‘Dave’ at 55lb tops mega haul from day-ticket fishery

A last minute-decision to switch lakes paid off in handsome style for Steve Wright after he went on to bank four stunning big carp, topped by a 55lb mirror.

After making the journey from his Hinckley, Leicestershire home to Bluebell Lakes in Northants, the 63-year old was intending to fish the venue’s Sandmartin Lake. However, this changed after a quick chat with the owner of Bluebell Lakes, Tony Bridgefoot. 

Steve said: “He told me that there weren’t many anglers on Swan Lake. I didn’t really fancy it as there had been no carp out in the previous nine days, but a mate who was fishing over there convinced me to give it a try for the night. I dropped into a peg halfway down one bank, in the hope of catching them as they moved up and down the lake.”

With just two tench to show for his efforts over the next 24 hours, Steve was beginning to question his choice of lake, before a bite out of the blue signalled a major change in fortunes.

“I was thinking of moving and I’d already reeled one rod when one of the others screamed off. The fish made it into a weedbed but soon came out into open water, and I felt the rod tip bump so I knew it was still on,” said Steve.

“When I got the fish around 20 yards from the bank it surfaced and I recognised it as one known as Dave. On the bank it tipped the scales at 55lb on the nose.”

At 4am the next morning Steve’s session then got even better when he landed a 40lb 4oz mirror, followed by a 32lb 4oz common an hour later and a 39lb mirror later that same evening. The first of the trio was a new ‘forty’ for the lake, so Steve was allowed to give it a name… which he promptly did, calling the big mirror ‘Stevie’!”

39 barbel ‘doubles’!

Six friends enjoyed a barbel fishing trip to remember last week, landing an astonishing 39 double-figure fish topped by a 14lb 1oz specimen.

The amazing haul was made by pals Gary Whelan, John Mott, Shaun Swift, Glen Drummond, Phil Marsden and Dean Stewart during a two-day visit to the renowned Collingham stretch of the River Trent.  

The lads, who are backed by GW Rig Solutions, used 5oz-6oz leads or swimfeeders, 2ft-long braided hooklengths and Dave Mallin pungent squid boilies on the hook.

They also banked numerous fish under 10lb during the action-packed session, but it was John who bagged the biggest of the entire trip on the second day.

Big bream weights at ‘natural’ matches

The boom in natural-water match fishing shows no sign of stopping with big catches continuing to be landed up and down the country. 

Even though we’re now nearing the end of October, weights recorded in recent events on lakes and rivers have been highly impressive.

Up at Carr Mill Dam in Merseyside, anglers enjoyed a good day out at the St Helens Tackle & Bait Cancer Research Charity bash, with the kind-hearted rods raising over £1,000 for the cause. 

Wigan matchman Gary Ainscough won the enormous 126-peg event with 37-7-0 of bream and skimmers using Method feeder and pellet tactics from peg 101.

And in Scotland, Loch Ken hosted a two-day event where distance feeder tactics were the order of the day. 

Mac Stevens emerged triumphant with a combined 47-2-0 total, after winning the opening day of action with 27-2-0 of roach and skimmers. Phil Murphy topped day two with 34-4-0.

In the East Midlands, Ferry Meadows, near Peterborough, staged the Steel City Classic, where the strong field was topped by seasoned campiagner and patriarch of the Ringer dynasty Geoff Ringer with a superb 211-8-0 total, the bulk of which (148-6-0 of bream) was taken on day one on feeder and worm tactics from peg 114 on Overton Lake. On day two Dave Lawrence bagged 140-6-0 of bream on the feeder off Gunwade Lake to take second overall.

Meanwhile, the latest RiverFest qualifier visited a legendary, but now little-used match haunt, the Warwickshire Avon around Stratford, where Martin Ward booked his place in the final with 49-14-0 of chub on waggler and maggot tactics. 

Nearby Alcester tackle dealer Alan Stephens also qualifed, with 25-2-0 of chub on the float for second spot.

Roach tops mixed bag

There are few more enjoyable methods of catching fish than by trotting a stick float down a river, as Adam Fisher did to bank this fine roach last week.

A day trip to the River Itchen proved fruitful for the Angling Dreams boss, who caught bream, chub and sea trout as well as the immaculate 1lb 10oz roach. 

“I knew it was a good fish so until I got it to the surface, my heart was in my mouth. Once it was finally in the net I wasso relieved,” said Adam, from Herefordshire. 

He took the roach on a single red maggot, mounted on a size 18 Drennan Carp Maggot hook attached to 3lb line.

River Wye barbel record smashed

The long-standing River Wye barbel record has been smashed with the capture of a superb fish weighing 15lb 4oz.

Leonard Skyrme banked the historic specimen – which beats the river record of 14lb 9oz that’s stood for 13 years – when he fished a stretch near Symonds Yat.

As well as landing the biggest ever barbel landed from the in-form waterway, the 40-year-old from South Wales went on to complete the biggest ever brace of Wye barbel after slipping his net under a second huge barbel weighing 13lb 2oz later in the same session.

“The biggest of the two gave me one the most savage bites I’ve ever experienced – if I hadn’t been right by the rod it would have been in the water,” said Leonard.

“I thought I’d set a new record for the stretch I was fishing, but when I found out that the current river record is 14lb 9oz I was gobsmacked. It hasn’t sunk in.”

Leonard, who has only recently returned to coarse fishing after spending many years targeting game fish, used a cage feeder packed with pellets alongside a 14mm halibut pellet hookbait hair-rigged to a size 10 hook. He also laid down a bed of hempseed before casting out. 

“Before this incredible session my barbel personal best stood at 11lb 6oz, so to beat it twice from the Wye is something very special,” Leonard continued.

“The other anglers on the stretch couldn’t believe what had happened either. It was just one of those sessions that I don’t think I’m going to repeat!” 

The capture was witnessed by two fellow anglers and the barbel was weighed on two different sets of scales.

Not too late for bream!

The capture of one of the biggest bream of the year, along with many other huge fish, proves that it’s not too late to smash your personal best.

Temperatures might be dropping, but specialist Steve Stones banked a 17lb 6oz slab, his biggest-ever, on his only bite during a 48-hour session at a large Midlands stillwater.

The 45-year-old freelance journalist and Korum consultant from Stamford, Lincs, beat his previous personal best for the species by just over 2lb.

Fishing at 50yds, Steve did the damage using a double imitation corn hookbait, fished over particles, pellets, 10mm boilies, dead maggots and groundbait.

“Line bites started at 1.30am, with the bobbins on both rods rising right to the top before falling back down again, repeatedly, for 30 minutes,” said Steve. 

“It was driving me crazy, but after 30-odd nights on the water this year with just two bream and a carp to show for my efforts I didn’t want to risk striking a liner as there were clearly a few fish out there feeding on the spot.

“Finally, at 2am, one of the bobbins rose to the top and stayed there, and when the freespool on the reel clicked a couple of times,  I picked up the rod and lifted into a heavy, plodding weight which came to the net like a typical big bream. Looking into the mesh, I could see that it was in a different league to any bream I’d ever had before. It was ridiculously fat!

“I was beginning to think I’d missed my chance for the year, but this just shows there’s still time to catch a big one,” he added.

Mike Townsend proved that you don’t have be out all night to catch big bream when a couple of short day sessions produced 15 slabs topped by a 13lb 10oz fish from a Yorkshire water. A feeder containing chopped worm fished alongside a lobworm tail nicked on to a size 16 hook was the successful combination for Mike.

All his fish were beaten with a simple set-up made from 8lb line, a 5lb fluorocarbon hooklink and a size 16 hook.

Adopting the same tactics as Mike was Mark Doherty, who landed fish weighing 13lb 5oz,
12lb 10oz, 11lb 15oz and 10lb 12oz.

The Worcester Angling Centre-backed angler also added a 9lb fish to his tally during a session to remember on a Wiltshire stillwater.

The Swindon-based rod fished with his dad, Malcolm, who also netted a 10lb 12oz slab during the same session. 

All their fish were taken using a Method feeder topped with pellets and boilies. 

Laying down a big carpet of feed soon whipped the bream into a frenzy for Matthew Tann, who finished a recent session with a fine personal-best fish weighing 12lb 10oz.

Arriving at the venue close to his Hampshire home at first light, the Drennan-backed angler quickly put down a big bed of hemp, oats, casters and other particles to try to prompt a reaction from the lake’s resident bream.

A Method feeder baited with a double pop-up corn hookbait was dropped over the top of his loosefeed and the shoals responded almost instantly. As well as the big one, Matthew also banked specimens weighing 8lb 8oz, 9lb 3oz and 9lb 12oz.

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Freelined bait lures 1lb dace

A quick change of tactics to prevent a finicky shoal of silverfish being spooked worked a treat for Robin Woolnough when he fooled this 1lb dace from a River Thames tributary.

The professional angling artist started the session on the stick float but noticed that the commotion of the rig landing in the water was forcing the fish to back away.

To solve the problem, Robin decided to freeline his maggot hookbait with just a No8 shot on the line for casting weight – and the move gained an almost instant response from the specimen dace.

Spanish cat fiesta

This huge 238lb catfish was the highlight of a trip to Spain’s River Ebro enjoyed by fishing-mad friends from Cumbria.

It’s the biggest wels cat ever landed by the popular Monster Catfishing Tours, based in Mequinenza, and the giant sets a new personal best for lucky captor Andrew McCabe.

He battled with the mighty moggie for almost an hour after it took three legered 25mm halibut pellets. The rest of the group got in on the action too, landing many cats over the 100lb mark.

To find out more about Monster Catfishing Tours visit: www.monstercatfishing.co.uk or find them on Facebook.

‘Little-and-often’ baiting for 47lb 4oz Yateley common

A slow autumn campaign burst into life for Martin Gardener as he landed three Yateley fish, including this new personal best.

The 47lb 4oz common, known as Murray, came from the famous Hampshire complex’s North Lake.

Martin also managed mirrors of 33lb 14oz and 19lb 8oz in the same evening of his 48-hour session.

The 51-year-old from Flackwell Heath in Buckinghamshire fished just 20 yards out in a small bay and baited little and often.

He said: “After a very slow September on the North Lake I had three fish on Tuesday evening, including a recapture of Murray, but this time at a best-ever autumn weight of 47lb 4oz!

“She gave an epic scrap at close range in a snaggy bay with the line caught round a tree. As she came back round I could see from the white tail tip that I was almost certainly connected to a new personal best, and fortunately the carp gods were with me – the line and the tree parted company with no problem.”

Two fish for 75lb-plus on test bait

A new test boilie due for release next year provided Ian Hirst with two fish for more than 75lb and a new personal best.

Fishing at Grenville Lake in Cambridgeshire, the Bait-Tech sales and brand manager spotted fish at long range and baited heavily to tempt a 41lb 3oz mirror and another of 36lb shortly afterwards.

He said: “After seeing fish show at distance I started the session at long range and introduced 5kg of the new boilie in 15mm and 18mm sizes. It’s currently under test and due for release early in 2017.”

He added: “Conditions looked bang on as a new southerly wind had kicked up. 

“The 41lb 3oz mirror came a few hours after introducing the bait and the 36lb mirror followed after I had topped up the swim later the same day with another 5kg of the freezer boilie.

“The 41lb 3oz fish is my new UK personal best.”

Barbel scores high on looks and weight

Pictures of big barbel don’t come much better than this cracking 14lb 3oz fish from the in-form River Severn.

The river was carrying a touch of colour and a little extra water, and under these favourable conditions Ashley Burton decided to trundle a piece of meat along the riverbed.

A rig made from 20lb braided mainline and a size 4 Drennan Specialist Barbel hook saw the specialist from Leicestershire win the battle with another Severn double weighing 10lb 5oz.

“It was simplicity itself – I just pinched a couple of shot on the line to keep it all down and it worked a treat,” said Ashley.

Three-day shoot-out on the Ure

Ripon Piscatorials Ure Festival

River Ure (36 pegs)

Weight was needed to decide the outcome of this three-day clash.

 Fred Prudham and Jim Taylor finished on four points apiece, Fred’s 37-11-0 giving him the nod over Jim on 21-2-0. 

Day one began with top spot for Martin Hope, who took 21-0-0 of roach, dace and chublets on stick float and waggler with maggot. Graham Skirrey took day two on 17-4-0 of chub to waggler and maggot before Chris Smith rounded things off by bagging the best weight of the week – 44-14-0 of chub and dace on waggler and bomb with maggot.

Day one result: 1 M Hope, Northern Angling Ripon, 21-0-0; 2 F Prudham, Medlock Bridge, 20-1-0; 3 S Newns, KL Tackle, 11-10-0.

Day two result: 1 G Skirrey, Mary’s Tackle, 17-4-0; 2 C Foyle, Ripon, 12-4-0; 3 F Prudham, Medlock Bridge, 10-8-0.

Day three result: 1 C Smith, Leeds, 44-14-0; 2 J Taylor, RSPS, 10-2-0; 3 R Pickles, KL Tackle, 7-12-0.

Overall: 1 F Prudham, Medlock Bridge, 4pts (37-11-0); 2 J Taylor, RSPS, 4 (21-2-0); 3 S Newns, KL Tackle, 5; 4 M Hope, Northern Angling Ripon, 6 (31-2-0); 5 G Skirrey, Mary’s Tackle, 6 (21-14-0); 6 S Taylor, RSPS, 6 (11-14-0).

Day session treat brings son 45lb 5oz reservoir common

Day-ticket carp don’t get much bigger or better-looking than this stunning 45lb 5oz common landed by Michael Monk.

The 32-year-old was targeting his local Walthamstow No.3 Reservoir for a 12-hour session with his father when he landed the new pb from his only bite of the day.

It marked a welcome upturn in fortunes for Michael, who was made redundant recently.

He said: “My dad very kindly treated me to a day session up the ’Stow… and what a treat it was! This massive common is one of the two biggest carp in the lake, the other being a 45lb-plus mirror, which I would dearly love to catch.  

“I count myself extremely lucky to have caught this amazing creature and to be able to share it all with my dad. It was amazing to be able to fish next to one another all day – and to see him slip the net under this lump will always be a great memory for me.”

Michael used the simplest of tactics to tempt the mighty common from the 12-acre venue. His standard bottom bait rig comprised a 10ins Nash Armourlink hooklink, a size 6 Nash Fang X hook and a 16mm boilie on a long hair. 

“I spread 1kg of Sticky Baits Manilla boilies over two rods, spaced a rod length apart, at 60 yards range close to an island. I kept the boilies going in all day, catapulting a small handful over each rod every 20 minutes or so.

“Carp fishing is my passion, so to have caught this whacking 45-pounder is a dream come true, especially as it’s from my home town!” concluded Michael. 

Stunning silverfish in battle on Broads

Mead Sports & Leisure Broads Championships

Rivers Bure & Thurne (98 pegs)

A sell-out on the Broads saw some stunning silverfish sport with 20lb finishing nowhere. 

Winner Robert Hubbard bagged 57-12-0 and was crowned champion. 

The Daiwa Angling Direct man drew peg 10 on the Thurne at Potter Heigham. He fished chopped worm, caster and groundbait on the long pole to take around 40lb of roach, backed by half a dozen skimmers. 

Dave Rowe, on peg 4 at Martham also on the Thurne, came second with 32-3-0. He also fished worm and caster on the long pole for an equal split of roach and big skimmers.

Result: 1 R Hubbard, Daiwa Angling Direct, 57-12-0; 2 D Rowe, Daiwa Angling Direct, 32-3-0; 3 B Weavers, Sportsman’s, 30-4-0; 4 M Runacres, Deben, 28-12-0;
5 D Richardson, Daiwa Angling Direct, 28-0-0;
6 T Watling, Browning Hot Rods, 27-2-0.

IMPORTANT: Price error on this week's Angling Times

Owing to a printing error, the wrong price has been printed on the front cover this week’s Angling Times, October 25th 2016 issue. The correct price is £1.99. If you have been charged £2.99 please call 01733 395107 or email mary-ann.payne@bauermedia.co.uk immediately. Thank you.

New campaign to help save predator stocks

Angling Times readers are being called to back a campaign to help protect one of the UK’s most sought-after species.

‘Stop the persecution of Zander in British waters’ is a campaign which has been created to try to bring about a change in the law which currently prohibits the species being returned to our waterways once caught.

The online petition, which has already received hundreds of signatures, was created by Buckingham-based angler James Aris.

He not only wants to see the species given more protection, but a radical change in attitude towards these fish. 

 “Zander have been in England since 1878 and should be more universally accepted,” he told Angling Times.

“An ever-growing number of lure anglers spend a lot of money on all the accoutrements needed to successfully target the species. Despite this, thousands are destroyed in netting or electro-fishing operations each year. 

“There are hundreds of venues which have licences to stock the species and miles of unfished canal – those fish could be returned to these areas instead,” he said.

Currently there are grey areas regarding the law about not returning zander to the water from which they are caught. 

English law currently allows individuals to return zander when they catch one from a water where the species is ‘already established’, but doesn’t allow netting operators on man-made venues like canals to do the same.  

The Canal & River Trust oversees dozens of such operations on its waterways each year. 

However, the charity says its hands are tied when it comes to keeping anglers happy while remaining within the law.

 A CRT spokesperson said: “We have not been granted permission to keep zander on canals and so we believe that we could inadvertently be breaking the law if we told an angler that it was okay to return a non-native fish species to the cut.

“In our day-to-day fisheries work, when we encounter a non-native species we are bound by the Keeping and Introduction of Fish (KIPF) Regulations not to return the fish in question to the water. We can only restock fish we find if the new venue has a licence to stock the species.”

It is this law which a growing number of predator anglers like James Aris wants to see changed.

Recently a Facebook page called ‘Save the Zander’ appeared online and some of the sport’s top names have also voiced their concerns, including Zander Anglers’ Club member Dilip Sarkar. 

He told Angling Times “Zander are here, fact. They do not decimate fish populations as was once feared.

 Over time, they have become an accepted part of the aquatic environment they now live in. 

“In waters where they are established, nature has balanced itself out. Take the Severn, for example… the river is in fine fettle, full of fish, and produces pike to 30lb and zander to 20lb-plus. 

“Were there not sufficient food, that would not be the case. 

“The canals where culling is ongoing are actually full of silvefish, so there really isn’t a problem. 

“Even if there were, it would be physically and practically impossible to eradicate zander, whether or not they remain on the invasive species list.”

THE LAW ASIT STANDS

When asked by Angling Times what the law is regarding zander, an Environment Agency spokesperson said: “The keeping or releasing of zander in your fishery (unless it’s a totally enclosed stillwater) is an offence under the Import of Live Fish Act unless the Fishery concerned has an official licence to hold the species. 

“If an angler catches a zander from a water where they are already established they can decide whether to return it or, making sure they have the fishery owner’s permission, to take it.”

To sign the petition visit: www.petition.parliament.uk/petitions/167921 or look for ‘save the Zander’ on Facebook.

White Acres clash is a five-day nail-biter

Winner James Dent kept them guessing right up to the final day.

The festival season at White Acres is over for another year. 

The closing Preston Innovations event sported a full house, all chasing a top 24 finish and a shot at winning the £25,000 Parkdean Masters.

Cleveland ace James Dent bagged first dibs by winning the five-day clash by virtue of a better dropped score after finishing in a three-way tie for top spot on 31 points. 

Joining him with a final tally of three section wins and a second were Rob Wootton and Lee Edwards, but MAP-backed James disposed of a section second while Rob could only bin a third and Lee a last to hand the prize to the Yarm angler.

Unusually, it didn’t take a score of four section wins to take the title, and that made the final result a whole lot closer. 

Any one of half-a-dozen anglers were in with a chance. James opened up on day one with a second in section, taking 80-11-0 from the split section of Trewaters, Acorn and Canal Lakes. 

Tuesday was much better, as the trip to Porth Reservoir saw him return with a maximum after winning the whole lake with 18-2-0 of roach and skimmers on long pole and chopped worm from peg 76.

James kept that momentum going on day three as Bolingey Lake peg 45 saw him miss out on winning the lake by 6oz. Luke Sorokin did that by the narrowest of margins. However, the section was safely in the bag thanks to 169-4-0 of carp taken by James on short pole and meat. 

On to Pollawyn Lake for day four, and James was now motoring, 61-6-0 of carp and skimmers on the pole seeing him win the section to sit on 31 points. A section win on the final day would give him a great chance but another split section on Twin Oaks and Trelawney saw him take second to make things nervy. Dropping only two points over the week, however, saw his consistency rewarded!

Overall result: 1 J Dent, MAP/Sensas, 31pts (dropping seven points); 2 R Wootton, Shimano/Dynamite Baits, 31 (dropping six points); 3 L Edwards, Garbolino/ABC Baits, 31 (dropping one point); 4 A Power, Preston Innovations, 30 (dropping seven points); 5 P Canning, Frenzee, 30 (dropping six points); 6 A Leathers, Browning Hot Rods, 30 (dropping three points).

UK’s rivers alive with huge roach

Experts are predicting a red-hot autumn of river roach sport following a flurry of stunning catches across the country.

Silverfish have made an incredible comeback on running waterways, and venue insiders are now claiming that sport will soon be better than ever before.

Several successful breeding seasons, Environment Agency stockings and localised restoration projects have all played a role in the transformation, and a positive weather forecast suggests the shoals are all set to feed in force.

Lancashire rod Alan Barnes included a 2lb 8oz roach in his latest haul from the River Ribble, pole fishing hemp for a new personal best.

The former Angling Times journalist has banked five roach over 2lb in the last 18 months, and is convinced the action will now step up another gear. He said: “I am certain we will have great roach sport this autumn. Several factors are helping roach stocks flourish, and one of them is the huge boom in barbel fishing. All the pellets going into our rivers are helping make roach bigger.

“I commonly hear of barbel anglers catching 2lb-plus roach after dark on 8mm and 12mm pellets. I think they have thrived on neglect and the shoals have regrouped while anglers have ignored them in favour of other species.”

Kent specimen angler Scott Cordingley has caught countless quality roach but hit a career highlight during his latest session with a personal-best 2lb 2oz fish from his local River Stour.

With limited time to wet a line, Scott made the short trip to the bank and legered breadflake in a deep hole – and soon got a lot more than he bargained for. He said: “The river is packed with roach but I’ve only had a few over 1lb to a best of 1lb 14oz. I never expected a fish this big.

“I’ve been trying for years to land one over 2lb and it’s great to finally make that mark. This is proof that it is definitely time to head out if a pb roach is on your agenda.”

Not just specimen anglers, but matchmen too have cashed in on the latest roach action.

A two-day festival on The Norfolk Broads system saw 68 anglers share over 2,100lb of silvers between them, with 36lb of roach the top individual catch.

Organiser Tony Gibbons told Angling Times: “The system is absolutely teeming with roach, and the sport we experienced during the tournament was absolutely incredible.

“We had 26 weights over 20lb, of mainly roach, on day two. I can see the action getting even better in the coming weeks.”

Similar levels of success have been achieved on both the Thames and Trent, with numerous 25lb-plus nets of roach being taken by both club and open match competitors.

Mike Lyddon's mighty mixture

Mike Lyddon enjoyed a red letter day when he banked his season’s greatest mixed bag... made up of crucians to almost 4lb, roach, tench and a personal-best carp.

The Gardner Tackle-backed rod spodded out a bed of groundbait at 50 yards and dropped a Method feeder over the top.

Then, in a breathtaking 48-hour stint, he netted an amazing 29 crucians over 3lb, the best of them going 3lb 15oz.

That was only part of the tale, though. Half-a-dozen tench to 6lb, stacks of quality rudd to almost 2lb, roach to 1lb 8oz and a UK personal-best carp of 34lb also muscled in on the act.

All Mike’s fish were beaten on a rig made up with 6lb Gardner Hydroflo mainline to a 4lb Mirage fluorocarbon hooklength and a size 16 Target hook.