Bishops Waltham Parish Fishing Club
Bishops Waltham Parish Fishing Club
Chris Shepherd wins first match of the new season
The first match of the 2014/2015 season kicked off on Saturday 21st June (the longest day) with an evening match from 5:30pm to 8:30pm. The weather could not have been better with warm sunshine and very little breeze. Eight club members attended this opening match and as most anglers had not seen each other since the last match in March it was time to catch up and chat before the draw.
Some of those attending had been to the pond pleasure fishing since the last match and had pulled in many a carp to pellet, bread, luncheon meat or even cheese. Expectations were high for catching carp and every angler came armed with a feeder rod to fish towards the bales in the middle. The margins would also be fed with bait and fished with either a pole or float rod.
At 5:30pm prompt, the draw was made and four anglers drew the North Bank whilst the other four drew the South Bank, the favoured swims, as always, would be pegs 1 and 19 where the angler could get close to the trees and lure the carp out from under cover. During the warmer months the carp love to bask in between the branches of trees and luring them out is a real challenge.
At the start of the match everyone started fishing out towards the bales but feeding the margins just in case the carp were lurking close in. Some early carp were caught and lost and the odd bream and perch fell to others who kept casting. Fishing around the bales was quiet as were the margins, but determined to catch carp, competitors kept the feed going in and we all hoped for the carp to suddenly find the bait.
This first match resulted in very low weights compared with previous years and each angler had his own view. If the fish were there they just werent in the mood to feed. Roland Palmer lost more than he weighed in but still managed 19lb 4oz of carp from the margins close to the trees. Roger Pilling and Jamie Lewington were close at the weigh-in with Roger just pipping Jamie after landing a large carp from the margins. Jamie did land the first specimen fish of the year, a 1lb 1oz perch that he caught on cheese!! Liam Crosswell and Paul Collins managed 5lb plus of carp and bream but poor Andy and Steve on the two very end pegs did not weigh in at all.
The eventual winner was Chris Shepherd on peg 1 who landed a superb 34lb 6oz of carp. This is the first match of four where the most weight caught wins you the coveted evening match trophy and Chris has put himself in first place with everyone now playing catch up. Lets hope the carp show at the next match.
The final results were:
| Peg 1 | Chris Shepherd | 34lb 6oz |
| Peg 19 | Roland Palmer | 19lb 4oz |
| Peg 15 | Roger Pilling | 12lb 11oz |
| Peg 17 | Jamie Lewington | 12lb 4oz |
| Peg 3 | Liam Crosswell | 5lb 4oz |
| Peg 4 | Paul Collins | 5lb 3oz |
| Peg 13 | Steve Edge | DNW |
| Peg 5 | Andy Weavil | DNW |
Good summer leisure fishing - are Carp teasing the match anglers?
Leisure fishing has been popular and many carp have been caught, as well as bream, roach, rudd and the occasional perch. This created the expectation that carp would be present in numbers in the match fishing catches. As can be seen from the first Evening match results, this wasn't the case. However, on a visit to the pond on a sunny afternoon in July and the carp were very visible. A large carp was sunbathing a couple of feet out from swim 3 and a group of five or six were cruising slowly in front of swim 5. Were they just teasing, waiting their chance to disappear before the next match?
The South Pond in early July
Leisure anglers enjoying their summer fishing
A large carp lurking off swim 3
New pond weed has appeared - is it invasive?
After years of unsuccessfully trying to get pond weed growth in the South pond, a new pond weed has started to grow. Initial examination suggests it is Curly-leaf pondweed (Potamogen crispus). It looks more like seaweed with flattened leaves, than usual freshwater weeds. The concern is whether it is invasive or not. It is said to be native to the British Isles, and grows well in waters which do not support other freshwater weeds, especially brackish waters. In the US, where it was introduced some time ago, it has become very invasive and there are major programmes to keep it under control. We are not sure how it arrived in the South Pond but we will need to monitor it to see if it becomes a problem. At the moment it is being appreciated by the carp, ducks and Dave (the resident goose) - one of their "five-a-day"? Perhaps this weed will be kept under control by being eaten. The reason we had not managed to establish pondweed previously was that it was being eaten before it could become established. A concern is that if it becomes too successful it could form large mats of weed which die in late summer causing an algal bloom which results in low oxygen levels and fish deaths. We will be keeping an eye on it.
A carp eating the new weed
August & September activities
Leisure fishing continues as usual and there are also many matches during August and September. Although competitive, the matches are always very friendly affairs. Come along and try your luck!
Aug/Sep match dates
Joining the Club
If you are interested in joining the club please contact our membership secretary Cathy Naylor on 01489-890086, or contact our chairman Roland Palmer (after 6pm) on 01489-894063 for an application form. More information is available, and a form can be downloaded, from our web site. The membership year runs from mid-June.
Membership is open to anyone who lives in Bishops Waltham, plus a number of Associate membership places (for those living outside the Parish). Priority is given to Parish membership (especially juniors), but anyone living outside of the Parish wishing to join should contact Cathy to see if there are Associate Membership spaces remaining for the 2014/15 season.
It is rare for anglers not to catch fish at the pond, which makes it ideal both for more experienced anglers and for youngsters starting out. As a mixed fishery, with fish like carp, roach, rudd, bream, perch and the odd eel - there is something for everyone. There are carp to 10lb plus, many between 6lb and 8lb, lots of roach, bream and also perch over 1lb. If you love your fishing and dont want to travel far then join us - your local club. Its always nice to see new anglers on the bank and hopefully we will also see you at the matches.
Club web site
For more information about the club and its activities, the club's web site can be found at:
www.bwpfc.org.uk