A quick update....

Well, it's October already, four months into the season and it's gone very quickly indeed. For various reasons, mainly not having much to blog about, I haven't really had much to report on the barbel front, it's been a very difficult season indeed. A number of factors have led to this, the first being the usual summer problem of not having much water around, infact, the only significant rainfall we've had was in August, which put just two or three feet of extra water on the rivers I fish, which quickly ran back off. As I write this, both the Severn and the W.Avon are running at summer lows, with the water clarity being that of Gordon's Finest.

A Lower Severn 9.4

The second reason has been the amount of time I've spent fishing the Lower Severn, which at the best of times is a tough nut to crack,

I've put a few on the bank here and there, mostly at Pixham Ferry, with the best coming from Severn Stoke(see pic), but it still wasn't a double, and still now, a Lower Severn double eludes me after umpteen trips at both venues. The Lower Severn still captivates me though, it has a mystery all of its own, remains underfished compared to the middle river, and you never know when a huge fish is going to smash that rod tip over.

Seasons best, 12.11

For the same reasons that I've already mentioned, I haven't published any YouTube videos either, something which lots of people keep asking me about. I've been surprised at their popularity, and my dozen or so videos now have more than 40,000 views, something which I never would have expected. I must try and do some more!

In between my various Severn trips, I've managed a couple of Avon sessions too, with various levels of success/failure, infact, an impromptu session on the Avon just last week on the strength of the river being up a bit, led to my best fish of the season, an absolutely stunning fish of 12.11, which i took on pellet shortly before dusk.

I still think the best fishing is to come, November can be very good indeed, and surely (I hope), we will get some significant rain to lead to some feeding fish. I shall mainly be concentrating on the Wavon and Lower Severn when the rain finally arrives, and maybe even a Wye trip if I get time....I'll also try and keep this blog a bit more up to date!!