A Day on Drayton ReservoirWith talk on the forum of a possibility of a change of venue for the Keith Culley Memorial Match, normally fished on Clattercote reservoir, Graham and I decided we’d investigate the second favourite. This was Drayton, another British Waterways reservoir not far from Clattercote, but reputed to hold lots of low double figure carp, with the possibility even, of a 20-pounder. We set a date for mid September and prayed for reasonable weather; it would be a waste of time hoping for good photography if it was pouring with rain all day.
As it turned out the weather was changeable; the coldest night of the early autumn with a cold Northerly on the Monday changed into a weak weather front with Sou’Westerlies on the chosen day, Wednesday. The weather forecast indicated possible showers but in the event we remained dry all day and it was fairly bright.
We arranged to meet at nine o’clock so that we had time to have a good breakfast on the way; Graham travelled down with Eric Barnes and I travelled with Simon Willis. The good news was that Simon and I had an easy journey to the venue but Graham was diverted off the M1 and had to pick his way around the back roads to Daventry, arriving an hour late.
In the meantime, and aware that Graham would be late; we chatted to the bailiff and made our way to some pegs on the right hand side of the lake. The strong breeze was blowing straight into the dam and was distinctly chilly. The steep sloping dam wall would be a nightmare for photography in that we wanted to get lots of different angles. With the level of the water down around four feet though we would be able to fish from the bank below the walkway and platforms on the sides of the lake, and this was much better.
The bailiff reckoned that for most of the day the fish would be well out, and we would be best using the Method or similar. Later on though after 4pm, the carp would come in much closer, and better still, the carp would be bigger than the twelve pound run of the mill fish. To get those better fish close in I set up an Avon rod with a ‘pin loaded with 10lb line and simple float rig.
Tackle and baitThe main technique meant a simple Method attack and for this I set up a very expensive 1.75 test curve barbel rod (you know, the sort that Granville gives to all the regular writers except Deanos) free spool reel with a Fox 28 gram Method feeder and short 8lb Krystonite hooklink with a T6 Raptor barbless size ten hook. Simon set up a similar rig, and when Graham finally made it he set up with a barbel rod of the same TC, a method feeder, size 6 hook to 10lb line and used Tuna Wraps, a new bait from Sonu Baits. Then it was a case of casting my two hair-rigged Source 10mm boilie baited rig out forty yards on a regular basis to get some bait down.
First bite – a gentle 4ft pullThe first subtle bite was not long in coming, a gentle four foot pull round that resulted in me striking into fresh air. Then all went quiet for an hour by which time Graham and Eric had arrived and got set up a few pegs further up beyond a couple of carp anglers. With the next bite I made no mistake and after a slugging fight I put the net under a twelve pound mirror carp. With the first pics on the Compact Flash card it was a promising start, especially when Simon got a nine pounder shortly afterwards.
But the next few hours proved frustrating as we could only watch as two nearby anglers, who had been baiting their swim for some time before we arrived, began to catch carp with increasing regularity. Whether it was the extra distance they were fishing, or the longer baiting period, it was hard to say, but they were certainly out fishing us. Graham did manage to open his account with a twelve pounder and Eric lost a fish. As the afternoon wore on we realised we would have to wait for the fish to come closer in to our baited areas, or we would have to cast further out. We stuck with our original plan and waited for the day to wear on and in mid afternoon it started to get better. A tiddler of 8lb and then two 12’sMy next fish was to prove the tiddler of the day at around eight pounds and was followed by two more of twelve pounds. During the afternoon I spent a fair amount of time discussing our writing projects with Graham, as well as drooling at the description of the expensive barbel rod waiting for Deanos should he ever appear to claim it.
As the lake emptied of anglers during the afternoon it was clear that we had company – rats. These bold vermin started to appear to mop up the bait spillages, and it was a shout from Simon that made me return to my peg. A rat had made off with a bag of hemp. To remove the temptation I retrieved the bag and threw the remaining hemp into my close-in swim just two rod lengths out in two foot of water. I’d been fishing this spot all afternoon with the float rod (two rods are allowed if you buy the extra ticket which I’d done) but until now had had little sign of action. Around this time Graham had spotted the carp moving much closer and had started to bait a spot around twenty yards out.
The carp moved closerIt wasn’t long before signs of carp in the close in swim became obvious; tails sticking out of the water and huge swirls meant that the carp had found the bait. Graham was starting to catch regularly too with a succession of twelve pounds. Meanwhile, Simon and Eric could only watch in frustration as bites failed to materialise for them. I’d got the fish in close but what bait? Sweetcorn failed to raise a bite but soft pellet was the answer. The soft pound and a quarter test curve rod took on alarming curves when I hooked the first carp close in. The line on the Method rod was a hazard that I could do without so once the twelve pounder was returned I wound it in, concentrating on the float for the remainder of the day. Initially I had problems with foul-hooked fish that quickly fell off the hook but then I got to grips with the swim despite the twig debris on the lake bed and started to land fish in succession. The soft rod proved up to the task and playing fish on a ‘pin great fun despite the occasional ‘rim burn’ as the carp screamed off.
The best came lastWe’d saved the best till last. Graham had a thirteen and a half pounder whilst I had fish of fifteen and sixteen pounds to finish with nine fish – eight doubles, and Graham ended up with ten – all doubles. It had been a thoroughly enjoyable day for all of us even if a little frustrating at times, especially for Simon and Eric. We’d learned plenty, made loads of mistakes, tested out some tackle and bait, and got lots of good pictures. If you’re looking for a venue to catch doubles, to polish up Method and Baggin’ waggler skills and have a fun day’s carp fishing then this is a good possibility. It’s certainly a viable alternative to Clattercote for the Keith Culley match should we choose to try another venue. Some lessons learnt
Graham’s NotesDefinitely a good alternative to Clattercote if we decide to have a change, with the plus side being the bigger fish, the average seeming to be about 12lb with a good scattering of fish in the 13 – 16lb bracket and always an outside chance of a 20. The negative side is that Drayton doesn’t have those shoals of good tench that can be caught in Clattercote and the water is not very attractive. I’m not sure if it would be as ‘peggy’ as Clattercote, but at least when me and Mark fished it there were good carp being caught all round.
Like Clattercote it responds to a variety of methods, probably even more so than Clattercote in that the bigger fish will come close in and fall to conventional waggler tactics – although that may not be the case so much in match conditions and earlier in the day. What was good was the fact that the carp fought really well, unlike some commercial fishery carp that are caught so often they give up after a couple of short runs. We didn’t see any commons, just mirrors and the odd linear.
The fish are too big and go off at too savage a rate for conventional quivertip tactics. I thought it best to fish with the usual carp rod/rod pod/indicator set-up, or at least use a light carp rod and wait for a bend in the top. If you did fish so then you would have to be on the ball at all times as when they do bite they’re vicious and take no prisoners. When I fish it again I’ll definitely use two rods for a while, one as a banker and one to experiment with other methods and to test alternative baited spots. I enjoyed a good day’s fishing. And the chips weren’t bad either! Fishery InformationDrayton Reservoir Day tickets are £ 6.00 or £ 10.00 for two rods or £ 4.00 per rod concession. For match bookings Tel: 01908 302556
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