Stoney and Friends Pike-in at Horton | Angling Diary
Stoney and Friends Pike-in at Horton byCEMEX Angling
Added 31st January 2007 at 22:21
£1820 Raised for Macmillan Cancer Support
Stoney and Friends Pike-in at Horton | Angling Diary
Stoney and Friends Pike-in at Horton
Horton Church Lake, 22 Anglers Each Day - £1820 Raised for Macmillan Cancer Support
Thanks to the generosity of Cemex Angling, 22 anglers had the opportunity to fish for Pike at Horton Church Lake on two separate days in January. This exclusive Carp syndicate lake is rarely if ever fished for Pike despite them being present in large numbers.
Every angler present paid either £50 for one day or £80 for both. Carp Addict and Wychwood sponsored the event with forceps and wire traces etc being provided to all anglers.
Day 1
Weather-wise, the first day was a wash-out with driving rain from start to finish. This did not however dampen the enthusiasm of the anglers, nor did it stop the Pike from feeding.
Dave Gawthorn was on hand to help any novice anglers and spent most of the day freely giving advice whenever asked for it. There were also numerous other experienced anglers on hand to help whenever required.
With the weather being so bad, the Horton Lodge was a blessing, frequented by all anglers on a regular basis to warm up and enjoy the never ending and freely flowing cups of tea and coffee. In addition, the cooking facilities were fully utilized with bacon or sausage sandwiches being delivered to every angler at lunchtime, and a curry in the lodge for all at the end of the day.
Fishing-wise, the day was more successful than expected with the weather conditions. At least 15 fish came out – Lance Andrews-Mason caught a PB at 10lb+, Steve Hall had 3-4 jacks, Matt Rance (Rhino 135) had a double around 14lb, Nick Peat had a couple of low doubles and numerous other Jacks came out from around the lake to a variety of anglers.
Paul Singleton did his utmost to lure a Pike by fly but was sadly beaten by the weather
Garth Ethelston had by far the largest catch of the day when he managed to spectacularly embed a treble into his own thumb! Sadly the photos of this didn’t come out! He was however later rewarded with a 17lb fish as pictured with him and Sam Meeuwissen.
DAY 2
What a contrast to Day 1. The sun came out, the wind was minimal and the water looked perfect for a day's Piking. Breakfast and Tea was over very early due to the enthusiasm of the anglers and soon all 22 were spread around the lake.
Despite the improved weather, the Lodge yet again proved a focal point with the urn on all day long.
John “Tug†Wilson was the first off the mark with a jack of about 5lb sneaked out of the pontoon swim at first knockings.
Paul Singleton (Singy)was the most successful angler with 8 fish to 15lb, closely followed by Garth with 7 fish to 16lb. Kevin West (Westy) managed 6 fish, the largest being around 15lb, Matt Rance caught again, albeit a small offering at 7lb, and numerous other fish made an appearance with most being low doubles. In all, over 30 fish were successfully landed and returned to fight another day – not a bad return for 22 anglers.
The day ended with a very entertaining question and answer session hosted by Mark Barrett, secretary of the PAC.
Stoney and Friends would like to thank Cemex Angling for donating the waters, Wychwood and Carp Addict for their sponsorship, and everyone who turned up just to help on each day.
