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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/Willows

7.5.21 - Alders/Willows

I got to Alders today and found four more anglers than the normal none. I think this came from my spreading recent catch details on the Newbury Angling Association Forum. To the best of my knowledge no one caught, nor had my pal, Peter,  on his trip yesterday. On behalf of the fish, I'd like to apologise to all. If it's any consolation, I had just a couple of line bites there this afternoon before switching to Willows for the last hour. As a punishment from the fish gods, my one decent
dixons

7.11.22 - Dixons

When my Monday morning gardening customer cancelled at short notice, I was delighted to get a bonus 3-hours fishing in. With no maggots to fish the Lamborne or Hambridge, I pulled out some mackerel I had in the freezer from last winter, grabbed a couple of heavy rods and made for Dixons. Warm for November, dank and with light rain, it seemed perfect and I cast out a leger 20 yards to my left, and a bung a similar distance to my right.  After about half an hour, the buzzer sounded a couple o
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in dixons

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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
Marsh Benham

7, 10 & 11.3.23 - Marsh Benham

With the river close season rapidly approaching, I managed three sessions at the syndicate. Tuesday evening - Took the cheesepaste to a number of swims. Caught a 1lb 12 chub early on followed by two angry brownies in the 2lb bracket. As it darkened the temperature dropped faster than a 4-oz Arsley bomb as a kingfisher flew low and fast past my rod tip, a barn owl landed in the trees opposite and an orangey full moon rose behind me. It was all breathtaking, but I only managed one more browni
Dobsons

7 - 11.6.22 - Willows & Dobsons

I've combined three sessions, none of which really deserved a post in their own right. Everyone I've spoken to bankside say they've found catches sketchy of late. Well, I suppose the weather has been Spring-like (albeit we are a week from midsummer day), and let's face it, we've all had spawning on the mind. Maybe its a good argument for adhering to the traditional close season. On the other hand, it's been lovely to ditch the gloves and thermals and absorb the sun like the grass snake that swam
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
Willows

6.7.21 - Willows

A fun evening after having started with a spate of the heavy showers that had been forecast earlier in the day. One of the more torrential downpours started soon after I'd had my first bite and was playing a carp of maybe 6 or 7lbs. As it towed up-and-down it darkened and there was a loud rumble of thunder in the trees behind me. Not really wanting to be standing there with a rod acting as a lightning conductor, I more or less yanked the fish into the net through the rain-thrashed surface b
knotts

6.4.21 -Knotts

Having fished after work a week ago in twenty-three degree heat, this Tuesday I hoped that the day's snow showers were over and I'd just have the north wind to deal with. No such luck. I was hit by a 15-minute blizzard that dropped 2mm pellets of white around me while the wind took every bit of feeling from my fingers. Surprisingly perhaps, I had by then managed seven roach, one about half a pound, which made it worthwhile despite the early finish and chilblains. 
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

6.3.21 - Willows

I know, I know. With the river season drawing to a close, I should have had a bash on running water, but the chance of those Willows carp was too much. If only they sold hindsight at the tackle shop as well as boilies because Willows was hard going today. The north easterly wind though not strong, brought a real chill that kept the fish low and sent me back to the car for my winter layers. Of the ten or so anglers, I think more than half blanked. surprisingly, I was not one of them, catchin
River Ely, St Fagans

6.12.23 - River Ely, St Fagans

My third trip to the Ely. It's my nearest coarse river and, with a stop at Bridgend to pick up maggots, took me about 50 minutes. That's too long, but I'm missing my chub fishing. We've had a clear and chilly last week that's warmed in the last couple of days with some rain and cloud giving a pleasant lift in temperature that I think makes it ripe for action.  It's a lovely looking river, much like the Kennet in places with glides and overhangs - very chubby looking. Having suffered two bla
Willows

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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Marsh Benham

6.1.23 - Marsh Benham

On a mild and dry winter day I decided to experiment  on the syndicate. taking the usual trotting gear but also a leger rod and, given the number of pike snatches in recent visits, a deadbaiting rod. I kept the pike rod out most of the day and didn't get as much as a nudge while I varied between float and leger as I moved through the swims. On float I had 28 roach including a silver stunner of 1lb from my favourite aquarium swim, equalling my pb. These were augmented by 3 chublets, 3 p
Treoes lake

6, 10 & 13.11 - Treoes Lake

Three more trips to my mainstay lake while I work out what the heck I'm going to do for my winter fishing. Monday - Not a touch on pike rod, but the other brought commons of 7lb 8, 6lb 12, 6lb 9, 7lb 10 and 6lb 8 plus a 7lb 12 mirror and a single small bream. A good day. Friday - Didn't bother with the pike rig put put on prawn pieces hoping for perch. A slower day but 2 commons both of 11lb 6 and a mirror of 6lb made it a fair day. Monday - With Storm Debi blowing for Wales, the
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in Treoes lake

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Alders/Willows

6 05 22 - Alders/Willows

So, here was the plan. (a) Start at first light at Alders on float until the sun climbed high enough to send the fish into hiding in the clear water. At that point I'd (b) cross the grass to Willows where the opacity of the more turbid water may be keeping the fish less guarded. (a) went well. I had bite after bite, good ones too, and I missed lots many more than the 2lb Common and Bream of 3lb 12, 5lb 1 and 5lb 8 I had to show for it. As anticipated, the bites slowed, though there was time
Aberavon beach

5.9.23 - Aberavon Beach

Having blanked a few times now, I took local anglers advice and walked down to the beach with my new neighbour as the sun went down and while the tide was coming in.  I'd also bought a newspaper packet of lugworms, plus a few frozen sandeels and confidence was high. After a heatwave of a day, it was beautiful on the sand at night as the lights of Swansea twinkled across the bay and the furnaces of the steelworks sent the occasional plume of flame into the sky.  We had bites from the of
Dobsons

5.8 & 9.7.22 - Dobsons

Three cracks at my nemesis. Dobsons always promises so much, though I rarely find it in prolific form, and sense it relishes being awkward. Tuesday evening: Clipped up and casting every 5 minutes fir the first hour laid out a bed of groundbait 30 yards out. I slowed the casting before slowing and waited for the ensuing bites. Only a 12oz bream and two roach around the 6oz mark to show for the effort. Rod 2 was dropped closer in, line and drag drum tight and rod positioned ready to grab and
Willows

5.6.21 - Willows

A scorching day, and my strategy was sound: (1) Until the sun climbed above the trees, I would fish the shady, shallow north corner,  upagainst the lilies and winkle out some tench. (2) Once the sun hit the water, I would switch to the method feeder in the remaining shade of the shallow end to my left and (3) when the carp started to rise I would switch to surface-fished dog biscuits. What could go wrong? I had to admire my own watercraft and cunning. (1) No bits in 1.5 hours agai
Willows

5.4.22 - Willows

A good evening, even if it was pretty chilly in the strong S-SW breeze. But it went to plan. I set up in my swim at 3:15, anticipating fish arriving in it about 6 (though hoping they might be there already, of course) 6:00 - The first bite came on-the-dot. It was a slow bite and a long lethargic fight, but it eventually came in as a perfect 13lb 8 Mirror.  6:15 - A personal best 8lb 3oz Bream 7:00, 7:35, 7:55 and 8:10 -  Commons of 8lb 2, 6lb 6, 9lb 9 and 4lb Not sure if
Willows

5.3.21 - Willows

Well, after three fish in the final hour on Wednesday, it was no surprise I chose to go to Willows again today. Eben better, I was the only angler there all day but I soon began to cotton on why. It might have been four degrees in the car, and the efforts of morning gardening had been exhilarating, but there was a cold northeasterly breeze, enough to create a chop on the surface and have me pulling a second coat on. I tossed out the method feeder with a pink pop-up that scored the other day and
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

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Willows

4.9.21 - Willows

A nice mornings fishing. Lots of line bites, knocks and spells of fish playing with the feeder, and some rod-yanking takes that somehow failed to connect. The sum total was 3 mirrors of 5lb 2, 6lb 2 and 7lb 8, ending with a bream of 3lb 8 was probably about par. 
Bayleaf the Gardener

Bayleaf the Gardener in Willows

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Treoes lake

4.8.23 - Treoes Lake

I was going to try another lake, but a hangover meant I was late up and thus had time to visit the Ewenny tackle shop, Bridgend. I needed to show them the landing net handle branded as 'bomb proof' that snapped clean in two first fish on Monday. Without a receipt I was not expecting an exchange, I just wanted to ensure no other mug bought one, but they kindly allowed me to upgrade and deduct the cost of this celery-stick handle from it.  On the bank by 8:30am, my prolific swim from Monday w
Alders/Greenham Mill

4.7.21 - Alders & Greenham Mill run-off

Well, that was a strange day. There were eight anglers on Willows when I arrived, enough to keep the fish quiet, so I crossed the causeway to the deserted Alders. For several hours I watched patches of Mr Crabtree-eque frothy tench bubbles rising near my float but could not tease a single bite.  The patches disappeared with sunshine, so before making my planned move to my local Greenham Mill, I thought I'd switch to a light float and small hook/ maggot combo with a view to winkling-out the
Willows

4.6.21 - Willows

After recent excesses, today was pretty quiet for me and the four other anglers on the lake. one who spent more time spodding than fishing. I scaled down to a single grain of corn after initial inaction to stimulate  a 2oz and then a a spunky 6oz roach. There was no future in this tiddler-bashing so I switched swims to throw a method feeder at the reliability of the island.  With still nothing more than the very occasional  indistinct line bite, I chopped and changed 'twixt float and feeder tryi
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