Once again I have visited my favourite water on the Taywood A.S. ticket and fished the notorious motorway bank. I used the same tackle and methods as I did on Friday but got to the swim at about eight a.m. My experience of these vast gin clear gravel pits tells me that early morning fishing for tench is little use as they cruise all day looking for food and the trick is location.

I was surprised to find another angler on the same bank. He was using the same sort of tackle as me and not fishing for the carp for which this lake is renowned. I had a quick chat with him and he was happy for me to set up in my favourite swim just next door. It is always polite to ask - you never know, you might need him to take a photo later!

Over the next couple of hours I had three line bites, where the indicator just lifts a little and drops back. These I am sure are caused by a patrolling fish swimming into the line between the feeder and the rod tip. The chap in the next swim left about lunchtime but before he did so he threw in about a dozen large balls of groundbait thirty yards in front of him. This was just within my casting range and after he left I couldn’t resist an experimental cast into the area. It would have been rude not to!

The result was a 6lb 4oz bream heavy with spawn and would have explained the line bites I had earlier.

6lb 4oz bream form Chertsey South

The hunt for the big tench continues.

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