CLUB FAW End of Season Review 2018

By Martyn Russ 

Once again the morning frosts and icy weather signals the fast approaching end of another fishing season and the start of a new one. This is the one time each year where I have the pleasure of going through all the catch photographs sent in from Club FAW members and some amazing catch reports. 2018 started of great with some beautiful fish being caught and although we saw some really hot weather and testing conditions the sport remained good through out the summer.

  Unfortunately towards the end of the season the damaged nerve in my neck and back decided to put a halt to my angling as the colder weather came in. Despite me not getting out as much as I would have liked I still managed to have some great session and the members and admin of Club FAW certainly made up for my absence.

 

It has been great to see new members joining the club this year and getting out on the bank catching some stunning specimens. It didn't take long for Gareth Morgan to find his feet at our local venue Hendre Fishing Lake in Cardiff, after having a run of difficult sessions he decided to tweak his rigs and is now consistently catching each time he visits the lake.  Its not just the new members that were showing us the way this year but also some of our long term members have been getting in on the action and having some great fishing adventures. 

Scott and Bobby Whiting have also been out at various venues catching some lovely specimens, not to mention their father even got in on the action and managed to catch a lovely mirror carp. Nothing better than having fishing adventures with the family or having family around when you take some great pics as member Mathew Thomas discovered on his session with his daughter photo bombing his trophy shot. 

    Our very own “Travelling carper” Danny Ramsay has been visiting some lovely venues around the country and managed to find some hidden jems including waters that still have the original strains of carp still in residence. Now these are not the biggest of the carp but certainly fight harder than the others and always seem to be lean and strong. The colours of some of these fish are just amazing and certainly a trophy capture. 

 

Fellow admin Anthony George Ron Potton has been very busy this year and although his time was taken up with his wedding and starting a new job last year he still managed to find time to take new anglers under his wing and take them out on venues showing them the basics so they can enjoy our sport knowing they are doing it safely and correctly. Well done Ron , that's why we started the club and its great to see more anglers and members helping each other out.

 Not to forget about our in house surface specialist and admin Dean Curtis who visits the bank regular and is the first to offer help to any angler who asks for it, it was nice to see him helping out anglers to Improve their fishing including member Joel Mathews who managed to get his first carp off the top this year.

Of course I couldn't write the end of season review with out mentioning member Shane Kitson who, despite being in and out of hospital last year, managed to put in the hours on the bank and even in the colder weather you can still find him on the bank at a venue somewhere in Wales. His last session at Pentwyn lake was rewarded with a winter trophy.

 Despite the weather and the lack of sessions I have had during the colder months we have still seen some lovely winter specimens posted on our social media wall from new member John Jones who has been out chasing the winter predators. 

Not only has he been successful in catching a few but also managed a new personal best Pike at 16 lb showing us all how its done.

  I always find winter fishing to be the most rewarding. Not only is it harder to catch the fish in winter but they always have stunning winter colours and it always feels more of an achievement when you manage to get the bites during the colder months. 

 Now that the end of the season is in sight and the rivers are about to close for a couple of months and lakes start resting their waters ready for the new season we find time to reflect on all the great adventures we have had and the stunning fish we have captured. I always get a smile when looking through the pictures and reading back some of the stories but what fills me with most pride is the fact that every single member of Club FAW has shown me just how much they love the sport as much as me,The fish care, the tactics and the socialising has just been amazing this last season and I really cant wait for the new one to begin. Now the back and neck are a lot better its time to make up for missed fishing trips.

 Bring on the Bigguns!  Wet Nets & Tight Lines.