Here's this weeks, news information and catch report round up from Luton Angling Club.
This week saw the start of the river fishing season, we have not yet received any catch reports from our rivers, if you do get out on the river please let us know how you get on.
During the winter, club member Tony Hickmott keeps himself amused by manufacturing fishing floats using traditional materials and methods. The floats range from large balsa bodies suitable for distance slider float fishing, right down to .2 gram pencil style pole floats (which with Dennis Hunt's encouragement he made for the first time this year)
A lot of the floats he produces have been given away for free to friends. A few have been sold for peanuts to anybody interested.
This week he took a collection of these floats to Wednesday's match at the 3 locks, with a view of making two floats available for free to each of those competing in the match, along with a small number of items which were available for a small donation of a pound or two, £21.00 was raised in voluntary donations and this was put straight into the clubs Junior coaching fund - Thanks Tony
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| Tony Hickmott - Homemade Floats |
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| Tony Hickmott - Homemade Floats |
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| Tony Hickmott - Homemade Floats |
North House Lake
Paul Parkinson had a good 24 hours on North House Lake, he had one Saturday night and another Sunday morning they were caught on a yellow wafter and a pink wafter, he didn’t weigh them but he estimated around the 16lb mark.
Wyboston Bailiffs Andy and Barry have for the last few weeks been carrying out some much needed work around North House Lake, this includes clearing some of the swims that have become overgrown over time and removing some of the snags from the water. Their work will continue, and you'll see them working around the venue. If you are able to lend a hand let them know. Here is an example - a before and after of peg 12 - Thanks Barry and Andy for your efforts
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| Peg 12 - Before |
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| Peg 12 - After |
Beckerings Reservoir
One of 6 from last week caught from Beckerings by Nick Lynch. He said this may be his favourite carp he has ever caught! 27lb of pure scaley beauty!
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| Nick Lynch - Beckerings |
Lee Cooke had a cracking couple of nights up at Beckerings this week, his rod went off 5 mins into the session to a common, (he forgot the weight) then at 10am the rod went off again with a 30lb few oz cracker!! Then at 5am the following morning, same rod shot off again! 28lb 7oz!!Thanks to Martin for taking the pics on tuesday, and Ian taking the 3rd!
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| Lee Cooke - Beckerings |
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| Lee Cooke - Beckerings |
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| Lee Cooke - Beckerings |
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| Martin Scholes - Beckerings |
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| Martin Scholes - Beckerings |
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| Martin Scholes - Beckerings |
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| Martin Scholes - Beckerings |
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| Martin Scholes - Beckerings |
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| Martin Scholes - Beckerings |
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| Martin Scholes - Beckerings |
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| Martin Scholes - Beckerings |
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| Martin Scholes - Beckerings |
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| Martin Scholes - Beckerings |
Litter!
One of our Beckerings bailiffs found a bag of rubbish left in the car park this week - Not only did it contain angling related litter, it also contained human excrement. The litter is bad enough, but when the club at significant monthly expense, provides a toilet for members to use, we are at a loss to understand why...
Needless to say anyone identified or caught leaving any litter at any of our venues will receive a LIFE ban from the club.
BECKERINGS WORK PARTY 5th/ 6th July
We are planning a work party on the weekend of 5th and 6th July. This will be to carry out some essential work to replace a few of the platforms that have rotten boards. It would be great if we could get a few members to help us out.
The reservoir will be CLOSED and no night bookings will be accepted for the Friday and Saturday. Depending on progress the work party may run into Sunday as well so we have reserved both days.
Let us know if you can come along. Club member Nebojsa will be there on Saturday and has offered to cook up a big pot of Hungarian beef Goulash so it would be good to get an idea on the numbers so he can ensure he brings enough. Bring a deep bowl and spoon.
Match Report – Tuesday 17th June 2025. Mill Cotton complex at Ringstead.
10 Wednesday group members made the away trip to fish with Wellingborough & District Nene Angling Club on part of their attractive complex at Mill Cotton. The complex comprises of two man made lakes… ‘snake lake’, a small circular lake called ‘The Donut’, (for obvious reasons), plus other more natural lakes and a good stretch of the R.Nene.
The weather was set fair with little cloud. It was expected to be a very hot day and we were grateful for the cooling breeze that thankfully was present throughout the day. Recent catch reports were encouraging with many double figure nets reported. Six pegs were allocated to the Donut, with the remainder on the Snake Lake. Tony Hickmott distributed the Werthers (thank you Tony!) and reported the lakes temperatures to be 21 degrees Celsius.
From the off it was obvious that it was going to be something of a challenging day with most experiencing a slow start with bites for some few and far between, even for some of the regular Wellingborough lads, however the local anglers intimate knowledge of the venue shone through with them taking the top four places with double figure nets of Roach, Bream, Rudd, Tench and Crucians for a total weight of 62lbs 8ozs, compared to our total top four weight of 14lbs 14oz with the two best weights of 22lbs 2oz and 15lbs 13oz from the Donut.
Top Luton rod on the day was Richard Gibbs with a good Bream, a Crucian Carp and over 20 Roach for 5lbs 2ozs. Richard fished down the middle of Snake Lake feeding pellet and pinkie eventually catching all his fish on a size 20 hook with single pinkie hookbait. Paul Carr on the Donut took second place catching over 40 small roach and skimmers for a weight of 4lbs 6oz. Paul was very pleased with his catch as he is very fond of the venue where he has always done reasonably well. Third place was Terry Vickers with a level 4lbs of rod and line caught roach, rudd and skimmers to pinkie hookbait, and a very decent 3lbs + Bream.
Luton Wednesday Group Result.
1. Richard Gibbs 5-2-0
2. Paul Carr 4-6-0
3. Terry Vickers 4-0-0
4. Les Burton 1-6-0
5. Tony Hickmott 0-15-8
6. Malcolm Ogden 0-13-0
Simon Foulkes - DNW
Ray Burton - DNW
Mark Sessions - DNW
Brian Shaw - DNW
Among the other distractions through the day was the sighting overhead of a WW2 Lancaster Bomber, (probably heading for nearby Sywell Aerodrome), several Red Kites, the resident Heron, and at ground level the numerous goslings who frequently visited pegs to mop up spilt maggots, casters, hemp and sweetcorn and were totally unfazed by an anglers presence!
Spare a thought for Simon Foulkes whose journey time to the venue of an hour and twenty minutes was probably the longest for any of us. Simon hooked into 15 of the snake lakes resident Carp and landed 7 of them. Unfortunately, it being a ‘Silvers only’ match, they didn’t count!
Lastly, many thanks to Wellingborough Chairman Ivor Stokes and the Wellingborough members for making us so welcome and doing the weigh in. Thanks also to Ray Burton for doing the Luton pools admin. Despite the challenging fishing the day was very agreeable, not least because of the weather, good company, and the very pleasant surroundings.
Our next regular scheduled Wednesday match will be on the 25th June at Town South. Draw at the venue at 8.30am as usual, £5.00 optional pools plus £2.00 peg fee, fish 10.00am to 3.00pm. For anyone thinking of joining us for the first time please message us so we know you are coming. This helps us to manage the pegging of the venue. Please also bring your club membership book as you will be asked to produce it on your first appearance.
Match Report - Wed 18th June '25. GUC 3 Locks Upper Pound.
Our usual Wednesday fixture was moved forward a day to Tuesday 17th to accommodate our fishing friends in Wellingborough. This meant we had no fixture planned for the next day. It was suggested to hold a float only running line match on the Canal at 3 Locks for which there was much support and enthusiasm.
So on Wednesday 10 of the group members gathered at the 3 Locks car park for a trip down memory lane, fishing the canal with rod and reel with a canal waggler float, or a float fixed top and bottom, both methods and styles rarely seen on canals today, but was very much the norm prior to the introduction of poles. Indeed, the modern day stick float, a float normally associated with rivers, was invented primarily to fish the far side of canals.
At the draw and prior to the walk off, Tony Hickmott again distributed the Werthers and showed us his huge display of his beautifully crafted homemade floats for sale to suit all methods and venues be it lakes, rivers or canals. Tony has generously donated the proceeds of his sales to the Luton AC junior fund. The canal was holding good colour with the water temperature taken ar 22 degrees Celsius. The weather was forecast to be dry and hot and so it proved. There were welcome gusts of cooling wind which made float presentation a challenge.
Some anglers found respite beneath overhanging trees while others sought refuge underneath an umbrella, the fish however sought refuge elsewhere as bites were hard to come by for many.
In first place was Colin Holmes with waggler caught 3lbs 14ozs 8drms of skimmer Bream and Perch using red maggot and pinkie hookbait.
Second was Tim Watts with 3lbs 1oz of mainly skimmer Bream on pinkie.
Third place went to Pete Mills with 1 lbs 9ozs of pinkie caught skimmers.
Full result:-
1. Colin Holmes 3.14.8
2. Tim Watts 3.1.0
3. Pete Mills 1.9.0
4. Les Burton 0.13.0
Joint 5th
Dudley Frankland & Sean Leatherland 0.12.0
Joint 6th
Richard Gibbs & Tony Hickmott 0.6.8
Paul Carr DNW
Andy Frankum DNW
Despite the challenging and disappointing fishing, everyone enjoyed the occasion and the chance to do something a little different. All said they would welcome the opportunity to do it again sometime.
Thank you to the Luton AC committee for allowing this event to be held at relatively short notice.
Our next Wednesday match will be on 25th June on the Canal at Town South, Leighton Buzzard. Draw at 8.30am , fish 10am to 3pm, £5 optional pools and usual £2 peg fee. For anyone wishing to attend please message us so we have an idea of numbers attending which greatly helps with both pegging and parking. You will be asked to produce your membership book if it is your first time.
Our couple of previous match reports, Apologies for the late posting but Dennis who usually writes the reports was away on holiday and his stand in was unaware he had to send the reports to me.
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| Float only running line match - 3 Locks |
Wednesday 4th June 2025 - South Lagoon
This midweek match took place at the South Lagoon at Wyboston. 14 anglers turned up, hoping that with a more temperate side to the weather being evident more fish would also be evident.
However, the fish thought otherwise, and small fish were generally the order of the day for most anglers The temperature at the draw was 9 degrees C rising to 18 degrees C at the warmest point when the sun showed up.
However, the strong winds experienced the day before relented and the rain stayed away so overall it was a very pleasant day for fishing.
The winner of the match was Barry Roper who drew peg 20 and managed to bank 4lbs 14oz of mainly roach using a pole at 11.00m.
He fished maggot over groundbait and managed to catch during most of the match despite some unwanted attention from a predator in his swim.
Second place was taken by Andy Frankum on peg 7 who used similar tactics to tempt 4lbs of small fish.
Third place was Dave Ridley on Peg 9 who used a 4.00m whip to tempt 3lbs 0oz 8 drams of small fish having started on the feeder with no result. Completing the frame in fourth place was Richard Darbon with 2lbs 14oz 8 drams of roach with the occasional skimmer.
No fish of any great size were reported. The Bailiff visited us during the match. He noted that even the recreational anglers at the location were experiencing challenges in finding the larger fish known to inhabit the Lagoon.
Thank you to Ray Burton for his efforts to get the match under way and for organising the financial side of matters and to Colin Holmes for weighing in.
It is so pleasing to see that even when Dennis Hunt, the mainstay of the group, is away people always stand up to the plate to fulfil the duties required.
Overall, it was quite a hard day fishing wise but at least the weather was kind to us. Well done to those who managed to at least find some fish and to the rest for making it a pleasant day all round.
The full result is a follows:-
1st Barry Roper
4lbs 14 oz
2nd Andy Frankum
4lbs exactly
3rd Dave Ridley
3lbs 0oz 8drams
4th Richard Darbon
2lbs 14 oz 8 drams
5th Paul Carr
1lb 13oz 8 drams
6th Mark Sessions
1lbs 8oz
7th Terry Vickers
13 oz
8th Malcolm Ogden
11oz 8 drams
Joint 9th Ray Burton & Dudley Frankland
Both with 8 oz
11th Tony Hickmott 7 oz
Colin Holmes, Richard Gibbs & Simon Foulkes DNW
Match Report for Wednesday 11th June 2025
Great Gap lived up to its reputation with pegs 6 to 15 being buffeted by strong gusts of wind which made bait presentation more challenging than usual.
The Canal was at a good level but carried a disappointing amount of colour which enhanced the challenge facing us. However, apart from the gusts of wind the weather was kind to us with the afternoon becoming very sunny and warm.
The fishing turned out to be patchy and small fish were once again the order of the day for most anglers though there were some spectacular exceptions to this rule.
The winner of the match was the very popular veteran amongst us, Chris Howard, who drew peg 12 on the upper pound. His long walk with an unreliable trolley was rewarded with over 9lbs of fish one of which was a leviathan bream weighing over 6lbs. The remainder of his catch were smaller skimmers. Chris used a 6 gramme (yes 6 gramme) feeder. He fished maggot over groundbait and managed to catch at intervals during most of the match.
Second place was taken by Tim Watts on Peg 10, also on the upper pound, who used a pole to catch mainly smaller fish to bank 7lbs of fish.
Using similar tactics was Colin MacBeth on peg 5 on the lower pound who banked over 6lbs of fish. His day was disrupted when he lost 4 sections of his pole on the far bank of the canal. He managed to recover them, but not without a long walk back to the Bridge and through Brownlows field to recover them, an event that may have cost him a place higher than 3rd.
In 4th place was Pete Mills on peg 8 on the upper pound also using pole tactics to tempt over 4lbs of fish. That weight was boosted quite early in the match with the capture of a large Bream of over 3lbs in weight. Unfortunately, that trend did not continue as only a few small fish followed.
Another fish of notable size was reported with maestro Syd Wilson finding a specimen Roach of 1lbs 7 ounces in his 4lbs 2 ounce finishing weight. Again, this proved to be a one off catch as small fish once again made up the balance of his final weight.
The result of the Match was as follows :-
1st Chris Howard
9lbs 9oz
2nd Tim Watts
7lbs 2oz
3rd ColinMacBeth
6lb 2oz
4th Pete Mills
4lbs 7oz
5th Syd Wilson
4lbs 2oz
6th Sean Leatherland
3lbs 3oz
7th Andy Frankum
2lbs 2oz
8th Dudley Frankland
1lb 2oz
9th Simon Foulkes
13oz
10th Dave Abbott
9oz
11th Dave Ridley
5oz
12th Bart Bonito 4oz
13th Terry Vickers
2oz
14th Paul Carr
1.50oz
If you would like to send us a catch report from a Luton AC Water you can send reports and pictures via our facebook page and other social media accounts, the club website or via what’s app message to 07940 229071.
Tight Lines Until Next Week!
Dave
Luton AC
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