| Wednesday open (Match Lake).
Back at Docklow again for another midweek battering? After my previous performance for the Stop watch feature I think the locals thought they were in for some more easy money, which I was beginning to agree with. However, when I drew peg 30 on the match lake things were looking better for me.
There was a terrible cross wind, which was going to make waggler fishing a bit awkward in itself, but feeding it was the biggest problem. If I fired caster out it meant the bloke to my left never had to feed his peg at all, there was enough of my bait going in to it. He must have thought it was his lucky day- fishing on the cheap. He only had corn with him, he swears by double corn on the hook when they are not 'having it'. I don't know what he uses on the hook when they are having it - a whole tin perhaps?
I was catching chub and roach on the waggler but I was struggling to feed the peg properly in that wind as the feed was going all over the place. After about an hour of this I seemed to be catching but not bagging so I decided to try and catch some fish on the pole shallow at 13 meters, I couldn't hold any more in that wind! I set up a 4x12 Drennan choppa with Ignesti .12 direct to a B610 barbless 20. I never use barbed hooks as you loose too many fish on them. Barbless go in directly with nothing to stop them and if you believe that rubbish about barbless hooks falling out of fish - try sticking one in your hand or anything else and see how easily it falls out.
The float was set about 18 inches deep with three number 13's down the line and casters were fed around the end of the pole. It took me a while to sort out the feeding pattern but when I did I absolutely emptied the peg. I was catching chub up to 3lb with plenty of smaller samples and roach but they wanted the feed going in all the time. I fed about twenty casters at five-second intervals, even stopping to feed while playing the chub. This meant that when I went back in I caught another virtually straight away.
I caught steady throughout the match but it opened my eyes to the fact that I was catching these fish in open water, nowhere near the island. Do we push fish to features by feeding and fishing there? I am convinced that these chub are in the area but will come to wherever you feed. I used six -eight Middy High Viz through three and that was perfect for the chub but I had to net them on top fours due to the fact that they go under your feet sometimes and there is nothing you can do about that on top threes. With about an hour to go I chucked the waggler to the island as the carp often move there at the end of the match and I managed two small ones at the death.
The match was won by Denis O'leary on peg four with 56lb of carp off the island. He caught four in the first hour on the waggler which meant we were all playing 'catch-up' but he did well to get them out from that peg as there are a few snags. I finished second with 46lb of chub and roach, one of the best days fishing I have had for years and thoroughly enjoyable too. Mr 'Double Corn' ( Paul Filmore) was third with 20 lb. of carp and chub.
Wednesday match lake.
After my recent success in the Wednesday opens I thought I would 'brave' the traffic jam through Hereford and risk another match. My travelling partner Mr 'Double Corn' complained all the way there about the traffic and it was the last time he was ever coming here. He said that last week and the week before. When we arrived, (an hour late for the draw) there were only three pegs left in the hat. Pegs 8, 30 and 10. I drew 30, again and Paul was on 8, still complaining that I was on that one last week and it was now his turn! Tough get on with it I told him!
I fancied fishing for the chub again shallow but no matter what feeding approach I used, I couldn't get any quantity or quality. The wind was making presentation very difficult and after a few hours of struggling I decided to use the waggler and corn approach. I normally use the Drennan loaded wagglers, as I don't like putting big shot on the line. These floats are superb for this as they only take a few number 8 shot to lock them and with a few 12's down the line the set up couldn't be simpler. When fishing corn on the 'wag' it is important not to have any shot bigger than a 12 on the line. Even then you must have them below half-way otherwise you are going to be getting tangles as corn is a heavy bait and flicks over the main line when casting.
I use Maxima main line .12, with a .10 hook-length, Shakespeare Omni, which is a good hook-length line, tied to a size 20 Kamasan B610. When feeding corn in the catapult try not to put more than two grains out at a time otherwise they go in opposite directions. Better to feed two grains regularly than ten in one go.
I caught a few chub on the corn almost as soon as I started on it but the carp were not in the mood. The wind was bad but the tow was going in the other direction so I was able to leave it there for longer. With an hour and a half to go I got one about 3lb on the drop so I stepped up the feed. Big mistake! I think they were just starting to feed and I got too many of them in the peg, I was getting liners and all sorts so I shallowed up a foot. The peg was three and half feet deep so I was fishing around a foot off bottom. I caught another around 4lb as soon as I fished shallow. I never strike when fishing shallow for carp because they go nuts when you hook them, it is better to turn the real handle until you feel them on then swing the rod to the side to wind them in. I thought I had it sorted until I cast out across the back of one, which went up the lake very fast. I got it in to the side but then it went off again. Hard to control them when you get them in the dorsal fin. That one came off when it snagged me. There were a couple of blank pegs to my right and I could see that there were a lot of carp there due the fact that it wasn't pegged. I fed some corn there but they were not having it until with about two minutes to go I had one on the drop. I wound it straight in and netted it in about twenty seconds.It ran out at 11 lb., which was nice! Then the whistle went.
The guy on peg 4 had been catching all day off and on and I thought it would be close between us. He weighed 26lb for second and I had 29lb -12, so I needed that last one!
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