Round 6 Lindholme Lakes Beeches 10.6.2023

[Leo Martin]

Aquastim Big Bash summer league round 6 Lindholme Beeches Legends weekend 10.6.2023

This match as well as a league counter is fished as Ferrets trophy match in recognition of our sadly lost members, Martin Ferriby, (Ferret) , Jack Crabtree and Martin Bowler. It was historically chosen to fish on Beeches as Ferrets favourite lake on the Lindholme complex. The natural curves, established trees and reed lined banks, island and resident zoo animals offered fishing for many methods. Over the recent years the lake dynamics have changed with stocking campaigns and fishing the lake now has to be balanced between fishing for silvers to build a weight or seeking the illusive carp. Jacks favourite lake was Willows so next year we switch to Willows for the Saturday match.

With 15 names on the wheel of fortune we had a reduced number of pegs on the lake and it was also shared with pleasure anglers on a hot busy weekend.

Peg 27 was dealt in the top corner with Steve Curtis on peg 24 for company both on unfancied pegs. We were both able to have plenty of room for our sins. Steve spent 30 minutes looking head in hands as to how to approach his peg he was so chuffed.
My set up was to be feeder rod, bomb rod, maggot and pellet lines, top 2 + 2, it was also the same depth at top 2 + 4. Margins top 2 + 1 to my left below shrubs and top 2 + 2 to my right against some small pads. My lines in front were 2 feet deep so not a lot to go at and the margins 12 inch so you would expect to see the carp if they turned up.
As always, out of respect for our lost friends a minute's applause to reflect on our memories and then the all in.
 Feeder was chucked to side of island in hope for a pull, 30 minutes for no signs so start to switch it around a little with changes of pelted etc. the tip was twitching but not going round the then I found out why as they were Ide and small tench, not what I wanted.
Pellet line tried and again small fish. I had been feeding my margins with a few grains of corn and also pot of ground bait and I saw the waft of a tail to my right hand side to in we go. Always a sucker for this trap and today was no different. Car came in an carp left.
I spent a lot of time rotating lines and baits , lost a margin from my left but could not engage any other bites as it turned out they were silver fish and could not manage to feed them off.
Around 12:30 I decided to give the silvers a go and after about 10 or so had a brainwave of chucking bomb rod over to the bay between pegs 26 and 25 in the shade of a large tree.  Loose feeding 8mm pellets and an 8mm on hook I remember bagger Sam doing this a couple of years ago and finding some fish. 10 minutes in and rod swept around for a much welcomed 6lb carp. This line produced a few carp and F1's however I still pursued my margins and managed a couple of carp from these as well. Hindsight is a wonderful thing, maybe I should have tried the bomb rod earlier, maybe gone for silvers in first hour or so, eve trying silvers all match but if you are on carp, then silvers dont stand a chance. 26-9 carp, 7-2 of silvers giving me 33-11.

Across from me was Mr Fishfinder himself, 2022 winner of the Ferret trophy. Steve was not impressed with the peg 24. He chose to chuck his trusty method to island and yes the tip went round first cast and a couple more fish followed. Steve searched a few lines and then found fish in his margins. A few turned into many and alternating sides started filling his nets.
Always hunting and working his swim he continued to turn a poor peg into a match winning performance to retain the trophy whit 125-15, well done Steve.

Section 1 winner Andy W8 peg 7 65.9, 2nd in section Kev Chalk peg 9 50.6
Section 2 winner Joe (not on an end peg) Martin 81.3 peg 21, 2nd Tracey Benson peg19 50.14
Section 3 winner Paul Whitehouse peg 32 58.15, 2nd in section Jasper on peg 35 with 50.9.

The lake has fished a lot better than last year with some carp showing. Still a little peggy and some favoured pegs not delivering as expected with some of the carps feeding clocks running late for margin deliveries.
A very very hot sunny day, not what the bashers are used to in the slightest.

A few of the local fisheries and making a point of their resident wildlife and Beeches lake has it in abundance. All water fowl have chicks, coots, moorhens, mallards and variety of geese. The black and white oyster catchers with their distinct high pitched whistle buzzing overhead and not counting the smaller birds that sometimes visit your side trays. As one of our Big Bash statesmen says there is more to fishing the catching fish.

[fishfinder]

The draw on Friday did not wet my appitite peg 24 at the back of the island not normally a productive area but on arrival to the peg was pleased to see the not so usual east wind blowing into leos and my end and an odd fish topping,plenty of room as well.started on feeder across and 1st chuck a carp which led me a merry dance before hitting the net about 8lb ,swifty followed by 2 f1s then sadly a few bits,had fed a 8m line which was only 2 and a half foot deep but decided to try the edges instead where i had been feeding a few micros,started to get ide and tench on paste and had about 15lb in next half hour then it went quiet but f1s and a few carp moved in and caught well until 2pm then a slight change in wind direction and blew a bit stronger causing a bit of undertow this made them difficult to catch as my paste was lifting up,they were still there but could not catch them managed a few and several foul hookers,with an hour to go put some aquastim groundbait further down my margin and had a few in last half hour over it,wieghed 125lb to win.