Sunday 5th February Clevedon Club Match Woodlands Lake Trinty Waters

It has been a busy weekend mainly due to my youngest daughters 18th Birthday, the celebrations started Friday night but the whole week prior was a nightmare as we bought her a little run around as she passed her test on Friday 13th Jan!!!!.
Anyway I dragged myself out of bed at 06:20, looked out and it seemed ok, that was until I nearly went on my backside just outside the front door. The rain had stopped during the night sometime and everything had turned to ice. I was not looking forward to the trip down to Chiltern Trinity near Bridgwater. The temp on the car at home was registering 0.5c, by the time I was going over the River Hunstpill on the M5 it was 4c, that's better methinks until I notice the Huntspill was frozen over! I arrived at the complex and noticed Wildmarsh lake was frozen solid, I did not have an ice breaker either. Only two other anglers were in the car par on arrival and I looked across toward Woodland Lake, it was not frozen! Misha and her dad had kept it clear using a rowing boat and a digger, outstanding.  How many fisheries would do this?

ice free lake

Match Secretary Barry Fowler arrives and sorts the usual things out, walks around the lake and does the peg cards. Into the Sensas Bucket and out comes Peg 2, ummm, not quite the draw I wanted but hey ho. I arrived at my peg and it was full of broken ice! Barry takes a look and allocates me Peg 1 instead as there was plenty of room.

View from my peg

3 lines today, straight lead with anything, 13 meters with a 4 x 14 fished at 12 o'clock and 9 o'clock with dead maggot, corn or soft pellet, feeding mirco and dead reds. Straight out on the bread with the lead first, I was expecting some early indications but nothing, then out on the corn and i got a few liners just as my hot breakfast roll and tea arrived at the peg, yummy. While I scoffed this nothing happend on the tip. After an hour and a quarter the rod went behind me and I tried the 12 o'clock line at 13 meters with a dead red, after 5 mins the float shot under and a carp about 3lb was soon in the net. Back out again and the float dipped a couple of times, brought it in and saw the maggot had been nipped. Put it out again, slight dip, struck and into another small carp just over 2lb, cracked it I thought, wrong, nothing for 2 hours. Between the two pole lines I had a flurry of small roach and I mean small. About 2pm on the 9 o'clock line the tip of the pole was dragged under as I watched Barry Fowler net a good skimmer, he had been having a few silvers but I could not see much being caught, I managed to keep the fish on and soon put another 2lb carp in the net. The rest of the match I kept getting the odd small roach but they were to be of great benefit to me.

My 3 carp and small roach came to a level 9lb for 1st overall and £50 quid.

me with my 9lb

2nd Barry Fowler 8lb 12oz

3rd Adie Baker 5lb 15oz

Going to have a weekend off next week as will be working away in Manchester for a couple of days. Next match is on Apex Lake Highbridge 15th Feb so stay tuned. Thanks again to the Trinity Fishers Team for an ice free venue.