It’s been a strange few months fishing since the end of my Spring campaign on a gravel pit. Family circumstances have meant I’ve fished fewer sessions than for many a summer – probably since I was at primary school! This coupled with the dreadful summer weather has meant I’ve had little of note to report.

What has surprised me is that a number of mates who generally fish at least twice a week and other anglers I’ve met on the bank haven’t been out as much as normal – most citing the unsettled weather as the cause. A common complaint has been “I don’t seem to be able to settle to anything!” Perhaps with hindsight I haven’t missed much, especially as I’ve still had a few good sessions.

In July I got to try out S-pellets on the Middle Severn and managed 7 nice barbel to about 7lb. Great sport, especially when anglers around me fishing with other baits were struggling for the odd fish.

Not long after I returned to my gravel pit for one last bream session. Once again the Tutti wraps did the business and I had 4 doubles with a best of over 13lb. Unfortunately the rigours of spawning had taken their toll and they were all covered in sores and in very poor condition. All were returned straight away and I curtailed the trip a day early as I felt they should be left in peace to recover condition

I met Chris Ponsford through working with Korum and back in September he took me on a stretch of the Wye near Hereford. He guaranteed me a few barbel and was as good as his word. I managed over a dozen barbel to about 6lb plus half a dozen chub and Chris had nearly double that – mind you he did have first choice of swims! All the fish came on small Halibut or Crab Pellet-O’s in conjunction with open-ended feeders filled with damp Hemp and Hali Crush.  Whilst the fishing was excellent the company was even better and most of the day was spent in laughter. As Ant at Korum warned me “don’t go fishing with him anywhere that requires you to be quiet!”

A carp trip in early October coincided with a high pressure weather system and as I suspected I struggled, the only fish coming to the net being 3 roach of about 2lb – lovely fish but not the real deal on carp gear. Oh well, the roach fishing started on 1 November and no doubt I’ll struggle to catch them on balanced gear when I get back there around Christmas time.

With the recent frosts it was time to dust off my quiver tip rod for a chub trip on the Middle Trent. I must have been rusty as I missed two good pulls in the first three casts fishing flake with mashed bread. After an hour with no further signs I put some more mash in and tried unsuccessfully for 3 minutes in the neighbouring swim. On returning I had a lovely bite – a couple of half inch plucks – just enough to alert me, followed by a nice slow pull round. On hitting the bite I thought I’d hooked a special chub as it just held its ground before coming slowly upstream. What happened next was a giveaway that it was no chub as it tore off on a 20 yard run to the middle of the river where it just held for a couple of minutes before gradually coming to the net. I was hoping it would be a big barbell but as it came closed it rolled on the surface and I saw it was a mirror carp. It was a short barrel-like fish and from the mouth damage I was left in no doubt it had started life in a commercial fishery, no doubt entering the river in one of the big floods we’ve had in the last two years. Given its short length I was a little surprised at its weight of 13lb 14oz! If only it had been a barbell!

Last weekend it was my turn to guide the Pons in search of pike. In the past I’ve been fairly lucky with Wye pike with my best catches including a brace of “25’s” on my first ever trip and a best of 28lb 14 oz but I haven’t fished this magnificent river for a few years so when Chris said he fancied a big snapper a date was set. The only problem with piking on the Wye is its tendency to rise rapidly following heavy rain in Mid-Wales and our first trip had to be abandoned as the river was 10 feet up and rising! The trip was re-arranged and we arrived to find the river much more coloured than expected, but a quick check showed the colour was from the River Lugg which following intense overnight rain was bank-high and brick red in colour. If we’d been barbelling it would have been a joyful sight but we only had pike rods (Note to self – if travelling 80 miles to fish, it’s worth putting the Neoteric twin tip and some S pellets in, just in case!). Incredibly upstream of the Lugg confluence the Wye was spot on – about 3 feet up but most importantly clear. We had to buy more day tickets but it was worth it for the opportunity to fish in promising conditions. Just as on our barbel trip the “guide” was most successful and I whetted Chris’s appetite for a big one with a brace of 15 and 16lbs, both on float-legered smelt deadbaits.

I’m now looking forward to a spot of perching and some gravel pit roaching interspersed with some chubbing and piking when the rivers are at the right level. Let’s just hope for a drier winter than last year – even the stillwater fishing was hard work with the banks like paddy fields.