News Update: 20th January 2019
Despite rocket bottom temperatures, Nick (the Greek) Page left fellow anglers in awe as he demonstrated that fish could still be caught when he fished during the daytime at Swan Lake, a water that is fast growing a reputation as being an exceptional big fish venue. Nick caught three cracking carp throughout his stay weighing 24lb 1oz, 33lb 4oz and 30lb 4oz. The last fish mentioned was a fully-scaled mirror carp supplied by AJS Fisheries that has topped the 30lb mark for the first time adding to the growing number of such fish. Nick’s advice to his fellow anglers has always been not to fish too far out in the lake.
The club was well pleased with the turnout for the working party at McGregor Lake where many snags were removed from marginal swims with anglers’ end tackle retrieved reinforcing the need for the work. Working party members were surprised to find small perch and gudgeon sheltering in the tree roots removed. These fish were carefully returned to the lake. Much work remains to be done so another work party will be arranged for about a month’s time. Readers may be interested to learn that this lake has produced carp to nearly 29lbs and the fish therein are still putting on weight.
Fishing News
The low overnight temperatures have put most members off fishing club waters in the past week but bailiff David Grant was still up for a 72-hour session. He decided McGregor Lake offered him the best chance of seeing some action as it is the most heavily stocked of the club’s still waters. Throughout his first day though his bite indicators never moved but as soon as the sun began to set fish started to feed and this pattern was to continue throughout his stay. David fished snowman rigs over an area well baited with freebies and he went on to catch 9 carp weighing up to 18lb 6oz including a 16lb common and a spectacular looking 15lb fully-scaled mirror. Additionally, he landed a handful of sizeable bream which would have given him more sport on lighter gear.
Members are asked to note that a working party will be held on the 19th of January and, possibly, succeeding weekends until work is completed but the lake will remain open. The main work will be to clear some of the overhanging vegetation that is beginning to pose a risk of fish getting snagged particularly around the islands.
Although carp fishing has slowed somewhat, pike have become very active boiling on the surface with some members mistaking their swirls for carp. In recent weeks, the Sandy lakes have produced pike up to 22lbs but there have been larger specimens caught from both McGregor and Swan Lakes in previous years.
Fishing News W/E 6th January 2019
With temperatures on the slide, there were few anglers seeing any action. However, Alan Gentle opted for a day’s fishing at McGregor Lake casting his baits to some nearby overhanging vegetation. His tactics worked for he was soon weighing a nice 15lb mirror carp he had landed despite having missed a violent bite earlier. Later, in the afternoon, ha had a third run which resulted in him catching a 12lb mirror carp. Anthony Pogmore decided to fish well out from the bank to see if any fish were still moving there and, within half an hour of casting out, he had a jerky bite which turned out to be from a 3lb bream. Unfortunately, that was the end of his sport for the day.
The waters in both Swan and Gingerbread Lakes have gone clear indicting that the fish had torpid and making daytime chances of catching more difficult than ever. One member was fortunate to catch a couple of low 20lb carp by fishing overnight at Gingerbread Lake.
Karl Franklin was back on the River Ivel after roach. He float-fished to catch a handful of roach in the 6-8oz range. Later, he tried for chub but could not attract any fish to feed.
Fishing News
Work commitments had prevented Fraser Hayden from fishing for much of the year but the holiday break gave him a rare opportunity to wet a line. Fishing a club stretch of the River Ouse at Tempsford, he legered small cubes of luncheon meat which produced a nice 3lb chub. On his next visit, he decided to target roach baiting his swim with mashed bread that gradually drew fish into the area. He fished with bread flake beneath a quill float and soon started to catch some nice roach and went on to catch around 5lb of the redfins.
On his last carp fishing trip to McGregor Lake, Karl Franklin only managed to bank a 3lb bream throughout the day and decided it was time to try for another species. He targeted a stretch of the River Ivel near Tempsford using his own home-made paste as bait. He missed a thumping bite but this was soon forgotten when he went on to catch two specimen chub weighing 5lb 2oz and 5lb 7oz.
Fishing News
The falling water temperatures appear to have slowed down sport on BHAA’s lakes but the increased flow of water in the river stretches has brought with it an upsurge in feeding activity. Membership Secretary and Chairman Neil Sampson has been targeting the club’s stretches of the River Ouse and has reported catching several large chub. His best so far has been a 5lb 9oz specimen.
The Environment Agency’s fishing team are adopting survey techniques other than electro-fishing to assess the health of fisheries. The team is planning to carry out an underwater survey of fish stocks at Grace Lake where weed growth makes netting difficult to undertake. The club is looking forward to the results from the survey.
Some members wanting to fish the lower stretches of the River Ouse at Tempsford have been concerned to find the car parking area behind the former Anchor Hotel barred. However, this is a designated parking area and members wishing to park there can open the barrier to allow vehicle entry as long as they close the barrier behind them once inside. The same rule applies to exiting the car park.
