Air Ambulance Open Bristol Avon Staverton and Barton Farm nr Trowbridge

This was my first trip out on a river this season. I had intended to fish the local River Kenn but work has been too busy for me lately due to covering 2 jobs including nights away from home. The match was a Charity Open but also a practice for the next SW Super League match this weekend on the same waters. 5 of us attended the match as none of us had really seen the venue before let alone fish it. Draw was at the brand new Trowbridge Town Rugby Club which apparently cost £3m and what a great facility it is execept no licence after 4 p.m. on a Sunday so the results were back at the Kings Arms pub. 63 Anglers booked in, there were only 2 access points, Bradford on Avon Railway Station for Barton Farm and a Racecourse Farm for Staverton. 3 of us drew Staverton and Nicky Collins lead us to the access point. On the Staverton water I have never seen such quality pegging and swim clearing on a river. Each peg had a scaffold pole in the ground with a black number on a yellow background and you could park behind every peg. The bank was flat and strimmed, quality or what. The Barton Farm access also had a concrete path all the way along the river. A few stars were on the bank, ex world champ Clive Branson, regular river angler Richard Chave and the Thatchers guys. As I drove to my peg (22) I could see the far bank had a lot of trees but the width did vary from peg to peg, Nicky Collins peg looked a dream and apparently held big chub. A local angler above me said bream also showed from time to time. The Wednesday match on the same stretch was won with 17lb roach. Here is my peg looking straight across and downstream.

So a fairly bare far bank but there were fish topping although very small. Plumbed up on the pole at 13 meters and found I had about 12', 1.5 grm rig ran through quite nice as this is were the flow was. 3AA waggler was ok for the far bank starting at 4' deep, feeder also set up but not used. Weather not ideal as very bright and warm but just enoyed being on the river again. On the all in I could here others balling in either side of me and beyond, I decided to cup in 4 balls of magic and noire laced with pinkie, caster and chopped worm. Decided to leave this line alone and went on the wag loose feeding caster right across. Bleak, bleak, more bleak followed but the a few small roach started to show and at least I was putting fish in the net. After an hour and 15 I went on the pole, first trot down the float buried and a 4 oz roach was netted, more followed but it died after about 30 mins, I re-fed and went back on the wag. This is how it went for the whole match. I weighed in 4lb 4oz, guy above DNW, local angler below had 5lb 5oz. Team mates Don and Sam on the same stretch weighed 5lb odd and 2lb 10oz, best in our stretch was 9lb (Richard Chave) but futher up Gary Etheridge had 12lb 6oz of small fish. Down at Barton Farm Team mate Jame Gunter also had 4lb odd but captain Chris Hook had 2 bream and some bits for 12lb 5oz enough for 4th on the day and £100. It is a cracking venue and looking forward to Sunday, team meeting was last night and we have a plan lol, lets see.