Club Lake - 01/04/2011

Another trip to the "club lake" after work (aka Glazebrooks Pool - no need to be coy after somebody guessed it!). South westerly was hammering into my usual corner when I got there, but with everybody else carp fishing on the pool next door I had free choice of swims. Ended up in the other corner on the same bank, fishing into 8 feet of water off the end of a willow. Applied the usual formula of chopped worm and dead maggots, with lobworm fished over the top. Took a while before there was any interest. Had a couple of sail away bites that I didn't connect with, the worm coming back nipped off below the hook. Changed to a smaller hook and worm section. Quickly had two small ones before it died completely, with nothing else coming before dark. Notwithstanding the fact I wasn't in my "comfort zone", it was all a bit of a let down. Looking at my diary, a session last year almost to the day resulted in 15 fish, including the 2lb 1oz perch shown below and a bonus tench. Despite the promise shown by that 2lber, the fish just don't seem to be there in the same numbers this year. Perhaps a hint to try somewhere else....

Happier days and longer hair!

Club lake - 22/03/2011

Short trip to the lake after work for the last couple hours of the day. Nobody in the corner, so dropped in there again. Put some chopped worm in as usual, but sprayed maggots over the top every few minutes in the hope it would get the small stuff excited with the perch following on. Seemed to work as within a fairly short time the swim was alive with bits that scattered every time I raised my arms. This was quite often as I was blowing my nose every five minutes as my first cold of the year took hold! Soon started getting bites on the worm, but failed to connect with the first few, so swapped the whole lobworm for a couple of dendras. Had desired effect. Had a couple of small ones before I had to use the landing net on a fish of 1lb 8oz.

Bigger please!

Carried on and had three more small ones before it was too dark to see the float. Drove home with a dripping nose and thoughts of an early night!

Club lake - 16/03/2011

Have tended to fish for the perch once the rivers have closed on the same small club water for the last few seasons now. Mostly short sessions straight after work. No monsters, in fact I only got my first fish over 2lb from here last year. However, there have always been a few about over the pound mark and the occasional mention of much bigger fish on the club forum keeps drawing me back. It is also very quiet this time of year and this session was no exception, with just one other angler fishing the adjacent pit. I was therefore able to drop into my favoured spot in the corner. The chubber float was replaced with a waggler fished as a slider, so I could swing it underarm close up against the willows.

Spot the float!

Put out some chopped worm and dead maggots mixed with a bit of Sonubaits Supacrush Green, dropped a lobworm on top and sat down to wait. Soon started to get knocks and lifts on the float that didn't materialise into anything. A few dead maggots in the margins showed there were quite a few fry about, so sat on my hands and waited for a proper bite. Was beginning to think it wasn't going to happen when the float eventually moved off and slowly disappeared. Strike met with decent resistance and my first stillwater perch of the year, a plump fish of 1lb 10oz.

Where's your Dad?

Thought that fish was the beginning of something, but there was no further action. Got very cold, very quickly after about 6 pm and I had to go to the car for another jacket. Packed up shortly afterwards as the mist descended, soaking everything. Car thermometer said it was 5 degrees Centigrade! What happened to Spring?