River Kenn - inter club match with Frome Vale Sunday 23rd September

With a roast dinner now inside me and a hot shower I have finally warmed up after today on what felt like the first day of winter.This was meant to be a 3 way inter club match between Clevedon, Frys and Frome Vale. Due to some confusion Frys had booked Paddock Lake at Acorn Fishery as the venue but it was always on the Clevedon Match Programme as the River Kenn. With a commercial fishery booked Frys did not have much choice but to go ahead with Acorn but on their own, it also meant they had to fill up the pegs which I believe attracted some of our guys who would rather fish a commercial (each to their own). There were also other matches on in the area which affected our numbers. Anyway I was always going to fish the Kenn.
The draw and breakfast was at Warrens Holiday Camp, the service is a bit slow but a very editable breakfast was enjoyed by the 5 Clevedon and 3 Frome Vale anglers. The slow service adjusted the fishing times to 10:30 - 16:00. A very civilised draw took place by passing the bucket around, there were at least 3 pegs between each angler and we were all on the bottom stretch below Strode Rd. I drew peg 5 which has a lot of form and with only one angler below I couldn't wait to get to the peg.

View of my peg, you could get right in the water.

Simple set up today waggler at various depths and adjusted as necessary between the far shelf and down the track, loose feed caster and red maggot on an 18 to 0.010. Feeder rod with small cage feeder to a 14 hook with either worm or maggot, groundbait 50/50 green swim stim and sensas noire - sorted.

High tide was due at 12:50 which always seems to put the fish off for a couple of hours due to nil flow.

At the start and while the river was moving through nice I started on the wag, 15 mins in I had my first fish, a small perch, more followed from the far shelf. I rested this line and went down the middle, I had been feed both lines, the float sailed away 2nd trot down and I bumped a good fish, then I had a few roach. Rested this line and went back on the far shelf, good fish on, thought it was a tench, just as I thought I had it beated in snapped me, I just saw it beyond the net, a chub about 2lb (we stocked these a few years ago but they are rarely seen. I then had a couple of them plus some roach (these have been rare as well this year). High tide came and stopped the flow I only added a few more perch in the next 2 hours. Match Secretary came up walking the bank, I told him I had about 4lb at the halfway point, he told me James Gunter had one bream and other than that onlt a few perch had been caught, some anglers blanking. I decided to ball in down the track and put 5 in with caster and dead mag for later. The tide ran off and flow returned about 14:15 and with that managed a few roach and hybrids. I then went over the groundbait line and had a good bream 4th trot down but no more followed. About 15:00 I was trotted the far shelf and just tripping bottom when I had another good bream, surely this should be enough. Only two small fish followed in that last hour.

I packed up at 16:00 and walked up to James he had not had anymore bream. The scales came down and 2lb 15 was winning it, only James and I had to weigh as the Frome Vale angler below me packed up at 15:00.

James weighed in 7lb 14oz, pic below with his bream.

I weighed in 14lb 14oz for top weight on the day, pic below.

The pic below is better concerning the catch, it was taken while I was trying to line them up hence the head was down.

What a great day, press report below and I need new water proofs.



Clevedon Freshwater Angling Club staged an inter club competition with Frome Vale on their home water the river Kenn. Bad weather, a high tide in the middle of the match and other open competitions elsewhere affected the number of competitors.  A hearty breakfast from Angelina’s Restaurant at Warrens Village helped the anglers face the onslaught of winter and the continuous rain which fell for the duration of the match.

The river Kenn can be a difficult venue at the best of time so anglers were given plenty of space between the pegs in order to maximise their chances of drawing fish. Club Press Officer Ivan Currie has been putting some time in on the venue and knew exactly what to do when he drew Peg 5 at the end of the down stream section near the sea wall. Ivan fished the float all day with light tackle and fed caster sparingly with red maggot on the hook searching out chub, roach, hybrids, perch and two good bream for a very respectable 14lb 14oz. Second on the day was James Gunter another Clevedon angler who was immediately upstream. James weighed in 7lb 14oz which as made up of one good Bream that he caught on the pole along with some perch. Frome Vale angler Roger Worlock was third overall with an all perch net of 2lb 15oz.

1^st Ivan Currie

2^nd James Gunter

3rd Roger Worlock