#8 A shot up the crack of Dawn

Always a sucker for a shot up the crack of Dawn me..

Got my moped by now as push biking with all the gear from Turner Road wasn't fun. Used to knock off at 2.25, scoot off home, pop in the the tackle shop on Barrack Street on the way for a bag of frozen Richworth Strawberry Creme and bish bosh carp in the net. This one off the flats up near the Point

This one from old no 8? Sandbank side of the islands anyway. Used to slot the rests and needles in the holes from last time.

Used to wind the rods in of course whilst looking for fish....

Lobkin became quite a regular and had a knack for the bigger fish too. Only man in the world still using Herons though.  Butt ring foams and double clips. Lines taught to the bait like piano strings but fuck when they went............We dreamt of a long chuck to those last bushes, Had a walk round on Lord Lite's 40th and the boys that day were hitting just under  the far bank.

Think I must have spent a few hours just watching and photoing Shanus if not Dawn's crack, this is were the barbel used to be most reliably found. But not by me.

Think we spent more time on Alresford around this time when the Canadian Pond Weed in the Match Pit went fecking mental.

Bit more Stour light relief..bottom of the Post Office stretch, featured in a Wilson programme once

Back on Alresford and two likely lads tackling No 24 in two very different ways.
Glen Sibbons in match mode

Dave Lake in storm trooper mode.

I used to get the put-put over to Frating as well. Lord Lite was probably knobbing the slappers from the Tartan House in his Dexy's perm and lip slug whilst I earnestly pondered on Kafka and Kerouac.
My biggest from  Frating Bottom pond at 16.08 on strawberry black eyes

Fecking belter from the Snags as well.

Silt Pit, from the gravel washings. It had a deeper channel, usually good for  a few livies, if we set Shanus to do it he'd use 10lb line and size 8 hooks.

The Tip Pit was barren and muddy too but had some water and some big fish in it too. A better bet for livies.

And it never hurt to stick one out on a paternoster at the same time...greedy fecker perch is mine, landing hawser line is Shanus's

Belting day out on Ardleigh with Shanus and Mark Duckie Taylor

I still love a rods shot.

Gunton Sawmills is now a £250 a year peas in a pod 20+ commons runs water. Used to be a

cracking roach and bream venue. Pound plus roach on the waggler

This is me and Shanus on a very foggy "jack city"  Dedham Mill Pool. I am wearing a tea cosy it seems.

Used  to be on the Post Office Committee, mostly to stop Pissflap Penfold trying to ban anything other than 10-3 pegged match fishing. It is amazing how much good fishing water can be had  for the price of a couple of bottles of Scotch a year, and not even single malt at that. One year we had a corking day on a hidden bit of water in someone's back garden just behind Ardleigh near the cages and the lunch time finger the secretary car park. I always think it might have been Bobby George's but I am sure it wasn't. Kelvin,the snappily county attired bloke below was a mild mannered chap who must have despaired at us riding rough shod over committee etiquette and rules. We all had about 40lb each of rudd or perch

We had to wait for late winter and then only fish deads on very long paternosterss that year on the Match Pit due to the weed.

Nice view of Frating Top Pond.

#7 Scaping Foetus off That Wheel

Another muddled collection .

First night again at Alresford and a brace of originals.

Lobkin cooking breakfast. Mega gas bottle.

Not sure if he had this on that day but it was a peach of a non-original from the pond near the Uni.13+ an d about 3 scales on it. It definitely was the one though he had listening to Scraping Foetus off  That Wheel's Anything (Viva!).."a pound of protection beats an ounce of lead".

We often fished the Match Pit reeds, deep close in. One of those warm windy day when you cane 'em.

Shanus with a pike on, defo a  warm windy day.

Must have moved out of home cos these were from High Woods.Uncomplicated and fun, and walking distance behind Longview.

Now I do like a tench, they still make me smile what ever the size. Yes,that Match Pit weed is starting to show.

Autumn on Abberton

The fish traps in the culvert where often lifted and live bait buckets (usually fermenting buckets from Boots or bigger orange Frytol containers) were filled for use on the day. The traps were huge cages and could hold tons of fish. Otherwise it was the drop net. The reservoir was fed from vast distances including the Stour and Fen rivers. We never caught zander but they were recorded in the traps.

Lobkin with a stonking ruffe. The long walks to that bog at the end of the wall in Ski Tex...found a not long dead roach/chub hybrid on that  walk once.

Of course some pushed it and the bait buckets tethered to the front rests sometimes would  seem to have lives of their own, no doubt "escapes" from Ardleigh cages......

Alresford original

And a very different locking stockie. We had clearly moved onto the heavy PFTE Lobkin hand turned monkeys. He also had and used brass ones..

https://thetuesdayswim.com/2014/01/23/my-carp-scene-in-the-1980%E2%80%B2s-part-iithe-monkey-climber-years-the-hair/

Lobkin again , piking on the Match Pit. He lived in that coat.

Haven't used a vane float for years. I've still got the but ring foam applicators and the original ET line grease. And that Itszu Charger reel..

In those days bespoke tackle was in it's infancy and even that float set never used to come with the rubber band that actually made it work properly. Good job the Posties always dropped the bands like confetti. They still do but they are red and very brittle. Fecking progress eh?

Muddler time anyone?

Ardleigh again,Blakey, of Hedgibet fame had caught a big triploid  (well into doubles) and I was asked to take some photos, took these of Biggles and his oppo with  another decent fish on afterwards.

I'll sign this album off with Lord Lite, then of Alresford in his pomp. He fookin loved that top.

#6 Up the 'ton (but not down the 'hedge).

On to the next album as promised, it says Winter85-86, we'll see.

Do remember this day, I was on a late shift  and though the conditions were spot on, a lovely subdued soft light and gentle mild breeze, I'd fished hard all morning for nothing.

Ended up in the outfall corner, and just had one rod left out, everything put away as I had to catch the train to work.I'd even taken  the lead off, and just laid the rod down  with line in  a clip. 2 minutes left and line out of clip. Lorry driver stopped to watch  and took some decent shots. 15.06 on freelined half sardine  album says...

It clearly just was not the thing to do to look at the camera in those days..this was just after a big freeze on Alresford, 11.08 again on half sardine, but all leaded up this time , Dave Lake and I were casting to the lip of the melting ice sheet as it retreated and had  a corking day.

It was a proper winter what ever year it was. Alresford jetty. One year we did walk on the ice

Typical frosty gentleman spinning for pike once there had been snow on the ground.

This was my first trip with eel section, from Green's Freezer shop, served by Andrew Ruggles who looked a bit like Les , from Reeves and Mortimer, who had an aversion to cress and had loads of biros in his shop coat top pocket. Kept it right secret squirrel, just like Lord Lite and his hair rigged seafod boilies. Missed 2 runs straight off before twigged I had to slit skin so hooks could pull out into pike's mouth .

First one 18 +, big headed croc. Loved the culvert.

Second one suddenly snagged on way in most unusually for Abberton. Then  rod banged over and thumped  away, we all though  it was going to be a kipper. After ages went slack then came in a bit easier. 12/13 ish

Once on the grass on the wall (no mat police in those days) clear that it had been grabbed on the way in by a big old fecker.

You drove over the brow of the hill and  hoped the culvert was free (more of the culvert later/another time) Just how many coots must there have been on that arm? Still hate the fecking useless things.

Can't remember the chap's name netting Lobkin's fish but he was a good egg, not like the ET circus clowns. Planks, every last one of them.

Some times even Pious Peter Bureboy had a snidey side...some might say that's Paxman's. I am not saying anything.

Small bait, big kipper...

We often eeled it in the Pump Pit, on this occasion I was distracted when my carp rod was away, Dave Lake said later he'd heard the Optonic for ages ...had some nice eels but not as big as from Match Pit or Tip Pit. Lerc pole for bait snatching, still got it.

Go on then  say these are Derri Boots, you know they are not.. as on Reeves and Mortimer again...", You would of let it lie, you didn't let it lie, but I did let it lie, you could of let it lie......"