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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

Alders

03.05.21 - Alders

Bank Holiday Monday, with winds in excess of 40mph but mercifully the accompanying rain gave me the honour of keeping away until I'd finished my session. Alders is now my favourite lake. You'll have read that last Friday was a day of tentative movements on the bobbin whereas Saturday brought good solid takes. Today was back to finickity. On and off, the bobbin played about all day. Sure, some were line bites, but others had fish playing with the bait for several minutes without taking it pr
Willows

24.8.21 - Willows

Willows was busy as ever, and I chatted to a number of anglers on my way to one of the remaining swims. A few had come out, but one guy had been there since 8am and had not caught a thing - and now it was early 4. I chucked in a few balls of breadcrumbs mixed with pellets in the far margin opposite my narrowish swim then set up and cast out. Before I'd even got my seat set up,  the rod was dragged across the bank and I held on for a 7lb 9 mirror - wow! Tonight was going to be the night. I had
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in Willows

8
Aldermaston

19.11.21 - River Kennet - Aldermaston

While other bloggers were piling our perch further downstream, Aldermaston was giving me a hard time. I'd started pike fishing on a slow bend where the river starts meandering, but my first cast snagged a root and cost me a trace, bomb and beloved 20 year old pike float. The second brought back 3 large and brutish crayfish clinging to what was left of my mackerel strip. Pointless deadbaiting, so I put on a crayfish lure and twitched it along the bottom. Result: another blinkin' cannibalisti
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in Aldermaston

8
Speen Moors

14.1.22 - Speen Moors

Well, it finally happened. Thank you CP. A size 14 hook, a kernel of red sweetcorn and after 20 minutes at the weir, a beautiful 2lb 4oz chub finally, finally came in to my net, rubber lips, bronzed scales and everything. I almost declared there and then and went home. Fishing way over depth, the bulk shot may have dragged, but the fishing didn't, although the fish to follow were both trout in the 1.5lb bracket. Planning to spend some of the day piking, I went to the canal but found it
Hambridge

1.3.23 - River Kennet - Hambridge

So, life continues to get in the way of my fishing, It's been over a week now and cold turkey is not pleasant. Managed to squeeze in a couple of hours legering cheese paste on the Kennet for chub. No bites, except from one decent branch that I trawled from the depths in the first three swims. No cheese paste made it back on the hook from any cast making me suspect it wasn't sticking, or else the dreaded crays had woken up. On the fourth swim, on the edge of the mid-channel current, the
Dobsons

2021 07 24 - Dobsons

After yesterday's slowish day at Willows, I decided while driving down Muddy Lane to try and make my recent luck change and turned right to Dobsons. My favourite swim was free, and with the forecast rain and lower air pressure after the previous week's heatwave, the omens were good. The fish thought so too, at least in the first few hours, when my method feeder was hit hard six times to my right. Whilst I was snapped twice, the other four bites did not connect which made me question once ag
K&A Canal & Knotts

22.12 & 24.12 - Hambridge & Knotts

Wednesday: Had a little under two hours to fish before dark, so took a second trip to the canal swim that produced so many (small) roach last week. It had been minus 5 when I started work that morning, and by now had only now climbed to a balmy 2 degrees, but despite being bothered by a narrow boat and canoeists, all of whom I gave hard stares, the roach didn't seem too bothered. The perch didn't show up however, but even so I thought I was going to beat the 50-fish barrier when, having nailed 2
Speen Moors/Enborne

01.01.22 - Speen Moors & Enborne

At last; the chance to put my two New Year Resolutions into action: 1 - Eat more pepper - I like pepper on my food, but often forget to put it on. 2 - Sort myself out when it comes to fishing rivers and catch a few pike. I started at the weir swim and soon had my first fish of the year: a gudgeon, surely the harbinger of fishing success and everything being good in the world.  And so it proved, as it was followed by a nice dace sandwiched between two chub, a fish so elusive to me tha
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
numerous

22 -25.3.22 - More dilemmas

Tuesday - 3 hours available after work and went to Warwicks, given intelligence of large perch being caught there . Dilemma: given it was a bright sunny day, did I pick a swim already in shade knowing perch prefer low light levels to ambush, or, a sunny swim where the sweltering sun would stay til sunset, attracting roach to the surface so drawing the perch in. Hmm, what would you choose? I chose the latter, and though it was very pleasant sitting in the warmth, I alternated between caster, work
Hambridge

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

6
Dobsons

13.3.21 - Dobsons

Well, another day of 40mph+ rains keeping me off the season end rivers for the comparative shelter of the lakes. The west end of Dobsons this time, hunkering down in the thick trees of the carpark. The water was still choppy enough to deter float fishing and indeed fish. Sensing nothing was going to happen, at midday I moved around to one of my favourite swims where I have confidence that fish lie in the overhanging willow labyrinth, though luring them out can be tricky. Good move, me.
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in Dobsons

5
Alders

26.4.22 - Alders

Arrived at 3:30 in shirt-sleeve sunshine to find a gent tackling up in the swim I'd planned to fish. No problem, we had a friendly chat and wished each other luck as I took the swim opposite. He set up a pole rig, a tactic I am too clumsy to attempt,  which would prove an interesting comparison to my ham-fisted approach. Immediately, the sun went in, never to return and the NE breeze, prevalent of the last week or more built up and blew over my competitor and into my face, chopping the water in
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in Alders

5
Kennet & Avon Canal

2.3.21 - Kennet & Avon Canal - Hambridge

Had a couple of hours to fish until sunset this afternoon. Blue sky, glorious early spring feel, but high air pressure and chilly later on. The canal is maybe 30ft wide and 3.5 ft deep in the centre. No boat traffic. Slow flow. Tackle: Waggler float -slightly heavier than I thought when I tackled up - shotted 'shirt button style' (4BBs, 3 no6's), 4lb mainline, 2lb hook length, size 18 hook. Tactics: Fished mainly central channel to two thirds across. Mixed up fishing overdepth, just above
Hambridge

27.8.21 - Hambridge

A sneaky 90 minutes fish on my local canal section. Spent the first 15 minutes loose feeding then in. Trotting braid on the centrepin, holding back a chunky loafer float was great fun, but I wasn't troubled by too many fish. As per normal, I lost more than I banked as they shook so violently to get off - I must get those micro-barb hooks, eh Chris. A couple of roach and a handful of dace (even if one was a clonker of 8 ounces or so), was scant return. But there was final cast excitement when the
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
Aldermaston

15.10.21 - River Kennet, Aldermaston

So, my first ever session at Aldermaston. I've walked the stretch a few times now, including two days ago when I saw a nice rainbow trout landed. 'I've had a few here,' the man said. 'There's a trout farm downstream.' The river looked beautiful, so despite the NAA website warning that: 'this can be a difficult water to fish and will challenge your skill as a river angler.'  I was very excited as I headed for the water. Through the session, I alternated between a 50 yard perfect-for-trotting
Speen Moors

7.1.22 - Speen Moors

My Speen Moors misery continues. No bites in the first couple of hours alternating floated maggot with legered bread flake. The low sun was bright, and perhaps that's what put the fish off, combined, perhaps with yesterdays below-zero temperatures. So, on to Parliament Draft, and fished very swim, having pepped each with 15 mins of loose feed first. Zip. I'd burned most of them on my swim-crawl back towards the entry gate, when a fellow committee member, whose angling skills I revere, turned up
dixons

6.3.22 - Dixons

A rare opportunity to fish on a Sunday, so thought I'd do something different and went for a last piking session of the season. I'm very drawn to Dixon's Mere; it's quiet, underfished, and has no crays or (on the few occasions I've fished it) any nuisance waterfowl. On the other hand, there's no otter fencing or much in the way of recent catch reports, so I'm not sure what's in there. Fished the east bank, spending half an hour in each of 8 swims, reading that if pike are present, they
Willows

6.9.22 - Willows

OK, so the heatwave has definitely gone. This evening the SW wind was blowing grey and black clouds hard and fast overhead making it look more Mordor than Berkshire. The chop on the water meant float fishing was out and pinging the method feeder out towards the island brought only phantom bites as the wind caught the bobbin. I chanced that the carp may be sheltering so came back to a rod length or two out near the cover of the lake's lone overhanging willow. A bite soon ensued. Winding in,
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in Willows

4
Speen Moors/Enborne

30.9.22 -Enborne/Speen Moors

With temperatures crumbling as autumn starts to get in gear, I started my migration from lakes to the canals and rivers. The morning could have been perfect for perch at first light- misty and still, but overnight it had dropped to four degrees, the coldest since spring, and maybe that turned them off. I managed to get some pole practise in prior to the match at Enborne on Sunday, presenting and jiggling a worm right in front of their reedbed ambush points, but only managed one of about hal
Hambridge

5.11.22- Hambridge River and Canal

A change of circumstances meant I grabbed some roving tackle and pinched 3 hours on a wet and windy afternoon at my nearest venue. I'd bought waders a few months ago and not got them out the box, so a short trip seemed the perfect opportunity to give them a go. Wading out, I realised how uneven the bottom is and what power water has at even at knee height. It opened up the swims behind the clothing warehouse and made me more aware of the comparative water speeds. I trotted along the crease
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in Hambridge

4
Marsh Benham

18.1.23 - Marsh Benham

Minus 5 last night, so my gardening work was off. Hung about until 9 when it'd warmed to minus 2 and made my way to the beautiful frosty and sunny syndicate. Water level still high with a few unfishable, I prebaited half a dozen with mashed bread. Legered breadflake smeared with my mystery ingredient. I knew it would attract trout, but it was so cold I was happy to keep catching and, who knew, maybe the temperature will keep them subdued and let the chub in. No such luck. I think the low, bright
Willows

14.3.23 - 25.4.23 - Various - mainly Willows

It's been a tough Spring. With chilly water and my forthcoming move to South Wales eating at my fishing time, there's been little to trouble the scorers from largely short, sharp sessions. When concern for my well-being was expressed by an anonymous reader of this bog (thanks, Chris) I decided to update the following catalogue of mediocrity. 14.3 - Willows - A shortish evening stint, colder than yesterday and zero degrees when I packed up. One wintery shower caused a 'hailbow'. 2 Commons -
Alders/Willows

13.7.21 - Alders & Willows

I've always intended to fish Alders on one of my weekly evening sessions, but the lure of the carp at Willows has always proved irresistible.  But arriving to find Willows very busy (l met a number of new members fishing for the first time there) including my preferred 'evening' swim, I decided tonight was the night. However, it was to be a disappointing evening, but with 2 noteworthy events. I Just one bite in 4 hours (a 3lb 12 tench) so crossed the causeway the by now nearly deserted Will
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