Chris Plumb
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River Kennet - Brimpton 1230 - 1500 Warm and mainly sunny. AT19ºC. River with good flow (for mid autumn) and a tinge of colour. 3 Chub: 3lb 6oz, 2lb 15oz and a 'pounder'. Hooray NO trout! Both my 'banker' chub swims gave up a fish and nothing with an adipose fin - which makes a change - first time this season that I haven't caught a spottie from here - long may it continue!
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Who knew there was such a thing! https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/in-pictures-67004896
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Kennet & Avon Canal - Enborne 0700 - 0900 Warm, calm and overcast. A lovely, benign autumn morning - perfect perching weather! AT 11º-14ºC 10 Perch: 7 over 1lb (6 over 1½lb). Best 3: 2lb 13oz, 2lb 6oz & 2lb 4oz After Monday's false start (on the Perch front at least) it was a first visit of the season to a more reliable perch venue - though one that didn't produce a 2lber for me last season. That was all put right in the first ½ hour when I had 6 perch from my first 6 casts - including all 3, 2lbers. Bites then suddenly stopped - and it was soon apparent why - Mr Esox - which chased in one of the smaller perch and then bit me off precipitating a, slightly earlier than planned, pack up! Biggest of the morning.
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Looking back through my diaries - this is the biggest tench I've had from this water.....
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Warwicks Water - Thatcham 0700 - 1300 Warm, calm and overcast (though a thunderstorm rolled in just after I packed up ) AT 16º-18ºC 2 Tench: 5lb 14oz, 2lb 2oz. Doz+ Perch: all fairly small. Reports of big stripeys had me starting my autumn perch campaign on this rarely fished and somewhat neglected pond. It was always going to be a case of trying to avoid the small perch and hope a biggie turned up. However I thought I'd hit the jackpot first cast - my float hadn't even cocked properly when it sailed away and I was into something putting a good bend in the rod. I was just thinking 'well that was easy' when the smaller tench rolled into the net. Not quite what I was after but an autumn tinca is always welcome. There then followed a couple of hours of small perch - nothing to trouble the scales and some barely bigger than the whole lob they took. The tench weren't finished with me however and for the second time I thought I was into a good perch - though this would have been a REALLY good perch! Not a Perch Also not a Perch!
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https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-dorset-66949492
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Middle Kennet (& Carrier) - Marsh Benham 0700 - 1400 Bright and sunny after overnight rain. AT 14º-16ºC. River at normal levels with a tinge of colour. 12 Chub; 6 over a lb - best 3lb 6oz, and half a doz chublets. 8 Perch; 1lb 12oz & 7 small-uns. 1 Bream 2lb 2oz. 30 Roach & Dace (more roach), 'a' roach of 12oz the only noteworthy fish. 1 Bleak. 1 Rainbow - unwelcome as ever but a real lump @5lb 10oz. All out attempt at trying to snaffle some bigger chub and avoid the smaller fish (at least initially) so it was out with the trotted red sweetcorn for the first time this autumn. Seemed to work - though i would have liked something a little bigger. First 2 fish on corn were actually the bigger perch and the bream.The only noteworthy roach also snaffled my sweetcorn offering. I caught a pike on sweetcorn from this venue a couple of seasons ago - seems like the predators are going vegan! Most fish from the main river. Vegan Perch
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Willows Lake - Thatcham 1730 - 2200 Warm(ish!) with a pleasant southerly breeze to keep the mossies and dew away. High cloud - but not enough to mask a bright gibbous moon. AT 20º-14ºC 2 Carp: 11lb 6oz & 8lb 2oz. 2 perch - small. Last evening here this summer (probably!) and first time this season I haven't caught a tench from this lake. Smaller carp was early doors (though preceded by the two micro-perch) and I then spent 2 hours staring intently at a stationary starlite - willing it to go under. Eventually I started flicking in bits of bread in the margins and it wasn't long before they started to get sucked under - so a quick switch to my carp rod and my dapped bit of bread was taken instantly - resulting in my only 'deliberately' caught carp of the summer! Not quite what I came here for - but needs must! Everything then went quite again and after another hour or so staring at a red spot in the lake and with the breeze starting to have a chilling effect on my bones I opted for a slightly earlier than planned pack up!
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River Kennet - Speen Moors 1045 - 1430 Bright and breezy with one light shower (and one cloudburst to finish!). AT 15ºC. River 'full' and with some colour - though not as much as below Newbury. 5 Chub: 2lb 7oz, a couple of 'pounders' and a couple of chublets. 3 Perch; 2@1lb 6oz (definitely different fish) and one of around 10-12oz. A dozen Roach - quite a few chunky ones. 2 Dace, 1 Gudgeon. 1 Trout parr. First visit here this season and the thundery showers kept me to the weir-pools. Had planned to recce up Parliament Draft but blackening skies and rumbles of thunder in the distance had me packing up early and route marching back to the car - failing by around 100 yards to get there before the heavens opened and I was lashed with hail and rain....
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River Kennet - Hambridge 1400 - 1630 Bright with thundery showers. AT 15ºC. River up 10 inches on my last trip (I measured it!) and quite coloured up. 1 Bream; 2lb 4oz. 2 Perch 1¼lb and one around half that. 10 Roach - all handsized. 2 Dace. 2 Gudgeon. With 37mm of rain yesterday (1½inches in old money) making it the 9th wettest day in the last 20 years - locally, I wasn't surprised to see the Kennet close to winter flood levels. Perfect excuse to drop into my favourite flood swim for a couple of hours between the showers. No chub in residence but the Perch and Bream both came in the opening 20 minutes and the roach were a nice size too. Unfortunately there was also a pike occupying the slack which kept attacking my float on the retrieve - but thankfully didn't snaffle any of my roach...
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I hate rainbows even more than browns - not meant to be in the river in the first place plus they don't fight like trout so you think you're landing something decent until you see that flash of pink -
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Middle Kennet (& carrier) - Marsh Benham 0600 - 1230 Hot and muggy. AT 18ºC - 28ºC. River a little on the low side but not at all bad for September. 12 Chub; A couple of around ¾-1lb - the rest all juveniles of around 6 inches. 1 Bream: 3lb 14oz. 50 Roach & Dace (more roach) - nothing especially noteworthy. 5 Perch - all small. 2 Rainbow's; 3½ & 4½lbs. Early start to try and make the most of the cool of the morning - but didn't really feel it after the long hike to my swims! Most fish from the weirpool - where there was also lots of predator activity and I also had a bit of pike trouble - played one for an age which took my maggots - but it eventually snapped me - and had to stop fishing another swim as my catch kept getting snaffled!
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Some super shots - though there's no way the heron is swallowing a crucian carp! https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/in-pictures-66706149
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Harris Lake, Marsh Farm Fishery, Milford 1500 - 2300. Hot and sunny with a stiffish southerly breeze - clear, warm evening. AT 28ºC and still 17ºC when I left. 7 Tench; best 6lb on the nose plus a variety of sizes (1X5lb+, 2X4lb+, 2X3lb+, 1X2lb+). 2 Crucians; 2lb 6oz, 1lb 13oz & 1lb 11oz. 20+ Roach up to 10oz. 3 Rudd - all around 8-10oz, 1 Perch- small. The return of summer put me in the mood for some more crucian fishing - though in truth they didn't get much of a look-in amongst the tench. Both smaller crucians in daylight but once it started to get dark the tench moved in - despite me giving them NO free offerings! Thankfully tinca time was over by 10pm and my only bite in the last hour came from the bigger crucian. Biggest tench from here since 2020....
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River Kennet - Hambridge 1600 - 2230 Overcast, breezy and quite cool - clearing to reveal great views of the blue super moon! AT 17ºC - 12ºC. River a little on the low side... 1 Chub: 4lb 13oz. 2 Perch 1lb 9oz & a tiddler. 5 Dace & 3 Roach (all small). 4 Gudgeon. 4 Brownies - all small. Evening session ledgering for barbel preceded by half an hour's trotting to inoculate me from a blank! I needn't have worried however, as the chub fell well into the dark on my ledgered pellet and gave a very good impression of a barbel in the fast current and giving that classic 'three foot twitch' when it picked up the bait. And whilst I love chub I was actually disappointed to pick this out with my head torch as I landed it as up to that point I was convinced I was getting my first decent beard from here in ages!
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River Kennet - Brimpton 1400 - 1700 Cool, overcast and breezy with fine drizzle for last hour. AT a decidedly autumnal 15ºC. River a little on the low side - but not out of the ordinary for late summer. 1 Chub- un-weighed but around a 1lb. 9 Dace - all quite chunky. 10 (!) brownies all around 8-10oz with one a tad bigger. DAMN TROUT! Rare foray to the lower and slower stretches of this venue - but not before starting in my 2 'banker' chub swims - where the trout were insatiable - can't help thinking they'd been recently stocked - all a remarkably similar size. Dace from a swim at the bottom which warrants a bit more attention methinks!
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River Kennet & Carrier - Marsh Benham 0700 - 1330 Warm and sunny (after a cool start) and with a very helpful couple of hours overcast from 9-11am - bites at a premium once this burnt off! AT 11º - 24ºC. River at normal levels with a tinge of colour. 3 Chub: 4lb 4oz, 3lb 1oz, 1lb 13oz. 7 Perch - 1lb 15oz the rest all quite small. 2 doz+ Dace - various sizes with quite a few chunky ones - biggest went 12oz and had another 4 or 5 around the 8oz mark. 15 Roach - all small. 1 Bleak. 1 Brownie - unweighed but easily over 3lb - probably pushing 4.... Super morning's sport - wandered around quite a bit and had fish from several different swims - smaller chub from the carrier - largest one plus the biggest perch from the weir pool. Had a curious little episode - when landing the bigger perch - one of it's smaller brethren swam into the net with it!! One of the maggots had been blown up the hook length and I think it was chasing that !
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Alders Lake - Thatcham 1730 - 2230 Bright and breezy. AT 20º - 15ºC. 4 Bream: 4lb 8oz, 4lb 5oz, 4lb 2oz, 3lb 10oz. 4 Tench: 4lb 3oz, 3lb 3oz X2(different fish I think!), 2lb 11oz. 2 Carp: unweighed but both around 1½lb. 6 Perch; - most around 6-8oz. 2 Rudd. A very busy evening with bites and fish from the off - smallest Bream was actually first cast!. Bites tailed off after dark - only one fish after 9pm - exact opposite of what usually happens. All fish on float fished prawn (of course!). Annoyingly I also got smashed 3 times by the lake's rogue (they were never meant to be stocked in here) carp - the third time after scaling up to a 6lb bottom - which was still snapped like cotton! Still - one of my best returns on this lake - good thing I remembered my stink bag for my net and mat!
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River Kennet - Hambridge 1230 - 1530 Warm and overcast after heavy rain this morning (15mm in 3 hrs). AT 19º-23ºC. River up a tad and with a bit of colour after said rains! 2 Chub: 4lb 5oz & 3lb 11oz. 9 Dace and a Roach - all small. 6(!!) Gudgeon. 3 Trout parr. I had intended to spend today on my syndicate stretch further upstream - but torrential rains this morning put paid to that idea. It's not really a venue for a short session as it takes me over an hour from door to swim so it was back to old reliable which is a mere 20 minutes away and I could drop into my banker swim without having to undertake major tree clearance first! Both chub from here - though over an hour apart after resting and returning - and those gudgeon certainly are making a comeback - can't remember when I last had half a dozen in a session!
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Willows Lake - Thatcham 1730 - 2230 Warm and overcast - clearing. No breeze so copious amounts of DEET required to keep the mossies at bay! AT 23º-17ºC 2 Tench; 4lb 7oz & 4lb 3oz. 2 Carp; 8lb 6oz & 6lb 11oz First evening this summer on here when the carp have been a nuisance. Along with the 2 I landed I lost another 3 to hook pulls - two after lengthy fights and getting close to netting - ho hum they weren't what I was after any hows! Thankfully there was a lull in carp interest for around an hour either side of 9pm when the tinca's got a look-in and I had 2 fish in 2 consecutive casts just as it got dark.
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Let's hope so - was nice to see a couple of grayling too!
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River Kennet - Hambridge 1130 - 1330 Dull and drizzly - quite breezy too. AT 16ºC. River still with nice flow for late summer. 1 Chub: 4lb 1oz, 11 Dace & 3 Roach - all small. 3 Gudgeon, 2 Grayling c6oz, 1 Perch - small, 2 brownies (ditto). Mrs P at the hairdressers was an opportunity to return here with a bigger saw to do some more 'gardening'! And of course I wasn't going to pass up the chance to wet a line for an hour or so.... Nice chub first cast - followed by the usual mixed bag!
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River Kennet - Hambridge 1300 - 1600 Warm and muggy. AT 25ºC. River still with good levels for mid August! 3 Chub: 3lb 13oz, 3lb 0oz and one of around ¾-1lb. 8 Roach & 8 Dace - all small. 2 Gudgeon. 1 Brownie- small. Friday afternoons - I am 'persona non grata' at home as Mrs P has a coffee afternoon with her friends - a tradition that goes back over 30 years (it was originally her post-natal group!) so Friday's are going to be a regular fishing day now that I have retired. Today, however I did more tree surgery than fishing - as 2 willows had come down across my favourite swim. Thankfully I keep a hand saw in my fishing bag - but it still took 45 minutes to gain access to the water! When it was time to fish I reasoned the commotion would have put fish down so I rested the spot and started elsewhere. Returning an hour later - with a few tiddlers including a rare gudgeon to show for my efforts, both 3lb chub came almost instantly followed by a steady stream of 'silvers'. A Kennet gonk - rarer than a 3lb chub!
