Eight hour Session at Rixton

Had a long session at Rixton today, starting around lunch time through till 20.30, the weather alternated between threatening clouds and bright sunshine, although the temperature was very disappointing.
Sport was slow in starting, but once again the ever dependable Skimmers saved the day. It took till around 2pm before I caught my first fish, my casting was all over the place today so I was scattering goundbait all over instead of concentrating it in one small area. Just couldn't concentrate today.
There was little evidence of the Tench feeding during the day
Up to the end of the session I caught Five Skimmers all around One Pound. As the light began to go the Tench began to come on the feed, at eight o'clock I hit in to a good tench of around three pounds, which was a good end to the session.
I saw the usual array of wildlife for which Rixton is rightly famous, Kingfishers, herons and a huge Rat.

Rixton Looking Beautiful

My one and only Tench

A Nice Skimmer

Three Afternoon & Evening Sessions at Rixton, With Rain and More Rain

Spent Saturday, Sunday & Monday Afternoon and early evenings at Rixton, the conditions on all three days were appalling, never have I fished in August in such heavy and continuous rain, the Clay Pits were a quagmire, all my gear was filthy, and I do mean filthy. I had to completely wash everything I took with me before putting it away.
On the positive side the fishing was good, I caught some nice Skimmers of over a pound in weight, but more importantly I managed to catch a Tench on each visit, Including my biggest ever Tench of six pounds.
I used a Hair Rig set up using Sweet Corn, Spam and Fish meal pellets, this set up seems to be the definitive set up on Rixton. I managed to keep my casting fairly accurate so my groundbait was kept to small area thus concentracing the fish in a smaller area.
All the Tench were caught in the last hour of each visit, just as darkness was falling, I'd forgotten just how powerful a fight they put up, my Telescopic Feeder Rod was bent double, it felt wonderful fighting with my favourite summer species.
The tench I caught tonight had the most awful growths on it's head, to be honest it looked like the Elephant man, I was in two minds weather to knock it on the head but it was feeding so it cant have been too ill, it put up a splendid fight!
As I'm off for the next week I'll have a couple more sessions before I return to work, I had hoped to get on the Bollin, but in these weather conditions it would have been unfishable.

Rixton Tench,Afternoon & Evening Session

Had a very good session at Rixton Yesterday, the weather was windy but it was a very mild wind. There was varying amounts of cloud.
I began around 2pm, using my Browning Ambition Telescopic Feeder Rod with a hair rig set up, alternating between Pellet, Sweetcorn and Luncheon Meat. The first bite wasn't long in coming, once again, it was one of the what seems like thousands of Skimmers Rixton is full of! I continued to make contact with the Skimmers for the rest of the afternoon, sport was steady throughout the day, with periods of inactivity.
Obviously I was hoping to make contact with the Tench ,which Rixton is famous for, I'd all but given up hope of one of the mythical Tench when around 6pm my tip flew round, how I missed it I don't know, but miss it I did, it must have been a Tench. Although a missed bite is annoying it does fill you with confidence, so I decided to stick it out till dark.
I was fishing my favourite peg on the opposite side to the car park facing the large bed of Lilly's I noticed as time crept on and darkness was closing in, definite signs of feeding Tench, so I concentrated on my casting trying to keep it as accurate as I could, concentrating on a definite area.
At 8.30 my tip flew round, I was on, there's no mistaking a Tench, the fight was powerful and long, a couple of times I thought the Tench would get to the overhanging bushes and smash me but I managed to slip the net under it, I'd done it, my first Tench for over 18 months.
Once I'd unhooked the fish and released it, as quick as I could I re-cast to the same spot, as soon as I put my rod down the tip flew round, I was in to another one, if anything this Tench fought harder and longer but I managed to persuade the fish to see things my way, gently slipping the net under what must be my second favourite fish, the Pike being my first, but defiantly my favourite Summer species.
These two Tench were the biggest fish I'd landed on my telescopic feeder rod, I was pleased the way the rod felt and handled the fish.
See below for a rather poor photo of one of the Tench.