old mill lakes saturday 7th december 2013


I arrived to the lake around 10 a bit later than i wonted but none the less i was there. i pulled up in the car park and started to unload the stuff onto my new barrow i had purchased earlier in the week, i cannot fault the barrow in anyway sides that extend and a big chunky tyre. I managed to get all my gear on with out a problem and it was a pleasure to push instead of having to carry all my gear to my chosen peg in 3 or 4 trips, anyway back to the fishing i had a walk around birch which is the lake I'm fishing didn't see any movement or fishing moving about there was a couple of guys on there fishing which i had a word with them they hadn't seen anything either and nothing had been out on the friday night infact nothing had been out in 2 or so weeks and birch not being the easiest lake at the best of times it was going to prove a challenge.

After walking round i had decided on my peg i think the peg was called the beach swim but I'm not 100% sure on that anyway it looked a nice swim the wind was pushing into the bay in front of me and to the right there was a nice gully. i got the rods out straight away i was using a maggot rig on my left hand rod which was constructed by a simple lead clip system down to a supple hook link at 20 lbs then a size 8 curve hook from Rc Tackle Developments which are deadly sharp! then onto the hair i tied a micro swivel to the hair to which then i was going to tie my ball of maggots onto this is, its something new I'm using it also prevents the maggots to move the hook or get tangled up when there rigging as the swivel will just move with them. I then nick on a small pva bag of dead maggots so i new there was going to b a little bait around the hook so i chucked it to the spot i was fishing which was just of the point of the bank. My right hand rod i was going to simply use a 3ft zig rig with a yellow and black foam which was constructed by a simple lead clip system (as i won't to drop the lead with a zig every time), then to a 3ft floating hook link from gardner tied to that was a size 12 mugga hook also from gardner then my foam on the hair i was just going to chuck this rod out into open water just to see weather the fish wear milling around in the upper layers and to try get a quick bite!. after that i set up camp for the night got everything nice a neat and got the kettle on!!.

A couple of hours went by and i was watching the water the whole time to look for showing fish but there was nothing at all it was quite all the way round the lake. Around 1 o'clock i decided to have a recast with both rods again the zig rig going out into open water and the maggot rig I decided to moved a bit further out to around 60 yds into deeper water. Again i was sat watching the water the whole time just for that one show then i was going to put a bait on it but nothing happened still quite it got to around half 3 and i decided to change my zig rig to a bottom bait they clearly wasn't moving around in the upper layers as i hadn't seen anything at all so i though this would b the best idea. The rig its self was again a standard led clip system to a 6 inch supple hook link the hook was a size 8 curve again from Rc Tackle and on the hair i had a 16mm single bloodworm boilie from sticky baits, I nicked a small pva bag of crushed boilies and few dead maggots on the hook and cast out to the right of me in open water. I had another recast just before bag with both rods and got settled in for the night!.

Nothing through the night very quite temperatures dropped to around 2 degrees i think i woke up around half 7 to the wind blowing hard into my face which that soon woke me up wen i stepped outside. I recast my rods same methods as i used for the night after i had done that it was time to put the kettle on a make a bacon buttie! I left the rods for a couple of hours and around half 10 i decided to move to the swim which was directly behind me as i hadn't seen anything show in the morning and it just wasn't happening in the swim i was in, also another angler had turned up in the morning a decided to go directly opposite me and near enough cast straight at me so i moved recast the rods to new spots and sat behind them watching the water for any signs or for the rod to scream off!.

I sat there in the blistering wind for about 3 hours not even a bleep or anything. i decided to pack away around half 12 1 and get back home for a hot shower and a sunday dinner! unfortunately it was another blank for me but I'm going to keep persevering and it will all pay off my next session with be on the 21st december i am also fishing christmas day and boxing day so i will be doing an indepth blog about that session hopefully i can bag a lump I'm sure that would be the best christmas present ever!

Tight Lines.