Report by Paul Bates, 1st December 2007

There were ten early risers already fishing when I arrived at the hut at 7am. Darkness was giving way to dawn after a clear starry night. There was a golden orange glow in the Eastern sky heralding a day of sparkling sunshine, which was very appropriate for the Fur and Feather in the club’s 25th anniversary year.

As the sun rose into a cloudless sky there was a modest breeze from the South West. However, the wind freshened considerably as the morning wore on and the thermometer failed to rise above 7 degrees.

It was bitterly cold in the exposed swims along the Causeway, but in the shelter of the trees along the Western shore of each lake, it felt a good ten degrees warmer in the bright sunshine! This proved to be significant.

The first fish of the morning came to the anglers who had taken the sheltered swims and this set the trend for the day. Fish seemed to be easier to come by in the sheltered swims.

Fast sinking lines armed with Boobies were a popular choice. The colour of fly did not seem that important, as Green & Black was just as successful as various shades of Coral. However, the speed of retrieve seemed to be the deciding factor.

After talking to a number of our members it was apparent that a brisk figure of eight and a moderately fast roly-poly were both considerably more successful than static or slow retrieves.

There was a very good turn-out with over 40 members in attendance. Fish were weighed in by 26 anglers for a total weight of 128lb 2oz (63 rainbows averaging just over 2lb). Fish seemed smaller this year, particularly those coming from No 5. There were just 3 fish that topped the 3lb mark.

All 26 anglers received prizes, with magnificent hampers going to the top three. In addition, beautifully engraved Wheatley fly boxes were awarded to the top three to mark the club’s 25th anniversary. 

The weigh in was conducted outside The Ferry Boat in very pleasant late afternoon sunshine. Rivalries were as intense as ever and after some friendly banter, it became clear that John O’Regan and Andrew Green had recorded the same weight.

After re-weighing could not separate the two, the honour was awarded to John on the basis of having caught a heavier fish than Andrew. Hearty congratulations to John. This victory rounds off a very successful season for John, coming hard on the heels of his success in the Autumn Series.

There was also a tie between Jim Dillon and Frank Daley for third place. Both anglers coveted the fly box therefore it fell to the referee to flip a coin to decide who the lucky recipient would be. Jim took the fly box and Frank had the consolation of the hamper.

The Fur and Feather Shield was presented to John by our President, John Fricker and his lovely wife Esther.  John Fricker has been associated with the club for over 24 years, and first became involved by tying up killing patterns for his son. It was not for some time after that John actually started fishing himself!

John and Esther are moving to Southend, therefore it will be difficult for John to attend future club functions. It was therefore doubly fitting that John was able to present the trophy this year.

Max Sardi collected the pool money for the biggest fish, with a handsome specimen of 3-7-0. Geoff Rich scooped the cash for the closest guess of the total weight of fish.

My thanks go to Tommy Moore for organising the prizes and the raffle. Well done Tom, the gift-wrapped hampers were beautiful. Also, thanks to Richard Mosek for purchasing the Wheatley fly boxes, superbly engraved with the club’s motif. Richard, I think you have created sought after collector’s items with these fly boxes.

This competition seems to become more enjoyable and successful with each passing year. I am personally looking forward to having another crack at it and hope to see you all again in December 2008. 

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