Archive for November, 2010
*** Half-Frozen ***
November 30th, 2010 | 
Author: Although it’s a bitter easterly wind, today has seen a good amount of water to be fished on the far river side of the fishery including the main point. The rest is largely frozen.
Two swims are likely to be taken on Wednesday as Jonno and Mike are due for a rematch further to Jonno’s rare 2-0 victory on Saturday. We may not hear the last of it for some time.
Should there be snow, take care on the Cerney Wick road as you could see yourself having a ‘Dukes of Hazzard’ moment on the bends.
Posted in 
*** FROZEN ***
Apart from the main point and ‘the boards’ on the opposite side to the car park, we are almost totally frozen with about 7mm of ice. Together with the lack of wind and zero temperatures forecast throughout the week, it’s expected to last into next weekend. We’ll keep you updated with any changes.
We had some action over the weekend with fish landed and a good few takes on the cats whisker, but frozen rod rings mid-cast hampered any serious ability to fish.
So what to do? Get yourselves behind a vice and start dressing some flies. If you haven’t entertained tying your own flies yet, pop over to Orvis in Burford as the have some reasonable starter kits and will most likely offer you a demo.
Moving into December
Get your gloves on because it’s starting to get rather bitter! With day-break seeing temperatures of -6 Degrees in the Cirencester area and a nippy wind to back it up, it’s rather harsh on the bank at the moment. This hasn’t stopped some of the dedicated amongst you from venturing out with a rod in hand. 
Please note, we have ice around some areas of the lake, but only really on the South West side. Most of the fishery is accessible.
Well done to John Steedman, Dave Phillips, Mike Waring, Bob Hicks, Jon Harrison and a few more who have been landing some nice rainbows recently. Notably Mike with an estimated 7-8lb rainbow (returned) on a Cats Whisker. While most feeding trout appear to be very close to the margins, Mike secured his with a full line out, (27m) covering the deeper water in the north corner.
Stock
We have another 200 fish due within the next couple of weeks. Most will go directly into the lake with a few dozen held back to top up the water later in the month. Additionally, we have moved a good number of fish from the stock pond where they have resided over the summer. These good looking and fighting fit fish ranged from 3-7lbs.[SinglePic not found]
It looks like we’ll have to keep an eye on the weather over the next couple of weeks. If anyone would like to check on ice, conditions, tactics or if the kettle is on, give us a call. You’ll find us on the ‘Contact’ section.
Top Tips:
Fish where you wouldn’t usually. The fish aren’t always going to come to you on your favourite swim. The quiet margins are holding some great fish.
While most fish have come from the margins on Cats Whiskers, Damsels and Montanas, it’s worth fishing lures slowly on the bottom. Good intermediates and fast sinkers always come in handy at this time of year.
If targeting fish under the bushes and trees, work out your cast and presentation. Too many false casts and shadows on the water could mean the difference between a tight line and questions as to why the fish don’t want your lure.
Lastly, a special mention to Mr Keith Passant of Orvis in Burford. Keith once again tied until his eye’s popped out in another 24 hour tying marathon. (actually 25 hours due to the clock change in October) Not content with reaching his £3,000 target, he is now hovering around the £4k mark. Well done also to all those who supported Keith’s work for Casting for Recovery.
