Buxted Oast Farm Fishery, Buxted, East Sussex. December 29th, 2008.

Well with Maria back at work today after the Christmas break, I’d accepted an Invitation from Bill G on the Maggotdrowning forum to join him and a few of the lads for an impromptu Knock-up at Buxted Oast, especially as it was a venue that I’d not fished previously. Having dropped Maria of at work around 6am I popped back home to load the car up, but with the outside temp readout showing -2°C I must admit to questioning my sanity as I pulled away from the flats.

An easy trip down saw me have enough time to stop for some breakfast in East Grinstead and still arrive by 8·30am, though by the time I pulled up the temp was down to -3°C. My 1st site of the Lake revealed over half of it was iced over, It was fed by a stream at one end with a ‘monk’ type outlet at the other, and it had space for around 17 pegs maximum, but with only eight of us fishing today we wouldn’t be to cramped. While Bill pegged out the chat revolved around who would have to break the ice.

Draw time and Kev was 1st in for peg 2 and I followed with Peg 3, these are the pegs where the stream comes in and share a reed bed that Bill reckoned had Carp moving in them when he pegged out, but by the time I got my gear down there, they were nowhere to be seen (Must have seen Bill’s face and buggered off) However it was relatively ice free, with just a bit of cat ice and with the sun shining that would soon go.

A couple of pegs to my left was Mick with John, one of Bill’s club mates next up. On the road bank were Ryan, Vince on the outlet and Mick’s brother Geoff in the corner peg, which Bill reckoned was the ‘Flyer’, leaving Bill in the shade and ice bound on the final peg.

Bill, Geoff and Vince had some serious ice breaking to do 1st, while the rest of us had the luxury of setting up straight away. I was going with the pole and just set up a couple of identical top kits. Both of these were rigged with Malman 4×12 Snake 1′s on 0·12 to an 0·10 bottom with a size 20 Drennan Match Carp hook, Feed was just micro and 4mm hard pellet, which would be fed through a kinder pot, while bait was simply 4mm expanders and corn.

10am and the All-in, and with an initial feed of a pinch of micro’s and a couple of grains of corn potted in against the rushes I dropped the rig baited with a piece of corn full of anticipation.Kevin had a bit more trouble with the ice in his peg so started off targeting the other end of the reeds,

Mick was soon into small Roach fishing maggot with his trusty Tri-Cast and Mitchell 300, but no amount of lifting, dropping and dragging the rig could induce a bite for me. with an hour gone Ryan had a small Carp, but most of us were struggling and Bill was already starting to freeze on his shaded peg, though he appeared to be getting the odd Carp.

A change to pellet on the hook made no difference apart from a few knocks that I was convinced were small roach shredding the pellet. However the bird life was a pleasant distraction, with a Kingfisher flitting back and forth across the pool between perching in the trees……..

While a tiny Wren flitted around my peg on the lookout for a tasty morsel to come his way………

2 hours in and I went for a stroll. Mick was happily bashing the bits. John had had a few small Carp and silvers, while Ryan was now targeting the Roach in the absence of another Carp. Vince and Geoff were both struggling with just a few small Roach between them.

Bill however was getting a few Carp and landed a small one of around 6ozs while we chatted, however with no sun on it his peg was so cold that I soon left him to it.

Returning to my peg Kev was admitting to a solitary small Roach but my peg was still dead apart from a few more knocks on pellet. This was getting desperate and I was starting to think that I was going to end 2008 not just with a blank, but worse still losing a £1 to Vince.

Desperate measures were called for so I popped along to Mick and scrounged some maggots off him. Double maggot on the hook and straight away a small roach obliged saving me from the dreaded blank. Now it was just a case of getting my head down and catching as many as possible in the last couple of hours. If Vince managed to nick a Carp he would be firmly in the Pound seats, if not I was in with a chance.

A visit from Bill, who was trying to restore some circulation revealed Vince was targeting the Roach as well, but I was at least catching regularly, and that’s the way it stayed until the all out was called at 3pm. Kevin’s solitary roach had saved him the dreaded DNW, while 4lbs was the result of my bit bashing. Mick had around 7lbs for his efforts. John’s 18½lbs was a very creditable effort on the day,, while Ryan’s bonus Carp added to his Roach saw him weigh 4¼lbs, Vince had had a mare however with to many missed bites meaning that just 1lb 10ozs registered on the scales, so the final £1 of 2008 was mine. Geoff added 2lbs 10ozs of waggler caught Roach, but the star on the day was Bill with a very fine 37½lbs to take the honours on the day.

So that’s it for 2008, I was hoping to get out one final time before New Year, but with the way the frosts are coming down at night, I think I’ll wait till the New Year before venturing out again. What will 2009 bring? Well hopefully more £1 coins from Vince. I’m already booked in for another Jinx Series and more Marsh AC club matches, but above all I’m looking forward to more fun and enjoyment with all those I fish with in 2009.
Till then may I wish all that read this a Happy, Prosperous and Fish Filled New Year.

Position	Angler	Weight
1st	Bill(Zak Dingle)Gibbins	37lbs 08ozs
2nd	John Manktelow	18lbs 08ozs
3rd	Mick(The Chippy)Pearson	7lbs 00ozs
4th	Ryan(Zephyr)Wells	4lbs 04ozs
5th	Peter(Mugger)Morton	4lbs 00ozs
6th	Geoff(geoffallday)Pearson	2lbs 10ozs
7th	Vince(Vince G)Gould	1lbs 10ozs
8th	Kevin(The Catch)Loveland	04ozs

Wyland International Angling Centre, near Battle, East Sussex. December 13th, 2008.

Maggotdrowning.com

 

Southern Fur & Feather.

Well it was off down to Wylands, just outside Battle today for the Southern Fur & Feather match on the fishery’s House Lake, that’s been organised for the lads on the Maggotdrowning forum by Trevor(MT Net)Little. Loading up the car it was cold, windy and pouring down with rain (the sort of morning that makes you question your sanity) and it didn’t get any better during the trip down. Pulling into the fishery and as I got out of the car I realised it was even windier than I thought. A quick bacon sarnie and a coffee while I caught up with the other 14 lunatics assembled proceeded the draw and it has to be said that nobody looked too enthusiastic to get started. In fact the conversation revolved around which were the closest pegs to the snack bar.

Anyway peg 14 by the footbridge stuck to my palm. A stroll down with the tackle revealed a pretty steep bank that would test the seat box legs out, all in all a little precarious. Mick to my right on 13 was in pretty much the same predicament while across the footbridge I had Jeff D and Al on 15 & 16. Once I’d managed to level the box up I stuck the brolly up. With the wind swirling and the angle I was fishing at, it meant that I couldn’t get right out of the rain but at least it offered a bit of shelter.

I just set up 2 pole rigs, both consisted of Malman 4×14 Snake 1′s on 0·12 to an 0·10 bottom with a size 20 red Drennan carp maggot hook, one for under the bridge, but with only just a couple of feet of depth I wasn’t expecting much from there. The other was for out into open water at 7mtrs where I had around 3½ft. Fishing any longer was out of the question really with the wind and driving rain, Bait was just red maggots with some corn for a change bait and some micro’s for feed.

10am and Trevor called the All-in. A pinch of micro’s and maggots followed by a maggot baited hook soon produced a small roach from the open water swim and set the pattern for the day. Looking round after about an hour though , very few were looking comfortable, though everyone appeared to be catching the odd fish. Now I’ve had my Preston Dri-Fish suit since they 1st came out and it’s served me well, but despite regular NikWaxing after 4 seasons of abuse it’s due for changing, and today the conditions found it out. I could feel the water starting to leak through, so decided to retreat to the snack bar for a warming coffee. I wasn’t the only one either. Mick produced a bottle of Brandy and a shot was added to the coffee (strictly for medicinal purposes of course) Sitting there certainly seemed a better idea than battling it out with the elements and offered a good view of the lake.

Nick Gilbert right in front of us seemed to be doing OK, alternating between waggler to the island and the pole line, as did Mark(MoleMan)Hathaway a couple of pegs along to the left of Nick. Tony(spamwham) pegged between them was having a bit of trouble however with his umbrella with the wind doing its best to wrap Tony up in it …………

I returned to my peg for another go, but I have to say that my heart wasn’t in it, despite the Roach still being there. I stuck it out till about 1pm, but I was cold damp and miserable, so gave it best, tipping back about 6lbs of Roach and hastily getting my gear back to the car. A session with the hand drier in the loo got some feeling back in my hands and I returned to the snack bar to watch the rest of the match, and by the time that Trevor called the All-out at 3pm there were half a dozen of us there.

The weigh-in didn’t take long, Mark(Moleman) taking the honours on the day with 32lbs 15ozs from Nick’s 30lbs 03ozs, though the real shock was Omega Mike sticking it out for the whole 5 hours for 19lbs 10ozs and 3rd place !

So a quick presentation saw Mark with a nice shiny trophy, while the rest of us all took home a little something from the prize table for Christmas. Thanks to Trevor for organising the day, we all agreed that it was a cracking venue and that we’d like another go at it in better weather. On a final note all the lads chipped in the pools money and Keith at Wylands chipped in £2 from each of our peg fees, meaning £75 was donated to the Maggotdrowning Christmas Appeal Nice one lads.

Position	Angler	Weight
1st	Mark(MoleMan)Hathaway	32lbs 15ozs
2nd	Nick Gilbert	30lbs 03ozs
3rd	Mike(Omega Mike)Jameson	19lbs 10ozs
4th	Jeff(Jeff D)Driscoll	13lbs 04ozs
5th	Alan(Al)Loader	11lbs 10ozs
6th	Tony(spamwham)Roberts	11lbs 05ozs
7th	Trevor(MT Net)Little	7lbs 08ozs
8th	Bill(Bill G)Gibbins	6lbs 06ozs
9th	Simon Elsey	4lbs 04ozs
	Peter(Mugger)Morton	DNW
	Mick(The Chippy)Pearson	DNW
	Vince(Vince G)Gould	DNW
	Kevin(The Catch)Loveland	DNW
	Matt Love	DNW
	Wayne(map)Taylor	DNW

The DNW’s aren’t a reflection on the fishery as the 6 anglers all caught,
 but packed up early and tipped their fish back.

Hartleylands Farm Fishery. Nick’s Lake. December 6th, 2008.

Ryan’s Winter Knock Up.

It was definitely a day for the thermals today as I loaded the car ready for the trip down To Hartleylands Farm for a friendly little Knock Up on Nick’s Lake that Ryan (Zephyr) has organised through the MD’s forum. By the time I arrived at the car park it was around 8am and it appeared that I was the last of 17 lunatics to arrive. Fortunately Mick had managed to arrange for the catering wagon that had been at Broad Oak to turn up, so breakfast was taken care of courtesy of a cuppa from Andy and half of one of the monster breakfast rolls from Trevor Thanks lads.

Nick unfortunately had a black out and cracked his head, but after we had got him into the back of a van and Kevin had administered a spot of first aid he thankfully recovered enough to fish, especially once he realised that peg 9 was left in the hat for him.

My draw had yielded peg 36, not a great area in winter, but with a nice short walk from the car and a bit of shelter looked like being a bonus today, and as only sections were being paid out today instead of the top 3 I still had something to fish for. For company today I had Andy(The Hat) to my right on peg 36, and to my left 3 of my fellow Marsh club members, in Kevin, Terry and Dave on pegs 2,4 and 6.

The peg was comfy enough with just a short chuck to the corner of the island, and with it being so cold I only set the feeder up. Bait was simply a couple of pints of reds and some groundbait. The one doubt in the back of my mind was the colour or rather lack of it in the water. The recent frosts appeared to have knocked the colour right out of it which is unusual on Nick’s regardless of how cold it gets.

So 10am and the All-In is called, feeder to the point, tighten up and wait for the action to start …………….and wait ………….and wait ………………and wait. Thankfully Kevin’s partner Jean broke the monotony by providing me with a hot cup of coffee, but apart from Dave getting a small Carp and receiving all our hearty congratulations……NOT there didn’t seem to be much happening, In fact the only person that appeared to be doing anything was Steve Allen on peg 8. Now Steve normally fishes with his two sons Pete and Nick, but it was obviously a little to cold for the poor things so he’d brought his mate, Terry with him for company. A quick chat with Andy revealed that at least he’d had 3 small fish, better than me at that point with his more “speccie” orientated approach……

Well with 1½ hours gone without as much as a nibbled maggot to show for it, I decided I should get the pole out, at least shipping in and out would keep me warm. The rig was a Malman 4×10 Snake1 to ·12 finished with an 18 Drennan maggot hook. I set this up to fish at around 6mtrs where I had around 3½ft of water with soft set white hydro in the top kit. A pinch of maggot followed by the rig soon rewarded me with a small roach, at least I hadn’t blanked.

Terry was alternating between the feeder and a pole approach but was struggling like the majority of us, nothing really seemed to bring him a run of fish……………

Dave meanwhile had managed to nick another small carp on the feeder, but was also sorting out a pole rig in an attempt to find a bit of action………

Indeed regardless of where I looked it was hard to find anyone who was getting amongst the fish apart from Steve whose could be seen with a bend in his rod on a regular basis.

I managed to keep the small roach coming, not quickly enough to build any real weight, but fast enough to pass the time and keep me focused.

With about 10 minutes to go Kevin finally had a bite on the feeder and was rewarded with a small carp, however in his enthusiasm to get back out there his next cast ended on the island and the resulting break ended his day with 5 minutes to go. I chucked the feeder out just in case there was another in the area, but the tip remained stationary till the All-Out was called at 3pm.

At least it didn’t take to long to pack up and get the gear back to the car, and a stroll round with the scales showed just how hard it had fished today. Steve had walked the match today putting 42lbs 12ozs on the scales for a comfortable win, in fact everyone else only managed single figures apart from Trevor whose 10lbs 4ozs of silvers won him his section. Steve’s mate Terry Goulding realised he had tipped back a weight that would have won his section but Hey Ho…….. That's fishing, and of course we were all very sympathetic……….NOT.

Thanks to Ryan for organising the day (his 1st attempt at organising a match). Next up is the Maggotdrowning Southern Fur & Feather match at Wylands next Saturday. How will that turn out? You can read about it here next weekend.

Position	Peg	Angler	Weight
1st	Peg 8	Steve(Rookery54)Allen	42lbs 12ozs
2nd	Peg 32	Trevor(MT Net)Little	10lbs 04ozs
3rd	Peg 13	Jeff(Jeff D)Driscoll	7lbs 04ozs
4th	Peg 21	Alan(Al)Loader	7lbs 00ozs
5th=	Peg 36	Peter(Mugger)Morton	6lbs 12ozs
5th=	Peg 6	Dave(The Fish)Collier	6lbs 12ozs
5th=	Peg 23	Tony(spamwham)Roberts	6lbs 12ozs
8th	Peg 17	Pete(petemid)Midgley	5lbs 12ozs
9th	Peg 34	Andy(The Hat)Spreadbury	5lbs 08ozs
10th	Peg 24	Lewis(Super ted)Keen	4lbs 00ozs
11th	Peg 12	Ryan(Zephyr)Wells	3lbs 06ozs
12th	Peg 15	Mick(The Chippy)Pearson	3lbs 00ozs
13th	Peg 4	Terry(Wily Coyote)Goff	2lbs 12ozs
14th	Peg 2	Kevin(The Catch)Loveland	2lbs 04ozs
15th	Peg 20	Keith(Chief)Wells	1lbs 01ozs
16th	Peg 9	Nick(Bag Up)Costar	DNW
17th	Peg 26	Terry Golding	DNW