Session number three of the year and it was back to the club's mixed fishery at Nurdery Fields, near Edenbridge in Kent.
I was up and out of the house by 6:30 which meant that I would arrive at the fishery around 7 am. The weather was warm (7 degrees by the thermometer in the car) so I was hopeful of a good day. The forecast though, had been for rain.
There were three cars in the car park when I drove in, however they all seemed to be fishing close to their cars, which suited me as I like to go to the top of the lake at this time of year. The further the walk the less chance of people fishing close to you, that's my motto.
My swim:
Although I had on all my waterproof gear I could feel that the day was going to be a warm one. Usual tactics today for this swim, 12 foot match rod, 4 lb line to a size 20 hook with a 3 lb hook length. The feeder rod had 6 lb main line to size 14 hook with a 6 lb hook length.
With the swims fed I was ready to make my first casts at around 8:10.
I started the day using single maggot. After each cast I catapulted a few maggots and some hemp at the float in an attempt to draw the fish in. This seemed to work as after the first hour I'd caught four small roach.
I employed the same tactics for the second hour, the result this time was three roach and my first two gudgeon of the season.
The third hour was just as successful, three roach, a rudd and a skimmer bream made the virtual net. By now the temperature had risen high enough for me to remove my waterproof jacket and trousers.
The last hour of the morning produced only another two roach. I did start to try corn for the last 15 minutes of the hour but nothing showed an interest.
The first hour of the afternoon session was much more productive, two each of rudd and roach plus a bream of about a 1 lb on the previously unsuccessful corn. Total for the day was now 21.
The action was now really hotting up in the swim, A rudd and five roach made the virtual net in the next sixty minutes. I had now removed my fleece, what a difference a week makes!
Between 14:00 and 15:00 the fishing slowed down somewhat however I did manage to catch a roach and my first perch of the year.
I had this little fella for company for a while:
The feeder rod had been quiet all day, that silence was broken around 4 pm when the tip went round and in came a tench with a liking for maize.
My swim had a reed bed either side of me and all through the day I'd been feeding them with a buffet of free offerings consisting of, maggots, pellets, corn and hemp. After landing another small roach I decided to shallow up the float and give them a try.
For bait I used a large piece of bread flake. First side I tried was the one to my right. I had to wait fifteen minutes or so before the float went and I was into a fish. I knew from the start it had to be either a small carp or a good tench. After a few minutes I had my answer, it was a carp of about 1.5 lb.
After releasing the fish I tried the left hand side. I only had to wait about five minutes before the float shot off and I was into something that wasn't a 1.5 lb carp. The fish fought well, it initially kept taking line as it headed off across the lake on my left. I finally got it back in the vicinity of my swim but it wasn't beaten yet. Time and time again it tried to run however I could tell it was getting beaten. Finally, after a good scrap it slid into the net. The scales revealed it to be 11 lb 5 oz, my best fish of the year so far!
I decided to call it a day at that point. Thirty three fish in total for the day which included a variety of species and my best of the season carp as well. Not a bad day!
