Tuesday 28th December - Roy Carter Memorial Gloucester Canal, Hempstead to Netheridge

This match reminds a lot of West Country anglers of Roy who sadly passed away much too early a few years ago following a stroke. He was a very popular character on the local Match Circuit. Two memories I have of him is trying to draw bream away from me at Newbridge (he didn't and was the first to congratulate me on the win) and the other is giving a cyclist a "bollocking" for passing him on the inside when he was indicating to pull over at Rea Bridge on the Glossy, guess who won the argument.

Gloucestershire Match Ace Steve Long aided by Dave Clapton (Library photo's below) have been running a Match on the Gloucester Canal (a venue Roy loved) in his memory since his passing in order to raise money for the Stroke Association. 

Steve Long

Dave Clapton

The match is advertised quite early and is always held between Christmas Day and the New Year. I have fished all but one of them and as the 28th did not impact on any last minute family Christmas plans I booked in 2 weeks ago. Team mate Chris Hook was also booked in.

I arranged to meet Chris at McDonalds in Hardwick around 7 a.m before going to the Draw at Widden Old Boys Rugby Club. I was there before 7 and shortly after was joined by Jon Tocknell before Chris turned up. 

We were at the Rugby Club in plenty of time and eagerly waited for the draw, team mate Andy Thomas also turned up. 40 plus anglers were booked in and the pegging was from Hempstead Bridge to permanent peg 65 at Netheridge. There were quite a few boats on Hempstead Straight and the last couple of pegs on the old bend but generally all pegs were in.

Those that are familiar with the Glossy know that pegs 45 - 49 and 62 - 65 would be the favourable draw.

Steve called everyone to order and explained the procedure and rules for the day (not everyone listens) before getting on with the draw.

Chris and I were probably a third the way from the front of the queue and it was pleasing to see most of the scales and boards had gone before it was our turn to put our hand in the tray of dreams.

Chris pulled out peg 30 on the Straight and I had 43, hmmmmm. Andy was on 59 which is a bit of a bugger peg.

I have never draw 43 before and knew I was close to the "pegs of breams" but not close enough. At best I thought if all of the pegs on the bend framed then I might pick up a default section win.

I parked at Netheridge OK for the short walk to 43. It's always hard walking past the likes of 48, 47, 46 and 45 and there were some good anglers on them. As I approached my peg I saw Jon Tocknell on 44. 

A pretty stiff breeze was blowing up the Canal and there was a fair bit of colour in it.

I set up a 20 gram bread feeder for straight in front of me about a meter from the far bank tins, hair rigged 7mm discs on a 16 would be the first rig in the water trying to get some early fish. I also set up a 25 gram ground bait feeder for fishing dead reds or live maggot / pinkie on a 16 B560 about 5 meters to the left of the bread line.

Due to the strong breeze I only set up a pole line at top 7 with a 2 grammer. At this length it was still almost top 5 deep which I was happy about as on the "Bend pegs" it is also this depth close in and fish frequent the inside line toward the end of the day.

The "all in" was shouted at 10:00 and I cupped in Sensas Black Lake and Leam on my pole lines ( 10 and 2 o'clock) laced with dead reds, dead pinkie and a little chopped worm.

Starting off on the bread feeder I was expecting a bite, not right away but at least 20 minutes in. Nothing!

I saw Jon swing in a small fish on the feeder.

Still persevering on the bread I gave it a good 50 minutes and not a single indication. 

So time to give the ground bait feeder a go, mix was Sweet Skimmer and a little Thatchers Dark with just a few dead reds and pinkie with double red on the hook. Well another 20 minutes went by and nothing. Jon had a net fish on the feeder but was now having a look on his short pole line.

It wasn't long before he had a couple of net skimmers so it was time to follow suit.

The float reassuringly went under and I had a hand sized skimmer so blank avoided. 2 more small ones followed before it went dead. Jon however had added another couple of net fish.

I re-fed the lines again and put a bit more worm in before having a look on the gb feeder again.

Time was going on now and word from passers by suggested it was fishing hard.

Before going back out on the pole again I added a couple of inches more depth to the rig.

It wasn't long before it went under and I had a better fish a skimmer of around 1.5 pounds, phew.

It went quiet after that and once again Jon was into a fish on the pole.

The pole seemed to be the way to go today so got my head down and just patiently waited for a bite feeding very little but topping up both lines. The wind had dropped a lot now and Jon was up setting up a longer line (this did pay off for him as he nicked a few more skimmers). I did as well and bumped a couple as well late in the match. There must have been fish moving through on the inside as I got a few liners as well.

I have thought quite a lot about the match and how I approached it. I would certainly do a few things differently next time I draw in that area.

From nowhere at the halfway stage I managed a respectable 8lb 11oz.

As expected the Bend produced the winner but I did beat 2 of the Bend pegs.

Here is my board my Section was 43 - 48

Full results as follows, Jon was last in the frame and on reflection I could have possible made the frame as well, next time eh.

1st Neal Pickering peg 47
17-10-0
2nd Charlie Vallender peg 36
14-10-0
3rd Andy Jane peg 64
13-8-0
4th Jon Tocknell peg 44
12-9-0
Section winners:-
60-65 Pete Goulding peg 62. 11-0-0
54-59 Geoff Knight peg 55. 3-0-0
48-43 Nigel Baker peg 45. 11-2-0
42-37 Andrew Richings peg 39. 11-3-0
36-31 ade Baldwin peg 32. 5-3-0
30-25 Shaun grange peg 26. 9-11-0
1-6 David Clapton peg 3. 3-15-0

In total £420 raised for the Stroke Association.

Well that's it from me for 2021, my next planned outing is the River Tone 2 day Festival on 8th and 9th January which is a sell out.

Happy New Year all and all the best for 2022.

Tuesday 21st December - Acorn Fishery Open (aka a look on the dark side)

Those of you who follow my blog already know that I rarely visit a Commercial Fishery. I used to mix and match it a bit at Club level but since moving on to Team Fishing quite a few years ago I decided to concentrate on running line plus Canals.

Prior to lockdown last year I had tied a few Commercial Rigs and kept them  in a lunch box. I only got to use them once before lockdown came in and was second in the match at Acorn with a low weight on a cold day.

A few weeks ago I went back again and concentrated on silvers, I came second.

I decided to book in again this Tuesday and contacted Mike Chapman to book in. Mike told me I wouldn't need much bait as the winner on Sunday came from peg 5 with 70lb plus, 74 I think.

I was there in plenty of time and Mike aided by Eddie Wynne were master of ceremonies sorting out the draw masked up in line with Fishery Rules inside the cabin.

Clevedon Club mates Kev Perry and Paul Faiers also turned up as expected and we had a good old moan about our Christmas match on the Kenn a couple of days ago.

22 booked in and paid, its only £13 so you won't get rich on the winnings. The match on Tuesdays is an Open and generally well attended by regulars who are retired, self employed or skiving lol.

The Acorn Tackle Shop is open every day from 07:30 so fresh bait is available. I only topped up with half a pint of fluro pinkie. A small Warburton's Toastie Loaf was picked up from my local garage on the way as well ( I had plenty of maggot and worm plus half a tin of corn). 

The temperature was 4 degree's on arrival and it would not rise much above that all day.

The draw got under way and I was given peg 5, well you should have heard it ... lol ......

Despite the winner coming from it a couple of days ago (with carp) I was planning to fish for silvers so what do I do now.

Paul and Kev were on pegs 6 and 7. Fair play to Paul he walked over on the Island with me to the peg and pointed out where to fish for silvers or right across for carp. There are 5 pegs on the Island and all of them were in for some reason. The good thing was I was end peg with plenty of room to my left, peg 8 was not in.

A certain Mr Des Shipp was also fishing so know pressure, Des was over on peg 17, he usually does very well on this venue.

I did mix up some Sensas Black Lake for one silvers line and potted in a ball with caster and pinkie on the all in. My two other silver lines had loose fed pinkie and just finely chopped worm, all top 2 plus 3.

Before I finish baiting up young Freddie Clarke was netting a carp on peg 4.

I then went across at 13 metres towards the corner of the Island fishing bread (6mm punch) in 3 foot of water. I got an indication straight away and soon had a foul hooker on. A bit of a beast but I did land him. A big common of around 7lbs.

I was on 0.11 power line hook length to an old Preston 434 16 but the 11 elastic more than compensated the runs the fish took.

The float went under again right across and this time it was properly hooked. I calculated I had around 20lb in the first hour so on track for a decent weight. On the odd occasion when I did look around I couldn't see that much being caught.

I put a little bit more bait on my silvers lines though just in case.

Back over with the bread and a Carrasso was hooked, these count as silvers and come in really easy. A few more carp followed some caught on the bread, some on a corn skin but lost a few as well due to being mould hooked.

Trying my silvers line out in front with pinkie I was surprised to catch a small tench, gave it another 10 minutes but no indications. Tried by other 2 silver lines and nothing. That was it I was forced to continue to fish for carp.

I had a big skimmer on the bread plus a decent crucian.

My arms were aching on the all out, Paul and Kev reckoned I'd done enough to win.

I had, 70lb 4oz (part of my catch above)

Here are the weigh sheets.....

Thankfully Des decided to fish for silvers due to the peg he was on, had he been on mine he would have emptied it as would most of the regulars on here but as Paul said a win's a win.

Paul came second in the silvers and Kev sixth overall.

Next up is the Roy Carter on 28th Dec Gloucester Canal.

Wednesday 15th and Sunday 19th December - Pleasure session and match River Kenn

On Wednesday 15th December I decided on a pleasure session on my Club water, the River Kenn in Clevedon North Somerset. The EA drop the level in early December and you are only fishing in 3 foot of water. It can be a bit of a challenge as on a lot of pegs you need to stand in the mud. Fishing is also a bit hit and miss and can be very frustrating as the river is affected by the tide.

This was my first winter session on the river, the tide was spot on for a fishing session up until 3 p.m.

It's not complicated fishing and you don't need a lot of bait.

I went on peg 35 just above Strode Rd bridge. A 2.5 AAA straight waggler with a no. 8 and 2 no. 10's down the line with a 18 B611 hook tied on 0.11 power line. A pint of red maggot and a few worms. 

I started fishing at 9 a.m. trotting through two thirds the way across just tripping bottom and feeding about 6 maggots every run.

There was little or no wind so I was able to present the bait in different ways, holding back or tripping the bottom. There was also a tinge of colour in the water.

Fishing this way is a bit of a work out due to the continuous trotting and it was 3 hours before I had a bite which I missed but at least it was a good sign.

Soon afterwards I was bent into a good fish, I knew straight away it was a tench. Nothing unusual about catching tench on the Kenn in winter (I have had 52lb of them in January 2 years ago).

Tony Derrick was behind me watching at the time and took this photo ......

You can't beat catching a fit tench on the waggler in running water.

Over the following 3 hours I had 4 more tench, a big perch and 2 roach. Due to the tide coming in the flow stopped just before 3 p.m. and I lost another big tench after playing it for 5 minutes but it was foul hooked as a scale came back on the hook.

Here's my full catch photo ....

On Sunday the 19th December we (Clevedon Freshwater Angling Club) had our Christmas Open on the River Kenn.

27 Anglers attended which is a decent turnout. We had our breakfast and draw at Angelina's Restaurant in Warren's Holiday Park Clevedon. It was a great venue, plenty of parking and room inside, the food was good and very clean premises.

The draw got under way at 08:45 and I was towards the end of the queue. Team mates Leigh Wakefield and Chris Hook were also fishing.

Into the bucket of dreams and I pulled out peg 36A which is above Strode Rd a few pegs up from where I was fishing the Wednesday before, on paper a great draw and I knew 4 tench and some roach had come off it the previous Tuesday by Steve Warren. Leigh was on 36 above me and Chris was on 11 a good summer peg for bream.

The good thing about my peg was I didn't have to sit in the mud as one of our members built a great platform in some reeds, it actually under water in the summer when the level is up.

I had a decent amount of room between myself and the next angler (Andy Law) downstream.

My rods and rigs were already made up. Full depth waggler and one for right across in 2 foot of water plus a 4 no. 4 stick float for the inside and a small maggot feeder.

An hour in and not a bite (same as the guys above me), then I saw Andy below me net a big perch. 2 more hours with not a bite then a small roach right at the end of the trot on the full depth waggler. Just as I swung it in Leigh above me had a decent perch on the straight lead.

I had a few more roach over the next 30 minutes but they were small but at the same time thought I could put a weight together and if a bonus perch or tench came along who knows what I could achieve.

Sadly it didn't happen and the roach disappeared. 

The river on the whole fished rock hard and the match was won by Glenn Calvert with 6lb 10oz of small roach on the pole with pinkie from peg 33 directly above Strode Rd. bridge.

4lb 4oz and 4lb 3oz were enough for 2nd and 3rd place.

There were quite a few DNW's down the bottom end but everyone knew the score before they entered, it didn't help that the temperatures plummeted a couple of days before the match and it was cold all day.

The Club provided some great Christmas Fayre prizes and the raffle was supported with donations from Cadbury Angling and Reel Fun.

I managed a few bottle of wine, some chocolate, pellets (goodness know's what I will do with them) and biscuits.

When I got home I noticed a mouse had already had a go at the biscuit box lol.

The Kenn can be rewarding but can also do your head in but ....... never give up. I'm looking forward to a few more winter sessions.

If you would like to fish the River Kenn there is loads of information and the ability to purchase day tickets and permits on our website ......

https://clevedon-fwac.co.uk/

Going on the dark side tomorrow (Tuesday 21st Dec) Acorn Fishery Cost cutter then on 28th Dec the Roy Carter Memorial on the Gloucester Canal.

Sunday 12th December - Ray South Memorial Match Warks Avon Evesham

This was my first outing since the Poppy Match on 14th November due to being away on a Caribbean Cruise. Although the cruise was 2 weeks I was being careful not to mix prior to going and had to self isolate after coming back to the UK until my PCR was done.

I search high and low for a match locally but there wasn't any. Bathampton AA had advertised a match on the Bristol Avon at Newbridge but after contacting Dean Harvey he informed me it was cancelled.

I was left with two options..... Port Talbot Docks or Evesham each of them about an hour and a quarter away, I decided on Evesham as it was also a Festival qualifying match.

We hadn't had that much rain locally but I knew they had more in the Midlands so set about monitoring the River Gauge reports for Evesham. It didn't look too bad and I also checked with local angler Trevor Chalk to get his opinion of what it might look like on the Sunday. It was going to be about 18 inches up at the most so not too bad.

Up early on the Sunday and at 0630 it was 12 degree's, I had everything in the van to cover all options.

A nice run up to Evesham and as I crossed over the Town Bridge I could see the level was definitely up with a tinge of colour. After I parked up at Hampton Ferry I met up with a few other from the Gloucestershire area, Jon Tocknell, Andy Richings, Brian Pollard and Mark Brush. I sat with Mark in the Cafe prior to the draw, he's very successful at Evesham and picked his brains a bit.

34 booked in today with 2 anglers qualifying for the Evesham Festival in August, the match prize money today had also been enhanced by the late Ray South's family to the tune of £250.

Most favoured the deeper pegs in the Ferry Field due to the state of the river as the conditions appeared to be spot on for bream.

Upstream of the town bridge had been put in but not the pegs immediately below as they are much shallower and the water would be bombing through. I was pretty well down the que and when I got to the battleship style draw grid I saw that A5 was still there (I have picked this disc quite often) so called it out to Diana and when she turned it over I was on peg 14, the first time I have been above the town bridge.

I spoke to Andy Richings afterwards who said it was a decent depth there and you could get skimmers or even a barble.

Fishing was 10:15 - 15:15 so plenty of time to drive down to the car park load up and a short walk to the peg. Not knowing what the peg looked like I just took everything.

To my surprise and give the amount of pegs v the number of anglers fishing pegs 13, 14 and 15 were all in. The guy above me on 13 had a bit of a moan as he was closer to me than I was to the angler on 15. I felt I had enough room so was fairly happy.

The river had a bit of pace on it right in the middle but there was also a crease this side of the middle and the near bank which looked fishy. I decided on just two methods, maggot feeder (45 gram) down the middle and a small ground bait (30 gram) feeder for about 12 metres out downstream. I nearly set up a whip for bleak but decided against it.

At the start the sun was right in my eyes and had to raise my had to block it out in order to see the tip.

I started off on the inside line with the ground bait feeder and worm but after 45 minutes nothing so picked up the maggot feeder rod. Third chuck and a very small chublet hung itself on 2 maggots, didn't even see the bite. The 45 grams held the middle just nice and on my next cast had a lovely drop back getting a nice 5 ounce roach, here we go, cracked it I thought. I did get a few nipped maggots but no indication whatsoever.

I could hear the angler above me on the phone having a good old moan and it sounded like most were struggling.

I had been re-casting about every 5 minutes trying to make something happen as you would for trotting, trying to draw fish into the swim.

A group of people passed on paddle boards dressed as Santa's ..... why?

Not long after they went by I put on 3 maggots, I was fishing a proper hook, Preston N50 although it was a 16 to 0.14 Accu Power.

After I cast it was in about 3 minutes or so and I turned to get some gear out of my back behind the seatbox when out of the corner of my eye I noticed the tip bounce back. I hit it and thought I had snagged a floating log or branch until it started to move upstream. The way it was nodding I thought it was a decent bream and carefully got it with about 5 metres of the bank when it came up to the top. Not a bream but a barble and a big one at that. As I shipped the net out it dived and headed right across the river and I was franticly back winding.

Please don't come off I thought, I was a bag of nerves to be honest and knew the importance of landing this fish.

The angler above me shouted down "barbel" I shouted back yes, he said something else but I didn't hear it. I don't know how long it took to get it back to the nearside but I managed it and netted it successfully to the apaulse of a guy stood behind me (non angler). It was bent double in the landing net and there was a huge sense of relief on my part. Even after I had put it in the keep net I was still shaking for quite a while.

It was about 13:30 now with and hour and 45 minutes to go, plenty of time to get another I thought.

Word from passers by suggested the river was fishing rock hard, a few skimmers had been caught above me as well as a bream in the Ferry Field.

I had only one more bite until the all out, a ruff.

Peg 13 above me had one ruff and on peg 15 he had a small chublet.

When Jay came down with the scales to me the best upstream of me was 5lb. 

My barbel, roach, chublet and ruff went 10lb 7oz so the barbel was a level 10lb.

2 photo's below which shows off it's length and girth .....

Back at Hampton Ferry I found that I was 2nd overall and didn't qualify as Jon Tocknell had 2 big bream on the pole feeder for 13lb plus (2 in 15 minutes) after he saw one roll. Jon was also the last peg in my qualifying zone, but tbh I wasn't that bothered after landing that magnificent fish.

Jon with his 2 big bream

Here is the board with the weights by peg and results......

As you will see Mark Brush kept his recent good form on the venue by winning his section.

When the called out the results overall beginning with 4th place and said it was worth £90 I knew I was in for a good payout.

What a day, I have only ever caught one barbel before and it was only about a pound back in the 80's.

Pleasure fishing the River Kenn on Wednesday and Club Xmas Match on the same river next Sunday.