Windmill Fishery open

 I have been busy last couple of weeks, with last weekend spend at Cheddar Woods with my family for my S-I-L 50th birthday. Weather was really nice and even sat out on the decking without a top off! I was keen on getting back out on the bank this weekend though as I am busy again next weekend. Wasn’t sure where to go and even what day, but in the end I hatched a plan. I’d ordered a new box from Preston and it was coming Friday, so Saturday plan was sort the new box out, get to the gym and get the vegetable patch sorted and put some seeds in.

My new box is an Inception 3D 150, I chose this one as it’s a similar design to my old space station, and it’s not too heavy so I can get it up and down river banks!

It looks nice and clean and still is today, I realised that I didn’t have enough leg inserts to match my accessories so it couldn’t be used. Blessing in disguise really as the garden was a little more work than I anticipated! I’d booked in to fish Windmill and so sorted my gear and rigs for the following day.

Sunday morning and a good start as I remembered that the clocks went forward. Loaded the van and off… errr no, flat battery! I could have just gone back to bed, but then I remembered that Geoff Francis was going and he would be driving virtually past my house. I called him, but he was already in a cafe in Staple Hill, but he still came back to pick me up. Cheers Geoff! 😊

Unfortunately there was a low turnout of only 8 anglers, and 4 pegs were in either side but not evenly distributed. I drew peg 19, not one of my favourites unless it’s warmer.

As normal there was no wind whilst setting up, but this would be a false dawn as the wind increased and it colder as the day went in. I wasn’t going to set a lot of kit up, a 4x12 with 0.15 to 16 GPM for the margins, similar for across at 14m, a 4x16 F1 pellet for the deep water at 11m 0.13 to 16 SFLB, and a lead rod. 

I fed small balls of micro pellets left and right at 11m and the same at 14m but with a few bits of sweetcorn in, so edging my bets with silvers or carp and see what pans out. 

I began at 14m, but after 25 mins one missed bite or liner was my lot. Onto 11m with a Sonubaits 4mm expander, and didn’t wait too long to get a bite, it was an 8oz skimmer. Next drop in and another skimmer but a bit smaller, and another next put in. Next put in and in again but it’s a carp, took my time and landed a 5lb common. No more bites here so went on the RH line and had a skimmer of 1lb straight away, then a wait for the next bite which was a carp. Had to hang on to this one for a bit, but another common landed about 7lb. I hooked one more carp in the deep water but came back with a scale, and no more skimmers.

Back over towards the island and I had a few indications before hooking a carp, despite being on decent gear it took longer to land, a 6lb common hooked in the pectoral area. I then suffered two more foulers which both came off, and that line died. More looks on the 11m line were fruitless and no more fish came from there.

The wind was blowing hard right to left making long pole fishing tricky, so I tried a lead first, and then a method feeder towards peg 18. Neither produced a fish and I was going nowhere fast. Opposite Gerry Welsh on peg 6 had a good run of carp, and the lad on 10 had a few on the lead. I did manage 1 more carp and a skimmer from the 14m line, and had a 9lb mirror from the margin. It was obvious I wasn’t going to do any good with about 35lb of carp and 4lb of skimmers (skimmer weights of 25lb have been winning here). I decided to tip back the carp net, but Dave Haines said to weigh my silvers, so I hung on.

My carp

My silvers went 4lb 3oz, not enough as Nic Saunders had 3 skimmers for 6lb on peg 23. With Gerry and Mat taking top 2 prizes, well done all.

1. G. Welsh peg6   84lb 1oz

2. M. Tainton p1    57lb 2ozs

3. F. Brown p10     46lb 1oz

4. N. Sanders p23 27lb 9ozs

5. Pedro p3            21lb 3ozs

6. G. Francis p14    7lb 7ozs

Silvers

1. N. Sanders p23  6lb 5ozs

2. M. Tainton p1     5lb 12oz

Geoff got me home and kindly helped jump start my van just to get a little life in the battery. I got back in time to see England see their goals, and enjoy the extra hour of daylight, just needs to warm up a tad now!

Lower Avon Champs Bristol Avon Newbridge

 The title of this match could be changed to “bream bingo” as Shaun Townsend said to me when he asked if I was fishing. The end of season matches are more often than not the time when the bream have a feed, I’m sure it’s all about them feeding up before spawning. The clearer the river the bigger the weight generally as they shoal up. Well the Avon is gin clear so maybe a big weight would transpire, or maybe it would be rubbish! I’d received some Sonubaits clothes on Saturday and decided to wear some of it on the match, might be lucky lol.

I’d been nice and sensible the day before and was up bright and early for the draw. However, when I got to the draw I was at the back of the queue. Forty people fishing today. When I finally got to the draw bucket I asked Dean Harvey said all the flyers had gone, disappointed I dipped in, pulled out peg 7 which equaled permanent peg 16. One above my favourite peg at Newbridge peg 18, I saw that fellow blogger Ivan Currie had drawn that. Dean and match organisers Ben Rendall then asked me to draw their pegs. Dean got the trees but I got Ben peg 14 next to me.

I drove to the river and parked up, and as I carried my gear bit by bit to my peg I chatted to the other lads. Derek Coles told me he had fished my peg the week before and had 2 bream in the first hour then not a bite, and eventually couldn’t fish as there were so many boats on the water. Peg 20 had 120lb peg 18 1 bream that day. This made me think about my approach today and I decided to cast just short of the middle and keep the rod tip low, I only set up one rod. My 12ft Preston Supera with 0.15 powerline to a 14 N30 with a 25g open ended feeder. 

The match started at 10:30 and I began trying bread on the feeder. After 30 minutes I hadn’t had a bite, but I had seen Ivan land a bream below me. After 50 minutes Ben rang to say he had his first bream, I was still waiting for a bite. The armada of boats had yet to materialise and so I adjusted my rod tip to higher of the water. The next two casts I saw two small pulls on the tip that made me think liners. Just as the hour passed I had a proper bite on triple red maggot and there was a nice thump on the rod. Finally got my first bream, 3lb. Next cast and a few tiny plucks then nothing but when I reeled in the bait was gone, so took 6 inches off the hook length. About now Darren Gilman was skylining me 😉 and he brought me some luck as gradually I put a few more 3lb bream in the net and then a 6lb lump. I was getting odd little taps on my tip which was obviously liners, and had to sit tight and wait for a positive indication. From 11:30 to 12:30 I put 10 bream in my keepnet all on triple red maggots.

Bites continued for me and also Ivan, Ben was catching bream too but was 4 fish behind. Walkers advised odd bream were coming out in certain areas but nothing like where I was. My third hour started well but slowed up, Darren had been replaced by Dave Micklewright (who had packed up as the trees was awful) and he saw me catch a few and both Ivan and myself put a second keepnet in. Ivan carried on catching whilst i suffered second net syndrome. I was getting obvious indications of bream still in the swim, but couldn’t get a proper bite, then I had a drop back bite and had a bream on but it felt fouled, and it was. I landed the fish which was hooked in the anal fin. I tried different hookbaits but to no avail and so put a bit of chopped worm in and put worm on the hook. I had a drop back, but no fish, next cast another bite and a nice bream.

I thought I had found the key, but after a few more casts with just little plucks all signs stopped. Sadly my last 90+ minutes were a complete non event as the bream decided to go elsewhere. I was sat watching Ivan continue to get bream right up to the whistle and Ben had managed to get the odd one including a last cast one. I was thinking I was gonna be chop shop sausage!!! I thought I had 17 or 18 bream, Ben about the same, Ivan had 32!

Chris “Gappy” Parr had packed up early and grabbed the scales to weigh us in. Ben first, and he had 85lb 8oz, which I was sure was a lot more than me. But once again I under estimated the size of some of the bream. My final tally was 91lb 9oz. The very last fish in the net was weighed alone and went 6lb 12oz, probably wasn’t the biggest either. Here’s a pic of one weigh.

Down to Ivan on peg 18 and I helped to pull his nets out, Andy Powell did the maths and tallied up 159lb 10oz. Wow a hug weight and his best ever, congrats Ivan. Well it was actually my best ever river weight too, and also my biggest next peg battering 😂😂.

One of Ivan’s nets.

Back at the Globe for the results, and I guess you might know the top three..

1st Ivan Currie 159 10oz

2nd Tim Ford 91lb 9oz

3rd Ben Rendall 85lb 8oz

4th Shane Robinson 43lb (peg below Ivan)

5th Paul Purchase 34lb 10z

6th Andy Britt 34lb

All the weights were bream. Not sure a single roach was caught. Only 2 anglers out of 15 down in the trees caught, with Dave Lewis top with 2lb 7oz.

Well that’s a nice way to probably end my river season, business travel will probably prevent me getting out again.  Bloody shame that the stupid close season still exists 😢.