Date                   Friday 1st May
Report by             Matthew
Best Catch             16 fish for Peter Holland
Best Bag Weighed in    Five fish for 24lb Peter Holland
Best Rainbow          15lb 8oz Peter Holland
Best Brown                      Ian King for 4lb 8oz
Bank Average         4.87 fish per angler
Boat Rod Average     5.73 fish per angler
Sport: Despite the dismal weather forecast things panned out pretty nicely indeed. Peter Holland and Craig Tattum had a good day with various flies doing the trick, most notably white boobies and traditional wets. Pete thought he was into a good fish drifting the east bank and he was right. However his initial estimate when it turned on the surface of 7lb, fell very short indeed! After a good battle the stunning rainbow tipped the scales at 15lb 8oz. Pete found the fish keen to chase his booby fished on the Di 7 with the first couple of pulls producing the takes. Between them they finished with 23 fish. (Photo to follow of Pete’s lovely Rainbow). Elsewhere on the water our very own Peter had a good session with 12 fish again willing to chase his orange blob. Pete found fish in Newclose. Newclose bay has seen few boats recently while the shallows have been fishing so well, it’s very likely to turn back on again as things continue to get warmer. Steve Hilton had a good 15 fish to his boat with a combination of Olive Nomads and Black fritz patterns doing the trick. Steve took the most of his fish from Hollins Bay. Another good score from the boats came to Peter Hill with a very credible 12 fish in a half-day session. Peter found that there is still plenty of fish to be had drifting on to Willow Island. Good Angling Pete!
On the bank today another double! Mick Whiteside had an incredible fish of 16lb.
Mick tempted the specimen rainbow from Bell Point to a Zonker pattern fished slowly on a floater. Mick has a canny way of always catching big fish, come to think of it so does his brother Ken! Must be in the blood!
The little clip below is of another chap who catches big fish a staggering four doubles in one half-day session!!
Tight lines Matthew
Mick and his 16lb rainbow
Peter Holland 16lb rainbow
Date                      Thursday 30th April.
Report by                Paul.
Best Catch                14 fish for Alistair Beaumont.
Best Bag Weighed in      1 fish weighing 15lb for Bill Orell.
Best Rainbow                      17lbs for Bill Orrell (one of six double caught today!)
Best Brown                          10lbs for Bill Orrell
Best Blue                               Several weighing 2lb 8oz.
Bank Average            2.9 fish per angler.
Boat Rod Average       4.7 fish per angler.
Sport: Although the weather wasn’t very good here today the fishing certainly was, with some good catches recorded and some huge fish landed. On the bank today was Stocks regular Bill Orrell who landed not 1 but 4 double figure trout. Bill caught a total of 11 fish including a 10lb brownie and rainbows weighing 13lb, 15lb and17lb, an impressive catch in just half a days fishing. Bill caught his fish from Hollins bay with the deadly pattern being an orange lure, well-done Bill! Another angler to land a Stocks double was Roger Dandridge who caught a super 14lb 7oz rainbow that also came from Hollins bay. Roger caught his giant fish using a floating line and a home tied white cats whisker. On the boats Alistair Beaumont took the top catch with a credible 14 fish. Alistair caught his fish on a floating line and various wet flies with several areas being productive for Alistair including the northern shallows and the willows on the east bank. Hywel Morgan was out on the water today with Paul Davidson and they too had great sport whilst taking photos for a magazine article. They caught fish on allsorts of methods and in many areas with dry flies taking their fair share of fish.
On a sad note it is with regret that I give you the news of the passing away of a great friend and great angler, Mr Duncan Hesketh. Duncan will be much missed by all the staff here at Stocks and I am sure many of the anglers that had become great friends with him over the many years that Duncan came fishing here. Duncan was known for his angling prowess and his cheery disposition, there was always time for a chat and a joke with Duncan. Our thoughts are with his family at this time. Duncan Hesketh, a gentleman and a friend… See you on the water Paul.
