Archived News from Banks Jan-June 2007
Very few members braved the atrocious bank holiday weekend weather. However young member, Billy Olave was on the Airman Pit for an overnight session and was rewarded with a personal best 16lb 9oz catfish. Few other fish were reported from the venue. On Sunday no one was on Broom Lake but during the warmer days members have been catching plenty of silver fish all around the lake. Pole anglers have been taking reasonable bags of roach to 10oz. At Willington the lake has been producing some large carp with the biggest two landed in the last couple of weeks being fish of 31lb and 35lb. Tench to 8lb have also been a feature and bream to double figures have also been reported. The planned working party for Sunday 3rd June has been cancelled and an extra one will be held at Willington Lake on Sunday 10th June. Anyone interested in fishing the club’s matches this season should contact new Match Secretary, Alan Andrews(tel.01462 817228
This week, Broom Lake appears to be the pick of the waters with plenty of carp to mid doubles in multifish bags. Typical catches for the lake were Rod Wyles and his mate Dave Stringer’s 4 fish all around 10-11lb and Mark Welch with five carp in the 13lb–17lb range. Ben Toyer also had four fish including two low doubles. At the Airman Pit it appears to have been quiet with very little reported. It is pleasing to report that the water level at Stanford Pit is being maintained at a reasonable height and there are reports of rudd, crucian carp and roach being caught when you can avoid the swans and ducks taking ones bait. The series of working parties continues tomorrow Saturday 26th May at Willow Pool on starting at 8-00am. New Match Secretary, Alan Andrews(tel.01462 817228) would like to hear from anyone interested in fishing the series matches he has arranged for the coming season.
The main news this week is from the Airman Pit where several carp over the 20lb mark have been caught from different swims around the venue. The top spot goes to 9 year old Rhys Allum who when fishing with his dad, Paul, in the long narrow swim hooked and landed an excellent personal best 21lb mirror carp. Although only fishing for a year Rhys already had a personal best common carp of 18lb from the same venue. Also at the Pit, Andrew Tingay took 7 fish in a session with the best a mirror of 24lb. Down at Broom Lake the track has had to be closed to vehicles because of the heavy rain. However the hardy members venturing out have been rewarded with carp to just over the 20lb mark and silver fish are responding to the pole and waggler tactics. The series of working parties continues at Willow Pool on Saturday 26th May starting at 8-00am.
Rhys Allum
Week ending 6th May 2007
Willington Lake as yet again produced a huge bag of bream for committee member Alan Andrews. Alan, fishing on the quivertip with a single grain of sweetcorn landed over 150lb of bream. In his 20 fish haul he had slabs to 9lb. At Broom Lake several members have reported multifish catches of carp with fish to just over 20lb. Simon Bridges has reported a 20lb fish with also two double figure fish in a days fishing. Bream to 6lb and tench to 5lb have also been picking up baits intended for the carp in the venue. Several members have reported silver fish bags made up of mainly roach taken on the pole. In amongst the fish in nets of around 8lb have also been perch to 1lb. Tomorrow, Saturday there will be a working party at Willow Pool starting at 8-00am.
David Culley
Submitted by Martyn Scoffin two pictures taken on the 02/05/07 at broom lake both fish were caught on the method feeder, hook bait was plastic corn. Also caught that day were four bream between 4lb and 6lb.The first pic is David Culley with a 12lb 6oz common the second is my self Martyn Scoffin with a 15lb 2oz.
Later submission
In a short
session I had 6 carp and 1 tench, five of the carp were 13lb+ and the tench
just over 5lb. The picture is a lovely mirror of 13lb 2oz my first one from
Broom. If you could mention thanks to those members who helped me when I had
two carp on at the same time and required help landing the second as my
landing net was on my mat with a carp in it!!
Regard's
Mark Brookman
Photo submitted by Stuart Duncombe a PB 19lb common caught from Broom lake using floating bait
The north easterly breezes of the past week seem to have put the fish off the feed or more likely the anglers from venturing out on to the stillwater venues. At the Airman Pit, Chris Page landed a lovely looking 26 lb 1oz mirror carp and other general anglers are still reporting bags of roach. However the redfins do seem to be shoaling up and members may have to wait sometime for them to come on the feed. There are no reports of silver fish from Broom Lake but odd carp to mid doubles are being caught. One or two members have been trying Stanford Pit where the water level continues to improve. However apart from small rudd it has been fruitless. Last week saw the AGM of the club with the overall specimen trophy being awarded to Alan Andrews for his excellent catfish of 38lb 6oz caught at the Airman Pit. Alan is also the new match secretary and will be running matches once a month starting in June. Anyone interested should contact Alan for details on 01462 817228. The new clubcards will be available from the 1st May with adult subscriptions increased by £5. A series of dates for working parties has been announced with the first at the Great Ouse venue at Paxton on Saturday, 14th April starting at 8-00am.
Chris Page
The only reports this week from members comes form the Airman Pit where numerous bags of roach to around the pound mark have been taken on most days. Richard Bell had a good bag of 14lb of the redfins and this was typical of the nets taken by several anglers on quivertipped maggot and groundbait feeder. To complete the series of working parties at Broom Lake the final one will be this Sunday, 1st April starting at 8-00am. The water will be open to those attending the working party when the work is completed.
The last few days of the river season produced personal bests for a number of members. David Hawkes continued his run of good form on the River Ivel at the back of Broom Lake by taking a pb perch of 3lb 10oz. He also had ‘stripeys’ of 2lb 15oz and 2lb in the same session. After spending 3 fruitless nights on the River Great Ouse in search of barbel, Mick Burr also switched his attention to the Ivel and took a pb perch of 3lb 8oz. A 3lb 2oz perch were also recorded by Vic Jackson and several other members had big 2s. The Stanford Canal also produced some good sport with Vic Jackson taking a good mix bag of chub, roach, perch and dace and Colin Smith also putting in a couple of sessions on the venue took chub to 4lb 11oz and perch to 2lb 12oz. Club Secretary, Lez Reed ventured out on the River Great Ouse at Paxton for the final evening and after only 30minutes fishing had a lovely conditioned barbel of 10lb 15oz in the net. On the last day of the season Vic Jackson joined Club President, John Leath on the River Flit in the town. Fishing on the ‘forks’ they both had double figure bags of fish including dace, roach to a 1lb and chub to 3lb 8oz. Further downstream on the venue Bob Izzard landed chub to 4lb 8oz and roach to 1lb from swims downstream of the weir. Members should note that the club’s AGM will be at Shefford Town Memorial Hall (Digswell) on Tuesday 27th February at 8-00pm.
As a mark of respect to the family of the late Ted Lucas, a longstanding member of the club, who passed away earlier this year the Airman Pit will be closed from 7-00am Sunday 25th March until 7-00am Monday 26th March. Ted’s request that his ashes be spread at the venue will be honoured during this time
David Hawkins
Lez Reed
Mick Burr
Member, David Hawkes ventured out to the River Ivel at the back of Broom Lake and found the river fining down nicely but still pushing through after the rains of over a week ago. He proceeded to have a ‘cracking’ days fishing with perch of 2lb 15oz, 2lb 10oz and 1lb 12oz along with roach of 1lb 6oz and 1lb 1oz. He then finished off his day with a common carp of 9lb 14oz. On the following days the colour in the river just disappeared and fishing became very hard. However, Colin Smith on his return to the river after his holiday landed an excellent 3lb 6oz ‘stripey’ with two others of 1lb 14oz. Lez Reed and Nigel Gilbert were also out after the perch and had several to 2lb with Nigel also having a ‘bonus’ tench of 3lb 11oz. With the water temperatures on the increase there have been a fair number of anglers on Broom Lake and the Airman Pit trying to tempt the carp into action. However no one has reported anything of note but numerous tench and bream on Broom Lake have been picking up baits intended for their larger ‘cousins’. Members should note that with a planned working party on Broom Lake this Saturday, 17th March the venue will be closed. However those attending will be allowed to fish when the work is completed.
Colin Smith
With the fluctuating water levels of the local rivers most of members seem to have given these venues a miss this week. However it appears that no matter what the weather Vic Jackson continues to catch quality fish from the club’s stretch on the River Ivel at the back of Broom Lake. With the river rising and colouring up after overnight rain he still managed 3 perch over 2lb bringing his total of ‘stripeys’ making this weight to over 40 since November. In his latest catch his best fish was 2lb 6oz but also included a chub of 3lb 8oz. As reported last week, Richard Bell has now turned his attention to Broom Lake with the objective of catching bream using standard swimfeeder and maggot tactics. In three outings in the last week he has landed 8 bream to 6lb 6oz, 4 tench to 5lb 12oz and 3 carp with the best a common at 15lb 10z all on red maggot and a size 18 hook to 2lb line. Fishery Officer, Nigel Gilbert would like to thank the few members who turned up last Saturday to continue the work at Broom Lake. There will be another one on the same venue on Saturday 17th March.
Members have managed to capture a good variety of species this week, with some excellent specimens included. The pick of the bunch was caught by regular Vic Jackson who was once again targeting perch on the River Ivel. The perch failed to show, but his efforts were rewarded with a fabulous chub of 6lb 2oz taken on float fished worm down the near side. Also targeting perch on the Ivel, committee member Alf Dickinson was more than pleased to catch a pb perch of 2lb 12 oz on worm, plus a fair number of roach on maggot swimfeeder. The river also threw up a bream of 4lb 8oz plus some roach for Neal Halybone in difficult conditions as the river rose after rain. Fresh from helping out at the Broom Lake work party, Richard Knight moved over to the Airman Pit for a 24 hr session after carp. His efforts at the work party were rewarded with 3 carp, a low double plus 2 cracking 20s, both mirrors, of 23lbs and 20lb 4oz. The 20s were taken during a 2 hour spell, and the moral of this story is, attend the work parties and you might catch some good fish! Also at the Airman Pit, Richard Bell has continued to find the bream, averaging 4 per trip this week up to 6lb 12oz. The roach have also come back on the feed and he has had numerous fish to 1lb, while witnessing the capture of another carp. Switching his attentions to Broom Lake, Richard fished the field side of the lake and managed a 5lb 8oz bream and a 4lb 14oz tench. A carp angler fishing the river side of the lake had a similar catch. Finally, Bob Izzard fished a short 90 minute session on his favourite stretch of river at Horsebridge and was rewarded with chub of 3lb 5oz and 3lb, a perch of 1lb 9oz and roach to 12oz. Just to prove how fickle fishing can be, a return trip yielded just 1 small pike. Would members please note that the next work party will be held at Broom Lake on Saturday 3rd March, so the lake will be closed for the day. Please turn up and help - Richard Knight did and look what happened to him!
Alf Dickinson
Vic Jackson
Richard Knight
Richard Knight
The aftermath of the bad weather appears to have affected members in different ways. Some found the Ivel in a difficult mood, despite looking in good condition, while others targeting barbel on the River Great Ouse at Pavenham were beaten by the high water. However, Bob Izzard decided to have a short session on his favourite stretch of the River Flit at Horsebridge and was rewarded with a great catch. Fishing worm, he caught chub of 4lb 12oz and 3lb, plus perch of 2lb 2oz, 1lb 11oz and 1lb 7oz. What surprised him was that all of the fish came from one swim, as normally he has to keep on the move. On the River Ivel at Broom regulars struggled to catch more than the odd big fish. Even the roach were playing hard to get. Ever present Vic Jackson managed a perch of 2lb 3oz and a few pike on lures, and then returned to catch a 2lb 8oz perch on float fished worm followed by about 20 roach on maggot. Alan Thomas thought he was in for a good day when he had a 1lb 8oz perch on his first cast, but that proved to be his only fish of the day. Mr. Webb from Luton decided to target pike on the Airman Pit and was rewarded with a fine fish of 17lb 4 oz, while another member fishing the same water on the previous day was no doubt well pleased with his 24lb common carp. Thanks to members who turned up for the work party at Broom Lake on Sunday. The next work party will be at Broom Lake on Saturday 3rd March, followed by another at the same venue on Saturday 17th March, previously reported as Sunday 18th. The lake will be closed on both days, and details are available from Fisheries Officer Nigel Gilbert on 01462 680568. Please come along and help
Not surprisingly it appears that members were beaten by the weather this week. The few reports of hardy souls venturing out resulted in a small pike and several blanks. The only catch to report was made by Colin Smith and Alan Thomas who managed to target chub just before the weather turned. Fishing an IPA stretch of the River Ivel they shared a good catch, both catching 4lb plus fish to a best of 4lb 14oz. Would members please note that the pike match planned for Sunday 18th February at Paxton on the River Great Ouse has been postponed. Colin Wright on 07796 935267 has more details. Would members also please note that there is a work party at Broom Lake on Sunday 18th February, starting at 8.00am. The lake will be closed for the day. Help from members would be greatly appreciated, and details are available from Fisheries Officer Nigel Gilbert on 01462 680568
Alan Thomas
It has been a superb week for member, Bob Izzard who in a short session on the very narrow stretch of the River Flit on the Horsebridge took two personal bests. His first was a lovely 5lb 6oz chub followed by a perch of 2lb 10oz. In another session on his favourite venue he landed several more good perch and quality roach to 1lb 8oz. The River Ivel at Broom continues to yield quality perch fishing with regular Vic Jackson having several over 2lb topped by an excellent 3lb specimen. Alan Thomas and Colin Smith whilst out perching have once again been surprised with one or two of their catches. Alan after struggling for most of the day struck into a fish only to smash his reel on his chair and remove the handle. He then proceeded to turn the spool by hand whilst playing the fish which turned out to be a superbly conditioned common carp of 11lb 8oz. The surprise for Colin was that after taking 2 perch to 2lb he landed a bream of 4lb 5oz. Later on in the week at the opposite end of the venue another bream of similar weight was landed by Club Treasurer, Alf Dickinson. Members after the roach on the river have found it very variable. The roach are proving very finicky on days following the cold nights yet on milder days they are feeding throughout day with good bags of fish to around 12oz. At the Airman Pit it is still the bream that predominate in Richard Bell’s sessions on the venue who reports that the roach are just not feeding in the colder weather. He also says that the bream are only coming on to the feed for short sessions just as the light starts to fade. The club’s next pike match will be held at Paxton on the River Great Ouse on Sunday 18th February with the draw at 8-00am and fishing 9-00am – 3-00pm. Details from Colin Wright on 07796 935267
Alan Thomas
Bob Izzard
Vic Jackson
Before the onset of the ‘cold snap’ the Airman Pit was producing very big bags of roach probably topped by Alan Lawrence’s 30lb bag of the redfins which included several fish over the 1lb mark. The colder weather saw the roach completely stop feeding but some members experienced good bream coming on the feed late on in the day. Richard Bell has had several bags of the slabs usually around the 4lb mark but with the best two fish going 6lb 10oz and 8lb 8oz. Russell McMillan targeted the pike on the venue and has been rewarded with several doubles including fish of fish of 17lb and 18lb 5oz. The milder weather during this week has seen several members reporting an upturn in the fishing on the River Ivel at the back of Broom Lake. After days struggling to find roach feeding a number of anglers have again been catching bags of the redfins. The perch are also putting in appearance again with Vic Jackson reporting several fish over 2lb with the best an excellent fish of 3lb 0oz. There have been some surprises from the river venue including an excellent roach/bream hybrid of 3lb 6oz for Alan Thomas whilst perching and a tench of 3lb 5oz caught by David Hawkes in a mix bag of fish. Head Bailiff, Chris Mayes put in a short two hour session on the River Flit at Clifton Road Bridge and was rewarded with several chub over 3lb with the best at 4lb 12oz and a bream of 2lb 2oz. There will be a working party this Saturday, 3rd February at Broom Lake. The venue will be closed for fishing but those attending the working party will be allowed to fish when work has been completed.
Richard Bell
Russell McMillan
The changeable and mainly colder weather has seen only the hardiest of souls on the banks and consequently fewer reports of good fish taken. The carp boys who regular fish Broom Lake are still taking the odd 20+lb carp in multifish catches from their favoured swims whereas the pike anglers have really struggled with only a few ‘jacks’ reported. On the River Ivel at the back of the lake conditions have made fishing difficult with the silver fish becoming very finicky. One or two members have reported nets of roach to around 5lb but have commented that it has been ‘hard’. On the River Flit downstream of the Horsebridge, Bob Izzard has taken several chub to nearly 4lb but it is the quality roach taken on worm from the venue that has pleased Bob. The Airman Pit continues to fish well for roach with Richard Bell reporting several double figure nets including fish to around a pound caught from different swims around the lake. He also reports that late in the sessions bream to 4lb have put in an appearance. Fishery Officer, Nigel Gilbert would like to thank all those who turned up at the Airman Pit for the working party.
Once the River Ivel started to fine down after the wind and rain the fish on the stretch at Broom came on the feed in abundance. Head Bailiff, Chris Mayes fishing near the ‘bends’ had a super looking 3lb perch along with some roach and further upstream on the same day, regular, Vic Jackson got amongst the ‘stripeys’ with two perch of 2lb 15oz and 2lb 5oz as well as a bag of roach. During the session Vic was pestered by pike and went on to land three of them to 12lb. A few days earlier, fishing downstream near Jordan’s Mill, Vic had taken a superb catch of 9 perch with 3 fish over 2lb and the remainder all over a pound. During the period when the river was unfishable Vic accompanied Fishery Officer, Nigel Gilbert on the Airman Pit and proceeded to bag up on roach with a nets of over 20lb of the ‘redfins’ which included fish to 1lb 6oz. The mild weather has really prompted the carp to feed both on the Airman Pit and Broom Lake with several fish of over 20lb typified by Graham Rainbow’s 23lb 4oz mirror from the Airman. Probably the best catch of the week was by Andy Mead fishing down at Broom Lake when he took 8 carp all over 10lb and a tench in a session which included superb fish of 25lb 2oz and 21lb 4oz caught within ten minutes of one other. In addition, on the same day Graham Croot and his mate also had 20lb plus carp from the lake. After he found the rivers unfishable, Richard Bell thought he would give Stanford Pit a go and proceeded to catch a double figure bag of roach, rudd and crucians after spending the first hour without a bite. There will be a pike match on the Broom Lake(not the river as previously reported) this Sunday 21st January with the draw at 8-00am. For details call Colin Wright on 07796 935267. Also on Sunday there will be a working party at the Airman Pit starting at around 8-00am
Graham Rainbow’s 23lb 4oz fish from the Airman Pit
Before the rains of this week the stretch of the River Ivel at Broom had become very patchy with some members blanking and other ‘bagging up’. One of the fortunate members was venue regular Vic Jackson who fishing behind Broom Lake on a very windy day with the river pushing through took a mix bag of fish including four perch over 2lb, a chub of 3lb 8oz and a good number of roach to a pound. It was also roach on the Airman Pit for Fishery Officer, Nigel Gilbert who fishing the sliderfloat and red maggot took 15lb of redfins to 1lb 4oz. In an earlier outing on the River Flit at the Horsebridge Nigel also had several roach to over a pound on breadflake. There will be a pike match on the Broom River on Sunday 21st January with the draw at 8-00am. For details call Colin Wright on 07796 935267
Alan Thomas (former club chairman) has been awarded the ‘angler of the month’ for December in the Biggleswade Chronicle