The Approach Fisheries

Well, I might be tempting fate here. This is the first January in years that we haven’t flooded so I’m going to be running a series of work parties on Willows this Winter.
We will no longer be taking any new members on there unless they have completed a minimum of 5 work parties.
On the plus side you will not have to pay a membership fee anymore and the work parties will only involve four hours of actual work each day.
You can use the other 20 hours each day to get to know the place ready for next years campaign and maybe even catch a fish or two while you’re at.
Obviously it’s 25 acres with 20 pegs so numbers will be limited, if you’re interested feel free to email me at [email protected] with your name, contact details and the dates that you’re available to do work parties through January and February.

I know it was only a few days ago that I said I didn’t like spamming you with fish pictures. Truth is, the complex gets way too busy when I do. There were loads out last year that I didn’t put on social media for exactly that reason.
Here’s a few fish, caught during the same session in October that I probably should have shown you at the time.
The picture of the common is Connor Hatton, getting one over on his dad with the biggest fish of the trip, ‘One eye’ at 54lb.
There certainly weren’t many that managed to do that last year, his dad’s a machine.
Big up ‘Scott Hatton’ think I’ve got more pictures of you on my phone than I have my kids at this stage.

Don’t like spamming you with fish pictures but I couldn’t let this one go without wishing you all a happy new year.
Jack Barrow’s been having it right off on Willows again, I’ll let him tell you about in his own words.

‘With my annual trip between Christmas and the new year coming up, i decided to jump on ‘Willows’. I arrived on the 27th around 14.30 with 48 hours ahead of me.

Once I got to the lake, the light was fading fast, so I opted to fish the central body of water to begin with where I previously had a 20 fish hit at the start of november.

Within an hour off getting the rods out, I was away. Rod back out on the spot, and 5 mins later, the same rod rattles off again. I then moved another rod on the spot and had 2 more bites within the next hour, 1 on each rod.

2 mid-20s, a double and the biggest of the session at 38lb 12oz landed within 3ish hours of having the rods out. Buzzing.

I managed a further 11 takes within the first 24 hours.

At this point, I opted to just use 2 rods and have the 3rd wrapped and ready to go as soon as I landed a fish.

Once the bites started to dry up, I started to move around the lake and make the most of the empty banks. I caught fish in 5 different pegs and areas of the lake.

The 48-hour session turned to 96 ha, and I managed to keep plucking them off till I left on New years Eve.

Even after temperatures dropped down to minus 4 and sheets off patchy ice coverd the surface of the lake.

In the end, I managed 21 takes, landing 17 to 38lb 12oz.

The majority of the captures are 20lb +, with 3 over 25lb and 2 being over 30lb.

What a pit willow is, I have had some great sessions on there over the last 2 seasons and topped it off with my best winter session to date.

It was a great session to leave 2025’

What a difference a day makes

This time on Sunday morning I’d been awake in the rain for 24 hours and was preparing to wake up more than forty anglers and get them packed up and off site in less than an hour. (Not the best feeling in the world when that’d probably leave us shut for at least 6 months.) Anyway, the Calder finally peaked at about 9am, and I went to bed with a smile on my face. (Pic 2)

Not only was yesterday’s sunset spectacular, the day that followed was everything it promised and more besides. Carl Callaghan caught this one at 48lb exactly (weighed it myself) from peg 5 on ‘The Troutie’ yesterday afternoon. Biggest weight I can remember seeing her at (Cue everyone showing me pictures of the other side at 49).
The last time I do remember seeing her, was when Jason Stockings braced her with Alfie’s at 52lb a couple of years ago. I think she weighed 41lb at that stage, nice to see the younger fish on the rise, how far will the newest ones go? That’s the question…………
Anyway, don’t bother phoning me trying to book a weekend any time soon, the next two are fully booked already. Midweeks are fine but if you want to fish on a Friday or a Saturday you need to book it a least a couple of weeks in advance. Winter prices kick in next week too, make hay while the sun shines and all that. Think I mentioned it last posted, (before TiicTok reared its ugly head) it’s La Niña year, we’re definitely going to flood again. I’m saying January, maybe we should run a book on it.

Peg 1 open

We’ve cleared the w**d in peg 1 on Willows and it is now reopen. Big thanks goes out to Tim Knight who was fishing in peg 2 as we were doing so. He donned his Waders, mucked right in and was duly rewarded.
I asked him if he was still catching in peg 2 on Thursday night and he sent me the picture you’re looking at along with the following response:

‘Moved well off them. Just felt the calling to deeper water in peg 6, put the drone up and found a glassed off dinner plate. Used the winch and it was only just big enough for one hopper to drop on it. Once that rain stopped it was away. Handlined it in at the boat with a huge amount of w**d. Proper fishing!!!’

Result!!!!

Thanks to Connor Hatton for the pictures.
As I said, peg 1 is open again and most of the pegs have now been wood chipped ready for winter. I was going to post this first thing this morning but had a somewhat eventful night last night, I’ll tell you all about it once the outcome has been ascertained.

Price Drop

Haven’t had much time to post of late, lot going on. Thought you might like to see a few pictures on my phone that have made me smile since I posted last. Not going to bother looking back through all the messages for weights, the majority of them are either 39 or 49, sure the fish have figured out that if they stay just under then they get less pressure!!!!!

Anyway, back to the matter in hand.
We’ll be dropping our prices at the end of the Month (1st October).
Sun, Mon, Tue, Wed and Thursday will be £20 for 24 hours and it’ll be £25 for 24 hours on Friday and Saturday.

My way or the highway.

The road around ‘Willows’ is approaching completion and each peg now has its own parking bay!!!
That can mean only one thing, it’s time to start showing you some of its inhabitants again. Got some really big hits to tell you about this summer.
I’ll start with Chris Anderton’ who’s helping me net one of the stock ponds today, I suspect he only offered because he felt guilty for having me running up and down to ‘Willows’ taking pictures of him all bloody week. Anyway, he’s ended up with 38 fish, 29 over twenty, 7 thirties (3 at 39) with the icing on the cake going 43lb exactly!
I’ve never done a Facebook poll before so you might have to bear with me on this one. Like I said initially, the road is now approaching completion, and due to popular demand, we’ve constructed a parking area on each peg.
Yep, I know, gunna make everybody’s life much easier but it does also mean that a one way system will have to be enforced.
Which leads me seamlessly to my poll:
It should appear as a story on Facebook so if you’re a member just vote left or right dependent on which way you want the one way system to operate, if you can’t find the poll just put LEFT or RIGHT in the comments section below.
Left, means a one way system that operates clockwise and accesses the willows bank first and returns on the Calder bank and vice versa.

To the left
Or
To the right.

Trout Lake

Last week’s hot weather saw fish up and down the country spawning for the 3rd or fourth time this year.
Willows was no exception, 5th go on there Friday morning, mental!!!
Anyway, the pit next door (the Trout lake) is a lot deeper and as you can see in the pictures, some of the big girls in there still haven’t gotten jiggy with it.
Monday saw Stuart Hall land ‘One Eye’ at 54lb from peg 9.
The ‘Scar Common’ was up to 47lb again when caught in peg 14 on Friday night by Tom Rollins
Yesterday morning saw ‘Mooch’ back up to fighting weight at 49lb14oz, she was a P.B and then some for Mark Stewart, peg 9 providing the backdrop once again.
The night shot is the only fish pictured that wasn’t caught in the last seven days, weighing in at 43lb2oz and was caught by Rob Parker.
Few special ones caught in Willows recently as well but I’ll wait until the roads been finished before I put those up, shouldn’t be much longer now.

Willows

Turns out that not all of the A-team has made its way into the trout lake.
Historically, the third week in May has always been known as big fish week on Willows, and this year is no exception.
Peg 20 did a 49 on Monday, still awaiting pictures to confirm which fish it is but this one is definitely Alfie’s at 47lb and ounces caught by Gareth Buglass from peg 7 yesterday afternoon, big thanks to Scott Kelly for the pictures, breathtaking as usual.

Yep, it’s silly season again.
If you want to fish a Friday or Saturday night you need to book it at least two weeks in advance at the minute..
Fish coming out, right, left and centre, the jungle drums, they are a beating.

Had a few people asking when the trout lake will be open again, suppose it’s my own fault for only mentioning Willows on Sunday.
Not only is it open again, it’s fishing its t**s off.
Here’s a picture of ‘The Gutsy one’ caught by Tom Whitehead in peg 20 this afternoon at 42lb.

This dry weather has sorted us right out, the site is once again dry and fully accessible.
‘Willows’ is open again but we’re still on with surfacing the road on the clay bank so it’ll be barrow only on that bank until we’re finished I’m afraid.
Wasn’t a problem for Conner Hart though, until he barrow’d to peg 12 and realised he’d left his bivvy in Liverpool that is. Turns out the dry weather sorted him right out too, sleeping under the stars resulting in this one at 35 and ounces.