With dense mist and piss holes for eyes I hoped that by an act of god the sat nav had been upgraded to include autopilot so I could make a few rigs and have a kip. 5.45am I pulled off.
Despite the mist I made good progress but again a stop at services on route to say hello to Senor Jalapenos was required. 7am agreed rendevous with the PC Dangler looked even more unlikely.
Don't worry there is some fishing!
Anyway as if planned for days and nights, emails, utube clips and text messages - Coot Catcher and PCD pulled into the car park in tandem at 7am.
Fishing out on the second spit from the lodge,with a German U Boat camouflaged as a island to use as a feature. The anglers set up in the usual - I haven't been for a while style. Cage feeder and red maggot for PCD and small method for CC with red maggot.
Go For Your Rod Quick Draw Dangler
In the feeder went and as it sank so did the temperature and our optimism. Nothing, zilch, not a touch. Coats, snood and fleece went on. Third cast the tip went around and a 2lb bream was guided to the net. CC 1 PCD 0.
2lb Skimmer Shining (Slimming)in Spring Sunshine
Over the next few hours fish started to come here and there. Barbel, chub and odd skimmer. All around the 2lb mark. CC hit a monster and it took off only to snag him on something solid. Snap after a long pull. PCD hooked fish and lost fish, was it the hook length? was it the rod? was it not waiting long enough? God knows but it kept on happening. As lunch approached the scores were fairly even but PCD was regularly catching chub and then the barbel moved in.
So Shallow You Could Have Tickled Em Out
Typical Stamp of the Fish 2lb Barbel
Some communication with nautilus explained that the race was on. But PCD had the edge. Sticking at it, like the tortoise against the hare, plugging away. Fish after fish came to the net. The hare rather than sleeping under a tree (which he really wanted to do), decided to chop and change methods and baits. Cage, method, cage, method, pellet, bollie, shellfish bollie, pop up red, maggots, pellet, fluoro green bollie. All catched here and there. But swapping between maggot and pellet proved a better approach for PCD.
With the scores PCD 15 CC 8 - the pressure was on. Sticking to a maggot feeder approach provided extra time opportunities as CC began to pull in a few quick chub and barbel, but the days of chuck it and chance it are long gone as PCD kept focused, relaxed and stuck to the task.
They Are Getting Bigger
A Quality 4.5lb Barbel to Finish
With the scores 20 fish to PCD and 16 to CC, the Dangler showed his class and banged the biggest fish of the day at 4.5lb. He took his time (when doesn't he) but got there.
A good day which took its time to warm up in all sorts of ways. A bag of bream, chub and barbel. Average 2lb fish, 70% barbel, 20% chub and 10% bream. Good scrap from the barbel. Many lost fish particularly for PCD who must have lost 7-10 fish. A monster lost by CC.
Overall most fish fell to red maggot and pellet. Some to green fluoro bollie. Cage most fish. No one else had that much in comparison. Estimated 2lb per fish with 37 fish caught so 74lb combined weight. Not bad for March, cold start and CC dicking about. Well definitely be fishing it at Easter. Mad for it just purchased bollies. See link below this peg is the one you can see behind me - he's fishing up to the same island. Remember those new rod licenses and was out for that cage slinger the Shropshire Dangler!
http://www.gofishing.co.uk/Angling-Times/Section/Videos/All-Coarse-Videos/Videos-Search-Results/Techniques/Fishing-the-Method-feeder-for-big-chub-barbel-and-silver-fish-nets/
