Down The Cut

I arrived at the top of the length the club controls to find the canal the boats had been trundling up and down stirring things up. The canal had turned cocoa coloured and bits of vegetation covered the surface. It was very hard to get any sort of lure  through the water with out picking up debris. I persisted for a while hoping the the coloured water may provoke the perch into action. No sign of any fish but an otter entertained us for a while. Any attempt at a photo of it proved futile as it had the psychic ability to disappear when a camera was pointed at it. While having a cuppa and pondering what to do next I was informed that the water was less coloured and there was less debris near the other end of the section. Cuppa drunk and biccy eaten I set off down there.

It was as described, but the fish didn't seem to be any more cooperative on the first section I fished. There was, though, a large clump for bankside vegetation doing a very good impression of an island slowly drifting along. I also found an alien invader in the shape of a skunk cabbage. There also seems to be quite a few apple trees on this section.

Back near the car I contacted my first fish. A small jack that followed the lure until the trace swivel was an inch from the tip before it hit it. In the ensuing thrashing about as I tried to switch the anti-reverse off it came adrift. I then connected with another very close to some far bank stone work, but a rather ineffective strike and this one was escaped too. Very next cast back along the inside stonework and I was was into a rather angry perch of 1lb 13oz. 

Working the lure close to the tree roots it became apparent that I'd got a bit too close as the lure came to a solid halt. Despite my best efforts it would come loose. Another trace and lure tied on and cast just a little bit further out from the roots. It was just too pikey to ignore. Two turns of the reel and a lunatic jack had hold of the lure. Surprisingly it stayed away from the tree roots and careened about in the middle. Superb fun an a light perch set up. I had to have another go a bit further along the roots. A few cast later and a cute little jack was safely netted.

By now I had to be else where. I got back to the bridge just as the floating island arrived. The breeze had picked up a bit so it was moving quite quickly and looked like it may jam under the bridge but it hit the corner of the stone work and turned long ways on the drift through the gap smoothly. I had a few chucks around it but to no avail.

Not a bad little session in the end. Things seem to be waking up.