The Hopeful Match Fisher
Three times a week the guys at Gold Valley run a 'cost cutter' match for £15. I ran along today for the Friday match, which was on Syndicate Lake.
With the clocks back for GMT the draw was at 8:30am for a 10:00am whistle. The day was very fair; a little wind from the south put the temperature up to 18deg and the sun was out all day. Sixteen hands went into the pot and I pulled out 141, which is an end peg. Strangely, the last match I fished on Syndicate had me on the end peg at the other end! John Raison, the owner, had assured me that the same peg at produce 117lb to win the just two days before.
Recent matches on Syndicate have been dominated by feeder tactics, supplemented by lead and margins. I didn't expect it to be any different today, so I set up accordingly. Bait-wise I've done quite well lately with Krill flavourings, so I brought along some pellets and flavoured meat. Half a pint of dead maggots and some ready mixed paste completed the side tray. Then I made a mistake.
In my garage I have a crate full of groundbaits from which I pulled a bag of Dynamite Baits Red Krill, a favourite of mine. It's quite a fine mix so I added in half a bag of Sonubaits Match Method in order to make it a bit more compliant for a method feeder. At the whistle I went in for a chuck to the centre rope, but found that I couldn't keep the mix on the feeder too well. Adding in a bit of pellet binder it settled down for a while but it soon became rather sticky and wouldn't come neatly out of the method mold. I realised I'd messed up the mix just because I want to use my favourite groundbait - which isn't designed for the method feeder! Idiot. I switched to a cage feeder, but felt like a bit of a twit.
As a second swim I kept a few 8mm pellets dropping into the far left margin to try and stir up a bit of interest. It's tactic that's worked well on end pegs for me before. The usual margin setup completed the set. I honestly felt happy and confident.
The first hour was very quite, which is another way of saying that it was completely dead. The guy to my left had about the same level of excitement. Undaunted, I kept on making various tweaks and tunings. There was a few pleasure anglers opposite who had a few fish, so I was not too concerned. Well into the second hour I had yet to see a proper bite, and the guy on the next door peg came over to compare notes. He toddled off down the lake to see what was happening further along. The news was that it was all about the first two or three pegs at the far end and little else for the other anglers. Into the second half of the match not much else happened as I began to feed the margins.
Into the last 90 minutes I saw a tell-tale fish tail following a few cubes of meat I'd plopped in. I dropped in with some paste and had a firm bite within ten minutes. A decent fish fish ran off and struggled for a couple of minutes before the hooked pulled. On such a quiet day I didn't need that. Frustratingly that set the tone, as I failed to connect to at least three other decent bites. That is a problem I need to look into. As a final throw of the dice I dropped a method feeder into the near margin and almost instantly had a solid pull-round and a 6lb carp in the net. It was to be the only fish of the day.
At the weigh-in there were plenty of dry nets, and silvers made a significant difference for most of the lake. I think 100lb-odd won it from one of the end pegs. We all know that fish move around, but for them all to go off the feed or congregate in one place seems unusual on such a well stocked lake.
So to pick the bones out of the day there are a couple of points I think:
1. Use a method mix for a method feeder!
2. Find out why I was connecting so badly with fish in the margins.
I was never on the fish, but it was nice to be out anyway.
Until next time!
Friday 31 October 2014
Monday 20 October 2014
A Match at Gold Valley on 19th October
The Hopeful Match Fisher
After a long lay-off I was able to get out for an open match on Sunday down at Gold Valley. It was their usual Sunday open. Also on the same day was a winter league open with about 70 anglers, so the place was packed! It's good to see so many others sharing my same passion.
This was the first time I've fished an open and Gold Valley, and only the third time I've ever fished on Syndicate Lake, so I was a bit of a 'fish out of water' (if you know what I mean :) There were twenty-five anglers on the list, although not all turned up. Besides that it was a really nice sunny day, with a fair wind too.
I don't think Syndicate is the largest of the lakes, but it's a fair stretch of water to have in front of you. I ended up drawing peg 119, which is a corner down at far end. On arrival I was initially bit worried about the anti-cormorant lines that were laid out, and which gave me very limited space to my left. Nevertheless I had a lot of margin to my right to work with, so I was happy for that much. At the draw I asked about the peg and was told that it had been rather quiet at that end of the lake recently, but I knew the wind was that way so I felt sure it could produce something.
The previous night I had prepared my bait bag. I knew that the method feeder would dominate, and in fact a recent report had been of a mid-week match that was won with 180lb, mostly on method. I mixed up batch of 50/50 Dynamite Baits Krill and Bait Tech Super G Green, although it started off a bit on the sticky side. For the hook I packed 8mm course pellets (which I've found that the carp at Gold love), 6mm meat dry-dusted with the groundbait, 6mm krill pellets, and some paste.
In recent weeks I've started to fine-down my terminal tackle a bit, but what with the warm days we had been having in the preceding days and the sunshine, I felt the carp would be well on the feed. I stuck more or less kept to a summer rig. The guy to my left had a very long chuck to a margin, which he had done well to pick out, although I think he used up his entire stock of method feeders in the process! My own margin was to the right, running all along the far end of the lake, so there were various options for me. I could see a few interesting looking bays in the bushes, although one of them I knew had a sunken tree stump in it. I opted to fish the far bay to begin with, and clipped-up accordingly.
On the first blast of the whistle I cast out confidently, hoping to make a fast start. It was not to be. In fact within the first half an hour I had amassed a single 4oz roach, which had rudely swallowed the puffed-up 8mm pellet. The guy to my left had little else apart from a skimmer, so I was not too worried. However into the second hour he began to get his swim moving and was catching carp steadily while I was staring at motionless tip. I began to feed an 8m pole line in the hope of getting a bit of life somewhere in the peg, but not much seemed to be happening. I switched to a bomb, which often works well at Gold, wondering if the carp were method shy today. Nothing. I couldn't understand why there would be so little life in the peg, and considering the wind being my way it seemed odd. To be fair I got a bit frustrated over it.
Half way through the match I decided to press the reset button. I started firing 8mm pellets into the margins and bushes to get a bit of noise going and changed my bait to two pieces of 6mm meat present on a hair rig. I also started to double-skin the method feeder to get a bit more feed going into the swim, and with regular chucks every few minutes. It didn't take long for something to start happening. The tip drew round to a carp and I began to feel a bit better, although I couldn't be sure it was anything other than a solitary wandering fish that just happened to cruise over my bait at that point. Nevertheless, within fifteen minutes I had another, and then steadily on until I had nine carp in the net over the final couple of hours.
I did feed the near margin to my right (very deep on Syndicate!), but there was no sign of life there, so I left it. In fact I was drawing in fish reliably up until the last minutes. At the whistle I was pleased to have at least had something worth weighing in with, and I was sure I had beaten the guy to my left at least in the second half of the match. At the final tally I had 41lb, against his 46lb, so I had caught up well! 56lb won it from the swim at the other far end. I was placed seventh out of the twenty-odd anglers.
Switching my approach had made a difference, but I can't be sure that there were fish in the peg beforehand. I think the increased noise helped, and the meat was more acceptable. Could I have done better if I had switched earlier? Maybe, I was three fish off the win. One thing I am certain of is that I needed to be more accurate with my feeder placement, and especially considering I had a useful margin to drop in against. I need to work on that one.
So there we are, I was left wanting more - which is always a good sign! Until next time I'll be tying-up lots of lighter hook lengths and practicing a bit more on my casting accuracy.
Bring on the next match :)
After a long lay-off I was able to get out for an open match on Sunday down at Gold Valley. It was their usual Sunday open. Also on the same day was a winter league open with about 70 anglers, so the place was packed! It's good to see so many others sharing my same passion.
This was the first time I've fished an open and Gold Valley, and only the third time I've ever fished on Syndicate Lake, so I was a bit of a 'fish out of water' (if you know what I mean :) There were twenty-five anglers on the list, although not all turned up. Besides that it was a really nice sunny day, with a fair wind too.
I don't think Syndicate is the largest of the lakes, but it's a fair stretch of water to have in front of you. I ended up drawing peg 119, which is a corner down at far end. On arrival I was initially bit worried about the anti-cormorant lines that were laid out, and which gave me very limited space to my left. Nevertheless I had a lot of margin to my right to work with, so I was happy for that much. At the draw I asked about the peg and was told that it had been rather quiet at that end of the lake recently, but I knew the wind was that way so I felt sure it could produce something.
The previous night I had prepared my bait bag. I knew that the method feeder would dominate, and in fact a recent report had been of a mid-week match that was won with 180lb, mostly on method. I mixed up batch of 50/50 Dynamite Baits Krill and Bait Tech Super G Green, although it started off a bit on the sticky side. For the hook I packed 8mm course pellets (which I've found that the carp at Gold love), 6mm meat dry-dusted with the groundbait, 6mm krill pellets, and some paste.
In recent weeks I've started to fine-down my terminal tackle a bit, but what with the warm days we had been having in the preceding days and the sunshine, I felt the carp would be well on the feed. I stuck more or less kept to a summer rig. The guy to my left had a very long chuck to a margin, which he had done well to pick out, although I think he used up his entire stock of method feeders in the process! My own margin was to the right, running all along the far end of the lake, so there were various options for me. I could see a few interesting looking bays in the bushes, although one of them I knew had a sunken tree stump in it. I opted to fish the far bay to begin with, and clipped-up accordingly.
On the first blast of the whistle I cast out confidently, hoping to make a fast start. It was not to be. In fact within the first half an hour I had amassed a single 4oz roach, which had rudely swallowed the puffed-up 8mm pellet. The guy to my left had little else apart from a skimmer, so I was not too worried. However into the second hour he began to get his swim moving and was catching carp steadily while I was staring at motionless tip. I began to feed an 8m pole line in the hope of getting a bit of life somewhere in the peg, but not much seemed to be happening. I switched to a bomb, which often works well at Gold, wondering if the carp were method shy today. Nothing. I couldn't understand why there would be so little life in the peg, and considering the wind being my way it seemed odd. To be fair I got a bit frustrated over it.
Half way through the match I decided to press the reset button. I started firing 8mm pellets into the margins and bushes to get a bit of noise going and changed my bait to two pieces of 6mm meat present on a hair rig. I also started to double-skin the method feeder to get a bit more feed going into the swim, and with regular chucks every few minutes. It didn't take long for something to start happening. The tip drew round to a carp and I began to feel a bit better, although I couldn't be sure it was anything other than a solitary wandering fish that just happened to cruise over my bait at that point. Nevertheless, within fifteen minutes I had another, and then steadily on until I had nine carp in the net over the final couple of hours.
I did feed the near margin to my right (very deep on Syndicate!), but there was no sign of life there, so I left it. In fact I was drawing in fish reliably up until the last minutes. At the whistle I was pleased to have at least had something worth weighing in with, and I was sure I had beaten the guy to my left at least in the second half of the match. At the final tally I had 41lb, against his 46lb, so I had caught up well! 56lb won it from the swim at the other far end. I was placed seventh out of the twenty-odd anglers.
Switching my approach had made a difference, but I can't be sure that there were fish in the peg beforehand. I think the increased noise helped, and the meat was more acceptable. Could I have done better if I had switched earlier? Maybe, I was three fish off the win. One thing I am certain of is that I needed to be more accurate with my feeder placement, and especially considering I had a useful margin to drop in against. I need to work on that one.
So there we are, I was left wanting more - which is always a good sign! Until next time I'll be tying-up lots of lighter hook lengths and practicing a bit more on my casting accuracy.
Bring on the next match :)
Wednesday 15 October 2014
Waiting and Practicing
The Hopeful Match Fisher
It's been a frustrating month. Work, hospitals, and other unpredictable matters have kept my weekends well clear of any possible matches. However, I have been able to get a few useful practice sessions done.
As the weather has become colder and water the cooling off I've thinned everything down a bit and also drawn the feed area of my swims into a more confined space. Sessions at Gold Valley and Willow Park on long and short pole were very encouraging. As ever, my aim is to get some level of control where I've got fish feeding consistently in front of me so that I can get a good weight in a short time.
On another note I've also picked up a new Trolley (excellent Preston product), and a mega rod holdall with a facility for made-up rods (Matrix - my favourite brand). Every session is intended to try something new and deepen my experience.
It's been a frustrating month. Work, hospitals, and other unpredictable matters have kept my weekends well clear of any possible matches. However, I have been able to get a few useful practice sessions done.
As the weather has become colder and water the cooling off I've thinned everything down a bit and also drawn the feed area of my swims into a more confined space. Sessions at Gold Valley and Willow Park on long and short pole were very encouraging. As ever, my aim is to get some level of control where I've got fish feeding consistently in front of me so that I can get a good weight in a short time.
On another note I've also picked up a new Trolley (excellent Preston product), and a mega rod holdall with a facility for made-up rods (Matrix - my favourite brand). Every session is intended to try something new and deepen my experience.
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