4 June 2016 – Catch Report from: Mick & friends

A tougher week for these Northern boys but they still had a 76lb cat and carp to 31lbs

This week we had the pleasure of welcoming back a great group of lads from the North of England. They started well with 4 fish out by Monday, but the going got quite tough during the middle of the week and bites were very hard to find. I check the oxygen levels three times a week and it was clear that they had dropped significantly between Saturday and Wednesday. By the end of the week they had recovered though. Drops such as this are perfectly normal and we know from our records that they do happen around this time. Fortunately, the drop was short lived and in no way endangered the health of the fish but it does go some way towards explaining why the guys had a tricky week.

I noticed something else that could well have been a contributing factor. Their home rolled baits were being whittled away overnight by the healthy population of silver fish. Several times, the baits were gone entirely by the morning which is a classic time for a pickup. The lads were using ground bait and particle over the spots which triggered a feeding frenzy response in the silver fish therefore exacerbating the problem.

Note on the Beausoleil boilies: During the winter, I did an extensive amount of testing to ensure that our range of baits is fit for purpose. We’ve added albumen to the base mix so that I can create baits with a hard outer shell which is more impervious to the attentions of the small fish. The baits are cooked for just over two minutes which makes the skin 3mm thick, leaving the middle soft, sweet smelling and delicious. It’s great to know that despite the tricky fishing this time around the lads had a good holiday and are planning to return in the future.