Bob Goes Fishing | Welcome

Please rotate your device

This page is best viewed in Landscape orientation
(or tap anywhere to view in Portrait orientation)

Diary of an average angler

Who favours traditional methods & baits

fisherman

This diary dates back to a holiday in 2003 when I think the urge to get back into fishing took off. From around 2007 the trips became more frequent with 2010/11 probably being the peak of activity.
Things again pick up in 2020 - a sort of rebirth!

QR code

YouTube channel

Venues
& topics
Species
Archive
Venues & topics
Species
Archive

Syndicate Lake (12)

Venue: Syndicate Lake
Blank

Nothing worth photographing today.

Arrival time: 18.00
Weather: Very warm and humid with some rain
Swim: NE bay.
Tackle: 12ft Drennan Barbel Specialist, 8lb line, 10 hook.
14ft Shimano Speedmaster match rod, Shimano Exage 1000RC reel with 5lb line and 14 hook.
Bait: Luncheon meat.
Fish: One small roach

I had been waiting indoors for a delivery that never came. I also had a headache, not helped by the stormy weather. Come five o’clock I decided to go over the lake. The conditions were good and I thought some air might clear my head.

I had arrived and set up two rods by six o’clock. Unfortunately in my haste to get out I had left my coat behind, and I didn’t have a brolly with me either. Sod’s law prevailed and it started raining just after I had tackled up and cast. I sat it out and fortunately it was short-lived, but my shirt had got wet and my headache wasn’t getting any better.

Read full report

Species: Roach

Syndicate Lake (11)

Venue: Syndicate Lake
Carp 11lb 10oz

More photos in the full report

Arrival time: 15.45
Weather: Sunny at first but wind became cold and even colder when the sky clouded over.
Swim: Lily pads and NE bay.
Tackle: 12ft Drennan Barbel Specialist, 8lb line, 10 hook.
14ft Shimano Speedmaster match rod, Shimano Exage 1000RC reel with 5lb line and 14 hook.
Baits: Bread flake & Luncheon meat.
Fish: three carp, best fish 11lbs 10oz.

In my last report I said I would return and have a go at the roach. Unfortunately fishing rarely pans out as you would like. Whereas on the last occasion I was getting a bite a cast from roach using my heavier tackle, today I could hardly tempt them with a nibble using a much more appropriate set up. However, let’s start at the beginning.

Read full report

Species: Carp 10lb+, Carp

Syndicate Lake (9)

Venue: Syndicate Lake
Carp 11lb 6oz

More photos in the full report

Arrival time: 14.30
Weather: Cloudy with drizzle, brightening later.
Windy but this didn’t affect the sheltered lake.
Swim: Lily pads
Tackle: 10ft Fishtec compact float rod with Shimano ST5000 reel, 6lb line and 16 hook.
11’6” Hardy Marksman, Shimano Exage 4000RC reel, 8lb line, 12 hook.
Baits: Luncheon meat , worm and sweetcorn.
Fish: One nice carp, 11lbs 6oz, a few roach and a small pike.

The first bit of good news was that the undergrowth hadn’t yet taken hold so I could actually get to what I call the lily pad swim without too much trouble. There were, however, no lily pads at this time of year. They’re obviously awaiting spring/summer like the rest of us.

There were no signs at all of fish movement, which contrasts with when I first looked at the lake in March last year, when there were carp cruising during what was an early warm spell.

Read full report

Species: Carp 10lb+, Roach, Pike

Syndicate Lake (10)

Venue: Syndicate Lake
No photos message

Nothing worth photographing today

Arrival time: 12.30
Weather: Cloudy and warm becoming hot when the sun broke through (20 ℃).
Swim: Lily pads and NE bay.
Tackle: 12ft Drennan Barbel Specialist, 8lb line, 10 hook.
Bait: Luncheon meat.
Fish: A few roach.

After some unseasonal May weather the forecast was for a warm sunny day and it didn’t disappoint, although the fish did!

I started at the Lily pads swim and immediately saw carp cruising further out into the lake. I went for quite stiff tackle and started fishing the margin with luncheon meat. To my delight a few carp came into the margin, swimming literally in front of my feet, so they obviously weren’t alarmed.

Read full report

Species: Roach

Syndicate Lake (8)

Venue: Syndicate Lake
No photo message

Nothing worth photographing today

Arrival time: 11.30
Weather: Sunny / cloudy.
Hardly any wind. Very mild for the time of year.
Swim: Lily pads and SW corner
Tackle: 10 ft Fishtec compact float rod with Shimano ST5000 reel, 6lb line and 12 hook.
Baits: Used luncheon meat on the hook and sweetcorn as an attractor.
Fish: One small roach

On arrival I went straight to the lily pads swim. Since my last visit somebody had cleared a lot of the bank-side growth, exposing another platform about ten yards further along. I didn’t even know it was there. I’m always a bit suspicious when I encounter ‘clearance overkill,' my inclination being to retain as much cover as possible.

I was also a bit worried that whoever had been fishing there might have overdone the ground-baiting, a tendency that often goes hand-in-hand with over exuberant vegetation clearance. I’m stereotyping again, but I’ve witnessed this sort of ‘fishing’ in the past.

Read full report

Species: Roach

Syndicate Lake (7)

Venue: Syndicate Lake
Common 8lb 4oz

More photos in the full report

Arrival time: 11.00
Weather: Sunny / cloudy.
Hardly any wind. Very mild for the time of year.
Swim: NE Bay and SW corner
Tackle:14ft Shimano Speedmaster match rod, Shimano Exage 1000RC reel with 5lb line and 14 hook.
11’6” Hardy Marksman, Shimano Exage 4000RC reel, 8lb line, 12 hook.
Baits: Used luncheon meat on the hook and sweetcorn as an attractor.
Fish: Two carp and a nice roach. Best fish carp 8lbs 4oz.

My neighbour Steve accompanied me today and I suggested he fished the ‘lily-pads’ spot, as it was the most accessible place, and I had caught there previously. This left me to find another fishable spot - not that easy!

Read full report

Species: Carp, Roach

< Previous Page Page 2 / 3 Next Page >

© 2025 Robert Bassett

Report bugs to webmaster

Built in RapidWeaver
with Shaking The Habitual's
Source micro framework

Your privacy
Cookies are only used for the correct functioning of this site and to prevent you seeing this message every time you visit.

Read more about third party cookies ☞

Note that links to third party sites can result in cookies being loaded. For example, there are links to YouTube to display the embedded videos from my channel.