Sunday 11th December - Bathampton AA Christmas Match, Bristol Avon and Kennet and Avon Canal

I found out about this match by chance last weekend. I just happened to mention to Dean Harvey at the end of last weeks match did he know if there was anything on the following week and he informed me about the Bathampton Christmas Match so I thought why not and booked in with Kev Dicks straight away. I was told you could fish the river or canal and there was also an option to enter a pairs competition. As I did not have a partner I just told Kevin I would fish the river.
Later on in the week I had a call from my Maver Team mate Lewis Walker asking if I wanted to pair up with him but he wanted to fish the river. I said ok so the canal it was for me.
After a late draw at the Crown Pub in Saltford Lewis was heading to a peg on the river at Newbridge at the top end of the straight and I was on my way to peg 1 just over the aqueduct at Dundas which is on the A36 the other side of Bath.
The turnout was not great with 10 on the river and 6 on the canal.
The canal anglers were Rich Lacey, Sean Townsend, Kev Dicks, Darren Gillman, Nicky Goodhind as well as myself (no mugs here then).
I had not fished this section of canal for about 25 years and thought the big beeches turning bay would throw up a bream weight, not so sure about the other pegs.
My peg did look quite ordinary and I was it between 2 boats with a concrete bank on the far side.
I had just set up when the guy from the boat to my left said he needed to move up a little towards me in order to make a bit of room between his and the next boat down to set up a stall as his wife was selling home made crafts and scarfs.
I told him there was a match on and we compromised meaning I only had to move up a few feet and had enough time to adjust.

my peg today

I had plenty of room on the bank but set up my rollers more or less in line with the canal as its a busy tow path.

Nice and simple today, one rig for straight across at 14 meters just up the far shelf, another for the bottom of the far shelf at 10:00 and 14:00 and a final one for down the middle, 10:00 and 14:00. Size 18 hooks for the far shelf rigs and a 20 for down the track, all to 0.10 fluro and 4 x 14 floats as the canal does tow a lot. The bait tray was the same as last week, squats, pinkie, maggot, worm and bread.

Rich Lacey was the only other angler I could see (peg 2). Rich called the ''all in'' at 10:30 and I fed my up on the shelf and bottom of the shelf lines with chopped worm, caster and squat, two pots of liquidised bread went in on my track line and this is were I started with 5 mm punch on the hook. not much happened straight away but I did catch a glance of Rich netting a fish, he shouted down it was a roach. 

I started lifting and dropping the punched bread and it brought a sail away bite connecting with solid 

resistance and that thump thump of a skimmer bream. It was a decent one at around 11/2 lbs but spat the hook out as I was trying to net it, not happy. I put in again and soon was playing another and did net it although a bit smaller than the one I lost.
The bread line came alive but only small fish obliged. The end of the first hour was nearing now and Rich said he was struggling, he also said the guys in the turning bay were also struggling.
Boat traffic was quite heavy and one actually stopped and moored up opposite me ending the option to fish up on the shelf. A group of guys got off and headed up the pub.
I fed the two bottom of the far shelf lines again and stayed on the bread for another 15 mins or so.
First look on my 10:00 line with double pinkie I had a good bite and bumped a decent fish. Back out again and hit another positive bite and ended up nervously playing a big perch with an audience of kids behind me. Safely netted it was around 11/2 lbs.  I rested the line and had a look on the other getting a couple of tidy 6oz roach. Word was others on the canal were finding it hard so given that the fish appeared to be responding to the chop, caster and squat I upped the feed rate and rotated the two lines at the bottom of the far shelf for the remainder of the match getting lots of small roach and more bonus perch on a full maggot.
15:30 came and I knew I had a tidy weight but after last weeks guessing game couldn't call it.
Rich said he had around 4lbs and he thought I had at least 8lbs.
The scales came down our way and top weight above us was Darren Gillman the other side of the turning bay with over 8lbs.

Darrens roach bag

Rich did weigh 4lbs plus so he was spot on. When I pulled my net out the guys were surprised at the size of my perch.
My total weight went 11lbs 7oz. Darren took these pic for me.

I had done enough to win the canal section but wasn't sure how Lewis has got on. Rich had told me earlier on that Dean Harvey was admitting to 40lbs of bream at Newbridge.

Back at the Crown Pub it turned out the river had fished really well with two 60lb plus weights. Lewis my partner had just over 10lbs.

Results as follows:

1st River - Warren Bates 66lbs 6oz including a 10lb 6oz barbel (peg 36)

2nd River - Dean Harvey 62lbs 8oz (peg 38)

3rd River - Derek Coles 27lbs (peg 18)

1st Canal - Ivan Currie 11lbs 8oz (peg 1)

2nd Canal - Darren Gillman 8lbs plus (peg 4)

Pairs winners...

Sean Townsend and Dean Harvey

Next week is the Clevedon Clubs Christmas Match at Acorn Fishery and I am giving it a go (not fished a Commercial for a year).

Sunday 4th December - Bristol Commercial House League Christmas Match, Kennet and Avon Canal, Bath.

I was unsure wether to fish this match due to family coming around in the evening but with youngest daughter home from London for the weekend ... she could assist my wife prepare the meal etc so booked in with Nicky the previous weekend.
Only 25 turned up for this match, I think a few more were booked in but due to the cold weather some had decided to stay under the duvet. There was a frost overnight so had to defrost the car at 06:30.
On arrival at the Rugby Club tucked into my favourite black pudding and sausage bap with brown sauce (its an acquired taste) and a tea. Wanted another tea but fishing on the town stretch in Bath with lots of walkers etc there is nowhere to pee.
Talk before the draw was that the Canal would be rock hard today and Kev Dicks turned up with bloodworm and joker that had been ordered by a few. It was good quality Polish stuff and some were very excited when they opened the little paper parcels containing them while having their breakfast.
I have used it a few times myself but done just as good with normal squats, pinkie, caster and worm.
Entry was £20 which included Xmas Fare prizes and Kev ran a £5 super pool which I entered.
I was about halfway in the draw que and when it was my turn I pulled out peg 7. Nicky told me it was   on the ''Long Pond'', I had no idea how to get there but after taking various bits of advice (some good, some ridiculous) i established that I needed to head for Pultney Gardens so Sat Nav it was.
Arrived no problem at all and parked up on the hill leading to the canal towpath. The road was white with frost and therefore very hazardous under foot.
It was only a short walk to the canal but hard to find the white peg card in the frosty grass (thanks Vince Lunn for your assistance).

 

my view towards Bath (bit frosty)

tunnel my left leading to a lock and Horseshoe pond

Nicky Goodhind passed me on her way towards her peg and said that my peg was where Nige Evans had 14lb odd the other week and peg 6 were young Cal was Tim Ford has his match winning 15lb odd. I said to Nicky its a different day today with the frost and clear bright conditions.
I had not fished this part of the canal before but was very please with the draw. There was plenty of room and far bank cover in the form of brambles.
3 rigs were set up today, a 4x14 for the track at 9 meters in about 4 foot of water for fishing the punch, same set up but for fishing at 13 meters at 10:00 and 14:00 just at the bottom of the far shelf in about 3 foot of water and a little chop float for fishing up on the far shelf about a meter out from the bank where it was around 2 feet deep. All rigs had 20 hooks and 0.10 fluro.
On the bait tray was red squats, pinkie, red maggot, worm and bread.
At the start I fed a small pot of liqqy bread and then cupped in chop and caster on the far shelf and fed my two other lines with squat and caster in a mix of black lake and noire.
Starting on a 4 mm piece of punched bread I expected the float to sail away. It didn't. Glancing down to you Cal on 6 he was already swinging in a small roach which he caught short on bread. I persevered but after 20 mins on the bread I had not had a single indication. Cal however had about 5 by this time!
I picked up my far shelf rig and put a fluro pinkie on, the float buried straight away and to my surprise it was a small chub of around 4 ozs. I took a few more chub on this line before it went quiet due to a boat coming down and the lock opening making the swim a bit like a jacuzzi with bubbles and whirl pools everywhere. I waited until the boat had come down and passed and re-fed all my lines. the bread line was fed with chop and caster with a few squats.
I started again on my 10:00 line where I took, dace, gudgeon, bull head, roach and perch but they were quite small but at least I was putting fish in the net. Young Cal was struggling now.
I took a look again on the far shelf and was soon back catching chublet's, a few were net fish as well.

It must have been around 13:00 ish when Nigel Wyatt came down the towpath for a walk from upstream (this is unusual). He asked how I was getting on and I said I thought I had around 8lbs. Nigel said that up above they were all struggling and he had only had a few bites but Jeff Surman in Horseshoe Pond had a couple of big chub (2lbs odd a piece). He walked on down to see the others and on return said others down their were also struggling.
After he went my peg switched off on all lines and for the remainder of the match I only caught the odd small fish which would cost me.
At 15:00 the ''all out'' was called and while I was packing up Mike Goodhind came down and said the favoured ''tunnels'' area was dire today and that an otter had now taken up residence which accounted for the poor fishing. his section was won with 5ozs!!!! The ''Richardsons wharf area had also fished poor for most.
The scales came up and Vince Lunn was the best in our area with 6lbs 13oz after that it was 2lbs 15oz.
My net went 5lbs 15oz, I had a lot of fish but the chub tend to be a bit hollow.

Not bad for a cold day

Back at the Rugby Club it was clear a lot had really struggled and i don't think that blood worm and joker made any difference.

Top 6 as follows:

1st   Jeff Surman 8lbs 11oz, well done mate

2nd  Shane Caswell 8lbs 4oz

3rd   Vince Lunn 6lbs 13oz

4th   Ivan Currie 5lbs 15oz

5th   Kev Dicks 5lbs 5oz

6th   Sean Townsend 4lbs 6oz

As they only paid top 3 I was just out of the main money but got my section by default plus 10 cans Thatchers, 18 cans of John Smiths and a big box of biscuits.

Followed by Christmas Dinner when I got home and few beers.

Back on the Bristol Avon next week at Newbridge for the Bathampton Christmas Match.