Thirty anglers gathered at Blakewell Fishery for their Spring Competition a day that was to be blessed with warm spring sunshine. It was certainly a jovial atmosphere that pervaded the morning with old friends and new talking eagerly about the days fishing ahead. These competitions are little more than an excuse for a bunch of anglers to get together for a social with a bit of banter and a bent rod.

After the draw and a coffee we all set out to the lake that was tinged with colour after heavy rain two nights previous. This was probably a good thing as bright sunshine is seldom good for trout fishing. The morning session saw anglers enjoy steady sport with the fish fighting hard in the cool water. Glancing around the lake it was apparent that a multitude of patterns were producing fish. My first peg proved challenging and I only managed the one trout a handsome brown that was to be the heaviest brown of the day at 3lb 5oz.

My next peg proved more productive and within the second hour I had completed my mornings quota of five trout.(below)

This gave me the opportunity to wonder around the lake and capture a few images before lunch.

 

The hour-long lunch break saw the hungry anglers tucking into a hearty meal of sausages, potato stew, salad, fresh bread and red cabbage and onion. This was washed down with a cool can of beer followed by a slice of delicious homemade cake.

All of this was of course punctuated by plenty of tales of fish and fishy places.

 

The afternoon session is often the hardest and that one fish can often prove hard to tempt. But with a blue sky and fresh green buds all around it was not too much of a problem if it took a while to complete the days bag.

The competition came to a close at 4.00pm and all but two of the thirty anglers had completed their six fish limit. The scales showed that it had been a very close event with just three pounds separating the top twenty-five anglers.

Result

1^st Andy Facey – 6 fish – 15lb 7oz

2^nd John Buxton – 6 fish – 14lb 15oz

3^rd – Phil Martin – 6 Fish – 14lb 10oz

4^th = Wayne Thomas – 6 Fish – 14lb 9oz

         Colin Matthews – 6 Fish – 14lb 9oz  

             Paul Grisley – 6 Fish – 14lb 9oz

 

Whilst none of the big trout for which the fishery is renowned were caught several were glimpsed in the lake. A fine 13lb double figure rainbow was landed the previous day.

 

The fisheries facilities have been upgraded with a new toilet, fish weighing room and extended decking that will prove a hit on summer evenings when John and Richard Nickel plan a few summer BBQs and fishing events.

Next month sees the fishery host a Snowbee Open day when the latest tackle will be on display and available to try out with casting instruction from the Snowbee  and Blakewell teams.