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Saturday 12th January, K&A Canal, Thatcham That’s the thing about my AN blog, it’s a record of my angling trips so if I shout about the good days I suppose I’ve got to shout about the bad ones too. That’s what I’m doing now. This early doors trip was always going to be touch and go, I’d guessed that Thursday would be the last day for mild conditions and hoped that the water would still be warm enough through Friday to this morning. To be honest it was just about, at 6 degrees I was glad I’d made the effort and the car temperature gauge showed 5 degrees on the way to the venue so although not mild it was still fishable and shouldn’t be too cold. The difference though was the wind chill, the brisk easterly blowing straight up the canal was biting and it wasn’t long before my fingers were numb, that was before I’d even started fishing. When I did start the float was being blown away from the feature I was targeting and what with the rippled surface everything seemed to be conspiring against me…payback for last week no doubt. I swapped banks which at least helped to get the float near the feature but by that time the images of bacon butties and fresh filtered coffee back in my warm kitchen had got the upper hand, I packed up an hour after first light. Not a great session but it’s all information logged for future reference. Good perch were showing and being caught in that swim last night so I do think it may be a holding spot, I was just a day later than I needed to be.

Middle Kennet Estate - Kintbury 0830 - 1800 Bright and sunny morning - clouding over after lunch (thankfully!). AT around 10ºC all day after a frosty start. River slightly on the low side. 22 Chub: Only 3 under 2lb and 8 over 4lb. Best 3 went 5lb 6oz, 5lb 2oz & 4lb 15oz. 7 Roach; 1lb 5oz, 12oz and 5 tiddlers. 7 Dace: 1lb , 12 oz 2@ 10oz and the other 3 weren't much smaller! 1 doz+ Brownies 2½lb - 4lb. 2 Rainbows both around 2½lb. My now annual end of season 'chubfest', though in truth this was very much a game of 2 halfs!. The bright morning sunshine and low river did not make for good sport and by the time I'd abandoned my usual banker stretch and headed upstream after an early lunch I'd caught 'just' 2 chub and 6 brownies. Thankfully conditions were much more conducive in the afternoon - heavy cloud cover and a stiffish breeze to put a ripple on the water and with judicous baiting and regular resting I caught chub pretty continously from the same long trot all afternoon. The rest periods were spent fishing a carrier that I've long suspected could hold big dace - though in previous visits over the past decade or so has failed to produce any (though I did once get a brace of 2lb perch from it!). Today they were in residence - all sandpapery males in breeding condition (would love to have found a pigeon chested female - they can be even heavier!) and a couple of lovely roach as swim mates. My first 1lb dace for 17 years (which was also from this venue - though further downstream).

River Kennet - Aldermaston 1345 - 1645 Warm with 'milky' sunshine. 19ºC. River low and sluggish. 2 Grayling; 1lb 6oz & 1lb 2oz (!!). 11 Roach; Biggest 12oz (weighed) nothing else even half that. 1 Gudgeon. Well I wasn't expecting that! First trip here in well over a decade and even when I did fish it more regularly it was usually hunched over a couple of quiver tips waiting for a barbel - I rarely got the trotting gear out on this venue. So a bit of a recce and for the first hour or so it looked like a fruitless one. I'd fished half a dozen or so swims without so much as a minnow bothering my maggots and had wandered a long way downstream from where I'd dumped my gear when I suddenly found some fish - 12oz roach was first up followed by the bigger lady. Pic below is of the smaller one - after I'd retrieved my gear to my new swim. (I didn't move again for the rest of the afternoon). Can't remember when I last caught a grayling so far down the Kennet! Pic of the gonk for Martin's benefit!

Three days in Swansea fishing as part of a week's family holiday on the Gower. It has to be said that this was salt water fishing (well, maybe a bit brackish), and my experience of such contests is that the fish normally come away with a 'clean sheet'! Though on this occasion I had built up my courage by watching a youtube video by some local youngsters who made it all look rather easy, catching small fish of a wide range of species. So I was hoping to get plenty of bites and catch even if the fish were very small Day 1 I ledgered ragworm, and caught a decent fish! A flounder of about 10 oz. I was well pleased. In addition I had three bites which I failed to connect with. Maybe the fish were too small for my ragworm? Day 2 I made the rash decision to switch to bread in the hope of a mullet. Slow to say the least, but towards the end of the day I saw lots of bubbles coming from a patch of water close to the edge. Then followed very tricky bites, with the float going down about an inch and staying still, just under the surface. BUT I did actually hook a small mullet which duly careered all round the swim before coming off the hook. Then a kindly local angler, who normally fishes for mullet, offered to show me the where and the how the next morning. Wow! Day 3 Of course I was full of expectation. Mullet are often found under boats where they feed off the weed growing on the hull. He had found one particular boat hosted a good shoal of fair sized mullet, but it was too far to float fish. Accurate casting of a ledger was needed. He predicted we would very soon have little knocks from mullet, and he was right. Normally, though, they didn't produce hittable bites, rather the reverse. As if to mock the angler they would slowly remove the bread from the hook until the metal was showing, and then they would refuse to have any more to do with it! But just occasionally they would get fed up and pull the tip round with a solid take! I started to get the hang of the casting, and things looked good, but gradually it became clear the mullet were not in a bold mood, and neither of us caught. But, unlike yesterday, the smaller mullet started to show lots of interest in the bread crusts we were chucking in, and at one stage it was quite dramatic with silver flashes everywhere. And one two of them were by no means small. After my friend had gone, and I'd had a nice lunch at the nearby sailing club, I returned with a float rod. Alas, the mullet had lost some of their enthusiasm. It may have been that the sun had moved so that the relevant area was now in shadow. They seemed to positively LIKE the bright light. In short, I didn't catch. So not much on the bank after 3 days, but an interesting and enjoyable time, of course with many questions. One thing I have wondered about is the use of groundbait. I used bread crumb, both in the feeder and balled in round the float, but it didn't seem to interest the mullet - whereas at times chucking in bits of bread (which sunk) or crust (which of course didn't) did. I've been wondering whether liquidised bread might have been more effective? Comments or advice from those who know more about sea fishing than I do would be welcome!

2.30 - 5.15pm I started off 'up in the water' with hemp and tares and casters hoping for some of the quality roach and rudd I've had in the last couple of months here. I had 6 roach in the first hour, but none were over about 5 ounces, so I switched to fishing on the deck practising the lift method. One nice bream about 3lbs, and 3 crucians all about 8 oz. Enjoyable fishing.

4-5pm. I had two false starts in other swims so only left myself an hour in bright sunlight. Pleasantly surprised, though. About 10 roach up to half a pound up in the water on hemp and tares. To me it's a slight puzzle. My general impression is that the lock cuts are pretty well devoid of fish in the summer. Why is Sandford an exception? Maybe I'm wrong and there are more fish in the others than I suppose. I must give a couple of the ones nearer my home another try. To be fair, the only one I've tried hemp and tares in is Sandford.

River Kennet - Padworth 1800 - 2200 Warm and overcast. River quite low and quite coloured up (usual late summer conditions!) 3 Chub; all ¾-1lb. 11 Roach - 4 in the 8-10oz class - all the others less that half this. 1 Dace; 6oz (looked bigger!) 3 Gudgeon. Moderately successful trotting sesh (and always nice to see a few gobio gobios turn up) to precede the expected blank on the lead once it got dark. Only 'rattles' were as a result of the signals!

Alders Lake - Thatcham 1800 - 0000 Warm, overcast and breezy. AT a balmy 18ºC at midnight! 2 Tench; 3lb 5oz & 2lb 7oz. 1 Crucian - handsized. Surprisingly slow evening with bites at a premium, though nice to get another of the lake's small crucians. Tench were 3 hours apart (8&11pm) with the crucian putting in an appearance just after 10pm. Alternated between prawn sections and maggot - though all fish falling to maggot. Had intended to fish longer but driving drizzle (and a stationary float!) persuaded me otherwise!

River Kennet - Nr Thatcham 1830 - 2345 Cool,(cold!) clear evening under a full moon. AT down to 6ºC when I packed up (it got down to 2ºC in our greenhouse overnight). River up a couple of inches and looking in better nick than it has for a couple of months. 1 Barbel; 11lb 7oz. 1 Perch; 1lb 12oz. 11 Dace; (5 of which were over 8oz). 7 Roach; (all small save for one of 11oz). 1 Gudgeon. Hooray! After nearly 40 'rod hours' ledgering (and countless more trying to get one on the float) I finally get off the mark on the barbel front - and with a real lump too! As usual I started off on the float and was soon into some really nice dace - followed up with a nice bonus perch. By eight o'clock I was hunched over my isotopes waiting for something to happen. I planned to fish a bit longer than normal - and would in all probability have normally packed up when at a quarter to midnight my downstream rod gave that familiar 3 foot twitch and I was into my first barbel of the summer. Right from the off it was clearly a big fish - a real struggle to get it off the bottom - but once I did it was quickly mine! And with that it was off to bed - much earlier than I originally intended! Not the most sylph-like barbel I've ever caught!

River Lambourn - Shaw 0815 - 1145 Bright, cool and sunny. Temp up to 5ºC. River quite low as you'd expect this time of year. 31 grayling; All a decent size, nothing below a band 3 (20cm) and most 25cm+. Biggest 1lb 5oz with lots of fish an ounce or so either side of the 1lb mark. 1 trout parr. First trip to the Lambourn this winter and it didn't disappoint. Most fish (2/3rds) from the church stretch where I was also bitten off by a rather large pike!

River Kennet - Nr Newbury 0900 - 1600 Cold, overcast with snow laying to a depth of around 3-4inches. Temps hovering around 0ºC all day with frequent sporadic light snow flurries. No wind so wrapped up warm I was quite toasty all day - was actually rather a nice day to be out. River at near normal winter levels and quite clear. WT 42ºC 17 Chub(!); all over a pound with only 4 under 2¼lb, Biggest 4lb 2oz. Most fish in the 2½-2¾lb bracket. 10 Perch; Biggest 4, 2lb 8oz, 2lb 4oz, 2lb 2oz, 1lb 13oz. 16 Dace. 1 Roach, 2 Gudgeon. 4 Brownies including fish of 5lb 1oz and 4lb 5oz. 3 Rainbows to 2½lb. A session that defied logic or at least conventional wisdom as to what constitutes 'good angling conditions'. With air temperatures struggling to get above zero and water temperatures continuing to fall - we expected to struggle - how wrong can you be. I suppose we did have an overcast day and the road salt has yet to get into the rivers - but we considered these mere straws to be clutched! The date had been in Paul and my diaries for some time - we usually try and get a 'special' trip in sometime around my Birthday (which was last weekend). However it was touch and go whether, A we could find a venue that would let us on (or in the case of the Frome was within its banks) and, B we could actually get there. In the end we made the decison at 0700 on the day - and as a concession to the weather opted to arrive and leave in day light. (We usually arrive when it's still too dark to see a float - and leave under the same light conditions!!!!) Any fears that we had evaporated instantly. Paul probably spent most of the morning rueing his decision to turn down my offer to toss a coin for choice of first swim. We both had in mind where we wanted to start - but Paul said 'you can start there'. (well it is MY birthday!) And what a present the river delivered. In the first 1½hours of fishing I had 14 chub to 3¼lb plus the two biggest trout. I don't usually weigh the trout but these were 2 impressive fish. At times the fishing took on Mr Castwell proportions - with the float dipping at the same point in the swim every trot - and yet another 2½lb chub was brought to the net (as opposed to a similar sized trout in Skues' fable). A schooly 2½lber... By the time Paul joined me for mid-morning coffee, bites were begining to dry up - I was almost thankful!! We agreed that we'd rest the swim and that Paul would have first dibs to fill his boots in the afternoon - something he did with aplomb - snaffling another 8 fish including one of 5lb 3oz. I joined him right at the end of the day and was allowed to run a float through a few times. Paul had just announced that we hadn't caught a 4 lber today (a less than subtle ruse to draw attention to the fact he'd caught a 5 methinks!) when bang on cue I get one of just that size. Between the morning and late afternoon chubfests - Both Paul and I had some great predator action. Paul had spent most of the morning catching dace - something I joined in on after my chubby start but after lunch we both decided on seeing if we could get some predators. Paul had his pike gear with him and had seen a fish in the shallows - plus I'd lost a dace to a pike. My target was a perch or two - though that was more in hope than expectation. Sure enough my perch campaign got off to a slow start - chub in cold conditions is a bit of a staple but perch - I must be mad. These thoughts were going through my head after 15minutes of looking at a stationary float when all of a sudden it bobbed twice and slowly went under. A strike met with the briefest restistance and no lob - crayfish? a perch?. The answer wasn't long in coming as my next bait was snaffled even before the float cocked and a nice perch shot out from the slack into the main current - a nice fish of 2½lbs... I'd added 3 smaller ones to this when I had a call from Paul. He'd caught a big pike and could I come and take its portrait with its captor. It was a VERY nice pike short and very fat as trout fishery pike often are and at 17lbs exactly a new PB for Paul.. Paul then caught a couple of jacks and after the hiatus I returned to my Perch swim to continue where I'd left off with a couple more 2lb+ fish and half a dozen smaller ones upto 1lb. 4 O'clock and time to pack up as we wanted to be off the country roads while it was still light. Normally I'd be a bit regretfull at leaving a venue such as this while there was still fishable light - Paul too - but today we were well and truely sated!!!! Paul's 5lber - should be easy to identify again in the future... Winter Wonderland

My PB List. Haven’t done one of these for a while and it seems an appropriate way to ‘celebrate’ my 400th blog post. And I’ve even dug out and scanned a few old photos (rather crappy ones I have to admit!) which are appearing on the WWW for the 1st time. Best Carp – 27lb 6oz. 15 August 2008. Blue Pool – Burghfield. Method feeder – hair-rigged hemp bogey. I usually spend all summer trying to avoid carp as I pursue tench and crucians but this was caught on an IAC fish-in – a 24hr booking around half a dozen of us had on this CEMEX water. I was getting plagued by carp knocking the feeder but not taking the hook offering (pellet or boilies) so I figured I’d give them something EXACTLY the same as was in the feed and made up a ball of hemp with Kryston bogey and hair-rigged that instead. Above was the result! Blog Entry: http://www.anglersnet.co.uk/forums/index.php?/blog/82/entry-263-1415-august/ Best Pike – 18lb 10oz. 10 February 2001. River Lambourn – Newbury. Free-lined Lamprey section. An opportunistic capture – and one of the few pike I’ve ever ‘stalked’. I saw the fish laid up in a small weir-pool and was able to lower a bait within a couple of feet of its nose. As soon as the bait hit the bottom I could see the pike’s gills ’flare’ but it still took nearly 20mins to edge up to the offering before engulfing it – exciting stuff! Best Barbel – 12lb 4oz. 27 July 2004. River Kennet, Arrowhead – Thatcham. Ledgered Halibut pellet. A bit of ‘prospecting’ which paid off at the time – but despite repeat visits a swim that never produced another fish despite also getting an 8lber and a river carp of similar size the same evening. Still the only 3 fish I’ve ever had from the swim. Best Bream – 12lb 2oz. 2 July 2011. Summer Pit – Yateley. Float fished (lift method) maggot. Really a venue I used to visit for its tench and crucians – but I was actually after bream when I caught this and had a number of 8lb+ fish that summer from the same venue. Blog entry; http://www.anglersnet.co.uk/forums/index.php?/blog/82/entry-704-12-july/ Best Brown Trout – 8lb 12oz. 14 March 2008. Middle Kennet Estate – Newbury. Trotted Maggot. (No photo) I rarely weigh trout let alone photograph one – especially when like this they are caught right in front of the keeper’s cottage. I Usually spend the winter trying to avoid them and hoping they get off when I hook one – though was rather pleased to land this on light-ish tackle in fast water. Blog Entry; http://www.anglersnet.co.uk/forums/index.php?/blog/82/entry-222-14-march/ Best Tench – 7lb 10oz. 18 June 2003. Wylies Lake – Thatcham. Float fished (lift method) black pudding. Black pudding (it needs slicing and frying up first to give it a skin) is one of my favourite tench baits – and one that was first suggested to me by reading the very first printed book on angling. Published in 1496, The Treatyse of Fishing with an Angle (also from which the woodcut of an angler float fishing is my Anglersnet Avatar) is attributed to one Dame Juliana Berners – though there is scant evidence such a person ever existed. In it a recommended bait for tench, is described as a paste made from black sheep’s blood, honey and flour – which must have looked like (and smelt like) black pudding. Best Chub – 6lb 7oz. 19 February 2012. Middle Kennet Estate – Nr Kintbury. Trotted Red Sweetcorn. Patience rewarded. A swim I had a hunch held big chub but which I think I’ve rushed at too much in the past – often getting a few schooly ones before killing the sport. This fish was the last one of half a dozen caught in a morning where I rested and fed the swim after each capture. Just in time too – this winter’s floods have changed this swim significantly – washing away the bush that used to create the slack that held the chub – I didn’t get a bite here from 2 visits this (12/13) winter…ho hum. Blog Entry; http://www.anglersnet.co.uk/forums/index.php?/blog/82/entry-848-19-february/ Best Salmon – 5lb 10oz. 13 October 2008. Lower Itchen Fishery. Trotted Maggot. (No Photo) Again a species I’d rather not be catching when I’m fishing for grayling – was still nice to get my first ‘proper’ one though! Blog Entry; http://www.anglersnet.co.uk/forums/index.php?/blog/82/entry-281-13-october/ Best Rainbow Trout – 4lb 10oz. 5 March 2004. Barton Court – Kintbury. Trotted Maggot. (No Photo) A species I rather wished wasn’t in the Kennet at all! Best Perch – 4lb 2oz. 16 February 2013. Kennet & Avon Canal – Thatcham. Float fished lobworm. Don’t think I need to say any more about this! Blog entry; http://www.anglersnet.co.uk/forums/index.php?/blog/82/entry-1017-16-february-part-2/ Best Crucian – 3lb 13oz. 26 June 2011. Newbury AA Lake – Widmead. Float fished (lift method) bacon grill. One of my favourite summer species. Blog Entry; http://www.anglersnet.co.uk/forums/index.php?/blog/82/entry-699-26-june/ Best Grayling – 2lb 15oz. 6 January 2002. Lower Itchen Fishery. Trotted maggot. One of my first winters at LIF – and looking through my diary I’d forgotten just how awesome the grayling fishing was back then. In just 2 trips in 01/02 I had 27 grayling over 2lb of which 9 were over 2½lb. This 2.15 was the biggest – over a decade later and I’m still hunting a 3! Best Roach – 2lb 11oz. 7 February 2003. Middle Kennet Carrier – Nr Hungerford. Trotted maggot. A red letter day to end all red letter days. 7 Feb 2003 is now hard-wired into my consciousness. I had a 1-15 roach pretty much 1st cast and this beauty last cast. In between these 2 redfins I had…. Best Dace – 1lb 2oz. 7 February 2003. Middle Kennet Carrier – Nr Hungerford. Trotted maggot. …3 dace over 1lb including this fat pigeon chested female (plus 5 more between 13-15oz). Martin Bowler catches a 1-02 dace from the same swim in Catching the Impossible (filmed sometime after my capture I have to add!) And finally some odds ’n sods… Brown Goldfish - 1lb 14oz: 21/06/05, Float fished Bread, Pumphouse Lake, Yateley. Sea Trout - 1lb 12oz: 06/01/02, Trotted Maggot, Lower Itchen Fishery. Eel - 1lb 6oz: 11/10/03, Trotted Maggot, River Test, Timsbury Rudd - 1lb 6oz: 27/07/91, Float fished Maggot, NAA Lake, Widmead.

River Kennet - Thatcham 0700 - 1200 Sunny morning after a rainy start - rain stopped almost as soon as I started fishing. 2 Perch; 3lb 10oz & 1lb 2oz. 19 Dace (5 of which were in the 8-10oz class - very nice). 3 Roach. Fished trotted corn for the first 45 mins in the hope of snaffling one of the big chub that are usually in residence - but didn't get a touch. Was rueing that decision by 0830 with the swim now in full sunlight thinking I'd wasted the best part of the morning. I needn't have worried - though I was contemplating switching to Plan B and a venue just downstream when at around 1000 I connected with something distinctly chub-like which headed for the trailing branches on the opposite bank. However once I'd bullied it into open water I could see it was a really good perch and I thought I'd be celebrating my 500th blog posting with a 4lber - alas 6 ounces shy - but my best of the season (so far). Also nice so see some really chunky dace in this swim this season.

Lower Itchen Fishery 0830 - 1630. Cool and overcast after a soggy start, rain returning just as we packed up, temps didn't get above 4ºC all day. River quite pacey with a slight tinge of colour. 37 Grayling; 14 over 1lb with half of these over 1½lb. Best two; 2lb 5oz & 1lb 13oz. 1 Brownie and 2 Salmon Parr. IAC fish-in in memory of Paul Goulbourn. A poignant day on the Itchen. Paul and I were introduced to this fishery back in the late 90's - via an IAC fish-in and we made a point of fishing it every season since - always scheduling a trip in mid to late Feb - so today was full of recollections of trips past and a fitting venue for some of his old IAC mates to gather in his memory. The talk on the list this week has all been about otters and blow me if the first thing we saw when we arrived at Gaters Mill at first light was an otter. And not just a fleeting glimpse - we watched as it scampered up the bank, crossed over the track and plunge into the river to head upstream under the M27. After this early excitement the first challenge was to get the cars up the track - we'd been warned that it was in a poor state but everyone made it up safely even if a few cars had to be pushed out for the return journey. The angling was everything I'd hoped it would be (save for the lack of chub). The river was quite 'full' but thankfully the lack of rain in the previous days had meant it had had a chance to fine down. The weather was exactly as per forecast - early rain giving way to a dry, cool, overcast day. I started in a spot where I expected there to be chub but the extra water meant that the slack that is usually there - wasn't. However it wasn't long before my trotted corn was snaffled by my first fish of the day a 1lb 9oz grayling - a super start. It quite quickly transpired that the fish appeared to be shoaled up in a few specific spots - and I ended up catching all my grayling from just 3 swims - rest and return being my mantra for the day. Sometimes at fish-ins you can go all day without actually meeting up with anyone - especially on a large venue such as LIF. Dave had a arranged for everyone to down rods and meet up for lunch - with the offer of freshly cooked sausages, toasted sandwiches and cupcakes! It made for a nice sociable interlude - even if Ed did miss the photocall in his urgency to return to the river! Thank you's to: - everyone who came especially those that travelled some distance to make it - Dave Smith for organising the day and acting as treasurer -£120 (+ Gift Aid) was raised by the event which will be given to Duchess of Kent Hospice where Paul spent his final days. - Chris (Rusty) for offering to give me a lift and being great company. Some the IAC Reprobates! (That's Brian on his knees - praying for a 2lber?) My biggest of the day.

Middle (just ) Kennet Estate. 0900 - 1645 Bright afternoon after a soggy morning. AT up to 11ºC. River quite full but with little colour. 28 Chub; nearly all in the 2½-3½lb bracket. Only 2 under 2lb and only one over 4lb (and that by just 3oz). 2 Dace. 7 Trout (6 Rainbows & a Brown) up to 2¾lb. Treated myself to a late birthday trip. Keeper directed me to a carrier that he said was 'black' with chub back in the summer (but warned that the extra water might have pushed them out). He (and I) needn't have worried. First 6 trots all produced chub and I had a dozen in no time at all. Rested it in favour of another chub swim on the main river - and that was pretty much the pattern of the day - rest and return! Most fish (around 2/3rds) on trotted red corn - the rest on trotted maggot. The swim on the main river.

River Frome - Wool 0800 - 1400 Dull, overcast and cool - AT around 6ºC all day with a breeze picking up. River VERY full, barely within its banks and that only recently given the state of the field. 1.30m at the East Stoke river gauge - much higher than I'd usually fish it - BUT after a dry week it was reasonably clear. 10 Grayling - only 4 needed the net - biggest 1lb 11oz but that was the only really 'decent' one. 1 Sea Trout (1¼lb and still with sea lice on it), 1 brownie - small. Bit of a gamble - but the river levels have been so high on the Frome since the start of the season (1st Nov) it looked like my DDAS ticket was going to go to waste - and with more rain forecast this week - it was a case of now or never! The venue is never prolific so it was nice to get a few, and would often get a fish first trot when I moved swims. Frustratingly I lost nearly as many as I landed including a large fish which I had on for sometime before the hook pulled (again!) - hope it was just a troot! Resting and returning to swims was the order of the day - all fish coming from just 3 spots (and one of those only produced one fish!) One of yesterday's 'hotspots'.

8th August - Shh So I managed to secure a ticket on the water that featured in my last blog and thought it was about time I christened my new rod so I popped down there to fish the afternoon into the evening. As before I baited a good number of likely looking spots with soaked pellet, corn and a few chops and fished them in rotation judging by what I'd seen. It's seriously exciting stuff, watching these dark, old cheese's feeding, all the time willing them to drift off momentarily so you can sneak a rig in. When they come back it's as if time stands still, you freeze to the spot, even trying to breathe quietly as you watch them edge closer to the hookbait. Then in an instant the serenity is broken, the centerpin turns into a blur and your holding the rod at full compression in an attempt to stop them reaching any cover. I had 3 and a tinca over about 5 hours fishing. - 9th August - Shh Another day off... Lasted a couple of hours sitting around at home before I gave in and hotfooted over to the forgotten lake with 4 hours to try and outwit another of it's residents. Baited a number of swims, concentrating on trying to catch from new ones this time. Got off to a very good start in the first swim. Sneaked a hookbait onto a new spot that only had one fish feeding on it, put the rod down and sneaked the 5 yards next door to check another spot when the pin went into meltdown. Pressure off. I had a bit of a wander around after that. The other spot I'd seen fish on had become occupied by a chap that I'd met the day before... he'd been a member for over a season and was yet to land a carp. Anyway, I crept about checking spots before spotting a couple of tails waving at me from the dark water next to a very snaggy tree. It seemed like I waited forever for them to drift off before getting the rig in with a fresh handful of bait. 10 minutes later they were back, 5 or 6 of them feeding with gusto, somehow avoiding my rig. Then out of nowhere a familiar looking ghosty sped in, beelined for the hookbait and hooked itself instantly. A real hit and hold scrap later and as I suspected it was the same fish that I'd opened my account with a week previously. They played hard to get after that with all the spots looking quiet, until I saw a fish ghost over the area I'd had the most action from. They had obviously cleaned all the bait out and were looking for more, so in went the rig and a handful of grub. 20 minutes and one aborted take later I landed another absolute stunner. I'm sure you can see why I love the place and understand that I want to keep it's location quiet.

31st March - K&A Canal Popped back to the canal with the soft plastics tonight. It was rather an impromptu trip after unexpectedly getting off from work early but it was certainly worthwhile. I thought I'd try another new stretch to prevent it getting a little stale, and to give the other stretches a bit of respite. I made a quick call to see if the old man wanted to join me and 3/4 of an hour later we were tackling up, full of expectation. We fished for an hour or so in the biting wind with only a little jack to show for it and feeling rather deflated we came close to admitting defeat and going home. Somehow I managed to persuade him to stay, with the promise that it would pick up as the light was fading. For once my premonitions rang true and as the sun dropped below the horizon I had a right result. 4 good'uns in approximately 15 minutes, and when you consider half of that time was spent weighing and photographing fish, it was pretty hectic. 2.11 2.13 3.0 The other one was 2.4, which I slipped back without a pic. Dad chipped in with a beauty of 2.10 a few minutes after mine which rounded the evening off fantastically. I don't think I could ever get bored catching these perch on the jigs. That said I have ordered some gear for drop-shotting, just to mix things up a little. No doubt I'll be straight back out there when it arrives so hopefully the next entry won't be too far away.

Disruption is the word that springs to mind when I look back over the past season. After a bone dry winter relief (from an angling point of view) came in the form of heavy rain leading up to June 2012, as you would expect this bolstered levels and provided some temporary respite for the struggling Kennet. Only the respite didn’t turn out to be temporary, I kept expecting to see the water drop back during the dry spells but there weren’t many of those for the rest of the season. As a consequence there was a period of about three months during the summer when the Kennet was in prime condition, wading was still possible and it was a pleasure to fish. From there on it became more difficult, during autumn and winter the rain kept coming and what we have now is a river just within its banks and very susceptible to the lightest of rainfall. I don’t mind this situation, it’s much better than if we’d had a dry summer but it has had an impact on the fishing, swim availability has been more limited with some stretches like Brimpton being a muddy torrent most of the time. As regards results well it’s been a pleasing year with January 2013 being particularly notable. This is when I found a swim which produced perch after perch and all of them a good size. Early season activities centred around barbel, the first week off work saw me feeding pints of maggots into what I thought were reliable swims but it wasn’t until the last day of my holiday (24th June) that I finally managed to catch one, only 4lb 4oz but enough on light trotting gear; July and August were fairly quiet for me fishing wise, motorcycling took priority as I prepared my bike for what was to be week long holiday in Cornwall. In the event the weather was terrible so I went in the car and then a family emergency ended the holiday not long after it had started. The time I did spend fishing though was to prove invaluable, in trying to avoid September boat traffic I chanced my arm in a canal swim and stumbled across a shoal of decent perch. Exactly how decent I wasn’t to find out until later in the season but for now 2lb 12oz was pretty good; September also accounted for one of the more amusing moments of the season. A pike grabbed a dace that I’d caught and managed to hook itself neatly in the top jaw, probably a PB pike on the float at 6lb 14oz; October was the last month that my club stretches were fishable without any restriction due to high water levels. After that it was a case of fish the Lambourn, the K&A Canal or search out slack water on the Kennet and there wasn’t much of that. Before the Autumn deluge I did have one final fling at Speen Moors (the APFA Kelly Kettle swim) and achieved a venue PB chub at 4lb 10oz; The onset of winter brought with it the worst fishing conditions I’ve known. The Kennet was high, coloured and fast in most places and the Thames was quite lierally all over the place. The location of last year’s PB chub was four feet under water and although the high levels eventually receded a days rain would see them straight back up again. I never did get down to Goring for winter chubbing which is a real shame. Another disappointment was the lack of access to the Middle Kennet Estate venue but this is perfectly understandable given the conditions the riverkeeper was having to deal with. I did get there twice late in the season and both times caught chub so I’m very grateful for that. November saw me having a brief encounter with roach on the Lambourn. After initial success with a nice little specimen and eyeballing a shoal which contained much bigger fish I really thought I was onto something. As usual though my impatience got the better of me and after failing to tempt the larger roach I abandoned the mini campaign after a couple of visits; January was without doubt the highlight of my season, remember that perch swim I found on the canal during September? Well it accounted for a PB perch of 3lb 8oz and one of the best sessions I can remember, six fish for just under 18lbs in weight This spot was to retain my focus until the end of the season though it never quite lived up to that session again. In fact it dumped me firmly in my place when it failed to provide a fish on an occasion where I was absolutely certain that I’d do well. It was also responsible for my season going out in a quiet whimper rather than a big bang, my final evening session on the 14th March resulted in a spectacular blank. So that’s my review of the 2012/13 season. All things considered it’s been a pretty good year and I’m now looking forward to hot sunny days fishing for carp off the surface and (on the occasions I can manage to get up early enough) misty dawn mornings after tench. Oh and there’s Wingham, I fully intend to put my hand up again this year so if I’m fortunate enough to go who knows what that might bring?

Ok a bit of a cheat title because it was over two sessions but it was from one swim during consecutive dusk/dawn periods. I had no intention of spending a night by the K&A Canal. Saturday 5th January, River Kennet, Newbury and the K&A Canal, Thatcham At last an opportunity to get on the river trotting. The Kennet has been pretty inaccessible with all the rain so the few short sessions I've had have been on the Lambourn catching grayling, nice but I was beginning to miss catching chub. Chris Plumb's blog indicated that there might be a chance at one venue so that's where I headed for the late morning session, the afternoon would be spent on the canal trying to take advantage of the perfect perch conditions. As I drove over the bridge first impressions weren't good, despite the dry spell the river was still way over its banks and I wondered whether it was actually higher than when Chris had fished it. Walking the venue revealed just one fishable swim but it looked a corker, sure there was loads of water but it wasn't coloured and the increased flow on the far bank had created a beautiful glide between the middle of the river and the near bank. Trotting commenced and I'm pleased to report that it was interrupted on several occasions by fish. The first two were chub with 3lb being the largest, unfortunately a trout put an end to those but small grayling, roach, dace and perch followed over the next few hours. Exactly the sort of session I was after. So off to the canal buoyed with enthusiasm, that is until I spent an hour in my chosen swim with no sign of any perch being present. Thoughts of my local pub and dinner started to enter my head as it got darker and creepier, I phoned Steve to let him know that somebody has stolen all of the fish in the canal and that I was thinking of going home. He made the valid point that I may as well stick it out through dusk until it got proper dark, I just needed to be careful about the ghost of an axe murderer who'd drowned in one of the locks (it was a heavy axe and he wouldn't let go apparently). I couldn't fault his logic and also couldn't remember the last occasion Id fished for perch at the 'right' time of day so I pressed another lobworm into service and cast out. Not long after that fry started showing on the surface, not in large numbers but it was activity at last. It was like a switch had been flicked somewhere, my float shot under and I lifted into a solid lump of a perch, I haven't yet caught a tiddler from this swim and that trend continued with this 3lb 2oz beauty; About 20 minutes later another bite and another 'three' but no spare ounces this time, 3lb exactly; I was both elated and speechless but amazed myself by retaining enough composure to re-bait and cast out in rapidly fading light, sadly there was no more action, the feeding spell had only lasted half an hour. Fumbling around and packing up was a tricky business (I'd forgotten my headtorch) but I got back to the car in one piece and contemplated the evening ahead. Forget the pub, early dinner and early to bed, dawn was only a few hours away. Sunday 6th January, K&A Canal, Thatcham and the River Kennet, Newbury Back to the same canal swim and at 7:30am on the dot I could just see well enough to fish. I'd been feeding maggots for half an hour by then and the time had come to lower in the first lobworm of the day. I thought the float had disappeared as soon as it hit the water but in the gloom I wasn't sure that I could trust my eyes, a tentative strike provoked something at the other end and a couple of minutes later the first perch of the day was on the bank, 2lb 12oz; I won't go into chapter and verse about the following two hours, suffice to say it was the best perching session Ive had and included a new PB. The next fish, 2lb 15oz; And the PB, I'm really pleased that this looks noticeably larger than the other fish. Sometimes I look at my perch photos and wonder whether they really look the weight, this one does at 3lb 8oz; Finally 2lb 7oz to round the morning off; At 9:30am I hadn't had a bite for a while so I concluded that the morning feeding time had come to an end. The canal was getting busy with canoeists, dog walkers and pesky anglers so it seemed a good time to move back to the river. The sun came out for a bit and the chub and dace came out for a bit longer, nothing large but it was really pleasant to finish the day on running water. It had been a memorable weekend, the perch weren't full of spawn yet so itll be interesting to try that swim nearer the end of the season, I wonder how much heavier a 3-08 will get?

River Lambourn - Newbury 0845 - 1415 Cold and cloudy. AT -2º -> +1ºC. (Proper Grayling weather!). River very full and clear. 23 Grayling. 8 over a lb - best 4 went 1lb 14oz, 1lb 12oz & 1lb 10oz (X2 - different fish). 5 Brownies: all small/parrs. I do love cold days like this - wrapped up warm and staying mobile. Had the rare luxury of not seeing another angler so fished the length of the stretch twice with a break for lunch in between. Took corn but forgot it in the morning - doh - so fished with maggot first time and just corn the second. Corn caught fewer though 5 of the 8 'pounders' fell to it. Local tackle shop is stocking krill flavoured red corn which I was using for the first time. My theory is that red corn get's mistaken for trout eggs - and this stuff even smells the part!

River Kennet - Speen Moors 0945 - 1415 Warm, overcast and breezy. AT 16º-18ºC. River down around 6-8 inches on my last trip here 3 weeks ago. 14 Perch: All 12oz or more - best two went 1lb 10oz & 1lb 12oz but all of the others were a few ounces either side of a lb. 6 Chub: 2lb & 1lb 10oz and 4 chublets. 9 Roach - all small apart from one 'netter' of round 10oz. 1 Dace - small. 12 (!) Gudgeon. 2 Brownies - a lump of around 3½lb and a parr. Super morning's sport and I was glad I'd saved some lobs as I started out on worm in a spot where I usually catch perch - but never in such numbers. And it can't be a coincidence that the sudden increase in gudgeon numbers - is linked to the number of perch around. 12 gonks is more than I've caught in an entire season - in some recent years (2021-22 for example when I only caught 11 all season!)

River Kennet - Hambridge 0430 - 0800 Warm, muggy and overcast with a welcome heavy shower just after I packed up. AT 17ºC (but felt a lot warmer!). River quite full - especially for June! 6 Chub; 3lb 3oz, 2lb 10oz and 4 between ¾-1½lb. 21 Dace - nothing especially noteworthy - though they weren't tiddlers either. 2 Roach (same!) and 2 Brownies c½lb. A morning's trotting and home for breakfast - gotta love June! And I really should follow my own advice - I recently re-worked this old article for AN for my club's quarterly newsletter - though gearing it more to summer chubbing. I was making the point that in June chub can be found in surprisingly fast water - and that was certainly true this morning. I'd blanked in my usual chub hot-spots and switched to a fast glide in search of some feisty dace - and whilst it was nearly fish a chuck - there was also a shoal of chub in residence at the tail of the swim where it shallowed up. The result - a great morning's sport!

River Kennet - Brimpton 0700 - 1100 Cool (compared to lately) and mainly overcast. AT 11->16ºC. River still low but up a good couple of inches on my last visit here in July. 4 Chub: 5lb0oz, 3lb 6oz, 1lb11oz and one <1lb. 5 Roach & 1 Dace - all a 'nice' size circa 6oz. 4 Brownies; a lber and the others around half that. With 1½inches of rain already this month (nearly as much as the whole of June, July & August!) I was hopeful that the river might have perked up - and so it proved. Fished 4 swims and had 'A' chub from each of them! The 5lber - my second of the season from here, came from a spot that rarely produces - which was just as well as my usual hotspot was trashed by a first cast trout!

Harris Lake - Milford 1500 - 0030 Warm, overcast and muggy - though the promised thunderstorms never materialised - thankfully. 26ºC and still 15ºC when I packed up - though felt cooler in the breeze that had picked up in the evening which did at least keep the dew and mozzies away. 12 Tench: 8 over 4lb including 2 over 5 - biggest 5lb 14oz. 6 Crucians; all 2lbers best 2 - 2lb 13oz & 2lb 10oz - the others between 2-02 & 2-06. 2 perch and 6 micro rudd. Back over to Milford and with the crucian box well and truely ticked on Monday I was on a different lake with tincas' as my quarry. Bites slow but steady during daylight hours - but I knew things would pick up at dusk. By 2130 I'd caught 5 tench - in the next 2 hours I added 7 more plus all the crucians - frenetic angling with the 5-14 the last fish caught! Then at 2330 bites suddenly stopped. And whilst I had intended to stay a liitle longer - an hour without a bite was a big enough hint that the 'main event' had come and gone!

Harris Lake - Marsh Farm, Milford. 1500 - 0000 Cool, calm and clear evening. Lovely evening for star (and planet) gazing - Jupiter is in oppostion at the moment so is particularly bright. AT a chilly 9ºC when I packed up - felt a little autumnal! 9 Crucians; All bar one over 2lb (and even that one was only 2oz shy). Best 3: 3lb, 2lb 12oz, 2lb 9oz. 2 Tench; 4lb 9oz & 3lb 13oz. 4 Rudd. Five hours without a bite (save for the micro rudd which annoyingly kept attacking a bare hook as I was trying to shot my waggler at the start!) followed by a couple of hours of frenetic activity. As so often happens here the dinner bell rang just as it got dark and by 10pm I'd had 10 fish - with the only bite after this time (nearly an hour later) being the bigger tinca. All fish caught mere inches from the bank in around 18 inches of water! (ie NOT where my float is in the cover pic). The fish here are used to the day ticket anglers discarding their bait in the margins and move in after closing time to hoover it up!

Nothing to mention on my first hour on the weir at Speen Moors. The rain was distinctly unpleasant, and though my waterproof suit made me look like a terrorist Michelin man, I was cosy and dry, which I could not say for my maggots, who, lubricated, were soon climbing out of their pot and I spent more time fielding them than watching my float. Note to self: don't forget bait apron next time. Having suffered several tangles due to the wind persistently wrapping it around the rod tip, three hook lengths breaking on snags both in and out of the water, being steamed by three boisterous Labradors and having had no bites: the one minnow i caught not even bothering to register on the float (well, at least it won't be a blank today!) I made the walk to the canal earlier than planned. Overcast, warm, wet and gusty but without the Westerly wind that can make float fishing difficult here, I started for pike. I had two runs either side of 1pm. The first gave me a sighting of its long silvery side before spitting out the hook, the second took my mackerel deep into the reeds from which the pike, trace and pike float were not to reappear. With the afternoon progressing and the thought of perch consuming me, I fished red maggot/caster on a light float rig. Great fun, Had 21 of them. None of the big boys showed, though three were either side of a pound. I won't bother telling you of the four small roach and the same number of bleak, but what will delight you almost as me was the arrival of the prince of fish, a beautiful gudgeon. Can there be a better feeling in angling than a Christmas Gobio?

Willows Lake - Thatcham 1800 - 0000 Warm and overcast with a gentle southerly breeze. 19ºC -> 16ºC. Lovely evening to be out - no dew and no shelter required. 5 Carp; 10lb 13oz, 8lb 14oz, 8lb 10oz, 6lb 5oz (& one of around a pound - unweighed!). 1 Tench 1¼lb. 3 Bream (all skimmers). 1 Perch. 1 Rudd. (Both quite small) This was meant to be an evening fishing the margins for tench (or crucians, roach, bream, perch, rudd - anything but carp!) However the bully boy commons had other ideas - they were just insatiable. The 'bigger' eight was first cast and took an age to subdue on a float rod and a 4lb bottom - and no wonder as it was shaped like a torpedo! After hooking and losing a couple more to hook pulls - bumping another couple (possibly striking at liners) - and banking the 2 smaller ones I decided on a 'If you can't beat them, join them' strategy and started dapping bread under my (carp) rod tip. This at least resulted in a 100% hooking to landing ratio - though the double had to be extracted from the lillies where it so nearly won its freedom. After all this commotion the carp eventually vacated my swim - I had no more slurps and swirls at my bread offerings on the surface and float fishing maggot at last produced bites (and fish) that weren't carp though they weren't exactly prolific!

Kennet & Avon Canal - Woolhampton 0645 - 1230 Mild, overcast with light drizzle for the first couple of hours. 5 Perch; a couple of pounders but not by much - best 1lb 4oz. 1 Chub circa 12oz, 3 Roach - one of 12oz - on a whole lob and 2 smalluns, 4 Bleak. Had the day off to fish the Frome on the first day of the season (it's open for 4 months from 1st Nov) but rain in Dorset this week put paid to that idea - so it was back to my autumn stripey hunt - which was again thwarted by way more boat traffic than I expected for a weekday in November. Fishing had started promisingly as well with both my 'biggest' perch caught in the first half an hour - but a boat coming through a 0730 (!) stopped bites for over an hour - and after that the frequency of barges meant the swim never really settled down - sigh!

Kennet & Avon Canal - Thatcham 0730 - 0930 Mild and drizzly 12ºC. Travelling light so water thermometer in other bag. (But WT must be well up). Canal bank high and quite coloured. 6 Perch (2lb 5oz, 2lb 2oz, 1lb10oz, 1¼lb X2 & a tiddler), 1 Tench (!) 2lb 2oz, 1 Roach (15oz) - greedy sod took a whole lob on a size 8, 2 chub both <1lb. Surprisingly pleasurable morning given the conditions - thankfully wind wasn't too bad - though fished less exposed stretch. First ever January Tench - WT must be up!

Kennet & Avon Canal - Thatcham 1300 - 1800 Drizzly start becoming bright and sunny - mild 16ºC. 9 Perch; 3lb 12oz, 1lb 11oz & 7 tiddlers, 1 chublet. Planned to go in the morning but the wimped out because of the promised downpour which never really arrived. Should have stuck to my guns as the barge traffic was a nightmare. Biggy early in the session - but after that there was far too much boat traffic for the swim to 'settle' down - poo!

River Kennet - Nr Newbury 0700 - 1800 Bright and breezy - with heavy afternoon showers - becoming really quite windy. Max AT 10ºC. River 'full' and carrying a bit of colour, 7 Chub - best 3; 6lb 6oz (new PB) , 4lb 5oz, 4lb 0oz) 70+ Roach and Dace in roughly equal nos. - all small save for one lovely roach of 1lb 1oz, ½doz Gudgeon, 1 skimmer Bream, 1 small Perch, 5 Brownies - biggest 4lb 4oz, 1 Rainbow 2½lb. A day of the river with Paul. All fish of trotted maggot (single reds mainly). Big chub (my 4th 6lb+ fish) from weirpool - just as it started raining. Paul had a succesful -if rather different day. Had no chub - despite us fishing the same swims (I had my 6 from a swim he'd not long vacated! ) He did manage a couple of pike. A brace of ½ decent perch - and last cast of the day - a surprise common carp. (From my 'banker' chub swim!!). Both his biggest pike and carp weighed exactly the same - 9lb 6oz.

River Itchen - Nr Eastleigh 0830 - 1830 Overcast and mild all day, some v light drizzle at first. 15ºC. River at normal levels with some leaf litter. 51 Grayling (36 over 1lb including 13 over 2lb (!!!) Best two: 2lb 13oz, 2lb 9oz), 9 Brown Trout (all between 1½-2½lb), 1 chub 4lb 12oz, 1 Salmon 5lb 10oz. First ever autumn trip to this stretch of water - courtesy of Paul's excellent networking skills. Brilliant day's angling - Paul had 27, 1lb+ grayling including 9, 2lbers. (His biggest 2lb 7oz IIRC) He managed to all but avoid the trout and also had a 4lb 14oz chub. Most fish on trotted maggot though also had some decent fish on corn. However corn tended to pick out the trout more! My 2nd biggest ever grayling and first ever 'proper' Salmon (not counting the Parrs amd Smolts the EA keep stocking in the Kennet). Also hooked - and had on for quite a while a MUCH, MUCH bigger Salmon. Jumped a couple of time so that I could get a good look at it. Quite relieved when it shed the hook (a 16) as I was totally undergunned! Pic below is of the 2lb 9oz fish - camera was in my coat ¼mile downstream when I caught the bigger one.

River Itchen - Lower Itchen Fishery 0830 - 1745 Bright and sunny start - clouding over in afternoon. Max AT 13ºC. River still quite high and carrying a surprising amount of colour given that we've had no rain for a fortnight. 16 Grayling (10 over 1lb - in order of capture: 1lb 2oz, 2lb12oz, 2lb 6oz, 1lb 4oz, 2lb 10oz*, 1lb 5oz, 2lb 1oz*, 1lb 10oz, 2lb 11oz, 1lb 7oz*), 1 Chub 3lb 3oz, 2 small brownies. Hard (well harder than usual!) but very rewarding day's trotting. All fish on sweetcorn except * which fell to single white maggot. No fish caught at all on red maggot! 3rd, 4th= & 6th= (!) biggest ever grayling. 2lb 12oz 2lb 11oz

Kennet & Avon Canal - Thatcham 0700 - 1200 Overcast with drizzle. AT6ºC. Near perfect conditions except for the fact that WT was only at 45ºF. 2 Perch: 3lb 3oz & 3lb 2oz. 1 Chub 1¼lb. Chub very first cast - hit the lob as soon as it was in the water - thereafter bites at a premium - a fish at 0830 and another 2 hours later - but well worth the wait! Paul had a small chub and a 2lb 6oz stripey. The 3-3 Peas in a pod...

River Itchen 0830 - 1730 Mild and overcast all day. AT 13ºC Max. River at near normal levels though carrying quite a bit of colour. 22 Grayling; 12 over 1lb, with 6 of those over 2lb - biggest 2lb 7oz. 2 Chub 4lb 3oz, 3lb 8oz. Thanks to Paul's excellent networking skills (& silver tongue) we had exclusive use of this lovely bit of river for a second time (see blog entry 13/10/08 for the first). Bites at a premium and quite hard work at times - but if you stuck at it the fish would take - eventually!! About half my fish on red sweetcorn - most of the rest on white maggot (4 of the 6, 2lbers on corn). Paul managed less well on the grayling front with a dozen fish to 1lb 10oz - mainly beacuse chub kept turning up in his swim (or sea trout). Think he had ½doz chub and a suprise 2lb perch along with some salmon parr - much more of a mixed bag than I managed! A couple of Paul's fish - including his Itchen stripey!

Summer Pit - CEMEX Yateley Complex 0000 - 1000 Warm, still and overcast night (14ºC). Torrential rain after 0700 - and cooler. 5 Tench; 7lb 7oz, 5lb 10oz, 3X3lbers (3.13,3.12,3.03). 1 Bream 8lb 11oz, 2 perch. Nice socialable start to the season - permit not valid till midnight so arriving in the dark gave it that special feel of the 16th. Paul and I shared a swim - one we've both fished before - hence our name for it - 'Doubles'. Alas though Paul hardly had a bite - not helped by the fact he missed most of the feeding time from 0500 - 0700 as he had to go home to take wifey and daughter to work. Bites stopped after the rains came - and boy did they come. Spookily we were talking at the begining of the session of the potential for big bream in the water - I was relaying a story I'd heard last season of it producing doubles - though neither of us really believed it - as it hardly ever produces bream of any kind - so to get one of nearly 9lb - maybe just maybe. All fish caught on meat - except the perch which fell to maggot. 7lb tinca is my 3rd biggest ever and my best from this water. Pics to follow - though not alas of the bream - was so shocked to get it it went back before we realised we hadn't taken its portrait.... Summer Pit at Dawn... The Same an hour later.... My 7lb 7oz Tench..

Kennet & Avon Canal - Thatcham 0700 - 1200 Mild/warm, still and overcast - 13ºC -> 17ºC. Neigh on perfick! 18 Perch: In order of capture: 2lb 14oz, 2lb 11oz, 2lb 8oz,*, 2lb 6oz, tiddler, ~, 2lb 6oz, 1lb 6oz, 3lb 3oz, 2lb 6oz (again! all different fish I think!), 1lb 7oz, 3lb 6oz, 3lb 2oz, 3lb 0oz, 3lb 14oz (equal PB!), 2lb 13oz, 1lb 3oz, tiddler,tiddler,~. !!! Nearly 40lb of perch ! 1 Tench*: 4lb 3oz. 2 Chub~; 1¼lb and a chublet. WOW - make hay while the sun shines. Or rather catch perch while its a dull overcast day!!! Never been so disappointed to catch a 4lb tench - for a couple of minutes I was convinced I was connected to a huge perch. I knew it wasn't a pike - never even entered my head that it wouldn't be a perch! Most fish caught by 1030 - and the run of 4, 3lbers in 4 casts was just after a couple of barges had come through the swim. Often the death knell for sport but not today! Had planned to do a lot of wandering and did fish one new swim on the way back to the car - did mean I didn't have a keepnet with me - which I have taken to bringing for perch sessions - putting them back 40/50yards upstream didn't seem to affect the swim, mind! First time I've ever had 5, 3lbers in a single session! Pics below are of the 3 biggest & the tinca...

Middle Kennet Estate - Kintbury 0900 - 1630 Frosty and bright, temps around 2-4ºC all day. River low and clear 8 Chub; 4 chublets and 4 over 2lb, biggest 5lb 6oz. 16 Dace; half over 8oz, biggest 13oz & 12oz. 3 Roach, biggest 1lb on the nose. 6 Brownies - biggest 2, 4¼ & 3¾lb. NAA day on this lovely part of the Kennet so had to share the place with a couple of dozen other anglers! Highlight of the morning was seeing Rusty do an impersonation of Nigel Mansell as he raced off to bagsy the weedrack swim and seeing 2 other anglers pull in behind us on the Kintbury rd, unload their car in a blind panic and practicallly sprint off to their swims to ensure Paul and I wouldn't get them!! In truth we weren't at all bothered as we were pretty sure our secret dace swims were safe (as they were!!). All in all, a fairly slow day as you'd expect in such bright conditions. Paul and I both caught decent dace early on though I had much better success in the last hour when I had the 13oz dace and the 1lb roach in consecutive casts. Paul caught more dace overall - he having had a better 'middle' part of the day - again local knowledge playing a big part. Equally my 'banker' chub swim was unoccupied mid-afternoon and trotting 3 grains of corn on a size 8 quickly brought some decent chub to the net - the 5lber was first cast. Paul and I pride our selves in being last off the venue on such days - but Rusty outdid us - we were on our way home when I got a call from Chris - to say he was still fishing!!!!! Pics from Paul (apart from the chub)...

River Kennet backstream, Padworth 1900 - 2330 Warm, yet clear evening. Lovely night to be out - got to see some early Perseids. 3 Barbel; 8lb 7oz, 5lb 3oz, 4lb 6oz. Bit of an exploratory session - fished a couple of new swims - and got stung to blazes by the nettles - clearly 2 spots that have not seen an angler this season!! Fished in rotation - plan was to give each spot an hour or until I caught - whichever was soonest then switch. As it happened both swims produced a fish first cast (the 2 smaller ones) with the 1st swim then producing the 8 after being 'rested'. A useful and informative session - well worth the extra effort (and the stings!)

Middle Kennet - Nr Newbury 0715 - 1745 Cold and RAW, with frequent snow flurries and a mini blizzard around lunchtime. Strong and dessicating NE wind. Temps 0ºC or below all day (line freezing to rod ALL day), wind chill must have been minus loads! Spring is here - NOT! WT a balmy 43ºF. 17 (!) Chub; Almost all over 2lb - biggest 3lb 14oz, 4 Perch; 2 'gooduns' at 2lb 2oz &1lb 14oz. 23 Dace - quite a few chunky ones and 2 real corkers; a female fish of 13oz and a male fish of 14oz. 6 Roach - all small. 2 Brownies 1½lb & 2½lbs. Brrrr We must be mad - any other venue and we probably would have cried off - but this is now the third time we've been here in sub-optimal conditions and the place has fished its socks off (see 19 Jan & 22 Feb). Certainly a day for several layers of thermals, hot soup (Jaq's Honey Roast Parsnip) and plenty of coffee. The keeper even unlocked the fishing hut for us - and what a palace it is, full kitchen, lounge, loo, heaters, spare kit. Trout anglers have it cushy! Yet again I won the toss and had first dibs at the chub hotspot and whilst I did get 6 chub from it - all the others, bar 1, came from a different swim in the afternoon - one that hasn't really produced for me in the past. So Paul having lost the toss decided to get his worming gear out and target the perch. Good luck with that says I (somewhat triumphantly it has to be said!) - I think you'll struggle to get perch today. Well what do I know - in the time it took me to get my first two chub Paul had snaffled a dozen stripeys with several fish over 1½lb and a best of 2lb 4oz. I dropped into the same spot in the afternoon and had my two biggies 1st & 2nd casts! Apart from more perch I think Paul's final tally was nearly identical to mine - slightly fewer 1lb+ chub and more trout (and I think he also worried the local bleak and gudgeon populations ). So worth getting out of bed for despite the conditions and whilst the 5lb+ chub appear a bit thinner on the ground here at present it's good to see SO many coming through. Also today I was particularly pleased with my chub to trout ratio - fewest number of trout I think I've ever had here in a day - so the cold did bring some good!!! Obligatory fish plus Witcher pictures. Some Pics from Paul. Our nets were doing this all day - frozen solid! Spring? Dace! From here!

River Kennet - Newbury 1100 - 1400 Overcast with drizzle. AT&WT both 49ºF. River still high with little colour - has dropped very little in the last month. 2 Barbel; 2¼lb & 3½lb. 2 Grayling; both 8-10oz. 14 Dace a few chunky ones but nothing particularly big. 1 Roach ½doz Gudgeon. Trotting session for what ever comes along - but hoping a barbel or a chub or two would put in an appearance - so jolly happy with a brace. Could have been so much better - as I had a much bigger one beaten on the surface (circa 7lbs) and was guiding it to the net when the hook pulled - the perils of using a size 18 I guess but bit of a bugger when I'd done all the hard work!......sigh! Barbel and Witcher is always a pleasing sight!

Kennet & Avon Canal, Thatcham (and an hour on the river proper) 0630 - 1300 Warm, overcast, murky and muggy - perfect low light conditions for perching! Temp 17/18ºC 8 Perch; 3lb 6oz, 2lb 7oz and a couple of pounders. 2 Chub 1lb 14oz and a chublet. 1 Roach; 12oz (took a whole lob worm). 5 dace and a grayling (from the river in the last hour) Plan was to do some prospecting for new perch swims so Paul and I covered quite a bit of towpath looking for likely spots - and I reckon we've found half a dozen which are deserving of a 2nd visit. (or in the case of the swim that produced the 3 & the 2) a 3rd,4th & 5th visit. Paul didn't manage any big perch but had a few pounders and some chub of similar size - plus he bagged a few nice roach and dace. Pic of the 3 - a bit blurry - think there must have been a bit of condensation on the camera - it was a very damp morning!

River Kennet - Speen Moors 0800 - 1345 Cool , bright and sunny with a stiff breeze - clouding over for the last hour or so. River in good winter nick - quite pacey with a bit of colour. 7 Chub: 6 over 2lb though only 1 over 3 and that not by much. 7 Roach, 2 Gudgeon and 2 spotties. Bin a few years since I had that many chub in one visit from this venue. Unusually for me spent the first 4 hours in one swim - which produced all the chub - every time I thought about moving I hooked another fish. In truth I was hoping for something a little bigger - but they gave a great account of themselves in a pacey swim. In fact moving produced not a lot else so I probably should have stayed there the whole day! Chub Slack.

River Frome - Wool 0815 - 1515 Cool, overcast with a stiff and very chilly easterly breeze. AT 1-6ºC. River still dropping and a little coloured. East Stoke EA Gauge reading 1.12m. 19 Grayling; 5 'pounders' to 1lb 8oz. 1 Brownie. Penultimate day of the season and at last the river has dropped enough to gamble on a visit. The river has fallen from a high of 1.49m (as measured at E Stoke) in the last 10 days - though was still carrying a bit more colour than I would have liked. As it turned out it was still a bit of a struggle though it got off to a good start with the 1½lb fish in the first 10 minutes - pity I didn't better it and it also turned out to be the only fish I caught on corn all day - all the others falling to maggot. Last swim of the day produced 9 fish in the last hour bringing up a respectable final tally (though I was greeted with 'That's a long way to catch tiddlers!' by my wife when I arrived home!) Spot the Float!

Kennet Carrier (& main river!) Marsh Benham 0900 - 1600 Cold and sunny with snow on the ground from yesterday max temp 4ºC (briefly!). River up a couple of inches on last visit here (Nov) and carrying a little colour. 7 Chub: 4lb 5oz, 3lb 6ox, 2lb 11oz, 2lb 8oz, 2lb 0oz and 2 sub 1lbers. A dozen+ dace to 10oz, 4 dozen+ roach - most hand sized or bigger! 4 Brownies and a rainbow - all 2-3lb. Chubbing in the snow - loverly! This venue really comes into its own in the winter months and it didn't disappoint! Most chub in the first hour - then spent most of the day trying to find some bigger (ie 1lb+) roach and whilst they came thick and fast with a LOT of fish in the 6-8 oz class I only caught one which warranted the scales but that was still 3oz shy of a pound. Cracking sport none the less.

19th Feb, K&A canal: I got off work at a decent enough time today so decided to stop off at a new stretch for the witching hour (well, half an hour by the time I arrived). I had a tiny perch after a couple of minutes so at least I knew there where some fish about. I worked my way up the canal, stopping for a few casts in between the many moored barges, willingly staring at my shad every time it came into my own margin. Then it happened, just as I was about to lift the lure out, right under my feet, a colossal perch appeared from under a boat, looked at the lure for a second and sucked it in... YES..... NO .. Somehow I managed to strike the bait out of its mouth and it was now gloriously tangled around the rod swinging in the wind. After working towards that opportunity for the past 2 winters I typically managed to cock it up. It all happened very quickly, but if I was to guess I'd say the fish was at the very least 3.8. Gutted isn't the word. At least I'd located one though.. I'll be back as soon as I possibly can be. I carried on until it was too dark, managing another jack that conveniently unhooked itself in the edge and another small perch.

River Kennet - Thatcham 0800 - 1130 Bright and sunny. River VERY low, clear and almost bare of rununculus. 2 Barbel: 4lb 14oz, 2lb 6oz, 3 Chub 3lb 11oz, 2lb 14oz & a chublet, 2 trout. A morning trotting double red maggot.

Kennet & Avon Canal - Thatcham 1400 - 1615 Dull, overcast and calm. AT 7ºC. WT 50ºF 7 Perch - in order of capture... 3lb 1oz, 2lb 13oz, 2lb2oz, 2lb 9oz, 2lb 13oz, 2lb 14oz, 2lb 10oz. Opportunistic trip - as was unexpectedly allowed home early for Christmas! Float fished lobs. Last 4 fish caught in the last 20mins. Early Christmas prezzie!

River Kennet - Nr Thatcham 0930 - 1230 Overcast, 15ºC. River at 'normal' levels - carrying some colour after the recent heavy rains. 3 Barbel (6lb 13oz, 4lb 5oz, 3lb 11oz), 3 Chub (3lb 4oz, 2lb & a chublet) Great session on trotted maggot - (and I also bumped a couple). Fed swim for ¾hr, then had all the fish in a little over an hour - no bites after 1130.