Gary Etheridge had a knock up today on Cottage at Withy. 8 of us racked up and fished two on each bank. Mayo and me on pegs 3 and 2 respectively. Kendal on 5 and Danny Jones on 7. Our host Gary on 9 and gorgeous George on 11. Finally Paul Hough on 13 and Mark Blake on 15.
Ice , quite thick ice, covered two thirds of the lake, with only Kendal and Danny with open water. The start was delayed until 10.30 while we cracked ice and used the landing nets to hook it all out. My Peg 2 was completely covered. I chose to nibble away at it hoping the weak sunshine and rising wind would do the damage. Blakey offered an Ice breaker but peg two is shallow and I was certain it would push the fish away. Blakey agreed and confirmed he hoped i would use it and push the fish his way.
Kind help from Mayo cleared a space to fish. Cheers Mate. As the match started the wind really got up and the ice rapidly disintegrated. I cupped in a sweet mix ground bait x 4 with little pinkie, and dropped in some micro and expander 4 mill to the left.
Tried the pellet for 10 minutes with no luck and went back over the groundbait. Using a Dino o.2 silvers float Kamasan size 20 crystal 510. Main line 0.10 hook length 0.8, and a number 4 elastic on a pullla.
Float dipped a little and then lifted slightly, and I lifted into a nice 4 oz skimmer. Straight back out and dropped in through the now pimpling water above the ground bait. Slid away and a 8 oz skimmer came in like a paper bag. Blotchy fish, not very good condition. Then a dozen 2 oz roach and then another 12oz skimmer. Blakey on 15 to my left was chuntering well as he could see Gary Etheridge landing Carp of peg 9. He shouted I have the silver fish kid bagging to my right and the other Gary catching carp he says. The much to his consternation the Hoffmeister on peg 13 to his left had hooked a monster battleship fishing down the edge to the corner!!! Hoffy landed the carp that was hooked above the eye. Followed it with two more, which left Blakey apoplectic.
The match progressed well I continued to catch small fish steadily. Mayo had a slower start but had bagged some fat goldfish of peg 3. He was now fishing 18+ meters of pole to the island and starting to catch carp steadily. The surprising preponderance of Carp had blown my plan for the match. Clearly silvers were not going to win it today.
I dusted of my Browning 8 foot commercial king mixed some sticky pellet into the micro (no method mix), stuck on a hard 6 mill banded pellet and flicked the 15 gram method feeder against the island. The tip wanged round straight away and I pulled in a carp scale about the size of a tangerine. I must have landed right on the fish and spooked it. In again and a 2lb Carp pulled the tip around. Then that was it no more Carp.
Blakey fishing dead maggot over ground bait had several big skimmers, Mayo was a carp a chuck as was Gary etheridge. Gorgeous George, had put on big bits a flake and was fishing an edge rig from peg 11 down to the corner. George had two absolute monsters easily double figures each of them.
All out at 4pm. Kendal and Danny had around 8lb of bits each and didn't bother to weigh in. I weighed in 11lb 4oz silvers and one two pound Carp. Blakey beat me in our little battle of the silvers by weighing in 23lb that bigger stamp on dead maggot really making the difference.
Gary Etheridge finished first with 44lb mixed bag of peg 9 fishing waggler to the corner of the island. Mayo a close second with 36lb of Carp and 4lb of silvers. George picked up 30lb of carp for 3rd. Houghy 4th with 25lb carp and skimmers.
A cold but enjoyable day
No comments:
Post a Comment