by Martyn Russ
With the weather turning warm early this year we saw a lot of anglers getting out and about sooner than usual and even myself and co-owner Brian Chandler managed to get out early. Unfortunately the early season enthusiasm was short lived due to illness striking me hard and i ended up missing out on quite a few fishing trips but thankfully the Club members certainly made up for it. Both myself and Brian had started fishing at a new venue this year, Lamby Lake in Cardiff, and we soon found out this was no easy lake to fish and had a reputation for being very hard and the fish being very "riggy" as they call it. This means they are very good at getting rid of you rigs and spitting the hook on a take. Brian was lucky from day one where he managed to land a new personal best carp of 32 lb 4 oz within half hour to an hour of casting his rod out.
This just goes to show the right bait in the right place can bring results and give more emphasis on "location is the key." I had only managed a small Tench of around 5 to 6 lb from the same water and had lost no end of fish to them spitting the hooks and very shy takes but this is what its all about and to me i love the challenge more than actually fishing the venue. We have plenty more trips to come and i am sure i will find one of the Lamby Lumps soon. Brian's luck seemed to hold out for the next couple of trips managing one carp each trip, small but very welcome when the fishing is hard.
Hendre Lake in St. Mellons, Cardiff has now been taken over by new management and i have to admit its about time to. The lake was going down hill fast and the amount of rubbish that was around the lake not to mention discarded fishing tackle was just beyond a joke. Thankfully Jason Massay, who is also sponsored by Nash Tackle, is now the new owner of the lake and has done an amazing job with the help of his team of bailiffs. Unfortunately half of the lake has become a no fishing zone due to it being a protected wildlife area but this didn't effect the quality of fishing in the lake. As Hendre is our main local lake and is basically only a 10 to 15 minuet walk from where i live we find that most of the members of Club F.A.W. all use this venue and have been having some amazing results. Anthony George Ron Potton, or "Big Ron" as we call him, not only managed a new personal best but also managed to catch the new lake record this season so far. The big mirror weighing in at 30 lb 4 oz has now been named "Winny" whos name was chosen by Anthony's daughter.
Other members of the Club, such as Liam Walsh and Shane Kitson, have also been visiting the lake and having some great results with lots of quality carp being caught. Hendre lake is really turning out to be a great fishing venue and a brilliant runs water for carp fishermen. It doesn't only hold lots of carp but also contains a good head of some very big bream plus the usual mixture of Roach, Rudd, Tench and Perch along with some large Pike. The new owners have stopped all pike fishing at the lake but i don't believe its their choice as the lake is owned by the council and they are under contract to follow the landlords rules and wishes. Under this new management i can honestly say that Hendre lake will slowly turn into one of the better fishing venues in the area and will offer something for every type of angler.
New members to the club have all been showing they love the sport and been out catching some quality fish. None more so than new member Scott Whiting, who with members of his family and friends, has been visiting Hendre lake regular and also other lakes around Wales with some brilliant results. His catch rate seems to be quite consistent and has been showing some great skills in the sport. The skill also seems to be inherited as not only his results are good but also other members of the family have all been hauling in the fish including his farther , whom actually beat Scott on size during their last trip out to Shear Water fishing lake. Its nice to see a family group doing something they love together and getting some great results.
Lets hope the rest of the season remains just as good.
Wet Nets & Tight Lines
