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  1. Harris Lake - Marsh Farm Fishery - Milford 1430 - 2300 Hot and sunny with a warm southerly breeze all evening - very welcome as it kept the mossies and dew at bay. AT 25º and still 18ºC when I left. 5 Crucians: 3lb 4oz, 2lb 14oz, 2lb 10oz, 2lb 3oz, 1lb 13oz. 9 Tench - various sizes from barely a lb up to a best of 4lb 14oz. 16 Rudd - all handsized with 3 netters of around 10-12oz. 5 Roach& 6 perch - all small. Fabulous evening's sport. Only my second trip over to Milford this season and whilst the pre-occupation with tench in one of my local club lakes has saved me a bit of petrol money this summer - it has been at the expense of catching another of my favourite species - crucians! So today was all about rectifying that - and the evening got off to a great start with the 2-10 the first on the scene - just as I was taking a first bite into a sandwich for my tea! I then had to wait a couple of hours for my next bite (from a fish!)- but it resulted in a new lake best Crucian for me! I have been fishing this lake since 2007 and had a 3lb 3oz fish on that first visit - which I haven't bettered from here since! There then followed a frenetic evening as it got dark and as the tench moved in - though there was still time for 3 more crucians - the last one (and smallest) part of a double hook up just before 11pm which got me into a bit of a tangle and prompted an end to proceedings - though I'd already said to myself 'pack up next fish or 11pm whichever comes first'!
  2. Harris Lake - Marsh Farm, Milford 0730 - 2315 Hot, sunny and sultry. AT around 25ºC all day and still 18ºC when I drove off at a little before midnight. 11 Tench: various sizes from quite small bars of soap up to 5lb - biggest 5lb 3oz. 2 Crucians 2lb 4oz & 1lb 2oz. 30 Rudd - most handsized - with a few a bit bigger, the one I deemed worthy of the scales went 14oz. A dozen roach - all small. Annual gathering of the Internet Angling Club - to remember our departed friend Paul and raise a few pounds for Duchess of Kent Hospice. Unusually for an IAC fish-in everyone caught fish - there were tench aplenty. Crucians on the other hand were thin on the ground with only 4 anglers catching them during the day (mine came after dark). Best crucian of the day fell to Howard with a fish of 2lb 9oz (closely followed by Glenn - who usually blanks! - with a fish an ounce lighter). Howard also won in 2020 and is now the first to win this twice - so I'll be accepting bribes to give him an unfavourable swim next year! I caught 9 of my tench during the heat of the day but stuck it out with grim determination to get a cru and was rewarded with 2 in 2 casts a little after 2200 - the smaller fish followed by another exactly double that next cast - should have packed up there and then as all I got was more tench - and was then smashed in the lilies - prompting a pack up.
  3. Willows Lake - Thatcham 1900 - 0000 Warm, calm evening with high cloud clearing enough to have a good view of the International Space Station which passed overhead twice whilst I was on the bank. AT 25º -> 15ºC. Shirtsleeves all evening though copious amounts of DEET was required to keep the mossies at bay! 6 Tench: best 3lb 4oz, with another just shy of 3lb the other 4 around 1¼lb ±4oz. 1 Crucian; 1lb 7oz. 2 Carp; 8lb 4oz & 7lb 13oz. 1 Perch - small. A super evening, successfully NOT catching carp! Defaulted to my usually MF tactics of float fished prawn segments fished just off a lily bed and expecting to be annilihated by a carp at every cast. But every time the float dipped or (more usually) lifted (as I was using the lift method!) it resulted in a welcome tinca - or an even more welcome crucian. Nice to see the stocking of these a few years back starting to pack on some weight - first one I've had of this batch over 1lb - a super little fish with a typical high back demonstrating the phenotypic plasticity this species is famous for. By 2230 bites on the float had dried up (opposite to what usually happens) and I started to flick bits of bread into the margins by my feet. It wasn't long before there were slurps and swells as it got mopped up and it was simply a matter of dapping a bit of bread with a hook in and hanging on!
  4. Harris Lake - Marsh Farm, Milford 0600 - 0000 5 Tench; biggest 5lb 4oz the others 3-4lb. 7 Crucians; 5 over 1lb with a couple over 2 - best 2lb 4oz. A dozen+ rudd - most tiny with one of around 4-6 oz. Annual IAC get together in memory of Paul - a chance to catch up, raise some money for Duchess of Kent Hospice and this year, put a face to a name - Stephen Jackson who has been on the IAC list forever ventured down from Carlisle for his first IAC fish-in. A slow day angling wise - however and somewhat unusually for an IAC event most people actually caught a few - tench admitedly for most, but even Crucians turned up in quite a few different nets. Even Glenn caught - a tench AND a crucian! I had a few daylight fish as well so didn't have to rely on fishing on after dusk for angling redemption (which was just as well as it wasn't as reliable as expected!) The winner of the trophy for the biggest crucian was decided early doors with Geoff's first cast fish of 2lb 12oz though this was nearly eclipsed by a fish from Alex in the next swim just fractions of an ounce lighter! Even the weather behaved itself! Geoff's winning fish.
  5. 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!
  6. Johnson's Lake - Milford 1430 - 2315 Bright and sunny with a cooling NEly breeze which did a great job of keeping the mozzies at bay! AT 20º -> 10ºC. 5 Crucians - in order of capture: 3lb 7oz, 3lb 9oz, 3lb 8oz, 3lb 1oz, 4lb 2oz (NEW PB!) 8 Tench - biggest around 2½lb the rest less than half that! 1 Roach (1lb) (!), 4 Rudd - all between 6-10oz and a micro perch! WOW! Annual pilgrimage here pays off spectacularly - my first ever 4lb crucian and the first time I've ever had 5X3lbers in a session. All caught on small chopped prawn segments and all during daylight hours (the 4lber was landed just before 7pm) which meant I had even higher expectations for dusk. Alas, the tench moved in and proved to be a bit of a menace! (the carpers were complaining about them when I arrived!) A real Red Letter Day. Tired but elated this morning!
  7. Harris Lake, Marsh Farm - Milford 1600 - 0000 Cool (for late July!), 17ºC - 15ºC, very breezy (thanks to storm Evert) with a couple of brief flurries of rain - though precipitation had been much heavier prior to arrival. 23 (!!!?!!!) Crucians: 18 over 2lb (the other 5 all around 1¾lb - I had 2 @1-14). Best 5 went, 3lb 2oz, 2lb 15oz, 2lb 14oz, 2lb 12oz & 2lb 11oz. 7 Tench: best 4lb 2oz - the others all 2-3lbers. 1 Perch: unweighed but needed the net and easily ½lb. 2 Rudd (micro sized - both caught on a bare hook as I adjusted the shotting on my float at the start of the session!) WOW! Feast or Famine. I couldn't buy a bite here 6 weeks ago - and yet today caught nearly double the number of big crucians than I caught in the whole of last season - in fact looking back through my diaries I can't see a better return in the 15 years I've been coming to this venue. And to add to the fun they were all caught on the float - pretty much under my rod tip. Had planned for this to be a bit of an overnighter but by 9.00pm I already had 20 to my name (including all the bigger ones) and bites then actually tailed off a bit as it got dark - complete opposite to what nearly always happens here. Really frenetic evening - took 3 attempts to make myself a cup of tea as I kept having to turn the stove off to land a fish! All fish on chopped prawn - took maggot but didn't even put one on the hook!
  8. Harris Lake - Marsh Farm , Milford. 0630 - 2330 Warm (still 18ºC when I got home at 0100), overcast and DRY - despite the forecast and the downpours the day before. There was some VERY annoying light drizzle for the last hour or so - but overall conditions were very benign - thankfully! 2 Crucians; 3lb 1oz & 2lb 9oz. 4 Tench - 2@4lb+ - biggest 4lb 9oz. 3 Perch. A doz+ Rudd (micro!!) 3 Time lucky! This is the 3rd IAC fish-in I've organised in 2020 and the first one to actually take place. The Grayling day on the Itchen in Feb was cancelled due to Storm Dennis. The Marsh Farm fish-in in June was postponed due to Covid so was thankful this deferred date got off the ground. Covid depleted numbers (some not getting time off work having only recently returned from furlough) but it was as ever a social as much as a fish-in - and raising some money for Sue Ryder in memory of Paul. All the talk leading up to the day was on what the weather would bring - with 3 of the party also fishing the venue the day before and sitting out apocolyptic amounts of rain! Thankfully we had not a single drop of precipitation until well after dark when Brian and I were the only ones left - and some VERY annoying light drizzle set in! Fish during daylight hours were sparse - with Howard winning the day with the biggest crucian, caught by the cut-off, at 2lb 7oz. (He also had the 2nd best at 1lb 10oz). As usual on these days all my action came at dusk and once the 'offical' competition had finished - with a rather splendid (if somewhat obese!) crucian on the stroke of 9 o'clock weighing in an ounce over 3lb - my biggest from this venue for 7 years.
  9. Harris Lake - Marsh Farm - Milford 0000 - 0500 Cool and clear. (Thermo in the car was at 4ºC when I left - and it felt chuffing cold - thankfully the fish kept me busy!). Good night for observing the night sky - lots to see. ISS went over twice, perfect visibility of Jupiter, Saturn and Mars. Venus rising at dawn was stunning - and could clearly see Comet NEOWISE just before sunrise in the eastern sky - twas visible for around 20mins at around 0320 - and I even saw a stunningly long meteor. 4 Crucians; 3lb 0oz, 2lb 14oz, 1lb 13oz, 1lb 11oz. 8 Tench - 3 over 5lb (6 over 4lb) - best 5lb 8oz. Succesfull salvage operation especially as I had a couple of crucians that were of Johnsons proportions - my first 3lber from Harris since 2013! Again float fishing prawn sections very tight to marginal lillies - got off to a flyer with 6 fish in the first hour or so (mainly tench). Tried a different tactic of not loose feeding at all so as not to encourage the tench - didn't work! Bites did tail off a bit after this initial frenzy - but at least when the float did go under it resulted in more crucians - 3lber was one of the last fish of the session...
  10. 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!
  11. Harris Lake - Milford 1430 - 0430 Warm and muggy with a gentle breeze - clearing ovenight with temps down to 12ºC at dawn. 18 Crucians; 10 over 2lb - biggest 2lb 11oz. 11 Tench; 5 over 5lb - biggest 5lb 12oz. 6 Perch, 6 Roach, 1 Rudd. Very busy session with over half the fish caught in daylight (for a change). Everyting caught under my rod tips - float fishing with prawn and maggot weighing in equally with fish. Fed much more sparingly than usual which seemed to stop the tench arriving en masse!
  12. Johnsons Lake - Milford 1530 - 2315 Warm and sunny with quite a stiff breeze until dusk. 2 Crucians; 3lb 3oz, 2lb 15oz. 6 Tench - all over 3½lb - best 2; 5-12 & 5-02. 2 Carp (very small - one may have scrapped a pound the other less than half that!). 3 Rudd - all small. Very pleasant evening's float fishing the margins - as usual not a lot until dusk (just the rudd) - first fish (the 2-15 cru) at around 1930 - thereafter steady sport until 2300. All fish on prawn (apart from the rudd - on maggot).
  13. Johnsons Lake - Marsh Farm 1600 - 2315 & 0245 - 0500 (with 3 hours kip in the car) Warm, muggy overcast with showery rain all evening. Bright an breezy in the morning. 11 Tench; 5 over 5lb, best 3 - 7lb 7oz, 6lb 7oz, 6lb 4oz. 3 Crucians; 3lb 14oz (new PB), 3lb 2oz, 2lb 10oz. 2 Rudd to 10oz. Another cracking June trip here - 4th season in a row - though this one was definitely more eventful! My hopes weren't high to start with as reports from the first few days were of anglers struggling. Most of these were casting to the horizon and after carp whereas I would be float fishing the first few yards of lake for crucians. Things did get off to a slow start but quickly got going as the light faded. The 2 rudd were all I caught before 2000 - then came the 3 crucians in ascending size order - I thought the biggie had to be a 4lber and was shaking as a weighed it! After that the tench moved in - bullying the crus out of the swim methinks as I didn't get another sniff of one. The morning was just as eventful - for all the wrong reasons because I, err, fell in !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! No half measures either, slipped/tripped just as I was casting out my float rod and went head first into the drink. Lost my glasses and head torch - thankfully I have some prescription sunglasses which got me home. Phone seems to have gone into some kind of safe mode so it 'might' be ok - currently drying out....Pride comes before a fall they say! Pity as I was still catching and had planned to stay much longer......
  14. Willows Lake - Thatcham 1800 - 0600 Cool clear night down to 7ºC at dawn and very misty and damp with dew. 9 Tench: All over a pound with 3 fish over 2lb. 7 Carp biggest 2, 12lb 2oz & 8lb 15oz all the others between 3½ - 6½lb. 1 Crucian 2lb 2oz. 4 perch. A return to the swim of a fortnight ago hoping for - and getting - a similar return for what will probably be my last overnighter of the summer. As before, started off float fishing maggot but the micro perch were in residence nailing the bait before the float even settled - so a switch to meat was swiftly called for which they ignored. Really pleased to snaffle another of the lake's elusive crucians. Hopefully the tincas will put on a bit of weight in the coming seasons......
  15. Willows Lake - Thatcham 1900 - 0500 Warm overcast night - lovely night to be out! 4 Carp; 6lb 5oz, 6lb 14oz, 7lb 12oz, 13lb 9oz. 5 Tench - best 2lb 7oz and all the others C2lb±2oz. 1 Crucian; 3lb 3oz. ½doz+ perch - all small. Nice to see some tench in Willows - bin many years since I've had this many in a session. All fish fell to lift method tactics less than a rod length out - with simple maggots as bait - did also bring a feeder rod but it stayed in the quiver all night. Snaffling one of the lake's big elusive crucians is always the target here - so extremely pleased to get one! Most fish caught before midnight except for 3 of the carp including the bigger one which took an absolute age to get in on a 4lb bottom!
  16. 3rd Paul Goulbourn Memorial Trophy - Harris Lake - Marsh Farm. 0800 - 0800 Hot, bright and breezy. Breeze never really died down even at night. 19 Tench - biggest 5lb 4oz with nearly all the rest in the 3½-4½lb class. 13 Crucians; 3 over 2lb (just!) - biggest 2lb 3oz. Around half the rest were 'Big 1's' (had 3 @ 1lb 15oz!). 3 Roach, 3 Rudd & 4 Perch. IAC came out in force to do Pauls' memory proud! Record attendance at this meant £400 being raised for Sue Ryder. Despite challenging conditions quite a few fish caught with the lead (prize goes to biggest crucian caught) changing hands a number of times before Ed snaffled the winning fish (2lb 5oz) close to the 5 o'clock cut off. I struggled for bites for most of the day (except when using maggot) and didn't get my first decent fish until my swim was in shade at around 1800. Once it got dark however the action was frenetic - at least two-thirds of my catch coming between 2200 & 0400 and all caught in 15inches of water right under my rod tip a couple of feet or so from the bank on float fished prawn. A great day for a great guy - still fondly remembered.
  17. Johnsons Lake - Milford 1200 - 2315 & 0300 - 0900 Warm and overcast and quite breezy. Quite the best night to be out - no need of warm clothing - or a shelter! 8 Crucians - best 4: 3lb 11oz, 3lb 8oz, 3lb 5oz, 3lb 4oz, 2X2lbers & 2X1lbers. 9 Tench; 3X5lbers to 5-15 and 6 of various sizes. 5 Rudd, 1lb 11oz & 1lb 8oz and 3 smalluns. 1 Roach. Wait 27 years for a decent rudd and then 2 come along at once. 1-06 was my previous best rudd - from way back in July 1991! The 1-08 held the crown for no more than a couple of hours before a stunning looking fish of just under 1¾lb graced my net. The thinking was that the evening would be relatively quiet with the footy on - but I didn't expect to get the place to myself - I was the only angler on the railway bank in the evening! Cracking haul of crucians which mostly fell to float fished prawn as did the bigger rudd ( the smaller one was on maggot)
  18. Harris Lake, Marsh Farm, Milford 1900 - 0900 Clear cool night, down to 9ºC. Not a great night for spotting Perseids due to the near full moon - still spied a few really bright ones however! 12 Tench; All over 3lb with 3 over 4 - best 4lb 12oz. 10 Cruicans; 4 over 2lb, best 2 - 2lb 8oz & 2lb 7oz. A doz rudd, half a dozen roach and 2 perch. Busy night as nearly all wish during hours of darkness - and all bar 2 on the float. Chopped prawn again accounting for nearly all fish - despite starting with meat.
  19. Johnsons Lake - Milford 1100 - 2315 & 0300 - 0900, with a 3 hour kip in the car sandwiched in between! HOT! Sunny and Sultry - temps hit over 30ºC. Finding a shady spot was a (THE) major factor in considering swim choice! 8 Crucians: 3lb 9oz, 3lb 2oz, 3lb 0oz, 2lb 14oz, 2lb 13oz, 2lb 10oz, 2lb 6oz, 2lb 5oz. 21 (!) Tench - a dozen over 4lb; best 2, 6lb 13oz & 6lb 1oz. 1 Roach; 1lb 10oz (!) and, somewhat ironically, the only fish under a pound was a tiny (smaller than my hand) common carp. WOW! Wasn't expecting that! Given the conditions I thought I'd be in for a bit of a struggle - hence the plan to have a dusk AND dawn session here. However first cast resulted in the roach - a real surprise - and the bright conditions clearly didn't put off the tench - I'd had 11 by tea time when the crucians, which I was really here for, at last put in an appearance. Dawn continued in the same manner though catches were slightly more evenly split between the species. By 0700 I was bathed in full sunshine and beginning to feel hot and bothered - so was almost glad that this seemed to correspond (at last) to cessation in bites. I rotated baits between prawn, meat, hookable pellets and maggots (started by giving a hour on each) and nearly all fish fell to prawn (with the exception of the roach and a couple of tincas on maggot). All fish caught float fishing a rod length out! A trio of beauties (Crucian is my 3rd biggest)
  20. Warwicks Water - Thatcham 0730 - 1000 Mild, with milky sunshine becoming (too) breezy. 4 Crucians (all small). 1 Perch - circa 10oz, 1 Roach - circa 8oz(!) Around 18 months ago NAA decided to turn this small fishery into a Crucian water - the place was drained - all the fish (mainly carp) taken out, lilies were planted, fish refuges were installed and lines of tape were strung from bank to bank to keep the cormorants off! The crucians were put in last winter - as part of the National Crucian Conservation project. However reports of captures over the summer have been sparse - a match on the first day of the season yielded a solitary roach! Still I couldn't go the whole summer without wetting a line there - so a couple of hours - more in hope than expectation, were called for! I needn't have worried, though the first fish was a surprisingly chunky perch followed by the roach. A run of crucian like bites soon followed and it wasn't long before I landed my first Warwicks Crucian. Unfortunately the breeze got up making bite detection somewhat problematic - but by then I was well satisfied with my 4 fish! Perfection in Miniature! This is going to be a cracking water in a few seasons - especially if the promised tincas get stocked! More on the Crucian conservation project - here:
  21. Marsh Farm, Milford. 1730 - 2300 Johnsons 2330 - 0530 Harris Cool clear night - down to a chilly 9ºC when I packed up. 5 Crucians: Best 2lb 15oz, all others sub 2lb. 5 Tench - a brace of 3lbers and 3 in the 1-1½lb bracket. 2 TINY carp! Just back from a week in Norfolk (took Paul's travel rod and caught 'A' mackerel off the beach at Weybourne where we were staying!) Plan for tonight was to try and get a decent tench - so even set up a feeder rod. Alas the bigger tincas weren't playing ball - in what turned out to be a slow but steady night - first fish around 2100, a small tench, followed by the big crucian. Another small tench followed before the switch to Harris. Had planned to stay longer - but a warm bed and avoidance of the rush hour were a bigger attraction than a lifeless looking lake!! A couple of the carpers in the next swim seemed pretty impressed with the cru - and insisted I had it's portrait taken!
  22. Marsh Farm, Milford 1430 - 2315 Johnsons 2330 - 0315 Harris 0330 - 0730 Johnsons Warm, slightly overcast with a full moon. Simply a lovely night to be out - never really got dark! 8 Crucians; 3lb 7oz, 2lb 14oz, 2lb 11oz, 2lb 7oz X2, 2lb 6oz, 1lb 13oz, 1lb 11oz, 11 Tench; Best 5lb exactly with another 5 over 4lb. 1 Brown Trout (!) 1lb 9oz. After the excitement of the IAC fish-in on the 16th, a quick return to MF in the hope (thankfully more than fulfilled) of some serious Crucian fishing. The session got off to a rather curious start however - with the first bite of the day producing a brown trout! Had to wait a bit for my next bite but dusk saw the crucians switch on and I had the 4 biggest ones in pretty much consecutive casts - before the tench moved in. A switch to Harris to circumvent my lack of night permit produce an hour's sleep plus the 3 smallest crucians and a 4lb tinca. Dawn saw me return to the evening swim - but it seemed to be full of tench - I don't think they were giving the crus a look in! Possibly over baited the swim! Well pleased with my 3= biggest ever Crucian... A VERY fat specimen which doesn't really come across in the photo...
  23. Harris Lake - Marsh Farm Fishery, nr Godalming 1230 - 0445. Warm (especially overnight), overcast, with heavy showers - though the worst of it missed us. Lots of thunder rumbling away in the distance - thankfully that's where it stayed!. 18 Crucians; 7 over 2lb, 2lb 9ozX2, 2lb 7oz, 2lb 6oz, 2lb 4oz X3, 3 Tench to 3lb 10oz (all over 3lb) Informal IAC 'match' competing for the inaugural Paul Goulborn Memorial Trophy - to be awarded to the captor of the biggest crucian caught on the day. The IAC is something of a sleepy backwater of the internet and Paul was a very early member (circa 95/96) and whilst it may not have a fancy website - it does manage to organise quite a bit of fishing and fish-ins amongst it's small membership. Twas fitting then to hold a fish-in in Paul's memory at one his favourite venues - targetting one of his favourite species. I'd booked a dozen+ pegs with GAS as if it was a match - thus ensuring we could all fish together - and that we could raise a bit more for Duchess of Kent Hospice as match fees are cheaper than Day Tickets! I'd even organised a trophy to be awarded on the day - an old print of a crucian which I had mounted and framed. Because of my desire to start the season on running water I was last to arrive and was very pleased to hear that most people had actually caught crucians already - with a smattering of 2lbers. 2 Separate fish of 2lb 8oz - one to Rusty and one to Rob were tie-ing for the trophy - a situation which didn't change as little more was caught in the afternoon! I'd set a notional cut out point of 6pm to signify the end of the competition and thankfully the afternoon rain had desisted by then for some back slapping and group photos. The winning anglers! I didn't have a bite all afternoon - though I wasn't unduly worried as I was planning to fish on into the dark - boldly announcing as everyone else departed that the crucians come into the margins at dark and I'd have some sport! Well that was certainly the case. My first fish came at around 2145 and by the time bites dried up suddenly at 0300 I'd accounted for 18 Crucians and 3 tench all caught within 4 foot from the bank float fishing! Biggest crucian of the night was 2lb 9oz (which I managed twice) - pity the match had finished some hours earlier! One of the tench - look at those pelvic muscles - no wonder it punched well above its weight - took and age to land! Nice album of pics from the day taken my Glenn (using FILM and an antique camera). https://www.flickr.com/photos/glennsmithphotography/albums/72157669925120545
  24. NAA Stillwater - Thatcham 1930 - 0500 Warm, overcast and still. No need of a shelter or brolly - could have sat in shirtsleeves all night if it wasn't for the mozzies. Super night to be out. 1 Crucian; 2lb 6oz. 5 Carp; 17lb 14oz, 16lb 0oz, 10lb 1oz, 9lb 5oz, 7lb 1oz. 1 Perch (small). Love it when a plan actually comes off! One of the lake's crucians was always number one priority and I had one as soon as it got completely dark - should probably have added to it as I had crucians rolling in my swim up to midnight and bumped another couple of fish. Plan B was to try and get some of the carp feeding in the margins - so again as soon as it was dark and the ducks and geese had settled for the night I was trickling in bits of bread crust - waiting for slurps and swirls. When the carp eventually arrived it was simply a case of dapping a bit of bread under my rod tip - and then hanging on for dear life! All 4 biggest carp caught this way, the 7lb though, falling to a tiny speck of prawn meant for a crucian - which also resulted in an 'interesting' battle of light-ish tackle! My biggest carp from this lake and my biggest for 7 years... http://www.anglersnet.co.uk/forums/index.php?/blog/82/entry-263-1415-august/ . Dawn saw an armada of wildfowl head for my swim so a quick pack up saw me fast asleep in my own bed before 0600. 17lb 14oz 16lb on the nose!
  25. Johnsons Lake/Harris Lake, Milford (a ) 1515 - 2330 - Johnsons (b ) 0000 - 0345 - Harris (c ) 0415 - 1030 - Johnsons Warm and sunny. Night was also quite warm despite mainly clear sky. Johnsons: (a) 1 Perch; 2lb 2oz and a micro - carp (smaller than my hand!). (c ) 1 Crucian 3lb 1oz, 1 Tench 7lb 6oz. 1 Mirror carp (only slightly bigger than my hand at 2lb 10oz!) (b ) Harris: 5 Tench; all over 3lb with 2 over 5lb. 3 Crucians; all over 2lb to 2lb 9oz. A quick return to Milford and after a night on Harris on Monday/Tuesday this time Paul and I were up for more of a challenge. Just as well as conditions were somewhat challenging. We don't have the required permit to do a full night on Johnsons so the plan was to fish as long as was 'legal' (2 hours after sunset) and return as soon as allowed (an hour before sunrise) which means at this time of year little more than 4 hours to 'kill'. My plan for this time was to nip over the fence (OK style) to fish Harris while Paul - quite literally hit the sack - and got in over 3 hours kip!. I even pre-baited and plumbed a swim on Harris so that I could drop into it immediately in the dark. So Part 1 afternoon/evening on Johnsons - and what a grueller it was. Paul and I couldn't so much as buy a bite - despite numerous changes of bait and tactics. Eventually at around 2100 he snaffled a 5lb+ tench which I went to help him with (or not as the case maybe - ask him about my new unhooking method!). On recasting my float rod - loaded with 2 white maggots I was wondering why the float wouldn't cock - until I realised I had a fish on - a nice perch taking the bait on the drop - so after 6 fruitless hours both our blanks were 'saved' in the space of 5 mins. Nothing of note followed just a TINY carp which gave a good facsimile of a crucian bite to add to my irritations... Part 2 could be described as the 'easy interlude'. Paul took it easy - while I had it easy! First cast in my new swim on Harris - over my pre-baited area produced the 2-09 crucian - bites and fish came in quick succession until the action tailed off at around 0300 - ALL my fish caught over the pre-baited part of the swim. Part 3 started with us deciding to target a different part of the lake and 'follow the wind' - which meant us setting up shop in two swims either side of a large bed of lilies - a classic looking summer lake swim if ever there was. Now at least we started to get bites - the problem was connecting with a fish. I'd bumped a couple before at last connecting with something that was solid if unspectacular in resistance - unmistakably a crucian. And when it popped to the surface like a cork it was unmistakably a BIG crucian - guided thankfully to my net - a bit of a beat up old warrior it pulled the needle down the 'right side' of the 3lb marker! Next was a small (and unwelcome) mirror carp before another bite was met with a heavy somewhat ponderous fight almost like a large bream - this turned into a fat female tench - which as I guided it to the net got me thinking - could be a pb! Not quite a PB - but my biggest tench for 4 years. All the while Paul on the other side of the lily bed had the irritation of my repeated requests for a photo - without the need for reciprocation! By now the sun was rising higher and with it hopes of a big crucian getting lower until a switch to caster at last did the trick for him, First off a lovely conditioned crucian which had us both guessing 'could be' but alas wasn't (a 3lber) missing out by an ounce. His next though clearly was and at 3lb 3oz turned out to be the day's best. By now I had quite a ripple in my swim and if I was getting crucian bites I clearly couldn't see them to hit. Paul was still getting the odd clear indication but couldn't connect. So ended a challenging session - but an ultimately successful one! Fish on! (at last!) My perch heads for some near bank brambles... but doesn't escape! Paul's 5lber - it really wasn't this dark - Perch above was caught right after....! Sunrise My 3lb Crucian (with apologies from the photographer for the lack of focus!) And my 7lb tinca.... Finally Paul's 2 crucians 2lb 15oz 4ozs heavier
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