MFS - Stafford Moor - Silvers Festival CL, 26th February 2017

That time of year has come round again, the annual trip with the Match Fishing Scene crew to Stafford Moor in Devon.  The build up on social media was brilliant with everyone excited to head down to the fishery that Jo and Paul took over a few years ago.  Jo and Paul have worked really hard to improve the fishery and the results look great!  The new tackle shop is extremely well stocked with plenty of room for Herbie to call all the anglers to attention.

What Paul has done to the fishery, a new Pines lake that has been stocked with silvers from Lodge and other lakes, stocked some "Robinson's" aka carasio's, improved the lodges and seen to the paths, roads and parking areas, reboarded many of the lakes islands including renewing the pegs themselves.  I'm sure I'll have missed something but believe me Stafford Moor is on the way up!

I'd driven down on the Saturday, meeting up with Shedders on the road, stopping for a quick caramel cappuccino (Shedders choice, not mine).

The saturday night was great to catch up with loads of people in the Lodge of Plenty (Hollywood Lodge) and the obligatory hangover was our reward for Sunday morning.

The Draw
Tanners, Pines, Woodpecker and Oak were in the open match today.  My peg came out the bag and I'd be on the new Pines, Peg 19 the first peg on the right hand side.

Set-Up
The weather was a bit wild so I grabbed a feeder rod from the bag, just in case the pole was too difficult to hold.  The other pole lines were:
  • 12 metre lines a few metres apart
  • 4 metre line
Bait was mostly natural casters, worms, maggots together with expander pellets.

All-In
A ball of groundbait in on the two 12 metre lines and some chopped worm and groundbait on the 4 metre line.  I'd let these lines settle for 30 minutes while on the feeder casting around the swim to find my first fish.

The wind and rain was horrendous!  Trying to fish the 12 metre lines was impossible as the pole was being blown everywhere.  I'd have to leave this line until the wind dropped.  The 4 metre line was pretty tough too but I managed to winkle a few fish from it.

I decided to plumb up a rig on my top two, just past the keepnet.  This was fed with some casters with a single red maggot on the hook and the first put in I got a bonus perch of 1lb plus.  Keeping on this line it just got stronger with some good fish including some little tench.

It certainly wasn't an enjoyable day weather wise and this was then compounded when I broke a top kit flicking the rig out.  The tow was pretty bad, so I added more depth to the rig to slow it down which got me more positive bites and some more fish in the net.

Result
12lb 12oz for 5th in section.  Peg 19 on Pines would not be fished again this week!

Conclusion
The weather made it pretty tough to present a rig I'm just pleased the fish where close in.  Adding extra depth to slow down the float certainly improved the catch rate.  Day 1 finished and the gear was soaked for the week... wonderful.

The weights on Pines were really pleasing with 32lb wining Pines.  The weights during the week would only get better.  No carp in Pines either (or very few) so its a silvers mecca!

More Pictures...
The "new" Pines

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Lake Semerwater, Wensleydale, 15th May 2022

Renny Lakes, East Harlsey, 14th May 2023

Lake Semerwater, Wensleydale, 13th November 2022