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About this blog

Diary of a (mainly) river angler.

Entries in this blog

Coarse Fishing

31 October (Part 1)

Kennet & Avon Canal - Avington 0630 - 0930 Brightening up after overnight rain. AT 6º - 10ºC. 2 Doz perch. Nothing noteworthy - though they weren't tiddlers - most around 6-8oz with a couple twice that. I had great plans for this week - and they didn't involve prospecting for perch on my club's most westerly venue. The coarse season on the Frome opens tomorrow and I had intended to travel down to Dorset to make the most of the opening day. Alas heavy rain over the past we
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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Coarse Fishing

3 November (Part 1)

River Lambourn - Newbury 0800 - 1200 Bright and breezy with a few light showers. AT 7º - 13ºC. River very full - but crystal clear as always! 16 Grayling with 7 around a lb or better - 2 of which were substantially better at 2lb 2oz & 1lb 14oz 😲(!). 8 Brownies - one real lump of around 3lb the rest all small/parrs. Default venue when the Kennet is in flood and my first 2lb+ grayling from the Lambourn in over 2 decades. (Last time was 27/12/01). Took red corn for a change
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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Coarse Fishing

15 November

Middle Kennet Carrier - Marsh Benham 0800 - 1300 Bright and sunny - clouding over for last hour. AT 7º-11ºC. River VERY full. Main river over the banks and carrier bank high but with little colour. 2 Chub: 2lber and a chublet. 30+ Dace & Roach roughly equal nos - nothing particularly noteworthy some of the dace were quite chunky and one of the roach needed the net. 1 Perch - small. 5 Brownies: all between 2½-3½lb. Sparkly morning in West Berkshire - though I was thankful
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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Coarse Fishing

4 January 2024 (Part 1)

River Lambourn - Newbury 0930 - 1300 Cool and bright to start - clouding over. AT 5ºC. River VERY high (1.78m on the Shaw river gauge) I donned thigh waders and needed them to get to most swims I fished!! 19 Grayling: 9 over lb - best two; 1lb 10oz & 1lb 8oz. 4 Trout - all small/parrs. I usually like to start the New Year with a chub but on a recce yesterday I deemed the Kennet unfishable (I was wrong - see part 2!) so opted for the Lambourn as a safer bet. All my usual h
Coarse Fishing

26 January

River Kennet -Speen Moors 0900 -1200 Bright and sunny and quite breezy. At 6º-9ºC. River gin clear but still in the fields here and breaching the banks at multiple points -  highest I've seen it this winter but it has still dropped considerably looking at the state of the fields surrounding. Found some dead, stranded fish in the field between the two weirs ☹️. They were quite decomposed, but looked like trout parr.  1 Roach (small). 1 Brownie - 4lb 14oz (yes I actually weighed a t
Coarse Fishing

2 February

Middle Kennet (& Carrier) - Marsh Benham 0900 - 1500 Mild, overcast and quite breezy. AT 11ºC. River continues to fall - now at normal winter levels - clear and pacey and still breaching the banks in places - but passable with wellies. 5 Chub: 4lb 12oz, 3lb 14oz, 3lb 11oz, 3lb 9oz, 3lb 3oz. 2 Roach - small. 5 Brownies 1½-2½lb. 1 Sea Trout (!) c 2½lb. A full day on my syndicate stretch - a morning on the main river - pleased that I can at last get access to some of the mai
Coarse Fishing

6 February

River Frome - Wool 0800 - 1400 Mild, overcast and very windy! AT 11º-13ºC. River still very pacey with a little colour but well within its banks at last. 1.16m on the E Stoke gauge still higher than I would have liked but lowest since early autumn! 11 Grayling: 7 over 1lb - best: 1lb 10oz, 1lb 8oz, 1lb 7oz. 1 Trout - small. 6 Salmon parr. 2 trip of the season to Dorset - and looking at the forecast for the next week probably my last - heavy rain will stuff the river up for se
Coarse Fishing

9 February (Part 1)

River Kennet - Newbury (Whitehouse stretch) 0900 - 1100 Mild, breezy and drizzly. AT 11ºC. River very pacey and very coloured up (again!) - after 42mm of rain in the past 48hrs. 1 Chub: 6lb 2oz - SB. 1 Roach - hand-sized. En route to the Lambourn I thought I'd drop in on my 5lber slack for an hour (herein after called my 6lber slack!) With the Kennet the colour of builder's tea I really wasn't at all hopeful but the roach first cast gave me a glimmer of confidence - rewarded
Coarse Fishing

7 November (Part 1)

River Lambourn - Newbury 0700 - 1000 Cool and misty. River quite low especially given how wet October was. 8 Grayling; All between 8-10oz with a couple a tad bigger. 6 Brownies - a couple of netters - the rest were parrs. Scratchy morning's trotting - fish thin on the ground - most of my usual banker swims turned up nothing - think they were just too spooky in the clear shallow water.
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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Coarse Fishing

12 March

Kennet & Avon Canal - Woolhampton 1500 - 1800 Sunny with scattered showers. Windy/blowing a hoolie, especially during the squalls. 8ºC 9 Perch: 2lb 14oz & 8 small uns - one of which was close to a pound the rest half that or less. 2 Pike: 3lb 13oz & 3lb 4oz. 1 Chub circa 8oz. Pike are always a piscatorial hazard when fishing lobs but slightly miffed to get one from each of my 2 'banker' perch swims. It looked like my last trip here of the season would end in disap
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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Coarse Fishing

14 March (Part 1)

River Kennet (& Carrier) - Marsh Benham 0830 - 1345 Milky sunshine to start - clouding over - very breezy. AT 5º ->10ºC. River in good winter nick - full with a slight tinge of colour. 3 Chub: All over 2lb - best 3lb 6oz. 1 Pike: 4lb 11oz (On sweetcorn - took it on the retrieve!). A doz Roach; various sizes - one worthy of the scales went 14oz. 2 Dace - small. 1 Rainbow - 2½lb & 2 Brownies: 1½ - 2lb. Last day trip to the venue I started my river season back in June
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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Coarse Fishing

18 September

River Kennet - Aldershot Water/Brimpton 0900 - 1400 Foggy start clearing to a bright, warm, sunny day. AT 12º -> 21ºC. River very low and a little coloured up - usual for early autumn especially after a dry spell. 2 Chub; both around ¾lb. 15 Dace; all quite chunky most around the 6oz mark with a couple of bigger ones. 13 Roach; all handsized or bigger. 1 Bleak. 2 Brownies - circa ½lb each. A session topped and tailed in the weirpool at the top of the Aldershot - which prod
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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Coarse Fishing

20 November (Part 2)

River Kennet - Speen Moors 0900 - 1245 Mild and overcast - with the earlier drizzle thankfully stopped. AT 11ºC. River low for late Nov - but then we've hardly had a drop of rain for the last 3 weeks! 2 Chub: 2lb 15oz, 1lb 8oz. 1 Perch 1lb 7oz. 5 Roach. 1 Dace. 1 Brownie 1½lb- sigh! I hate trout! Having tip-toe'd into the top of a favoured chub swim and trickled maggot in for 10 minutes I managed to pull off the perfect cast - and had the float running down just the line I wa
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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Coarse Fishing

18 December (Part 1)

River Kennet - Thatcham 0900 - 1130. Cool & murky. 7ºC. River low and clear - very low for December. 1 Chub: 3lb 15oz. 7 Roach - all handsized with a couple of netters of around 10oz. 1 Dace - 11oz (first cast!). 2 Brownies - small. With river levels so low both of today's venues were a bit of a gamble. And one which very nearly didn't pay off! I'd fished all my usual hotspots with nothing remotely chubby in residence - though the big dace was a nice bonus. I was trotting
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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Coarse Fishing

6 November

River Kennet (and Carrier),  Marsh Benham 1015 - 1500 Mild and overcast morning, with a torrential downpour at lunchtime giving way to bright sunshine - 4 (well 3) seasons in one day! AT 11º - 13ºC. River still  very low. West Berks has had  116.6mm (over 4½inches in old money!) of rain in the past 2½ weeks - since 20 October - the prayers for a wet autumn are being answered - yet very little is making its way into the water course. Hopefully though the aquifers are being topped up and
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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Coarse Fishing

29 December

Kennet carrier (& main river) - Marsh Benham 0815 - 1330 Bright and breezy with a few light (& one heavy) showers. AT 5º-7ºC. River at normal levels - carrier still a little on the low side for winter. 1 Chub: 2lber. 20 Roach & Dace (slightly more roach - nothing note-worthy). 3 Brownies and a Rainbow - all 2½ - 3½lb - with the Rainbow at the top end of that and possibly pushing 4lb... A morning spent playing (and largely failing!!) at avoid the trout. Got off to
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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Coarse Fishing

2 January 2023 (Part 1)

River Lambourn - Newbury 0900 - 1230 Cool, bright and sunny. AT 6ºC. River at normal winter levels - and as clear as gin (of course) despite heavy rain all weekend. 12 Grayling: 4 over 1lb - best 1lb 10oz. 5 Brownies - a lber and 4 parrs. An insurance session as I reckoned 32mm of rain over the weekend would have stuffed up the Kennet too much (I was wrong see part 2!) so opted for a couple of hours on the Lambourn as a cure for cabin fever! Bit of a scratchy morning - not he
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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Coarse Fishing

8th Paul Goulbourn Memorial Trophy

Harris Lake - Marsh Farm, Milford 0730 - 2315 Hot, sunny and sultry. AT around 25ºC all day and still 18ºC when I drove off at a little before midnight. 11 Tench: various sizes from quite small bars of soap up to 5lb - biggest 5lb 3oz. 2 Crucians 2lb 4oz & 1lb 2oz. 30 Rudd - most handsized - with a few a bit bigger, the one I deemed worthy of the scales went 14oz. A dozen roach - all small. Annual gathering of the Internet Angling Club - to remember our departed friend Pa
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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Coarse Fishing

2 October

Warwicks Water - Thatcham 0700 - 1300 Warm, calm and overcast (though a thunderstorm rolled in just after I packed up 🙂) AT 16º-18ºC 2 Tench: 5lb 14oz, 2lb 2oz. Doz+ Perch: all fairly small. Reports of big stripeys had me starting my autumn perch campaign on this rarely fished and somewhat neglected pond. It was always going to be a case of trying to avoid the small perch and hope a biggie turned up. However I thought I'd hit the jackpot first cast - my float hadn't even cock
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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Coarse Fishing

31 October (Part 2)

Kennet Carrier - Marsh Benham 1000 - 1400 Bright and sunny with heavy showers to finish! AT 10ºC - 15ºC. River at normal levels with a hint of colour. 7 Chub: 3lb 3oz, one of 12oz+ and 5 chublets. 1 doz Roach: all small. 4 Dace: one good-un of at least 8oz. 1 Perch - small. 'Popped' into my syndicate stretch on the way home from Avington. And as I had my lobs with me I started out with them to try and snaffle a decent perch from here - though they produced not a single bite.
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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Coarse Fishing

24 November

River Lambourn - Shaw 1215- 1500 Sunny spells - quite breezy and getting chilly. AT 8º-5ºC. River very full but crystal clear as always. 11 Grayling: 5 over a lb. Best two @ 1lb 10oz & 1lb 9oz. 8 Brownies; one 'pounder' the rest all quite small. Looks like being a great year for Lambourn ladies - another couple of fish well above expectations for this venue - and both first cast fish from a couple of usual hot-spots. River very pacey which meant some of my other favoured
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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Coarse Fishing

13 February

Kennet & Avon Canal - Enborne 0930 - 1400 Overcast with constant drizzly rain, with the wind picking up considerably for last hour. AT 7º-9ºC. 11 Perch: 5 over a lb - best two 2lb 11oz & 1lb 14oz. Biggest perch first cast! And they seemed to get progressively smaller as the morning wore on! Had intended to stay until dusk but it was becoming rather unpleasant in the wind and with no bites for an hour and with a biggie already under my belt, the "I'll be glad when I've
Coarse Fishing

21 July

River Kennet - Padworth   1800 -2300   Warm and overcast with light rain for last 2 hours.   30 Dace & 2 Perch.   Another trotting/static combo. Nice to get a bite a chuck on the trotting gear - and both perch were in the 8-10oz bracket. Not so much as a crayfish rattle on the ledgering rods...
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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Coarse Fishing

5 September

River Kennet - Marsh Benham 0700 - 1200 Cool and sunny - felt quite autumnal first thing. 9-15ºC 4 Chub; a brace of 2lbers and a couple of chublets. 30+ Roach & a doz+ Dace - nothing particularly big. 5 Bleak. 3 Rainbows 2½-4½lb. 1 Brownie; 3lb+ A morning hunting chub but finding mainly rainbows ? - I also lost 3 - one of which was nailed by a huge pike as I brought it in!
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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Coarse Fishing

19 September (Part 1)

River Kennet - Colthrop 0700 - 1015 Bright and sunny. River at normal early autumn levels (i.e. quite low). 2 Chub - both quite small. 5 Roach - handsized or better. 4 Dace. 12 Gudgeon and a bleak. Bit of a recce trip as I haven't fished here for a while - ran a float through half a dozen swims on the backstream, giving each half an hour or so. 
Chris Plumb

Chris Plumb in Coarse Fishing

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