A quick session on the drain this afternoon. I'm on the water by one fifteen, tackled up and some fresh bait caught in double quick time but the glassy calm, which looked perfect, was the harbinger of a cold and what steadily began to look like a pike free session.
About ten inches of water had been pumped out and the level was low, note the black 'tide mark', and over the whole system that is millions and millions of gallons of water. The water itself was absolutely freezing cold but at least there was no sign of ice; no doubt the lowering of the water level had broken up the ice and the fragments and shards had moved away with the pumping.
Finally, after three cold hours, a tentative take that finally developed into a good run and that run resulted in a pike being netted, not a large pike but a pike none-the-less, and at least it didn't turn into a blank session.
Patience and luck then. One bite, one fish.
No fishing this Saturday, it's a day reserved for beating for the a shoot that's run by the farmer, at least there will be roast or casseroled pheasant on the menu this weekend.
As a compromise I think I'll fish on Monday for perch, that seems fair to me.
Persistence pays off John. I had hopes of emulating Dickie Dorset Stour tactics tomorrow but conditions may force a pike or bust trip up to the top end of the Syndicate. What a glorious morning today...
ReplyDeleteStephen, it was really hard work. The farmer said that they had pumped hard because of the weekend and Monday rain over Bucks, Beds and Northamptonshire. The water was backing up as the system filled up again but everything will level out again. Next week, hopefully I'm having a first go at the new drain. This one is a dead end so it should be interesting, no doubt the learning process starts all over again!
ReplyDeleteWe'll get a couple of visits arranged before the season's end. Shooting tomorrow, recovering Sunday, fishing on Monday. Excellent. John