The Peninsula Federation Team England Qualfiers. Lower Itchen Fishery

On Saturday I was lucky enough to be invited to fish the Peninsula Federation Team England Qualifiers on the Lower Itchen fishery. It is a grayling only competition, fished over 7 hours, you draw partners and setting off numbers. Between the pairing, you can choose then to either fish 3 and a half hours in the morning or afternoon, measuring your partners fish in the session you are not fishing.
I travelled down on the Friday to fish a practise session in the afternoon, arriving to find the river a little coloured, but with plenty of flow. I set up with a heavy nymph on the point, a pink shrimp and a small size 18 pheasant tail, I fished the middle beat, catching 2 small grayling and 3 brown trout which gave a good scrap on my 10’ 3# rod. I had also set up a New Zealand style rod with a dry fly and a small dropper underneath but found the heavy nymphs were out fishing this method.

Saturday morning turned out to be a windy day overcast with heavy showers not ideal but shelter from the wind could be found on certain sections of the river. I had drawn to fish in the afternoon, so upon meeting my partner for the day Michael, who had driven down from Huddersfield for the event, we set off. He had opted to fish the top beat, fishing a very similar method to the one I had opted for, he caught 5 fish ranging from 15cm (the minimum size limit) up to 24cm in his allotted time. Now it was my turn, by the afternoon the wind had increased filling the river with leaves, this was not going to be easy. I opted to try the bottom of the fishery and ended the session with 3 fish to 26cm all caught on a pink bead head fly that we had tied after coming back from the pub the night before. I did have the misfortune of dropping a fish of around 40+ cm with 15 minutes to go at the net, very disappointing!!! On a more positive note two of my companions, Jay Curry and Dave Drake came 4th & 2nd and look good to qualify, so in all I was pleased with my 3 fish in very difficult conditions, there's always next year........

Michael fishing the morning session

On Top of the World. Fishing in Norway

My 10lb halibut

My friend Dave and I have just returned from Skjervoy, Northern Norway. We were there for a week of boat fishing in search of cod, coalfish and whatever else we could tempt. After a quick safety briefing we were handed the keys to our Arvor 215 boat and were soon heading out on our first of six days fishing. This was our first visit to Norway and so we were relying on maps and information provided mainly by customers of Cadbury Angling who had fished these waters before. Many thanks to those who contributed - you know who you are. So, with the fishfinder switched on we set about searching the depths. What we found beneath the surface was as equally dramatic and amazing as our surroundings above it, tall peaks and huge drop offs, some as deep as three hundred meters were a little daunting, but we soon found fish in shallower water near a small island. By the end of day one we had caught cod and coalfish to about 6lb, a small torsk and a monster mackerel. The rest of the week was spent searching out likely looking marks, how far we travelled was largely dictated by the weather, we experienced some wet, windy days and some fine, bright ones, the temperature remaining mild throughout. Bites were plentiful for most of the week with more cod to double figures, small coalfish, a second torsk and a single ling falling to small shads fished on light 12lb - 20lb class gear. Great sport! We did find some larger fish on a couple of days and we both got our heavier 20lb - 30lb class rods bent by some decent cod, Dave took the biggest at 17lb. I was lucky enough to hook a halibut and after a good fight a fish of 10lb was on the boat. The week flew by and we were packing our bags before we knew it, both pleased to have enjoyed catching some decent fish on our first trip to this stunning part of the world. Rods used were tough Daiwa, Leeda and Shimano models. Reels were by Abu and Penn and were loaded with either 30lb or 50lb braid. Terminal tackle was Ultima shockleader, strong swivels, split rings and clips and shads by Storm, Savage Gear and the new ones from Drennan. We organised this trip through Anglers World Holidays, visit www.anglersworld.tv for information and travelled with Scandinavian Airlines - www.flysas.com

Dave with the biggest of the week - a 17lb cod



Wychwood and Cadbury Angling Sponsor Hidden Pairs Competition on Blagdon Lake

One of my four Blagdon brown trout

Sunday saw a hidden pairs competition take place on Blagdon Lake. Prizes had been provided by tackle manufacturer Wychwood and us generous chaps at Cadbury Angling and with lovely weather forecast and a barbecue lunch to look forward to, everyone was hoping for an enjoyable time. I don't think anyone went home disappointed. It was a great day! The fishing was very good and many participants caught their eight fish limit. I took five trout (four browns and a rainbow) by fishing a floating line and a team of red Hackled Hoppers. Not enough to trouble the leader board but good fun none the less. I will try and get my hands on a full list of the results and post them on here as soon as I can. All Bristol Water controlled fisheries continue to fish well, with Chew Valley Lake and Barrow Tanks producing similar fishing to that which we enjoyed at this competition. For information on all these venues and more, visit www.bristolwaterfisheries.co.uk

Happy faces at the prize giving

Autumn on the River Wye at Courtfield, Lower Lydbrook

My fighting fit 8lb 4oz barbel

The River Wye looked great on Tuesday, recent rain had coloured the water a little and upped the pace considerably since my last visit. Things looked good and so it was with some surprise that we found the fishing to be very slow going. I spent the afternoon trotting a large waggler and feeding maggot in an attempt to get the chub feeding, but all I could tempt were small dace and bleak. Dad caught a chub of around 3lb on his barbel rod and so I packed away the float set-up and reached for my heavier gear. Tried and tested 10lb reel line, 12lb fluorocarbon hooklength and Drennan Super Specialist Barbel hook were soon cast to a likely looking spot and it wasn't long before the reel was screaming, as what I guessed was a barbel made off with my Dynamite Baits boilie. Wye barbel love the Sardine & Anchovy and Spicy Tuna & Sweet Chilli baits, but it was Terry Hearn's The Source that had tempted this fish. After a great scrap I was soon returning a chunky barbel of 8lb 4oz. We had to wait until almost dark before either of us hooked in to fish again and when we did both of us lost our next fish each. My fish found a snag and dads fish simply threw the hook after a short while. There was still enough light for a few more casts though and the last fifteen minutes were pretty hectic, with a few more barbel and a nice chub, turning what had been a slow day in to a pretty decent one after all. No complaints from either of us. Visit www.wyeuskfoundation.org or www.lowerwyefishing.co.uk for all you need to know about fishing on the River Wye at Courtfield.

Blanks, Record Shakers and Holiday Plans

September is normally my favourite month of the year, the month I usually catch something memorable. Not this year though, not yet anyway! I've had three attempts at trying to catch a big carp from a tough little venue and three blanks. What a failure! I do have a day booked on the River Wye next week though so there's still time to turn things around. It hasn't been a bad month for everyone mind. I've just heard news from Spain that the CatMaster boys have landed a giant wels of 242lb, a fish that shakes the record I set two years ago with my 245lb fish. Congratulations to the captor. Visit the CatMaster Tours Facebook page for more information and pictures. On the subject of foreign fishing - It's less than a fortnight now until I fly to Norway and I've also just booked the trip of a lifetime for next September - Eight days fishing for white sturgeon on the Fraser River in British Columbia, Canada. I can't tell you how excited I am about this! For information on trips to Norway, Canada and indeed many, many more worldwide destinations visit www.anglersworld.tv Tune in next week to see how my Wye trip turns out.

A Day on the Bristol Avon With Kenny Parsons

My small, but very welcome barbel

I recently joined Somerfords Angling Association, their waters include several gravel pits and over seven miles of the Bristol Avon. It was on a stretch of this river that I chose to spend Tuesday in search of a few chub. Fishing new venues can prove hard work and a bit of help from someone who knows the water goes a long, long way. With this in mind I was quick to jump at the kind offer of a day with angling guide and friend, Kenny Parsons. Kenny has fished here for years and has enjoyed great success in the past, I hoped today would be another memorable one. The river was very low and clear and after baiting a few swims, with the intent of returning to them later, we set about stalking chub with floating crust. We covered a good amount of water, taking a couple of chub to about 2lb, before heading back to our prebaited swims. The afternoon was spent fishing ledgered pellet over the hemp we had introduced earlier that morning. A weir pool swim produced a brace of near 4lb chub for Kenny and I was lucky enough to catch a small, but very welcome barbel of about 3lb 8oz. A successful day and one where I learnt a lot about a venue I intend to fish often this winter. Many thanks to Kenny Parsons for all his help. Visit www.kpanglingguide.com for information on Kenny's guiding services.

A River Avon chub, caught on floating crust

August Highs and Lows

A River Chew grayling - Not my biggest August fish
 but probably the best looking

August has been a real mixed bag for me. I've targeted all sorts of different species, enjoying the ups but suffering some downs along the way. Highs have included a trip to the River Wye that saw me catch plenty of chub to 4lb 14oz on light trotting gear, an afternoon on the River Chew that produced some nice dace, roach and grayling and last weeks boat trip with Devon Bass Pro Charters (See last weeks blog post for details) Lows have been losing what was almost certainly a 20lb plus carp after I'd fooled it in to taking a floater and blanking at both Kingston Seymour sea wall and Clevedon Pier. It's been nice to see dad enjoy a good month. He had a great brace of fish last week during our boat trip and has also caught barbel over 8lb, a 5lb 1oz chub and a few double figure carp. He says this run of good fortune is down to a new pair of wellies! His new lucky wellies! Toby and the new Maver Cadbury Angling Team recently fished the final round of the 2013 South West Super League. The team finished fifth. Pretty good for a first attempt at taking on some very good, well established competition. Finally, Dan hasn't been out much this month but he did catch a 2lb bass last week. So that was August and indeed summer for another year. I'm looking forward to the next couple of months, given some mild weather September and October can often be the best time of the year for us anglers. I've got a bit of carp fishing planned and a day on the River Wye booked, as well as a week in Norway to look forward to. Check back to see how I get on.