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The Week Ahead...
The Prospects…
Once again there’s not really too much to say about the weather, I don’t want to sound like a broken record so I probably won’t dwell on it too much this week! It’s a case of same old same old and I think I could almost get away with…
- - - - - - - - - - - Copy and paste last weeks prospects and weather here - - - - - - - - -
It looks like this week we’ll see much of the same as we have done the previous few weeks, however this week it looks like we maybe blessed with a little more sunshine and less rain, which will be a welcome relief for many. Temperatures will remain around the 7-8 degree mark and the winds will remain moderate from a South, South Westerly direction.
I guess the temperatures, which have remained a degree or two above the seasonal average, have been the only saving grace, in what has been a pretty grim winter so far. I don’t think I’ve ever known so much wet and windy weather, a colder period and some snow probably wouldn’t go amiss! I’m sure some of those who’ve been most affected by the floods would agree too.
Anyway, I said I wasn’t going to dwell too much, so I’ll probably leave it there for this week, I don’t want to spiral off into a deep depression, especially first thing on a Monday morning!
On a different note, I’m sure your all keen to hear about what our friendly fishing app has to say, as perhaps that will cheer us up… or possibly not!
Unfortunately fishing prospects for the week ahead don’t look great, as there’s only two days where the fishing efficiency rating rises over 50% and this is Wednesday and Thursday, with Thursday being the slightly better day with a rating of 64%. However as they say ‘You’ve got to be in it, to win it’, after all you won't catch anything sat in front of the TV and as long as you’ve got a line in the water you’ve got a chance!
From a fishing point of view, with the rivers still high, coloured and full of debris they maybe best left alone for another week or so, at least until the water subsides. More action maybe found at your local commercial Stillwater, as the overcast conditions and mild temperatures, will surely see one or two fish on the feed! I'd be confident of picking a few fish up on the pellet or banjo feeder, especially if you can locate a few pockets of fish, by casting round your swim.
On the sea fishing front, the small tides, half moon and nothing wind hardly scream fish for the shore angler, so perhaps venturing off shore on a charter boat, weather permitting, will be the best chance for a fish or two.
If you do plan on having a session and do get out 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…
Last week saw me off work for three days; I had a few days left over to fit in before the end of January so decided on a long weekend, I had no plans and all in all I done absolutely nothing, which was quite nice I guess!
I had planned to fish on the Sunday and for a change it was a proper plan! Fresh rigs had been tied, tides and venues had been studied and the lunch box and flask had almost been prepared, before I decided other wise… why? Well because of the weather! A weather warning was issued for our region on the Sunday, as a huge weather front of strong winds and torrential rain was forecast. Now I’m not a fair weather fisherman, but sometimes common sense tells you it’s not worth it and this was the case.
To be fair to the forecasters they got it absolutely spot on, almost to the minute! As come 12.00 on the Sunday it rained and it rained and it rained, the wind also increased throughout the day, from a mild breeze in the morning to a full on gale force Southerly by mid afternoon. For once I’d made the right decision and I almost felt quite smug, looking out the window, from the warmth of my lounge!
Unfortunately, for one reason or another I’ve struggled for time since last weekend and haven’t been able to make it out, but rest assured, the freshly tied rigs won’t go to waste as weather permitting this weekend I’ll be out, blanking in style! With a week of small tides and poor fishing conditions I think rather then head into Suffolk for Codling I may stay a little closer to home and try and catch a few Flatties from the sand, however whatever happens I’ll let you all know next week!
Last week while I was off I did do something constructive, managing to get our latest video edited and online. For this latest episode we ventured down to our local still water with the hope of catching a few fish on the pole, with the aim of video being simple, demonstrating ‘how to fish for a bite’ in these tough months of the year. You can watch the video below…
Pictures Of The Week…
January’s picture of the month competition is now over and what a competition it was, we had some absolutely fantastic entries and many of the pictures received well over 100 likes! But unfortunately there can only be one winner and that was little Kane Offland, as his picture received a colossal 337 likes!!!
His picture was originally sent in by his fishing partner Lee Stephens who wrote…
'Here's a photo of my little friend kane, I take him fishing when he's off school and when his mum and dad are working. Kane’s been fishing for 5 yrs and is only 11 yrs old. This is the biggest mirror he’s landed a stunning 21lb bang on. Roll on the better weather so we can get back on the bank.'
Anyway, a massive well done to Kane and Lee, who’s picture can be seen below.
February’s picture of the month competition is now open and in full swing and already we’ve seen some real crackers, as soon as I get five minutes I’ll get the album created and everyone can start voting!
In the mean time, 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…contact@anglingdirect.co.uk you can also share them with us on our Facebook and Twitter pages.
In The Press
World Beating Team Picked For Portugal
The England squad for this years world champs in Portugal has been picked and we are extremely proud to announce that Angling Direct Suffolk shop manager, Jeanette Halliday has once again been picked to represent her country!
International Events Manager, Dick Clegg in collaboration with the team manager Dave Brooks and England coach Joe Roberts have selected a team to take part in the FIPSed Ladies World Angling Championships in Portugal later this year. The event will take place on 23rd/24th August in Coruche on The River Soria - a venue that has been used on several international occasions by the Portuguese Federation.
The success of the England Ladies team winning gold in Slovenia last year has prompted the England management to retain the same six world-beating anglers. The team consists of Wendy Locker, Emma Pickering, Sam Sim, Julie Abbott, Helen Dagnall and Jeanette Halliday. The team will also be joined by 20 year-old Abbi Kendall, an exceptional young lady angler who will travel with the squad to gain international experience.
Coarse Anglers To Be SurveryedInfectious fish diseases such as Koi Herpesvirus (KHV) and Spring Viraemia of Carp (SVC) have long been suspected of wiping out carp stocks if allowed to take hold in a water.
Introducing live fish originating from unproven safe stock into a fishery is known to pose the greatest risk of disease transmission. But other causes, such as contaminated angling equipment, have also been thought to pose a risk.
Cefas has commissioned a survey that we hope will shed light on the level of risk posed by anglers' wet nets. The information gleaned may show whether angling equipment has contributed to the spread of disease between fisheries in previous outbreaks.
A Cefas spokeswoman said: "Our online survey (found at http://goo.gl/IDHntK) only takes a few minutes to complete and asks no personal questions. The information we receive could help safeguard fish, and the sport, in the future. So it's in anglers' interest to take part.
"We also hope to use the information to update our advice for anglers, to help them to protect fisheries from disease."
The survey will close on 31 March 2014. For more information and guidance about fish diseases, visit... www.defra.gov.uk/aahm/forms/guidelines-list/
In Store
As I was off last week, most of my week consisted of playing catch up, so I apologies if some of this news is a little late!
Last weekend 25th – 26th of January we attended the Brentwood Carp show, and what a show it was! It was fantastic to see so many customers, both old and new and to chat all things fishing! I’d like to take this moment to thank everyone who supported us and who visited our stand, we had a great time and we hope you all did too! It was our second show of the year and both have been really great, even though we have chain of stores and a website, it’s nice to get out there and meet everyone at a show environment.
As I mentioned above in, the ‘in the press’ section everyone at Angling Direct was extremely pleased and proud to hear the news that our very own Jeanette Halliday, Suffolk store manager, had once again been chosen to represent her country in the World Championships in Portugal this year. I’d just like to take this opportunity to wish all the team the very best of luck, when they come to defend there title. If you want to see how Jeanette and the team got on in last years world champs, you can read her blog post below…
Going For Gold – Jeanette Haliday
Last week we were busy adding new products to the web and one range in particular which really caught the eye was a fantastic new range of bait boats from a company called Anatec. They have been on the market for 15 years on the continent and the range is now the number 1 on the RC bait boat market! So we are pleased to announce that these are now available at Angling Direct both in store and online, you can see the full range online by clicking the link below...
Anatec Bait Boats
Also last week we were out filming a new video for ADTV. After the phenomenal sales of the Advanta Pinnacle, the flagship bivvy for the range, it made sense we filmed a detailed video on how to erect and use the bivvy correctly, it’s now in the process of being edited and will be online this week, so be sure to keep an eye out for that. We also have some brand new video’s to come on some new Shimano products featuring the legend that is Jan Porter, so if you want to keep up to date with all of them then be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel, by clicking the link below.
ADTV On YouTube
Finally and last but not least, on Friday we announced the winner of our Nash Dwarf Competition! We were overwhelmed with just how many people got involved, as we received nearly 4,000 entries, but unfortunately there could only be one winner and the name drawn out first was Charlie Wright, so a big well done to Charlie! The goods have now been sent out, so we hope you have great fun using the tackle and catch plenty of fish on them!
We have a few more exciting competitions in the pipeline, so if you want to get involved be sure to check out and like our Facebook page, simply click the link below…
Angling Direct Facebook
Product of the week…
Sonik SK3 XTR & SK4 Beach Rods
We first introduced Sonik to our stocks around 18 months ago and in that time they have established themselves as one of the best selling rod manufacturers both in store and online. Offering Carp, Sea and Fly fishing rods, in all budget groups, they offer something to suit the needs of all anglers.
One area where we have seen the most impact has been on the Sea fishing side, where there super range of SK and NCT beach and boat rods have really taken the market by storm, offering quality performance and great value for money.
Sea anglers who own or who have owned any of these models will be pleased to hear that for this year the range has been made even better, as upgraded versions of the SK3 and SK4 sea rods are now available…
To read the full review click the link below…
Sonik SK3 XTR & SK4 Beach Rods
