How to Guide – The “Twizzled Loop”

Looking forward to this season I need to improve several aspects of my fishing, they include;

• The long pole – All to often I fish at 9 or 11 meters and when required to fish out at 13m+ I find all skill packs up and leaves and I repeatedly slap the water or spill my feed from my cups, disturbing the fish and missing vital bites.
• Waggler Fishing – I aim to fish venues which are more than X number of pole sections wide, hopefully it will help improve my cast accuracy too!
• Feeder and straight lead fishing -  I need to fish the feeder and straight lead more often and practicing it in the summer, when the fish are up and feeding is essential. It can be a deadly method in the winter, but all too often I fall back on the pole for those sure fire winter fish.

Trip #70 - Shearwater Lake

I really need to practice other styles of fishing other than pole fishing. It's my first port of call whenever I go to most venues. I find it allows for greater presentation, a concentrated feed area and usually a bit of fun. I also prefer watching a float to watching a tip, but that means that a lot of my other fishing skills have gone to rust. Feeder or straight lead fishing is something I do in the winter or when targeting specific species and conventional waggler fishing is something that rarely gets a look in at all. This has to change, and with reports that Shearwater Lake was putting out big bags of Bream despite the freezing conditions this presented the perfect opportunity to ditch the pole and give rod and line an airing. I find the idea of fishing new venues exciting, and the prospect of a day on the Feeder and Slider float meant I was one giddy kipper going to sleep Friday night – A kid at Christmas comes to mind. It was going to be an early start, but arriving at the lake just before 8, and to be greeted by this view meant I wasn't disappointed.

Trip #67 - Todber Manor - Whiteposts.

I've never been in a situation (aside from river fishing) where I needed to drive a mile to the lake from the venue reception, but that is the case in Todber Manor Whiteposts lakes. On leaving the tackle store I was given a handy print out with idiot proof instructions on how to find the lakes, and was told "It is exactly 1 mile away". Okie doke! The Todber Manor complex has several lakes, all boasting a range of fishing types. There are several specimen carp lakes another lake which Golden Catfish (judging from the website photos) a designated match lake and 2 general coarse lakes (one of which I intended to fish). I had rung in advance to ask what lakes would be available to fish, in the off chance of a match being on. Good job I did as there were matches on both Park lake and one of the White Posts lakes. I did wonder if this was part of the mini league I have read about in other anglers blogs, but never managed to get around to asking the match guys as they were well underway by the time I arrived.

I originally intended on arriving at the lake for half 8 - 9, but for one reason or another I didn't actually arrive until 10:30 and once I had set up and gone through a very untidy carryall I was set up and ready to fish from quarter past 11(ish)...

Lots and lots of options for me on this peg.

Trip #66 - Cefn Mably Bridge Pond

Today was going to be a busy day. It was going to involve several family visits, a family meal and 100 mile return trip to Somerset from South Wales, so my time bank side was going to be limited. I was also travelling very light with 2 reels, 2 feeder rods, a landing net, a handle and a box of rig bit essentials. I was hoping for a very productive session and with a few venues very close to my parent’s house offering this I was spoilt for choice. In the end I went with Cefn Mably on the advice of a mate of mine (Dale). To be honest he echoed what I was already thinking "They all fish the same! Just fish close to the island and don't forget to feed the margins!" so with that advice I decided veer away from my favoured Horseshoe Lake to try out one of Cefn Mably's newer lakes, the Bridge Pond.

Trip #63 - Highlands Dairy Farm

I have been very keen to find a venue in my region (Somerset) which has a few Tench, and after a bit of digging around I had uncovered a place which specifically stated Tench, Rudd, Roach and Carp on the website. Also, as it was a new venue I was quite excited at the prospect of having a Tench venue less than 15 minutes from my doorstep. Finding the venue wasn't that difficult thanks to Google maps, although there was a moment where I found myself driving through a farm without seeing any form of a sign for the 3 lakes. I arrived at the venue just after half 9 (a bit later than anticipated) and after parking up I had a quick walk around to choose where I would be fishing. Of the 3 lakes at the premises, 1 had been booked for 2 days for a competition. I spent half an hour or so speaking to locals and decided I would fish the first lake this time and fish the bottom lake on my next visit. When asking about the Tench in the venue I was quickly told that if they were in the lakes, none had ever been seen or caught...

A few options near the island

Trip #61 - Dillington Pond - Take 3!

After my last trip to Dillington I left knowing that the lake had a lot more to offer, and perhaps a different tactic was required to catch a few Bream and Chub. One thing is for certain, the pump house peg has been producing some very sizable silver fish bags, and ever since Jamie Rich’s match win there has been a queue of anglers ready to fish the peg. On this occasion I arrived at the lake at 6am, only to see another angler already unpacked and lugging his equipment over to the peg! Good job I was heading to adjacent corner where I could have a bash using the feeder. I got to my chosen peg set up my box and trialled the above tree height for casting clearance. I would be fishing for Bream using (an allegedly proven Bream mix of) Sensas Bream and Brown crumb groundbait, with corn and casters, and alternating between chopped worm and caster on the hook.

I would be aiming to cast underneath the willow

Trip #48 – School Pond – Revisited

My last visit to this venue was a disjointed one. Guy and I fished Woodstock initially with very little success, and then we moved over to the School Pond where we proceeded to catch a number of F1 carp in the space of a few hours. I wanted to return to the venue and complete a session on the one lake. Not being a member of Newport Angling Association meant I didn’t have a key for the secondary car park, so was in for a hefty walk to get to the School pond, which is behind Woodstock lake. This walk was made longer by the fact that there were at least 10 anglers all fishing in a row along the bank I had intended to fish! No matter, I trudged on and arrived at my newly chosen peg on the far bank, and would be the only angler on this bank for the day!

Once the bank to my left hand cleared up I could cast to the lilies.

Trip #43 – Mathern Mill

After my disaster of a fishing trip to Acorn fishery in Clevedon, my next trip had to be filled with fish to compensate. After a Google search and speaking to some friends I decided to try Mathern Mill. This hugely successful match fishery frequently produces 200lb bags of carp, and as I would be accompanied by one of my friends who was after a “lump” I thought this would be the perfect place to catch some good quality fish. Speaking to my local tackle dealer, he warned me that the main carp lake usually has matches on both weekend days (Saturday and Sunday) and fishing the same lake on Monday might prove tough. There was only one way to find out...

After a slow start this was the third double of the day!

Trip #41 - Woodstock and Morgans Pond – A Tale of 2 halves.

With the weather on the change, I decided that this week’s fishing adventure - again re-introducing Guy to angling, should be spent targeting F1’s and the other species that we had caught previously on Lamby Lake. After a bit of research and a few phone calls, I decided to fish Woodstock, one of Newport Angling Associations’ waters just off Bettws Lane. The lake was heavily stocked with “everything that swims” and seemed to offer a good all round mix of fish without it becoming a glorified stock pond.

All the pegs around Woodstock looked fishy!

Trip #38 – Lamby Lake (Tredelerch Park)

One of my friends recently asked me to take him fishing after a break away from the water side for more than 10 years. I was under strict instructions that he wanted to go somewhere with “a bit of nature”, a variety of species but preferably Roach, Rudd and Perch and most importantly “not a featureless carp puddle”. Thanks for making it easy for me Guy. After a quick search I had a shortlist ready, and after a brief discussion we chose Tredelerch Park or Lamby Lake. The lake is known for being a tough big carp water with 9 fish over 30lb and numerous 20’s, but after speaking to a relative who had fished it recently, the place was full of quality silver fish. Perfect, as this is what we would be targeting! Arriving at the lake and unpacking the car there was a hilarious moment when something fell out of his old rucksack that neither of us expected.

It wasn't one of "those" fishing trips.

Trip #37 - Why the Wye

Recently a few friends of mine have been venturing further afield in search of specimens or bountiful river sessions. But as yet I have been unable to join them. So when I had a phone call from one of my angling friends recently, to see if I wanted to join him for a few hours in the evening on a day ticketed stretch of the great river Wye I positively jumped at the chance - Especially after he had confirmed that the stretch we would be fishing contains an enormous amount of Barbel (a species which I have yet to catch from a river). My friend being an avid (and secretive) river angler was quite wary about my writing up this report, so adhering to his rules I can’t mention the exact peg we fished. But the day tickets for the stretch can be bought from the local tourism office (and online).

A sign of things to come! Although he didn't let me land the first fish!

Trip #32 – Hendre Lake Trip 2 - Bream Bash(ish)

After last Monday’s trip down to Hendre lake (and my first fishing trip in well over a year) I was very enthusiastic about getting back out there and catching some more fish! Hendre Lake provided me with a great platform to re-master the forgotten basics of waggler and feeder fishing. A quick trip to Garry Evans earlier in the week to gather some intel on the best methods, meant that I left slightly more clued up on the best baits, locations and tactics to use on the lake. Jeff and I decided to get down to the lake for early morning to see if we could target some of the bigger slabs before the sun came out and killed off our chances, and we would also be joined by my Brother (also fishing) and Father (taking the photos).



Plenty of room for the 3 of us fish next to each other on the bank at Hendre Lake.

Trip #31 – Hendre Park Lake

After not wetting a line in over a year, the idea of going fishing to a new venue was an exciting one, but one which also made me feel a bit nervous. The dexterity and sensation of my hands is slowly returning, but nowhere near 100% so this ruled out Pole fishing (my favourite method). After ringing a local tackle store I was told Hendre Lake was fishing really well despite the heat, that it is very accessible and producing good bags of bream on the feeder. I can tie hooks and wind in, feeder fishing would have to do, and it may be a good way to break me back into fishing after a pro-longed dry spell.



Plenty of features to fish too.

Product Review - Mosquito Angling - Speedy Feeder

I was recently asked to field test a new style of inline method feeder made by Yorkshire based Mosquito Angling called the Speedy Feeder. Having a look at them on their website, the design and concept was quite interesting and a new idea on me. I was naturally very interested in trying out this new style feeder. So when a package of them recently arrived I couldn’t wait to get out there and put them through their paces.

Fishing Basics – Knot tying - How to tie a knotless knot.

This post is designed to try and demonstrate how to tie a very sturdy and reliable knot which can be used when targeting bigger fish using techniques such as the method feeder or hair rigged baits. I have tried and tested this particular knot and can guarantee, if tied correctly will hold a lump of a fish.

The knot held this fish with ease.

The knotless knot is an essential knot which is used up and down the country by a variety of anglers who have made the jump from standard hook knots such as the grinner or half blood to the more technical elements of tying our own hair rigs. For the purpose of this post I have used a straight shanked eyed hook, rather than the conventional off-set eyed hook, which is more commonly used.

Trip #28 - Hillcrest Farm/Needless fishery

After being contacted recently by a local angler who told me that Hillcrest Farm/Needless Fishery was throwing out huge bags of carp I decided to get down there and give it a try for myself! I was advised to get there early or all the good pegs would be taken and I’d be left fighting for a peg. So the alarm was set for half 7 and the gear was ready to go straight in the car.

Trip #27 - Non Go Bye Farm - Bottom Lake (2nd Visit)

Easter weekend had arrived and the weather was not living up to my expectations. My brother had arrived and I had promised to take get him out on the bank at least once while he visited. Although Yorkshire has a whole multitude of venues to choose from I wanted a reliable one where I knew fish were going to be caught no matter what the weather was going to throw at us. With that in mind we ventured out as soon as the torrential rain had stopped, packed the car and headed for None Go Bye Farm.

Lots of work has been carried out on the main island.

Trip #25 - A nice place for a Bike ride and a Picnic

When I wrote recently that I was in need of a greater challenge I thought that this past weekend would be the answer to my prayers. It was the turn one of the many Leeds ASA waters, a stretch of the Aire and Calder Navigation Canal, just off Skelton Grange Road. From a young child my grandfather had told me about matches on venues which resembled this, the Grand Union canal and the Brecon – Monmouth Canal. Scratching for small fish, but still constantly catching, trying to get a bag full of silver bits to get that vital win in the section. Looking at this place on the map as well as my first impressions when I arrived I thought I had hit the nail on the head! Well...

Trip #20 – Highbury Pond

This session was going to be my first experience of fishing on a Leeds ASA water. I have walked around the pond previously, hoping to see some features, some fish moving or even some fish being caught. Given the time of year there were no real features to speak of, no fish (that I could see) moving and only one angler sitting very quietly looking down on to one of his quivertips. On my return visit I decided I would give the maggot feeder a try. The cold weather also gave me an excellent opportunity to fully test my recent winter purchase of an Avanti Cyclotherm Suit.

Tackle Store Review - BobCo Tackle

Having been to tackle stores in industrial units before and been thoroughly unimpressed I wasn’t sure what to expect before visiting BobCo Tackle. Needing some maggots and casters for a fishing trip the next day I decided to give the store a go as it had been recommended to me by another angler whilst fishing recently.