November / December 1994

About time I had a quick look in the diary again....

The river was flooded after the Poppy match in 1994 and the following weekend all matches were cancelled so I fished for a few hours in the cut by the Lock Keeper pub at Keynsham. Fishing maggot at depth I had about 4lb which unusually included quite a few small perch. Sunday 20th November saw me at Frys fishing the Commercial House, I drew below the outlet pipe on what was a again a flooded river. Fishing a 3m whip I could catch tiny fish and did this for far too long. I tried the groundbait feeder and whilst I only had 3 eels I did lose a chub and a lot of anglers caught one or two bream. 2lb 10oz was my effort and not good enough to beat a bream!

After my debut success at Moorlands Farm I was back again fishing with Pete Sivell's team. This time around I drew another lake, well more of a pool, called Moors and was on peg 20. I was told this lake was all about carp and silvers would not be helpful, so I started on a wag an mag and after 10 mins I hooked one. Sadly it was fouled and came off but a while later I landed a properly hooked 5lber. After this it was a real struggle and I managed 1 small carp from down the margin and a few roach. On the day my half of the lake fished awful, and we sat watching anglers at the other end filling their nets, 15 points out of 27 was my reward. The next day and out fishing again on the ATWL at Newbridge. My home for the day was peg 34 on the straight on a clear river. I fished a groundbait feeder across whilst feeding maggots and hemp on a pole line. Bites were very hard to get, with just 5 roach coming on the pole and 3 skimmers on the feeder (to red maggot) for a total of 4lb 40z and 10 points for the team. Halfway through this league Bathampton were 2 points in front of my team Bristol Sensas.

Cracking on into December and a Xmas match, Bristol and West (doesn't exist now) where I drew peg 69 up the Crane. Just 2 small chub and a roach for 1lb 9oz was all my long walk yielded (caught on the feeder). The river was float fishable in some pegs but not in mine, but bream dominated with 30lb coming off pegs 28 and 29 at Swineford and a 20lb carp being caught from the blockhouse at Jack Whites. Not long after this more rain fell and midweek the weir disappeared at Keynsham. Luckily I was back at Moorlands so could at least fish sensibly, and I drew back on Meadow lake but on peg 29. Not good was all I was told, just try and catch a carp! Well all these years ago a maggot feeder was deemed the best way to go so I plopped a small feeder out with a 20 to 0.10 (really I did!). Of course I also primed a pole line, but one bite and I pulled out of small crucian was all the entertainment I had there! The feeder worked in as much as I had 1 roach and 1 small carp for 3lb 2oz. However, to give you an idea how poor this area was I got 23 points out of 27 for that weight!!!! Another double header for me and up the next day for the big one, the Bathampton Xmas match. I really wanted to draw a slack and pulling out peg 136 in the trees meant I should have a bit of steady water. This was an out and out groundbait feeder day as far as I was concerned so one rod was all I set up with a 16 to 1.5lb maxima hook length. I think this was the day that Ian Spriggs and Andy Floyd were also pegged in the trees and they came down for a walk before the match started. I had mixed up red magic groundbait and they thought this was hilarious (as they used std brown mixes). Casting about 1/5 of the way out I soon started to get odd bites from small skimmers / hybrids, with my second hour being the best by far. I had 3 small chub and 3 eels plus a roach, most fish fell to three red maggots but a couple fell to lobworm of course. When the scales came down most people had struggled for a pound or two, and the look on Andy and Ian's faces was amazement when I weighed in "now what do you think about red groundbait?" I asked them, lol! The river had fished very hard and I came 4th picking up £250 which was beer money for Xmas.

Bitterwell this Sunday, then hoping we don't get much rain because I'm going fishing on the Dorset Stour with Brian Gay in the week, hoping to catch my PB chub! Please please please let it be OK.