The Week Ahead...

This entry was posted on 14th April, 2014

The Prospects…

Another nice week last week as most days remained relatively dry and settled, with very little in the way of rain, temperatures hovered around mid teens and decent spells of sunshine were common place.

Looking ahead to this week and of course the bank holiday weekend and I’m pleased to say things are looking good, as once again high pressure is expected to stay in command and the weather is looking very settled indeed, certainly up until Friday anyway!



Temperatures are expected to hover around the 11-13 mark, so it may feel a little cooler than last week, but in the sunshine I’m sure it will feel warmer. One thing to note and just to keep an eye on is the night time temperatures, as they could drop as low as 3-4 degrees!

What could these conditions mean for the fishing?

According to our friendly fishing app, it’s all about the start of the week, as both today, tomorrow and Wednesday have a fishing efficiency rating of over 80%, with a peak of 100% tomorrow!



With a dry settled week I’m sure there’ll be lots of fish caught, however it wouldn’t surprise me if the best time to fish was late afternoon, as with the cooler overnight temperatures it may take that extra few hours of sunshine for the water to warm and the fish to feed. The shallow water will always warm first, so don’t ignore the margins!

On the sea fishing front, the full moon and big tides should certainly push some fish in, and as the sea temperatures have remained so high all throughout the winter, the spring/summer species will probably return a little earlier this year!

If you are planning a trip this week and have Spring species on the brain, then good luck and of course don’t forget to let us know how you get on! Send any pictures and reports to: contact@anglingdirect.co.uk

 

My Fishing…

Unfortunately I didn’t get out at the weekend, as my time was taken up with other sporting interests; with both a keen interest in Horse Racing and Football I was glued to the box. There was key racing trials at Newbury and my team Norwich City had a huge six pointer against Fulham, which was essential we didn’t lose, but despite us having the best chances we somehow did. With a four game run in from hell, (Liverpool, Chelsea, Man Utd and Arsenal) our premiership survival now looks very fragile indeed and I fear the writing could already be on the wall. On a slightly brighter note I did managed three winners at Newbury!



As you’ll all know this weekend is Easter weekend, which not only means a visit from the Easter bunny, but also the fact we get an extra two days off! I’m keen to get out and make the most of it and am definitely going to plan a trip somewhere. I’m toying with a trip Thursday evening, but I’m pretty flexible all weekend so we shall see. Whatever happens I’ll report back next week!

 

Pictures Of The Week…

April’s picture of the month competition is now well and truly underway and already there’s a battle going on amongst some of the entries, as two pictures have received over 100 likes!

If you’d like to view all the entries so far or if you’d like to vote for your favorites then you can do so by clicking the link below…

Aprils Picture Of The Month



If you want to get in on the action and stand a chance of winning a £50 voucher then get sending your pictures in!

Also it’s worth remembering it’s a picture of the month competition and not a just a fish of the month, so it’s not all about the biggest Carp!

If you want to enter our February competition and appear on our blog and social sites then feel free to email your pictures and reports to…info@anglingdirect.co.uk you can also share them with us on our Facebook and Twitter pages.

 

In The Press

World Record Perch

Shimano lure ace bags huge specimen during competition practice.

The world record for the European perch has been smashed by one of Europe’s most respected lure anglers. Dutch lure legend Willem Stolk recently landed a monster perch weighing in at a whopping 6lb 10oz during a three day practice for this year’s World Predator Classic (WPC).

The Shimano-backed angler – who will be competing in the WPC with Coarse Fishing Answers regular Jan Porter – was vertically jigging soft plastics on Holland’s large Lake Hellevoetsluis when he caught the specimen.

At 6lb 10oz the fish beats the current Game Fish Association’s record for the species that was set at four ounces lighter in 2010 by Finish angler Kalle Vaaranen.



Biggest Tench Of The Year

A huge 12lb 6oz Tench, the biggest of the year so far, has fallen to specimen ace Paul David. Paul who also landed five other Tench in the session said…

“I’d caught several Tench to over 9lb the week before this session which just shows you how the mild weather is bringing the fish on the feed as I never expected to be catching huge Tench this early in the year,”

“Most Tench anglers leave it until after Easter to get their rods out but I’m so glad I didn’t wait because if I had, I wouldn’t have caught what is by far the best fish of my angling career.”

The big Tinca was landed from an undisclosed Berkshire Stillwater and is a new venue best as well as a clear personal landmark for the 46-year-old plasterer. Paul, from Hampshire, landed the fish on a hinged rig and pop-up, presented over a bed of Perfection Baits boilies.



Team chosen for under 18s World Championship.

The Sensas Team England under 18s squad has been chosen, and will travel to Holland this July to take part in the FIPSed World Championship on the Willem Canal near Assen.

The five-man team is made-up of Daiwa Dorking star Bradley Gibbons, who took a silver individual medal in last years World Championship. Also in the team is Joe Kent, who took an individual bronze, as well as Matt Barnett, who was part of the gold medal winning squad from last year.

Two new faces have been selected too, in the way of Rotherham based young gun, Jake McNeil, and Gloucester rod, George Organ.

Team manager, Steve Sanders, told Pole Fishing: “I’m taking three lads who fished last year. They have lots of experience and they’re also fantastic anglers, as last years gold medal proved.  Unfortunately, Sam Hughes, who won World Championship last year is too old. However, newcomers stepping into the team, Jake and George, both impressed myself and co-manager Joe Roberts at the trial last weekend.

“This years event is taking place on the Willem Canal near Assen. The venue should really suit our team, as we’ll be fishing for roach, perch and skimmers, with pole and bloodworm tactics that many of the lads are familiar with. Hopefully, it will be very similar to the famous Stainforth & Keadby Canal here in England. I felt that I had a strong squad last year, when we achieved a record points score. However, this year, I think the team is even stronger!”



 

In Store & Online

Last week was another busy one, as the lovely settled spring weather once again saw anglers out in force, both in store and online.

We received some great entries in our picture of the month competition and we also received some great catch reports. Phil White and his charter boat in Essex reported on some good sport, with some late Codling and plenty of nice Thornback Rays making an appearance. We had a brand new catch report and blog from our very own Rob Shanks, who’s been getting amongst some fish on his new syndicate water and we also had the third installment from Michael Stewarts, ‘Valley Of The Water Pigs’ series. You can read these latest blogs by clicking the links below…

Chinook II Charters – April Catch Report A New Water, A New Carping Challenge – Rob Shanks Valley Of The Water Pigs Part III – Michael Stewart



I know our designer was flat out last week, as we had deadlines looming for a whole host of new adverts, online promo’s and POS work. It also looks like more of the same this week, as with Easter just around the corner, we have some plans in place to celebrate with a few special offers and promotions, so be sure to check these out online this weekend.

The video editing suite was also fired up, as we eventually got round to editing some new clips from our visit to the Shimano show room late last year. These are nearing completion and should be uploaded this week. They include some exclusive content from Shimano’s Jan Porter and Dynamite Baits Mick Pridmore and will be well worth a watch!



We also added a few more posts to our Instagram account, which Is growing nicely, we are already up to 100 followers, in just a few weeks. If you haven’t seen our page and pictures you can do so by clicking the link below…

Angling Direct Instagram



Finally before I sign off for another week, I’d just like to say congratulations to Andy Lack, as Andy was the first name out of the hat in our Advanta/Total Carp competition! Andy won a year’s subscription to the Total Carp magazine as well as a whole host of Advanta goodies, so congratulations to Andy and of course Tight Lines.

 

Product of the week…

Korda Infuza Glug Pots

Most anglers appreciate that Korda’s main inspiration to develop a new product comes from being faced with a recurring problem, and one such problem they continued to face was the best way to store and look after glugged hookbaits. In recent years the popularity of glugged hookbaits has soared and there has been an increasing need for a no-fuss hook bait storage facility, which is why Korda have decided to develop this little gem, the Infuza!

The product spec was simple…the item needed to be robust and easy to use and it had to allow excess liquid to drain from the surface of the hook baits, ensuring an even coating. The internal tray within the Infuza does exactly this, it allows the baits to sit above the glug, but be coated with a simple shake of the pot…

To read the full review, click the link below…

Korda Infuza Glug Pots