Monster pike one for record books
Dec 3 2010 The Journal
A WEEK with lots of snow, frozen lakes and swollen rivers should have been enough to have kept all anglers indoors, but some very hardy anglers exist locally, and on The Angel complex some still fished despite having had to break the ice to fish.
Grayling have still been feeding on the running waters, and on The Eden at Warwick Hall 16-year-old Ryan Baxter landed a grayling of 1lb 4oz and Jack Pattinson landed three grayling up to 1lb.
The biggest British pike of this season so far has been landed from a North Yorkshire fishery.
Fisheries management student Jake Finnigan, 17, boated the giant from Wykeham Lakes near Scarborough during a lure-fishing session.
The monster was weighed on a set of digital scales with a reading between 40lb 3oz and 39lb 15oz. Fishery manager Mike Heelis thinks the fish could get near to, or even overtake, the current British record of 46lb 13oz taken from Welsh trout water Llandegfedd Reservoir in 1992.
:: The Middlesbrough AC match on the Swale produced a fantastic catch of 60 chub for 88lb for winner John Millican, ahead of Stuart Lee with 27lb 6oz and Scott Jose on 20lb 5oz.
The Tees at Yarm saw Phil Noble win with 6lb of skimmers, while upstream the Thornaby AA match at Croft saw Barry Stephenson of Darlington land 19lb 6oz of chub to bread, to win from Dave Oxley with 12lb 10oz and Nigel Spratt with 10lb.
:: Sunday’s match on The Angel was eventually abandoned but only after the ice had been broken to allow fishing to start, but Wednesday’s Open on Lookout fared better, and was won by Graeme Skirrey with 10lb 5oz of silver fish.
Diary dates
TOMORROW: Open Match on The Angel complex, and the last of the Lower Tees Association monthly matches on Bowesfield for 2010 takes place. Tel Anglers Choice on 01642 899 288 to book.
SUNDAY: Open Matches are scheduled for The Oaks, Woodlands, Carp Vale and Raker Lake. Langley Park AC meet in Langley Park Working Mans Club (in the back room) First Sunday of every month. Start 10am. An Angling Times Winter League match takes place on the Tees at Yarm. A Winter League series match takes place on The Angel. Sunderland FAC visit Silksworth for a Winter Series Round 5, Stockton Anglers are at Worsall, and WACAC contest their Fur & Feather at Horton Grange. Big Waters AC have a winter series match at the Angel.
MONDAY: Ryton and District AC hold their AGM at Ryton Rugby Club, 7.30pm.
TUESDAY: WACAC hold a club meeting in Dudley & Weetslade social club, Clayton Street, Dudley, and the Darlington and County Durham branch of the PAC hold their monthly get-together in the Coxhoe CIU club, while Aycliffe AC have a club meeting at Neville Parade Methodist Church from 7:30pm (members welcome to attend).
WEDNESDAY: Open takes place on Woodlands and in addition Lakeside Angling club has a business meeting at the Robin Hood Inn, Jarrow.
THURSDAY: Midweek Open on The Oaks, and Four in One AC meet at The Bay Horse Pub, Whickham.
In view of the atrocious weather anglers should check first to see if the planned fixtures are still going to take place.
