Frozen toes and a big smile

[barbelblanker]

Well it was another day by a river.

The river was the Stour , no not that one, the other one up in the midlands.

Decided to test out the new reel that arrived in the post this morning. Without going in to too much detail I answered the door in my dressing gown and took it straight back to bed with me. Mrs BB was REALLY unimpressed as she blearily looked across at me grinning like a chesire cat spinning the spool. "WOW!! Look at that, this thing is just amazing!". At one point I think she was going to ask if the two of us wanted to be left alone.....

So it was out of bed, cook breakfast, fill flask, fill car then, where ?

OK if the reel had not arrived I was off to Ladyham on the Severn. It's a new stretch for me , I just wanted to lob maggots at the roach and see if they were around.

The problem was that I really couldn't go and not try the reel out. The Severn would have been a bit of a big step as I wanted to start by just running a float down off the rod tip. No good going to the canals, there's hardly any flow at the moment.

So it was the Stour then BUT only if someone was not in my favourite winter peg. If they were then the Ladyham trip would be back on.

Drove down to the Stour and looked over the bridge and NO ONE. Fandabitastic! Got back to the car and waddled to the swim ready to go.

View down swim.


River flowing from behind , the foam is because the river is not quite clean yet and there is a weir about 100 yards (maybe less) up stream.

Upstream.

The river has come round a sweeping bend from the weir.

As you can see the river is low, in fact lowest I can remember at this time of year. The Stour is a vry short river though so does tend to rise and fall quite quick.

At first I was quite optomistic although the water did look cold and the air definately was .

I've started measuring air and water temperature to provide more excuses for my abysmal angling. Don't know if you can make it out through the plastic bag. Top one is air temperature and bottom is the temperature of the probe that I lobbed about 4 feet in to the river.
The air was 4.2 degrees centrigrade (and that was the warmest it got). Water is 3.2, this did warm up to 3.4, so warm I nearly got in for a bath . No not really.

The object of my earlier desire .



Anyway, and rather predictably, I blanked.

Ran a stick through first , but there was a tricky downstream gust so abandoned that, after a bite no really a real bite with a fish in the end and all. Got off after about ten feet though.

Then an avon. Then a big stick.

Resorted to a feeder (not I might add with the centrepin) and even that drew a blank.

Oh well.

Regardless of the blank I enjoyed the new experience of trotting using a centrepin and cannot believe that in 30 years of fishing I had never tried one before.

All I've got to do now is catch some *&£*ing fish.

[MRG2000]

Thats a nice centre pin !.....unlucky on the blank ,may be time to employ some differant tactics GRENADE !!!!!

[cuckoo]

Brilliant report peter

[headless]

Cracking report mate.

My missus also can't understand why I get so excited about receiving new tackle and going fishing.

Better luck next time

Darrell

[pingu]

excellant report

theres nowt like admireing your tackle in the bedroom

dave

[Banana Steve]

Top report, Very nice reel

[Maddison_Twatter]

Unlucky on the blank mate,
Venue looks smashing, how does it fish in the winter ? Any barbel ?

[barbelblanker]

It's a small river with roach dace and chub. Usually ok for a bite or two. There are barbel further down. This river gives its name to stourport a real roach mecca on the severn in to which this little river flows.

[NICK R]

looks very nice mate