Arrival time: 10.30
Weather: Sunny and unseasonably mild but with a strong SSW wind
Tackle: 14ft Shimano Speedmaster match rod, Rapidex 2400 centre pin with 5lb line, 4lb bottom & 14 hook. Insert waggler.
Baits: Bread flake & artificial casters.
Fish: Blank

With the rivers carrying a lot of the recent rain I thought I would try Fields End as a last day of the year outing.

Recently I haven't done that well at Fields End in the winter but it seemed a better option than the rivers. The Ouse in Huntingdon the previous day was up to the top of the bank and very coloured.

My preference was for what I call the tree corner swim but it was taken. I settled in the next swim to the left, choosing the west bank to avoid fishing into the strong wind. I fished the swim years ago when the lake was for the most part frozen over and caught roach, so I thought I had a chance today.

I only had bread for bait, which historically has worked well at this venue. But today there was little interest. I waited a long while for the first bite and it was so fast I had little chance of connecting.

And this is how the day progressed. Very few bites and each being either a quick 'down and up again' or no more than a dip. I never managed to make contact.

I tried artificial casters for a while hoping that the smaller bait might provide a more positive bite, but I didn't get a touch so wasn't able to test that theory.

Going back on bread flake a few more dips of the float were missed and it became apparent that I was heading for a blank.

On the plus side it was a remarkably nice day for the end of December. The temperature was around 15⁰C and the sun, albeit weak, was shining for most of the day. The swim was sheltered with reeds either side protecting me from the wind although this also meant that I missed some of the sunshine.

A pleasant few hours despite not managing to catch any fish.