Welcome to my fishing blog… December 2023
December 17th – Alcove Christmas Match, Whitehouse Farm – Not Too Much To Cheer About
It was a rock-hard, soul-destroying and mind-numbingly tough day at Whitehouse Farm on Sunday with just enough Christmas cheer to thaw my frozen facial expression depicting my total lack of enthusiasm. Having sat face-on, in front of an icy-cold wind for 5 lacklustre and uneventful hours, I really needed a strong, stiff drink but would have to wait until I got home. Apart from the wind, the weather was dry and fairly mild for the time of year and we all expected the fish to show some interest in our variety of offerings. Word was that a flock of cormorants had descended on the lakes mid-week scaring the beejeezus out of the fish stocks… so maybe that was the reason for such a hard day…who knows?
So, 20 hardy souls turned out for this one, putting 10 bods on each lake. I didn’t really care where I was drawn but TBH I would have preferred to be on George’s right-hand bank with the wind off my back. It was not to be. I drew Margaret’s peg 14, which has thrown up some wins over the years, mostly during the summer months. If the chub showed up from the island swim then happy days but if not then a struggle was going to be on the cards. The island would be my main target area today with a maggle feeder for chub and anything else. My second line was at 11 metres out in front in 7.5 feet of water and I would loose feed 2 short lines, left and right at about 2-3 metres from the bank.
On the all-in, I didn’t feed any lines but instead went straight over to the island with a 30-gram maggle feeder. My plan was to give this an hour before deciding on my next move. Well, an hour soon went by and I hadn’t had a bite or any indications. So, next, I cupped out a small nugget of groundbait with a few micros, some dead reds and a few dead pinkles to the 11-metre line. While I waited for this to settle, I changed over to a pellet feeder and lobbed this out towards the island. I gave it about 20 minutes and again there were no signs of life. It was time to go on the pole.
I baited a size 20 hook to a 0.8 hooklength with a single flouro pinkle and lowered it in over the feed. It was about 10 minutes before I got my first bite from a tiny roach. I persevered and caught another 2 slightly bigger fish but I was getting restless and needed a decent fish. I started loose-feeding maggles to my right-hand side just below a stunted tree and loose-fed some corn and micros to my left-hand side at the edge of an overhanging bush. I picked up the feeder rod again and changed to a 25-gram bomb setup with a single red maggle on the hook. I gave this another 10-15 minutes out toward the island and still nothing. My hopes of catching anything on the island swim were now fading and I was resigned to concentrating on the short lines and the 11-metre line.
Another quick look at the long line brought only 2 micro-perch so for me that signalled the end of this line. With just over an hour to go and with just ounces in the net I was staring down the barrel of another humiliating defeat but I wasn’t totally beaten yet. I tried corn, maggle and soft pellet over the short line to my left but there were no signs there so that line too was discontinued. I only had the short line to my right to focus on now and I kept trickling in loose feed here. First some dead reds then a few pinkles and then a few live reds. I started slowly dropping and lifting the bait over the loose feed and I got an indication.
A few minutes later I hooked a small perch only for it to fall off… Oh, it was all going so well… I was aware that Pete Watkins who had drawn peg 6 again had landed a few carp and Steve Dawson on peg 13 was catching steadily. Why I wasn’t catching was a complete mystery! I had tried a lot of different methods and baits but I guess if your luck isn’t in… Anyway, I kept plugging away on the short line to my right, hoping for a break and finally my perseverance paid off. The float dipped slowly, I struck and I was now connected to a carp. All that kept going through my mind was… Don’t fecking lose it!
I really took my time playing this vital fish and I was totally relieved when I finally slipped the landing net under it. Now I could face the world with a little pride but another one would put me in good stead. I carried on doing what I was doing and a few minutes later, I hooked into what I think might have been an F1. Anyway, I didn’t have it on for long before it effed one off… and that was to be my final piece of the action. Well, I don’t mind admitting that if I hadn’t landed that carp I would have been sulking all the way home. My final weight was 6lb 14oz and the carp made up 6lb 10oz of that.
So, persistence pays… I finished up in 4th place on Margaret’s (collecting a 3rd place payout) and was 5th overall. I also collected a bag of 6mm Sonubait expanders and a box of chocolate bickies for her indoors so all’s well that ends well. Pete Watkins won the match easily with 3 carp and some good silvers for 22lbs. My Legion clubmate, Jason Pitman, was first on George’s Lake with 19lbs from peg 10. That boy can certainly draw them!
I’m on a break now until December 28th, when I’ll be back at Windmill Fisheries for the Costcutter match. I’ll write a blog for that one. Then I’ll be heading off to the Kennet & Avon canal at Bradford-on-Avon for the hangover match on January 1st. I haven’t fished this canal stretch for quite a few years so I’m especially looking forward to that one. Well, all that remains is for me to wish you all a very Happy Christmas and thank you for reading my blog.
Join our Facebook group HERE and get the link
About me
January 2023
February 2023
March 2023
April 2023
May 2023
June 2023
July 2023
August 2023
September 2023
October 2023
November 2023
December 2023
10th – Kingswood RBL AC – Bitterwell Lake
17th – Alcove Xmas match – Whitehouse Farm
28th – Windmill Fisheries & K&A Canal
…………………
June 2022
July 2022
August 2022
September 2022
October 2022
November 2022
December 2022
