Fished today, Friday 15th March, back with John ESOX at Rudyard.
Despite the forecast, today was even colder than yesterday and the wind incessant.
The water level in the reservoir was well up and wet hands combined with the icy winds made our hands agonies of numbness.
It is times like these that even the most hardened of us (as John and I !!! LOL) question or own sanity, and the less mental, like Geoff, report a disappointing, but sensible decision and return to bed!

I arrived at the agreed top end Peg at 7.15 am, a quarter hour late as the fog over the Pennines was dense!
John was already set up , with 2 forward and 2 rear Banksticks pointing parallel to each other out into the vast featureless waters!

Having only a rod pod!, with the water high, I was forced to set the pod practically square along the bank as the water was so high only a narrow strip if the lower bank remained and placing it on top of the bank would have been impractical in the winds!

We chatted until approx 9.30 am when, following my some 16 + efforts got to me and in the comfort of my car for 2 hours I fell asleep!.
(To the banners!!! John was overseeing our kit)

We talked again and also with two friends of Johns, fishing just down from us and then retired to my car (which overlooked all the rods, to get a bit of relief from the cold)

Around 12.40, my nearest rod came completely of the pod and went into the water!

Due to the awkwardness of not being able to have the space to align the pod out at 90 degrees to the bank, I had staggered the rods to ensure the best clearance of 3 lines being fished out leftwards at again approx 90 degrees!

The line being pulled by the take (for that’s what it was!) had fouled the rear of the spool, and locked causing the rod to fall off the pod.

John reached for the fallen rod fractionally in front of me, thinking it was a wind problem, but as the rod inched forward a bit more! I grabbed it and struck with a satisfying curve appearing in the rod.

This rod (by sods law ) was the experiment rod!
Loaded with 14lb mono (the others with PowerPro braid), the bait was a tiny 4” smelt, dyed Orange, and popped up with a single cork. The trace was hand tied , using 2 small No. 10 trebles, which I had prepared with Zander in mind on my visit with Martin.
The conventional mackerel was baited on the other 2 rods.

John helped by removing the other rods to clear the swim and then landed for me my 6th fish since my request for help to catch an English Pike.
Satisfyingly, She proved to weigh in at 10lbs 12 ozs, giving me my 3rd double, and with a total weight exceeding 60 lbs, I retain the average of over 10 lbs per fish.

In the afternoon ,if anything the weather got worse!
Rain set in and the wind stayed and it truly was a hard , cold environment.

At last about 4.20, John had a run!!!
Striking, he hit a nice bend into his rod and I reached for the camera again.
Sadly, that mode lasted just a few seconds as the fish shed the hook and John gave the trees his description of his luck!
There are no leaves left in that area now, including those on an Evergreen!

I decided with John to try again until dusk and recast the rods at about 5.15pm bringing everything in closer , on the theory that at this time, discarded bait is thrown into the margin and the fish learn where easy feed is!

Sadly fish don’t read theory and I had done too much yesterday!
Lapsing into a semi-coma again , I was awakened by John at 6.00 pm to pack away.

Thus, another great Piking day ended for me and all I can ask for, is that the Guy who has helped me so much, is rewarded with his own fish soon! PLEASE

And here she is

CHEERS



Trev