Bailiff Comments

Week Commencing: Sat 29/09/2018

The overnight temperatures have begun to drop during the last week, which has resulted in some of the larger residents of the Road Lake getting their heads down for a good feed. The average size of fish has been exceptional, with loads of forties and fifties gracing the banks. Weather forecasted during the week was showing moderate daytime temperatures up to high teens, and overnight temps down to six degrees. The winds were changeable, both in strength and direction, which would hopefully push the fish around the lake a bit. We had twelve anglers booked on, most of them having visited before.

Roy Osbourne deliberated at the draw, unable to decide between Tea Party or The Poo. He had his heart set on catching a big fish so opted for the consistent producer of them; The Poo. Fishing all three rods out at 11 wraps towards Turtle’s, he baited up with the Spomb, introducing Mainline Cell, pellet and ???. He started off with 5kg on Saturday afternoon, and it wasn’t long before he got the belting start he had wished for. First bite, first fifty pound Common! “Mable” at 50lb 4oz made him one seriously happy chappy. Little did he know what his next bite would be, when on Sunday morning he had another steady take, and landed “Pin Scale” at a whopping 55lb 8oz! Andy the bailiff initially called the fish right, but then discounted it as it was last caught at 46lb. This big girl has definitely been eating all the pies; 10lb on in 10 months! 

Steve Coe, went into the popularTea Party swim, and set about his business at 18 wraps to the big tree left of Turtle’s. He baited up with 5Kg of Mainline Cell with the Spomb to get a good concentration of bait in the area and after a quiet first 36hrs, he got his first bite on Monday morning. It was certainly worth the wait though, as “The Nose” was his reward at 51lb 12oz. Steve then changed tac slightly, and split his rods up. Fishing one towards Shingles, one to the left towards Turtles treeline and one on the original 18 wrap spot. He started picking fish up steadily then for the remainder of the week. He finished the week with thirteen fish, including 1 x 50, 1 x 40 and 3 x 30’s. 

Stewart McGregor was on the hunt for his first forty pound plus Common, and took the opportunity to go into Turtle Corner. He went out to the super consistent 18 wrap spot, and baited up with a mix of boilie and pellet. He picked up a twenty on Sunday morning, and then got another bite just before first light on Monday. After a spirited tussle, he slipped the net under a really long common, with some big shoulders. Andy the bailiff identified it as “The Long Common” and at 48lb 8oz, it was mission accomplished already! Stu then upped the anti a bit and moved closer to the margin, so he could bait up by hand. He endured a rough spell, dropping three fish on the bounce, then started to get a few more fish, which all fell to matching pop-ups from a local bait company; ending his week with seven fish, including 2 x 40’s and 2 x 30’s.

Dave Baker had a go in Decoy, and chose to split his efforts. Fishing two different spots; one at 14 wraps down to the bund, and one at 18 wraps towards The Cage. He baited with 2-3kg each day with Pacific Tuna boilies and pellet with the Spomb; and fished PVA bags over the top. It took a few days before the fish ventured down to the bund, but Dave had his traps set, and maximised the opportunities that came his way. He ended his week with five fish, including two forties, to 47lb 12oz. 

Phil Clarke went into The Shingles, and split his rods, having two out towards the island at 18 wraps, and, one straight out in front towards Tea Party at 12 wraps. Bait for the week was Mainline Link, and Phil used the catapult to trickle the baits in, little, but often, to get the fish coming to the sound of the baits hitting the water. He fished with IQ D-Rigs, baited with a bottom bait and a wafter. The tactic worked well, and he picked up fish consistently during the week; ending with seven fish to 44lb 4oz. 

Andy Morris dropped into the Beach, and fished all three rods across to the bund at 21 wraps. He baited up from the bund with a mixture of Mainline Link and Sticky Manilla boilies, Fishing either Pop-Ups or Wafters over the top. The cooler nights seemed to be deterring the fish from visiting the Beach, but on Tuesday night, that changed, and Andy managed to landed a stunning mid forty known as “Darky”. Unfortunately, that was the only bite of the week, and despite the fish crashing over him during darkness every night, the next bite just didn’t materialise. 

Chris Clarke fancied a week in Brambles and baited an area at 18 wraps with 2kg of Mainline Cell with the throwing stick. He also fished a rod down the marginal shelf, all rods being baited with Cell Wafters on the IQ D-Rigs. Chris suffered the same slow start as the other lads in his half of the lake, but on Wednesday night when the fish came through he managed to catch himself a nice 37lb Common.

Joel had a split session, starting off in Bacheliers, then having a move round to Billy’s on Thursday. The consistent tree line of Billy’s, hadn’t produced anything for Andy the Bailiff, but he had heard fish in open water, and advised Joel to try out front instead. Selecting a spot at 22.5 wraps Joel baited with 3kg of Mainline Cell and 4kg of pellet. 14mm Cell Wafters on IQ D-Rigs were cast over the top, and with two nights to go, it was all to play for. Sure enough, that night, he had a bite on all three rods, landing a brace of twenties and losing a much bigger fish in the margin. 

It was clear that the cooler overnight temperatures we experienced in the earlier part of the week, reduce the movement of the carp. Once they temperature increased midweek, the feeding pattern was fairly rountine. The fish spending the majority of the day in the bowl between Tea Party and Turtles, then just before dusk, they moved down to Bacheliers and the Beach. There may also be an element of preoccupation on eating fry, as three fish coughed up fry in the retainers. Overall it was a great week, with a super bunch of lads, who all got on a treat. 

Until next time, Tight Lines and Bonne Peche

Andy

Team Gigantica