Chris Plumb

River Kennet - Hambridge 1800 - 2030 Cool (14ºC or there-abouts), overcast with drizzly rain at times for the first hour. River down and inch or so on 3 weeks ago but still with good flow for this time of year. 3 Chub: 2lb 15oz, 1lb 11oz & a chublet. 30+ Dace & Roach - in roughly equal numbers - slightly more roach. Nothing particularly big - a couple of the dace were in the 6-8oz bracket - but good to see so many 'silvers' in the river. 3 Gudgeon (also a welcome sight - they seem to be getting rarer!). 1 Bleak. 2 Brownies (small) and a 2lb+ Rainbow. Bigger chub first cast - followed by a good hour or so of a 'fish a chuck'. Great sport - though of course a barbel on the float from the fast gravel runs (which is what I might have hoped for a decade ago!) would have been an even more welcome sight!

Willows Lake - Thatcham 1400 - 2015 Bright and breezy (actually blowing a hoolie!), clouding over with persistent rain from 1730 and much cooler - making for a thoroughly unpleasant evening! 4 Tench; 2lb7oz & 3 small uns. 4 Roach - all a 'nice' size, the one I weighed went 12oz the other 3 weren't much smaller. 5 Rudd. (And no carp - don't think I even had a bite from one) So there are some 'silvers' in Willows as well (Have these rudd been recently stocked???) Again was hoping for a crucian to put in an appearance but bite detection was a nightmare in the very heavy chop - was boss eyed by the end. In truth I should have had a lot more - missed loads of bites and bumped at least as many fish as I landed. Had planned to fish well into dark - but the 'I'll be glad when I've had enough of this' moment corresponded with the rain abating (but not the wind!!!) and a hot bath was suddenly way more enticing than another 4 hours getting mesmerised and cold!

Alders Lake - Thatcham 1830 - 2300 Coolish, overcast with rain from 8-9pm - not a good evening to forget the brolly - had taken it out of my quiver as a weight reduction measure for my roving session at Brimpton last weekend and forgot to put it back in! Temps down to 13ºC when I packed up. 3 Tench: 3lb 13oz, 2lb 5oz and a small-un. 5 Rudd, 1 Roach, 1 Perch. Damp but rewarding session - first time for a while I've had any 'silvers' from here. Also had a crayfish which is also a first for me from this lake, though I know others have complained of them. Most fish during daylight - little action after 2130 (which again is unusual) - just the small tench and the roach (and the signal!) in the last hour and a half.

River Kennet - Brimpton 0500 - 1200 Cool, bright start - becoming VERY windy and showery. AT never above 16ºC - so the fleece never came off! River with good flow and a little colour. 1 Chub 2lb 2oz. 6 Dace - a couple of chunky ones (6-8oz). 1 Grayling - circa 10-12oz. 10 Brownies - most around 12oz with a couple much bigger to 2½lb. Pleasant mornings trotting despite the wind and I also had a couple of fruitless hours ledgering meat - without a touch (not even from the crayfish). Rather too many trout for my liking but did at least get a chub from the 4th swim I dropped into. 1st choice banker swim still out of action due to fallen tree!

Harris Lake - Marsh Farm, Milford 0000 - 0500 Clear, quite cool, still with some breeze. 11ºC - but felt chillier. 5 Crucians: 3 over 2lb - 2-13, 2-11 & 2-04. 10 Tench: most in the 2-3lb class. Biggest 2 went 6-05 & 4-04. 1 Perch. If the previous 10 hours angling had been frustrating the next 4 were totally frenetic. Fishing right under my rod tip in the margins my float fished prawn sections were taken within minutes of casting out each time. What was slightly curious was the 'catching order'. I started off with 5 tench - then had all the crucians in quick succession - only for them to be pushed out again by the tincas. Day break saw an abrupt end to the action ( I think I only caught one fish after 0415 - which was the 6lb tench) and by 5 o'clock I was staring at a completely stationary float without a hint of what had preceded!

Johnsons Lake - Milford 1300 - 2315 Bright and sunny - though felt surprisingly chilly in the shade and into a stiffish breeze. 5 Tench; Biggest 4lb 11oz I've had a trip here every June since 2014 and over the past 6 years haven't failed to get one (usually several!) of the lakes famously big crucians (even getting a PB last June). So it was more in expectation than hope for a repeat performance. I had reckoned on picking a Monday would find the venue a little less busy - a total miscalulation - the place was rammed and dropping into the only free swim on the railway bank was a little deflating. To make matters worse little was being caught - not that I was unduly worried as I intended to fish well into the evening - often the best time AND return the following morning after a kip in the car. By 9.00pm, however, I'd had just one (descernible) bite resulting in what would prove to be the biggest tinca of the session. Not a hint of a crucian - least not that I could detect with the heavy chop on the water. Bites did pick up a bit as it got dark - but it resulted in just more tench. Plan A was thus abandoned and at the allotted kicking off time I nipped next door instead of having 3 hours of fitful sleep in the car!

Dobsons Lake - Widmead 1500 - 0600 Mainly overcast with drizzly showers - Cool 12-15ºC. 2 Carp; 10lb 10oz & 6lb 3oz. 1 Bream; 5lb 6oz. 6 Perch. 1 Roach. Slow, slow night, punctuated on the stroke of 1am by a rather nice common - the only time my bite alarm indicated a fish in the whole session. All the other fish fell to float fished maggot on the marginal shelf (I was hoping to connect with some of the tench that had been showing recently!) Of course I wasn't even meant to be here today - this was the day pencilled in for the 5th Paul Goulbourn charity fish-in at Marsh Farm - which has had to be postponed due to Covid 19 - hopefully the re-arranged date in August will still happen! Ignore date on camera for carp pic - it's still on GMT!

Alders Lake - Thatcham 1830 - 2230 Cool, overcast evening after a day of persistent rain. 14ºC all evening but felt cooler facing the breeze (which at least kept any mossies away!) 7 (!) Tench; 4 small ones (last year's stocking?) and 3X3lbers - biggest 3lb 8oz. Well I wasn't expecting that! It's taken a while since the fish kill 15 years ago and the remodelling of this lake - but if this is the sport now on offer then all the effort has not been in vain! I hadn't even planned to fish here today but I didn't really fancy standing on the river bank in the pouring rain. Bites and fish straight away - though 2 of the 3 bigger ones came after 2130 as it was getting dark. All fish on float fished maggot - took prawn but didn't use them.

River Kennet - Widmead 0845 - 1145 Warm & Sultry. 1 Chub: 1lb 10oz, 21 Dace - with around a third 8oz or better - weighed a couple, both at 10oz and had another 4 or 5 that weren't much smaller. 1 Grayling - small. 3 Brownies - a pounder and 2 tiddlers. Having exhausted my first swim it was off to another spot a mile or so downstream - and a haul of cracking dace. This swim 'looks' very chubby so it was nice to have that confirmed - all be it right at the end of the session - it was the last fish caught - a good 30 mins after my last dace.

River Kennet - Hambridge 0500 - 0800 Cool, misty start - though quickly warmed up. River at normal levels and carrying a surprising amount of colour - didn't think there would have been much boat traffic to colour it up. 1 Pike; 9lb 6oz, 2 Chub; 3lb 3oz & a pounder. 1 Dace. 2 Brownies one that must have been close to 2lb and a tiddler. I had planned an evening session on a stillwater for today - but weather warnings for thunderstorms this evening saw me up at the crack of dawn again and standing up to my thighs in river water trickling in maggots at 0445 hoping to get a shoal of chub feeding with abandon. Last night when I got my gear ready for today I lobbed a box of plugs into my fishing bag - remembering I often get pike trouble fishing this swim in the summer. Within 10 minutes of starting to fish I was tackling up my feeder rod with one of it's contents. As planned the 15 minute prebaiting resulted in a chub first cast quickly followed by a dace - and as I lifted it into my hand to unhook a pike jumped clear trying (and failing) to snatch it. 3rd run through with a floating lure and I had a very aggresive take - again just as I was about to lift to recast. A brief but lively battle followed before I had her on the bank - my first deliberately caught Esox in a while (I usually get a few each winter perch fishing!). After all this excitement further action was hard to come by until I eventually snaffled another chub before the swim was again trashed by a couple of splashy trout.

Middle Kennet Weirpool - Marsh Benham 0500 - 1100 Warm, sunny and quite humid - temps already 15º C when I pulled into the car park at 0430. A lovely summer's morning - though the mossies were out in force! 10 Chub; 7 over pound, with 2 over 4lb - biggest 4lb 9oz. 2 doz Dace and Roach - in roughly equal nos - slightly more dace than redfins - nothing particularly big, though most of the roach were 'hand-size' or better. 1 Perch; under lb but needed the net, 1 Rainbow - c3lb. Throughout my teens and early 20s - 16th June was always spent on a weirpool on the lower Kennet - and this is now the 2nd year running I've started my season here - on a nice quiet spot above Newbury. Chub, as always, were a first day target and they didn't disappoint - nice to get a brace of 4s - they looked in fine condition too. Took a ledgering rod - and again not a sniff on ledgered meat - they clearly prefer maggot!

Willows Lake - Thatcham 1830 - 2300 Coolish, overcast evening though temps didn't really drop when it got dark - 14ºC. 2 Carp; 8lb 5oz & 7lb 11oz Entertaining evening as both fish took an age to land on lightish tackle and float rod (I was after crucians as per usual!). Thankfully there are few snags and you can wear them out at distance with the only jeopardy being when you get them close in to net and they seem to realise there are tree roots available! Was hoping that dusk might bring some action from my target species - but saw little evidence of them....

Might give it a go - tis a nice part of the world!

Warwicks Water - Thatcham 1800 - 2300 Warm sticky evening - shirtsleeves weather - apart from the mossies! 1 Tench; 2lb 7oz. 2 doz+ Roach & Perch (2-1 in favour of roach) - all small - save for a couple of perch which might have pushed 6-8oz. Started off float fishing maggot - a plan that I was quickly dissuaded from - as the float never had time to cock before I had a fish on. So within half an hour I'd switched to corn and settled down to an evening watching a stationary float. With the light fading I switched to prawn sections - hoping this wouldn't be a magnet for the perch! Thankfully the only bite came a little after 2200 just as I was contemplating packing up when without warning the float shot under and a muscular male tench was the result. This success prompted me to stay another hour without so much as a flicker of further activity.

I hear the new owners are doing a lot of work at BC - and have closed the river to coarse anglers in the winter. Good luck if you go - I don't think I've even seen the lake at BC - what's in it?

Alders Lake - Thatcham 1800 - 2230 Warm, slightly overcast evening with little breeze - still 17ºC when I left. 3 Bream - all of a similar stamp between 2¾ - 3½lb. Beginning to make a habit of this!! Bites at a premium - not a touch for the first 2 hours or so then all three fish between 8.30 - 9.30pm as a shoal of bream obviously got their heads down over some groundbait. Quite a few fish topping as it got dark but no more action. Stayed for another biteless hour hoping for a tench or 2 to show up...

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-australia-52751812/sharks-everywhere-angler-films-feeding-frenzy-in-australia C.

Willows Lake - Thatcham 1400 - 2200 Warm and sunny with a nice breeze to keep the mozzies away! 1 Tench: 3lb 13oz. 2 Carp: 5lb 11oz & 4lb 6oz. A rare (very - I usually have a bit of a break in the spring) 'closed season' outing - a trip to cure the lockdown blues! Just wanted to sit on the bank and watch a float for a few hours not even so bothered about catching! As usual I set my stall out to try and snaffle one of the lake's big but scarce crucians and as the tackle shop had no maggots it was straight out with the float fished prawn sections a rod length (or less) from the bank. Bright conditions did not make for good sport and I didn't get a bite until gone 6.00pm when the bigger carp snaffled the bait. There then followed a really frustrating evening - lots of sail-away 'un-missable' bites which had my striking into thin air - it happened time and time again - think fish must have been attacking the shot. The only time I did connect it was another carp until finally just before 2200 a dithering sort of a bite resulted in the lovely plump tinca - can't remember catching one bigger in Willows at least not for the last 20 years. And just as I slipped her back the International Space Station passed overhead! A lovely evening all round.

Ditto! I'm avid reader of angling literature – with a veritable little angling library of close to 200 books (plus every Waterlog & Fallon’s Angler ever published) and not a ‘How to…’ book in sight. Below is my all time top 10 angling books (at the moment!) – with the self imposed limit of one per author. So in no particular order (apart from alphabetical by author…) The Glorious Uncertainty – John Aston. Real toss up between this And a Dream of Jewelled Fishes – John’s 1st book – both are superb – but this one just shades it for me. Reflections from the Waters Edge - John Bailey. I have most of Bailey’s books – but this early one is still my favourite. I know a Good Place – Clive Gammon. Great travel book and angling read rolled into one. Death, Taxes and Leaky Waders. John Gierach. If you’ve never read any of this American author – start here – it’s a best of from several of his books. Fish, Fishing and the Meaning of Life – ed Jeremy Paxman. I love a good anthology – in fact they warrant a top 10 of their own – this one is superb and for me just beats BB’s The Fisherman’s Bedside Book. Somewhere Else – Charles Rangeley-Wilson. Again another cracking travel book as well as great angling story-telling. Rod and Line – Arthur Ransome. A classic which still stands the test of time. An Angler for all Seasons - H T Sheringham. When Chris Yates first appeared on the literary scene he was often given the sobriquet ‘the best angling writer since Sheringham’. This book is a compendium of some of his best writing – and like the Ransome book still fresh today! Red Letter Days – Various. A lovely read – compiled as a tribute to Bernard Venables – 48 contributors with illustrations from John Searl. Probably the book I've re-read the most! The Deepening Pool – Chris Yates. I could have packed out the whole top 10 with CY tomes – I have every angling book he’s ever published. However this is easily my favourite - being a mainly river angler myself. Fantastic Yates prose coupled with his own photography – sublime! Always interested to hear of other recommendations... C.

Chesters - think the author of that WAS a Brit... C.

Apologies if this has been put up before (I did search for it but couldn't find it here) - its about a year old now but still a rather good summary... Here is Nate White’s answer to the question, “Why do some British people not like Donald Trump.” It’s written so well, so strongly, that I wonder whether an intelligent rebuttal could ever be done.

Yes it was Steve - trout were a bit of a nuisance this winter - seemed to have bullied the chub from their usual haunts!

And so another season comes to a close - not a bad one despite the wet weather disrupting several plans over the autumn and winter (including the annual Itchen IAC fish-in). I did at least get a PB this year. Still no barbel,though there is a planned trip to the Wye to try and rectify that in 2020 - and the season finished strongly with 3 SB's in the last 4 days. Biggest Carp. 15lb 8oz, 28th June. Ledgered pellet - Method Feeder. Jubilee Lake - Thatcham. My now annual trip to try and get a half decent carp! Biggest Tench. 7lb 7oz. 19th June. Float fished prawn section. Johnsons Lake - Milford. Only 3 oz off my PB. Biggest Chub. 6lb 3oz. 12th March. Trotted red sweetcorn. Middle Kennet. 2nd season in succession I've had a 6lb chub - after a 7 year spell without one. Biggest Bream. 4lb 3oz. 16th June. Trotted maggot. River Kennet - Marsh Benham. Turned up an a favoured chub swim on the first day of the season. Biggest Crucian. 3lb 14oz. 19th June. Floated fished prawn section. Johnsons Lake - Milford. Only PB of the season - though I was actually slightly disappointed - as I was convinced it would go 4lb! Biggest Pike. 3lb 9oz. 30th December. Float fished lob. Kennet & Avon canal - Woolhampton. Common 'by-catch' when perching! Biggest Perch. 2lb 13oz. 11th March. Float fished lob. Kennet & Avon canal - Woolhampton. The search for new perch hotspots continues! Biggest Grayling. 1lb 15oz. 14th October. Trotted maggot - Lower Itchen Fishery. Dreadful season for grayling - rivers were out of sorts due to flooding from early autumn onwards - meant this was the first season since 2000/01 that I didn't get a 2lber! Biggest Dace. 14oz. 12th March. Trotted maggot. Middle Kennet. Usual dace hotspot produced the goods again! Biggest Roach. 14oz. 27th October. Trotted maggot. Northcroft Stream - Newbury

River Kennet - Hambridge 0945 - 1445 Mainly cloudy with sunny spells and light drizzly showers. River still full to bursting, not dropped at all! 3 Chub: 4lb 13oz, 3lb 4oz & a tiddler. 3 Dace - all small, 1 Grayling. 3 Brownies (all around 8oz) and a 2lb rainbow! Plan for the last day was for a Double Header in the hunt for a big chub - morning at Brimpton and the afternoon here. But having trekked ¾mile with chesties and full pack I turned around and walked straight back to the car (arriving rather hot and sweaty!) - the reason - a tree had come down bang smack in the middle of where I wanted to fish - poo! So a quick hop upstream - to another favourite flood swim and the session was topped and tailed by the 2 bigger chub - 4lber first cast and the 3 pretty much last - certainly last fish of the season.

Kennet & Avon Canal - Enborne 1430 - 1800 Still bright and breezy with a brief drizzly shower. AT down to 8ºC when I packed up. 10 Perch; 6 over 1lb - best 3, 1lb11oz, 1lb 14oz, 2lb0oz.12 Roach - all small & 3 Bleak At last some bigger perch - with the odd exception I've had loads of perch around the 1lb mark this winter from different parts of the K&A - I obviously found a different year class today as the pounders were all over 1lb 4oz.