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About this blog

Diary of a (mainly) river angler.

Entries in this blog

30 August

River Kennet - Nr Thatcham   1130 - 1500   Cool and overcast. 15ºC. River at near normal summer levels carrying it usual tinge of colour.   1 Barbel; 3lb 13oz, 1 Chub; 3lb 2oz. 4 Grayling, 1 dace, a gudgeon and 3 brownies.   Bit of a recce session with a lot of walking involved - Paul and I are planning an evening trip tomorrow and we're undecided where to go (or even whether to fish a river or a lake!). Fished 6 swims in total so didn't spend long in any
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

2

24 August

River Kennet - Padworth   1815 - 2345   Mainly cloudy and quite breezy. 15ºC - Though felt chillier in the wind. River up a couple of inches (judging by the grass growing under water!)   4 Barbel; 9lb 7oz, 8lb 0oz, 5lb 6oz, 4lb 11oz.   Smallest one 1st cast - within 10 minutes of arriving! Then followed by 2 hours of crayfish activity - attacking the bait within miuntes of it settling. It stopped at dusk - obviously the fish had gone on the munch, as I qui
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

3

22 August

Newbury AA Stillwater - Widmead   0530 - 1100.   Bright and sunny after a cool, misty start. 10º -> 20ºC   1 Crucian; 2lb 2oz. 8 Carp; best 2 - 12lb 6oz & 11lb 9oz, smallest 6¾lb. 3 rudd & a perch.   A morning's float fishing (lift method as per usual!!). Crucian and 3 of the smaller carp on 6mm S-Pellet. Meat just got nailed by the rudd. Last couple of hours spent freelining bread - which brought 5 more carp including both bigger ones. Smallest
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

1

19 August

River Kennet - Newbury   0545 - 1015   Cool, bright and sunny. 8ºC -> 13ºC. River up a tad and carrying a bit of colour after yesterdays rains.   50+ Dace - mainly small save for one really goodun of 11oz and 2 or 3 of around 6oz. 20+ Roach, 2 Chublets - both just shy of a pound, 4 Gudgeon and a Brownie.   Pleasant mornings trotting. Hoped a barbel or two would put in an appearance plus a few bigger chub - but as these were the first chub I've heard of from here this season I was glad
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

0

10/11 August

Summer Pit - CEMEX Yateley   1930 - 0130   Overcast and very breezy - this lake is so sheltered it's unusual to feel any wind at all - not last night! Mild - min 15ºC.   1 Bream; 8lb. 1 Tench; 3lb 7oz. 2 rudd & a perch.   Fished a new swim for the first time - at other end of the lake to usual haunts! Both fish caught just as it got completely dark - tench on meat at 2200 and the bream on maggot ½ hour later. No bites at all thereafter - though a few l
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

0

5/6 August

Newbury AA Stillwater - Widmead.   1500 - 0800   Warm and overcast. Mild night, temps didn't go below 14ºC   4½* Carp, biggest 8¼lb, 1 Bream 4¼lb, 20+ Roach & Perch - in roughly equal nos.   Another "Breakfast was the highlight of the trip" trip! Spent the first couple of hours fretting over my swim choice which saw me move swims and immediately get a bite which resulted in the bream - thereafter bites at a premium. Paul had had an identical return whe
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

2

3 August

Newbury AA Stillwater - Thatcham   0500 - 1030   Warm, overcast and sultry. 15ºC -> 25ºC. WT 73ºF (too warm methinks!)   3 Carp; (all between 4-5lb), 4 roach, 3 perch, 1 rudd.   A torpid morning's angling. Yet again failing to catch any crucians - think I used up all this season's 'Crucian Luck' on 26 June! For quite a while I struggled to catch anything - even float fished maggot was ignored. Eventaully had a brief flurry of activity from the carp - just as the swim was bathed in ful
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

0

1 August

Newbury AA stillwater - Widmead   0500 - 1000   Warm, overcast and sultry. 16ºC->21ºC   3 Tench; 3lb 10oz, 3lb 7oz, 1lb 11oz. 2 Carp; 9lb 14oz & 8lb 5oz. 7 Rudd.   Dawn raid in the hope of another monster crucian - and whilst I had a big fish roll shortly after baiting the swim it was a case of nothing doing. Rudd were a nice size - upto 9-10oz, though in truth a bit of a pain as they kept giving crucian like bites on my lift float rigged meat! Carp
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

0

26/27 July

Summer Pit - CEMEX Yateley   2100 - 0600   Warm, calm, overcast and muggy. 17ºC at Midnight and still 15º+ when I packed up - lovely evening to be out.   2 Tench; 5lb 5oz, 3lb 11oz. A couple of roach & perch.   A very last minute decision to go - based on A, the weather forecast - lovely balmy evening. B, Jaq reminding me she was having a girls night out. And C, Paul having already planned an evening session here. Tuesday is one of my training nights - I coach athletics (stop snigger
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

0

25 July

NAA Stillwater - Thatcham   0500 - 1000   Bright and sunny - cool start. 9º -> 16ºC   5 Carp - biggest 2; 11lb 0oz & 9lb 7oz - a few 'bits' - roach, perch & a gudgeon.   A dawn raid hoping for a crucian or 2 but alas the carp were too voracious!! Whatever I put on the hook - bread, maggot, meat, pellet the carp nailed within minutes - didn't give the crus a look in. Bumped as many as I landed too! Biggest carp however was caught deliberately -
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

0

20 July

Marsh Farm Fishery, Nr Goldalming (Harris Lake)   0730 - 1900   Cool, calm and overcast with light rain all afternoon from 1300. Max 16ºC   14 Tench; Biggest 3 - 6lb 2oz, 5lb 9oz & 4lb 9oz with the vast majority being around the 3¼lb mark (only 1 under 3lb). 4 Crucians; 2lb 3oz, 2lb 6oz, 2lb 10oz, 2lb 13oz. 1½doz 'bits' - mainly roach with a couple of rudd, perch and even a gudgeon!   A very enjoyable day's angling - our 'annual' visit here postpo
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

2

18 July

River Kennet - Nr Thatcham   1830 - 2330   Cool, overcast, breezy and drizzly (well it is July!). 13ºC. River lowish and quite coloured.   1 Barbel; 6lb 11oz. 1 Chub 2¾lb.   A pleasant evening despite the conditions! Both fish in 1st couple of hours - chub first cast. Enjoyment of session somewhat tempered by the sight of a really big dog otter - 1st time I've ever seen one here - and pretty sure its a different animal to the one I've seen further upstream - had a good long look at it as
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

0

15/16 July

NAA Stillwater - Widmead   1500 - 0700   Overcast and breezy with light drizzle most of the night after a warm sunny afternoon. Min 15ºC - mild despite the breeze!   6 Carp - all commons - biggest 9lb 13oz, smallest 6lb 8oz. 1 Bream 4lb 8oz. 1 Tench 2lb 8oz. 2 Doz+ Roach and Rudd.   It comes to something when the highlight of your fishing trip is breakfast!!! However the pork and bramley apple sausages, fried egg sandwiches and mugs of steaming fresh tea w
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

5

14 July

River Kennet - Thatcham   0700 - 1030   Bright and breezy. A chilly 9ºC rising to 16ºC. River very low - dread to think what it will look like in September if it stays dry...   10 Dace, 6 Brownies, 2 Chublets & a Grayling.   Pleasant mornings trotting despite failing to connect with a barbel or two - didn't even see any on the shallows. Nice to get another grayling from here - decent size too, not far shy of a pound. Most of the dace were of a decent stamp as well.
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

0

11/12 July

Summer Pit, CEMEX Yateley Complex   1930 - 0545   Warm, overcast night temps didn't dip lower than 15ºC - lovely night to be out!   3 Tench; 5lb 12oz, 4lb 13oz, 3lb. 1 Pike 4lb*. 8 perch, 1 roach, 1 rudd.   Slow, slow session. First tench around 2330 then a mini flurry of activity between 0200 - 0400 when I had the other 2 and also lost 2 more which threw the hook in the weed. All 3 on my margin rod - not a touch on the rod fishing further out.  
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

0

6 July

River Kennet, Newbury   1600 - 2300   Overcast and breezy with some drizzle. 20º->15ºC but felt a LOT chillier where I was sitting in the breeze! River at normal summer levels and carrying quite a bit of colour   1 Bream; 2lb 10oz   An evening barbelling session with Paul to this (once) prolific section of river. Over the years I have come to call this swim THE Banker - I can't remember coming here in high summer and NOT catching a barbel. These days th
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

4

5 July

Wylies Lake - Newbury   0430 - 1200   Warm and mainly overcast. 10º->25ºC   8 Perch!   Not fished here for some seasons - after it recieved a rather severe scalping which took out all the margin vegetation. However I had heard of good tench catches this season - and even whispers of some half decent crucians showing up. A recent recce confirmed that it hadn't received another haircut recently - in fact it looked just as I remembered it - so with some anticipation I was setting up in a
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

2

1/2 July

Summer Pit - Cemex Yateley   2030 - 0600   Still, balmy night with high cloud - temps 20ºC->13ºC but felt a lot milder under the trees!   3 Bream; 12lb 2oz - another PB , 8lb 7oz, 4lb 15oz. 2 Tench; 4lb 1oz, 3lb 3oz. 3 Perch & 2 Rudd.   I'm utterly gobsmacked - 2 PBs and 1 = PB in a week! I said last weeks crucian would take some beating - this might just be the fish for me, that does! My first ever double figure bream - previous PB was 9lb7oz - so
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

5

29 June

River Kennet - Padworth.   1700 - 0000   Bright and breezey start with clouds clearing and temps dropping. 20ºC->12ºC when I packed up. River at near normal summer levels (perhaps a tad on the low side) and carrying its usual summer colour...   1 Chub; 6lb 6oz (Equals my PB! ). 2 Barbel; 9lb 7oz & 4lb 4oz.   Well, well, well! For the 2nd year running my first 'static' barbel session of the summer throws up a 6lb+ chub. From the same venue as last
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

0

26 June

NAA Stillwater - Widmead   0445 - 1045   Warm and overcast with sun breaking through after 0900. 15ºC->24ºC   1 Crucian; 3lb 13oz - new PB! 2 Commons; 11lb 3oz & 8lb 5oz. 2 Perch - 1 just on 1lb and a nice Rudd of 10oz.   Yippee got what I came for - had heard of some big 3's showing and even whispers of a 4lber so thrilled to have snaffled one. Sat right back and float fished under my rod tip about 2 foot from the bank - lots and lots of little l
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

9

22 June

River Kennet - Nr Thatcham   0700 - 1000   Cool, breezey and overcast. One sharp shower followed by an absolute downpour just after packing up!! Max 15ºC   3 Barbel; 7lb 6oz, 4lb 3oz, 2lb 9oz. 1 Chub (unweighed but circa 1lb). 3 Dace, 1 Gudgeon & 2 Brownies one of which went 2lb 14oz.   A return to the venue I visited on opening day and as I hoped I had the place to myself! This meant I could fish all ½ doz swims in rotation. Biggest barbel from 2nd s
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

3

20/21 June

NAA stillwater - Widmead   1400 - 0800   Warm and overcast - rain from 1600 - 2100 with drizzle during the night. Min temp 15ºC   9 Carp - biggest 8lb, 9 Roach, 3 Rudd & a perch   Slow, disappointing session - especially as we were after tench!! Couldn't even find any of the bigger carp - had them down to 3lb! Didn't even know there were any that small in the lake! Paul had a couple fewer carp and like me had one decent(ish) common of nearly 9lb - though he did manage a solitary brea
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

0

20 June

River Kennet - Newbury   0430 - 0700   Cool and overcast. 10ºC. River low and carrying a little colour.   1 Barbel - barely 1lb!, 1 Perch circa 12oz, 3doz+ Dace, 3 Roach, a doz Gudgeon and a brownie.   2½hours trotting and home for breakfast - I love June!!! No chub though which was my, err, target species on my all time 'banker' chub swim - maybe the otter has eaten them all!! Barbel 2nd trot through - and yet again a small fish from here - I've called this stretch a barbel nursery for
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

0

17 June

Newbury AA Stillwater - Thatcham   0530 - 1430   Cool & overcast - drizzle from 1100.   3 Carp; 10lb 10oz, 8lb 1oz & 3lber. A doz rudd & roach and 1½doz small perch.   Slowish day alledgedly fishing for crucians - though Paul fared better snaffling a brace of 1¼lb+ fish. 10lb carp 1st cast - lucky to land it on a size 18 to 2¾lb bottom! Fished meat & maggot in rotation. All the roach were of a good stamp circa 8-10oz - pity there weren't a
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

0

16 June (part 2)

River Kennet - Thatcham   1330 - 1600   Overcast, sunny spells, one brief shower (17ºC)   2 Chub - a 2lber and a chublet. 9 Dace, 2 Grayling (!), 3 Brownies - biggest 1½lb.   Note to self - arriving at said venue at lunchtime on 16th June is not the smartest plan to secure 1st choice trotting swim (or 2nd, 3rd, 4th & 5th choice for that matter - yes the place was pretty busy!). So no 1st day barbel on the pin - though a brace of surprise grayling was some compensation - both around 1
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

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