Record Perch and a another session at Heapy

THURSDAY:

A few hours at Sollom was rewarded with a Perch of 1lb 4oz this is the biggest Perch that I have caught to date, admittedly not the biggest Perch to grace our waters, but a good catch all the same. I was fishing on the pole, it fell to a single red maggot fed over a bed of red maggots as ground bait.

SATURDAY:

Another night session at Heapy was on the cards for this weekend, however rathe disappointingly it was very busy, and just as suspected the Carp were in the middle of spawning. I still managed to catch though, I had two runs, the first one came off but the second run resulted in a fish of around 10 to 11lb, interestingly I managed to tempt this fish by using a Korda Maggot Ring, a bait that was a little different, perhaps something that they don't see too often? I'll certainly be using them again. The weather this weekend was absolutely scorching! With temperatures of around 25c this sure was a stark contrast from the conditions that I usually have to endeavour whilst night fishing, It's the first session in a long time that I didn't get a soaking. Taking into consideration that the weather was so hot and that I'd arrived mid spawning, I decided to pack up early and Head off home, it would seem that I wasn't alone in my thinking as the reservoir was pretty much empty

A few sessions at Sollom

I've had a few sessions on the Canal of late, none of the sessions have been very productive, I have fished on the pole and also ledgered on the bottom as well as fishing on the tip. I did get a few decent Bream while ledgering tight under a tree, and this Saturday just gone I had a net of 45 fish, a mixed bag of everything, the pick of the bunch being a nice Rudd and a decent sized Eel of around 2lb's. Yesterday I had a few hours late on, I decided to try something different, I made a couple of hair rigs and used sweetcorn as bait. Alas I didn't manage to tempt any fish off, I just had the odd bite off a few smaller fish. I did purchase my new umbrella, and I'm very pleased with the quality, a Greys G TEC with side windows, perfect for spotting cruising boats that are sneaking up on me.

Decent sized Eel

Mixed Bag

I'm not fishing in that rain

Thursday: I wasn't going to bother fishing today, my umbrella is broken and the forecast was scattered showers, I'll give it a miss then I thought. That was until Phil sent me a text telling me that he was heading for Sollom for a few hours after work, and was I up for it? Well how could I say no, fishing is a drug and I'm addicted, Phil was to be my dealer for the day and I was about to get my next hit, and a few drops of rain wasn't going to stop me. I of course got a good old soaking, but I had a few fish for my troubles, around a dozen or so, including a few Skimmers and a stunning little Rudd, oh and the now customary Eel of the session. I'd rather fish in Rain than Wind any day. Note to self.............. Go and buy a new umbrella!

Eel's, Eel's and a few more Eel's, oh and a few more Eel's

The weather was terrible today, it was once again blowing a hooligan ,and just as I was about to set off for a few hours fishing, the heavens opened. A quick check on the weather forecast revealed that the rain wasn't going to last, and that clear skies were predicted for the rest of the day. As soon as I arrived at the canal, the weather as promised turned for the better. I decided today to try something completely different, I ledgered worms on a size 12 hook, and used a bite alarm for bite indication, my logic behind this was that if it started to rain, I could still fish and take shelter in my JRC Stealth Brolly :) what followed was to be run after run after run, it really was a bite a chuck, however.......... all but one fish was an Eel, it was a shame that I didn't have my keepnet with me, as I estimate that I had around 18 or so Eel's, this would have made an interesting picture. The other fish that I caught was a decent sized Hybrid of around 2lb's or so. Note to self! "Next time take some sweetcorn and bread with you!"

First Carp session of the year

Myself and Ben had arranged to spend the whole of the bank holiday weekend Carp fishing at a local reservoir. I arrived Friday night at around 11 O'clock, Ben had arrived a little earlier at around 6ish. Ben to his credit had managed to wait until I was set up and ready to fish until he made his first cast of the season. We were rods in by about 1 O'clock in the morning. I had one run in the night, alas it wasn't a Carp, it was a Bream of around 3 pounds, this was to be the first of 3 bream on this trip. The first Carp of the season fell to me (GOOD!) on Sunday morning, at 5.30am my alarm screamed off, my right hand margin rod which I'd baited up with a Strawberry and Honey flavoured peanut, was in! I was to be given a great fight, the Carp in this reservoir always seem put their heads down and go deep. A Common Carp of 12lb 6oz was to be my first of the season. The weather this weekend was pretty lousy, it rained a lot, and the temperature was a much cooler than the week before, this defintely knocked the fishing off. What was looking like a blank for Ben was saved, (DAMN!) he had a run at around 12.30ish on Sunday night, a Common Carp at around 8lb's. We decided to pack up Monday morning as the weather had given rain all day.

First Carp of the season 12lb 6oz Common

5.30am self takes are not the most flattering of photographs :)