived, the wind got up with the expected change of weather approached. 7 Canada geese, 1 grebe, 8 trains (7 passenger, 1 goods), 3 crows, 1 pheasant, 3 Chinnock helicopters (probably the same one, three times, to be fair), 7 pigeons, 1 moorhen, 2 coots, 1 red kite, 1 other angler. 0 fish. Did get a bite soon after starting, but unusually wit
Willows

9.2.22 - Willows

I had planned to fish the Kennet at Brimpton, but the sun was so bright and with the low water level after weeks of no rain, I felt the fish might be too spooky, so risked repeating my error of last Wednesday afternoon and went to Willows. On arrival, I was told a good number of carp had come out that morning, so I set up expectantly in 12 degrees of warmth. Tried a few things, but nothing. Brought out the float rod for a blank-buster and had 15 small roach before the bites dried up. At 3:30 a c
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in Willows

0
Brimpton

9.10.21 - Brimpton - The Crays!

I was fishing the Kennet at Brimpton recently when a man passed me with a dustbin strapped to his back. You see all sorts on the rivers, so after an exchange of pleasantries I did not challenge him. Half an hour later he was back, and the bin was heaving full of large, grotesque signal crayfish. I was appalled. Turns out I had the pleasure of meeting Andrew Leech of the Artisan Fisherman Ltd of Thatcham who is fully licenced to trap and trade in crayfish. A lovely man, he estimated his barrel co
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in Brimpton

4
Willows

9 & 10.11.21 - Willows

9th - 3:30 til 7:45. Had just a few tentative bites, then, at last, a solid one. I struck, there was strong resistance and I brought in...a large branch. Did the vegetation really make a grab for my bait? Then I struck into a carp which pulled yards from the centrepin. I played it for a minute or so, but sensed that it wasn't firmly hooked. I was right, and off it fell. After that, while I always felt the fish were close - though not as near as the rats than were scampering around the undergrowt
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in Willows

0
Willows

8.6.21 - Willows

The hot weather continues, though with a warm southerly breeze rippling the surface, there was hardly a carp to be seen, My attempts to loose feed doggy bikkies to see who was around proved futile, as within seconds I had terns diving hard into my swim and those bloody ducks from Saturday swimming down for their tea.  So I switched to plan B, the method feeder, thinking that my swim was shallow enough for the wafter to be spotted wherever the fish were,  and soon lost a good fish, it fallin
Alders

8.5.21 - Alders

Arrived in pouring rain and left in 40mph+ winds. That's May 2021 for you. Stopped for a while to help the working group plant bull rushes and irises around adjacent Willows.  Help required please:  it was a quiet day by previous week's standards, the stop/start frosts probably having an effect. This said, for the solitary 4lb bream I caught, I had 4 good fish slip the hook after cracking 100mph bites, where the bobbin cracked into the rod. Each was on for between 10 seconds and a couple
Dobsons

8.4.22 - Dobsons

I turned up bright and early after yesterdays winds to find a chap fishing in my chosen swim. Turned out it was celebrity commentor from this parish, PeterJG, who said he recognised me from this blog. What a top gent he turned out to be. Very quick to play down his undoubted angling abilities, I didn't believe a word of it, as he out-breamed me 4-3 and threw in a few of his beloved roach on top. A total pleasure to meet you, PJG. My estimations that the air pressure being sub-1000 woul
Willows

8.11.22 - Willows

I was planning to go chub fishing this evening at a syndicate water, but was put off by (1) talk from another member of crayfish, combined with the view of a professional crayfish trapper that they are most active under full moons combined with (2) a second consecutive Tuesday of winds and threatened sharp showers had me thinking it would be slightly less unpleasant under a brolly in relatively sheltered Willows, than roving across open country casting between swaying branches over a narrow rive
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in Willows

0
NAA Archive

8.1.22 - Newbury Library

The forecast was dreadful today, and with my Michelin-man wet weather gear still dripping from yesterday, I thought I'd spend the time at the library (within eyesight if the K&A Canal) working on my project researching the history of the Newbury Angling Association. Seeing that the NAA badge showed it was founded in 1878, I was intrigued by what the history might be. I found an on-line newspaper archive which holds over 100 Newbury Weekly News and other publication articles from the 180
Half Round ponds

8, 15.7.23 - Half Round ponds - Bridgend

These small back-to-back semi-circular lakes are ex-industrial and have been brought to superb condition by a small band of volunteers of Brynmill & District AC. One has the advantage of being beside a tall escarpment meaning it is somewhat protected from the proper Welsh rain which battered me on both trips. It was truly wet. But the water in front of this shelter since I first came a few weeks ago is full of milfoil. This pond weed is rather pretty to look at, and i imagine loved by t
Willows

8 & 9.8.22 - Bellwood and Willows

A second consecutive weekend away allowing me to fish on Monday afternoon and my usual Tuesday evening. Was turned away from Willows by the fire brigade on Monday, kids having set a fire in the tinder dry reed beds. Turned back to my nemesis, Bellwood. On what must be my 6th or so trip there, I've not caught anything more than half a pound, and my paltry 4 roach for 5 ounces barely troubled the scorers. Are you sure it's got fish in? The fire engines had gone by Tuesday, and within 5 m
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in Willows

2
Willows

8 & 9.3.22 - Willows

With just a week left of the moving water season, I probably should have spent my 3-hours in a river or canal, but given the blanks lure fishing on my last two Tuesdays and the pretty strong winds, I pitched for the  comparative shelter of my tree-lined default location, Willows. Sorry guys. But it was a good move. The fish turned out to be where I suspected they might and in that short session came 7 carp: Mirrors of 6lb, 10lb then 6lb 10 and Commons of 5lb, 6lb 8, 2lb 12 and 7lb 10. Four
Treoes lake

8 & 11.12 - Treoes lake

Having abandoned any further 1hr 40 minute round trips to my 'local' river which seemingly holding no fish, and my very local Port Talbot Docks mysteriously having last week closed to all further fishing, it's my usual lake again. Friday. With the frosts a few days past now I was hoping the fish will have woken up hungry. Well, they sort of had. Got a handful of roach and bream, but in heavy rain did get a bonus 13lb 6 Common. Monday. A chilly but often sunny day. I chose to sit on the
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in Treoes lake

3
Marsh Benham

8 & 10.1.23 - Dixons & Marsh Benham

Sunday. It rained much of yesterday and with showers due I decided against the fast-flowing river or canal so I could sit unmoving under the brolly at the lake. With some maggots left, I'd fish lightly to attract, maybe catch some silvers, while a deadbait on rod 2 may snap up a marauding pike, maybe two. A great plan, but as so often happens, it didn't come off. The 'light showers' forecast turned out to be two hour-long bouts of proper rain, cold too, which doubtless hit the water temps. Resul
Bellwood

7.9.21 - Bellwood

With the road to Willows and Alders being closed for repairs this week, my Tuesday evening fish needed a new location, so I cycled to Bellwood the night before for a recce. I've fished it twice before, once for a blank, and a few small roach, perch and bream on the other. It was a lovely evening and there were just two anglers, both set up for the night ahead. They were lovely guys and very generous with the information and tips for a novice like me. I repaid one by photographing him with the 20
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in Bellwood

0
The Fendrod

7.8.23 - The Frendrod, Swansea

My first trip to this large open lake set in a public park. The place is popular with walkers, but local tackle shop advice to choose a swim at the bottom of the several steep banks was good, and they strolled past 20 yards behind me leaving me blissfully alone. It did make having the occasional wee a tricky case of picking good timing. Pretty featureless on the surface, I kept my options open by having one rod near the bankside lilies and pinging the other one out into open water. I mainta
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