Ravensthorpe Opening Day Saturday 27 February 2010

Slow and Deep. Thirty bank anglers and twenty or so boat anglers fished the first opening day of Anglian Water’s ‘big four’ at Northamptonshire’s Ravensthorpe Reservoir on Saturday 27 February. With over 2,000 2lb rainbows stocked two weeks ago supplemented by 50 bonus fish between 10-12lb the reservoir was in prime condition. However, due to some heavy rain the water had taken on a slight tinge of colour but would it be enough to put the fish off the feed?

Conditions were good with an overcast sky, light breeze and an ambient temperature of about five degrees. Bank anglers struggled to put fish onto the bank, but Total Flyfisher’s editor Steve Cullen did manage to find a few taking fish at the north end of the lake. However, the boat anglers were finding things a little easier although it was a case of fast sinking lines and dragging something black and green very slowly along the bottom of the lake…they were deep, very deep. Local anglers Graham Smith and Mick Griffin caught a few fish at the top end of the lake in the morning session, then, after a warming ‘cuppa’ in the lodge found the rainbows a bit more obliging closer to the lodge in the afternoon. The pair of Ray Jeffery and Clive Wilkins fished just off the West bank with sinking lines and Minkies. Using the ‘slow and deep’ tactic Derby angler Ray Jeffery landed the biggest fish of the day a nice overwintered rainbow of 4lb 12oz. Veteran tackle dealer Bob Church and his boat partner Ray Carr also found the fish off the Tail Willows on the reservoir’s West bank. Bob, making his annual visit for the reservoir’s opening day hooked into a ‘clonker’ of a fish, possibly a large pike, but lost it as it neared the boat. A welcome opening day visitor was Ady Greeno the head gamekeeper from Princess Diana’s nearby Althorp Estate. Ady, fishing with boat partner Mick Brown also found the fish close to the Tail Willows.