21/11/2013 - Pumpherston Pond

Splendid

At the end of a fine day I was tempted to try a quick evening session at Pumpherston Pond.

While the good weather is nice, it increases the chances of golfers on the adjacent course and I've no intention of getting in their way. However I was pleased to find I had the place to myself.

Swans

The wee pond was still fairly choked with weed and finding a large enough channel to drop my bait was a bit of a challenge. I settled on the likeliest looking gap. Fishing my usual straightforward Pumphy set-up, maggots on a small hook under a float at varying depths, I adjusted my depth to try to avoid the weed problem and probed around the channel a bit more.

My patience was ultimately rewarded, taking four nice Perch up to 8 inches.

11/03/2014 - Loch Lomond

0855 outside the tackle shop - H on a mission

A braw change in the weather saw me and H head through to Balmaha on Loch Lomond to see what we could tempt to the bank. H has been unsuccessfully pursuing a Ruffe for a while now. While unable to get one himself, he's been in attendance as nearby anglers have had some success and was becoming increasingly frustrated. I was just happy to be out on such a lovely day and hoped to break my Lomond duck after a few short and fishless attempts.

West to Inchcailloch Island - note submerged pier

Loch Lomond is unusual for Scottish loch's in that it straddles both the highlands and lowlands. The Highland Boundary Fault line runs right through the loch right at Balmaha. To the north is your typical highland ribbon loch, long, narrow and deep, to the south it widens and shallows quite substantially. The loch which has the greatest surface area of any body of freshwater in the UK provides a diverse range of habitats and conditions for it's piscine residents. Balmaha is on the south eastern side of Lomond just at the fault line, the best places to fish there are either in the boatyard (relatively shallow) or at the pier (up to around 12 metres deep).

The problem with Loch Lomond however is that it is stunningly beautiful, and not too far from 'civilisation'. This means it is usually busy with walkers, hikers, fishermen, sailors etc and peace and quiet is unlikely to be something you'll find if the weather is at all fair.

First fish of the day, lovely little Roach

Fish on offer in Loch Lomond are many and varied. We could fairly expect to catch Roach and Perch, with Ruffe or the odd Powan caught there recently. Probably still a bit early to stumble across a trout or any of his seagoing cousins, Lomond does have the potential to produce a record British Pike.

While the morning in the east was crisp and clear as we met before 8am, by the west of Stirling we were driving into and through a heavy morning mist and this is how we found the loch. We both set-up variations of swim-feeder set-ups baited with maggots and began in good spirits. I managed to get off the mark first, landing what I'll generously call a baby Roach. H soon had a nicer Roach and kept me entertained by losing two more within millimetres of the net. H rigged a second rod and after a few taps on a drop shot rig added a Perch to his tally. Not to be outdone, I added another Roach from the swim feeder and a couple of smallish Perch on jigged isome.

Inchcailloch Island through the mist

With a variety of hikers, dog walkers, foreign exchange trip pupils, meditators and even a musician recording a music video right behind us, we were seldom alone and continually being asked what we were fishing for. I would hate to think how incessant the public must be when it's properly busy.

Into the afternoon and H, reacting to a bite and striking, began getting excited on the retrieve that he may finally have a Ruffe. Once in sight he confirmed his suspicion and rejoiced as it hit the net. While species hunting is not my thing, it's good to see his dogged pursuit of whatever it is he's after that day. And when he land's a long sought after species, you'll struggle to find a happier angler. It was also a relief of sorts. I didn't want to turn up and start bagging Ruffe on my first attempt, using half his kit before he'd gotten off the mark.

Looking south, the mist slowly lifting

Not too long after this,  I landed my first Ruffe, a lovely we fish tipping the tape at 5 3/4 inches in plump condition and fine colours. Very similar to a Perch in build and to the touch, it is browny bronze with vivid blue flashes. I soon made it two to briefly become King of the Ruffe before H bagged his second as well.

As the day wore on, the already sedentary action slowed even more and by 5pm we'd called it a day. I finished with two each of Roach, Ruffe and Perch. My Lomond blank busted and a new species to boot. A good days work.

05/03/2014 - Magiscroft

Common Carp, excellent surprise

Magiscroft near Cumbernauld is one of the most prominent commercial coarse fisheries in Scotland and it's been long overdue a visit from my good self. With the year so far being generally a bit too cold, windy and sometimes wet too, I've not been bothering the fishes too much. H had filled his boots with Roach and Gudgeon here already just a couple of weeks before, so I took the opportunity to join him and see what it was all about.

Permits are £7 which isn't too bad and there are a few ponds to choose from. First impressions were OK, although I was a bit underwhelmed at the lack of imagination in the larger ponds, essentially big rectangular troughs and with the quite small size of the smaller ponds. Maybe my expectations were a little too high?

My first F1, no barbules compared to the Common Carp

H took us to one of the smaller ponds at the back of the venue where once again I was unimpressed finding the odd empty can, tackle packaging or discarded equipment. It wasn't as if there were no bins around. It annoys me no end when people drop litter, it is also annoying when you are then charged to pay to fish amongst it. Most of it would easily be cleaned up by a round-up each night by someone with a litter picker.  Maybe not very important in the grand scheme of things, but it's these small things that can make a big difference.

Both H and myself began with maggots dangled under a float. He was soon in amongst the Gudgeon with the odd Roach, but I was having no joy at the adjacent peg. I swapped sides and began to explore a bit more and soon began connecting with Roach, Guj and some small Perch. The numbers were racking up, but H's head start meant any concerted attempt at racking up numbers was simply me keeping the deficit the same at best as H was embroiled amidst a Gudgeon frenzy.

Excellent surprise number 3

I continued my exploration around this small pond reaching the opposite side from H without anything much different appearing. Almost at the point of returning to where I could make hay with Perch and Gudgeon for the rest of the day and see what total I could rack up, I felt a much more serious fish connect with my bait as it dropped through the water. I was delighted to find a Common Carp nicely hooked in the top lip and was able to bring it into the net (hurriedly delivered by H). After a couple of photos it was sent back. Almost immediately I was into another one. My career Carp tally to this point stood at two, and here was my second inside five minutes. It turned out to be a F1 (barbule-less compared to the Common). I then lost another, landed another and lost another making it all very exciting. Once the carp seemed to quieten down a bit I was then taken by surprise once more. Leaning into another decent fish, I fully expected my fourth carp of the day only to find a PB Perch (13.5 inches) in outstanding condition taking me on. After a few photos it was returned by a very satisfied angler.

13.5 inches, a new PB

With 'my' side of the pond quietening down appreciably, I began to try my luck in the next pond along. H was shouting out his Guj as he caught them - 46...47...48 - as I entered my Roach 40's. In the new pond I quickly began landing more small Roach and got to 49 before a small impasse in bites allowed him to take his 50th Gudgeon of the session beating me to the half century.

With the gates to the fishery closing at 5pm sharp, we called it a day and headed back to the car. H totted up his fish making a total of 90. My  totals were 17 Perch, 17 Gudgeon, 3 Carp and 54 Roach making a grand total of...91.

Smile for the camera

A good days fishing, a bit of a numbers game, but it's difficult to complain when catching so many fish including new species and a PB. The fishery might scrub up a bit more nicely on a less gloomy day and the constant renovations and subsequent hammering at the pavilion should be absent the next time.

07/03/2013 - Eliburn

One bite, one fish - Bream

Time - 1430
Weather - 1800
Water - Clear, weedy
Method - Method & float
Total - 1
Species - Bream

Some last minute serendipity designed my first trip of the season to Eliburn with H. With the temperature hardly getting above 6 or 7 degrees for weeks, the forecast was for 4-5 degrees, a fair breeze and overcast conditions. It hadn't rained for a while at least so the water should be clear enough, but whilst it would be tough going, I was still quite confident in the Perch, Gudgeon or Roach to do their thing and accept some of my juicy maggots.

On arrival I was disappointed to see the water was really clogged up with weed, the arm of the lake being particularly choked. I was later informed there will be a clean up on the 16th March. If I can get the day off I hope to make my way through and help out. Whilst this appears to be necessary, as often is the case, I was a bit disappointed to see the amount of litter as well. While not horrendous, certainly not as bad as Pumphy Pond, this is a permitted water with Bailiff's/members patrolling it every day and yet the beer cans, crisp packets and obligatory floating Buckfast bottle make me question why I should have to pay for the privilege of cleaning up other peoples junk. A small section I was asked not to fish from last year, as it is supposedly a nature reserve, was as dirty and litter strewn as any other part of the lake. It is such a lovely little venue that, while not taking much to spoil, shouldn't take too much effort to maintain either.

There was only one other angler present, after the Carp, and doing it from my favourite peg. But not a problem. The trouble with fishing is if you find a good spot and reliable method, it makes you less inclined to try elsewhere and experiment a bit. So being forced to do so is a good thing if you embrace it.

We made for the double peg in the corner at the outflow. It seems as good as any. I went for the usual float, suspending maggots and varying the depth, an absolute banker of a method here and on my other rod, for the first time, tried a method feeder with pellets, then later on maggots. H opted for a float with some maggots on the bottom and a swim feeder incorporated into a helicopter rig. Generally I'm suspicious of getting too complicated. Half of this may be justified whilst the other half is probably just laziness. But fishing with H, who as I've said before, is a hardcore fishing addict, is usually an education of sorts and it's good to view different approaches up close.

Quite soon, despite his super fine bite detection system not showing anything, he reeled in and found, of all species, a small Perch had taken his swim fed maggots. It's always great to get the first fish on the bank and it showed that if nothing else, we would be snaffling a few of the many small Perch Eliburn holds. Ha, or so we thought. After a good hour of nothing at all whatsoever, not even a phantom bite, we were starting to scratch our heads a bit. Finally, my method rod began to go for a bit of a walk (my bite detection system is about 100% cruder than H's) and despite my clumsiness, when I picked it up, found the fish was still on.

It felt half decent, but nothing special and didn't seem too keen to shoot off. Then I seen a pretty big flash and hoped I'd connected with a Carp that was about to blast off up the lake, but realised almost immediately it was a Bream. Somewhat unexpected, but very welcome. It measured 16.5 inches and would be somewhere around 2 - 2 1/2 lbs.

But that was it, no more bites (I did get twanged once more, but suspect it was a line bite), no more small Perch and so we headed around the bank in pursuit of more action. At the inflow end, where I can absolutely guarantee fish, I was extremely surprised when we didn't get a single tap between us. Most unusual. We did however see a little bit of surface activity with a fishes dorsal and tail breaking the surface at one point, but nothing on or near our hooks.

After giving up, I decided to move round to the arm for a last blast and H decided to follow. After another 15 mins or so of absolutely nothing, I decided I'd had enough, withdrew my rods and enjoyed watching a wee Robin nick H's maggots when his back was turned.

H packed up his first rod and just as he went for his other rod, the float bobbled a bit, then disappeared and he was into his second small Perch of the day.

Pipped on the last cast by 2 fish to 1, I could at least be happy with my fish of the day. Despite the slim pickings, three fish between us, one a bit more of a rarity wasn't too bad for the conditions. It just shows how much of a difference the temperature and suchlike can make. At times here I almost suspect there is more fish than water in the lake, then on days like this it's as if they've all emigrated somewhere for the winter. Lets hope the clean up is a success.

Lastly, only once home and comparing photos, it may well just be a seasonal thing, however this Bream looks a lot more silvery than my last noticeably olive green coloured Bream leaving me wondering if the most recent catch is a Silver Bream? The pectoral fins look to be a different shape too.

Here is a photo of a previous Eliburn Bream for comparison. If you click on a photo, you can view all the photos per blog full screen.

Caught July 2011

26/02/2013 - Pumpherston Pond

In all it's glory

Time - 1615-1745
Weather - A balmy 5 or 6 degrees, no wind
Water - Clear, still
Method - Worm & maggot
Total - 1
Species - Perch, 8.75 inch

Having swithered between Pumphy and Torness for my previous soiree, I took advantage of the improvement in the weather to check out the 2013 version of Pumpherston Pond.

Waiting on a bite

Half of it's bank is effectively the adjacent golf course and there is no doubt what takes priority. Needless to say its not the anglers. But I hoped the time of year might mean the course was quiet enough for me to be able to fish as much as possible and that's how it turned out.

I chucked out two floats, one suspending some maggots which have taken some half decent (for me) Perch in the past and a worm on the other rod.

I'm led to believe that if Perch are present, a worm is almost cheating, but I've yet to catch anything at all ever on a worm. Can only persevere.

This shows how pleasant Pumphy Pond can and should be

About this time last year I tried Pumphy, but the water was clogged with weed and difficult to fish. On arrival I was delighted to see that this wasn't the case this year, further, the water was as clear as I've seen it. The only problem with this, is the amount of litter and detritus that the good people of Pumpherston feel they must scatter here, is on full display. For an amenity with such potential, and doing not bad despite its current level of disrepair, it is obviously very undervalued and left to fend for itself. I can't help think the golf club miss a trick here (I understand it's on their land).

A right fatty

Although smaller than the nearby Eliburn, this venue would benefit from a good clear out and the construction of a few pegs/marks to fish from. They could easily be shielded from incoming golf balls and the greenkeeping staff could surely act as bailiffs and go round a couple of times a day taking a fiver from the fishers just like the members do at Eliburn in a system that seems to work fine. With a little bit of stocking, say some Roach, Gudgeon, Bream or Rudd to compliment the Perch, Pike and Tench already there I think it would be a nice little top up of funds for the golf club in a time when every penny is a prisoner. But what do I know, all I'm suggesting is the owners maintain it to somewhere near it's full potential, maximise it's profit, and provide an excellent little venue for locals to walk, fish, spot some wildlife or just feed the ducks. That said, I am not blind to the litter that some less enlightened anglers discard doing themselves and those of us who obey the country code a great disservice.

Straying back to fishing it turned out to be one of those unusual days that seem to happen more than they should, namely one bite - one fish. After a good half hour of nothing at all, a couple of yoof arrived and began fishing on the brick pier. Claiming past Pike and Tench to 4lb kept my optimism afloat. Whilst semi-expecting a Perch, there is also the hope of a rogue Tench picking up my bait. As always, can only but try.

Bait and prey

After about an hour, having cast around a lot more than usual, my maggot float finally began to show signs of interest before disappearing altogether. A nice tubby Perch was soon hauled onto the bank. Although I couldn't quite make it stretch to 9 inches, it was still most welcome.

I kept on until dusk before packing up and heading back to the car. By the time I did it must have been getting back down to zero and I was delighted to get a heat back in me.

15/11/2012 - Eliburn Reservoir

Having seen the potential, H was keen to get back to Eliburn to get some more species ticked off. He arrived before me and set up opposite where we'd been situated on our previous visit. Being a complete addict, in the time since the last session he'd been reading up on method feeding tactics and couldn't resist getting a new waggler rod. His report is here.

Still recovering from the previous nights excesses I received a text saying he'd caught a Tench with his first cast on the method. Another new species for him. Then on the road another text said he thought he had an Ide as well which he'd keep in the net til I arrived. Top stuff.

On arrival one of the permit guys had been unable to identify the 'Ide'. At first I suspected it was a small Bream, but on reflection it is most likely one of the Hybrid's (Roach/Bream) I've seen caught there. Not content with one, he managed to snaffle another one not too long after. Still no Ide somehow.

So I set myself up as usual with maggots under a float at varying depths til I found some fish and another rod on the bottom. I'll usually use cubes of luncheon meat but today used sweetcorn squeezed into a ball of H's groundbait. As the latter rod is then put in a rest whilst the float rod demands more attention, I contrived to miss a few rattles on the sweetcorn rod (new bell indicator in action). However the maggot rod was proving slow and I was having to alter my depth a lot in a bid to find fish. Surprisingly, as it was a bit chilly, I had most success up in the water although these were proving to be what I call 'phantoms'. The float disappears, you strike and there's nothing, no resistance whatsoever. The fish has taken and spat the bait before you can strike. It never ceases to amaze me how quick they are able to do this. Sometimes after a missed strike, if you don't reel in, another 'phantom' bites, you strike and miss and this can repeat 3 or 4 times in the same cast. It gets to the point I occasionally do pre-emptive strikes hoping a fish has taken the bait but not yet pulled the float under. A tactic which hasn't yet worked.

Unfortunately the rest of this report is missing. After starting it, too much time elapsed before I recorded anything else and my memories have faded. Plenty more good info on Eliburn in my other reports if required.

25/10/2012 - Eliburn Reservoir

A typical Eliburn Roach

Total - 12
Species - Roach & Perch

Once the trout season had finished I'd promised to get H through to Eliburn in Livingston. I assured him I'd had t-shirt weather days there in November before (in fact, almost hot enough to go topless!!!) so there was no real rush, especially as we'd been targeting the sea a fair bit recently too.

A typical Eliburn Perch

On arrival I was a bit concerned as all my favourite pegs were already occupied. I also noticed much more pond weed than I'd seen for a while making some pegs and especially the 'arm' a bit more clogged up than would be ideal. Landing fish through the small channels between the weed might be an issue.

We set up on the east bank. H plumbed to find the depth and began with his maggots on the bottom under a float. It didn't take long before he was acquainting himself with the inhabitants. Whilst I connected with a couple of medium sized Roach a few feet off the bottom, H's first was a lovely wee Gudgeon, a new species for him. Seldom will one Gudgeon have had so many photos of itself taken.

His Majesty hard at work (the extra weed clearly visible)

There was occasional interest, but nothing hectic and I commented after an hour or so I was amazed we hadn't been ambushed by the usually prevalent Perch yet. Within seconds I had one on the bank, the aggressive wee nutjobs always amuse me with their compunction for a scrap.

The weather had been OK, but was improving nicely. Unfortunately in this country I always have the Billy Connolly weather forecast in my head. In Scotland, if it's sunny, that means it's going to rain and if it's raining, that means it's going to be sunny.

A slightly more decent Perch from the top end

I liken the Ide in Eliburn to Rainbow Trout. When you get them in your swim they are voracious, not shy at all and swirl for any thrown in maggots much like rainbows in a fish farm do for pellets. H was hoping for one of them and eventually I thought I'd spotted some moving around just in front of us (still without my polarised shades). There was the usual flurry of phantom bites (float goes, you strike, nothing there as they spit the bait before you can react). When we did manage to connect we could only land some more Roach.

A lovely Roach for H

In time things slowed down a bit. I often have success at the top end of the venue so on the way back to the car we had a dip in there. I think between us we had 5 fish in our first 5 casts (I've said it before, but I don't understand how (non-carpers at least) blank here. There were Gudgeon, some Roach and the always game Perch getting stuck right into our maggots and in no time we'd topped our catch totals right up. However the earlier sunshine had given way to blustery showers and I was happy to call it a day. H had 'won' with Roach, Gudgeon and Perch totalling 14 whilst my Roach & Perch tally was 12. With plenty more species to be caught, I knew it wouldn't be long before H dragged me back.

16/10/2012 - Loch Dunmore

Loch Dunmore

Time 1300-1600
Weather - Light shower or two, around 6 degrees
Water - Still, pretty clear, lots of lilies
Method - See text
Total - 0

Spending a week at Tummel Bridge with the family obviously had me looking around at potential fishing destinations in an area where you are spoilt for choice.

With the trout season gone, trouting on Loch Rannoch, Loch Tummel or Dunalastair Water were all out as was a shot on the River Tummel or River Gaur (incidentally, its the Gaur you can see behind the cooncil lager in my profile pic). Salmon on the River Tummel or River Garry (Pitlochry Angling Club) were my next thoughts. Being early season rivers the prices are quite reasonable this late, but the season ended on both on Monday, the day of my arrival. Similarly Loch Faskally's Salmon had ended the previous Saturday (shoddy scheduling by the school holiday planners). Pike and/or Perch on Loch Rannoch or Loch Tummel then? Seriously daunting waters for a relative novice like myself and also the possibility of getting through a session alone in severely testing weather conditions (there was a dusting of snow on the hills on our first night) didn't really appeal. I'd prefer to try these types of waters when I can go after Trout and Char as well.

Next to the Boathouse

I remembered a small water I'd found a while ago on Google Earth adjacent to Loch Faskally and looked it up. Loch Dunmore is a small sheltered coarse pond just outside Pitlochry run by the quite appropriately named Dunmore Angling Club. Details were sketchy online but I found a contact email address and sent off a hopeful enquiry not really expecting a response, never mind the quick and excellently detailed reply I received later that day.

At this time of year, the woods surrounding Loch Dunmore are converted into The Enchanted Forest once darkness falls so you have to be off the water by 1630. Holding Perch, Rudd, Roach, Tench and Carp (Crucian's as far as I can tell, although maybe some of their larger cousins too), most of the common baits apparently do the trick with maggots probably being the best starting point. I was warned though that there was a fair bit of growth, mostly lilies which, whilst not ideal once a fish was on, provided plenty of cover for the inhabitants. Tickets are £6 and available in a couple of places, I got mine just down the road and round the corner at the Faskally Boat House. Incidentally, there is no Tackle Shop in Pitlochry just now, although the Boat House sold some gear, mostly Salmon and Pike lures. I was also tipped off about a couple of pegs, but in all honesty, once there, they all looked pretty sweet.

So, I arrived just before 1pm and was immediately impressed. It is difficult to overstate the beauty of this location and nestling in woodland it's nicely sheltered. There was another dude fishing next to the little Boathouse who looked like he knew what he was doing and his son was also fishing. Indulging in a quest for as much info as possible I made straight for them. They'd been there all morning and it had been raining quite a lot but the Dad had taken a small Roach and a couple of Perch on maggots. The boy reported a lost Tench right at the bank from the other side of the water and a Carp that had snapped him. Both had been off the bottom with a red & white maggot combo using a pole and float. The Dad was set up with a float, fishing it quite deep.

How can this possibly fail?

I decided to fish the peg next to them at the other side of the boathouse and employ my standard coarse tactics, devised over a couple of years at Eliburn. Rod One has the float slipped onto the mainline and held in place by a couple of small weights (enough to right the float in the water), then a swivel clip to which I attach a fine pre-tied hook/leader, usually about 2lb b/s and a size 18-20 hook. For smaller silver fish I find if you get too bulky they tend to be a lot less likely to take. This can cause problems if something substantial decides to wolf down the maggots instead, but this is rare. Rod Two is a bit more speculative. I add enough weight only to hold it firm on the bottom about 2-8 inches away from a specialist carp hook about size 8-10. Obviously all these tactics can vary, but that's the general starting point.

Despite my best efforts I searched all round with my float rod but couldn't find any fish. I opted for cubed luncheon meat stuffed with a few pellets and still loosely attached to another couple of cubes (see pic) that certainly looked scrumptious to me, but not it seemed to the fish. This was plonked out to my right in front of the boathouse along with some more meat as groundbait and some maggots. For good measure some floating pellets were thrown out, but all with no response.

Mark two view to the right

In the meantime my neighbour extracted another wee Perch so at least there was hope. I decided to move and made my way half way round the pond to another outstanding looking peg. The same tactics were deployed, all the while lengthening the depth of the maggots under the float. For the first 150 minutes or so I only had two solitary bubbles appearing as my only encouragement. Whether simple gas releases or Tench feeding, these are sometimes the only encouragement when staring at a potential blank especially on a new venue.

Mark two view to the left

I switched from maggots to Isome on the float rod and tried a beard of maggots on a smaller hook on Rod Two. Finally the beard did the trick and the rod started to twitch. When it pulled I struck, but didn't feel a fish. Probably a Tench, I focused on the 'hotspot' but didn't get any further interest.

So a slightly disappointing blank, but more than enough to peak my interest. It is certainly a venue I intend to return to. Enhancing the natural beauty of the place from an Anglers point of view, it's very well maintained with many pegs available and all in good condition. In my opinion an excellent balance is struck between the natural setting and the requirements of the Angler. A lovely example to all other small coarse fisheries.

View back to the Boathouse

On my return from Pitlochry to Tummel Bridge I stopped to take a couple of photos of Loch Tummel, as displayed later in this post.

Although I didn't push for any more fishing passes from the wife, later in the week we ventured up to Kinloch Rannoch where I took a neb at Loch Rannoch. Catching it not long before sunset the view up the Loch was outrageously stunning and I let my cameraphone do the work. If you enlarge the photo's you can see the odd ring of ripples showing the rise that was well underway along the near bank by what I expect were small trout. A proper assault on Loch Rannoch is high on the list for 2013, my anticipation heightened on the holiday by delving back into Ron Greer's outstanding book Ferox Trout & the Arctic Char which I'd highly recommend to anyone interested in fishing, even stockie-bashers who come in for a bit of a tongue-lashing. Informed, Insightful and Intelligent, I'll leave the i-superlatives there.

Loch Tummel

Loch Tummel & Schiehallion viewed on the way back to the Lodge

Loch Tummel, same spot, different view

Loch Rannoch

Stop the car!!!!!

And the photos still don't do it justice

Looking across to the south eastern shore

Photography made easy

Fetch me my rod Jeeves?

OMG, as they say

North east shore

Hold the camera horizontal you fool

12/10/2012 - Straiton Pond

Time - 1630-1815
Weather - Windy, chilly
Water - Full up & cloudy
Method - Maggots
Total - 3
Species - Roach 5"

Following some heavy rain I made my way back to Straiton Pond without too much confidence. My bite to landing ratio had been abysmal on my previous visit and conditions were likely to be a lot worse. The wind was quite strong restricting the marks I could fish from and on arrival it was apparent the water height was not too far from being at its maximum. Plus my maggots weren't the freshest.

At the first two marks at either end I didn't get any interest at all and wasn't too far from calling it a day. But I decided to try the last remaining sheltered spot on the northwest bank at the landslip. After a good 15 minutes or so of nothing I was otherwise distracted when I noticed the float disappearing and managed to reach the rod in time to hook the fish. Keen at least to see what it was I hurriedly brought ashore a small Roach of about 5 inches. One bite, one fish, delighted.

I explored around a bit if that's what casting in different directions could be called with no more success. I'd caught the Roach not far from my casting range limit which firstly was out of the shelter and into the wind, but secondly was close to the sunken tree. This made accurate placement of the bait very difficult, but after a couple of near misses with the tree, I managed to get the maggots back to the spot I'd got the first fish. Again, another bite, hooked into it and two bites had now produced two fish. A mad turnaround from my previous visit and a write-off of a session quickly becoming quite successful. I repeated the cast (after a few misfires) and soon the pattern repeated making it three bites and three fish. What a completely beguiling and inconsistent pastime the old angling can be.

28/09/2012 - Straiton Pond

Hillend and The Pentlands and the weather

Time - 1600-1900
Weather - Westerly, threat of showers
Water - 4 or 5 inches up
Method - Float/Maggots
Total - 4
Species - 2 Roach to 6 inch/2 comedy Perch

Part 2 of my plan for today took me back to Straiton Pond which I've caught a bit of a bug for lately. Despite the different parameters of this session to the one on the Esk earlier, it proved remarkably similar in many ways.

I headed for the landslip mark expecting it to be sheltered to an extent from the wind. Chucked out my maggots and hooked a lovely wee Roach first cast. Delighted that I've now sussed the Perch and Roach in here I thought to myself 'brilliant, see how long I can keep up with a fish a cast'. I didn't catch another fish for 2 1/2 hours. An incredible pastime at time, sometimes so easy, sometimes bewilderingly uncooperative.

A new Personal Worst?

I did get some taps, but these were increasingly infrequent. I moved to the west corner mark - nothing. Tried a few new spots here and there - also nothing. With darkness and the weather closing in and a poker game to get to, I was tempted to chuck it fo rthe day, but resolved to have one last effort in the top right corner. Immediately I began to get interest. Once the maggots had dropped, the float would disappear, reappear and be constantly bothered.

Last Roach

No matter how hard I tried I couldn't connect. I wasn't even feeling the fish as you often do with a missed strike. I suspected Perch were the culprit and was close to filming some of the float madness and my missed strikes. I varied the amount of maggots from 1-3 and tried different colours when I eventually managed to hook probably my smallest ever rod caught fish. Obviously I was into a shoal of baby Perch who could hardly even get a maggot in their gob. As so often happens, you wait ages for a fish and another comes along straight away as I 'landed' another one the very next cast.

Not too keen to lay into this little lot now I'd discovered what they were, I explored around a bit more and soon lost, then landed another typical Roach of about 6 inches.

The first photo I've included shows the Pentland Hills from the banking on the north side of the pond. Anyone familiar with the Penicuik-Straiton part of Midlothian will know that Penicuik takes a disproportiantely higher amount of rain than Straiton and northwards into Edinburgh. Despite the short distances involved, 4-9 miles or so, the difference is maybe most apparent in winter when you leave snowbound Penicuik in polar gear to get the bus into Edinburgh and when you get there folk just stare as it's bone dry and relatively mild. This discrepancy is caused by the weather rolling in from the north-west and as it hits the Pentlands, turning into clouds that once up and over, often dump their contents on the other side. While it might not win any awards, I think this photo is an excellent example of how the weather frequently works in this area. The hill in the middle is Hillend, funnily enough the end of the Pentlands facing the south of the city. Here you can see above and to the right, lovely clear skies. Looking left it gets increasingly dark showing a serious rain dump over the area towards Penicuik.

23/09/2012 - Straiton Pond

Plump

Time - 1545-1900
Weather - Occasional Easterly, not bad otherwise
Water - 1-2ft visibility
Method - Float/Maggots & Float/Deadbait
Total - 14
Species - 7 Roach, 7 Perch to 6 inch approx

I made straight for the landslip mark today hoping to get right in amongst the fish and wasn't disappointed. Fishing about 30-35 inches under the surface, I was getting enough interest and soon had a Roach on the bank by the usual float/maggot combo.

Looking to escape

While bites were common enough, it wasn't exactly frenzied. I was trying to target Perch a bit more than on previous visits as the ratio of Roach to Perch so far is around 4:1. Ths entailed varying the maggots, often fishing with 2 or 3 red ones and it seemed to be working.

1540

I've been chatting to a dog-walker who's fished the pond in the past and provided me with a fair amount of information on the place. He turned up and advised I should try a bit deeper after a prolonged quiet spell and immediately I was under siege. Mostly from Perch, but the Roach were happy to get involved too. All fish were still more or less the same 6 inch-ish in size. Just shows how important the depth you are fishing at can be.

1830

As well as the maggot/float tactic, I chucked out a Pollock strip under a bubble float hoping for a passing Pike. However nothing happened at all on that rod. I suspect I may have to explore different depths on that front too and will surely do so next time I'm back.

Now a comparison between the last two photos. Both more or less show the same bank and are taken from the same place. The captions show the times taken. As you can see the light and conditions altered appreciably during the session.

21/09/2012 - Straiton Pond

Time -
Weather -
Water -
Method - Float/Maggots & Float/Deadbait
Total - 11
Species - 9 Roach, 2 Perch to 6 inches approx

I'm reporting on this one well after the session and can't recall too many specific details. Reasonably typical session where the maggots did their thing with the Roach and Perch.

Also had a deadbait out hoping for any passing Pike, but nothing at all.

14/09/2012 - Straiton Pond

Fish of the Day - 6.25 inch

Time - 1500-2000
Weather - Very nice, same wind as day before
Water - As before
Method - Float, maggots/Isome
Total - 13
Species - 9 Roach, 4 Perch

Keen after yesterday I arrived an hour earlier and immediately got stuck in to the first small bay after the prompt interest I'd experienced the previous evening.

Incredibly, in the next 20 minutes, three dog walkers  variously sent objects into the pond for four dogs to retrieve. Wondering how long this sort of dog bathing could continue, I decided to stick things out as I was now super confident in my depth and bait combos and likelihood of catching.

Lovely

Despite the adjacent canine activity I'd soon taken three Roach, the first of 6.25 inch being the biggest I'd take all day. Seven fish in one and a bit sessions so far, all Roach, where were the Perch I'd been told about?

Whilst using some maggots, the worm-imitating Isome should have been tempting one eventually.

Then indeed the fourth fish of the day was a 6 inch Perch.

Latecomer to the party

In all I took four Roach and three Perch before a conversation with another local walking his dog produced enough information to encourage me there were gettable fish elsewhere. Tales of "Roach like dinner plates" and "2-3lb Perch" might not have been entirely accurate or up to date, but there was enough information on depths, history etc to improve my chances a bit more. Plus it had gone dead where I was.

View from second mark

I moved to the exact opposite end of the pond, where the specimen Perch were touted as lurking. There was nothing doing at all float-wise, but I was encouraged there were at least fish about by the odd small Roach skittering out across the surface. A change of depth found more success and I was soon onto, not monster Perch, but more small Roach.

Getting smaller

Bites were frequent enough, again encouraged by frequent addition of maggots.

Bites seldom came early, mostly occurring after the drop. As before a Perch eventually made an appearance and as darkness arrived, I finished with nine Roach and four Perch.

A nice mark-up in success rate after the previous days experimenting and exploring.

Roach