I managed a few days away again, camping this month. Back to Blackbrook Lodge campsite. The weather was good, as was the fishing. I took a cane rod, Ambidex 2 reel and a pint of maggots. Here's the video, and you can see some images by visiting theretroangler on Instagram. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nVS2wGy6jEQ&t=2

Just one fishing session this month at Birch House Lakes, but a good result...

June started well with a test run of the roach pole I tidied up. It was rather cumbersome, and conditions were windy, so I'll try again another day. I did have another rod and reel with me, though, and this video shows the results... This video is my annual visit to Norfolk. It was a very hot week, and the oxygen levels in the dyke we stayed in were really low. However, it was a lovely, relaxing week away from the world, and fishing is never time wasted... https://www.youtube

The trees have their leaves, and the flowers are starting to bloom. For the first session this month, I wanted to get back to the cut and decided on the Trent & Mersey Canal at Swarkestone, with a Match 13 float rod and Kassnar PLS-300 reel. As I float-fished maggots, I remembered Swarkestone can be a bit hit-and-miss sometimes, and this time it was a miss with no bites on this short session. I returned to Heatherton for my next session. This time with my trusty Carp setup an

Spring is warming up, and my first session this month, I went back to Robin Wood and tried Lake 3 again, this time on the opposite bank. Fishing with a pair of 10-foot leger rods, I paired one rod with a Mitchell 300 and the other with an Intrepid Extra. With boilies for a hook bait and boilie crumb for freebies, I saw signs of fish as I set up. No fish on this session though, and as all piscators know, an afternoon fishing is never time wasted. Especially when the spring sun

At last, the rain clouds have cleared, the sun is shining, and the air pressure has dropped. Which means I could take my tackle to Robin Wood and finally wet a line. For the first session of the year I decided to use the first 'proper' rod I bought as a child - although this wasn't the actual rod, as that was stolen from the garage - a 10-foot Shakespeare Omni Match, which I paired with a Mitchell 206 S reel. The weather was unseasonably warm, 17 degrees, and I float-fished m

As the inclement weather continues this month, and access to the bank is difficult, I decided to stay in the warm, dry shed and work on a marquetry set I received for Christmas. It was more fiddly than I thought; however, I persevered, using all the patience I'd learnt fishing, and after several evenings and a few weekends, I'd finished. For a first attempt, I'm quite pleased with the result, and it looks good framed on the kitchen wall. Once again, my brother bought a job lo

Happy New Year, piscators. I hope you have recovered after the Christmas and New Year festivities. Well, the weather this month has either been too cold or mild and too wet to go fishing. I'm getting too old to fish in the cold and rain. On one of the cold days this month, I visited Kedleston Hall, a local National Trust property, and noticed this monster Pike in a glass case that was probably caught in the estate's lake. Due to the inclement weather this month, I've been lis

Unfortunately, I didn't manage to get onto the bank for this final month of 2024. However, I have had the opportunity to take some time to think about my fishing this year and look forward to next year. This year the fishing has been a bit lacking due to one thing and another, and I'm hoping 2025 will permit more opportunities to wet a line. I haven't come up with a to-do list for the coming year; I'm going to see what happens and take it as it comes. Hopefully, this year the

My first session for a few months, and autumn has arrived. I went back to Stenson Bubble intending to fish next to bridge 20 again. However, a fellow piscator was there, so I fished further towards the lock. I didn't catch anything, unfortunately, even though I'd oiled up the Hardy Altex especially, and paired it with a Carter of London split cane rod, float-fishing some juicy worms. Oh well.