Alan D

He he! I was thinking of just wrapping my upper body and each leg with two layers of industrial bubble wrap. Should ensure I can`t injure myself in the course of fishing!

I think its fair to say I`m cursed and should have expected it LOL, I played them and handled them with the care of a nuclear physicist handling plutonium then gently eased them back into the water with a whispered goodbye. I`ll be back soon I hope to step up to some bigger ones and hopefully not maim myself in the process!

Well, I`m back from my day at Stanwick Lakes and had what we could call a very interesting day. Got there just after 7:30am and it was blowing a bloody gale. Swan lake where I`d planned to fish was at one end of the complex and was extremely exposed and choppy. As I walked around I noticed Mallard Lake (very similar to Swan as far as the rang and size of fish goes) seemed to be a bit calmer in a few areas but I found Coot lake which was a tiny lake in comparison to the rest and it looked gorgeous, lots of reeds and lilies plus I could see bubbles coming up all over the place. I setup and had my method feeder out containing dynamite halibut groundbait, hemp, sweetcorn and some chopped curried mussels. I had a tutti fruity boilie on the hair and within 10 minutes had a 2lb mirror which was a very good sign. However, after that it went quiet for the next 90 minutes so I moved round to the other end of the lake and setup there. within 15 minutes I had a nice 3.5lb common carp then my best fish of 4lb, which was another mirror. Sadly my day went badly pearshaped after this. I had a small tangle in the end of the rod and on walking to the tip of the rod I slipped on a very muddy area behind the peg and went over backwards scratching my arm to buggery on the bramble branches behind and ever worse I landed awkwardly on my left ankle. The pain was staggering. I could barely catch my breath. I had to sit down for 10 minutes to recover then decided that although it was much earlier than I`d intended to finish that I`d done some serious damage to my ankle and decided to pack up very carefully and hobble back to the car with all my gear which now weighed twice as much. I went to the doctors later that afternoon and was advised to go to the hospital for an x-ray. 4 hours after getting to Northampton General Hospital and checking in at the A&E department I was finally seen by someone to be told no fracture but major tissue damage around the ankle. I`m now strapped up, off work for the week and hopping around as I can`t put any weight on it! Despite this I had a great time at Stanwick, I will definitely be going back again, dont know when now and think the knackered ankle was worth the pleasure of catching 3 nice carp, the best haul I`ve ever had in one session which shows how little I`ve achieved so far. Next time I`ll beat my pb of 5lb!

Though the shock of catching something decent might mean the legs go to jelly for a bit

Cheers Andy, I definitely wont be breaking the cardinal sin of standing up and holding a big fish (IF I do catch one), instead I`ll be kneeling down and keeping it just an inch or two of the ground. Thanks for the kind words!

LOL, I just snorted half a cup of tea through my nose reading that last post wellyphant. Nice one ;-)

He`s streets ahead in the confidence stakes! As far as he`s concerned he`ll soon be catching sharsk, whales and Nemo`s!!!!

Cheers Neil. I popped by this lake today with my 2 year old to have a bit of a lookaround. Really like the look of it. The fish were really active and I`m praying the mild weather continues another week so I give myself the best chance of catching some decent fish.

No pressure then! ;-)

Cheers Wayne, looks like I`d better catch something big a week monday then or I`ll look a right numpty after all this! ;-) Only joking, half the enjoyment for me is just being somewhere nice, by the waterside with only the sound of nature to keep me company!

Believe me mate, nothing would make me happier than to catch a nice sized fish and let him see the photo to show him he`s been sniffing too much tippex ;-)

LOL, cheers Colin. I am going to be float fishing with a second rod so I dont end up sitting on my hands all day. Cheers for the tips. i`ll definitely take some corned beef with me.

Cheers Andy, while one day in the future I do fancy a go at piking, its one form of fishing I dont have the tackle for and dont want to attempt it unless I have someone more experienced with me to show me how to handle one safely (thats me AND the fish) and remove the lure/hooks. For now I`ll content myself with trying to catch a nice fish anything bigger than 5lb. I`m planning on using a medium/heavy feeder rod with matching reel and most likely 8lb mainline and a 6lb hair-rigged hooklength and either a semi-fixed method feeder or a free-running leger. I haven`t a clue how I`ll do but I`m confident I`ll come back and have a story or two to tell. Cheers for all the kind words and support lads. You really are the best bunch

Cheers John, I`m truly touched by so much goodwill. I agree that the only way to learn to handle/land a bigger fish is to catch one and learn as you go. I`m confident in my ability and common sense so I hope now that I can catch a nice sized fish and thank you all by showing you a photo!

LOL, he lives in the same town as my parents so I dont fancy winding him up further ;-)

Cheers fruit, this is music to my ears. I promise to let you know how I get on. And if I catch something decent I`ll take a photo for you all to see, and especially the other chap who seems to think I`m not up to it

Cheers Budgie, thats just what i needed to hear. I dont possess or intend to ever use a keepnet so thats no problem. I was pretty hurt by this guy`s attitude to be honest but didnt know if I was being overly-sensitive or whether he was being a bit elitist as you call it. I dont ever profess to know everything but I spend all my spare time reading about fishing techniques in all the angling magazines and on the web. I had a good couple of legering lessons from an uncle who`s now sadly had to go back to Oz but he grounded me well in legering so as long as I get my rig and bait right (and use a half-decent rod and reel) then I`m confident I`ll do well and wont be risking any harm to any of the fish. Thanks again, its really appreciated.

I`ve got an awkward situation on another more local forum to me where another member has affectively told me I shouldn`t fish at the place I`m plannning on fishing a week on Monday as it contains some large carp and seeing as I have no experience of catching/landing/unhooking or handling them that even if I`m not looking to catch any of these that I should still give it a miss. His tone was rather condescending to be honest and although I`m a born again fisherman I like to think I possess common sense and a sense of serious fish welfare. I`ve e-mailed someone who works at this lake asking for their advice on rigs and whether they think I should fish one of the smaller lakes. I was planning on fishing with a medium/heavy feeder rod, a matching reel and either using a free-running leger rig or a free-running inline method feeder. Both using lower breaking strength hooklinks than the main line. I`ll be using an unhooking mat, wont be bullying any fish into my landing net and intend to act sensibly. Question is, am i being oversensitive to this guys comments or was he being a bit over-zealous with his advice? I dont for one moment think I know it all. I have much to learn but I know the basics and like to think if I hooked a fish heavier than 10lb I`d play it sensibly and land it without too many problems. The lake I`m planning on fishing has the below info on the fish in it:- This lake is around 5 acres in size and has 30 pegs, it has been substantially restocked with roach,rudd, carp and bream. It is open for pleasure anglers and match fishing. This lake is starting to become quite popular for carping now that the stocked fish are growing on. The average size expected would be between 4lb - 8lb, although a lot of doubles are beginning to show now and mid twenties have been caught. There is a car park, conveniently located next to the lake, so you can drive right to it. Does anyone have any advice for me?

Chaps and lasses, I`m probably going to do one more days fishing (young family and late working wife limit opportunities sadly) and fancy a day at Stanwick lakes Fishery which is less than 30 minutes drive from where I live in northampton. Has anyone fished here recently or in the past? i`m planning on fishing on the Swan lake a week on monday. Cheers in advance. Alan

I agree Noodle. Something definitely deeply wrong there. I bet his wife and daughter are reveling in the fact the whole fishing world knows they have vibrators and that their dad/husband has nabbed them for catching pike! Hmmmm!

Chaps, still being relatively new to the sport I`m wondering if the onset of Autumn and Winter sees fishing for anything but Pike much more difficult or not. I went fishing yesterday to a lake in Milton Keynes then after 2 hours of nothing moved to another one near Olney. In 6 hours of fishing I caught 3 small perch and 3 small roach. Is it just a simple fact that the colder more unsettled weather makes fish less likely to feed or is it the case that tactics have to be changed and that the fishing can still be good even in the colder months? I dont fish much and probably wont get the chance to fish again for at least 3 more weeks but dont know if I`m wasting my time or not. I dont know if I should fish on the grand union canal and hope to fare better. Whats everyone`s opinion on it all? I think I have much to learn so am grateful for any views/advice. Cheers Alan

Hi mate, I live in Northampton and work in MK and know a little about Bedford but not much about lakes, rivers and other waterways sadly. What I did find from searching on Gogole was this below, it does say it is free to fish but doesn`t mention Chub sadly..... River Great Ouse, Bedford Embankment, Bedford, Beds Location - Coarse Fishing from several access points in Bedford town centre Species - Bream, Dace, Roach, Perch Directions - Off A603 and A5140 in Bedford town centre References - OS LR: T153, grid TL 057494 Parking - Parking in pay and display area

I partially agree. My 2 year old is desperate to come fishing but is very hyperactive so it would be a real headache preventing him from falling in the lake/river/canal or hooking himself. My wife isnt that interested but if I could persuade her to give it a try and get her hooked it`d be great as it`d open up a lot more opportunities. I`ve had such a long absence from fishing and am so eager to fish that its really getting me down having so few opportunities to go.

You`re not sad. I have a wife and a young child and opportunities to fish are depressingly limited. The weather`s gorgeous and it seems everywhere I look when driving I see people fishing and its driving me bonkers. I have to make do with watching a fishing programme on Sky (when my 2 year old will let me!), reading a fishing magazine or reading the posts on here.

Not unless the sheer size of their gill net is so big that they`re planning on catching a massive amount of fish to sell in their shop they own. It appears the authorities have badly misjudged this case and missed a cracking chance to lay down a marker for all the other vermin that get away with this sort of crime. A £60 fine is utterly disgraceful. I know the boat was confiscated but I thought the fine for taking fish without a rod license was far greater than a pitiful £60. You cna bet your bottom dollar I`d get a much heftier fine were I catch and release fishing without a rod license. The mind truly boggles sometimes.