Churchwood Fisheries Diary

Diary...

December 2009

As I sit here and write the last diary update for 2009, it seems like the freezing cold weather and the frozen lakes have been here for months. In reality the lakes have been frozen for a few weeks, which pretty much put the brakes onto our little Winter campaign that me and a couple of mates had planned. Lee Walford managed to sneak in a few sessions before the weather turned and banked a couple of nice fish. Lee approached his campaign with an open mind and was not scared of trying a few new things. Doing something a little different can sometimes be very rewarding and Lee proved this when he netted a cracking mirror from CW Lake weighing in at 28-08lbs, a cracking Winter fish from any venue around the country. If there was a prize, Lee would undoubtedly win it for top rod at CW for the 2009 season. With 8 fish under his belt for the Winter campaign so far, along with some good fish during the rest of the year, Lee has certainly applied his skills to very good effect. Good angling mate and well done. Rig wise, Lee would kill me if I gave away his secrets but I can say that by introducing a good quality boilie on a regular basis certainly kept the carp interested and on the feed. As mentioned last month we decided on using the tried and tested and very successful CW Supreme Bollie that we all had 100% faith in. A big thank you to Phil at CW Baits for all the help and advice throughout 2009, not to mention the quality products that have helped us bank some of the elusive residents here at CW fisheries.


Lee Walford with his 28lb 8oz Churchwood mirror, good angling brings great results.

Not much more to mention really, apart from Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from all of us here at CW Fisheries. The 2010 diary is open and bookings are coming in already from anglers keen to ensure that they get some slots booked for the Spring and Summer months. So don't delay, get your dates sorted out and get your name in the book to avoid disappointment. I'll leave you with a few pictures of the Winter Wonderland currently here at CW Fisheries.

October / November 2009

The mild weather continues as we rapidly head into December. The lakes are grasping onto their last pockets of natural food supplies. Each day I notice the clarity of the water becoming clearer and clearer, a sure sign that the carp will soon be searching for an alternative food source. Being a day ticket water, typically when the thermometer begins to drop, most day ticket carp anglers decide to call it a day and pack away until next Spring. This is a catalyst for me to step up my fishing and get some decent fishing time down on the lakes. With the careful application of a good quality food bollie, it should be possible to get the fish looking and taking bait all the way through even in the coldest of months. For a fishery owner this is good news. A quality, highly digestible balanced bait being fed to the fish on a regular basis will benefit the carp, helping them through the Winter months and therefore helping them to be in their best possible condition come Spring. I've obviously chosen a bait that I have 100% faith in, this being the CW Supreme Boilies made by my good friend Phil of CW Baits. Being it's my fishery and my fish I want to make sure that I am feeding the best quality bait and most suitable food source that I can possibly get my hands on. The last thing I want is large quantities of uneaten, rotten bollies sitting on the lake bed. I need to have full confidence that the bait will gradually breakdown and be consumed by the organic matter should any bait remain uneaten. The evidence of uneaten bait was highlighted during the netting of the lakes this month. Vast quantities of old, rancid, foul smelling shelf life boilies rose to the surface after the net dislodged them from the bottom on the lake. I am sure that if any carp angler using these types of baits could see what happens to them, they would think twice about spending their hard earned money on such baits. Some of the preservatives used just will not allow the bait to breakdown in a timely fashion and hence them turning rotten, which is why I have now decided to ban all shelf life bollies.
Now, my little winter campaign has only just kicked off but already I have managed to get a couple of nice fish under my belt, just goes to show the effectiveness of a quality food bait.


Owner Steve with a cracking 18-08lbs Linear and a mint looking 21lbs Leather to open up his winter campaign.

Regulars Lee & Neil have also been spending some time down on Churchwood Lake and have also started to see some rewards from their hard work and regular pre-baiting exercises. It's really a matter of focusing yourself on such a campaign and ensuring you get out of your nice warm house as much as possible and get behind the rods. With all the mild weather presently around its easy to achieve this, it may be somewhat more challenging once we start seeing some heavy frosts and wet and windy conditions that are soon to appear.


Neil with a pretty 17-08lbs Mirror along with Lee with a 16lbs Mirror and one of the recently introduced stockies

October was a little slow on both lakes although Kevin Lake banked a cracking 25-14lbs Mirror from CW. Fish were a little sporadic, the weather playing a big part during most of the month. Unseasonably high pressures were the norm rather than the expected low pressure fronts accompanied by stiff Westerly winds that one would expect during the Autumn months. James Sardi had a nice 18-10lbs Mirror from Jenkins, Chris Potts and Dave Cornes shared a few mid doubles from CW, along with a few other mid to upper doubles that I see in the catch log but without the captors names.

I also decided to get a netting in before yearend to remove as many nuisance fish thus creating some additional space for my new stockies. It always amazes me just how many quality Roach, Rudd and Bream come out of these lakes on a yearly basis. Again we removed over 1,500lbs of silvers and probably did not even scratch the surface of what still remains. Hopefully I will get another netting in early next year and look to reduce again the bio-mass to allow the carp to flourish. Another interesting point is that although we managed to remove some decent quantities of large Bream, I personally cannot recall too many instances when they have actually been caught by carp anglers. Judging by their size and condition though you can certainly be sure that they have been hoovering up food intended for carp.




A Some of the recent stunners added to Churchwood Lake.




A few pics from the recent netting that yielded a few surprises along the way !



A few bonus carp were caught in the netting. The stockies certainly look to be doing very well in their new home....

Well thats about it for this month. The 2010 diary will soon be open so if you want to get your booking in early for next year, ensure you don't leave it too late. If 2009 was anything to go by the diary soon gets filled up very early on in the year. I'm off to get my rods out !! .

August / September 2009

Pretty much we continue where we left of on the last update. The lakes have been fishing fairly inconsistent, most likely due to the unfavorable weather conditions of late. We all know that high pressure conditions are not ideal for carp fishing and that's exactly what we have been seeing the majority of in the past few weeks. As Autumn quickly approaches we should start to see some nice low pressure weather fronts pushing in along with some good winds, ideal carping weather ! As with last month the big fish have been far and few between, just a handful of 20's along with a fair few upper doubles. The best fish was a 26-08lbs Mirror from Jenkins. Unfortunately we have no contact number and no picture for the angler in question. The captors name was Glen, so if you are reading this please can you contact me so we can obtain a picture from you please. Neil Preston also had a scraper 20lb common from Jenkins, successful bait was CW Baits Supreme Bollie fished over matching CW supreme pellets.

Ray McBride With a nice 17lbs CW Mirror

The most exciting news this month is the start of our stocking program for the lakes. In the 5 years that we have owned the fishery we have not introduced any new fish, mainly because the stocking levels were about right so there was no real need to. Now like it or not, fish become increasingly difficult to catch for many reasons over the years. You have also got to expect to lose a few fish each season through natural causes and spawning, however upsetting this can be it's all part and parcel of owning and running a fishery. Unlike in Jenkins Lake, the carp in Churchwood Lake do not seem to do well on the reproduction front and therefore we have to intervene to keep the stocking density at the right levels. Seasonal cropping of unwanted silver fish is again all part of fishery management and the success of running a healthy, vibrant fishery. The bio mass calculation can be a very tricky area to get right as you do not want to create a 'runs water' that is full of stunted small underweight carp and you do not want a day ticket fishery that is rock hard for your average carper. These young 'stockies' will naturally have an impact on the natural food sources available to the existing stock and hopefully the increase in competition for food will see some of the more elusive carp make more regular appearances on the bank.





A selection of some of the scale perfect carp which have been recently been introduced into Churchwood Lake.

Fish farming is a massive business and careful consideration is needed when deciding on which company you will use to supply your carp. After much deliberation and elimination we decided to use AJS Fisheries as the supplier for us. Looking at the pictures above it's fairly obvious why we were attracted to these magnificent fish. The heritage of the fish is excellent. These scaley carp were developed from brood fish selected from Horseshoe Lake and Orchid Lake. Since taking delivery of the stockies in January, they have been kept in our newly restored stock pond and fed on a mixed diet of bollies, pellets and whole grains. The fish have developed extremely well and have all pilled on the weight during this favorable growing season. Churchwood Fishery is often regarded as being one of the most stunning day ticket fisheries around in Essex. I think you would agree that these magnificent specimens will be a perfect compliment to the existing stock in the lakes.

Being a day ticket fishery, typically once the temperature starts to drop, then so do the number of anglers willing to venture out. Personally for me, Autumn and most of the Winter months can be the most productive and the most rewarding. The fish depend more on the anglers bait as the naturals start to decrease which gives us all half a chance. That's it from me, got to run, Jenkins Lake empty so off to get the rods out !

June / July 2009

What with holidays and keeping busy around the lake I find myself updating the diary for June at the end of July, again ! Time just goes past so quickly and things unfortunately do not get completed in a timely fashion. Another reason for not rushing with the update was that there is little of interest to report. Both Jenkins and Churchwood Lakes have been fishing fairly difficult and decent results have been far and few between. Unfortunately this is fishing, if you caught every time you went then it would instead be called catching ! I believe the lakes are hard at the moment for a couple of reasons. Firstly we all know fish prefer the weather to be stable and not fluctuating on a daily basis. Certainly, unlike the BBQ summer the Met office promised us, there have been considerable water temperature swings over the past 2 months. We have seen water temperature readings from anywhere as low as 13 degrees and all the way up to 24 degrees. The other reason which I think is even more valid is the amount of natural food that the fish have at their disposal this time of year. Even the very best bait in the world finds it very difficult to compete against bloodworms, snails, shrimps, mussels and all manner of creepy crawlies within the carps environment.

There have only been a handful of low 20's out of the lakes with the majority of the fish being in the mid double range. Quality pictures have been non existent recently so can I urge you all to send me any pictures of anything decent you catch. The pictures help me to identify the fish and therefore I can check on its progress and growth rates. The only pictures that are worth showing are the ones of me below that I have caught over the last 2 months. Because I know the fish are very finicky at the moment I like to improve my chances of success as much as possible. Presentation is the key on both lakes and it can be prudent to go out in one of the boats provided and check out the bottom for any features that may attract the fish. Personally I like to fish over the clean hard gravel areas that can easily be located with the end of the oar.

Critically balanced fake mini corn has certainly been one of my favored approaches during these difficult periods. Fished over a bed of hemp and seed seems to be the best option in putting a few fish on the bank.



A selection of fish caught during June and July from Churchwood Lake on a carefully refined and balanced approach.

Even though the fishing has been on the hard side it's nice to read all the positive comments in the catch book. The tranquility and peacefulness of the surroundings along with the picturesque lakes means that most anglers cannot wait to get back and wet their lines at Churchwood Fisheries. No doubt the carp will be playing ball again very soon and hopefully I will receive a few nice pictures.

Tight lines and hope to see you soon.

May 2009

Looking back through the diary for last year, I noticed several similarities with May 2008 and May of this year. The carp spawned on both lakes around the end of the month during the same period last year. The weather was also very hot and as with last year, this hot spell was greeted with an abrupt cold spell. The lakes produced around 40 fish last year in May and a similar amount this year. The action was patchy as you would expect around spawning time but nonetheless there were a few decent fish put on the bank. Unlike last year though, I have thankfully been getting some chill time in. May 2008 saw the start of the stock pond project and the renovation of the large double swim on Churchwood lake. With no major projects planned for the near future on both lakes, hopefully the relaxing times are here to stay for the summer at least !
The biggest surprise was the capture of 'The Long Common' from Churchwood, the surprise being its reported weight. Tony Aldis started the weekend well when he landed 'The Long Common' at 32lbs and a 20lbs Common. Unfortunately I did not get to witness the weighing or picture taking but I managed to obtain a couple of pictures of Tony's two fish. This was the 'Long Common's' second visit to the bank this year, last out at 26-02lbs around the end of March. It will be interesting to see the weight it makes its next appearance.


Tony Aldis with 'The Long Common' at 32lbs along with a 20lbs Common from Churchwood Lake.

Over on Jenkins another fish to make it back to the bank this year was 'Tom's Common' at 27-08lbs. James (no last name) was the lucky angler, literally getting a pick up on his last knockings whilst packing away and the rods just laying on the deck with no alarms. James cast to a few bubbles and pretty much had the run immediately, good angling and see you again soon.

James with 'Tom's Common' from Jenkins at 27-08lbs

Paul Rock with one of the 20's from Churchwood

Not much else to mention on Jenkins although there were a few other 20'as out including again the Grassie, this time at 28lbs. There were also some nice low double commons out from Jenkins which I personally like to see as it demonstrates to me that the carp have managed to get a successful spawn in and therefore produced some fish for the future of the fishery, hopefully more like 'Tom's Common'.
There were also a handful of 20's from Churchwood but mostly mid to upper doubles reported. Again nothing too exciting to mention this month from Churchwood but the fish have spawned and finished successfully and more importantly, safely without any fatalities.

April 2009

As usual, with so much going I find myself typing up the dairy late again and already it's well into May ! Looking back through the catch report though, it reminded me on what a prolific month April was. In the region of 60+ fish were banked and a fair few lost. Obviously there are far too many captures to mention so I've just picked out some of the better fish along with the ones that I have received photos. At the start of the month we again netted Churchwood to remove additional silver fish. In one swoop of the net we managed to remove around a 1,000lbs of Roach, Rudd, Bream and Perch. It's really unbelievable the sheer volume of silvers within these lakes year after year and it just goes to show the overall quality of the environment that the fish have to thrive in.

Here is a few pictures taken during that netting

A group of 4 lads had a good result on Churchwood Lake at the start of the month. Andy Moore, Luke Easton, Steve Blythe and Matt Tolkien had between them a 15-08lbs Mirror, 17lbs Mirror, 17-12lbs Common, 25-12lbs Mirror, 26-05lbs Mirror, 15-06lbs Mirror, 25lbs Mirror and a 13-08lbs Mirror. The majority of the carp were landed on the CW Red Bollies. The bait has been tweaked a little this year and I knew immediately that it was going to take the majority of the fish landed throughout the year, it has not disappointed yet. Confidence is everything in a bait, but its worth getting away from the mainstream baits and give this superb quality bait a try, especially if you are fishing here. Unfortunately I cannot match the fish to the weights but here are some of the fish the guys landed, well done, good angling and hope to see you all soon.

Darren Shaw landed the 1st Carp of the year from Jenkins on the first weekend of April. The Mirror weighed in at 25-07lbs, unfortunately no picture of this fish. Darren also lost 3 fish during his session. Please remember Jenkins is now strictly a running rig only method, fixed, semi, chods etc will not be tolerated and anglers will be asked to leave the fishery and never to return. This is purely for fish safety due to the number of potentially lethal snags that surround this lake. Lee 'The Bailiff' Walford managed Mirrors of 20-08lbs and 23lbs during a quick overnight session, along with losing another low twenty. We know it was a low 20 because we actually netted the fish during the netting that was scheduled the next day with Lee's rig still inside its mouth ! Not bad angling though, 3 pick-ups and 3 twenties, again all these fish came on the CW Reds. Chris Baker landed the 'Linear' from Churchwood at a weight of 26-03lbs during the night after the netting, just goes to show that the netting and the chalking has no real affect on the fishing. Lee Walford also banked a Grass Carp of 25lbs from Jenkins, bait again, CW Reds. The other notable session of the month was this time on Jenkins. Now being a day ticket fishery we see all standards of anglers throughout the year. As the regulars will tell you, the fish that inhabit these lakes are no mugs and some of the carp have been around for over 40 years and therefore been pretty much bombarded with all manor of rigs and baits. On occasions we see some very capable anglers and it's usually these anglers that walk away with the best results. Farther and Son, Mark & Bill Jormey fished a 36hrs session towards the end of the month. Mark clearly knew what he was doing and spent a good amount of time looking for decent spots and carefully placing his rigs from the boat to these areas. This is something that I encourage to anglers if they want to improve their chances of landing a few fish. Presentation and the right area is crucial on both lakes so using bait boats or the boat provided its well worth that extra little effort. Mark was rewarded with 'Tom's Common' at a new best weight of 28lbs, a 27-04lbs Grass Carp, a Mirror of 26-02lbs, a 18lbs Common and a 17-08lbs Common, plus a few fish were dropped or snagged. Great angling and really hope to see you again sometime soon.

Mark with 'Toms Common'	Lee with one of his recent 20's	Lee with his 1st ever Grass

Thats it again for this month, hopefully I will be quicker on the keyboard next month (next week !) for the May update. Weekends are quickly filling up as you would expect but mid-week sessions are still abundant atm. Tight lines and see you soon.

February / March 2009

What a difference a few weeks makes to the temperature, overall weather conditions and the general mood of us all. Anglers begin to dust off their fishing tackle and start again to think about enjoying some time outside on the bank.
As Spring quickly advances the lakes have been warming up nicely and have just entered into double digits with mid March seeing water temperatures of around 10-11 degrees. The carp have woken from their Winter slumber and have been spending the sunny afternoons cruising slowly around the upper levels.
This is one of my favorite times of the year as it always gives me a great opportunity to view the stock of the lake at close quarters. The fish certainly are less spooky at this time of year and seem happy to sit there if you don't make too much noise and disturbance. That said they tend not to be that interested in floaters although I did manage to get a few feeding finically on the surface.
It's this time of year that most fishery owners pay particular interest to the condition of the carp to ensure that they have wintered well and are free from any signs of disease or parasites. I am happy to report that the ones I have seen and the ones that have been caught have been in top condition.

Ryan with the 1st carp from Churchwood 2009

Lee's 1st fish of 2009, 16lbs Mirror from Churchwood

What with the recent harsh weather conditions it was not until March 1st that the 1st carp was banked. Ryan Harding landed a pretty 14lbs mirror along with losing one in a snag. The next day Lee 'The Bailiff' Walford landed his 1st of 2009 in the shape of a 16lbs mirror from Churchwood. In the same session Lee also banked his U.K PB common with a cracker weighing 27-12lbs. It's a known fish but one that we had yet to give a name. Lee got to name the fish and came up with a long list of ridiculous names that were quickly ignored and rejected. 'Tevez' was one of his suggestions, although I don't know how serious he was, named after the ex-West Ham player ! In the end we settled for 'Bubbles', again West Ham related but a little more associated with a fish, just ! It's a lovely shaped common, similar to that of 'Tom's Common' that resides in Jenkins lake. Its easily recognised as on one of its flanks there is a smooth patch of around 2 inches in size that resulted from some spawning damage a couple of years back. It's a mint looking fish apart from this scar and hopefully one that is destined to reach 30lbs+ one day in the future. Lee also lost a fish in the same session but went home happy.
All the action came on the 'CW Red' bollies that were purchased from the fishery. The CW Reds have been steadily introduced again this year into both lakes and no doubt will again account for the majority of the captures throughout 2009, it was certainly the bait to be on in 2008. At the end of the day why wouldn't you use this bait that the owner has been pre-baiting the lake with.

Lee with 'Bubbles' at 27lbs

Paul Barnes with a cracking Churchwood example

Paul Barnes a few days later landed mirrors of 19lbs, 18lbs and 14lbs from Churchwood fishing with a snowman set-up. Neil 'The Lodger' Preston also opened his account with mirrors of 17lbs and 14lbs. Lee Walford returned for an over-night session and had a lovely 18-04lbs mirror from Churchwood. I also managed to get a session in on Churchwood and landed 3 mid doubles, all on the CW Reds fished to the far margins. Lee was back and once again landed a couple of mid doubles during a mid week over-nighter.
A few other fish came out towards the end of March, including a 26-02lbs mirror caught by Will Matthams, but the one fish that I was most pleased to see a picture of was 'The Long Common' from Churchwood. One of my favorite carp in Churchwood, this fabulous specimen went around 27lbs back in 2007 when it was netted during a silver fish removal exercise. That year I witnessed an angler accidently dropping it during taking some pictures of his capture. After this incident the carp dropped in weight, going even as low as 20lbs. Naturally I became concerned for its welfare but there was little I could do. Last summer the fish showed signs of recovery when it was landed at around 22lbs. Being a female, her weight fluctuates considerably after spawning but typically she would hold onto a weight of around 24-25lbs during early Summer. Jason Deleey was the lucky angler to land her and she pulled the scales around to an impressive 27-08lbs. It's not the greatest picture of 'The Long Common' but good enough for me to feel comfortable that she is back to her best and was in A1 condition.

Jason with 'The Long Common'

Lee with a pretty mid double on a cold frosty March morning

Not a great deal to mention with regards to Jenkins although the majority of visiting anglers have been opting to fish Churchwood which in truth can be a little more consistent at the start of the year. Jenkins is expected to pick up on action over the coming weeks and hopefully become a little more consistent.

Again we decided to chalk both the lakes this year and purchased 4 tonnes of the stuff from AJS Fisheries who are the distributors of this product.
Typically with old estate lakes such as Jenkins and Churchwood Lake, the surrounding area is usually heavily populated with trees and other types of vegetation. With the majority of these trees dropping their leaves in Autumn, about a skip load for every mature tree, its no wonder how quickly silt can accumulate and thus affect the pH and oxygen levels within the lake if it's left to neglect for a number of years. Prevention is always better than cure in my eyes, so although it's a relatively expensive process, I would personally rather invest into the well-being of the lake and its inhabitants rather than trying to cure a problem if conditions became unsuitable for the carp to thrive.

siltex chalk application

Another example of my philosophy on this prevention is better than cure, is the constant use of the aerators that are installed in all 3 lakes, which are kept running 24/7. Again this is most likely unnecessary but again if I can improve the general environment within the lake then I will attempt to do so. I get asked many times why chalk is applied to lakes so here is a quick explanation taken from AJS Fisheries homepage.

WHAT IS SILTEX?
SILTEX is a highly porous form of Calcium Carbonate consisting of microscopic particles with an average size of less than 5 microns (5/1,000 of a millimetre.!). Being Calcium Carbonate it is completely harmless to plants and wildlife.
WHAT ARE THE MAIN BENEFITS OF USING SILTEX?
It decreases organic and oxidisable matter which is displayed as a reduction in silt levels. It increases oxygenation and stimulates aerobic micro-organisms. It improves water clarity by settling suspended waterborne solids. It reduces methane production by silt body. It counteracts acidity in the water and the silt. It provides essential Calcium for plants and wildlife. It increases biodiversity within the water bodies
WHERE CAN SILTEX BE USED?
SILTEX can be used in freshwater environments such as ponds, lakes, reservoirs, rivers, canals and fisheries where organic silt accumulation is a problem. It can also be used to raise the pH value of water bodies suffering form acidification.
HOW DOES IT WORK?
Firstly, we need to understand what silt is. Silt is organic matter, plus sand and clay, combined with water, which forms a spongy mass. Organic silt accumulates when the micro-organisms that normally feed on the organic matter are no longer present, due to low oxygen levels and increased acidity. The microscopic SILTEX particles are able to penetrate right in to the silt layer and create the right environment for the micro-organisms to re-establish themselves and start to digest the organic matter, thus reducing the silt volume. SILTEX works best when the silt has a high organic content, combined with acidity.

Another important aspect of fishery management is the removal of unwanted silver fish that thrive in many carp waters (for more information on this subject you can click the Fishery Management link on my Home Page ). Jenkins and Churchwood were both netted which yielded us with 1,300lbs+ of unwanted small silver fish that were sold and re-homed to waters that wanted to replenish their stocks. This exercise greatly improves the overall environment for the remaining fish and obviously gives them access to a greater amount of food and space to help with their future development. We also managed to net a few carp out which is always a bonus as the nets are designed not too pick up the bigger fish so you never really expect to see them. The largest was around 25lbs and will hopefully be gracing my landing net not too far in the future.

As always bookings are coming in thick and fast so if you want to try your luck with any of these carp you need to get your name down in the diary. With the limited numbers of anglers permitted on at any onetime it can sometimes be a little frustrating to get yourself onto the lake. Bookings can be made far in advance and a deposit will secure your booking.

Tight lines, hope to see you soon.

January 2009

With one of the harshest winters for nearly two decades, its not really surprising that there has been no action down on the lakes, lets just hope we get a summer to remember as well. At the start of January the lakes were partially frozen as the aerators were kept on to keep some of the surface area free from ice. After a few days it became apparent that we were one of the few lakes, if not the only lake in the surrounding area that was not entirely frozen over. I say apparent because we soon became a magnet for Mr & Mrs cormorant, their kids and their friends. Being not a great admirer of these birds, the aerators were turned off and the lakes became frozen solid thus protecting our valuable fish stock. Once the weather improved the aerators were back on and kept some areas free from ice once we received the next band of Artic weather, this time a shed load of snow. We have seen a couple of keen (or mad) anglers battling against the weather, but unfortunately the fish did not play ball. If you are up for some Winter carping its certainly worth having a go, especially while the fish should be at their heaviest weights and not seeing much bankside pressure from anglers.

The 2009 diary is open and the bookings are already coming thick and fast. Apart from the regulars getting their names in quick, we are seeing a fair few people booking well in advance who were not fortunate enough last year to secure their dates throughout last Spring / Summer. This year they know to get in early to avoid disappointment. That’s all for this month, tight lines for 2009 and we hope to see you soon.