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About this blog

Diary of a (mainly) river angler.

Entries in this blog

3 November

River Lambourn - Newbury   0700 - 0930   Bright and sunny - milder than recently (no frost). River very low.   21 Grayling; Nearly all fish in the 10-14oz bracket - with quite a few just over 1lb too. Biggest 1lb 5oz. 2 Brownies.   Catcha couple and move on downstream tactics - though in the low water it was often sight fishing - watching the fish take the bait - and trying to get the biggest in each shoal!
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

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11 November

Northcroft Stream   0730 - 0915   River Lambourn - Shaw   0930 - 1145   Bright and sunny after early morning rain (just stopping as I started to fish) Rivers (especially the Lambourn) surprisingly unaffected by recent rains (unlike the Dorset Frome which was Plan A for today!   Northcroft: 2 Chub, 3lb 8oz & 2lb 11oz. 4 Dace and 3 Roach. Shaw: 11 Grayling to 1lb 3oz & 2 small brownies.   Both chub from weir pool at Northcroft - pretty much my only bites from there. Shaw was
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

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17 November

River Frome - Wool   0730 - 1330   Overcast with a cool easterly breeze - brightening up as I packed up. River low with (dropped over 40cm since last weekend) 67cm on the East Stoke River Gauge.   7 Grayling; 3 over 1lb went 2lb 5oz, 2lb 1oz, 1lb 8oz. 1 Bream 7lb 14oz (!), 1 Roach 8oz, 6 Brownies - all quite small.   I ummed and ahhhed about renewing my DDAS card this winter - the last 2 seasons have been very scratchy and its a long way to travel to catch
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

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2 December

K&A Canal Thatcham & River Kennet - Arrowhead   0730 - 1315   Mild, breezy with light drizzly showers.   8 dace - all a 'nice' size (6-8oz class), 1 chublet & a gudgeon.   Another fruitless perch hunt, not a bite (at least from something that didn't have claws!) on the canal so finished off with an hour on the river.
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

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9 December

River Kennet - Brimpton   1045 - 1415   Bright and sunny after a brief but torrential shower. River lower than I expected after a wet week and carrying a tinge of colour.   6 Chub: 6lb 4oz, 5lb 6oz, 4lb 7oz, 3X 1-2lbers. 1 brownie circa 1lb.   I've fished Brimpton regularly since I joined NAA in 1982 and whilst I catch 5lb+ chub most seasons I've never had a 6 until today! Thing is I didn't even plan to fish here today but I turned up at Hambridge to find
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

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16 December

River Kennet - Newbury   1015 - 1315   Cool, cloudy and calm. River up a couple of inches after yesterday's rain but not carrying much colour.   8 Chub; 4lb 2oz, 4lb 0oz, 3lb 11oz, 3lb 0oz, 2lb 10oz & 3 X 1-2lbers. 1 Grayling 1lb 1oz, 1 Dace, 1 Roach & 5 Brownies - to 2¼lb.   Another super winter's chubbing - first 3 trot throughs all produced fish (after spending 10 mins feeding) and thereafter the fish came in 'bursts' 20-30 mins without a bite followed by another 2 or 3 fish i
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

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26 December

River Kennet - Thatcham   0945 - 1145   Cool and bright. River up a touch with some colour.   1 Chub; 3lb 3oz, 1 Grayling; 1lb 9oz. 2 Dace, 1 Perch   Quick session while Mrs P hit the sales. Super grayling for this part of the river - my biggest from here.
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

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27 December

River Kennet (and carrier) Marsh Benham   0930 - 1430   Cool and misty morning with bright sunshine after 1200. River lower than I expected and quite clear.   8 Chub; Biggest 3lb most of the rest 1¾ - 2¾lb. 1 Bream 2lb 15oz, 3 Doz Roach - all quite chunky but nothing over ½lb. 2 Dace, 1 Rainbow 2½lb and a Brownie of 3lb +   Lovely winter's day in West Berkshire. Chub were very obliging even if my biggest of the day was caught first cast. Bream fought harder than any bream I've ever hooke
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

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31 December

Kennet & Avon Canal - Woolhampton   1300 - 1600   Mild, cloudy and benign - perfect perching weather. AT 10ºC   9 Perch; 2lb 15oz, 1lb 13oz - the others all around 8-10oz. 1 Chub 1¼lb and a Rudd(!)   The CRT have made it very difficult to locate big stripeys on the canal - by removing pretty much every bit of over hanging vegetation from miles of bank - however conditions were ideal for winter perch so a roving approach - travelling light and giving sw
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

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12 January

River Kennet (and carrier) Marsh Benham   0930 - 1530   Overcast, mild and quite breezy. River down on a fortnight ago (well we have had zero rainfall in that time).   3 Chub; 4lb 1oz, 3lb 3oz & 2lb 11oz. 1 Pike 2lb 10oz, 4 doz Roach & Dace (roughly 2 -1 ratio). Biggest roach 12oz with a lot more circa 8oz. 2 Brownies 4lb 14oz & a pounder, 2 Rainbows - both 3lbers (possibly same one!)   Chilled out birthday trip! Carrier was very low so fish w
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

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20 January

River Kennet - Brimpton   1015 - 1515   Cold, bright and sunny. River low - very low for mid Jan   2 Chub; 3lb 1oz & 1½lb. 1 Brownie 2½lb   A bright sparkly day though not ideal conditions - perseverance paid off - didn't get a bite until 1430 then 3 fish in half an hour from swims that appeared devoid of fish a couple of hours earlier (sun was off the water!)
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

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26 January (part 1)

River Lambourn - Newbury   0830 - 1045   Mild and overcast. River low.   19 Grayling. Over half a couple of ounces either side of 1lb with the biggest, a lovely jet black fish of 1lb 10oz. 2 brownies - both small.   Usual catch a couple and move on trotting tactics.....
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

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26 January (Part 2)

K&A Canal - Woolhampton   1400 - 1615   Mild, overcast and breezy with drizzly showers turning to rain. AT 10ºC. WT 9.1ºC   3 Perch; 1lb 9oz, 1lb 4oz, 13oz. 1 Pike 2lb 4oz. 2 Chub(lets)   Mild snap had me heading for the canal in pursuit of stripeys. Didn't get a bite until 1530 then a flurry of fish around 4 o'clock - usual pattern for winter perching on the canal!
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

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3 February

River Kennet - Newbury   1100 - 1330   Cold, bright and sunny with snow on the ground AT -2ºC -> 3ºC. River up a couple of inches but running gin clear.   2 Chub: 2lb 9oz, 2lb 2oz. 3 Grayling - all 8-10oz. 3 Brownies to crica 1lb.   Lovely crisp winter's day (though I got stuck in snow in the car park and some kind souls dug me out and gave me a push!) Chub and grayling are reliable quarry when the thermometer is close to zero and I wasn't disappointed despite the very bright conditio
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

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9 February

Lower Itchen Fishery   0830 - 1700   Bright and breezy (very at times), River well up and coloured from yesterday's heavy rain - though conditions gradually improved throughout the day.   9 Grayling; best 1lb 8oz. 2 Brownies - 2½lber and a parr.   4th IAC Paul Goulbourn memorial grayling day - so it was nice to catch up with some old friends. Fishing was a challenge for all though as the river fined down I think most caught a few. Gary, who I fished with all day, was the star of the show
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

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17 February - Part 1

River Kennet (& carrier) Marsh Benham   0930 - 1400   Mild and bright, clouding over by the time I left. River still not very high for mid Feb.   3 Chub; all 2lbers. A dozen roach, biggest 1lb exactly with nothing else remotely close to that!. Half dozen dace, 3 Brownies between 2-3lb & 4lb+ Rainbow.   Most fish from the weirpool - though started with a 2½lb chub from 'Chub Corner' first cast - turned out to be the biggest of the day!
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

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17 February - Part 2

K&A Canal, Woolhampton   1500 - 1715.   Mild and mainly cloudy.   3 Perch: 2lb 4oz, 2lb 1oz, 1lb 7oz.   Had to make the most of this mild spell with a dusk session for stripeys. Thankfully they'd read the script and whilst bites were at a premium every one resulted in a nice perch.
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

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23 February

K&A Canal - Woolhampton   1500 - 1730   Bright and sunny. Mild - 16ºC   4 Perch; 3 over 1lb - biggest 1lb 14oz   Another successful dusk session for stripeys - though the biggest one was caught well before the sun had sank below the trees....
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

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24 February

River Frome - Wool   0800 - 1530   Bright and sunny - quite warm (16ºC) for Feb despite a frosty start. River quite full (1.06m at E stoke) and a little coloured.   7 Grayling - 4 over 1lb best 2lb 1oz & 1lb 11oz. 2 Trout (both sub 1lb) and a Salmon Parr.   Sparkly day in Dorset with bites at a premium - especially in the morning - when I broke for lunch I had just 3 modest sized grayling to my name - but returning to the 2 swims that produced them resulted in better sport in the aft
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

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2 March - pt1

River Kennet - Brimpton   0745 - 1200   Quite mild, dry and cloudy with sunny spells - river up to near normal winter levels with a tinge of colour.   1 Chub; 2lb 13oz. 2 Grayling, 4 Brownies to 2½lb   Was hoping to re-acquaint my self with some of the big chub I had from here at the start of winter (see; http://www.anglersnet.co.uk/forums/index.php?/blog/82/entry-1572-9-december/ ) but, alas the trout were rather to eager, trashing swim after swim. Eventually had a chub from the 5th swi
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

0

2 March pt2

Kennet & Avon Canal - Woolhampton   1330 - 1700   Still mild with milky sunshine - clouding over and quite breezy.   9 Perch; 5 over 1lb - 2lb 1oz, 2lb 0oz, 1lb 13oz, 1lb 12oz, 1lb 3oz with a couple more just shy of 1lb. 1 Chub 3lb 1oz, 1 Roach; 14oz. 3 Pike - all between 2-3lb   Can't get enough of a good thing at this water atm! Pike were a bit of a pain forcing me eventually to move swims - which resulted in the chub and the roach - both caught on whole lobs.
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

0

9 March

River Kennet (& carrier) Marsh Benham   0900 - 1530   Bright and breezy (very breezy at times in the morning!) Mild-ish but didn't feel that way in the wind. River up an inch or two on last visit here (3 weeks ago).   7 Chub; Best 5lb 2oz - all the rest between 2½ - 3¾lb. 3 Bream: between 2¾ - 4lb. 15 Roach, 5 Dace & 5 Trout (3 browns & 2 rainbows all between 2½-3½lbs).   Pleasant days trotting despite the wind - spent most of my time on the main river and weirpool which prod
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

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14 March

Middle Kennet Estate Water - Kintbury   0700 - 1815   Mild,damp start, VERY windy with some further lumpy showers (hail), brighter by the afternoon. River with a bit of water in it at last!   21 Chub; Biggest 3 - 5lb 6oz, 5lb 3oz & 4lb 9oz - with nearly all the rest in the 2½ - 3½lb class, a couple of pounders and one just under turned up in my dace swims at last knockings. 12 Dace - best 10oz, 6 Roach - all 'hand-sized', 1 Perch <1lb & around a dozen+ brownies.   A chub fest
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

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Season's Bests 2018-19

A satisfactory season despite (yet again) not a barbel on the bank.   Best Carp: 23lb 10oz. 21 June Ledgered Pellet - method feeder Jubilee Lake - Thatcham. Biggest carp for 10 years and my biggest ever Common.   Best Bream; 7lb 14oz. 17 Nov, Trotted corn, River Frome - Wool. Something of a surprise capture as I was after Grayling - my biggest ever river Bream.   Best Chub; 6lb 4oz. 9 Dec, Trotted maggot, River Kennet - Brimpton. First 6lb+ chub for 7 s
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

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16 June 2019

River Kennet - Marsh Benham   0500 - 1400   Bright and breezy with heavy showers. River with good flow and a tinge of usual summer colour.   4 Chub to 3lb, 1 Bream; 4lb 3oz, 5 Dace, 4 Roach & a Perch.   And so another season begins - a nice quiet secluded start on my syndicate stretch. All fish on trotted maggot despite ledgering for several hours (during the rain) with meat - which didn't produce a jot of interest - not even from the cray fish!  
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb

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