Having temporarily lost a bit of mojo, it’s no secret I was pleased when MrV offered to 'sort' the latest grueller
What’s more it was on the T&M at Wolseley Bridge which looked so appealing when we fished the river a month or so back. A bit of a nostalgia trip, I hadn’t fished it for the best part of two decades, last time on an ESI six a side match
My appetite was whetted and I know several gruellerites were also looking forward to it
There was plenty of good banter before the draw in the off the road wooded car park that MrV had secured for the day and with the ‘long walk’ pegs safely gone I dipped in the bag with just a couple of discs left and pulled out 7. At least only ‘half a walk’ of the section of 16 pegs that MrV had put in.
Arriving at my peg I honestly fancied it for a few. We’d fished the cut a few miles away last year when flooded off the Trent and had a decent day with some good weights.
Setting up the boaters were already in evidence as a few went past. I therefore decided to kick off on a punchline ¾ way across just up from the track with squatt laced gb up the shelf in two places against the far bank foliage.
Looks good for a few....... (click on the pickies to blow em up)
I’d got Heinzer for company to my right.........
And Zorro to my left
Heinzer blew up and my lines, incl my feet were fed and I thought I’d make hay on the punch before the traffic picked up even more.
Heinzer was straight into a few ‘netter’ roach on the punch whilst the first 20 mins saw me have two bites on the white stuff – a sliver of a roach of the 120 to the lb stamp and a slightly bigger bleak – 80 to the lb.
It was clear to see that whilst myself, Zorro and Tricast all had seemingly picked the same line, Heinzer was fishing shorter down the track where I’d originally thought would quickly be wiped out because of the boat traffic and might only produce later on with the lunchtime lull. Was this mistake no 1?
Was mistake no 2 trying to convert this to another gb and squatt line instead of sticking with it?
I went hard over and picked up another couple of small fish, but bites were at a premium and I was scratching my head where the next bite was going to come from
A look on my feet and........................nowt there either
Half way through and this was gearing itself up to be a grueller and half – Zorro was having a ball acher and Heinzer had dried up too
So in an attempt to kick start summat I dumped some more gb and went for a walk to see how others were fairing...........when I got back the silvers and gobies would be queuing up........wouldn’t they????????????
Tricast62 was a study in concentration
Whilst it appeared that OBI was owning up to doing just as good as yours truly
However Digger was having plenty of bites, bits on the squatt and was owning up to 3lb.....
Perhaps they are bagging up the far end I pondered as I traipsed up there....
Goughy was full of smiles but couldn’t believe how ‘difficult’ it was ‘I was expecting a fishing race’ he confided
Surprise of the day was MrV who also couldn’t now buy a bite and was scratching his head, owning up to a bonus 8oz perch and 6oz of bits. Perhaps I made him feel a bit better when I told him I couldn’t even muster up the 6oz of bits
Josh was still at it but also having a mare
Whilst just along Cheslynboy was nicking em off his 4 mtr inside line.
Apparently he’d turned the air blue losing a rub a dub and a lb plus kinver tiger...........told you before Arfa – those hooks might have been aok in Izaak Walton’s day, but you really ought to buy some new uns – you’ve now got chemically sharpened wire hooks – much better than those whalebone ones you still use 
On endpeg was Phil B – those long walks are no problem now he’s got his new knees
With an hour and half I returned ‘encouraged, particularly as Zorro had bagged a lb plus kinver whilst I’d been away’
............but I only snared one more tiny silver, trashed a couple of rigs on sunken brambles and failed to start a productive 4mtr line like CheslynboyHeinzer blew up – another Grueller with a difference was over – and it was time for the tale of the scales...............
Incidentally here’s another pickie this time of Heinzers catch after the mauling he’d given me off the next peg
And here’s a milling crowd as Zorro who also battered me was being weighed in
Oh................and the result
PEG
1
2 KOD 0.11.0
3 DIGGER 4.6.6 1st
4 OBI 0.3.13
5 TRICAST62 1.4.4
6 ZORRO 1.12.4 3rd
7 TK 0.6.4
8 HEINZER 1.5.0 Section winner
9 GOUGHY 1.9.0
10 MRV 0.14.12
11 JOSH 0.2.4
12 COTTI 0.11.14
13 GLYN DNW
14 YAMO 1.11.13 Section winner
15 CHESLYNBOY 2.0.0 2nd
16 PHIL B 0.10.10
Well done Digger for showing us how it should have been done............fancy the Wyrley & Essington/Extension next?
I asked one lady to cruise through the middle, and she said "its alright, it doesn't draw much water as it has a shallow draft ". It doesnt matter how shallow the bloody draft is on the boat if it goes over your one foot deep far bank swim for Christ sake.