The Sessions - July 2024
Crucian Guiding and back on Kings Weir.
With last month’s difficult start to the river season and just not getting out enough I was looking forward to July with a Crucian guiding session booked in and my own Barbel sessions planned on the Trent and Kings Weir.
06 July 2024 – River Trent, Collingham.
I’d planned to start fishing for the big Barbel on the middle Trent I’ve spoken and written about over the last two seasons, you may remember I spent 18 months fishing for it only to find she had moved through the lock to the section above and was caught late last autumn at over 19 pound, frustrating but funny as I’d started to recognise the singles as well as the doubles while trying to catch a fish that wasn’t there anymore…
So I drove up Friday evening to start on the new section and fully expected it to be empty as it was never that busy previously, as I drove along the day ticket section it was packed but I wasn’t too concerned as the club section is quite big, so I’d have plenty of room and be in the better area. I unlocked the gate and drove through and then relocked it, there was one person in the first swim so I drove up the track and round the bend and was horrified to find over ten bivvies, with two in some swims, chimineas, BBQs, children playing football and rods everywhere, I’m all for enjoying yourself but that isn’t for me so I turned around and left. I suspect it had something to do with a big Sturgeon that was caught along there so hopefully it will all die down when it gets colder.
With the night drawing in I had to decide where to go, not easy on a Friday as most places are busy, I looked at Gunthorpe but the level was too high for the swim I looked at so I drove down to the tidal and right down the club section to an area I had not tried before.
It was a nice straight after a big bend so I got the Deeper out and found the deeper channel two thirds of the way over at 9 feet, I then checked with a lead and it was clean gravel. With the spot sorted I spread approx. 100 BBB / Pandemic through the swim and set the camp up. The rods were cast out at 23:30, both on BBB and the first bite came withing 30 mins with a Chub at 5 plus, and then shortly after midnight the first Barbel at a very spawned out 11-14.
I thought that was going to be the start of a busy night but I didn’t get another bite until 05:00 and then had three average fish before someone set up right opposite me, that was enough for me so I packed up for home.
9 July 2024 – Johnsons Lake, Marsh Farm.
I had a guide session planned with Steve Dawe for July last year, but he had a family emergency on the morning of the trip and couldn’t come, so we postponed and rebooked for this July and were both looking forward to it.
The weather had other ideas with a lot of rain and cool spring temps forecast over the two days. Steve travelled up on the Monday afternoon and got set up before the rain arrived, I had to work and travelled down in the evening, the rain started as I arrived and didn’t stop…. I’d got Steve in the best peg and I planned to go two pegs away so we were close enough but still had plenty of room, unfortunately there was a day angler in the swim which wasn’t a problem if he left on time but he stayed until 23:30 and it was hammering down with rain. I had to barrow the gear down and set up in the rain, everything was soaked, and it was quite chilly which seems crazy in July, I was just glad to get in the bag at 00:30 ready for the 05:00 start.
I’d mixed up the ground bait before going to sleep, it’s something I’d always recommend as the micro pellets absorb water and get nice and sticky which helps bind the bait onto the feeder. So the first job was to wrap the rods and spomb out six loads of hemp and caster, keeping it quite tight. The Crucian fishing had been described to me as dire this season with hardly any caught so it was going to be tough and the weather wasn’t helping, so six spombs is enough attraction without over feeding any fish that did come into the area.
With the area primed I helped Steve set his rigs up and discussed the tactics we’d use and we cast feeders out for 06:00, it was chilly and raining, but we were there and still enjoying ourselves.
The session started really well with Steve having a new PB at 2-04 first cast, he quickly beat that with another at 2-14, he doesn’t hide his emotions well and was very happy, and seeing that was almost as satisfying as catching them myself, it was brilliant.
Shortly after I had my first one at 2-15 and Steve added another at 2-11, despite the weather this was turning out to be a great session and I just hoped Steve would get a 3 plus to put the icing on the cake. The rain started to be very heavy at 10:00 and just didn’t stop, the bites slowed right up with just Roach and small Tench picking up the fake casters. We topped up the spots at midday with just three spombs and just hoped the rain would ease off.
At 15:35 I had a take that was clearly no Crucian and found the Carp were following me again as I landed a Mirror at 23-13, the rain stopped just enough for a couple of photos.
An hour later the same happened again with another Mirror at 27-01, I did manage a photo but the rain was relentless.
We put another six spombs out at 18:00 and Steve had another Crucian at low 2 and I had a Tench, we then both had Crucians at 3-04 five minutes apart, making it a brilliant session and Steve’s hoped for 3 pound plus. We watched France get knocked out by Spain and then reeled in and retired for the night.
10 July 2024
We were up again at 04:30 and put six spombs out and cast the rigs in, the rain had cleared, and it was a little warmer so the gear would all dry out before we left at lunchtime.
I had another small Carp, we both had Roach and Rudd and started to pack down, Steve had packed nearly all his gear away apart from the rods on the floor when one of the bait runners started going, he picked up and what a brilliant end to the trip breaking his PB for the fourth time with a 3-05, I was really pleased for him, absolutely magic 😊
Steve has come on two guide trips and had PB Barbel and Crucians, he has now given me a proper challenge to take him on a Zander trip, so watch this space this winter.
I finished the trip of with a visit to Gardner HQ and spent an hour or so having a tour with Alan and meeting a lot of the team that work there and I came away feeling very privileged to be part of the team.
13 July 2024 – River Trent, tidal
After another trip up the M1 to visit my Mum and work being as crazy as normal I was too tired to load the van and get out fishing on the Friday night, so Julie and I had a nice night in with some wine and a movie and I drove up Saturday morning.
The middle Trent section was again too busy so I drove down to the tidal to one of my favourite sections to have a social trip with Ian, I arrived at lunchtime to find one of the better swims free and didn’t rush to set up as it’s never that good in the day. It was warm and cloudy at 18 degrees with light showers so good conditions, and the river level was at 1.02m. I checked the swim with the Deeper as I hadn’t fished it since the winter floods and found the feature hadn’t changed so it was a nice easy flick out to the spot. I put a spread of BBB / Asbo through the swim and put rigs out on BBB at 17:30.
The first bite came in day light two hours later and was good start at 11-07; I recast both rods and came back with a Mitten Crab leg on the other hook so they were definitely active.
Two hours later the same rod went again with another double at 11-00 and that was followed by two more before midnight at 10-11 and 9-14.
The bites kept coming with two more doubles at 10-15 and 10-00, and four more high nines before first light and I was on the way home by 08:30 to get home and the jobs done before the Euro final.
19 July 2024 – River Lea, Kings Weir.
I arrived after work at 17:45 in the midst of a mini heatwave, it was boiling hot at 30 degrees and a very sweaty walk round to the swim. The river level was .160m and looked lovely with not much weed washing around in the back eddy. I put the Deeper through the swim again and found a much better spot for the left-hand rod at 11 feet before it sloped up to 9 feet so a perfect food holding spot.
I put both out on BBB and baited both spots with the spopper with BBB / Asbo.
I noticed two Moorhen chicks stranded on a weed raft right by the weir, they were calling the hen but she was staying right back down the river trying to encourage them to swim down, eventually they tried but could not get past the back eddy and it wasn’t looking good. I managed to get them back onto the weed raft with my net but after thinking about it they were not going to get off so I scooped them up and carried them down to the next swim, it worked perfectly and the hen came straight over as I left them and they were back together 😊
20 July 2024
The night passed without any bites and I was getting four hours before the weed was moving the rigs, it was very hot and uncomfortable and with the heat came the mossies and I got nailed a few times.
I got up to recast at 05:20 and the left-hand rod went over with the first fish of the trip, a Bream at 10-08, not the target but still very nice. My pal Neale arrived and dropped in next door, he is a very good angler and had a stellar start to the season; I will get him to do a guest article at some point 😊
It was much better conditions, cooler at 24 degrees with long cloudy spells and a nice breeze, but being Saturday the boats were out and chopping up the weed, by lunchtime it was getting difficult to keep rigs in place. It wasn’t long before we had to reel in, the weed coming over the weir and round the back eddy was ridiculous and to cap it off the big raft in front of peg 2 split and was washed into the back eddy and there was no way we could keep rigs in place. The Moorhen chicks were on that raft and I had to save them again before they were sucked into the weir, fortunately it went well again and they were reunited with the hen.
We walked the members section for an hour and it looked lovely and then went back to the swims, I spent the next hour with my net clearing the weed as much as possible and had a nice big pile in the back of the swim, and I carried on netting it out as it came round the back eddy until it calmed down as the boat traffic stopped for the night. By 21:30 we could keep rigs in place for a few hours, so I baited the swim again with BBB / Asbo.
It was a cooler cloudy night with some rain and the mossies were bad, we got hammered; I recast twice through the night to make sure the rigs were clear but despite all the effort it was another blank night. Neale left early morning and had been battered by the mossies, the boats were out again early morning and by 09:00 the weed started again so I packed up for home, another tough session on a lovely fishery but it only makes me more determined, and I’ll be back again in three weeks.
23-26 July 2024
Julie and I took three days of work and drove up to the Peak District for two days walking; we dropped in to see my Mum on route and camped in Nantwich the first night before driving up and through Snake Pass on route to Bamford Edge, what a stunning part of our beautiful country and the walk along Bamford edge overlooking Ladybower Reservoir was brilliant.
We stayed in a B&B in Hathersage on the second night, got freshened up and had a nice meal in The George, and then drove to Stanage Point the next morning for another lovely long walk.
We camped in a farm right up in the hills on the third night, it was pouring with rain but the good old Hutchie Bivvy stood up to the test, I cooked us a nice meal and we drank plenty, it was a lovely evening, we both just love being outside.
We finished the trip with a walk round Bakewell and a stroll along the River Wye and saw some Rainbow Trout that must have been doubles right in the town section, I took photos but they just did not do them justice they were huge.
We are already planning another trip in August.
Until next month, tight lines and be lucky 😊
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