6 Hours! One Bite! One fish! But what a fish!

Back on the drain today and I met with Allan and JP for an afternoons fishing. The water wasn't towing as fast as my last visit, and looked to be recovering just nicely. Should fish well today I thought to myself.

Allan and JP had arrived an hour or so before me and I'd expected them to be well into the fish, but this wasn't the case. In fact it was just the opposite, they were struggling for bites. Not to worry I'll show them how it's done and I went about my business setting up.

5 hours later and I hadn't had a touch. Unbelievable! The conditions were spot on, and here I was facing a blank.

Allan was sat under my brolly, complaining that I'd talked him into fishing the Sluice (Again) and that we perhaps should have chosen another venue. I was just in the middle of arguing back - saying that it fished OK the other day, and I couldn't understand what was wrong, when my tip moved a little, then a little more and then WHAM! I was in!

I lifted into the take and I felt a good force tugging back. "Allan I'm into a lump here mate and it isn't a Tench" "It's either a big Perch or a big Eel" It was the latter, and what a lump it was. It stayed deep in the water and wouldn't show it's head, it kept me in suspense for a little longer than I would have liked.

Finally It's head came to the surface and it was met with a chorus of gasps from all three of us. To some of you reading this blog you may not consider an Eel of 2lb 15oz to be of giant proportions, but I can tell you that for this venue the very sight of an Eel these days is a rare one indeed. let me put it into a little prospective, in all my visits to the drain, which I can assure you is a lot, I have never even seen an Eel being caught never mind catch one. I was made up with this catch and to date I'd consider it to be one of my best fish that I have landed from the Sluice.

It's a funny old game this fishing malarkey isn't it. I have one bite in the 6 hours that I fished and the result was a PB Eel. I guess that's fishing for you and that's why I love it.

As for the rest of the fishing. Allan landed a cracking Tench of 4lb's. This was some achievement, as he'd caught it fishing the pole and his rig was only 1.5lb bottom. Top angling that mate, well done!

Panto had around 5lb of fish, but Al gave him a good run for his money. The weight difference between the two of them when they weighed in was just 1 ounce.

The 2lb 15oz Eel

It wouldn't keep still

Around 3ft in length

Allan's 4lb Tench

Two Full English Breakfasts Please

I headed to the drain and met up with JP. We fished the tip and decided to make things a little interesting by having a small wager. The loser with the lowest match weight, would the following day treat the winner to a Full English Breakfast. This was a surefire way to keep us both on our toes throughout the session.

The conditions on the water did not look too good, the levels were high, the water coloured and there was a fair amount of weed and flotsam passing by. Not even a thunder storm could deter us from our fishing, not the best idea to be out in the open and holding a 9ft 6" rod made of carbon when there is ligtning about.

I have to say though that the fishing was pretty good we landed a fair few fish between us. I finished with a mixed bag of fish and weighed in 6lb 5oz. The pick of the bunch was a Perch of 1lb. Panto weighed in at 7lb 5oz he'd done me by a pound, a Bronze Bream that he'd bagged of over 3lb had won him the match. Damn it! Breakfast will be on me tomorrow then. :/

Caught in a storm

The re-match!

As the title suggests it was time for a re match, not before we met at a cafe to have our Cooked Breakfast, which I have to add was delicious and worth losing the match for, there is only one way a breakfast like that can taste any better and that is if it's FREE! So Panto must have loved his...

I decided that we should perhaps lower the stakes on today's match, if I lost my pocket couldn't sustain having to pay for another brekkie, and as I had a two pound coin in my pocket it seemed convenient that it should be the nominated wager.

The fishing was about the same as the day before. I landed a good sized Tench of 4lb's, this would stand me in good stead for the match. We packed up early which was good as I would get chance to go for a 5 mile run and burn off those lunch time sausages.

I weighed in 8lb 9oz and Panto 7lb 9oz. So I'd done him! I was left ruing the fact that I'd hadn't up the stakes second time around, still one can't be having a cooked breakfast all of the time. I enjoyed taking the £2 off Panto and for anyone that knows him they will confirm the fact that he's not too forthcoming in parting with the cash.

The Sausage lover

The match winner

A visit from Winter on a Summers day

Back to a venue that I haven't fished for a couple of months, the weather was interchangeable but the sun was shining so I decided to make the most of it.

JP was hot on my heels and arrived an hour or so after I had set up. Expectations were high, they needn't have been as the fishing was woeful. We couldn't even muster a bite between us.

The weather finally turned and it was like a scene from winter and not the middle of summer out there, it was blowing a gale and it absolutely chucked it down. Half an hour to go and I thankfully managed to winckle two fish off. Both came from the same swim, and within 5 minutes of each other. I landed a Tench of around 5lb and a Bream of a similar weight.

So for me then the session was saved and a sure fire blank was thankfully avoided. JP wasn't to be so lucky and as he sheltered under his brolly from the howling winds and the torrential downpour you could have hear him muttering and cursing me. "This is the last time I listen to one of your good ideas" :D

The Blank Saver

I'm laughing at Panto's glum face

The dull and overcast day

Tuesday:

I joined Allan on the Canal for a couple of hours fishing, I had intentions of giving him a run for his money on the Pole, but time got the better of me so I went for a spot of Perching instead. I wasn't to be disappointed as I had another Perch over the pound mark.

Worth turning up for

Thursday:
A dull and overcast day in the middle of summer could mean only one thing, fishing! Surely the fish would respond well to a break in the scorching temperatures that we've been having over the last couple of weeks? So with that in mind I decided to head to the Sluice and to target Tench.

I arrived just after dinner, the place was empty, seemingly the threat of rain (which didn't arrive until i packed up!) had deterred other anglers from joining me.

While I waited for some action on the Tench rod's I occupied myself by setting up on the whip. I fished single maggot in the margin, and it was literally a fish a chuck. The season is a couple of weeks old now, and a good steady stream of bait from other anglers is attracting and holding the fish.

A couple of hours came and went when my tip rod bent around to the right, I lifted in to the take and felt a decent lump resisting my strike. I was happily playing this fish when suddenly my other rod was also in on the action. Two Tench at the same time. Thankfully I managed to land both.

I finished the session with 5 Tench to 4lb's and 2 Bream to 3lb. 5oz. The photographs aren't that good as I had to use the steps that lead down to the peg as a tripod as I'd foolishly forgotten my camera adapter .

My first Sluice Bream in a while

Tench # 1 of the double hook upThe other part of the Brace
The hardest fighter
If I'd have packed up after this one I'd have
Stayed dry, will I ever learn?