Chelmsford Angling Association - Braxted Reservoir Part 1

In this blog I am going to be documenting my first two trips to the Braxted reservoir. For those of you that follow my writing you will know that I like to fish a series of different waters at the same time. I enjoy new challenges, there's nothing quite like arriving at a new water with no real knowledge of the place or its inhabitants. I find thinking about a number of waters at the same time allows a huge amount of productive thinking, it's kinda like getting into a groove.

Since joining Chelmsford my head has been spinning with the possibilities that are potentially ahead of me and to be honest my thoughts about the lakes have become marginally obsessive .... I think you know what I mean.

One aspect of the club that I really like is the fact they have a closed season, I feel there should really be a closed season on all waters, commercials included. This allows the fish to get on with, "just being fish", without the pressure of lines in the water. I personally believe this helps the fishing in the long term, I also believe the carp start to act and feed more naturally without constantly being on 'high alert'. 

The Braxted Complex

When I started to fish some of the waters it became very apparent that the closed season did the fish the world of good. The carp are very active, showing themselves, jumping about and nicely giving themselves away as they pummel through the silt on the feed. There is no comparison with the fish activity on my other club, 'Kingfishers' that allows fishing all year round. 

The waters I have chosen to target aren't easy but that's all part of this new process, I don't want easy, I want satisfaction in knowing that I have earned every bite, these waters are another step on the ever ascending angling ladder and I'm sure as hell going to keep on climbing it, no doubt slipping every so often in the process.

The Braxted Reservoir is part of three lakes on the Braxted complex. Along with it you also have both front and back lakes, the back lake holds the monsters with fish in excess of 40IB at the right time of the year, this is suppose to be a very hard water. Front lake holds a load of twenties with a good head of fish in the 30IB bracket.

The Res

Before I set foot on either of these I wanted to give the reservoir a go, it's meant to have some really nice fish in it. For me to fish any of the Chelmsford waters it works out around 100 miles there and back, I will travel anywhere if I feel it's worth it. Not only does the journey up give you a huge amount of thinking time, the journey back allows you to process what you've learnt throughout the day.

For my first session I arrived at the water for 11:30am, it was warm with a light breeze, as I pushed my barrow over the small narrow bridge leading up to the water I caught a glimpse of a few carp sitting just under the surface in a quiet little corner. I positioned myself in the nearest swim that I could to get to them, the angle from the bank along with the over hanging trees made it very tricky to get a bait out. Having just invested in some chest waders, getting the angle I needed wouldn't be a problem, I literally just had to step down into the water.

My chosen baits were Starmers Coconut fish combined with Halibut & Coconut, I used this combination on the back lake at chase with consistent success. With one being black and the other a light brown it adds an interesting visual effect. After having a lead about I found that along the margin of the dam wall there was a lovely load of silt, roughly about a rod lenght wide. I felt this was a perfect area to place my baits, I am not interested in the hard spots, that's all I hear people talk about, I want the soft stuff, it's full of natural food and doesn't pose any problems when it comes to presentation.

Coconut Fish And Halibut & Coconut Combination

In the past I have caught countless fish on bottom baits from silty areas, today I opted for a very low pop up, practically suspended off the eye of the hook and balanced perfectly so it sinks really slow. It's important with this presentation to take your time and really focus on getting the bait to drop through the water as slow as possible, I personally love this approach, I find it also works very well over clear bottoms.

Presentation From Above

   Presentation From The Side

The plan was to fish single pop ups and put a wide, dense spread of free offerings all around the area. I wasn't worried about accuracy, I wanted to get the fish moving about and getting into a rhythm of picking a bait up and then moving on to the next. If you can really get them going on the feed their defences drop and they're more liable to trip up on the hook bait. Before casting out I got a load of bait in, more than I usually use, it just felt like the right thing to do. Once done I cast both rods as close to the marginal features as possible, I was bang on the silt because when each lead landed a huge amount of bubbles were kicked up. I felt the lead down, there wasn't a 'donk', more of a 'splat'.

View From The Swim

To my surprise I started to get liners straight away, when I looked closely I could still see a few carp on the surface, my plan was to put enough bait out to hopefully pull them down to investigate. It must have been only thirty minutes or so before my right hand rod screamed off, as I lent in to the fish it had a lot weight behind it and was putting up one hell of a fight. The fish showed itself and it looked like a really nice common, I eventually netted her and was pleasantly surprised when the scales fell to 23.5IB.

First Blood From The Res

I gently slipped her back and got the rod straight back on the same spot, once the bobbin was on I put another four handfuls of bait out. During this process my right-hand rod was off again, this fight was frantic, it felt like a smaller fish but still gave a great account of itself. Once in the net I was staring at a perfect looking common, she maybe scraped a double, size was irrelevant, the fish was perfect looking.

What A Perfect Looking Fish

I got her back and repeated the process, rig was straight back out with another 3 to 4 handfuls of bait. I was feeling pleased, my location and approach was working a treated. After the first two fish things slowed up for a while, I made sure that the bait was being introduced, little and often. An hour passed and the left rod was away. The carp kited for the corner, I applied the pressure and steered her my way, after another spirited fight I banked my third fish, scales fell to 13IB, another perfect looking common.

13IB Common On The Coconut Fish

I slipped her back and decided to reel both rods in, I added a good few more handfuls of bait and decided to go for a wander around the rest of the lake, I wanted to rest the swim. On my walk I clocked a fair few spots that I'd like to give a go in the future, the res doesn't have a great deal of features but there are some nice marginal areas that I am sure the fish visit.

A Lovely Calm, Closing To The Day

As I walked the path along the dam wall I stopped and peered through the bushes to see if I could see any evidence of feeding over my spots. There was some real action going on, it was fizzing like crazy, it was time to get the rods back out. Once back in my swim both casts were on the money and I was expecting a quick take, five minutes later the right hand rod was away, this felt like a good fish, she surfaced, it was a nice golden looking common that was refusing to give up, eventually I netted her, she was bang on 17IB, what an awesome result and a great fish to end my first session with.

17IB Bar Of Gold

Once she was back in the water I packed up and prepared myself for the long drive home, I was pleased considering it was my first session. I decided I would pay the res another visit the following week. Depending on the conditions I might fish the same swim, it all depends on what the water is telling me when I arrive on the day. I feel there are some really nice fish to be had and I am looking forward to seeing what the future holds on this water.

Part Two Following Shortly 

The Main Lake Hoo, 'Short Range Fishing'

The main lake at Hoo has always been a bit of a grey area for me, I have never felt inclined to fully focus on it. I half heartily did a session a long time ago that resulted in a 17IB mirror but I felt it was more luck than judgement. I think one of the main reasons for my lack of enthusiasm is the fact that it sees a lot of pressure and an awful lot of bait, more times than not when I've walked passed, there are spods flying around left, right and centre. 

I happen to think that with loads of lines in the water a large majority of the time and piles of particles going in, it can not only change the behaviour of the carp, it can also effect the way they feed. On pressured waters I think that the bigger fish start to feel uncomfortable sitting on large beds of bait and opt for the quick 'mouthful' approach. 

Main Lake

Because of all the reasons stated above, I opted to spend my time on both the stock pond and the cut, I've always kept my eye on the main lake and studied it from a distance. I started to gain a little insight about the habits of the fish and the water every time I would walk passed it back to my car after fishing the cut for the day. A few times I'd pass anglers in mid battle with a hard fighting fish and I would nearly always spot a few shows in certain parts of the lake. This got me thinking that mid afternoon up until late evening could be a productive time. 

Yesterdays Sky 'Vast Spacious Vacuum'

Loving my margin fishing so much I started to hatch a plan on fishing the water but working on it at 'close range'. There are some lovely marginal spots that drop down to around 9ft and loads of reed-lines and overhanging trees to consider. If I was going to pursue my plan I decided I would use minimal bait, maybe even singles. Because there is a fair amount of weed scattered around I made the decision I was going to fish a slow sinking bottom bait, I was using the new Mexican Hemp boilies and the pop ups are still in the process of being made. 

I find with this presentation, the slower I can get the bait to sink, the better. The are a number of ways to achieve a 'slow sinking' boilie, I will explain below how I create mine, I use both slowing sinking and critically balanced baits a lot these days, especially if the lake bed is littered with debris. There's nothing worse than reeling your rod in at the end of the day to find the hook masked disabling the mechanics of the rig.

The materials I use for this specific presentation are not complicated, I use zig foam, usually coloured white or yellow, a bait drill and a PVA nugget, the nuggets are by "Carp Craze", they're far more dense than others and seem to be a lot more buoyant. Below are the steps I take to make sure the bait sinks nice and slow.

Stage 1

Stage 2

Stage 3

Stage 4

Stage 5

Finished Presentation

When attempting this presentation it's best to take your time, especially when using softer baits, if not you will end up with a lot of split boilies. The final touch which I add prior to casting out is the PVA nugget. I don't compress it around the hook, I don't want the bait suspended in any way because I use long hairs and when the nugget releases, there is a risk of it getting tangled. I simply hook the PVA nugget on, I find this slightly delays the landing and it tends to come off whilst the bait is falling through the water. This in turn slows the baits descent down and I find it doesn't get pulled down into the weed or debris that I might be fishing over.

My chosen swim for this session is called Willows, it's tucked out the way up the end of the lake furthest from the car park. There are lots of overhanging branches and reed-lines which on the right day can be good holding areas. Whenever I fish this swim I make sure I am very quiet on my approach and whilst I set up, the carp move very close in and I don't want to spook any that might be patrolling around. 

I have learnt that being almost silent is just as important as the spots you choose to fish, rigs, bait etc. It's almost an art that I feel really helps to give you a better chance of putting more fish on the bank. Every lake I fish I make a solid effort to be quiet, I want any fish nearby to stay as natural in their behaviour as possible. It only takes an unnatural sound or movement to put them on high alert.

View From The Swim

Left Rod Spot

I arrived at the water for about 1:45pm, this gave me time to sort my rods out and get on my spots fast. The plan was to sit on my hands and fish until 8:00pm, I knew this was a realistic window to get a bite in. The hours passed and it was starting to look real good for some action, a few fish were showing on the reed-line. 

As it approached 7:30pm my right rod tore off and I was on it like lightning, I knew the fish was going to try and ditch me in the reeds. With a fair bit of side strain and a touch of luck I steered her my way and it wasn't long before I was looking at a nice fat mirror in the net, scales fell to a touch under 24IB .... Result ! 

Caught At Close Range

I was very pleased, my hunch about the feeding time and minimal baiting was correct and I am going to make sure that I slot in these short sessions when I can, I feel they could be productive. The water holds some really nice fish and I am starting to get a feeling for the place. Once again it does go to show that one bait in the right place is better than 5kg in the wrong place. 

There are so many variables in carping and I want to make sure that I continue to cover as many of them as I can, it keeps it interesting and keeps you moving forward. I don't want to rest and I don't want to feel comfortable on any of my waters, I want to keep the fish guessing, keep myself guessing and really make a concerted effort to catch the carp on my own terms. All in all it was a solid result and a good start.

Starmer Baits Mexican Hemp Trials

Firstly I would like to say that in my next mini series of blogs I will be documenting my results using the new Starmer Baits boilie called 'Mexican Hemp', it's not actually on the market yet. One thing I will not be doing is over inflating the brand and continually telling you that "THIS IS THE NEXT WONDER BAIT", and "YOU SHOULD" be fishing with it. I am not here for that, just like rods and reels, bait is a personal choice and we all have confidence in different blends, flavors and brands. There's loads of quality bait on the market nowadays and they all catch carp to varying degrees. Obviously it walks hand in hand with watercraft, location and basically being on the fish, you ain't going to catch them if they're not there.

These bait trial blogs will be slotted in between other session blogs, having just joined a new club I am looking forward to sharing with you my journey on a number of new waters. My blog entries have been slow of late due to my workload but I will be doing my best to get out on the bank as much as possible, a "work/fishing/life" balance is very important, the angling flame will always burn. 

I am going to start the process by doing a few sessions down Burrows, I know this water like the back of my hand and it's the perfect place to kick off proceedings, I do plan to progress on to a few newer waters with it. My membership for Chelmsford Angling Association starts soon and I have already picked a few lakes that I want to have a go at and the Mexican Hemp will be one of my primary weapons of choice for these sessions.

I haven't been told exactly what is in it but I will say it's very potent and has a radical touch of spice. When out on the waters I have given passing anglers a good smell of it and it's pretty much like Marmite, you're either going to love it or hate it. I went down to the factory a few times whilst it was in development and Ian gave me a few elements to smell, they stayed in the back of my throat for hours, it's hard to explain but it was pretty heavy going.

Subtle Color

The texture is very coarse, they're oily and a lovely dull colour, perfect for unassumingly blending in with both light colour silt and clay. I feel this could be a nice little advantage because there are so many bright baits out there and I have started to wonder if some of the bigger, wiser carp are starting to suss out the ever faithful yellows and oranges. Having said that I am really interested to know if carp see the same colors as us humans.

Mexican Hemp

Because of the high oil content I wanted to wait for the waters to warm up before fishing with it. I did introduce a little bit here and there through the colder months hoping that the fish might pick up on it and get a taste going for the flavor. I believe with careful application you can turn on waters to any bait, I think the secret is consistent introduction, little and often.

My first session was pretty laid back, I arrived at the lake for around 10:30am. Before setting up I had a bit of a scout around for signs of fish, apart from a few showing behind the sunken fence the lake was pretty quiet. I had a favoured spot that normally produces so I thought I'd give it a crack. My approach was simplistic, both rods were on a bottom bait presentation with free offerings scattered a good few meters around each hook-bait. For this first session I decided to top both baits off with imitation corn.

View From The Swim

Regarding the finer points of my current bottom bait rig, over the past few months I have made some subtle changes. Firstly I have gone up a hook size, I am now using a Size 6, I use both the Nash Fang Twisters and the Fang X for my bottom bait rigs, I happen to think these are a couple of the best hook patterns on the market, for my pop ups I use the Uni pattern in a size 4. In conjunction with that I have upped my lead size to 3 1/2oz, as I've have mentioned in the past, I favour in-lines over lead clips especially on hard lake beds. 

A Nice Heavy Lead

You will notice in the image above that I have left a small 'tag end' on the hook-link knot to the swivel, this is a little touch for my 'piece of mind', just on the off chance the knot might slip a fraction under pressure. For along time I was using leads ranging from 1oz up to 2.75oz, there wasn't necessarily anything wrong with this but I find the fish are really nailed well with the heavier lead and the takes are very aggressive, I think it magnifies the shock effect. 

Finally 'if the make up of the bottom of the lake allows' I am using a stiff hook-link material, I find this is harder for the fish to deal with, there's a high chance that it will reset if messed with by bird life etc and the stiff element helps kick the bait away from the lead, I will strip it back a fraction before the silicone tubing kicker, this helps with the hinge effect giving free movement to both the hook and the bait.

Larger Hooks, Stiffer Hook Link

The current stiff coated braid I am using is the new Kryston 'Synx', having been an avid Kryston users for years I was pretty excited to get my hands on this. The stiff coating has been applied to the braid in a number of stages, this creates a super stiff material, when you strip it back it reveals a nice supple braid. It's well worth a look if you are thinking about a new stiff hook link.

Simplicity

Back To The Fishing....

I got both my rods out on their spots first cast, I was fishing very close to the opposite margin practically cm's off. I got my first take within twenty minutes, the right hand rod rocketed off, I was surprised, I didn't expect a take that fast. After a spirited fight I banked a pristine mirror of 16IB.

First Blood On The Mexican Hemp

I got her straight back and got the rig back out, bang on the spot first time, fired a little bait around the area and got straight back fishing. About an hour passed when the same rod tore into life, I lent in and connected to another hard fighting carp, I ended up sliding the net under a lovely clean common, scales sunk to 13IB.

13IB Common Second On The Mexican Hemp

I was very pleased with how this was going, it's always a strange experience trying out a new bait with 'No History', you don't exactly know how it's going to go. Just as I was sorting my rod out the left one gave off a few bleeps and then screamed off, I hectically ran to grab it, I was into my third fish of the session and I'd barely been here two hours. As usual it was an awesome fight, the commons in Burrows go nuts and you can tell when you've hooked into one. Scales sunk to 14IB, I was inspired, the bait seemed to be working well.

Another Bar Of Gold

I slipped her back and got both my rods back out, I topped the swim up with a little more bait, made a coffee and sat back to wait. The day ticked by and the rods seemed to fall silent I started to think that the swim was done. It happens to me a fair bit, it seems you get into any fish milling around the zone fast and then they obviously move on. Normally I would up sticks and move but because I was still sitting over a fairly modest bed of bait I thought it best to just sit it out.

The rest of the day passed and was uneventful, I was pleased though, three mid doubles on a new bait was pretty good going and it proves that it catches fish. I am looking forward to this whole process. I want to put this bait through it's paces over the next few months and I will keep you all updated. The more effort I make to prove it catches fish, the more confident you guys can be when it eventually comes out on the market and you fancy giving it a go.

The Remains Of The Day

Session Two

I gave it a few days before getting back down, I arrived at the water for 9:30am and decided to fish exactly the same spots and the same rigs. The only difference this time was that I removed the imitation corn from both baits and kept them bare, this way I could prove that the fish were actually going for the bait instead of the corn.

As usual both rods hit their spots on the first cast, I put a little bait out, set the bobbins and sat back, my expectations were high. It was a slow start but I sat on my hands feeling confident in my approach. About two hours in I got a few bleeps on my right hand rod, I could see the tip banging slightly so I hit into it, I connected to my first fish of the session and it was a real battle. I ended up sliding the net under yet another mid double common, scales sunk to 15IB.

Fish Four On The New Mexican Hemp

She was a real beauty and one of the best proportioned fish I had caught in a long while. I slipped her back, cast back out and sat back, semi expecting another quick fish. Time ticked by and it was very slow, the weather broke, it was still dull but a lovely breeze was pushing across the lake, it was proper carpy. Things still remained silent and I was starting to get itchy feet, I reeled both my rods in and went for a wander.

Nice And Tidy

After some careful observation I spotted a few fish feeding a few swims up to the right of me, that was enough evidence so I upped and moved, because I hadn't put a load of bait out I didn't feel committed to my original spots. The swim I was moving down to dropped off very quickly so I felt comfortable literally just flicking the rods out.

View From The Swim Two

Because I was in the open water I decided to really cake the bait in, I spread it far and wide and whilst I was applying it I had already started to get some liners. The sun slowly came out and things were starting to look up. A good 45 minutes after the move I was into my first fish, it was off of the right rod, during the fight I saw a nice mirror break the surface, the moved paid off and it resulted in a lovely 12IB fish.

Fish Number 5 On The Mexican Hemp

Without delay I got the rod back out, soon after my left one was away, this didn't feel like a particularly big one but I wasn't here to specimen hunt, I was here to get the bites, I didn't bother weighing this one, I estimated that it scrapped double figures.

Fish Number 6 Mexican Hemp Style

Wasting no time I got her straight back and recast, an hour or so passed and it fell silent once more. During this time some carp had started to show down the bowel end. I decided I'd move again, it was great because I was the only one on the water so I could pretty much do what I wanted.

View From The Swim Three

No time was wasted in getting the rods in, it was very clear fish were down here and I knew the spots to catch them from. Once again I put a large bed of bait out. After a very short time my right hand rod was away, it felt great having spotted fish and making the effort to move, it goes to show that staying mobile can put more carp on the bank, that's for sure. It wasn't long before I was staring at a perfectly formed mirror carp, scales fell to 12IB on the button, very pleased indeed, it was going well.

12IB Mirror Mexican Hemp Victim Number 7

I just let her go and to my surprise the other rod tore away, I leapt into action and lent into what felt like a better fish, it was kiting around and making good use of the open water, eventually I netted yet another perfect looking mirror, she weighed in at 16IB.

16IB Mirror Fish Number 8

At this point I had both rods out the water, it was frantic, I only had a short time left, I thought I'd get both the rods back in not bothering to introduce anymore bait. Time was really ticking by and I was relying on the beauty of 'last knockings' to provide me with a bonus fish. Sure enough as I was starting to pack up the left had rod gave out a battle cry and I was successfully playing my last fish of the day. It ended up being a stunning little mirror with some awesome scale patterns, I didn't weigh her I put her straight back and unpacked the rest of my kit.

A Closing Carp

Conclusion

All in all my first two sessions were successful and it looks like the bait could be a real winner but there is still loads more waters to go at, different weather conditions, water temperatures etc. I think the most important aspect was the fact I stayed mobile and moved with the fish, this is something that I find can be very productive. It's too easy just to sit behind static rods feeling as if the fish aren't feeding, find them, fish for them and catch them. I am looking forward to future sessions using this bait.

Rugby 'Last Days Of Winter'

Over the past few weeks I have managed to sneak a few sessions in on Rugby. I love the water so much and every fish I am lucky enough to catch from it is a gift. I know it's never going to be easy but I've got a hunger inside that burns, I am determined to unearth the gold that is hidden below the surface. It's on this water that I've really learnt to pay attention to the slightest movement, bubble or show. This time of the year the carp are very discreet but with careful observation you can track them down. 

After all the time I've spent on the water through the winter, I've clocked up the blanks, but at the same time learnt an awful lot. For instance, I have come to the conclusion that the carp can hold in a specific section of the lake for days, maybe even weeks at a time. I started to suss this out by fishing the same spots for a number of sessions and purposely over feeding the swim. 

It came as a surprise that when visiting the water a couple of times a week, with at least two days in between each visit, the coots would still be diving and picking up my washed out boilies. This was a real eye opener and made me realise that I have to spend a sensible amount of time trying to find them before casting out.

Another World

On this session I had my rods in the water by 8:30am, all rigs were ready to go so it was just a case of casting them out and getting some bait in. Before casting out I took a walk around the lake to see if I could clock any carp activity, it all seemed pretty quiet. I decided I would fish down in the beach because there was a fairly light wind pushing down that way, a lovely scum line was developing, where there's scum there's nearly always carp close by. 

Every time I fish Rugby I use a lot of bait, the lake is deep, weedy and has lots of nooks and crannies for the fish to hide. I want to get enough bait out and spread it over a very large area in the hope I can draw them in. One advantage to it being so weedy is the fact that it's very easy to tell if there are fish feeding on your spots, they really do kick the bottom up like crazy, many times in the past, when the fizzing starts it's not long before a screaming take comes.

My chosen baits for this session were Monster Squid, Halibut And Coconut, Bloodworm And Tuna and Bio Cp2 Amino. All these boilies had been sitting in a combination of fishy glugs and oils for months, the attraction they gave off was crazy. As they entered the water a huge oil slick developed, in the past I have fished with very bright baits opting for yellows and oranges. This time I wanted to try something a little more understated to see if I could tempt a bite.

Nice Understated Colors 

The beach swim commands a lot of water and the pressure points are very much the far margins near the snags and overhanging trees. In the past I've fished these spots and however fast I am on my rods the fish always seem to snag me. Over the months I have been concentrating on the open water and near side margins, that's been producing, results have been slow but that's just the nature of the lake. Today I was going to target the open water again, funnily enough as I was setting up a few fish showed at around twenty yards out. It was clear that some were down my end, getting them to pick my bait up was a different matter.

I had a few casts around and found three comfortable areas, marked my line up, cast out and then put a decent spread of bait over and around all three of the rods. All baits were in deep water, I'd say about 10FT give or take the odd inch. There was weed out there but nothing that really concerned me. When fishing in the deeper weed I usually set up a helicopter system, replacing the back bead with some PVA tape. This outing I decided to fish a slow sinking pop up with an inline lead. The lead was 3 1/2 oz's, my hook link was really long. Once again I was using the Vardis Autumn Camo material stripped back just below the silicone tubing, to slow the decent down I used two PVA nuggets squeezed together around the hook.

View From The Swim

All three casts were nice and clean, I got my swim tidy, put a coffee on and sat back intent on watching the water like a hawk. After about an hour or two I had another show and it was just a little way off of my middle rod. My heart started pounding, I was willing it to rip off, the carp was obviously churning up the bottom, I could see it very clearly from where I was sitting.

Simple Pop Up Rig

One little thing I like to use every so often on my pop up presentation is a small slither of zig foam to top my baits off with, especially if they're dark in colour. Not only does this create a nice visual touch it also adds a little bit more buoyancy to the pop up and aids in it's slow descent. Using this in conjunction with the right amount of tungsten putty, you can really find the perfect balance to ensure that the bait sinks slowly and settles perfectly on whatever it lands on.

I happen to think 'Zig Foam' is a very under used item of tackle, it comes in so many different colours and thicknesses. I like to combine it with snowman rigs, bottom baits, pretty much everything to one degree or another. In winter I have really got into the method of stitching imitation maggots to it to create a really effective presentation, hovering baits, slow sinking baits, it has all sorts of uses, soaking them in both glugs and oils can create an interesting combination of flavours and attractions.

Zig Foam In An Array Of Colours

I think it's very important to take that little extra time on your rigs when you are tackling weedy waters, it doesn't have to be complicated it just needs to be functional and effective. Tiny details can be the difference between catching that fish of a life time. 

Time was ticking by slowly, I'd started to get a few small liners, the wind started to pick up and it really looked spot on for a bite. The breeze increased even more and I was starting to feel a stirring inside, surly one of my rods had to go. Sure enough after another hour or so, it did, it was the middle one, I pounced on it, lent back and slotted into 'The Zone' as the clutch started to tick. It felt like a good fish, I let it do it's thing, powering around from left to right, I kept a steady pressure on and started to tease her in my direction.

I got her in nice and close and through the gin clear water I could see a lovely dark shadow kiting around, it looked like a nice lump, I was careful, patient, went to net her ... result!!

It was an understatement to say I was pleased, I was over the bloody moon, another Rugby lump, the journey is slow and without pain but I am slowly picking them off, I just have to keep my focus and be confident in my approach.

21IB Of Rugby Mirror

I didn't bother casting the rod back out, the day was coming to a close and I only had an hour or so left, I made another coffee and sat back just to really soak up my surroundings. This is something that I have mastered recently, once you've banked a beauty it's much easier to just switch off, if only for a minute or two. 

Sometimes it scares me just how minuscule we actually are in this universe, and being by the water really magnifies this feeling. We are so intertwined in our own tiny lives and ruts that we can so easily forget the simple things, the warm winds, the setting of the sun, the air, love and of course our never ending quest, god knows where we are going or if we'll even get there, where ever that might be, we've just got to keep moving forward in all that we do.

Angling to me is full of polar opposites, the calm, the lunacy, the joy and of course the despair. Each of these emotions are so important for us to be human and being by the lakes really allows you to connect with everything around you and within you. You can feel so connected but at the same time feel so alone. I never let the numbers game distract me from the true meaning of our sport. Next time you are out on the bank don't just observe things around you, take time to observe yourself, you might just be surprised at what you find.

The next series of blog entries are going to be about my session using Starmers new Mexican Hemp boilie. I am going to be doing a fair amount of time down on Burrows, I know that water like the back of my hand and it's the perfect place to give a new bait a go, I am looking forward to it.