The Sessions Dec 2024
In November I made my annual trip to the River Ebro to catch up with my pal Colin Bunn and have our yearly fortnight together, we’ve been doing this for 22 years now, sometimes three times in a year, but with the business of life nowadays it’s mostly once. We always have a good time even if the fishing is bad and long may that continue.
I finished last month’s piece having just watched a match at Espanyol and looking forward to the flight home….
The Sessions - Nov 2024
October was another difficult month; with more flooding at the start of the month, too much work meaning I only managing three sessions, but I did trip up a cracker on Kings Weir and another good fish from a new section on the Trent.
November is generally my time to go to Spain hunting the big Catfish as they pack on weight for winter and I was due to go on the 17th the day after my birthday…...
The Sessions - Oct 2024
September was a tricky month with some serious flooding, getting hammered by Crays and Crabs, a devastating loss on Kings Weir and a lot of driving, but it all came good at the end of the month with a 16-03 from a flooded tidal Trent that was rising rapidly.
Due to work and family commitments I knew I wouldn’t get out much in October so hoped to make the most of the sessions I had planned.
The Sessions - Sept 2024
My river season took a turn for the better in August with a Barbel at 16-08, but the fishing continued to be challenging on the tidal with the Mitten Crabs very active, I did an overnight stop on the Derwent and found the fishing impossible there due to Crayfish….
Despite all the challenges I had a good month with 20 doubles and had some good trips planned for September.
The Sessions - Aug 2024
My difficult start to the river season continued in July with the bigger fish eluding me again, I had a good Crucian guiding session with Steve Dawe where he broke his PB four times during the trip which was the highlight of the month. I was looking forward the Barbel trips planned for August which included another session on the stunning Kings Weir.
The Sessions - July 2024
With last month’s difficult start to the river season and just not getting out enough I was looking forward to July with a Crucian guiding session booked in and my own Barbel sessions planned on the Trent and Kings Weir.
The Sessions - June 2024
I enjoyed a reasonable start on the Walthamstow Bream but the highlight of last month’s fishing was a wonderful return trip to Jurassic in Thailand, catching lots of the huge Siamese Carp, it’s something I can’t recommend enough if you’re planning a trip over there , this was enjoyed with some brilliant family days out to make it an excellent holiday.
June soon comes round again and I was really looking forward to being back on moving water again.
The Sessions - May 2024
Last months Crucian fishing didn’t go to plan with the Carp following me around Johnsons and a number of good fish landed to over 34 pounds. I finished the month with my first visit to Walthamstow chasing the big Bream that reside there and wanted to fit in at least one more visit in May before heading back to Jurassic in Thailand.
The Sessions - April 2024
March saw a poor end to the river season for me, and my early spring Crucian and Bream trips didn’t go to plan with very cold rough weather at Johnsons, and Carp and Catfish pouncing on my Bream bait. April has been kind to me in recent seasons so I hoped that would continue this spring.
The Sessions - March 2024
In a month where we saw some huge fish caught that included a British record Pike and some very big Barbel from a number of rivers, I suffered a very poor month with nothing of any note gracing my net, I could only hope things would improve in one of my favourite months to be on the bank.
The Sessions - Feb 2024
The start of 2024 had been poor for me fishing wise and expensive with van repairs so I could only hope things would improve in Feb, little did I know it would be my worst month in many years with bad weather and poor choices.
The Sessions - Jan 2024
I finished last month’s piece having returned from a session on a very flooded River Trent fishing a new section for me on the middle, the river was thick chocolate and raging through, but the swim I was fishing had a big slack in front of me where I felt sure I’d catch, but it was a blank to finish a brilliant 2023.
The Sessions - Dec 2023
I finished last month’s piece half way through a two week trip to Spain having just landed a huge Catfish of 200 pound and I was really hoping for my target fish of 100kg but the weather was due to get colder making the task all the more difficult.
The Sessions - Nov 2023
I finished last month with the Herts police acting out a Carry On scene with their stake out of a traveller site and pulling me over by mistake, and me getting my back side handed to me by a big Barbel on the middle Trent.
I had lots to look forward to in November with the NPS show and a trip to Spain where I was hopeful of beating my long standing Wels Catfish PB of 206 pound.
The Sessions - Oct 2023
Last month was filled with hospital visits, two surgeries and a nasty fall leaving me with a very swollen right arm, but I still managed to get a few trips in and landed 70 Barbel with a rolling meat PB at 16-07.
As much as I love Autumn fishing I do think that the annual leave fall has a negative impact on our rivers and puts the fish off for a while and as we roll into October that time has arrived so swim choice would be vital.
The Sessions - Sept 2023
Last month was a good one with lots of fish caught and the highlight being two fish from the stunning Kings Weir on the river Lea, I had trips planned for this month but also had surgery booked to remove my kidney stones so that will keep me house bound for a bit.
The Sessions - Aug 2023
My summer wasn’t going to plan due to regular hospital visits but I was managing to fit sessions in and had plans to fish the stunning Kings Weir on the river Lea later in the month following a recce trip with Julie in July.
The Sessions - July 2023
It’s amazing and quite scary that June has come and gone already and we are already over half way through another year and into another season on the rivers. June was a good month for me with lots of early season Barbel with many caught rolling meat, a method that is very quickly becoming my favourite way to catch them.
The Sessions - June 2023
With May being a struggle just to find time to get out fishing and then not being overly successful on the sessions I did manage, I was really looking forward to June, with some late Spring Tench, the Barbel Society Show and getting back out on the rivers on the 16th 😃
The Sessions - May 2023
Last month, after some brilliant early spring Crucian fishing, catching fish to 4-03, I moved onto the Tench and had my backside handed to me by my pal Busta on my first session, I was hoping results would improve favourably in May.