SPRING 5
Round 5 of the Carp-R-Us Spring Series was fished on the Rio Segura at Bigastro/Jacarilla. Fourteen fished and a big thank you goes to Paul Burton for ensuring that there were sufficient pegs. What usually happens at this venue is that if every peg is used, the fishing becomes very hard and so it was today, even though conditions were good. That said, everybody caught, which is pleasing.
The winner of the match, and saying goodbye until 2025, was our friend from Belgium, Jean Pierre van de Cluysson who weighed in 5.30kg caught using pole feeder tactics and maggot. JP was on peg 1, above the upstream water inlet. Second from peg 7 was Russell Davidson with 3.34kg. Russ caught most of his fish late in the match trotting with maggots on the hook. Third from peg 2, also above the water inlet, was Roy Dainty with 2.70kg caught on pole and maggot and fourth was Alan Smith from end peg 14 with 2.34kg.
It was pleasing that a lot of small barbel were caught, but it wasn’t so good seeing a number with large sore patches on their skin. We will be contacting the CHS about this.
SPRING 4
For some unexplained reason, the fishing at El Bosquet, venue for Round Four of the Carp-R-Us Spring Series, has become very patchy and so it was aging today despite the conditions being quite pleasant.
The match was split between the 1a-7 stretch and the ends of the 26-40 stretch and both provided double figure nets and blanks in equal measure. Overall winner was Doug Hornblow who managed 17.94kg from peg 1 on straight lead and maggot. Next door on peg 2 Vinnie Smith was just behind in 16.57kg on pole and maggot. Third from the often unfancied peg was Tony Felstead with 14.38kg also using maggot and pole and fourth on peg 28 was Jean Pierre van de Cluysson with 12.78kg caught on feeder and maggot. Russell Davidson won the other section from peg 40 with 8.22kg.
SPRING 3
Round three of the Carp-R-Us Spring Series was fished on the Rio Segura, Eden 2 and 3 stretches. Good catches have been had from these stretches when the river is in good condition but sadly today it was very low (and dropped further during the match) with virtually no flow, a combination that leads to very difficult fishing, as reflected in the weights.
The overall winner was Tony Felsted with 6.56kg. Tony fished pole and maggot on the downstream end peg on Eden 3 (match peg 5). Second from the first upstream peg on Eden 2 (match peg 6) was Roy Dainty with 3.74kg using a pole leger set up with maggot on the hook. Third from peg 10 was Russell Davidson with 2.12kg of small carp and barbel caught using pole and corn. Equal fourth were Willy Moons (peg 2) and Jeremy Fardoe (peg 4), both with a single fish weighing 0.88kg.
SPRING 2
A warm but very windy spring day saw Carp-R-Us fish Round 2 of their Spring Series on the Rio Segura at Bigastro/Jacarilla. Recent rain had seen the river level rise slightly to a more normal level, although it did drop again by about 10cm during the match.
A deserving winner was Paul Burton. Paul does a lot to keep the pegs clear on this stretch so the victory was just rewards for his hard work. Paul tempted 15.00kg from the downstream end peg caught on pole feeder with pellet on the hook. Second and third were our Belgian contingent with Willy Moons taking 8.28kg from peg 5 and JP 6.08kg from peg 4. Both fished the feeder with maggot. Fourth from peg 5 with 5.876kg was Steve Fell who fished pole with bread.
SPRING 1
Carp-R-Us started their Spring Series on a cloudy, blustery day at El Bosquet. With many of the same pegs being used for matches on three consecutive days, fishing proved a bit hard on some pegs although there were still some decent weights.
First and second were the two oldest members fishing with Doug Hornblow just pipping Jean Pierre (JP) van de Cruyssen. Both fished a straight lead and used maggots to record weights of 17.68kg (Doug, peg 4) and 16.52kg (JP, peg 6). Third from peg 12 was Vinnie Smith who fished floating pole and maggot for 11.28kg and fourth was Roy Dainty with 9.80kg who used pole and caster shallow.
WINTER 10
The final round of the Carp-R-Us Winter Series was fished on the Rio Segura at Eden 2 and 3. The lack of rain has seen the river fall to very low levels and when this happens and the flow on the river virtually disappears, fishing often becomes very hard, and so it proved today.
Weights were much lower than when these sections were fished a couple of weeks ago and Roy Dainty only required 4.26kg to win the match. Roy fished pole and maggot from the down stream end peg on Eden 3. The next three weights all came from Eden 2, with Steve Fell managing 3.32kg from peg 7 using pole with bread or corn, just pipping Trevor Morrey on peg 8 who had 3.16kg on feeder and maggot. Fourth was JP with 2.86kg from peg 6 using his usual bomb and maggot tactics.
This left Russell Davidson the overall series winner with 206 points with Jeremy Fardoe runner-up on 193 points. Well done to Russell and all who took part in the series.
WINTER 9
Carp-R-Us fished the penultimate round of their Winter Series on the El Bosquet complex on a pleasantly warm but breezy day. The complex has been very moody recently and it proved so again with normally good pegs failing to produce good weights, although everyone caught fish.
In the end, Willy Moons ran out a clear winner with 15.38kg from peg 5 caught using feeder and maggot tactics. Second from peg 39 was Russell Davidson with 7.90kg using pole and caster. Third was Tony Flett who managed 7.22kg from peg 2 using method feeder and corn and fourth was Alan Smith on peg 3 who had 6.98kg mainly on pole and maggot.
The final match of the series is on Edens 2 and 3 and there are two anglers vying for top spot, Russell Davidson and Jeremy Fardoe. Good luck to them both.
WINTER 8
Round 8 of the Carp-R-Us Winter Series was fished on Edens 2 and 3. On arrival the river looked in excellent condition and with the temperatures expected to rise to and unseasonal 27°C, good sport was expected. In the end though, the fishing was patchy with some decent weights and a number of not so decent weights.
On Eden 3, it was the battle of the Tonys with Tony Felstead just edging out Tony Flett. Tony Felstead had 9.50kg from peg 4 (downstream end peg) on maggot feeder while Tony Flett had 9.46kg from peg two on feeder and maggot. Third and fourth were on Eden 2, where Paul Burton had 8.14kg from peg 8 using pole feeder and maggot and Trevor Morrey had 4.64kg on the adjacent peg again using pole feeder with corn or maggot.
WINTER CUP
This week Carp-R-Us fished their Winter Cup on the Rio Segura at Jacarilla/Bigastro. With thirteen fishing it was decided to split the field between the old match stretch and the new pegged area upstream of the bridge, which worked out well for those on the old match stretch which produced three of the top four weights and only one or two fish caught by each of the members on the upstream stretch.
The winner, on the downstream end peg 13, was Mr. President Roy Dainty who caught 7.62kg using pole feeder tactics and maggots on the hook. Second was one of our Belgian members JP who had 6.98kg using pole and maggot, an unusual choice for him. Third, from the peg adjoining Roy was Neil McBirnie with 6.28kg again using pole feeder and maggot, and fourth, from the downstream end peg on the other section, was Steve Fell with a single carp for 3.32kg.
WINTER 7
Another beautiful February day was promised as Carp-R-Us fished Round 7 of their Winter Series at the El Bosquet complex. The fishing has been very patchy there recently and weights have been relatively low on many pegs and, sadly, so it proved again with all the anglers on the middle part of the 1b-7 stretch failing to catch despite second, third and fourth in the match also being on this stretch.
When Dave Hutchinson drew the favoured peg 26 everyone thought the outcome was a foregone conclusion, but even Dave struggled for much of the match before he indeed won with 11.22kg caught on the pole and maggot. Second was Tony Felstead with 9.38kg, just pipping Ian Brown on peg 7 who had 9.28kg. Both Ian and Tony fished the pole with maggot. Fourth was Willy Moons with 7.68kg on feeder and maggot from peg 1.
WINTER 6
Round 6 of the Carp-r-Us Winter Series was fished on the Eden stretches of the Rio Segura. With eleven fishing the field was split between the two stretches with five fishing the upstream section (Eden 3) and six the downstream section (Eden 2). A lot of work has been carried out to improve the pegs but there is still much more that needs to be done to clear the numerous snags.
The match was fished on another beautiful winter’s day, afternoon temperatures reached the mid-twenties, but, as the river had dropped well over 30cm from the level a couple of days before, some found the fishing tough going.
Winner from the `flyer´ at the downstream end of Eden 3 was our Belgian visitor, JP who celebrated his up coming 77thbirthday with 8.06kg caught on bomb and maggot. Second from the downstream end peg on Eden 2 (peg 11) was Trevor Morrey with 5.60kg caught on feeder and maggot. Russell Davidson was third with 5.14kg on pole and corn (peg and fourth was Tony Felstead with 4.68kg caught from peg 10 using pole and maggot.
WINTER 5
With the previous days being warm and the nights mild, a good days fishing was expected for round five of the Carp-R-Us Winter Series. The reality was, that apart from one person, the match was a struggle for almost everyone.
Clear winner from peg 26 was Willie Moons with 21.70kg including a carp of 5.96kg caught on feeder and pellet. This excellent weight was not expected when the first three hours went biteless. Second was the very consistent Trevor Morrey with 7.16kg from peg 1B using pole and maggot. Third was Ian Brown on peg 7 with 5.76kg again using pole and maggot and fourth was Dave Hutchinson with 2.86kg from peg 40.
WINTER 4
Carp-R-Us fish Round Four of their Winter Series on the Rio Segura at the stretches known as Eden 2 and 3. Unexpected overnight rain left the banks muddy, and the river was at a high level but still within its banks. The match was fished with four members on the upstream stretch (Eden 3) and four on the downstream stretch (Eden 2). And it definitely ended up a match of two halves!
The match was won by Tony Felsted off the favoured end peg on Eden 3 with 7.28kg caught using a small cage feeder and maggot. Apart from his effort, only three other fish were caught on that section. On the other section, Russell Davidson had 5.42kg from peg 6 on pole and corn, Paul Burton on peg 5 had 4.92kg on pole and maggot, Tony Flett had 4.60kg from peg 8 on feeder and maggot and even Roy Dainty managed 3.70kg from peg 7, again on pole and corn.
WINTER 3
The third round of the Carp-R-Us Winter Series was fished on the Rio Segura at Jacarilla. A mild morning gave way to a pleasantly warm January day, but everyone was caught out by a surprise rain shower just after midday. The river itself looked in excellent condition and a decent day’s fishing was hoped for.
Normally, the best weights come from the end pegs, but today two of the pegs in the middle of the stretch produced the best weights (although Russell Davidson on end peg 8 did lose a very large carp at the net). First, from peg 3 was Trevor Morrey with 12.60kg caught mainly on maggot and feeder. Second from peg 6 was Steve Fell with 9.10kg caught using pole and bread punch to the far bank and maggot and feeder closer in. Third was Ian Brown (peg 2) with 4.24kg caught on a variety of methods, just pipping Paul Burton (peg 1) with 4.14kg caught on pellet and feeder.
WINTER 2
The last match of 2023 saw Carp-R-Us fishing the El Bosquet complex just north of Catral. Two sections had been booked, 1-7 and 26 - 40 with the anglers being split across these.
The air temperature had risen to 2C as each angler dipped into the draw bag to find which peg he would fish. Unusually, Willy Moons neither won the Lucky Peg nor did he draw one of the better pegs. Instead Nick Bastock drew the lucky peg whilst top anglers Neil McBirnie and Ian Brown respectively drew what were considered the best pegs, 1B and 1.
The morning remained cold and overcast. The fish did not want to feed and everyone struggled for bites. Maggot seemed to be the only bait that got an occasional bite and, as expected, it was pegs 1 and 1b which delivered a handful of carp. The sun came out briefly around 13:00 and with it 5 Booted Eagles took to the sky, soaring above the complex. A couple of Kingfishers also appeared with one settling briefly on Jeremy Fardoe's pole as if to say I bet I catch more than you. At the weigh in, Ian Brown easily took the honours with 10.140 kgs of carp. Neil McBirnie was second with 5.76kgs which included a bass. Roy Dainty was the only other angler to weigh in on that section with a mullet caught 3 minutes before the end; perseverance was his method. The other section fared less well though Russell Davidson fishing extremely fine managing 5.12kgs from peg 39 with Nick Bastock catching 1.94 from peg 27. Jeremy Fardoe caught 1.78kgs but everyone else failed to catch.
WINTER 1
For the second week running it was touch and go as to whether we should fish the scheduled venue (Mercadona stretch) for the first round of the Carp-R-Us Winter Series or move to a different venue, again due to low water levels. In the end, after a short debate, we decided to stay where we were. In retrospect, this appears to have been the wrong choice.
Although plenty of fish could be seen moving, and despite the weather being perfect for the time of year, the fishing was very hard. The match was won by Jeremy Fardoe with a disappointing 1.32kg from peg 2. Second from peg 14 was Steve Fell with 0.92kg. Third was Nick Bastock with 0.46kg and fourth Trevor Morrey with 0.34kg. The same method was used by all four anglers, pole and bread, with any other method proving futile.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 11
It was touch and go whether to fish the Carp-r-Us 14th December match, the last of the Summer/Autumn Series, on the Eden stretches of the Rio Segura or move it to Bigastro. An inspection the day before showed that the water was not too low but that both Eden 2 and Eden 3 stretches would need to be used. There were too many large rafts of bamboo blocking the swims to place everyone on just one section. Arriving for the draw, the water in Eden 2 had gone down overnight whilst that in Eden 3 remained about a foot deeper making its pegs the preferred ones with peg 6 being by far the deepest. Peg 6 was also drawn as the lucky peg and, true to form, Willy Moons drew it.
The fishing proved very hard. The water dropped a good 6 inches during the match and its pace quickened. Trevor Morey on peg 3 caught a carp and barbel, plus miniscule mullet, during the morning but nothing in the afternoon. However, his bread punch and feeder tactic saw him win the Eden 2 section with 3.40 kgs. Meanwhile on Eden 3, no-one was catching. Then, immediately before the final whistle, Willy hooked a carp of over 4 kgs which with some small mullet on feeder and maggot gave him 4.98 kgs to win the section and be overall winner. Tony Flett was third with 3.08 kgs and Paul Burton fourth with 1.26 kgs.
This left Willy as the clear winner of the series with 262 pints with Tony runner-up with 249 points.
ANN FOWLES MEMORIAL CUP/FUR & FEATHER
A chilly morning turned in to a lovely winters day for the Carp-R-Us Ann Fowles Memorial Trophy/Fur and Feather at El Bosquet. Unfortunately the whole venue had been used for a fishing festival the two previous days and this seemed to have a somewhat detrimental effect of the fishing.
Winning the match, and therefore the Ann Fowles Trophy, from peg 8 using pole and maggot was Dave Hutchinson who weighed in a disappointing 6.34kg. Second, his best result at a club match, was Graham Booth who fished waggler and corn to land 5.90kg from peg 1. Third was Tony Flett on peg 2 who fished the pole with a variety of baits for 4.48kg. Fourth was Trevor Morrey on peg 1a with 4.18kg. Trevor also used pole and maggot.
Further information about the club can be found on its website www.carp-r-us.weebly.com or on the Facebook page Carp-R-Us Fishing Costa Blanca
SUMMER/AUTUMN 10
For the first time it felt like autumn when Carp-r-Us gathered to fish the penultimate round of their Summer/Autumn Series on the River Segura at Jacarilla. The river looked in quite good condition and, if the cooler weather didn`t put the fish off, it looked promising for a good day’s fishing. As it turned out the fish seemed to be shoaled up and the fishing was patchy.
The upstream end seemed to fish best, and the match was won by Willy Moons with 9.74kg from peg 7 (the top upstream peg was 8 and the last downstream peg was 1) using method feeder and maggot. Next door, Richard Crawshaw managed 8.44kg again using feeder but switching between corn and maggot. Third was Trevor Morrey on peg 3 who, despite losing a load of fish in a snag, managed 4.24 using feeder and maggot, fourth was Paul Burton with 3.64kg, fifth Steve Fell with 1.84kg and sixth Tony Flett with 0.64kg. Unfortunately, two members returned dry nets.
Its pleasing to report that at least the half the fish caught were barbel to around three quarters of a kilo.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 9
First the good news from Round Nine of the Carp-R-Us Summer/Autumn Series fished at El Bosquet, everyone caught fish. It is probably also good that fish is both singular and plural because a fish is all several people caught despite the match being fished in almost perfect conditions, although it should be noted that the water level on the 1a to 7 stretch was much lower than normal and the water had an unusual colour.
Runaway winner from peg 9 was Doug Hornblow who fished feeder and pellet for 15.98kg. Second from peg 12 was Jeremy Fardoe who had 10.36kg caught on pole and using a variety of different baits. Close behind from peg 16 was Willy Moons with an all mullet catch of 10.34kg on feeder and pellet and fourth was Dave Hutchinson with 8.00kg from peg 3. Alan Smith had 7.58kg from peg 14 but none of the other anglers managed to break the 4kg mark. Overall, a very disappointing days fishing at a venue that seems to be very out of sorts at the moment.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 8
The eighth round of the Carp-R-Us Summer/Autumn Series was fished on the Canal del Progres, better known as the Mercadona stretch. It was another lovely autumnal day with temperatures reaching 25°c by the time the match finished although a strong wind rose about midday making presentation difficult. The canal looked in perfect condition when we arrived but unfortunately the fish didn´t seem willing to fish and almost everyone struggled for bites.
Winning his first match with the club from peg 1, was Trevor Morrey with 3.30kg caught on pole and feeder with maggot on the hook. Second, despite losing several mullet through a hole in his keepnet, was Paul Burton on peg 14 who had 1.60kg again using the pole or feeder and pellet. Third from peg 6 was Willy Moons with 1.12kg on feeder and pellet, fourth from peg 2 was Roy Dainty (0.90kg), fifth Ken Wilcock (0.86kg, peg 12), sixth Jeremy Fardoe (0.60kg, peg 15), seventh Tony Flett (0.56kg, peg 7) and eight Steve Fell (0.10kg, peg 8).
AUTUMN CUP
Carp-R-Us took a break from their Summer/Autumn Series to fish for their Autumn Cup at El Bosquet. After another beautiful autumnal dawn, the match was fished in very warm weather although a strong breeze later in the match made presentation difficult on some pegs.
The clear winner was Ken Wilcock who fished the method feeder and pellets to return 20.46kg from peg 1a. Willy Moons was runner-up with 14.52kg from the adjacent peg and Roy Dainty third with 10.04kg. Willy used method feeder and pellet while Roy used the same method plus took a few fish on pole and bread
SUMMER/AUTUMN 7
This week saw Carp-R-Us fish the Eden 2 stretch of the Rio Segura for round 7 of their Summer/Autumn series. It was a lovely morning with mist rising off the river when we arrived. We had seven members fishing and while the river was low it looked like it would fish well. However, the fact it dropped another 20-30cms during the match left most of the upstream anglers struggling for bites.
Willy Moons was a clear winner from peg 5 with 6.30kg (six carp) caught on method feeder and maggot. Second from peg 6 was Steve Fell who used pole and bread to catch 3.00kg, just pipping Richard Crawshaw who had 2.96kg from peg 7 on feeder and corn. Fourth was Jeremy Fardoe with 0.62kg caught on whip and maggot.
A big thank you should go to Tony Flett and Jeremy Fardoe who have worked hard over the last two weeks to ensure there were sufficient pegs for matches on this stretch. It´s a pity the fish just didn´t want to feed
SUMMER/AUTUMN 6
Thursday, Carp-R-Us fished the El Bosquet complex, round 6 of the Summer/Autumn series. We had one member withdraw for health reasons and in the end we had ten fishing.
We had a glorious sunrise this morning and we were using pegs 1A to 15, 5 on each section.
First, from peg 1a was Dave Hutchinson with 21.32kg caught on pole and pellet. Second with 17.40kg was Willy Moons on peg 15. Third, and already putting in some consistent performances despite being new to the area, was Trevor Morrey with 10.94kg on pole and maggot from peg 3 and fourth was Jeremy Fardoe with 10.84kg from peg 5, using pole and a variety of baits.
Unfortunately one member fished the wrong peg and had to be disqualified
SUMMER/AUTUMN 5
After another short break, Carp-R-Us resumed their Summer/Autumn Series with Round Five fished at Jacarilla/Bigastro. The river had settled quite well after the rains earlier in the month, but was still fairly high and fast but, on a beautiful autumn day, everyone expected to catch a few fish, and that’s exactly what happened.
As expected, when he drew the upstream end peg, Willy Moons ran out clear winner with 8.12kg caught on his usual method feeder tactics. Willy fishes the venue regularly and its thought he now knows all the fish by name. Second from the other end peg was Steve Fell with 5.54kg caught mainly on feeder and maggots. Steve’s catch included six small barbel, which was good to see. Third was Trevpr Morrey, fishing the venue for the first time. Trevor had 2.50kg to just pip Richard Crawshaw who weighed in 2.22kg which also included several small barbel.
MEMORIAL CUP
Thursday 14thSeptember Carp-R-Us fished their Memorial Cup on the El Bosquet complex and we also welcomed a new member, Trevor Morrey. We had three members withdraw for various reasons and, in the end, we had nine fishing for the cup, which is fished for in memory of members no longer with us. The day could not have started better as we had a glorious sunrise as the pegs were drawn. Section 26 to 40 was used.
Clear winner and, therefore, winner of the 2023 Memorial Cup was Tony Flett who has 21 kilos of carp off the current hot peg, 26. Second from peg 29 was Roy Dainty and third was Jeremy Fardoe on peg 27. Jeremy was unfortunate in that he landed a 3.68kg carp but after the permitted extra 15 minutes so couldn´t be counted.
As seem to be the case at the moment on this stretch, the higher number failed to produce decent weights.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 4
Thursday 7th Sept, Carp-R-Us fished the first match after our summer break on the Canal del Progres (Mercadona stretch). When we arrived at the venue the sky was lightly clouded with a fresh breeze blowing and the water was just over the cill, a bit up from the normal level, presumably due to recent rains The sun showed its face around 11am and it was a hot day once again but it is pleasing to report that everyone caught fish.
The winner was Willy Moons on favoured peg 1 who caught carp on feeder and maggot to weigh in 7.64kg. Second was Paul Burton on peg 7 who use pole and corn to catch 3.70kg of carp and carassios. Roy Dainty (peg 5) used the same method but could only manage 3.26kg for third and fourth was Jeremy Fardoe with 1.84kg from peg 4.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 3
Today, Thursday 27th July, Carp-R-Us fished round 3 of the Summer/Autumn series, our last match before our summer break. We fished Canal del Progres on the Mercadona stretch. When we arrived at the venue the sky was heavily clouded and rain was forecast. Luckily, we only had to endure a very light shower. The clouds parted and the sun shone, accompanied by a variable breeze.
First was Roy Dainty on peg 2 who caught carp and mullet on pole and corn to weigh in 4.04kg. second was Tony Flett on peg 1. Tony caught carp and carassio’s for 3.76kg on pole and corn.
Third was Jeremy Fardoe on peg 5, who had a mixed bag, weighing 3.38kg using pole feeder.
And fourth was Nick Bastock on peg 4 with 2.42kg on pole fished maggot.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 2
Round two of the Carp-R-Us Summer/Autumn Series was fished at the El Bosquet complex on pegs 26-40. The previous couple of days had been very hot, but fortunately the match was fished in mainly cloudy conditions with the odd light shower and a light breeze helping make the conditions not too bad.
Over the last year or so this stretch has seen a large increase in the number of mullet and a gradual drop in the number of carp caught and so was the case today when, if you wanted to fish for them, there were mullet aplenty, but the carp were more elusive. First was Jeremy Fardoe with 13.00kg caught on pole and bread from peg 28. Unfortunately, Jeremy’s day ended with him stripped to his underwear and entering the water to rescue a couple of sections of his pole that had fallen in. Second was Dave Hutchinson on peg 34 who did include a couple of good carp in his 8.64kg caught on pole and maggot. Third was Richard Crawshaw with 8.42kg caught using feeder and maggot and fourth was the ever-consistent Willy Moons with 6.80kg also on feeder.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 1
Carp-R-Us kicked off (or should it be cast off) its Summer Autumn Series on the Rio Segura at Jacarilla. This stretch of river can be very moody, particularly if a match is being fished on it, and today, with level down and dropping a further 20cms during the match, it was in one of its miserable moods!
Hot, muggy, overcast conditions probably didn´t help but everyone struggled to catch fish. First, from the upstream end peg, was Willy Moons with 3.06kg. Second, with 2.04kg (just two carp) was Roy Dainty. Roy use pole and caught one fish on corn, the other on maggot. Third was Tony Flett (1.54kg) with a mixed bag of small fish caught trotting maggot and fourth was Steve Fell with 0.66kg.
The club would like to thank Paul Burton for spending some time clearing the pegs and paths ahead of the match.
SPRING 11
The final round of the Carp-R-Us Spring Series was fished at El Bosquet on a very warm but, in the main, overcast day. Fishing is a sport that can be a bit unpredictable but when Willie Moons drew peg 17, the peg Marlene Hutchinson excelled on at the previous Saturdays Terry Screen Memorial Match (more later) fishing the same style as Willie, many thought they knew who would win. And boy, Willie didn´t disappoint, running out a clear winner with 44.00kg on feeder and pellet. Willie was well clear od Vinnie Smith on peg 20 managed 17.75kg caught on pole and maggot, tactics which were also used by third place Steve Fell who had 12.20kg from peg 1A and Nick Bastock on peg 6 who had 11.22kg. It was sad to see a number of dead, very large mullet in the 1A to 7 stretch.
This means the series was won by Tony Flett with 206 points with Jeremy Fardoe runner up with 195 points.
On Saturday 24th June 41 local and not so local anglers turned out for a memorial match for Terry Screen at El Bosquet. The match was organised by Terrys great friend Ian Brown, and it was somehow fitting that it was Ian who won the match. Well done to all those that took part.
NB. It was later discovered that the scales used to weigh section 17-25 were set to pounds not kilograms. The amended result for the day is 1st Willie 19.98kg, 2nd Steve Fell 12.20kg, 3rd Nick 11.22kg and 4th Tony 10.40kg
SPRING 10
Carp-R-Us fished Round 10 of their Spring Series on the Eden 2 stretch of the Rio Segura. This stretch has not been used for matches for some time due to flooding and problems with the reeds that line it, but after some hard work by club members the week before, sufficient pegs had been opened up for a match.
Water levels had dropped a lot since a visit two days before and dropped a further 20cms during the match, which makes presentation challenging at times. This did not stop Tony Flett running away with the match from the downstream end peg. Tony weighed in a creditable 10.28kg caught tight to the far bank using pole and maggots. Second from the peg 2 was Steve Fell who had 6.44kg on pole and bread caught fishing the far bank under the overhanging reeds. Third with his usual method feeder and pellet tactics was Willy Moons with 3.96kg and fourth was Jeremy Fardoe with 3.40kg.
PAIRS CUP
Carp-R-Us took a week off from their Spring Series to fish their Pairs Cup at El Bosquet. On this occasion they were also accompanied by Beth and Aiden from the TV programme Bargain Loving Brits in the Sun who shadowed club president Roy Dainty during the match as well as filming the pre-match rituals and joining members at Café Uno in Catral after the match for a drink and some sparkling wit and repartee.
Half of those fishing were on beg 1a-7 and the rest on 26-40 and sadly the latter stretch fished very poorly with and number of low weights and one blank net.
The overall match was won by Dave Hutchison on peg 1 who caught 16.32kg on pole and pellet. Second was birthday boy Steve Higgins (he claims he is 72 but no one believes him) with 13.72kg from peg 4 using pole and maggots. He narrowly beat Nick Bastock on peg 3 who had 13.38kg and fourth was Paul Burton on peg 7 with 11.32kg.
The pairs was won by Nick Bastock and TV legend, Roy Dainty with Dave Hutchinson and Ken Wilcock.
SPRING 9
After having to cancel Round 8 of the Carp-R-Us Spring Series due to poor conditions it was pleasing that after another week of rain the club was able to fish Round 9 in bright warm conditions with a very slight breeze on the Canal del Progres (Mercadona). The canal was about 1 inch below the ledge when we started and dropped over an inch while we were fishing. It had some colour, but conditions have been worse, and it looked good for fishing as there were fish moving in every peg. However, that is where the story changes.
Only Jeremy Fardoe (peg 2) caught fish in the first three hours although there was an improvement later and it was Willy Moons who eventually ran out winner with 3.16kg caught on the method feeder from peg 7. Jeremy finished second with 2.26kg caught on pole and bread with Nick Bastock third and Tony Flett fourth.
With club matches held on the Segura every two to three weeks, let`s hope this rainy spell ends soon.
SPRING 7
The seventh round of the Carp-R-Us Spring Series was fished at the El Bosquet complex. Everyone had been carefully watching the weather as heavy rain had been predicted but in the end the match was fished in cloudy but warm conditions with a light but awkward breeze.
As tends to be the case here at the moment, the fishing was patchy, to say the least. What is a `hot` peg one day is not always the next.
The match was won by one of the longest serving members of the club, Jeremy Fardoe. Jeremy often does not get the results he deserved so it was nice to see him weigh-in 16.12kg from peg 1 caught using pole and an assortment of different hookbaits. A broken pole section caused by a larger barbel, took some of the shine off his day.
Second, continuing his run of good form, was Roy Dainty with 12.50kg from peg 27. Roy used pole and pellet tactics. Third was Paul Davis from peg 1b with 11.58kg (pole and pellet) and fourth with 10.90kg was Steve Fell on peg 7 (pole and bread).
SPRING 6
On Thursday 4th May the Club fished what is colloquially known as the Mercadona Channel but is actually named the Canal del Progression. This is the concrete irrigation channel than goes beneath the N332 just before the La Marina Mercadona roundabout.
The channel was running fast and low, no more than 75cms deep, and dropped a further 8cm during the morning. For most, the fish did not want to know or simply weren't there. Everyone had a feature in their swim whether it was bamboo type reeds or a small bush. These would normally be holding areas for the fish but not on this day. Quite likely, the regular illegal netting of this channel has decimated the fish stock.
Again, repeating fishing lore, end pegs win. And, so it proved. The two end pegs proved to be first and second. On peg 1, retired Welsh international Doug Hornblow showed his class to weigh in 5.60 kgs, mainly carp caught on pole and maggot. At the downstream end peg, Nick Bostock weighed 2.14kgs, also using pole and maggot. Nick had next to nothing with 10 minutes to go but then caught a decent mullet and a carp so pipping Roy Dainty on peg 7 who caught 6 small fish for 1.36 kgs. There were three dry nets.
SPRING 5
Carp-R-Us returned to El Bosquet for Round 5 of their Spring Series. Fortunately, the high temperatures of the previous days had gone and the match was fished in very pleasant conditions. At the draw ´Golden Arm´ Steve Higgins drew the favoured peg 16 and was expected to win the match easily.
As it turned out it was ex-England international Vinnie Smith who gave a master class in fishing floating pole on peg 12 to take 44.06kg using pellets and maggots as bait. Steve Higgins did manage runners up spot with 22.74kg using pole and pellet tactics. Third was Steve Fell on peg 8 with 16.80kg, again using pole and pellet and fourth was Paul Burton (peg 15) with 7.66kg caught using pole feeder and pellet.
SPRING 4
On Thursday 20th April the Carp-R-Us stalwarts fished the Rio Segura at what is named the Bigastro section of the river but is actually at Jacarilla. Very strong winds had been expected after the previous two days and whilst the coast still had them, just a few miles inland was simply tranquil. Not even the odd gust.
End pegs, for whatever reason, tend to do best. Paul Burton who lives local to the venue drew peg 1 at the upstream end of the match section. He used his well tested pole-feeder method with corn and groundbait to catch carp throughout most of the match. They weren't the biggest carp but his 5.74kgs was enough to win the match quite comfortably. Paul fished the venue last weekend and caught, after about a half hour of playing it, what is thought to be the largest carp yet to come out of this venue, a carp of just over 20 lbs (9 kgs+). The photographs showed it to be a scale perfect wild carp of around 0.75m length.
Second on the day was another local, Willy Moons, who using his usual method feeder approach, this time with pellet, weighed in 3.88kgs. Club President, Roy Dainty, had 2 carp for 1.40kgs and third place.
On the downstream end peg, Match Secretary Tony Flett managed to break a mid section of his pole whilst setting up. This did not do him any favours as using the feeder he was unable to fish the main feature of his swim, a far bank inlet. He resorted to trotting and did catch some small barbel on maggot.
Every angler around Torrevieja knows Terry Screen, 'Mr Fixit' as he has become known for his expert skill in repairing rods and poles. Unfortunately, Terry has been quite ill this year and recently spent several weeks in Torrevieja University Hospital. He now awaits an operation. I am sure every angler wishes him a full and speedy recovery. Tony has joined the lengthening queue for a pole repair. Get well soon dear Terry. 'You've gotta keep the customer satisfied. Satisfied'.
SPRING 3
Carp-R-Us returned to El Bosquet on 6th April for the third round of its 2023 Spring Series. Sections 1B to 7 and 8 to 16 were used. The latter section is much deeper and only occasionally used for matches. It also tends to throw up the bigger weights and it fished to form once again producing 6 of the top 7 weights.
The morning began chilly and misty but improved as the day progressed. A fairly calm morning led to a windy afternoon, the wind cutting straight down from peg 7 to peg 1B. The deeper section was more sheltered.
Returning to the Club was Neil McBirnie, once known as the 'Lad' and from peg 11 he fought a close match with the 'Unlikely Lad' Steve Higgins on peg 9. Neil ran out overall winner with 24.80 kgs using a pole and maggot at 9m and feeder with pellet. Steve was a close second with 23.14 kgs fishing maggot with loose fed pellet at around 16m. Dave Hutchinson on peg 12 weighed 14.56 kgs which included a brute of a carp estimated at just over 7kgs.
On the other section, former England International Vinnie Smith got off to a flying start with some large mullet. However, that end of the section died as the wind got up and the fish moved with it towards peg 1B. Alan Smith on peg 1 came out tops with 11.70 kgs with bread and loose fed maggot. Roy Dainty, who struggled to get a bite until the last hour weighed 7.60 kgs on 1B which included a carp of 3.44 kgs.
SPRING CUP
Due to the poor state of the Mercadona stretch, Carp-R-Us moved their Spring Cup to the Eden 3 stretch of the Segura, where they discovered conditions were not a lot better. The river was lower than we´d seen it in a long time so, with shallow swims and not much flow along much of the length, it was expected that the pegs closest to the CV91 would be favourites.
And so it proved with Paul Burton running out clear winner from the end peg closest to where the reeds are. Paul weighed in 15 carp caught on method feeder and corn for 10.30kg. Second, from the top end of the stretch opposite the inlet was Willy Moons who had 4.06kg, again on method feeder with corn and pellets. Third was Jeremy Fardoe who winkled out a couple of mullet for 1.30kg and fourth was Tony Flett with 0.98kg.
Congratulation to Paul on winning his first trophy with the club.
MURCIA 2
Carp-R-Us travelled to the Embalse de Argos for Round Two of their Murcia Series. They were treated to a beautiful Spring day with temperatures in the mid-twenties although a stiff breeze picked up in the afternoon. Unfortunately, the fish didn’t really respond to the warm weather and although everyone caught, the fishing was quite a struggle.
As there were only a few fishing everyone was pegged on the warm side with Willy Moons running out winner with 15.12kg caught using his usual method feeder technique. Second was Steve Fell with 11.08kg again using method feeder and wafters. Third was Alan Smith who had a late run of fish on corn to put 9.62kg on the scales. Fourth with a single carp was Graham Patterson with 1.94kg.
SPRING 2
The second round of the Carp-R-Us Spring Series was fished at the El Bosquet complex.
Pegs 17-25 were used for the first time in several weeks and it was hoped that the warmer weather would have stimulated the fish in this section into feeding, and so it proved with four of the top five weights coming from this stretch.
For the second week running the winner of the match was Roy Dainty who had 13.30kg on pole and bread from the much fancied peg 27. Second was the ever consistent Dave Hutchinson with 11.38kg from peg 17. Dave caught on both maggot and bread. Third, ably coached by his pet dog, was Doug Hornblow with 10.80kg caught on pole and maggot from peg 24 and fourth with 8.52kg from peg 20 was Tony Flett who used pole and bread.
SPRING 1
Round one of the Carp-R-Us Spring Series was fished on the Eden 3 stretch of the Rio Segura (upstream of the CV91 road bridge). Several members of the club had fished the stretch over the weekend and caught well and, with the weather predicted to be warm, a good days fishing was hoped for. However, neither the weather or the fishing turned out to be what was expected. Most of the day was overcast with a stiff breeze and the fish just didn’t seem to be interested in feeding.
The winner of the match, it´s good to see he´s finally remembered how to catch fish, was Roy Dainty who had 4.94kg on pole and bread. Second, and continuing his good run, was John-Pierre van de Cruysson who managed 2.50kg on his ´winkle-picker´ and maggot. Third with a single carp of 2.12kg caught on feeder and bread was Graham Booth and fourth, again with a single fish was Jeremy Fardoe with 1.68kg.
MURCIA 1
Thursday Carp-R-Us started their Murcia Series on the Rio Segura in Murcia town centre.
Following the very heavy overnight storms in the area that brought heavy sleet and rain we expected the river to be in full flow and at a very high level. Nothing could have been further from the case with the river appearing a normal colour, running at a normal pace and about a foot down on normal levels.
This area of the river is normally cold in the summer months and today although the temperature was about 10 degrees, at times it felt like freezing and most of the match was fished in very cold conditions.
Winner on the day, taking advantage of a good draw on peg 1 was Graham Patterson with 5.320kg. Graham fished an open ended feeder with bread or maggot fished across to take 4 carp. In second place was Wandering Walter, Terry Screen who despite walking up and down the match stretch several times managed to catch 3 carp close in on the feeder with bread for 5.020kg. Alan Smith took third place with a good solitary carp also caught on the feeder, again close in for 3.46kg. The other 3 anglers all caught, Graham Booth had 1 carp for 1.200kg, Willy Moons also followed suit with a similar carp for 1.06kg and Ian Brown brought up the rear with a single bleak for 0.025kg. Not a great day but at least we all caught.
WINTER WINTER 11
Conditions were very good for the final round of the Carp-R-Us Winter League. The previous day had been really warm and a mild night meant that the water temperature was up to 11 degrees, not bad for the time of year.
The match was won by the clubs newest member, Jean-Pierre van de Cruysson who caught 12.48kg from peg 40 using pole the pole with a single maggot on the hook. Second, fishing his first match with the club after his adventures down under, was Ian Brown (peg 6) with 7.24kg caught on pole and bread. Third was Dave Hutchinson who had 6.48kg from peg 3 using pole and maggot and fourth was Roy Dainty (peg 2) with 5.76kg using pole and bread.
This meant that the overall results for the series were: first Steve Fell with 233 points, second Tony Flett with 224, third Terry Screen (218 pts) and fourth Jeremy Fardoe (199 pts). Congratulations to all 18 members who took part in the series.
WINTER 10
The penultimate round of the Carp-R-Us Winter League was fished on the Canal del Progres Guardamar (Mercadona stretch). The water level on the stretch was low and dropped a further few centimetres during the match leaving the water quite shallow, but despite this, everyone caught fish.
The best weights came from the upstream end of the stretch, near the N332 road. First was Paul Burton with 6.76kg from peg 2, just pipping Richard Crawshaw who had 6.64kg from peg 1. Both caught carp on maggot. Third, and catching his first fish in a match this year, was Roy Dainty with 3.56kg from peg 3, and fourth on peg 5 was Terry Screen with 2.62kg.
WINTER 9
Round 9 of the Carp-R-Us Winter League was fished on the Rio Segura at Jacarilla. Rain during the days before the match had left the river high and running fast and dirty but with slack areas in most swims and the level dropping slowly, some decent sport was anticipated. However, this proved not to be the case as the fish were just not willing to cooperate and six of the ten fishing failed to catch. The match was won by Steve Fell with 1.16kg, second was Terry Screen with 0.32kg, third was Paul Burton with 0.28kg and fourth Tony Flett with 0.22kg.
WINTER 8
Thursday 2nd February saw Carp-R-Us returning to the El Bosquet complex, fishing pegs 17 to 40. Upon arrival the air temperature was showing -2oC and a low cold mist hung over the complex. It did not bode well, especially as these pegs had not been producing many fish during any of the recent matches. We could only hope. Fortunately, the Sun did come out as the day progressed.
Dave Hutchinson drew the lucky peg 26 which not only gave him a €10 but saw him on the favoured peg. He hadn’t a feeder rod with him which most favour on this peg. Instead, he fished pole and maggot for 8 carp and a total weight of 6.12 kgs to come out overall winner. Alan Smith on peg 37 fished very fine using maggot and punched bread to winkle out a few small mullet, then a carp later on, for 3.22 Kgs and winner of his section. Ken Willcock on peg 22 was the final section winner with 2.40kgs on pole and pellet. There were 4 dry nets.
Next Wednesday, the Club will be holding its 2022 trophy awards with lunch at Giovanni’s in Almoradi. Then on the Thursday return to the Rio Segura at Bigastro / Jacarilla.
WINTER 7
Carp-R-Us fished round 7 of their Winter League on Eden 3, the stretch of the Segura upstream of the CV91 road bridge. The stretch has been mostly cleared of reeds and thanks to the hard work of a few people there are now at least 14 usable pegs. The day started very cold, and, after several chilly days, the water temperature was very low. Everyone expected it to be a struggle.
And so it turned out for all but one competitor. Steve Fell took full advantage of a good draw to weigh in 11.08kg caught mainly on pole and corn from the downstream end peg. Second, from the upstream end peg was Nick Bastock who managed a single fish on maggot for 1.64kg, third was Tony Flett who again had just the one fish on maggot for 1.34kg, just pipping Willie Moons who also had just one fish for 1.32kg.
Overall, it was another tough day’s fishing that sadly again produced three dry nets. At least watching the herd of goats patrolling the far bank helped pass the time.
WINTER 6
On a very windy, sunny but cold day, Terry Screen again showed his prowess on running water by finishing a clear winner of Round 5 of the Carp-R-Us Winter League on the Mercadona stretch. Terry fished feeder tactics to take 7.94kg from near the reed bed at the end of the houses. He also lost four or five fish. Second, towards the other end of the stretch, was Nick Bastock who had 4.14kg of carp from the weed bed near the road on the pole. Third was Ricard Crawshaw with 1.34kg and fourth was Jeremy Fardoe with 1.00kg.
WINTER 5
Round five of the Carp-R-Us Winter League was fished at the El Bosquet complex, Crevillente. As the night had been pretty mild and temperatures around 20° were predicted, a decent day’s fishing was hoped for. Sadly, it didn’t quite materialise.
The match was won by Steve Higgins who said he applied all the knowledge he`d gleaned from being a protégé of the late, great Ivan Marks to put 8.30kg on the scales from peg 3. Second, despite moaning all day about his draw, was Nick Bastock with 6.04kg from peg 22. Third was the old maestro Terry Screen with 5.92kg and fourth was Willie Moons with 3.66kg.
All in all, it was a tough day’s fishing that sadly produced three dry nets-
WINTER 4
Round four of the Carp-R-Us Winter/Spring league was fished on the Rio Segura at Jacarilla/Bigastro. It’s possible to have some excellent days fishing at this venue but it often doesn’t fish well when there is a match on it. With the temperature of just eight degrees at the time of the draw, a few people feared the worst.
As it turned out the fishing wasn’t too bad, and the match was won by Tony Flett from the end peg (9) with 7.80kg mainly caught using a feeder with maggot on the hook. Second was Willie Moons (peg 6) with 6.02kg caught again on feeder with corn. Third was Terry Screen (peg 3) with 5.28kg from peg 3. Terry fished pole with either maggot or corn. Just behind Terry with 5.16kg was Steve Fell on peg 8 who caught on pole and corn.
What was noticeable was that the fish failed to respond to bread which is usually a banker bait on this stretch.
WINTER 3
Carp-R-Us fished the Canal del Progres, Guardamar (better known as Mercadona) for its final match of 2022. Members gathered on what was the coldest morning for some time and found the stretch running quite fast and looking murky, it did not look promising. And so it proved, except for one member.
The match was a runaway victory for Terry Screen who again showed his centrepin trotting skills to weigh-in 7.48kg caught using maggots and bread. A distant second was Jeremy Fardoe with 1.54kg, most of which was a single carp. Third was Steve Fell with 0.62kg and fourth Tony Flett with 0.42. Sadly, no one else caught.
Further information about the club can be found on its website www.carp-r-us.weebly.com or on the Facebook page Carp-R-Us Fishing Costa Blanca.
FUR & FEATHER/ANN FOWLES TROPHY
This Thursday Carp-r-Us fished their annual Fur and Feather match at the El Bosquet complex. This year members were also fishing for the Ann Fowles Memorial Cup for the first time
The previous night had seen heavy, cold rain in the area and the morning was much cooler than in recent days so a tough days fishing was expected. Thankfully everyone of the 15 anglers taking part caught fish even if weights were generally on the low side.
The winner from peg 39 was Steve Higgins who fished a superb match (his words) to finish with 19.62kg caught on pole with maggots. Second from peg 1b was Dave Hutchinson who had 11.86kg, again caught on pole and maggot. Third was Vinnie Smith on peg 6 who caught on pole and bread for 10.60kg and fourth on peg 31 was Terry Screen who 7.18kg also on pole and bread.
After the match a number of the members retired to Café Uno in Catral where they were served with an excellent steak and chips meal.
MURCIA SERIES 10
The final round of the Carp-r-Us Murcia Cup was fished on the Rio Segura in Murcia. After a journey to the venue in fog and light rain at the start the match was eventually fished in pleasant if cloudy conditions.
The winner, for the third week running in club matches, was Willie Mions who had 7.84kg of carp on pellet. Second, just pipping Vinnie Smith was Terry Screen who had two carp and two barbel caught on bread plus a few bleak for 7.04kg. Vinnie finished with over 250 bleak for 7.00kg. Fourth was Paul Burton with 3.74kg caught on feeder and maggot.
The runaway winner of the series was Alan Smith with 201 points (from a maximum of 230). Second was Terry Screen and third Tony Flett. Well don e to all those who fished in the series.
WINTER 2
The second round of the Carp-R-Us Winter Series was fished at the newly cleared stretch of the Segura upstream of the CV91 (Eden 3). Members of the club have spent several session clearing paths to the river and there are about 12 pegs on the stretch.
On what was officially the first day of winter in Spain, a cold front was crossing the area and rain was expected, but fortunately didn´t arrive. Although the river looked in good condition, a hard days fishing was expected. In the end, although all but one of the nine anglers present caught, but too often it was only one or two small fish. First again was Willy Moons with 4.62kg caught on his usual feeder tactics. Second was Roy Dainty who used pole with mainly maggots for 3.76kg. Just behind was Jeremy Fardoe with 3.54kg caught float fishing bread. Fourth was Paul Burton with 0.78kg.
WINTER 1
Carp-R-Us kicked off their Winter Series at El Bosquet. The match was fished in glorious sunshine and temperatures in the low 20s, amazing for the time of year.
It was a match of not two halves, but two stretches. The stretch with pegs 1a-7 fished OK, whilst the parallel stretch, 17-25, was really tough. First was Willy Moons (peg 1a) fishing his usual feeder tactics to finish with 12.04kg. Second with 9.56kg from peg 3, using pole and bread, was Paul Burton. Steve Higgins used pole and maggots on peg 1 to finish third with 6.24kg and fourth, his best finish in a match, was Graham Booth (peg 6) with 4.70kg. The best weight on the other section (17-25) was Steve Fell with 2.98kg. Sadly, he was the only person to catch more than one fish on that section.
MURCIA 9
Today Carp-R-Us fished the 9th match in their Murcia series. Five fished Embalse de Argos as two members had to pull out at the last minute.
It was a glorious sunny day if a little blustery at times and the water levels were higher after the recent rains.
The match was won by Alan Smith with 20.01 kg using a method feeder and pellet and had a mix of carp and barbel from peg 3. Second with 14.52 kg was Tony Flett also using method feeder with pellet from peg 1 and third was Willy Moons on peg 4 who had 12.42 kg and Graham Booth caught 6.62 kg from peg 5 near the point using method feeder and flake. All members caught over 6kg’s which was good to see.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 14
This week Carp-R-Us fished the final match of its 2022 Summer-Autumn series on the Rio Segura between Bigastro and Jacarilla. After some overnight rain, the day proved dry and warm albeit that the river was up and flowing very fast. There were lots of snags in the water which meant landing fish was difficult with some very large carp escaping in the underwater branches. The match was won by Willy Moons (Belgium) on peg 2 with 9.64 kgs of carp and barbel. In fact, a lot of small barbel were caught which bodes well for coming years. Second using pole and corn was Tony Flett (Scouseland) with 5.26 kgs from peg 5 and third using a maggot clip feeder was Alfonso Yagues (Spain) with 4.50 kgs from peg 1. Apart from Willy, everyone grumbled about lost fish and end rigs. At least, for a change, no terrapins were caught. To cap it all, Willy also won the ‘lucky peg’
This means that the Summer/Autumn series finishes as a tie between Willy and Tony who both had 270 points. Third was Jeremy Fardoe with 265 points. Congratulations to Willy and Tony.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 13
Carp-R-Us returned to the El Bosquet fishing complex on Thursday 3rd November for match 13 of its Autumn 2022 Series. For the first time this year, the Club included pegs 8 to 16 along with 26 to 40. After an early morning fog, the day remained overcast which suggested ideal conditions.
That proved to be the case on 8 to 16 where all of its anglers weighed in over 10kgs. Retired International Vinnie Smith came out tops on peg 12 where he gave a masterclass demonstration of fishing the 16m pole tight to the far bank with maggot and pellet for 38.76kgs. Roy Dainty on end peg 8 fished his usual pole with bread flake (Bimbo) for 20.56 kgs whilst between them Tony Flett using feeder and pellet managed 16.20kgs. All three lost some 'big uns'. Dave Hazell, who complains he never gets a mention was fourth with 14.32kgs off peg 14. Steve Higgins who gets too many mentions overslept and missed the match. By comparison to this deeper section, section 26 to 40 proved a very hard struggle for all of its anglers. Most unusually, flyer peg 26 failed to deliver with section winners being Paul Davis on peg 32 using sweetcorn on the pole for 8.42kgs and Jeremy Fardoe on peg 38 with 8.14kgs using pole and bread.
With one round left to fish only a couple of points separate the three contenders for the series Tony Flett, Jeremy Fardoe and Willie Moons. It all depends on next weeks match at Bigastro.
MURCIA 8
Sometimes, as fishermen, we have off days, sometimes the venue can have an off day. This Thursday at Argos, it was one of those days. Carp-R-Us were fishing round eight of the Murcia Series there and, in what looked like perfect conditions, everyone was expecting a good days fishing. That was not the case and almost half of the eleven anglers who fished struggled to get one or two fish.
Clear winner was Alan Smith who, despite the presence for almost half the match of some intrusive neighbours, managed 12.84kg caught on the method feeder with 8mm pellets from peg 11. Next door on peg 10, Jeremy Fardoe was second with 9.36kg caught using a hybrid feeder and 8mm robin red pellets. Third, but who should have been second if he hadn’t dropped a fish back in at the weigh-in, was Graham Patterson with 9.20kg caught on cage feeder and slow sinking feeder (although even then, the fish were taken on the bottom). Fourth, fishing an unfancied peg on the cold side, so an excellent performance, was Steve Higgins with 7.50kg.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 12
Round 12 of the Carp-r-Us Summer/Autumn Series was fished on the Rio Segura at Jacarilla/Bigastro. Although there hadn’t been any recent rain the river was very high, running fast and very muddy so a tough match was expected.
The match was won by Dave Hutchinson, fishing his first match for a while. Dave fished peg 1 with pole and corn to take 13.16kg. Towards the other end of the stretch, Steve Fell used a combination of pole and bread and feeder and maggot to take 6.32kg, including four small barbel- Third was the ever consistent Willie Moons with 3.84kg form peg 2, just pipping Richard Crawshaw who had 3.82kg on peg 3.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 11
Thursday 13th October the club fished the eleventh round of the Summer/Autumn Series at El Bosquet. The match was split between pegs 1b and 7 and 17 to 25 and there was a big difference between the two sections with the anglers on peg 17 – 21 struggling for just one fish each and not much being caught on the other pegs on that stretch.
Winner, transferring the skills he learnt on the Segura at Bigastro and honed at The Pond to El Bosquet was Willie Moons with 22.14kg from peg 3 using feeder and corn. Second from peg 4 was Jeremy Fardoe with 19.76kg caught mainly on pole and bread. Third from peg 6 was Terry Screen with 13.84kg and fourth from peg 2 was Paul Burton. The series is now entering its last weeks with five anglers in contention for the trophy.
MURCIA 7
On Thursday 6th October Carp-R-Us fished the Rio Segura at Murcia Town Centre. The fishing at this venue has not been very good for most of the year and it was hoped that recent rain may have freshened it up, sadly that was not really the case. Most anglers fish the feeder here, with some also catching bleak using a whip and maggots. First was Alan Smith with 10.80kg, second Terry Screen with 8.26kg, third Steve Higgins with 4.90kg and fourth Tony Flett with 2.70kg.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 10
Carp-R-Us fished the tenth round of the Summer/Autumn Series at El Bosquet. The match was scheduled for the Rio Segura at Bigastro but the rain at the beginning of the week meant that the river was flooded and unfishable.
The match was fished on what was probably the coolest day for several months, the temperature only rising to the mid-twenties. The long back channel was fished and, as is the norm there lately, the lower numbers fished better than the higher ones. The winner was Jeremy Fardoe with 10.90kg caught mainly down the edge on peg 29. Second was the returning Tony Flett with 5.54kg from peg 33, third was Willy Moons on peg 30 with 5.18kg and joint fourth from pegs 39 and 38 were Terry Screen and Steve Fell with 3.42kg. Apologies for lack of method details.
MEMORIAL CUP
This Thursday Carp-R-Us fished their Memorial Cup match at El Bosquet. This year the cup holds a special place in the hearts of the club as sadly two of our longest standing members, Ann Fowles and Roy Buttress both passed.
The days leading up to the match predicted that there would be rain and possibly storms at some stage during the day. As it turned out the match was fished in warm sunshine with a light breeze, so much for weather forecasts. The match was won by Willie Moons who drew one of the current hot pegs, 29, to take a creditable 24.12kg caught using straight lead fished over corn and pellets. Second, on the adjacent peg (30) was Roy Dainty who had 14.30kg on pole and flake. Third was Doug Hornblow with 10.98kg, mainly caught using pole and maggot, from peg 21 who pipped Jeremey Fardoe by the narrowest of margins, Jeremy having 10.96kg caught on pole and meat.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 9
This week, 8th September the club fished Round 9 at Nancys. This venue always causes headaches as it is very popular with local fisherman and it is impossible to reserve pegs, so the usual plan is to arrive at dawn for a walk off, hopefully before anyone else arrives. Unfortunately, by 0715, when it was just getting light, three of the pegs we would normally fish had already been taken. Fortunately, there were still enough pegs available for those fishing, but we were more spread out than we would have liked.
It was another hot day, and the venue had a good flow and plenty of fish were showing. However, although everyone caught, the fishing was not great. Winner on the day was Steve Fell who had 3.24kg caught on pole feeder with wafters or pole with bread. Second was club stalwart Terry Screen who had 24 small fish for 3.09kg caught on pole and bread. Third was Jeremy Fardoe with 2.64kg (it would have been more if he had weighed all his fish and not left two in his net), again fishing pole and bread. Fourth was Roy Dainty with 0.78Kg.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 8
On Thursday the 1st of September Carp R Us fished round 8 of the summer/autumn series at El Bosquet.
The weather was rather hot to say the least and we fished pegs B1 to 7 and 18 to 22.
Winner on the day was Ian Brown with 36.04kg from peg 3. Ian fished mainly the feeder on the pole with pellets but caught a few carp down the edge later on with corn.
In second place was Ken Willcock with 23.86kg from peg B1. Ken fished the feeder on the rod with the unusual bait of turkey meat to take some quality carp.
Third place went to Alan Smith who caught mullet early, on the bread, but carp close in on the pole with paste after that for 15.50kg.
In fourth place was Nick Bastock who fished peg 18 on the back channel. He fished the feeder towards peg 17 and caught some decent carp for 14.88kg.
Big thanks go out to Steve Higgins and Alan Smith who ran the match in the absence of the usual suspects.
MURCIA 6
Carp-R-Us fished the 6th match of its 2022 Murcia Series on the Rio Segura in the centre of Murcia on Thursday 28th July. This was the last match ahead its annual August 'heat wave' break. Fortunately, the temperature had dropped considerably since the 40oC+ days of earlier in the week and even Terry Screen reported from personal experience that the water was cooler than expected. The day only hit the mid 30oC's. At the outset, the river looked in poor form. It was a milky grey/green which did not bode well.
This was a day when the pegs fished to form. Peg 1 above the weir performed best with Willy Moons managing 6.60Kgs; 5 carp and a barbel all over 1kg on feeder with pellet. Terry Screen on Peg 2 came 2nd with 5.43Kgs; 7 carp on feeder alternating bread and pellet. Then on peg 3 just below the bridge, Alan Smith managed a creditable 2.14Kgs which comprised 1 carp and 56 bleak (which weighed 0.97kgs). Finally, Roy Dainty immediately above the bridge had 2 carp for 1.76kgs.
The Club won't be fishing any formal matches during August but no doubt there will be some impromptu knock ups on Thursdays for those willing to take on the heat.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 7
Carp-R-Us fished the Rio Segura at Bigastro for the first time in two months for Round Seven of the Summer/Autumn Series and how it had changed. The bank side vegetation, so carefully cleared after the DANA of 2019 is now back to head height in many places. The river itself was down about half a metre from the previous visit (and fell a further 15cm during the match), so another tough day at the office was expected.
Winner of the match was Richard Crawshaw, now fishing with us more regularly after almost a year spent renovating his house. Richard fished feeder and maggot to have 2.83kg from peg 2. Next door on peg 1 was Steve Fell who managed 1.28kg also using feeder and maggot. Steve´s catch included two small barbel, which was good to see. Third was Tony Flett with 1.00kg and fourth Jeremy Fardoe with 0.28kg. It is worth mentioning that over 20 terrapins were caught during the match
SUMMER/AUTUMN 6
Round 6 of the Carp-R-Us Summer/Autumn Series was held at the El Bosquet complex. Temperatures were predicted to reach the mid-thirties and as there had been a large charity match fished at the venue the day before where weights had been relatively poor, expectations were not high. However, we were wrong, and the fishing was quite good. First, making one of his rare appearances, was Ken Wilcock on peg 2 with 22.70kg caught using pole and bread. Second, on peg 1b was Tony Flett with 16.30kg caught on pole and sweetcorn. Third from peg 5 was Willie Moons who fished his usual feeder tactics to take 12.58kg and fourth was Steve Fell on peg 7 who had 10.15kg caught switching between feeder with corn and pole with bread.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 5
After having a break from match fishing for a week, Carp-R-Us resumed their Summer/Autumn Series on the Canel del Progrés (Mercadona Stretch), Guardamar. This stretch has changed a lot in recent years. It used to contain many fish-holding features which were home to some difficult to catch, large carp. Then it was cleared and dredged, returning it to the concrete channel it was originally. Now, the far bank vegetation is returning and the water itself has large beds of streamer weed, ideal for the fish, a challenge for the angler.
Although there were plenty of fish to be seen, they were largely elusive. The match was won by Terry Screen who turned up with his beloved centre-pin reel determined to trot maggots whatever the peg. Undeterred by the large beds of weeds, Terry did just that to weigh in 3.42kg. Second was Steve Fell who took a few mullet on pole and bread but mainly caught on a maggot feeder for 1.70kg. Third was Jeremy Fardoe with 1.08kg and fourth Tony Flett.
SPRING CUP/PAIRS CUP
This week Carp-R-Us fished their postponed Spring Cup and their annual Pairs Cup at the El Bosquet complex. The weather was again very warm with a light breeze making conditions quite comfortable. The Spring Cup was won by Ian Brown from the often unfancied peg 33. Ian weighed in 16.20kg caught on the pole using corn. Second, on peg 18, and continuing his recent good run of form, was Roy Dainty with 14.57kg caught on the pole. Third, fishing for the first time after a long absence, was Dave Sutton. Dave used feeder tactics to take 10.70kg from peg 36, Fourth was Willy Moons who also used the feeder for 10.55kg from peg 25.
The Pairs Cup was a very close affair. It was decided on section points then total weight if more than one pair had the same points. In the end three pairs scored four points, Willy Moons and Dave Sutton, Steve Higgins and Ian Brown, Roy Dainty and Alan Smith with Steve and Ian just pipping Roy and Alan by 500gms. Well done to all who took part.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 4
Round four of the Carp-R-Us Summer/Autumn series was fished on The Pond (El Bosque Animado) on a hot but pleasant day. Water levels can be hit and miss at this venue but today the level was good. Ther match was won by Terry Screen with 12.48kg caught switching between pole and feeder and using pellets as bait. Second was Willy Moons with 11-38kg caught using pellet waggler or feeder tactics. Third was nick Bastock who switched between pole, pellet waggler and feeder for 10.88kg. Fourth, by 0.02kg was Alan Smith with 8.38kg.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 3
After several months when the venue has been unfishable and thanks to the hard work of Jeremy Fardoe and Tony Flett clearing pegs, Carp-R -Us fished round three of their Summer/Autumn Series on the Eden 2 stretch of the Rio Segura near Guardamar. The day was probably the hottest the club has fished on so far this year and sadly the fish didn’t seem inclined to feed.
Roy Dainty won the match with 4.60kg from peg 4 fishing the pole and using bread and corn on the hook. Tony Flett was second with 2.60kg and Jeremy Fardoe third. Sadly, these were the only three that caught fish.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 2
Carp-R-Us continued with their Summer/Autumn series at the El Bosquet complex. The weather was hot and sunny and the match was fished on sections 1b-7 and 17-25. The winner on the day and showing a welcome return to form was Roy Dainty with an excellent 31.13kg caught from peg 3 using pole and bread tactics. Second was Tony Flett who was forced to fish the method feeder and pellet as he forgot his pole but still managed 28.50kg from peg 6. Third was Willie Moons with 16.58kg from peg 20, also fishing method feeder and pellet and fourth was Terry Screen on peg 22 who caught 9.78kg using pole and maggot.
MURCIA 5
This weeks Carp-R-Us was fished at the Embalse de Argos and formed part of the clubs Murcia series. For a change the match was fished in hot, sunny weather, something we’d become unaccustomed to over the last few months. The embalse has received lots of water over the last few months and was a couple of feet higher than last time we were there and slightly coloured. This was also the day we said goodbye for a few months to our Welsh members, Doug and Alan.
The match was fished with half the field on the sunny side and half on the cooler side.it was unfortunate that a local fisherman was already in position on the pegged stretch despite the clear notices saying there was a match on. He refused to move so pegs had to be adjusted to accommodate him.
The winner of the match was Alan Davis with an excellent 40.38kg from peg 10 on the sunny side. The next three places went to anglers on the cooler side with Doug Hornblow making it a Wales 1-2 with 36.60kg from peg 1, with Alan Smith third with 30.04kg and Ian Brown fourth with 29.02kg. All the top four fished pellet with slow sinking feeder. It’s pleasing to report that all ten anglers who fished, caught.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 1
Carp-R-Us kicked off their Summer/Autumn series on the Rio Segura at Bigastro/Jacarilla. The last time we fished there, it rained for most of the match and, with the river rising the fishing was hard. Today, the conditions looked particularly good. The river had a steady flow and, with a warm day promised, everyone was looking forward to a good match. How wrong it turned out to be. Everyone struggled for bites and with at least 30 dead fish drifting down the river during the match there was a strong feeling that something had got into the river affecting both the fish and the fishing. All incredibly sad.
The match was won by Alan Davis on peg 1. Alan fished pole and bread to take a few carp for 3.23kg. Second, from the middle of the stretch, was Steve Fell who had 1.65kg of carp also caught on pole and bread. Third was Willy Moons with 0.79kg caught on his customary feeder and pellet and fourth was Tony Flett who had about a dozen bleak for 0.33kg.
WINTER/SPRING 14
Carp-r-Us fished the final match of its 2021/22 Winter-Spring Series on Thursday 5th May at El Bosque Animado, colloquially known as 'The Pond', situated on the N332 between Guardamar and La Mata. The weather did not live up to the forecast sunshine and 24C. Instead, the morning of the match was fished under heavy cloud and a cool wind that chopped and changed direction between West, North and East. Only late in the afternoon did the sun decide to show itself.
The match was split into a morning and an afternoon session so that lunch could be taken between sessions. El Bosque Animado is unusual in that it is principally a restaurant. Anglers are charged €10 to fish but can redeem this for food and drink; hence the lunchtime break. The fish remained shy during the morning session with only a few carp being caught. Will Moons on peg 3 fishing method feeder with pellet was in the lead with two at the break with each of the other anglers on his side of The Pond having one carp apiece. Only sunfish had been caught on the opposite bank.
Things improved marginally during the afternoon session. Willy caught more carp, the best around 3kgs, and came out clear winner with 12.19 kgs. Doug Hornblow on peg 5 alternating between pole and feeder with maggot came second with 7.78 kgs. Alan Davies on peg 7 was third with 2.65 kgs. The opposite bank failed to produce any carp. Ian Brown on peg 12 decided to fish for sunfish and weighed in around one hundred for 2.20kgs to win his section.
This being the last of the Winter-Spring Series, the overall winner was Steve Fell (284pts) who chalked up 5 wins and 2 seconds with Willy Moons (265pts) not far behind with 4 wins and 1 second. Tony Flett (249 pts) was third. Well done to all 19 anglers that took part in the series.
Next Thursday, the 12th May is a pleasure day at El Bosquet with tutelage being offered to members who wish to learn or improve their pole fishing. This will be followed by a BBQ.
WINTER/SPRING 13
Sometimes we wish we were Darts-R-Us or Cards-R-Us rather than Carp-R-Us so we could pursue a pastime indoors instead of in the wet! Today the club held a match on the Rio Segura at Bigastro. It was predicted to rain almost all day, so it was fortunate we were able to hold the draw and set up before the heavens opened. Equally fortunate was that the rain stopped again for the weigh-in. That was where the good fortune ended, the fishing was very poor, possibly due to the fact that the river had risen over the last couple of days. What definitely did not help was the reported pollution that had occurred upstream, and a number of dead or distressed fish were seen during the match. Very sad,
The match was won by Roy Dainty with 1.93kg caught on the pole using corn, second was Steve Fell with 1.25kg caught on pole with bread. Finally, third was Tony Flett with 0.20kg using pole and maggot. Oh well, it has got to stop raining soon, hasn´t it?
MURCIA 4
After yet another enforced break due to the poor weather, Carp-R-Us returned to action with Round Four of their Murcia Series on the River Segura in Murcia Town Centre. Again, the match was preceded by a couple of days rain but although the river was quite high it was fishable although everyone had to be pegged below the bridge as the road under the bridge was flooded.
The match was won by Paul Burton who was pegged just at the bottom of the slope. Paul weighed in 4.88kg of carp and a barbel caught on feeder and pellet. Second was Terry Screen with 2.19kg caught using feeder and corn. Third was Alan Smith with 1.88kg (feeder and corn or wafter) and forth with 1,12kg was Tony Flett (feeder and maggot).
WINTER/SPRING 12
Not fished due to state of the river
WINTER/SPRING 11
After a two week break due to the bad weather affecting the venues, Carp-R-Us resumed their Winter/Spring Series at the El Bosquet complex. The venue had been used for a fishing festival the previous two days and this, together with the heavy overnight rain, led those attending to think the fishing would be hard. And so it proved to be, except for the two Steve’s.
Steve Fell, fishing pole with punched bread, won the match from peg six with 22.85kg, narrowly beating Steve Higgins on peg 3, who fished pole with maggot to take 19.98kg. These two were well clear of the rest, with Graham Patterson finishing third with 7.42kg from peg 4 (pole with maggots and pellet) and Paul Burton fourth with 6.10kg from peg 1b (feeder and pellet).
WINTER/SPRING 10
Round 10 of the Carp-R-Us Winter/Spring Series was fished at the El Bosquet complex. The rains and cool weather of the previous weekend has dropped the water temperature and reports were that the fishing was hard, and so it proved to be.
The match was won by Willy Moons from peg 18. Willy caught using his usual method feeder method with corn or pellets on the hook to take 7.60kg of carp. Second was Tony Flett who lost a lot of quality carp on peg 40 but still weighed in 6.58kg. Tony fished the pole with pellets or maggots. Third was Steve Higgins on peg 30 who caught 6.18kg on pole and maggot and fourth was Graham Patterson with 5.80kg who fished the pole feeder on peg 19.
MURCIA 2
Carp-R-Us took a break from their Winter/Spring series to fish the second round of the Murcia Cup on the Rio Segura in Murcia. A warmish morning greeted those taking part and it was hoped that, with the weather set fair, a good days fishing would be had. Unfortunately, as is common at this time of year, the fish seemed to be in little pockets and, if you weren´t fortunate to find one, the match was a struggle.
The match was won by Dave Hutchinson with 9.48kg caught, unusually for Dave, using feeder tactics and maggots. Dave was pegged just downstream of the road bridge. Second was Willie Moons with 7.00kg who just pipped Graham Patterson on the next peg who had 6.99kg. Graham and Willie were at the upstream end of the stretch. Fourth was Terry Screen with 6.58kg from peg 1.
WINTER/SPRING 9
Round nine of the Carp-R-Us Winter/Spring series was fished on the Rio Segura near Guardamar. The club puts a lot of time and effort in keeping the stretch fishable but sadly the banks and the river itself are in a very poor state due to the amount of rubbish that collects there. The bank was still frost covered when we arrived, and the river was very low with little flow. A hard day’s fishing was expected.
The match was won by one of our new members, Paul Burton. Paul fished pole and feeder with either casters or maggots to finish with 4.54kg. Second, after a long run of poor results, was Roy Dainty who finished with 3.73kg fishing pole and maggot. Third was Terry Screen with 2.40kg, again caught using pole and maggot and fourth was Jeremy Fardoe with 2.59kg. The top three weights were all taken from the deeper downstream end of the stretch, the top end fished very poorly.
WINTER/SPRING 8
Carp-R-Us had a good turnout for round eight of the Winter/Spring series held at the El Bosquet complex. Temperatures in the mid-twenties with light winds were predicted so the match was fished in possibly the best conditions of the year so far. However, apart from the pegs in the new section, which the club was using for the first time, and the high number pegs, fishing was tough, although everyone caught.
Alan Smith ran out a clear winner fishing pole and feeder with maggot to catch 13.92kg from peg 15. Second, on the same section, was Nick Bastock who had 11.22kg from peg 11 using pole and maggot. Third was Steve Fell who caught plenty of mullet using pole with bread and some bonus carp on pellet to weigh in 9.41kg from peg 39. Fourth from peg 37 was the returning Dave Hutchinson with 8.25kg caught on pole and maggot/bread from peg 37.
WINTER/SPRING 7
The Rio Segura at Jacarilla/Bigastro was the venue for Round Seven of the Carp-R-Us Winter/Spring Series. The banks were still frosty when the stretched was pegged out but with temperatures expected to rise to the low 20´s and the river looking in good condition, a pleasant day’s fishing was expected. However, as seems to be the case on all venues at the moment, the fishing was extremely poor.
Steve Fell again ran out winner with just 2.70kg caught on maggot feeder close in from end peg 9. Second again was Terry Screen again using a feeder and maggots from peg 2 to take 1.53kg. Third was Nick Bastock with 1.36kg from peg 6, using the same method and fourth with 0.99kg was Willy Moons using method feeder and corn.
WINTER/SPRING 6
Carp-R-Us continued their Winter/Spring series at the El Bosquet complex. Although cold and cloudy, the high winds of the previous two days had dropped, making conditions a little more comfortable.
The match was a remarkably close affair, with just 610g covering the first five places. Sad to report, there were also three dry nets. The winner was Steve Fell who fished pole with bread against the far shelf drop-off on peg 4 to finish with 5.66kg. Second was Terry Screen who had 5.48kg, again using pole with bread. Third from peg 18 was Jeremy Fardoe with 5.18kg just pipping Nick Bastock who had 5.12kg from peg 7. Again, both fished the pole with bread.
MURCIA CUP 1
This week saw Carp-R-Us kick of their new Murcia Cup series on the Rio Segura in Murcia Town Centre. At this time of year this venue can be very cold as most of it remains in shade all day. Added to this, the temperature when we met was only 2°c, warm clothing was needed!
The match itself was very strange. The pegs near the first road bridge and below produced fish, the further upstream you went, the harder the fishing. In fact, two of the upstream pegs sadly failed to produce a fish or even a bite.
Alan Smith won the match from the peg immediately up stream of the road bridge with an excellent 17.50kg caught fishing method feeder and wafter close to the far bank. Steve Fell was second with 9.93kg also fishing the method feeder close to the far bank but using double corn on the hook. Steve was near the bottom of the access slope. Third was Jackie Breslin, also on the method feeder, with 7.92kg just upstream of Steve. Fourth was Terry Screen with a single carp for 1.95kg.
WINTER/SPRING 5
Round 5 of the Carp-R-Us Winter/Spring Series was fished on the Eden 2 stretch of the Rio Segura. This stretch has around 14 pegs but unfortunate five or six are now unusable due to the large amount of debris that has collected along the length. The day started, and remained, quite cool, and rain earlier in the week meant that, for a change, the water level was quite good. However, possibly due to the influx of cold water, the fish were slow to feed.
Steve Fell won the match from peg 2, taking 6.78kg of carp using the method feeder with corn or maggots on the hook. Second on peg 1 was Dave Hutchinson with 3.37kg caught on pole with bread or corn. Just behind with 3.02kg was Nick Bastock with 3.04kg most of which was caught trotting maggots, and fourth was Terry Screen from end peg 7 with 1.00kg.
WINTER/SPRING 4
Carp-R-Us returned after the Christmas break to fish the stretch of water known as Nancys. Even though we arrived just as it was getting light most of the popular pegs had already been taken by pleasure anglers enjoying a Kings Day fish. It was also the coldest day for some time although the lack of wind and bright sunshine made for pleasant conditions.
The match was won by Willy Moons using his usual method feeder and corn to take 5.35kg and just pip Terry Screen who had 5.24kg using pole and punched bread. Third, fishing his first match with the club, was Nick Bastock with a single carp of 1.68kg caught using method feeder and pellets, and fourth was Steve Fell with 0.66kg of small mullet caught on pole and punched bread.
WINTER/SPRING 3
Round three of the Carp-R-Us Winter/Spring series on the Rio Segura at Eden 2, just below the CV91 road bridge. This is a strange stretch of water where water levels fluctuate both from day to day and within the duration of a match. Today the river was a good two foot higher that when we checked the stretch three days before, and the water dropped over a foot during the match. It all makes life interesting.
The match was won by Steve Fell with 4.88kg, a mix of carp and mullet caught using pole and bread tactics. Second was the ever-consistent Willy Moons who fished method feeder and corn to take 3.30kg form peg 6. Third, using a similar method, was Roy Dainty with 2.14kg from peg 5 and fourth was Jeremy Fardoe who caught two carp late on trotting bread for 1.98kg.
The club will be taking a break from matches until the New Year so from everyone at Carp-R-Us Merry Christmas and a Prosperous New Year.
WINTER/SPRING 2
Carp-R-Us resumed their Winter/Spring series on the Rio Segura at Jacarilla/Bigastro. For the time of year the weather was very pleasant and the forecast strong breeze never arrived, which made fishing very comfortable. The river was relatively low, but had a good colour and steady flow, so all looked good. However, the stretch responded to a match as it always does and, although everyone caught, weights were not great.
Willy Moons, who knows the stretch well, won again. Fishing peg 1 and using the method feeder with a variety of hook baits, Willy weighed in 8.70kg. Second from peg 7 was Steve Fell who had 4.70kg alternating between pole with bread and feeder with maggots. Third from peg 3 was Terry Screen who managed 4.43kg using the cage feeder and fourth was Dave Hutchinson with 3.76kg from peg 4.
FUR & FEATHER
This week Carp-R-Us held their annual Fur & Feather match at the El Bosquet complex. For the time of year, it was quite mild, and the predicted high wind did not arrive until midday, although when it did, it made pole fishing difficult. There were lots of mullet caught but for most people, the carp never showed.
Willy Moons won the match from peg 37. Fishing his usual feeder and pellet method he managed 6.80kg of carp and mullet. Second from peg 35, was Tony Flett with 5.09kg fishing the pole and using maggot and bread. Third from peg 29 was Steve Fell who had 4.49kg of mullet from peg 29 and fourth was Jeremy Fardoe with 3.10kg using pole and bread on peg 38.
After the match, a number of the members went to Café Uno in Catral for an excellent meal. Thanks to Alan Smith and Steve Higgins for sorting the food.
WINTER/SPRING 1
The first round of the new Carp-R-Us Winter/Spring series was fished on the stretch commonly known as Nancys. The club has not fished this water since the gota fria of 2019 and we were pleasantly surprised at the number of pegs and the depth of water. Unusually for this stretch the water was flowing quite quickly and a strong breeze made presentation difficult on some of the downstream pegs.
Roy Dainty won the match fishing the pole at 14.5m with the wind blowing across him, no mean feat. He caught a number of carp on corn to finish with 5.68kg. Second, continuing his good form, was Tony Flett with 2.28kg caught on the pole alternating bread and corn. Third, from the adjacent peg, was Dave Hutchinson with 1.63kg. Dave also fished the pole with corn. Fourth was Jackie Breslin who had 1.26kg on the feeder and corn.
For more information, visit our website www.carp-r-us.weebly.com
AUTUMN 10
Carp-R-Us fished the final match of their 2021 Autumn Series at Bigastro/Jacarilla. Despite heavy overnight rain, and more heavy rain during the match, the venue was in a surprisingly good state and the fishing was quite good, with everyone catching. It was particularly pleasing to see a number of small barbel being caught, hopefully this bodes well for the future.
The match was won by Willy Moons from peg 8 using method feeder and corn to take an excellent 23.89kg. Second, from peg 1 was Steve Fell who fished the pole alternating bread and corn to take 10.68kg. Third was Dave Hutchinson with 7.69kg from peg 6 again using the pole with bread and corn. Fourth was Tony Flett with 3.70kg caught using the feeder.
This means that the series was won by Steve Fell with 210 points with Tony Flett finishing runner-up with 201 points. Well done to all who took part in the series.
AUTUMN 9
This week nine members of Carp-R-Us made the long journey to Embalse de Argos for the penultimate round of the Autumn Series. The temperature was a cool 6°c, autumn has definitely arrived, but seeing lots of fish topping gave people confidence. The match was won by Alan Smith with an impressive 19.14kg from peg 5 caught using method feeder and pellets. Second, with his best results at Argos, was Jeremy Fardoe who had 8.48kg from peg 8 using method feeder and corn. Third was Steve Fell on the adjacent peg who managed 7.54kg using method feeder and corn or pellet. Fourth Roy Buttress with 5.58 from peg 1 on the dark side again using method feeder and corn. A few of the anglers stayed the night before at Hotel Argos and, as usual they were well looked after with a lovely evening meal and good breakfast.
AUTUMN CUP
Carp-R-Us took a break from their Autumn League to fish their Autumn Cup at the El Bosquet complex. It was the first morning with single figure temperatures and the feeling was it could be a hard match, and so it proved. Fish were very loath to feed, and everyone struggled for bites. The match was won by Willy Moons from peg 5. Willy had 11.88kg caught on his normal feeder and pellet method. Second was Tom Marshall from peg 7 with 5.47kg again using the feeder but this time with bread on the hook. Third was Terry Stroud (peg 3) with 4.99kg using feeder with corn or maggot and fourth was Jackie Breslin (peg 1a) on feeder and maggot. There were also four anglers on pegs 20-23, but the less said about that section the better, although Steve Fell did manage several carp before he had to leave early.
All in all, a very disappointing day where, unusually for the venue, feeder triumphed over pole.
AUTUMN 8
Carp-R-Us fished the 8th round of its Autumn 2021 series at Bigastro (Jacarilla) on the Rio Segura on Thursday 28th October. It was a close call whether to cancel the match, and move elsewhere, as upon arrival the river was in full spate. It was just touching the lips of the bank and was boiling along at an incredibly fast pace. Fortunately, Willy Moons had been down the afternoon before and reported that then the Segura was over its banks. As the level had dropped overnight, we decided that the match would go ahead and, that in all likeliness, the river would continue to fall which it did by about 300mm during the five hours of the match.
Pegging from downstream upwards, Roy Dainty was drawn on peg 1 (third week in succession with peg 1) whilst Alan Smith was on peg 2. Coincidentally they had fished these same pegs the previous week when Alan made his first visit to this venue. Then both had 15 decent carp and Roy too many terrapins. This time, peg 2 had the only slack water on the stretch and, as Alan found, in the spate this was ripe with terrapins. Roy came out winner with four carp for 3.60 kgs fishing cage feeder and bread flake against the inside margin. Unlike the week before, pole against the far bank failed to produce. Second was Willy Moons on peg 5 using feeder and pellets for 2.23 kgs and third Alan Smith with 2.21kgs also catching against the near margin. Jackie Bresin, on a rare day away from the Pond, won his section on peg 8 with 1.76kgs. It was good to have maestro Dave Hutchinson back now that his wife Marleen has recovered from her joint replacement. However, like so many others, he struggled to catch given the pace of the river. At least the sun came out.
AUTUMN 7
Carp-R-Us fished Round 7 of their Autumn Series on the canal near Mercadona, Guardamar. This is one of the best ´trotting’ venues we have and most of the anglers expected to fish this method for small carp and the bass that have now become present in this stretch. Unfortunately, it just didn’t work today and most switched to other methods after a couple of hours. First, from peg 2 near the N322 was Steve Fell who caught a number of small carp and mullet fishing pole and bread tight to the far bank to finish with 2.76kg. Second from the adjacent peg was Roy Dainty who fished the same method but using maggots instead of bread for 2.28kg. Terry Screen persisted in trotting maggots to catch 2.04kg from peg 8 and Tony Flett fished magg and wagg on peg 10 for 0.81kg.
AUTUMN SERIES 6
For Round 6 of the Carp-R-Us Autumn Series the club took the long trip to Embalse de Argos near Calasparra. Normally we have a good turnout at this venue but this week a combination of illness, appointments and other commitments meant only seven fished, all pegged on the warm side. It was a very pleasant autumnal day and with the temperature rising to 24 degrees and a light breeze, a good days fishing was expected. However, the fish had other ideas and, apart from our Welsh contingent, everyone struggled for bites.
First was Dough Hornblow with 37.68kg from peg 6. Doug started with the slow sinking feeder with but quickly abandoned this to fish mainly method feeder with pellets. Next door on peg 7 was Alan Davis who persisted with the slow sinking feeder to take 24.33kg although these were taken quite deep and not up in the water as hoped. Third was Steve Fell from peg 5 with 9.28kg caught on method feeder and pellet and fourth was Jeremy Fardoe from peg 4. As can be seen, the further along the bank you went, the better the fishing became, with both pegs 1 and 2 not producing any fish.
AUTUMN SERIES 5
Carp-R-Us fished Round 5 of its Autumn Series on the River Segura near the CV91 road bridge (Eden 2). Water levels in this stretch remain quite low, and during the match dropped another 15 to 20cms. This makes fishing challenging but interesting. Winner on the day, fishing one of the new downstream pegs, was Ken Wilcock with 6.08kg caught on feeder and bread. Second was his travelling mate, Roy Buttress with 3.53kg caught using feeder and a variety of different hook baits. Third was Tony Flett with 2.48kg using pole and corn and fourth was Ann Fowles with 1,55kg caught using the method feeder and pellet, the first time shed tried the method. Catch of the day goes to Jeremy Fardoe who had the biggest crab yet seen, a good 20 to 25cms across.
AUTUMN SERIES 4
This Thursday saw Carp-R-Us finally return, for the first time in nearly two years, to the Rio Segura in the centre of Murcia. Much has changed since out last visit with a nice new pathway and plenty of plants lining the bank, making this a very attractive venue. The river itself seemed quite low and coloured but this didn’t stop our visiting Welsh members from taking the honours. First off peg 10 (above the bridge) was Alan Davis 9.70kg, second from peg 5 (which was below the bridge) was Doug Hornblow with 8.59kg. Third, making a welcome return after a break of several month, was Dave Sutton with 6.30kg which would have been more if he hadn’t dropped a large fish back into the river instead of his keep net. Fourth was the ever-consistent Willy Moons with 5.25kg. All fished the feeder.
PETER KERR MEMORIAL CUP
Sometimes the stars align, and nice things happen to nice people. Today the Carp-R-Us Peter Kerr Memorial, match fished at El Bosquet, was one of those days. Peter Kerr was a long-time member of the club and his travelling companion used to be Roy Buttress. Today was Roy’s 82nd birthday and it was wonderful that Roy ran out match winner with 13.30kg caught on feeder and corn from peg 26. Second, from peg 18, was Tony Flett who had 11.35kg using pole and corn. Fourth was Terry Screen from the other end peg, 38, who had 10.89kg and fourth was Willy Moon with 6.95kg caught using pole and bread tactics.
AUTUMN SERIES 3
Earlier this week members of Carp-R-Us and The Lime Bar cleared some paths and new pegs on the stretch of the Segura termed Eden 2. Some of these were included in this week’s rather underwhelming match on this stretch. The river looked in good condition with a decent level and flow, but the fish just did not seem interested, in fact most anglers found that from around 11.30 on, bites just stopped. Winner, and again proving age is just a number, was Roy Buttress with 2.95kg from peg 2 caught on feeder and corn, second was Roy Dainty from peg 1 with 2.74kg caught using pole and bread tactics. Third was Jeremy Fardoe, on one of the new pegs, who dug out and old Avon float and caught2.35kg down the edge using bread and corn. Fourth was Willy Moons with 1.31kg.
On behalf of the clubs who did the work on pegs here and Bigastro, could we ask that anyone fishing these stretches just spends a couple of minutes before or after a session either cutting back any reeds they see have grown up in the pegs or just take a walk along the paths to keep the undergrowth trampled down. Thank you.
AUTUMN SERIES 2
Carp-R-Us continued their Autumn Series on the Rio Segura at Bigastro/Jacarilla. Members of the Lime Bar and Carp-R-Us clubs have done a lot of work on this stretch and there are now at least 14 pegs plus paths down from the road and along the river. The weather was again very hot, the temperature was 35 degrees when the match finished, a light breeze just about making this bearable. It was obvious from the results that the further downstream you were, the better the fishing, although some would say (i.e., Ken and Tony) that it was the better fisherman were on the downstream pegs!
First, with his first club victory, was Ken Wilcock with 7.64kg from the end peg caught on feeder and bread and second, from the adjacent peg and again a personal best result, was Tony Flett with 2.36kg caught on feeder and corn. Third and fourth were separated by just 20g with Willy Moons with 1.76kg just pipping Ann Fowles.
AUTUMN SERIES 1
Carp-R-Us resumed its Thursday matches on 2nd September after its annual August ‘heat’ lay off. This was the first round of its 2021 Autumn Series and was fished at the El Bosquet commercial complex near Catral. With some regulars unable to attend, only section 1A to 7 was used. After several days of intensive heat, sometimes accompanied by thunderstorms, the day proved quite fair; low cloud cover and a more comfortable temperature without any wind. In fact, for most for the day the water was like a millpond.
The winner on the day, continuing his run of good form, was Willy Moons. Willy fished method feeder with chick pea. Without a bite in the first hour of this five hour match, once the carp began feeding, he then caught throughout the day unlike most of us. He weighed in 21.30 kgs from peg 5. Tom Marshall, also on the method feeder, got off to a great start with a large carp but then found himself pestered by mullet for much of the match. He weighed in 18.65 kgs from peg 1 whilst Paul Davis next door on peg 1B fished pole and pellet for 18.51 kgs. Alan Smith was fourth on peg 1A with 12.72 kgs.
MINI SERIES 5
Carp-R-Us members fished the final match of the Club’s Summer Mini-Series at the El Bosquet complex on Thursday 29th July from 09:00 until 14:00. With just 8 anglers available to fish, the first channel pegs of 1a to 7 were selected, leaving out peg 3. It proved another hot day although there was still some mud from the downpour earlier in the week. Willy Moon on peg 3 maintained his good form and caught from the outset and throughout the match using pellet feeder towards the far bank. He managed 35 carp and mullet for 18-38 kgs. Second was Ken Wilcocks on peg 6 with 17 fish including a bass for 16-79 kgs using feeder alternating between bread and pellet. Third was Roy Dainty on peg 5 with 15 carp and barbel for 16-64kgs using pole with maggot in the nearside deep water during the morning and the monkey with bread on the far bank during the afternoon. Tony Flett struggled on peg 1 but landed a carp of around 3kg as the final whistle blew.
The result of this Mini-Series, with the best 3 results from 5 counting, was 1st Willy Moons with 88 points, 2nd Roy Buttress with 85 points, 3rd Ken Wilcocks with 83 points and 4th Roy Dainty with 82 points. Congratulations to Willy.
The complex is a haven for wildlife and during the match we were entertained by a low flying flamingo which flew parallel to the stretch and landed briefly towards the edge of the saline lake
MINI SERIES 4
The temperature hit the high thirties as Carp-R-Us stalwarts visited the Rio Segura at Bigastro (Jacarilla) on Thursday 22nd July. Brollies with UV protection were essential. The river was fairly high and fast flowing with lots of plant debris pushing down from further upstream. The river looked like it might produce plenty of fish, unfortunately the fish thought otherwise whilst the terrapins didn't. Apart from Willy Moons on peg 1 with 11.12 Kgs using the method feeder with 8mm pellets and micro pellet groundbait, there wasn't much to choose between the other anglers. Roy Buttress was second on peg 4 with 2.92 Kgs and Tony Flett third on peg 5 with 2.69 Kgs.
MINI SERIES 3
Not having fished it for a couple of months, Carp-R-Us returned to El Bosquet near Catral on 15th July for round 3 of its Summer 'Mini Series'. Fortunately, the 40C+ temperature of a couple of days previously had dropped to a more accommodating low 20Cs. However, a strong breeze from the East made pole presentation difficult at times. Pegs 1b to 6 and 18 to 23 were used; two separate channels which performed significantly different on the day. Fish were being caught from the off on 1b to 6 and continued to feed throughout the day, mainly in the top half metre of water though not actually on the top. Mullet up to 2kg featured, often keeping the carp at bay. Ken Wilcock was overall winner on peg 5 with 18.27 kgs. Terry Screen and Roy Dainty followed close behind with 17.44 kgs and 16.61 kgs respectively from pegs 6 and 1. Bread with maggots as feed was the predominant bait. The top 6 weights came from this section. Pegs 18 to 23 performed poorly with the end pegs doing best but with only 7.42 kgs at best from Alfonso Yagues (Click and Catch tackle shop) on 23 and 5.88 kgs from Willy Moons on 18. Whilst spectacular weights can be caught from this venue, it can be moody. Club Secretary Steve Fell fished peg 20 yesterday caught probably 40kgs, today, the fish had moved elsewhere. or just weren´t feeding.
The Club will be fishing the River Segura at Bigastro (Jacarilla) on 22nd July. This will be the fourth match of the Mini Series. No matches will take place during August because of safety concerns due to the usually high temperatures. Finally, with the new Covid restrictions, the Club has had to cancel its monthly meeting at El Bosque Animado and postpone it's, so very much delayed, 2020 season presentation lunch of 23rd July.
MINI SERIES 2
WATCH OUT FOR THE CRABS
Carp-R-Us fished the second round of its mini-series on the Rio Segura downstream of the CV91 road bridge. Like many other places on the Segura, without constant work the pegs quickly become overgrown but the fishing on the stretch often makes it worthwhile. The other problem with this stretch is the varying water levels, between the Wednesday when the venue was checked and the day of the match the water dropped a foot. Sadly, one other thing that may also be as problem, is that several the dreaded Blue Crabs were caught, five by one angler. We thought these had disappeared from the river, but today the were back with a vengeance.
The match itself was won by Steve Fell with 8.09kg from peg 6 caught using pole and bread tight to the far bank. Second in the next-door peg was Willie Moons who had 4.04kg using his usual feeder and pellet tactics. Third was Roy Buttress one peg 1, just above the inlet, who managed 3.48kg on feeder and corn as well as five crabs. Fourth was Tony Flett with 1.23kg from the same peg as he had 18 fish from the previous day, showing just how much the river can change overnight.
MINI SERIES 1
Not many years ago members looked forward to matches on the Eden stretch of the Rio Seguro, they were usually evenly contested with many pegs capable of producing winning weights and you could almost guarantee that everyone caught something. Sadly, this is no longer the case and even when conditions are reasonable, the fishing is extremely hard. Whether this is due to the of Blue Crabs that invaded the river a few years ago (fortunately they now seem to have disappeared) or some other reason, no one knows, but whatever the cause, the fishing is now poor with almost half of those fishing todays Carp-R-Us match not catching.
One person who did find a few fish was Roy Buttress who had 3.63kg from peg 2 using feeder and corn. Second, from peg 7 was Roy Dainty with 2.40kg using pole and corn. Third was Jeremy Fardoe with 2.32kg caught using pole and bread on peg 14 and fourth was Steve Fell with 0.15kg from peg 6.
MURCIA SERIES 1
For the first time in a long time Carp-R-Us fished a match in Región de Murcia. The Embalse de Argos is amongst the most picturesque venues on the club calendar and the fishing generally makes the long drive worthwhile. Today was no exception with almost half the anglers recording double figure weights.
The winner, from peg one on the cold side, was Ian Brown who caught an excellent 31.40kg using slow sinking feeder and pellet tactics. The next the places all came from the warm side with Ken Willcock with 18.28kg caught on feeder and pellet just beating Steve Fell who had 17.22kg from the peg next door using similar tactics. Tom Marshall finished fourth with 11.10kg from peg 11 using the method feeder and pellet.
SUMMER CUP
After a short break, Carp-R-Us restarted match fishing with its Summer Cup on the Rio Segura at Jacarilla/Bigastro. Rain was again predicted, something that seems to have been more common than normal this year, and sure enough, just after the match started, we were subjected to a heavy shower with plenty of thunder rolling around. The river was not in a great state, looking very muddy and with lots of rubbish being carried downstream, presumably due to overnight rain further upstream.
All this made for a tough match, and although everyone caught something, in some cases it was a solitary fish. The match was won by Steve Fell who had 5.10kg from peg 3 fishing with pole and bread. He just managed to pip Willy Moons who took 4.96kg from peg 6 using feeder and pellet tactics. Jeremy Fardoe who, after a fishless first couple of hours, had a walk along the bank to see what others were doing, was next. Obviously, this helped as he had 1.72kg on feeder and pellet to finish third. Fourth was Tony Flett with 1.56kg caught using float tactics close in to the near bank.
SPRING SERIES R10
The final match of the Carp-R-Us Spring Series was fished on the Eden stretch of the Rio Segura. This often maligned stretch can produce decent weights when conditions are right and, on most occasions, nearly everyone catches some fish. Lately though it has been strange, very few fish are seen ´topping´ and the mullet that used to be commonplace seem to have vanished (along with the blue crabs, thankfully). Unfortunately, there are still plenty of terrapins around.
For the second match running, Willy Moons ran out winner with 7.10kg caught from peg 14 using feeder and pellet tactics. He finished well ahead of Doug Hornblow on peg 2 who managed 3.45kg using the method feeder and corn. Third, continuing his good form, was Terry Stroud with 2.92kg from peg 11 again using feeder and pellet tactics and a single carp of 2.60kg was sufficient to give Jeremy Fardoe fourth from peg 12.
All this meant that the series was won by Dave Hutchinson with incredible 229 points out of a possible 240 with Willy Moons finishing runner up with 213 points, Steve Fell third with 211 and Roy Dainty fourth with 206. Congratulations to Dave and well done all those who took part.
PAIRS CUP
Carp-R-Us took a break from their Spring Series to fish their Pairs Cup at the El Bosquet complex. Seven pairs took part plus two members who were not part of the main match. Doug Hornblow, finally managing to get over to Spain from Wales for the first time in several months, and long serving member Geoff Tempest, who came along to say goodbye to everyone before he returned to the UK. The club would like to wish Geoff all the best for the future.
In the match, one half of the pair fished pegs 1a to 7, the other 17-24 and it was the anglers on 1a-7 who had by the best day with 17-24 fishing very poorly, particularly the lower numbers.
The overall match was won by Tom Marshall with 13.70kg from peg 4 with Terry Stroud second with 8.25kg from peg 6. Terry has only been fishing for a few months and this was only his second match. Third was Ken Willcock with 7.38kg (peg 20) and fourth Willy Moons with 7.05kg (peg 1b). The results mean that Terry Stroud and Terry Screen are the Pairs Cup winners with Tom Marshall the Individual Cup winner.
SPRING SERIES - R9
The penultimate match of the Carp-R-Us Spring Series was held on the Eden 2 stretch of the Rio Segura. This stretch of water is below the CV91 road bridge and you never know from day to day what the level of the water will be. Today it was quite full and flowing steadily on most pegs, which usually is a promising sign. As it turned out, most people caught although for many it was a strange day, with a number of anglers on the downstream stretch catching a few fish early in the match but then their swims faded, and the rest of the match produced few bites.
It is pleasing to report that Willy Moons on peg 11 won his first match with the club with an excellent 13.74kg caught using feeder and pellet tactics. He finished well ahead of Dave Hutchinson who had 8.40kg from peg 2 at the top end of the stretch and Steve Fell on peg 3 who had 7.40kg. Dave and Steve both used the pole with bread and corn or pellets. Fourth was Roy Buttress with 4.34kg caught on feeder and corn from peg 10.
SPRING SERIES - R8
Round eight of the Carp-R-Us Spring Series was held on the Eden stretch of the Rio Segura. This stretch of water takes a lot of work to keep open due to the quantity of reeds that line the river. This week, members of the club spent several hours ensuring sufficient pegs were available for the match, it’s a pity the fishing isn’t always that good.
With Dave Hutchinson having an unusually quiet match Roy Buttress ran out a clear winner with 7.70kg from peg 2. At the other end of the stretch Roy Dainty had 5.55kg from peg 17 for second, with Steve Fell third with 3.70kg (peg 10) and Dave Sutton fourth with 2.70kg (peg 6).
SPRING SERIES - R7
For the first time in several weeks the Carp-R-Us match took place in much calmer conditions. Sadly, the recent rains had left the River Segura at Jacarilla/Bigastro running high, fast and dirty so, whilst Round 7 of the Spring Series took place mainly in sunshine, the fish didn’t feel inclined to feed. First, continuing his good form, was Dave Hutchinson with 4.12kg caught on pole and corn from peg 7. Second was Ken Wilcock (peg 4) whose single carp of 2.30kg caught on feeder and maggots was enough to just pip Richard Crawshaw who had 2.28kg from peg 11. Fourth was Willy Moons with 2.14kg caught using his customary feeder and chickpeas.
SPRING SERIES - R6
Well it was a Thursday so it had to be raining when Carp-R-Us fished Round Six of their Spring Series at El Bosque Animado, but at least this time we got to lunchtime before the heavens opened. Apart from the rain, conditions were not too bad although the fishing was patchy, with four of the anglers getting double figure weights and the rest struggling to get to 3kg. In his customary first place was Dave Hutchinson who fished pole and maggot to capture 15.88kg, just beating Willy Moons on peg 15 who had 15.70kg on feeder and chickpea. In another close run thing for third and fourth Steve Fell came out on top with 12.82kg on pole and maggot from peg 10, narrowly beating Alan Smith who had 12.30kg on feeder switching between maggot and pellet from peg 3.
SPRING SERIES - R5
The weather was again poor as Carp-R-Us fished Round Five of their Spring Series at El Bosquet. The rain at least held off until about 10.00 but after that the match was fished in a steady downpour and a temperature of no more than 12°, typical UK April weather. The match itself was won by Steve Fell who had 22.60kg from peg 1 caught using pole with either maggots or bread. Second from peg 2 was Alan Smith with 12.30kg. Third was Roy Dainty with 6.25kg of mainly barbel caught late on using maggots and feeder and fourth was Ken Wilcock with 5.75kg of mainly decent mullet caught on the pole.
SPRING SERIES - R4
Carp-R-Us returned to the Jacarilla/Bigastro stretch of the Rio Segura for Round Four of their Spring Series hoping the weather would be kinder than on their last visit to this venue. As it was, the day remained dry although cool and breezy towards the end. Dave Hutchinson predicted a difficult match following the changeable weather of the previous days, and so it proved to be. This didn’t stop him winning with 5.50kg from peg 5 caught using pole and bread. Second was Roy Dainty with 4.50kg from peg 8, his catch included a rare gudgeon. Third was Dave Sutton with 2.07kg from peg 2, beating Steve Fell (2.05kg) on peg 6 by just 2g.
SPRING SERIES - R3
Round three was fished on the Eden Stretch of the Rio Segura. Conditions looked good, they day promised to be warm and there was a slight flow on the river, so we were hopeful of some reasonable fishing. This didn’t prove to be the case; the fishing was hard, and this is a worry. There is a real concern that there are not the fish in this stretch that there used to be. Whether this is due to the blue crab invasion or because they have been taken, no one knows.
The match was won by Dave Hutchinson on peg 6. Fishing the pole at 13m and using with bread or pellet Dave managed to catch 3.30kg. Second was Jeremy Fardoe who had 1.30kg on peg 10. Third was Ken Wilcock with 1.2kg from peg 13 and fourth Tom Marshall with 1.15kg from peg 11.
SPRING SERIES - R2
After the poor weather the week before it was good that the second round of the Carp-R-Us Spring Series was fished in pleasant conditions on the El Bosquet complex. However, the fishing turned out to be quite hard with many members struggling for bites. First was Alan Smith with 12.50kg from peg 26. Alan fished most of the match one eyed as the other eye kept watering, which did not help him spot the bites. Second was the ever-consistent Dave Hutchinson with 9.74kg from peg 37. Third was Steve Fell with 5.18kg from peg 36 and fourth was Dave Sutton with 4.42kg from peg 39.
SPRING SERIES - R1
After another forced hiatus due to Covid-19 restrictions Carp-R-Us resumed fishing with the first round of their Spring Series on the River Segura at Bigastro/Jacarilla. The forecast had been saying for several days we were in for a spell of poor weather and this materialised shortly after the match started. Cold and steady rain made conditions difficult, particularly trying to get back up the slope at the end of the match, and didn’t do much for the fishing, either. In the end, only four anglers caught with Dave Hutchinson running out winner with 3.94kg and Richard Crawshaw second with 2.60kg. Roy Dainty was third with 2.30kg and new member Willy Moons fourth with 1.70kg.
WINTER SERIES - R5
Carp-R-Us continued its Winter Series on the Eden stretch of the Segura. It was a frosty morning and several members had to scrape their car windows before setting off, not a common occurrence, fortunately. The recent rain had put some water back into the river but fishing was still hard although all but one angler managed to catch. First from peg 16 was Dave Hutchinson with 5.06kg caught using pole and bread. Second was Roy Dainty on the new peg with 3.00kg using pole and flake. Close behind was Steve Fell (peg 17) who also used pole and bread to catch 2.84kg and fourth using feeder and pellet was Jackie Breslin (peg 1) with 0.75kg.
WINTER SERIES - R4
After a two week break the club restarted its Winter Series on the Eden 2 stretch of the Segura. The forecast promised low temperatures, rain and strong winds, which put a number of members off, but fortunately although cold (about 8°c at best) and wet the wind was quite gentle. The clear winner with a magnificent 33.80kg was Dave Hutchinson who fish pole with bread and pellet. Second was Roy Dainty with 10.95kg again on pole using bread flake. Third was Richard Crawshaw and fourth Steve Fell.
WINTER SERIES - R3
Carp-R-Us fished round three of the Winter Series on the Eden stretch of the Segura. This stretch can be very moody and today it was in one of its worst moods, as usually happens when there is no flow on the water. Fishing was very tough with four dry nets and three other anglers only catching one or two fish. First was Dave Hutchinson who fished the pole with bread on peg 8 to take 5.60kg. Second from peg 17 was Steve Collins with 4.22kg (pole and corn) with Richard Crawshaw on peg 16 third with 3.58kg (pole and corn) and Steve Fell on peg 15 fourth with a single carp weighing 2.28kg.
WINTER SERIES - R2
Round 2 of the Carp-R-Us Winter Series was held on the Rio Segura at Jacarilla/Bigastro. The wind of the previous days had gone so the match was fished in pleasant if cloudy conditions and, pleasingly, everyone caught. The winner from the downstream end peg was octogenarian Roy Buttress with 9.30kg caught using feeder and maggot. Second was Steve Fell from peg 5 who had 8.48kg on pole using bread and corn. Third was Dave Hutchinson with 7.93kg from peg 2 using pole and bread and fourth was Richard Crawshaw with 6.88kg from peg 4.
FUR and FEATHER
Carp-R-Us took a break from their Winter Series to fish its annual Fur and Feather at the El Bosquet complex. Car thermometers were registering less than zero as anglers made their way to their pegs, so a hard days fishing was expected. In the end, although weights were low, only two dry nets were recorded. The runaway winner was Neil McBirnie with 26.25kg from peg 35 fishing pole and maggot- Second was Dave Hutchinson with 10.10kg from peg 37, third Jeremy Fardoe with 8.40kg from peg 27 and fourth Steve Fell who had 6.66kg from peg 21.
WINTER SERIES - R1
Carp-R-Us kicked off their Winter Series on a new stretch of the River Segura upstream of the CV91 road bridge. They day started of grey and blustery, but slowly improved but strangely, for most people, as the conditions got better the fishing got worse. Clear winner, from the upstream end peg (peg 1), was Dave Hutchinson who caught 17.70kg using pole and bread. At the other end of the stretch was Roy Dainty, who came second with 7.10kg on pole and corn. Third was Graham Ledley with 6.86kg from peg 3 and fourth Jeremy Fardoe with 5.78kg from peg 2
AUTUMN SERIES - R10
Going into the final match of the Carp-R-Us Autumn Series three anglers were in contention to win the trophy. The match was held on the Rio Segura at Jacarilla/Bigastro and was won by Dave Hutchinson with 11.84kg from peg 10 caught on pole using bread and corn. Second was Dave Sutton fishing feeder and maggots with 9.00kg from peg 6. Third was Roy Buttress with 6.90kg from peg 7 (feeder and corn) and fourth Alan Priest on peg 12 who caught 3.76kg (feeder and maggot).
This meant that Jackie Breslin won the series with 210 points, a well-deserved success for an angler who has worked hard to improve. Second was Dave Sutton with 208 points, third Steve Fell (205) and fourth Richard Crawshaw (200).
AUTUMN CUP
Carp-R-Us took a break from league matches to fish for the Autumn Cup at El Bosquet. Weights, in general, were better than last time the club fished there and its good to report everyone caught. Clear winner was Neil McBirnie with 15.70kg from peg 28 with Terry Screen second with 13.30kg from peg 21. Dave Sutton finished third with 9.10kg (peg 23) and Ian Brown was fourth with 8.76kg (peg 36).
AUTUMN SERIES - R9
The penultimate round of the Carp-R-Us Autumn Series was fished on the River Segura near Jacarilla. The weather was amongst the worst we have fished in this year with a strong wind blowing throughout the match and one heavy downpour. However, despite this, everyone caught. First was Jackie Breslin, continuing his fine form in this series. Jackie weighed in 6.58kg easily beating Steve Fell who had 5.50kg. Third was Roy Dainty who had 4.80kg to just pip Dave Sutton with 4.60kg.
AUTUMN SERIES - R8
Round eight of the Carp-R-Us Autumn Series was fished at the El Bosquet complex. Despite it being a beautiful autumnal day, the fishing was hard, as it has been on many occasions since the revamp of the complex started. However, it was nice to see the first and second places being taken by two of the longer serving members of the club. First was Geoff Tempest with 4.35kg from peg 36 and second was Graham Ledley with 4.00kg from peg 37. Third and fourth came from the other end of the length with Dave Sutton on peg 26 weighing in 3.64kg to just beat Alan Priest who had 3.42kg on peg 27.
AUTUMN SERIES - R7
Round seven of the Carp-R-Us Autumn Series was fished on the lower Segura near the Eden stretch. The river was carrying an extra couple of feet of water and, with rain forecast, members were uncertain as to well the venue would fish. As it turned out, everyone caught fish with Steve Fell winning with 8.74kg caught from peg 9 on feeder and corn. Second was Jackie Breslin with 6.56kg from peg 6 with Jeremy Fardoe third with 4.80kg from peg 8. Fourth was Richard Crawshaw with 3.85kg. Richard decided to check his peg by falling in before the match started.
AUTUMN SERIES - R6
Carp-R-Us fished round six of their Autumn Series at El Bosquet. There is still a lot of work going on at the complex and this, together with the colder mornings, seems to be affecting the fishing. Terry Screen won the match with 6.60kg from peg 27 with Neil McBirnie second with 6.00kg from peg 30, Roy Buttress third from peg 37 with 5.38kg and Steve Fell fourth with 4.94kg from peg 39.
AUTUMN SERIES - R5
Round Five of the Carp-R-Us Autumn Series was fished on the Rio Segura at Bigastro. A few weeks ago the banks along this stretch were completely stripped of vegetation but already you can see the reeds starting to grow again and it will not be long before they will require some cutting back to make pegs again. The match was won by Richard Crawshaw from peg 3 with 4.92kg, just beating Roy Dainty who had 4.54kg from peg 1. Third was Dave Sutton with 3.50kg from peg 5 and fourth Steve Fell with 2.35kg from peg 8.
AUTUMN SERIES - R4
Carp-R-Us continued its Autumn Series with Round Four on the Eden stretch of the Segura. This venue, like a number of others, would benefit from some rain to freshen it up and improve weights although Steve Collins´ winning weight of 5.20kg from peg 15, caught using pole and corn, wasn’t too bad. Second was Roy Dainty on peg 16 who finished with 2.70kg caught on feeder and corn, a close third was Roy Buttress from the other end of the stretch who had 2.26kg from peg 2 using feeder and pellet. Fourth was Jeremy Fardoe who had 2.05kg from peg 14 on pole and bread.
PETER KERR MEMORIAL CUP
Today was the Carp-R-Us Peter Kerr Memorial Cup match held at El Bosquet. Holding matches is a bit more complex than it used to be thanks to Covid with everyone wearing masks at the draw and weigh-in and the match secretary drawing everyone´s peg, all part of our Covid protocol.
When it came to the match itself, when Doug Hornblow drew one of the hot pegs (those in the mid twenties) everyone was fairly certain they´d be battling for second, and so it proved. Doug ran out a comfortable winner from peg 27 with 29.30kg caught on feeder with maggot and pellet. Second was Jeremy Fardoe with 14.94 from peg 26 using feeder and meat, third was Richard Crawshaw with 14.55kg caught on feeder and maggot and fourth was Alan Smith with 11.14kg from peg 31.
AUTUMN SERIES - R3
Round three of the Carp-R-Us Autumn Series was fished on the Rio Segura, Bigastro. There is lots of bank clearing going on at the moment here and on other parts of the Segura. The far bank has been completely stripped and work was just starting on the side used for matches. The match was won by Richard Crawshaw with 8.14kg from peg 1 caught using maggot feeder with maggots on the hook. Second was Steve Fell with 5.50kg from peg 9 who caught on the feeder alternating maggots and corn on the hook. Jackie Breslin was third with 4.72kg also caught using feeder tactics and fourth was Roy Buttress with 4.52kg, same method.
AUTUMN SERIES - R2
This was fished on the Mercadona canal and the fishing was so bad it doesn´t warrant a full write up. The match was won by Terry Screen, with Alan Priest second, Richard Crawshaw third and Jeremy Fardoe fourth.
AUTUMN SERIES - R1
Carp-R-Us finally started its Autumn Series of matches this week on the Eden stretch of the River Segura. The weather was very pleasant but with no flow on the river and levels down a foot or more, a hard match was expected. The winning weights came from two of the favoured pegs, with Steve Collins on peg 17 just pipping Dave Sutton on peg 16. Steve had 4.62kg on pole and corn with Dave using feeder and pellet for 4.10kg. Third was Geoff Tempest With 2.20kg from peg 7 and fourth was Jackie Breslin with 1.75kg from peg 1.
PAIRS CUP
The club fished its final match before taking a break for the Summer at El Bosquet. This was the annual Pairs Cup match and the winning pair were Alan Priest and Roy Dainty. Alan fished feeder with maggots on peg 12 to weigh in 17.72kg, which was also the best individual weight on the day by a long way, Roy backing him up with 4.85kg from peg 5. Runners-up were Alan Smith and Terry Screen.
In general pegs 1 - 10 fished poorly and there were two dry nets in this section, whilst 11 – 16 fished better although for some reason the carp were reluctant to show and mainly mullet were caught.
SUMMER CUP
The club finally got back to match fishing after a break of nearly four months by holding their Summer Cup match at El Bosquet. Fortunately the weather on the day of the match was a good five degrees cooler than the day before, which made for a more comfortable match. The club had drawn up a protocol, based on current social distancing rules, for both the draw and weight-in and this all went smoothly. Dave Hill ran out a clear winner from peg 26 with 18.85kg, second was Alan Priest with 15.90kg from peg 19 with Dave Sutton (15.50kg from peg 17) just pipping Steve Fell (15.45kg from peg 23) for third.
SPRING SERIES - ROUND 3
A glorious winters day saw Carp-R-Us fishing Round Three of their Spring Series on the Segura near Jacarilla/Bigastro. In almost perfect conditions its disappointing to report that, peg 1 excepted, the upstream half of the venue fished poorly. The match was won by Roy Dainty with 5.10kg from peg 7 with Richard Crawshaw second with 4.65kg from peg 9. Steve Fell was third with 3.65kg from peg 10, just beating Jackie Breslin who had 3.50kg from peg 1.
SPRING SERIES - ROUND 2
Carp-R-Us held the second round of their Spring Series at a warm and windy El Bosquet. Eighteen members fished the match, one of the best turnouts in recent years. The wind affected presentation and pole fishing was very difficult, so it was no surprise that the winner, Alan Priest, won with 17.38kg from peg 14 using the feeder. Second with 9.84kg from peg 13 was Alan Smith who had 9.84kg and third with 9.68kg was Jackie Breslin from peg 15. With Jeremy Fardoe coming fourth with 7.50kg from peg 16, this meant the top four weights came from the down-wind end of the oblong.
SPRING SERIES - ROUND 1
The first round of the Carp-R-Us Spring Series was fished on the Eden stretch of the Rio Segura. The excellent weather for the time of year made for a very close match with less than two kilograms separating first from eighth. First was Steve Collins on peg 16 with 5.00kg just ahead of Dave Hill on peg 12 with 4.92kg and Terry Screen (peg 14) with 4.60kg. Steve Fell was fourth with 3.70kg from peg 15.
WINTER CUP
Carp-R-Us fished its Winter Cup competition at El Bosquet. This was fished as a ‘running line’ only match to give an even chance to those anglers who cannot fish pole tactics. Terry Screen ran out winner with 10.28kg from peg 25, just pipping Geoff Tempest who included a carp of just under five kilo in his catch of 10.20kg form peg 29. Third, in his first match with the club, was Steve Penfold with 6.15kg (peg 38) and fourth was Jackie Breslin (peg 18) with 5.80kg.
WINTER SERIES - ROUND 9
Carp-R-Us fished the Eden stretch of the Segura for the final round of its Winter Series. Going into this match four anglers were in the running to win the series and on a warm day with a good flow on the water a good match was expected. Unfortunately, fish being fish, although there was only one dry net, weights weren’t as good as expected. Clear first on the day was Steve Fell with 7.68kg from peg 17, second was Alan Priest with 4.10kg from peg 6 with Geoff Tempest (peg 13) third with 2.58kg and Steve Collins (peg 15) fourth with 2.50kg.
This means Steve Fell won the series with 162 points with Terry Screen second with 155 points and Richard Crawshaw third with 151 points. Well done to everyone who took part in the series.
WINTER SERIES - ROUND 8
The penultimate round of the Carp-R-Us Winter Series was fished at El Bosquet. Sixteen anglers fished the match, one of our best turnouts in recent years and, despite the bad weather of the previous few days, almost everyone caught. First was Neil McBirnie with 4.02kg from peg 39. Dave Sutton on peg 40 was second with 3.34kg, narrowly beating Alan Priest who had 3.30kg from peg 22. Fourth was Jackie Breslin who had a single fish in the last few minutes of the match for 2.30kg.
WINTER SERIES - ROUND 7
Carp-R-Us fished the Rio Segura at Bigastro for Round Seven of the Winter Series. On a beautifully warm winters day 13 members fished but unfortunately only just over half caught fish. Running out winner with 9.48kg was Tom Marshall on peg 13 with Roy Dainty not too far behind with 8.58kg from peg 9. Third was Terry Screen with 3.05kg and fourth Steve Collins with 2.88kg. The club would like to thank the members of the Lime Bar Fishing Club who have worked hard to restore the pegs on this stretch after they were damaged by the floods in September.
Anyone interested in joining the club should contact Steve Fell on 634379081 or through this website. The club fishes matches on a variety of venues in the Costa Blanca and Murcia regions and also organises the occasional social event. Anglers of all abilities are welcome.
WINTER SERIES - ROUND 6
Round six of the Carp-R-Us Winter Series was fished on the Eden stretch of the Rio Segura. The club works hard to keep the pegs on the stretch open as it is one of the most even waters we fish. This was proved again today with everyone present catching fish, which doesn’t happen on all venues. First was Dave Sutton (peg 15) with 3.82kg, second was Terry Screen (peg 8) with 3.15kg with Jeremy Fardoe (peg 7) third with 2.75kg and Richard Crawshaw (peg 10) with 2.00kg.
The new membership year begins on 1st January. Anyone interested in joining the club should contact Steve Fell on 63437908. As can be seen, the club fishes matches on a variety of venues in the Costa Blanca and Murcia regions and also organises the occasional social event. Anglers of all abilities are welcome.
WINTER SERIES - ROUND 5
The first Carp-R-Us match was fished on the canal near Mercadona, La Marina. This venue has been producing good catches for pleasure anglers recently so with 13 anglers fishing, some decent weights were expected. How wrong this turned out to be with only four people catching fish. The match was won by Terry Screen with 1.00kg, second was Richard Crawshaw (0.70kg), third Steve Fell (0.52kg) who just pipped Tom Marshall (0.48kg).
FUR & FEATHER
Carp-R-Us fished their annual Fur and Feather match at El Bosquet. It was probably the coldest morning of the winter so far, just 3 degrees when we met up, and this certainly affected the fishing. Winner was Neil McBirnie with 7.90kg from peg 26, narrowly beating Alan Smith who had 7.74kg from peg 40. Third was Alan Priest (7.04kg, peg 37) and fourth Roy Dainty (5.04kg, peg 35).
The new membership year begins on 1st January. Anyone interested in joining the club should contact Steve Fell on 63437908. The club fishes matches on a variety of venues in the Costa Blanca and Murcia regions and also organises the occasional social event. Anglers of all abilities are welcome.
WINTER SERIES - ROUND 3
The club moved to the Eden stretch of the Rio Segura for Round Three of the Winter Series. It wasn’t that long ago that this stretch was producing decent weights but today was a real struggle for most anglers. It’s very pleasant to report that the match was won by Ann Fowles who showed the men how to do it with 3.22kg from peg 6. Second was Dave Sutton with 1.80kg (peg 10), third Jackie Breslin with 1.16kg (peg 1) and fourth Roy Dainty with 1.10kg (peg 11).
The new membership year begins on 1st January. Anyone interested in joining the club should contact Steve Fell on 63437908. The club fishes matches on a variety of venues in the Costa Blanca and Murcia regions and also organises the occasional social event. Anglers of all abilities are welcome.
WINTER SERIES - ROUND 2
Round two of the Carp-R-Us Winter Series was fished at El Bosquet. After the atrocious weather of the previous two days it was nice to fish in pleasant conditions with warm sunshine and only a light breeze. The match was won by Neil McBirnie with 18.52kg from peg 11, caught using pole and maggots with Alan Priest on peg 8 coming second with 15.48kg caught on feeder and maggot. Third was Dave Sutton (peg 12) with 8.38kg and fourth was Terry Screen with 6.06kg from peg 16. In general, pegs 11-16 fished much better than 1-10.
WINTER SERIES - ROUND 1
Carp-R-Us kicked of their Winter Series on the Nancys stretch, Guardamar. This was the first time this venue had been used for a match since the devasting floods in September and many of the old pegs had disappeared. We did manage to accommodate nine anglers and almost all caught, but the fishing was not great. First was Steve Fell with 4.36kg, with Richard Crawshaw second with 4.16kg. Roy Dainty was third with 1.42kg and Tom Marshall fourth with 1.14kg.
AUTUMN CUP
This week saw Carp-R-Us fish their Autumn Cup match at El Bosquet. To make it a more even contest no poles were allowed which, whilst this may lead to lower weights, it puts those anglers without a pole in with a better chance. The match was won from peg 40 by Jeremy Fardoe with 8.10kg with Doug Hornblow second with 6.36kg, Geoff Tempest third with 6.18kg and Dave Sutton fourth with 2.80kg. Well done Jeremy.
Round 5 of the Carp-R-Us Spring Series was fished on the Rio Segura at Bigastro/Jacarilla. Fourteen fished and a big thank you goes to Paul Burton for ensuring that there were sufficient pegs. What usually happens at this venue is that if every peg is used, the fishing becomes very hard and so it was today, even though conditions were good. That said, everybody caught, which is pleasing.
The winner of the match, and saying goodbye until 2025, was our friend from Belgium, Jean Pierre van de Cluysson who weighed in 5.30kg caught using pole feeder tactics and maggot. JP was on peg 1, above the upstream water inlet. Second from peg 7 was Russell Davidson with 3.34kg. Russ caught most of his fish late in the match trotting with maggots on the hook. Third from peg 2, also above the water inlet, was Roy Dainty with 2.70kg caught on pole and maggot and fourth was Alan Smith from end peg 14 with 2.34kg.
It was pleasing that a lot of small barbel were caught, but it wasn’t so good seeing a number with large sore patches on their skin. We will be contacting the CHS about this.
SPRING 4
For some unexplained reason, the fishing at El Bosquet, venue for Round Four of the Carp-R-Us Spring Series, has become very patchy and so it was aging today despite the conditions being quite pleasant.
The match was split between the 1a-7 stretch and the ends of the 26-40 stretch and both provided double figure nets and blanks in equal measure. Overall winner was Doug Hornblow who managed 17.94kg from peg 1 on straight lead and maggot. Next door on peg 2 Vinnie Smith was just behind in 16.57kg on pole and maggot. Third from the often unfancied peg was Tony Felstead with 14.38kg also using maggot and pole and fourth on peg 28 was Jean Pierre van de Cluysson with 12.78kg caught on feeder and maggot. Russell Davidson won the other section from peg 40 with 8.22kg.
SPRING 3
Round three of the Carp-R-Us Spring Series was fished on the Rio Segura, Eden 2 and 3 stretches. Good catches have been had from these stretches when the river is in good condition but sadly today it was very low (and dropped further during the match) with virtually no flow, a combination that leads to very difficult fishing, as reflected in the weights.
The overall winner was Tony Felsted with 6.56kg. Tony fished pole and maggot on the downstream end peg on Eden 3 (match peg 5). Second from the first upstream peg on Eden 2 (match peg 6) was Roy Dainty with 3.74kg using a pole leger set up with maggot on the hook. Third from peg 10 was Russell Davidson with 2.12kg of small carp and barbel caught using pole and corn. Equal fourth were Willy Moons (peg 2) and Jeremy Fardoe (peg 4), both with a single fish weighing 0.88kg.
SPRING 2
A warm but very windy spring day saw Carp-R-Us fish Round 2 of their Spring Series on the Rio Segura at Bigastro/Jacarilla. Recent rain had seen the river level rise slightly to a more normal level, although it did drop again by about 10cm during the match.
A deserving winner was Paul Burton. Paul does a lot to keep the pegs clear on this stretch so the victory was just rewards for his hard work. Paul tempted 15.00kg from the downstream end peg caught on pole feeder with pellet on the hook. Second and third were our Belgian contingent with Willy Moons taking 8.28kg from peg 5 and JP 6.08kg from peg 4. Both fished the feeder with maggot. Fourth from peg 5 with 5.876kg was Steve Fell who fished pole with bread.
SPRING 1
Carp-R-Us started their Spring Series on a cloudy, blustery day at El Bosquet. With many of the same pegs being used for matches on three consecutive days, fishing proved a bit hard on some pegs although there were still some decent weights.
First and second were the two oldest members fishing with Doug Hornblow just pipping Jean Pierre (JP) van de Cruyssen. Both fished a straight lead and used maggots to record weights of 17.68kg (Doug, peg 4) and 16.52kg (JP, peg 6). Third from peg 12 was Vinnie Smith who fished floating pole and maggot for 11.28kg and fourth was Roy Dainty with 9.80kg who used pole and caster shallow.
WINTER 10
The final round of the Carp-R-Us Winter Series was fished on the Rio Segura at Eden 2 and 3. The lack of rain has seen the river fall to very low levels and when this happens and the flow on the river virtually disappears, fishing often becomes very hard, and so it proved today.
Weights were much lower than when these sections were fished a couple of weeks ago and Roy Dainty only required 4.26kg to win the match. Roy fished pole and maggot from the down stream end peg on Eden 3. The next three weights all came from Eden 2, with Steve Fell managing 3.32kg from peg 7 using pole with bread or corn, just pipping Trevor Morrey on peg 8 who had 3.16kg on feeder and maggot. Fourth was JP with 2.86kg from peg 6 using his usual bomb and maggot tactics.
This left Russell Davidson the overall series winner with 206 points with Jeremy Fardoe runner-up on 193 points. Well done to Russell and all who took part in the series.
WINTER 9
Carp-R-Us fished the penultimate round of their Winter Series on the El Bosquet complex on a pleasantly warm but breezy day. The complex has been very moody recently and it proved so again with normally good pegs failing to produce good weights, although everyone caught fish.
In the end, Willy Moons ran out a clear winner with 15.38kg from peg 5 caught using feeder and maggot tactics. Second from peg 39 was Russell Davidson with 7.90kg using pole and caster. Third was Tony Flett who managed 7.22kg from peg 2 using method feeder and corn and fourth was Alan Smith on peg 3 who had 6.98kg mainly on pole and maggot.
The final match of the series is on Edens 2 and 3 and there are two anglers vying for top spot, Russell Davidson and Jeremy Fardoe. Good luck to them both.
WINTER 8
Round 8 of the Carp-R-Us Winter Series was fished on Edens 2 and 3. On arrival the river looked in excellent condition and with the temperatures expected to rise to and unseasonal 27°C, good sport was expected. In the end though, the fishing was patchy with some decent weights and a number of not so decent weights.
On Eden 3, it was the battle of the Tonys with Tony Felstead just edging out Tony Flett. Tony Felstead had 9.50kg from peg 4 (downstream end peg) on maggot feeder while Tony Flett had 9.46kg from peg two on feeder and maggot. Third and fourth were on Eden 2, where Paul Burton had 8.14kg from peg 8 using pole feeder and maggot and Trevor Morrey had 4.64kg on the adjacent peg again using pole feeder with corn or maggot.
WINTER CUP
This week Carp-R-Us fished their Winter Cup on the Rio Segura at Jacarilla/Bigastro. With thirteen fishing it was decided to split the field between the old match stretch and the new pegged area upstream of the bridge, which worked out well for those on the old match stretch which produced three of the top four weights and only one or two fish caught by each of the members on the upstream stretch.
The winner, on the downstream end peg 13, was Mr. President Roy Dainty who caught 7.62kg using pole feeder tactics and maggots on the hook. Second was one of our Belgian members JP who had 6.98kg using pole and maggot, an unusual choice for him. Third, from the peg adjoining Roy was Neil McBirnie with 6.28kg again using pole feeder and maggot, and fourth, from the downstream end peg on the other section, was Steve Fell with a single carp for 3.32kg.
WINTER 7
Another beautiful February day was promised as Carp-R-Us fished Round 7 of their Winter Series at the El Bosquet complex. The fishing has been very patchy there recently and weights have been relatively low on many pegs and, sadly, so it proved again with all the anglers on the middle part of the 1b-7 stretch failing to catch despite second, third and fourth in the match also being on this stretch.
When Dave Hutchinson drew the favoured peg 26 everyone thought the outcome was a foregone conclusion, but even Dave struggled for much of the match before he indeed won with 11.22kg caught on the pole and maggot. Second was Tony Felstead with 9.38kg, just pipping Ian Brown on peg 7 who had 9.28kg. Both Ian and Tony fished the pole with maggot. Fourth was Willy Moons with 7.68kg on feeder and maggot from peg 1.
WINTER 6
Round 6 of the Carp-r-Us Winter Series was fished on the Eden stretches of the Rio Segura. With eleven fishing the field was split between the two stretches with five fishing the upstream section (Eden 3) and six the downstream section (Eden 2). A lot of work has been carried out to improve the pegs but there is still much more that needs to be done to clear the numerous snags.
The match was fished on another beautiful winter’s day, afternoon temperatures reached the mid-twenties, but, as the river had dropped well over 30cm from the level a couple of days before, some found the fishing tough going.
Winner from the `flyer´ at the downstream end of Eden 3 was our Belgian visitor, JP who celebrated his up coming 77thbirthday with 8.06kg caught on bomb and maggot. Second from the downstream end peg on Eden 2 (peg 11) was Trevor Morrey with 5.60kg caught on feeder and maggot. Russell Davidson was third with 5.14kg on pole and corn (peg and fourth was Tony Felstead with 4.68kg caught from peg 10 using pole and maggot.
WINTER 5
With the previous days being warm and the nights mild, a good days fishing was expected for round five of the Carp-R-Us Winter Series. The reality was, that apart from one person, the match was a struggle for almost everyone.
Clear winner from peg 26 was Willie Moons with 21.70kg including a carp of 5.96kg caught on feeder and pellet. This excellent weight was not expected when the first three hours went biteless. Second was the very consistent Trevor Morrey with 7.16kg from peg 1B using pole and maggot. Third was Ian Brown on peg 7 with 5.76kg again using pole and maggot and fourth was Dave Hutchinson with 2.86kg from peg 40.
WINTER 4
Carp-R-Us fish Round Four of their Winter Series on the Rio Segura at the stretches known as Eden 2 and 3. Unexpected overnight rain left the banks muddy, and the river was at a high level but still within its banks. The match was fished with four members on the upstream stretch (Eden 3) and four on the downstream stretch (Eden 2). And it definitely ended up a match of two halves!
The match was won by Tony Felsted off the favoured end peg on Eden 3 with 7.28kg caught using a small cage feeder and maggot. Apart from his effort, only three other fish were caught on that section. On the other section, Russell Davidson had 5.42kg from peg 6 on pole and corn, Paul Burton on peg 5 had 4.92kg on pole and maggot, Tony Flett had 4.60kg from peg 8 on feeder and maggot and even Roy Dainty managed 3.70kg from peg 7, again on pole and corn.
WINTER 3
The third round of the Carp-R-Us Winter Series was fished on the Rio Segura at Jacarilla. A mild morning gave way to a pleasantly warm January day, but everyone was caught out by a surprise rain shower just after midday. The river itself looked in excellent condition and a decent day’s fishing was hoped for.
Normally, the best weights come from the end pegs, but today two of the pegs in the middle of the stretch produced the best weights (although Russell Davidson on end peg 8 did lose a very large carp at the net). First, from peg 3 was Trevor Morrey with 12.60kg caught mainly on maggot and feeder. Second from peg 6 was Steve Fell with 9.10kg caught using pole and bread punch to the far bank and maggot and feeder closer in. Third was Ian Brown (peg 2) with 4.24kg caught on a variety of methods, just pipping Paul Burton (peg 1) with 4.14kg caught on pellet and feeder.
WINTER 2
The last match of 2023 saw Carp-R-Us fishing the El Bosquet complex just north of Catral. Two sections had been booked, 1-7 and 26 - 40 with the anglers being split across these.
The air temperature had risen to 2C as each angler dipped into the draw bag to find which peg he would fish. Unusually, Willy Moons neither won the Lucky Peg nor did he draw one of the better pegs. Instead Nick Bastock drew the lucky peg whilst top anglers Neil McBirnie and Ian Brown respectively drew what were considered the best pegs, 1B and 1.
The morning remained cold and overcast. The fish did not want to feed and everyone struggled for bites. Maggot seemed to be the only bait that got an occasional bite and, as expected, it was pegs 1 and 1b which delivered a handful of carp. The sun came out briefly around 13:00 and with it 5 Booted Eagles took to the sky, soaring above the complex. A couple of Kingfishers also appeared with one settling briefly on Jeremy Fardoe's pole as if to say I bet I catch more than you. At the weigh in, Ian Brown easily took the honours with 10.140 kgs of carp. Neil McBirnie was second with 5.76kgs which included a bass. Roy Dainty was the only other angler to weigh in on that section with a mullet caught 3 minutes before the end; perseverance was his method. The other section fared less well though Russell Davidson fishing extremely fine managing 5.12kgs from peg 39 with Nick Bastock catching 1.94 from peg 27. Jeremy Fardoe caught 1.78kgs but everyone else failed to catch.
WINTER 1
For the second week running it was touch and go as to whether we should fish the scheduled venue (Mercadona stretch) for the first round of the Carp-R-Us Winter Series or move to a different venue, again due to low water levels. In the end, after a short debate, we decided to stay where we were. In retrospect, this appears to have been the wrong choice.
Although plenty of fish could be seen moving, and despite the weather being perfect for the time of year, the fishing was very hard. The match was won by Jeremy Fardoe with a disappointing 1.32kg from peg 2. Second from peg 14 was Steve Fell with 0.92kg. Third was Nick Bastock with 0.46kg and fourth Trevor Morrey with 0.34kg. The same method was used by all four anglers, pole and bread, with any other method proving futile.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 11
It was touch and go whether to fish the Carp-r-Us 14th December match, the last of the Summer/Autumn Series, on the Eden stretches of the Rio Segura or move it to Bigastro. An inspection the day before showed that the water was not too low but that both Eden 2 and Eden 3 stretches would need to be used. There were too many large rafts of bamboo blocking the swims to place everyone on just one section. Arriving for the draw, the water in Eden 2 had gone down overnight whilst that in Eden 3 remained about a foot deeper making its pegs the preferred ones with peg 6 being by far the deepest. Peg 6 was also drawn as the lucky peg and, true to form, Willy Moons drew it.
The fishing proved very hard. The water dropped a good 6 inches during the match and its pace quickened. Trevor Morey on peg 3 caught a carp and barbel, plus miniscule mullet, during the morning but nothing in the afternoon. However, his bread punch and feeder tactic saw him win the Eden 2 section with 3.40 kgs. Meanwhile on Eden 3, no-one was catching. Then, immediately before the final whistle, Willy hooked a carp of over 4 kgs which with some small mullet on feeder and maggot gave him 4.98 kgs to win the section and be overall winner. Tony Flett was third with 3.08 kgs and Paul Burton fourth with 1.26 kgs.
This left Willy as the clear winner of the series with 262 pints with Tony runner-up with 249 points.
ANN FOWLES MEMORIAL CUP/FUR & FEATHER
A chilly morning turned in to a lovely winters day for the Carp-R-Us Ann Fowles Memorial Trophy/Fur and Feather at El Bosquet. Unfortunately the whole venue had been used for a fishing festival the two previous days and this seemed to have a somewhat detrimental effect of the fishing.
Winning the match, and therefore the Ann Fowles Trophy, from peg 8 using pole and maggot was Dave Hutchinson who weighed in a disappointing 6.34kg. Second, his best result at a club match, was Graham Booth who fished waggler and corn to land 5.90kg from peg 1. Third was Tony Flett on peg 2 who fished the pole with a variety of baits for 4.48kg. Fourth was Trevor Morrey on peg 1a with 4.18kg. Trevor also used pole and maggot.
Further information about the club can be found on its website www.carp-r-us.weebly.com or on the Facebook page Carp-R-Us Fishing Costa Blanca
SUMMER/AUTUMN 10
For the first time it felt like autumn when Carp-r-Us gathered to fish the penultimate round of their Summer/Autumn Series on the River Segura at Jacarilla. The river looked in quite good condition and, if the cooler weather didn`t put the fish off, it looked promising for a good day’s fishing. As it turned out the fish seemed to be shoaled up and the fishing was patchy.
The upstream end seemed to fish best, and the match was won by Willy Moons with 9.74kg from peg 7 (the top upstream peg was 8 and the last downstream peg was 1) using method feeder and maggot. Next door, Richard Crawshaw managed 8.44kg again using feeder but switching between corn and maggot. Third was Trevor Morrey on peg 3 who, despite losing a load of fish in a snag, managed 4.24 using feeder and maggot, fourth was Paul Burton with 3.64kg, fifth Steve Fell with 1.84kg and sixth Tony Flett with 0.64kg. Unfortunately, two members returned dry nets.
Its pleasing to report that at least the half the fish caught were barbel to around three quarters of a kilo.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 9
First the good news from Round Nine of the Carp-R-Us Summer/Autumn Series fished at El Bosquet, everyone caught fish. It is probably also good that fish is both singular and plural because a fish is all several people caught despite the match being fished in almost perfect conditions, although it should be noted that the water level on the 1a to 7 stretch was much lower than normal and the water had an unusual colour.
Runaway winner from peg 9 was Doug Hornblow who fished feeder and pellet for 15.98kg. Second from peg 12 was Jeremy Fardoe who had 10.36kg caught on pole and using a variety of different baits. Close behind from peg 16 was Willy Moons with an all mullet catch of 10.34kg on feeder and pellet and fourth was Dave Hutchinson with 8.00kg from peg 3. Alan Smith had 7.58kg from peg 14 but none of the other anglers managed to break the 4kg mark. Overall, a very disappointing days fishing at a venue that seems to be very out of sorts at the moment.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 8
The eighth round of the Carp-R-Us Summer/Autumn Series was fished on the Canal del Progres, better known as the Mercadona stretch. It was another lovely autumnal day with temperatures reaching 25°c by the time the match finished although a strong wind rose about midday making presentation difficult. The canal looked in perfect condition when we arrived but unfortunately the fish didn´t seem willing to fish and almost everyone struggled for bites.
Winning his first match with the club from peg 1, was Trevor Morrey with 3.30kg caught on pole and feeder with maggot on the hook. Second, despite losing several mullet through a hole in his keepnet, was Paul Burton on peg 14 who had 1.60kg again using the pole or feeder and pellet. Third from peg 6 was Willy Moons with 1.12kg on feeder and pellet, fourth from peg 2 was Roy Dainty (0.90kg), fifth Ken Wilcock (0.86kg, peg 12), sixth Jeremy Fardoe (0.60kg, peg 15), seventh Tony Flett (0.56kg, peg 7) and eight Steve Fell (0.10kg, peg 8).
AUTUMN CUP
Carp-R-Us took a break from their Summer/Autumn Series to fish for their Autumn Cup at El Bosquet. After another beautiful autumnal dawn, the match was fished in very warm weather although a strong breeze later in the match made presentation difficult on some pegs.
The clear winner was Ken Wilcock who fished the method feeder and pellets to return 20.46kg from peg 1a. Willy Moons was runner-up with 14.52kg from the adjacent peg and Roy Dainty third with 10.04kg. Willy used method feeder and pellet while Roy used the same method plus took a few fish on pole and bread
SUMMER/AUTUMN 7
This week saw Carp-R-Us fish the Eden 2 stretch of the Rio Segura for round 7 of their Summer/Autumn series. It was a lovely morning with mist rising off the river when we arrived. We had seven members fishing and while the river was low it looked like it would fish well. However, the fact it dropped another 20-30cms during the match left most of the upstream anglers struggling for bites.
Willy Moons was a clear winner from peg 5 with 6.30kg (six carp) caught on method feeder and maggot. Second from peg 6 was Steve Fell who used pole and bread to catch 3.00kg, just pipping Richard Crawshaw who had 2.96kg from peg 7 on feeder and corn. Fourth was Jeremy Fardoe with 0.62kg caught on whip and maggot.
A big thank you should go to Tony Flett and Jeremy Fardoe who have worked hard over the last two weeks to ensure there were sufficient pegs for matches on this stretch. It´s a pity the fish just didn´t want to feed
SUMMER/AUTUMN 6
Thursday, Carp-R-Us fished the El Bosquet complex, round 6 of the Summer/Autumn series. We had one member withdraw for health reasons and in the end we had ten fishing.
We had a glorious sunrise this morning and we were using pegs 1A to 15, 5 on each section.
First, from peg 1a was Dave Hutchinson with 21.32kg caught on pole and pellet. Second with 17.40kg was Willy Moons on peg 15. Third, and already putting in some consistent performances despite being new to the area, was Trevor Morrey with 10.94kg on pole and maggot from peg 3 and fourth was Jeremy Fardoe with 10.84kg from peg 5, using pole and a variety of baits.
Unfortunately one member fished the wrong peg and had to be disqualified
SUMMER/AUTUMN 5
After another short break, Carp-R-Us resumed their Summer/Autumn Series with Round Five fished at Jacarilla/Bigastro. The river had settled quite well after the rains earlier in the month, but was still fairly high and fast but, on a beautiful autumn day, everyone expected to catch a few fish, and that’s exactly what happened.
As expected, when he drew the upstream end peg, Willy Moons ran out clear winner with 8.12kg caught on his usual method feeder tactics. Willy fishes the venue regularly and its thought he now knows all the fish by name. Second from the other end peg was Steve Fell with 5.54kg caught mainly on feeder and maggots. Steve’s catch included six small barbel, which was good to see. Third was Trevpr Morrey, fishing the venue for the first time. Trevor had 2.50kg to just pip Richard Crawshaw who weighed in 2.22kg which also included several small barbel.
MEMORIAL CUP
Thursday 14thSeptember Carp-R-Us fished their Memorial Cup on the El Bosquet complex and we also welcomed a new member, Trevor Morrey. We had three members withdraw for various reasons and, in the end, we had nine fishing for the cup, which is fished for in memory of members no longer with us. The day could not have started better as we had a glorious sunrise as the pegs were drawn. Section 26 to 40 was used.
Clear winner and, therefore, winner of the 2023 Memorial Cup was Tony Flett who has 21 kilos of carp off the current hot peg, 26. Second from peg 29 was Roy Dainty and third was Jeremy Fardoe on peg 27. Jeremy was unfortunate in that he landed a 3.68kg carp but after the permitted extra 15 minutes so couldn´t be counted.
As seem to be the case at the moment on this stretch, the higher number failed to produce decent weights.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 4
Thursday 7th Sept, Carp-R-Us fished the first match after our summer break on the Canal del Progres (Mercadona stretch). When we arrived at the venue the sky was lightly clouded with a fresh breeze blowing and the water was just over the cill, a bit up from the normal level, presumably due to recent rains The sun showed its face around 11am and it was a hot day once again but it is pleasing to report that everyone caught fish.
The winner was Willy Moons on favoured peg 1 who caught carp on feeder and maggot to weigh in 7.64kg. Second was Paul Burton on peg 7 who use pole and corn to catch 3.70kg of carp and carassios. Roy Dainty (peg 5) used the same method but could only manage 3.26kg for third and fourth was Jeremy Fardoe with 1.84kg from peg 4.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 3
Today, Thursday 27th July, Carp-R-Us fished round 3 of the Summer/Autumn series, our last match before our summer break. We fished Canal del Progres on the Mercadona stretch. When we arrived at the venue the sky was heavily clouded and rain was forecast. Luckily, we only had to endure a very light shower. The clouds parted and the sun shone, accompanied by a variable breeze.
First was Roy Dainty on peg 2 who caught carp and mullet on pole and corn to weigh in 4.04kg. second was Tony Flett on peg 1. Tony caught carp and carassio’s for 3.76kg on pole and corn.
Third was Jeremy Fardoe on peg 5, who had a mixed bag, weighing 3.38kg using pole feeder.
And fourth was Nick Bastock on peg 4 with 2.42kg on pole fished maggot.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 2
Round two of the Carp-R-Us Summer/Autumn Series was fished at the El Bosquet complex on pegs 26-40. The previous couple of days had been very hot, but fortunately the match was fished in mainly cloudy conditions with the odd light shower and a light breeze helping make the conditions not too bad.
Over the last year or so this stretch has seen a large increase in the number of mullet and a gradual drop in the number of carp caught and so was the case today when, if you wanted to fish for them, there were mullet aplenty, but the carp were more elusive. First was Jeremy Fardoe with 13.00kg caught on pole and bread from peg 28. Unfortunately, Jeremy’s day ended with him stripped to his underwear and entering the water to rescue a couple of sections of his pole that had fallen in. Second was Dave Hutchinson on peg 34 who did include a couple of good carp in his 8.64kg caught on pole and maggot. Third was Richard Crawshaw with 8.42kg caught using feeder and maggot and fourth was the ever-consistent Willy Moons with 6.80kg also on feeder.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 1
Carp-R-Us kicked off (or should it be cast off) its Summer Autumn Series on the Rio Segura at Jacarilla. This stretch of river can be very moody, particularly if a match is being fished on it, and today, with level down and dropping a further 20cms during the match, it was in one of its miserable moods!
Hot, muggy, overcast conditions probably didn´t help but everyone struggled to catch fish. First, from the upstream end peg, was Willy Moons with 3.06kg. Second, with 2.04kg (just two carp) was Roy Dainty. Roy use pole and caught one fish on corn, the other on maggot. Third was Tony Flett (1.54kg) with a mixed bag of small fish caught trotting maggot and fourth was Steve Fell with 0.66kg.
The club would like to thank Paul Burton for spending some time clearing the pegs and paths ahead of the match.
SPRING 11
The final round of the Carp-R-Us Spring Series was fished at El Bosquet on a very warm but, in the main, overcast day. Fishing is a sport that can be a bit unpredictable but when Willie Moons drew peg 17, the peg Marlene Hutchinson excelled on at the previous Saturdays Terry Screen Memorial Match (more later) fishing the same style as Willie, many thought they knew who would win. And boy, Willie didn´t disappoint, running out a clear winner with 44.00kg on feeder and pellet. Willie was well clear od Vinnie Smith on peg 20 managed 17.75kg caught on pole and maggot, tactics which were also used by third place Steve Fell who had 12.20kg from peg 1A and Nick Bastock on peg 6 who had 11.22kg. It was sad to see a number of dead, very large mullet in the 1A to 7 stretch.
This means the series was won by Tony Flett with 206 points with Jeremy Fardoe runner up with 195 points.
On Saturday 24th June 41 local and not so local anglers turned out for a memorial match for Terry Screen at El Bosquet. The match was organised by Terrys great friend Ian Brown, and it was somehow fitting that it was Ian who won the match. Well done to all those that took part.
NB. It was later discovered that the scales used to weigh section 17-25 were set to pounds not kilograms. The amended result for the day is 1st Willie 19.98kg, 2nd Steve Fell 12.20kg, 3rd Nick 11.22kg and 4th Tony 10.40kg
SPRING 10
Carp-R-Us fished Round 10 of their Spring Series on the Eden 2 stretch of the Rio Segura. This stretch has not been used for matches for some time due to flooding and problems with the reeds that line it, but after some hard work by club members the week before, sufficient pegs had been opened up for a match.
Water levels had dropped a lot since a visit two days before and dropped a further 20cms during the match, which makes presentation challenging at times. This did not stop Tony Flett running away with the match from the downstream end peg. Tony weighed in a creditable 10.28kg caught tight to the far bank using pole and maggots. Second from the peg 2 was Steve Fell who had 6.44kg on pole and bread caught fishing the far bank under the overhanging reeds. Third with his usual method feeder and pellet tactics was Willy Moons with 3.96kg and fourth was Jeremy Fardoe with 3.40kg.
PAIRS CUP
Carp-R-Us took a week off from their Spring Series to fish their Pairs Cup at El Bosquet. On this occasion they were also accompanied by Beth and Aiden from the TV programme Bargain Loving Brits in the Sun who shadowed club president Roy Dainty during the match as well as filming the pre-match rituals and joining members at Café Uno in Catral after the match for a drink and some sparkling wit and repartee.
Half of those fishing were on beg 1a-7 and the rest on 26-40 and sadly the latter stretch fished very poorly with and number of low weights and one blank net.
The overall match was won by Dave Hutchison on peg 1 who caught 16.32kg on pole and pellet. Second was birthday boy Steve Higgins (he claims he is 72 but no one believes him) with 13.72kg from peg 4 using pole and maggots. He narrowly beat Nick Bastock on peg 3 who had 13.38kg and fourth was Paul Burton on peg 7 with 11.32kg.
The pairs was won by Nick Bastock and TV legend, Roy Dainty with Dave Hutchinson and Ken Wilcock.
SPRING 9
After having to cancel Round 8 of the Carp-R-Us Spring Series due to poor conditions it was pleasing that after another week of rain the club was able to fish Round 9 in bright warm conditions with a very slight breeze on the Canal del Progres (Mercadona). The canal was about 1 inch below the ledge when we started and dropped over an inch while we were fishing. It had some colour, but conditions have been worse, and it looked good for fishing as there were fish moving in every peg. However, that is where the story changes.
Only Jeremy Fardoe (peg 2) caught fish in the first three hours although there was an improvement later and it was Willy Moons who eventually ran out winner with 3.16kg caught on the method feeder from peg 7. Jeremy finished second with 2.26kg caught on pole and bread with Nick Bastock third and Tony Flett fourth.
With club matches held on the Segura every two to three weeks, let`s hope this rainy spell ends soon.
SPRING 7
The seventh round of the Carp-R-Us Spring Series was fished at the El Bosquet complex. Everyone had been carefully watching the weather as heavy rain had been predicted but in the end the match was fished in cloudy but warm conditions with a light but awkward breeze.
As tends to be the case here at the moment, the fishing was patchy, to say the least. What is a `hot` peg one day is not always the next.
The match was won by one of the longest serving members of the club, Jeremy Fardoe. Jeremy often does not get the results he deserved so it was nice to see him weigh-in 16.12kg from peg 1 caught using pole and an assortment of different hookbaits. A broken pole section caused by a larger barbel, took some of the shine off his day.
Second, continuing his run of good form, was Roy Dainty with 12.50kg from peg 27. Roy used pole and pellet tactics. Third was Paul Davis from peg 1b with 11.58kg (pole and pellet) and fourth with 10.90kg was Steve Fell on peg 7 (pole and bread).
SPRING 6
On Thursday 4th May the Club fished what is colloquially known as the Mercadona Channel but is actually named the Canal del Progression. This is the concrete irrigation channel than goes beneath the N332 just before the La Marina Mercadona roundabout.
The channel was running fast and low, no more than 75cms deep, and dropped a further 8cm during the morning. For most, the fish did not want to know or simply weren't there. Everyone had a feature in their swim whether it was bamboo type reeds or a small bush. These would normally be holding areas for the fish but not on this day. Quite likely, the regular illegal netting of this channel has decimated the fish stock.
Again, repeating fishing lore, end pegs win. And, so it proved. The two end pegs proved to be first and second. On peg 1, retired Welsh international Doug Hornblow showed his class to weigh in 5.60 kgs, mainly carp caught on pole and maggot. At the downstream end peg, Nick Bostock weighed 2.14kgs, also using pole and maggot. Nick had next to nothing with 10 minutes to go but then caught a decent mullet and a carp so pipping Roy Dainty on peg 7 who caught 6 small fish for 1.36 kgs. There were three dry nets.
SPRING 5
Carp-R-Us returned to El Bosquet for Round 5 of their Spring Series. Fortunately, the high temperatures of the previous days had gone and the match was fished in very pleasant conditions. At the draw ´Golden Arm´ Steve Higgins drew the favoured peg 16 and was expected to win the match easily.
As it turned out it was ex-England international Vinnie Smith who gave a master class in fishing floating pole on peg 12 to take 44.06kg using pellets and maggots as bait. Steve Higgins did manage runners up spot with 22.74kg using pole and pellet tactics. Third was Steve Fell on peg 8 with 16.80kg, again using pole and pellet and fourth was Paul Burton (peg 15) with 7.66kg caught using pole feeder and pellet.
SPRING 4
On Thursday 20th April the Carp-R-Us stalwarts fished the Rio Segura at what is named the Bigastro section of the river but is actually at Jacarilla. Very strong winds had been expected after the previous two days and whilst the coast still had them, just a few miles inland was simply tranquil. Not even the odd gust.
End pegs, for whatever reason, tend to do best. Paul Burton who lives local to the venue drew peg 1 at the upstream end of the match section. He used his well tested pole-feeder method with corn and groundbait to catch carp throughout most of the match. They weren't the biggest carp but his 5.74kgs was enough to win the match quite comfortably. Paul fished the venue last weekend and caught, after about a half hour of playing it, what is thought to be the largest carp yet to come out of this venue, a carp of just over 20 lbs (9 kgs+). The photographs showed it to be a scale perfect wild carp of around 0.75m length.
Second on the day was another local, Willy Moons, who using his usual method feeder approach, this time with pellet, weighed in 3.88kgs. Club President, Roy Dainty, had 2 carp for 1.40kgs and third place.
On the downstream end peg, Match Secretary Tony Flett managed to break a mid section of his pole whilst setting up. This did not do him any favours as using the feeder he was unable to fish the main feature of his swim, a far bank inlet. He resorted to trotting and did catch some small barbel on maggot.
Every angler around Torrevieja knows Terry Screen, 'Mr Fixit' as he has become known for his expert skill in repairing rods and poles. Unfortunately, Terry has been quite ill this year and recently spent several weeks in Torrevieja University Hospital. He now awaits an operation. I am sure every angler wishes him a full and speedy recovery. Tony has joined the lengthening queue for a pole repair. Get well soon dear Terry. 'You've gotta keep the customer satisfied. Satisfied'.
SPRING 3
Carp-R-Us returned to El Bosquet on 6th April for the third round of its 2023 Spring Series. Sections 1B to 7 and 8 to 16 were used. The latter section is much deeper and only occasionally used for matches. It also tends to throw up the bigger weights and it fished to form once again producing 6 of the top 7 weights.
The morning began chilly and misty but improved as the day progressed. A fairly calm morning led to a windy afternoon, the wind cutting straight down from peg 7 to peg 1B. The deeper section was more sheltered.
Returning to the Club was Neil McBirnie, once known as the 'Lad' and from peg 11 he fought a close match with the 'Unlikely Lad' Steve Higgins on peg 9. Neil ran out overall winner with 24.80 kgs using a pole and maggot at 9m and feeder with pellet. Steve was a close second with 23.14 kgs fishing maggot with loose fed pellet at around 16m. Dave Hutchinson on peg 12 weighed 14.56 kgs which included a brute of a carp estimated at just over 7kgs.
On the other section, former England International Vinnie Smith got off to a flying start with some large mullet. However, that end of the section died as the wind got up and the fish moved with it towards peg 1B. Alan Smith on peg 1 came out tops with 11.70 kgs with bread and loose fed maggot. Roy Dainty, who struggled to get a bite until the last hour weighed 7.60 kgs on 1B which included a carp of 3.44 kgs.
SPRING CUP
Due to the poor state of the Mercadona stretch, Carp-R-Us moved their Spring Cup to the Eden 3 stretch of the Segura, where they discovered conditions were not a lot better. The river was lower than we´d seen it in a long time so, with shallow swims and not much flow along much of the length, it was expected that the pegs closest to the CV91 would be favourites.
And so it proved with Paul Burton running out clear winner from the end peg closest to where the reeds are. Paul weighed in 15 carp caught on method feeder and corn for 10.30kg. Second, from the top end of the stretch opposite the inlet was Willy Moons who had 4.06kg, again on method feeder with corn and pellets. Third was Jeremy Fardoe who winkled out a couple of mullet for 1.30kg and fourth was Tony Flett with 0.98kg.
Congratulation to Paul on winning his first trophy with the club.
MURCIA 2
Carp-R-Us travelled to the Embalse de Argos for Round Two of their Murcia Series. They were treated to a beautiful Spring day with temperatures in the mid-twenties although a stiff breeze picked up in the afternoon. Unfortunately, the fish didn’t really respond to the warm weather and although everyone caught, the fishing was quite a struggle.
As there were only a few fishing everyone was pegged on the warm side with Willy Moons running out winner with 15.12kg caught using his usual method feeder technique. Second was Steve Fell with 11.08kg again using method feeder and wafters. Third was Alan Smith who had a late run of fish on corn to put 9.62kg on the scales. Fourth with a single carp was Graham Patterson with 1.94kg.
SPRING 2
The second round of the Carp-R-Us Spring Series was fished at the El Bosquet complex.
Pegs 17-25 were used for the first time in several weeks and it was hoped that the warmer weather would have stimulated the fish in this section into feeding, and so it proved with four of the top five weights coming from this stretch.
For the second week running the winner of the match was Roy Dainty who had 13.30kg on pole and bread from the much fancied peg 27. Second was the ever consistent Dave Hutchinson with 11.38kg from peg 17. Dave caught on both maggot and bread. Third, ably coached by his pet dog, was Doug Hornblow with 10.80kg caught on pole and maggot from peg 24 and fourth with 8.52kg from peg 20 was Tony Flett who used pole and bread.
SPRING 1
Round one of the Carp-R-Us Spring Series was fished on the Eden 3 stretch of the Rio Segura (upstream of the CV91 road bridge). Several members of the club had fished the stretch over the weekend and caught well and, with the weather predicted to be warm, a good days fishing was hoped for. However, neither the weather or the fishing turned out to be what was expected. Most of the day was overcast with a stiff breeze and the fish just didn’t seem to be interested in feeding.
The winner of the match, it´s good to see he´s finally remembered how to catch fish, was Roy Dainty who had 4.94kg on pole and bread. Second, and continuing his good run, was John-Pierre van de Cruysson who managed 2.50kg on his ´winkle-picker´ and maggot. Third with a single carp of 2.12kg caught on feeder and bread was Graham Booth and fourth, again with a single fish was Jeremy Fardoe with 1.68kg.
MURCIA 1
Thursday Carp-R-Us started their Murcia Series on the Rio Segura in Murcia town centre.
Following the very heavy overnight storms in the area that brought heavy sleet and rain we expected the river to be in full flow and at a very high level. Nothing could have been further from the case with the river appearing a normal colour, running at a normal pace and about a foot down on normal levels.
This area of the river is normally cold in the summer months and today although the temperature was about 10 degrees, at times it felt like freezing and most of the match was fished in very cold conditions.
Winner on the day, taking advantage of a good draw on peg 1 was Graham Patterson with 5.320kg. Graham fished an open ended feeder with bread or maggot fished across to take 4 carp. In second place was Wandering Walter, Terry Screen who despite walking up and down the match stretch several times managed to catch 3 carp close in on the feeder with bread for 5.020kg. Alan Smith took third place with a good solitary carp also caught on the feeder, again close in for 3.46kg. The other 3 anglers all caught, Graham Booth had 1 carp for 1.200kg, Willy Moons also followed suit with a similar carp for 1.06kg and Ian Brown brought up the rear with a single bleak for 0.025kg. Not a great day but at least we all caught.
WINTER WINTER 11
Conditions were very good for the final round of the Carp-R-Us Winter League. The previous day had been really warm and a mild night meant that the water temperature was up to 11 degrees, not bad for the time of year.
The match was won by the clubs newest member, Jean-Pierre van de Cruysson who caught 12.48kg from peg 40 using pole the pole with a single maggot on the hook. Second, fishing his first match with the club after his adventures down under, was Ian Brown (peg 6) with 7.24kg caught on pole and bread. Third was Dave Hutchinson who had 6.48kg from peg 3 using pole and maggot and fourth was Roy Dainty (peg 2) with 5.76kg using pole and bread.
This meant that the overall results for the series were: first Steve Fell with 233 points, second Tony Flett with 224, third Terry Screen (218 pts) and fourth Jeremy Fardoe (199 pts). Congratulations to all 18 members who took part in the series.
WINTER 10
The penultimate round of the Carp-R-Us Winter League was fished on the Canal del Progres Guardamar (Mercadona stretch). The water level on the stretch was low and dropped a further few centimetres during the match leaving the water quite shallow, but despite this, everyone caught fish.
The best weights came from the upstream end of the stretch, near the N332 road. First was Paul Burton with 6.76kg from peg 2, just pipping Richard Crawshaw who had 6.64kg from peg 1. Both caught carp on maggot. Third, and catching his first fish in a match this year, was Roy Dainty with 3.56kg from peg 3, and fourth on peg 5 was Terry Screen with 2.62kg.
WINTER 9
Round 9 of the Carp-R-Us Winter League was fished on the Rio Segura at Jacarilla. Rain during the days before the match had left the river high and running fast and dirty but with slack areas in most swims and the level dropping slowly, some decent sport was anticipated. However, this proved not to be the case as the fish were just not willing to cooperate and six of the ten fishing failed to catch. The match was won by Steve Fell with 1.16kg, second was Terry Screen with 0.32kg, third was Paul Burton with 0.28kg and fourth Tony Flett with 0.22kg.
WINTER 8
Thursday 2nd February saw Carp-R-Us returning to the El Bosquet complex, fishing pegs 17 to 40. Upon arrival the air temperature was showing -2oC and a low cold mist hung over the complex. It did not bode well, especially as these pegs had not been producing many fish during any of the recent matches. We could only hope. Fortunately, the Sun did come out as the day progressed.
Dave Hutchinson drew the lucky peg 26 which not only gave him a €10 but saw him on the favoured peg. He hadn’t a feeder rod with him which most favour on this peg. Instead, he fished pole and maggot for 8 carp and a total weight of 6.12 kgs to come out overall winner. Alan Smith on peg 37 fished very fine using maggot and punched bread to winkle out a few small mullet, then a carp later on, for 3.22 Kgs and winner of his section. Ken Willcock on peg 22 was the final section winner with 2.40kgs on pole and pellet. There were 4 dry nets.
Next Wednesday, the Club will be holding its 2022 trophy awards with lunch at Giovanni’s in Almoradi. Then on the Thursday return to the Rio Segura at Bigastro / Jacarilla.
WINTER 7
Carp-R-Us fished round 7 of their Winter League on Eden 3, the stretch of the Segura upstream of the CV91 road bridge. The stretch has been mostly cleared of reeds and thanks to the hard work of a few people there are now at least 14 usable pegs. The day started very cold, and, after several chilly days, the water temperature was very low. Everyone expected it to be a struggle.
And so it turned out for all but one competitor. Steve Fell took full advantage of a good draw to weigh in 11.08kg caught mainly on pole and corn from the downstream end peg. Second, from the upstream end peg was Nick Bastock who managed a single fish on maggot for 1.64kg, third was Tony Flett who again had just the one fish on maggot for 1.34kg, just pipping Willie Moons who also had just one fish for 1.32kg.
Overall, it was another tough day’s fishing that sadly again produced three dry nets. At least watching the herd of goats patrolling the far bank helped pass the time.
WINTER 6
On a very windy, sunny but cold day, Terry Screen again showed his prowess on running water by finishing a clear winner of Round 5 of the Carp-R-Us Winter League on the Mercadona stretch. Terry fished feeder tactics to take 7.94kg from near the reed bed at the end of the houses. He also lost four or five fish. Second, towards the other end of the stretch, was Nick Bastock who had 4.14kg of carp from the weed bed near the road on the pole. Third was Ricard Crawshaw with 1.34kg and fourth was Jeremy Fardoe with 1.00kg.
WINTER 5
Round five of the Carp-R-Us Winter League was fished at the El Bosquet complex, Crevillente. As the night had been pretty mild and temperatures around 20° were predicted, a decent day’s fishing was hoped for. Sadly, it didn’t quite materialise.
The match was won by Steve Higgins who said he applied all the knowledge he`d gleaned from being a protégé of the late, great Ivan Marks to put 8.30kg on the scales from peg 3. Second, despite moaning all day about his draw, was Nick Bastock with 6.04kg from peg 22. Third was the old maestro Terry Screen with 5.92kg and fourth was Willie Moons with 3.66kg.
All in all, it was a tough day’s fishing that sadly produced three dry nets-
WINTER 4
Round four of the Carp-R-Us Winter/Spring league was fished on the Rio Segura at Jacarilla/Bigastro. It’s possible to have some excellent days fishing at this venue but it often doesn’t fish well when there is a match on it. With the temperature of just eight degrees at the time of the draw, a few people feared the worst.
As it turned out the fishing wasn’t too bad, and the match was won by Tony Flett from the end peg (9) with 7.80kg mainly caught using a feeder with maggot on the hook. Second was Willie Moons (peg 6) with 6.02kg caught again on feeder with corn. Third was Terry Screen (peg 3) with 5.28kg from peg 3. Terry fished pole with either maggot or corn. Just behind Terry with 5.16kg was Steve Fell on peg 8 who caught on pole and corn.
What was noticeable was that the fish failed to respond to bread which is usually a banker bait on this stretch.
WINTER 3
Carp-R-Us fished the Canal del Progres, Guardamar (better known as Mercadona) for its final match of 2022. Members gathered on what was the coldest morning for some time and found the stretch running quite fast and looking murky, it did not look promising. And so it proved, except for one member.
The match was a runaway victory for Terry Screen who again showed his centrepin trotting skills to weigh-in 7.48kg caught using maggots and bread. A distant second was Jeremy Fardoe with 1.54kg, most of which was a single carp. Third was Steve Fell with 0.62kg and fourth Tony Flett with 0.42. Sadly, no one else caught.
Further information about the club can be found on its website www.carp-r-us.weebly.com or on the Facebook page Carp-R-Us Fishing Costa Blanca.
FUR & FEATHER/ANN FOWLES TROPHY
This Thursday Carp-r-Us fished their annual Fur and Feather match at the El Bosquet complex. This year members were also fishing for the Ann Fowles Memorial Cup for the first time
The previous night had seen heavy, cold rain in the area and the morning was much cooler than in recent days so a tough days fishing was expected. Thankfully everyone of the 15 anglers taking part caught fish even if weights were generally on the low side.
The winner from peg 39 was Steve Higgins who fished a superb match (his words) to finish with 19.62kg caught on pole with maggots. Second from peg 1b was Dave Hutchinson who had 11.86kg, again caught on pole and maggot. Third was Vinnie Smith on peg 6 who caught on pole and bread for 10.60kg and fourth on peg 31 was Terry Screen who 7.18kg also on pole and bread.
After the match a number of the members retired to Café Uno in Catral where they were served with an excellent steak and chips meal.
MURCIA SERIES 10
The final round of the Carp-r-Us Murcia Cup was fished on the Rio Segura in Murcia. After a journey to the venue in fog and light rain at the start the match was eventually fished in pleasant if cloudy conditions.
The winner, for the third week running in club matches, was Willie Mions who had 7.84kg of carp on pellet. Second, just pipping Vinnie Smith was Terry Screen who had two carp and two barbel caught on bread plus a few bleak for 7.04kg. Vinnie finished with over 250 bleak for 7.00kg. Fourth was Paul Burton with 3.74kg caught on feeder and maggot.
The runaway winner of the series was Alan Smith with 201 points (from a maximum of 230). Second was Terry Screen and third Tony Flett. Well don e to all those who fished in the series.
WINTER 2
The second round of the Carp-R-Us Winter Series was fished at the newly cleared stretch of the Segura upstream of the CV91 (Eden 3). Members of the club have spent several session clearing paths to the river and there are about 12 pegs on the stretch.
On what was officially the first day of winter in Spain, a cold front was crossing the area and rain was expected, but fortunately didn´t arrive. Although the river looked in good condition, a hard days fishing was expected. In the end, although all but one of the nine anglers present caught, but too often it was only one or two small fish. First again was Willy Moons with 4.62kg caught on his usual feeder tactics. Second was Roy Dainty who used pole with mainly maggots for 3.76kg. Just behind was Jeremy Fardoe with 3.54kg caught float fishing bread. Fourth was Paul Burton with 0.78kg.
WINTER 1
Carp-R-Us kicked off their Winter Series at El Bosquet. The match was fished in glorious sunshine and temperatures in the low 20s, amazing for the time of year.
It was a match of not two halves, but two stretches. The stretch with pegs 1a-7 fished OK, whilst the parallel stretch, 17-25, was really tough. First was Willy Moons (peg 1a) fishing his usual feeder tactics to finish with 12.04kg. Second with 9.56kg from peg 3, using pole and bread, was Paul Burton. Steve Higgins used pole and maggots on peg 1 to finish third with 6.24kg and fourth, his best finish in a match, was Graham Booth (peg 6) with 4.70kg. The best weight on the other section (17-25) was Steve Fell with 2.98kg. Sadly, he was the only person to catch more than one fish on that section.
MURCIA 9
Today Carp-R-Us fished the 9th match in their Murcia series. Five fished Embalse de Argos as two members had to pull out at the last minute.
It was a glorious sunny day if a little blustery at times and the water levels were higher after the recent rains.
The match was won by Alan Smith with 20.01 kg using a method feeder and pellet and had a mix of carp and barbel from peg 3. Second with 14.52 kg was Tony Flett also using method feeder with pellet from peg 1 and third was Willy Moons on peg 4 who had 12.42 kg and Graham Booth caught 6.62 kg from peg 5 near the point using method feeder and flake. All members caught over 6kg’s which was good to see.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 14
This week Carp-R-Us fished the final match of its 2022 Summer-Autumn series on the Rio Segura between Bigastro and Jacarilla. After some overnight rain, the day proved dry and warm albeit that the river was up and flowing very fast. There were lots of snags in the water which meant landing fish was difficult with some very large carp escaping in the underwater branches. The match was won by Willy Moons (Belgium) on peg 2 with 9.64 kgs of carp and barbel. In fact, a lot of small barbel were caught which bodes well for coming years. Second using pole and corn was Tony Flett (Scouseland) with 5.26 kgs from peg 5 and third using a maggot clip feeder was Alfonso Yagues (Spain) with 4.50 kgs from peg 1. Apart from Willy, everyone grumbled about lost fish and end rigs. At least, for a change, no terrapins were caught. To cap it all, Willy also won the ‘lucky peg’
This means that the Summer/Autumn series finishes as a tie between Willy and Tony who both had 270 points. Third was Jeremy Fardoe with 265 points. Congratulations to Willy and Tony.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 13
Carp-R-Us returned to the El Bosquet fishing complex on Thursday 3rd November for match 13 of its Autumn 2022 Series. For the first time this year, the Club included pegs 8 to 16 along with 26 to 40. After an early morning fog, the day remained overcast which suggested ideal conditions.
That proved to be the case on 8 to 16 where all of its anglers weighed in over 10kgs. Retired International Vinnie Smith came out tops on peg 12 where he gave a masterclass demonstration of fishing the 16m pole tight to the far bank with maggot and pellet for 38.76kgs. Roy Dainty on end peg 8 fished his usual pole with bread flake (Bimbo) for 20.56 kgs whilst between them Tony Flett using feeder and pellet managed 16.20kgs. All three lost some 'big uns'. Dave Hazell, who complains he never gets a mention was fourth with 14.32kgs off peg 14. Steve Higgins who gets too many mentions overslept and missed the match. By comparison to this deeper section, section 26 to 40 proved a very hard struggle for all of its anglers. Most unusually, flyer peg 26 failed to deliver with section winners being Paul Davis on peg 32 using sweetcorn on the pole for 8.42kgs and Jeremy Fardoe on peg 38 with 8.14kgs using pole and bread.
With one round left to fish only a couple of points separate the three contenders for the series Tony Flett, Jeremy Fardoe and Willie Moons. It all depends on next weeks match at Bigastro.
MURCIA 8
Sometimes, as fishermen, we have off days, sometimes the venue can have an off day. This Thursday at Argos, it was one of those days. Carp-R-Us were fishing round eight of the Murcia Series there and, in what looked like perfect conditions, everyone was expecting a good days fishing. That was not the case and almost half of the eleven anglers who fished struggled to get one or two fish.
Clear winner was Alan Smith who, despite the presence for almost half the match of some intrusive neighbours, managed 12.84kg caught on the method feeder with 8mm pellets from peg 11. Next door on peg 10, Jeremy Fardoe was second with 9.36kg caught using a hybrid feeder and 8mm robin red pellets. Third, but who should have been second if he hadn’t dropped a fish back in at the weigh-in, was Graham Patterson with 9.20kg caught on cage feeder and slow sinking feeder (although even then, the fish were taken on the bottom). Fourth, fishing an unfancied peg on the cold side, so an excellent performance, was Steve Higgins with 7.50kg.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 12
Round 12 of the Carp-r-Us Summer/Autumn Series was fished on the Rio Segura at Jacarilla/Bigastro. Although there hadn’t been any recent rain the river was very high, running fast and very muddy so a tough match was expected.
The match was won by Dave Hutchinson, fishing his first match for a while. Dave fished peg 1 with pole and corn to take 13.16kg. Towards the other end of the stretch, Steve Fell used a combination of pole and bread and feeder and maggot to take 6.32kg, including four small barbel- Third was the ever consistent Willie Moons with 3.84kg form peg 2, just pipping Richard Crawshaw who had 3.82kg on peg 3.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 11
Thursday 13th October the club fished the eleventh round of the Summer/Autumn Series at El Bosquet. The match was split between pegs 1b and 7 and 17 to 25 and there was a big difference between the two sections with the anglers on peg 17 – 21 struggling for just one fish each and not much being caught on the other pegs on that stretch.
Winner, transferring the skills he learnt on the Segura at Bigastro and honed at The Pond to El Bosquet was Willie Moons with 22.14kg from peg 3 using feeder and corn. Second from peg 4 was Jeremy Fardoe with 19.76kg caught mainly on pole and bread. Third from peg 6 was Terry Screen with 13.84kg and fourth from peg 2 was Paul Burton. The series is now entering its last weeks with five anglers in contention for the trophy.
MURCIA 7
On Thursday 6th October Carp-R-Us fished the Rio Segura at Murcia Town Centre. The fishing at this venue has not been very good for most of the year and it was hoped that recent rain may have freshened it up, sadly that was not really the case. Most anglers fish the feeder here, with some also catching bleak using a whip and maggots. First was Alan Smith with 10.80kg, second Terry Screen with 8.26kg, third Steve Higgins with 4.90kg and fourth Tony Flett with 2.70kg.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 10
Carp-R-Us fished the tenth round of the Summer/Autumn Series at El Bosquet. The match was scheduled for the Rio Segura at Bigastro but the rain at the beginning of the week meant that the river was flooded and unfishable.
The match was fished on what was probably the coolest day for several months, the temperature only rising to the mid-twenties. The long back channel was fished and, as is the norm there lately, the lower numbers fished better than the higher ones. The winner was Jeremy Fardoe with 10.90kg caught mainly down the edge on peg 29. Second was the returning Tony Flett with 5.54kg from peg 33, third was Willy Moons on peg 30 with 5.18kg and joint fourth from pegs 39 and 38 were Terry Screen and Steve Fell with 3.42kg. Apologies for lack of method details.
MEMORIAL CUP
This Thursday Carp-R-Us fished their Memorial Cup match at El Bosquet. This year the cup holds a special place in the hearts of the club as sadly two of our longest standing members, Ann Fowles and Roy Buttress both passed.
The days leading up to the match predicted that there would be rain and possibly storms at some stage during the day. As it turned out the match was fished in warm sunshine with a light breeze, so much for weather forecasts. The match was won by Willie Moons who drew one of the current hot pegs, 29, to take a creditable 24.12kg caught using straight lead fished over corn and pellets. Second, on the adjacent peg (30) was Roy Dainty who had 14.30kg on pole and flake. Third was Doug Hornblow with 10.98kg, mainly caught using pole and maggot, from peg 21 who pipped Jeremey Fardoe by the narrowest of margins, Jeremy having 10.96kg caught on pole and meat.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 9
This week, 8th September the club fished Round 9 at Nancys. This venue always causes headaches as it is very popular with local fisherman and it is impossible to reserve pegs, so the usual plan is to arrive at dawn for a walk off, hopefully before anyone else arrives. Unfortunately, by 0715, when it was just getting light, three of the pegs we would normally fish had already been taken. Fortunately, there were still enough pegs available for those fishing, but we were more spread out than we would have liked.
It was another hot day, and the venue had a good flow and plenty of fish were showing. However, although everyone caught, the fishing was not great. Winner on the day was Steve Fell who had 3.24kg caught on pole feeder with wafters or pole with bread. Second was club stalwart Terry Screen who had 24 small fish for 3.09kg caught on pole and bread. Third was Jeremy Fardoe with 2.64kg (it would have been more if he had weighed all his fish and not left two in his net), again fishing pole and bread. Fourth was Roy Dainty with 0.78Kg.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 8
On Thursday the 1st of September Carp R Us fished round 8 of the summer/autumn series at El Bosquet.
The weather was rather hot to say the least and we fished pegs B1 to 7 and 18 to 22.
Winner on the day was Ian Brown with 36.04kg from peg 3. Ian fished mainly the feeder on the pole with pellets but caught a few carp down the edge later on with corn.
In second place was Ken Willcock with 23.86kg from peg B1. Ken fished the feeder on the rod with the unusual bait of turkey meat to take some quality carp.
Third place went to Alan Smith who caught mullet early, on the bread, but carp close in on the pole with paste after that for 15.50kg.
In fourth place was Nick Bastock who fished peg 18 on the back channel. He fished the feeder towards peg 17 and caught some decent carp for 14.88kg.
Big thanks go out to Steve Higgins and Alan Smith who ran the match in the absence of the usual suspects.
MURCIA 6
Carp-R-Us fished the 6th match of its 2022 Murcia Series on the Rio Segura in the centre of Murcia on Thursday 28th July. This was the last match ahead its annual August 'heat wave' break. Fortunately, the temperature had dropped considerably since the 40oC+ days of earlier in the week and even Terry Screen reported from personal experience that the water was cooler than expected. The day only hit the mid 30oC's. At the outset, the river looked in poor form. It was a milky grey/green which did not bode well.
This was a day when the pegs fished to form. Peg 1 above the weir performed best with Willy Moons managing 6.60Kgs; 5 carp and a barbel all over 1kg on feeder with pellet. Terry Screen on Peg 2 came 2nd with 5.43Kgs; 7 carp on feeder alternating bread and pellet. Then on peg 3 just below the bridge, Alan Smith managed a creditable 2.14Kgs which comprised 1 carp and 56 bleak (which weighed 0.97kgs). Finally, Roy Dainty immediately above the bridge had 2 carp for 1.76kgs.
The Club won't be fishing any formal matches during August but no doubt there will be some impromptu knock ups on Thursdays for those willing to take on the heat.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 7
Carp-R-Us fished the Rio Segura at Bigastro for the first time in two months for Round Seven of the Summer/Autumn Series and how it had changed. The bank side vegetation, so carefully cleared after the DANA of 2019 is now back to head height in many places. The river itself was down about half a metre from the previous visit (and fell a further 15cm during the match), so another tough day at the office was expected.
Winner of the match was Richard Crawshaw, now fishing with us more regularly after almost a year spent renovating his house. Richard fished feeder and maggot to have 2.83kg from peg 2. Next door on peg 1 was Steve Fell who managed 1.28kg also using feeder and maggot. Steve´s catch included two small barbel, which was good to see. Third was Tony Flett with 1.00kg and fourth Jeremy Fardoe with 0.28kg. It is worth mentioning that over 20 terrapins were caught during the match
SUMMER/AUTUMN 6
Round 6 of the Carp-R-Us Summer/Autumn Series was held at the El Bosquet complex. Temperatures were predicted to reach the mid-thirties and as there had been a large charity match fished at the venue the day before where weights had been relatively poor, expectations were not high. However, we were wrong, and the fishing was quite good. First, making one of his rare appearances, was Ken Wilcock on peg 2 with 22.70kg caught using pole and bread. Second, on peg 1b was Tony Flett with 16.30kg caught on pole and sweetcorn. Third from peg 5 was Willie Moons who fished his usual feeder tactics to take 12.58kg and fourth was Steve Fell on peg 7 who had 10.15kg caught switching between feeder with corn and pole with bread.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 5
After having a break from match fishing for a week, Carp-R-Us resumed their Summer/Autumn Series on the Canel del Progrés (Mercadona Stretch), Guardamar. This stretch has changed a lot in recent years. It used to contain many fish-holding features which were home to some difficult to catch, large carp. Then it was cleared and dredged, returning it to the concrete channel it was originally. Now, the far bank vegetation is returning and the water itself has large beds of streamer weed, ideal for the fish, a challenge for the angler.
Although there were plenty of fish to be seen, they were largely elusive. The match was won by Terry Screen who turned up with his beloved centre-pin reel determined to trot maggots whatever the peg. Undeterred by the large beds of weeds, Terry did just that to weigh in 3.42kg. Second was Steve Fell who took a few mullet on pole and bread but mainly caught on a maggot feeder for 1.70kg. Third was Jeremy Fardoe with 1.08kg and fourth Tony Flett.
SPRING CUP/PAIRS CUP
This week Carp-R-Us fished their postponed Spring Cup and their annual Pairs Cup at the El Bosquet complex. The weather was again very warm with a light breeze making conditions quite comfortable. The Spring Cup was won by Ian Brown from the often unfancied peg 33. Ian weighed in 16.20kg caught on the pole using corn. Second, on peg 18, and continuing his recent good run of form, was Roy Dainty with 14.57kg caught on the pole. Third, fishing for the first time after a long absence, was Dave Sutton. Dave used feeder tactics to take 10.70kg from peg 36, Fourth was Willy Moons who also used the feeder for 10.55kg from peg 25.
The Pairs Cup was a very close affair. It was decided on section points then total weight if more than one pair had the same points. In the end three pairs scored four points, Willy Moons and Dave Sutton, Steve Higgins and Ian Brown, Roy Dainty and Alan Smith with Steve and Ian just pipping Roy and Alan by 500gms. Well done to all who took part.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 4
Round four of the Carp-R-Us Summer/Autumn series was fished on The Pond (El Bosque Animado) on a hot but pleasant day. Water levels can be hit and miss at this venue but today the level was good. Ther match was won by Terry Screen with 12.48kg caught switching between pole and feeder and using pellets as bait. Second was Willy Moons with 11-38kg caught using pellet waggler or feeder tactics. Third was nick Bastock who switched between pole, pellet waggler and feeder for 10.88kg. Fourth, by 0.02kg was Alan Smith with 8.38kg.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 3
After several months when the venue has been unfishable and thanks to the hard work of Jeremy Fardoe and Tony Flett clearing pegs, Carp-R -Us fished round three of their Summer/Autumn Series on the Eden 2 stretch of the Rio Segura near Guardamar. The day was probably the hottest the club has fished on so far this year and sadly the fish didn’t seem inclined to feed.
Roy Dainty won the match with 4.60kg from peg 4 fishing the pole and using bread and corn on the hook. Tony Flett was second with 2.60kg and Jeremy Fardoe third. Sadly, these were the only three that caught fish.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 2
Carp-R-Us continued with their Summer/Autumn series at the El Bosquet complex. The weather was hot and sunny and the match was fished on sections 1b-7 and 17-25. The winner on the day and showing a welcome return to form was Roy Dainty with an excellent 31.13kg caught from peg 3 using pole and bread tactics. Second was Tony Flett who was forced to fish the method feeder and pellet as he forgot his pole but still managed 28.50kg from peg 6. Third was Willie Moons with 16.58kg from peg 20, also fishing method feeder and pellet and fourth was Terry Screen on peg 22 who caught 9.78kg using pole and maggot.
MURCIA 5
This weeks Carp-R-Us was fished at the Embalse de Argos and formed part of the clubs Murcia series. For a change the match was fished in hot, sunny weather, something we’d become unaccustomed to over the last few months. The embalse has received lots of water over the last few months and was a couple of feet higher than last time we were there and slightly coloured. This was also the day we said goodbye for a few months to our Welsh members, Doug and Alan.
The match was fished with half the field on the sunny side and half on the cooler side.it was unfortunate that a local fisherman was already in position on the pegged stretch despite the clear notices saying there was a match on. He refused to move so pegs had to be adjusted to accommodate him.
The winner of the match was Alan Davis with an excellent 40.38kg from peg 10 on the sunny side. The next three places went to anglers on the cooler side with Doug Hornblow making it a Wales 1-2 with 36.60kg from peg 1, with Alan Smith third with 30.04kg and Ian Brown fourth with 29.02kg. All the top four fished pellet with slow sinking feeder. It’s pleasing to report that all ten anglers who fished, caught.
SUMMER/AUTUMN 1
Carp-R-Us kicked off their Summer/Autumn series on the Rio Segura at Bigastro/Jacarilla. The last time we fished there, it rained for most of the match and, with the river rising the fishing was hard. Today, the conditions looked particularly good. The river had a steady flow and, with a warm day promised, everyone was looking forward to a good match. How wrong it turned out to be. Everyone struggled for bites and with at least 30 dead fish drifting down the river during the match there was a strong feeling that something had got into the river affecting both the fish and the fishing. All incredibly sad.
The match was won by Alan Davis on peg 1. Alan fished pole and bread to take a few carp for 3.23kg. Second, from the middle of the stretch, was Steve Fell who had 1.65kg of carp also caught on pole and bread. Third was Willy Moons with 0.79kg caught on his customary feeder and pellet and fourth was Tony Flett who had about a dozen bleak for 0.33kg.
WINTER/SPRING 14
Carp-r-Us fished the final match of its 2021/22 Winter-Spring Series on Thursday 5th May at El Bosque Animado, colloquially known as 'The Pond', situated on the N332 between Guardamar and La Mata. The weather did not live up to the forecast sunshine and 24C. Instead, the morning of the match was fished under heavy cloud and a cool wind that chopped and changed direction between West, North and East. Only late in the afternoon did the sun decide to show itself.
The match was split into a morning and an afternoon session so that lunch could be taken between sessions. El Bosque Animado is unusual in that it is principally a restaurant. Anglers are charged €10 to fish but can redeem this for food and drink; hence the lunchtime break. The fish remained shy during the morning session with only a few carp being caught. Will Moons on peg 3 fishing method feeder with pellet was in the lead with two at the break with each of the other anglers on his side of The Pond having one carp apiece. Only sunfish had been caught on the opposite bank.
Things improved marginally during the afternoon session. Willy caught more carp, the best around 3kgs, and came out clear winner with 12.19 kgs. Doug Hornblow on peg 5 alternating between pole and feeder with maggot came second with 7.78 kgs. Alan Davies on peg 7 was third with 2.65 kgs. The opposite bank failed to produce any carp. Ian Brown on peg 12 decided to fish for sunfish and weighed in around one hundred for 2.20kgs to win his section.
This being the last of the Winter-Spring Series, the overall winner was Steve Fell (284pts) who chalked up 5 wins and 2 seconds with Willy Moons (265pts) not far behind with 4 wins and 1 second. Tony Flett (249 pts) was third. Well done to all 19 anglers that took part in the series.
Next Thursday, the 12th May is a pleasure day at El Bosquet with tutelage being offered to members who wish to learn or improve their pole fishing. This will be followed by a BBQ.
WINTER/SPRING 13
Sometimes we wish we were Darts-R-Us or Cards-R-Us rather than Carp-R-Us so we could pursue a pastime indoors instead of in the wet! Today the club held a match on the Rio Segura at Bigastro. It was predicted to rain almost all day, so it was fortunate we were able to hold the draw and set up before the heavens opened. Equally fortunate was that the rain stopped again for the weigh-in. That was where the good fortune ended, the fishing was very poor, possibly due to the fact that the river had risen over the last couple of days. What definitely did not help was the reported pollution that had occurred upstream, and a number of dead or distressed fish were seen during the match. Very sad,
The match was won by Roy Dainty with 1.93kg caught on the pole using corn, second was Steve Fell with 1.25kg caught on pole with bread. Finally, third was Tony Flett with 0.20kg using pole and maggot. Oh well, it has got to stop raining soon, hasn´t it?
MURCIA 4
After yet another enforced break due to the poor weather, Carp-R-Us returned to action with Round Four of their Murcia Series on the River Segura in Murcia Town Centre. Again, the match was preceded by a couple of days rain but although the river was quite high it was fishable although everyone had to be pegged below the bridge as the road under the bridge was flooded.
The match was won by Paul Burton who was pegged just at the bottom of the slope. Paul weighed in 4.88kg of carp and a barbel caught on feeder and pellet. Second was Terry Screen with 2.19kg caught using feeder and corn. Third was Alan Smith with 1.88kg (feeder and corn or wafter) and forth with 1,12kg was Tony Flett (feeder and maggot).
WINTER/SPRING 12
Not fished due to state of the river
WINTER/SPRING 11
After a two week break due to the bad weather affecting the venues, Carp-R-Us resumed their Winter/Spring Series at the El Bosquet complex. The venue had been used for a fishing festival the previous two days and this, together with the heavy overnight rain, led those attending to think the fishing would be hard. And so it proved to be, except for the two Steve’s.
Steve Fell, fishing pole with punched bread, won the match from peg six with 22.85kg, narrowly beating Steve Higgins on peg 3, who fished pole with maggot to take 19.98kg. These two were well clear of the rest, with Graham Patterson finishing third with 7.42kg from peg 4 (pole with maggots and pellet) and Paul Burton fourth with 6.10kg from peg 1b (feeder and pellet).
WINTER/SPRING 10
Round 10 of the Carp-R-Us Winter/Spring Series was fished at the El Bosquet complex. The rains and cool weather of the previous weekend has dropped the water temperature and reports were that the fishing was hard, and so it proved to be.
The match was won by Willy Moons from peg 18. Willy caught using his usual method feeder method with corn or pellets on the hook to take 7.60kg of carp. Second was Tony Flett who lost a lot of quality carp on peg 40 but still weighed in 6.58kg. Tony fished the pole with pellets or maggots. Third was Steve Higgins on peg 30 who caught 6.18kg on pole and maggot and fourth was Graham Patterson with 5.80kg who fished the pole feeder on peg 19.
MURCIA 2
Carp-R-Us took a break from their Winter/Spring series to fish the second round of the Murcia Cup on the Rio Segura in Murcia. A warmish morning greeted those taking part and it was hoped that, with the weather set fair, a good days fishing would be had. Unfortunately, as is common at this time of year, the fish seemed to be in little pockets and, if you weren´t fortunate to find one, the match was a struggle.
The match was won by Dave Hutchinson with 9.48kg caught, unusually for Dave, using feeder tactics and maggots. Dave was pegged just downstream of the road bridge. Second was Willie Moons with 7.00kg who just pipped Graham Patterson on the next peg who had 6.99kg. Graham and Willie were at the upstream end of the stretch. Fourth was Terry Screen with 6.58kg from peg 1.
WINTER/SPRING 9
Round nine of the Carp-R-Us Winter/Spring series was fished on the Rio Segura near Guardamar. The club puts a lot of time and effort in keeping the stretch fishable but sadly the banks and the river itself are in a very poor state due to the amount of rubbish that collects there. The bank was still frost covered when we arrived, and the river was very low with little flow. A hard day’s fishing was expected.
The match was won by one of our new members, Paul Burton. Paul fished pole and feeder with either casters or maggots to finish with 4.54kg. Second, after a long run of poor results, was Roy Dainty who finished with 3.73kg fishing pole and maggot. Third was Terry Screen with 2.40kg, again caught using pole and maggot and fourth was Jeremy Fardoe with 2.59kg. The top three weights were all taken from the deeper downstream end of the stretch, the top end fished very poorly.
WINTER/SPRING 8
Carp-R-Us had a good turnout for round eight of the Winter/Spring series held at the El Bosquet complex. Temperatures in the mid-twenties with light winds were predicted so the match was fished in possibly the best conditions of the year so far. However, apart from the pegs in the new section, which the club was using for the first time, and the high number pegs, fishing was tough, although everyone caught.
Alan Smith ran out a clear winner fishing pole and feeder with maggot to catch 13.92kg from peg 15. Second, on the same section, was Nick Bastock who had 11.22kg from peg 11 using pole and maggot. Third was Steve Fell who caught plenty of mullet using pole with bread and some bonus carp on pellet to weigh in 9.41kg from peg 39. Fourth from peg 37 was the returning Dave Hutchinson with 8.25kg caught on pole and maggot/bread from peg 37.
WINTER/SPRING 7
The Rio Segura at Jacarilla/Bigastro was the venue for Round Seven of the Carp-R-Us Winter/Spring Series. The banks were still frosty when the stretched was pegged out but with temperatures expected to rise to the low 20´s and the river looking in good condition, a pleasant day’s fishing was expected. However, as seems to be the case on all venues at the moment, the fishing was extremely poor.
Steve Fell again ran out winner with just 2.70kg caught on maggot feeder close in from end peg 9. Second again was Terry Screen again using a feeder and maggots from peg 2 to take 1.53kg. Third was Nick Bastock with 1.36kg from peg 6, using the same method and fourth with 0.99kg was Willy Moons using method feeder and corn.
WINTER/SPRING 6
Carp-R-Us continued their Winter/Spring series at the El Bosquet complex. Although cold and cloudy, the high winds of the previous two days had dropped, making conditions a little more comfortable.
The match was a remarkably close affair, with just 610g covering the first five places. Sad to report, there were also three dry nets. The winner was Steve Fell who fished pole with bread against the far shelf drop-off on peg 4 to finish with 5.66kg. Second was Terry Screen who had 5.48kg, again using pole with bread. Third from peg 18 was Jeremy Fardoe with 5.18kg just pipping Nick Bastock who had 5.12kg from peg 7. Again, both fished the pole with bread.
MURCIA CUP 1
This week saw Carp-R-Us kick of their new Murcia Cup series on the Rio Segura in Murcia Town Centre. At this time of year this venue can be very cold as most of it remains in shade all day. Added to this, the temperature when we met was only 2°c, warm clothing was needed!
The match itself was very strange. The pegs near the first road bridge and below produced fish, the further upstream you went, the harder the fishing. In fact, two of the upstream pegs sadly failed to produce a fish or even a bite.
Alan Smith won the match from the peg immediately up stream of the road bridge with an excellent 17.50kg caught fishing method feeder and wafter close to the far bank. Steve Fell was second with 9.93kg also fishing the method feeder close to the far bank but using double corn on the hook. Steve was near the bottom of the access slope. Third was Jackie Breslin, also on the method feeder, with 7.92kg just upstream of Steve. Fourth was Terry Screen with a single carp for 1.95kg.
WINTER/SPRING 5
Round 5 of the Carp-R-Us Winter/Spring Series was fished on the Eden 2 stretch of the Rio Segura. This stretch has around 14 pegs but unfortunate five or six are now unusable due to the large amount of debris that has collected along the length. The day started, and remained, quite cool, and rain earlier in the week meant that, for a change, the water level was quite good. However, possibly due to the influx of cold water, the fish were slow to feed.
Steve Fell won the match from peg 2, taking 6.78kg of carp using the method feeder with corn or maggots on the hook. Second on peg 1 was Dave Hutchinson with 3.37kg caught on pole with bread or corn. Just behind with 3.02kg was Nick Bastock with 3.04kg most of which was caught trotting maggots, and fourth was Terry Screen from end peg 7 with 1.00kg.
WINTER/SPRING 4
Carp-R-Us returned after the Christmas break to fish the stretch of water known as Nancys. Even though we arrived just as it was getting light most of the popular pegs had already been taken by pleasure anglers enjoying a Kings Day fish. It was also the coldest day for some time although the lack of wind and bright sunshine made for pleasant conditions.
The match was won by Willy Moons using his usual method feeder and corn to take 5.35kg and just pip Terry Screen who had 5.24kg using pole and punched bread. Third, fishing his first match with the club, was Nick Bastock with a single carp of 1.68kg caught using method feeder and pellets, and fourth was Steve Fell with 0.66kg of small mullet caught on pole and punched bread.
WINTER/SPRING 3
Round three of the Carp-R-Us Winter/Spring series on the Rio Segura at Eden 2, just below the CV91 road bridge. This is a strange stretch of water where water levels fluctuate both from day to day and within the duration of a match. Today the river was a good two foot higher that when we checked the stretch three days before, and the water dropped over a foot during the match. It all makes life interesting.
The match was won by Steve Fell with 4.88kg, a mix of carp and mullet caught using pole and bread tactics. Second was the ever-consistent Willy Moons who fished method feeder and corn to take 3.30kg form peg 6. Third, using a similar method, was Roy Dainty with 2.14kg from peg 5 and fourth was Jeremy Fardoe who caught two carp late on trotting bread for 1.98kg.
The club will be taking a break from matches until the New Year so from everyone at Carp-R-Us Merry Christmas and a Prosperous New Year.
WINTER/SPRING 2
Carp-R-Us resumed their Winter/Spring series on the Rio Segura at Jacarilla/Bigastro. For the time of year the weather was very pleasant and the forecast strong breeze never arrived, which made fishing very comfortable. The river was relatively low, but had a good colour and steady flow, so all looked good. However, the stretch responded to a match as it always does and, although everyone caught, weights were not great.
Willy Moons, who knows the stretch well, won again. Fishing peg 1 and using the method feeder with a variety of hook baits, Willy weighed in 8.70kg. Second from peg 7 was Steve Fell who had 4.70kg alternating between pole with bread and feeder with maggots. Third from peg 3 was Terry Screen who managed 4.43kg using the cage feeder and fourth was Dave Hutchinson with 3.76kg from peg 4.
FUR & FEATHER
This week Carp-R-Us held their annual Fur & Feather match at the El Bosquet complex. For the time of year, it was quite mild, and the predicted high wind did not arrive until midday, although when it did, it made pole fishing difficult. There were lots of mullet caught but for most people, the carp never showed.
Willy Moons won the match from peg 37. Fishing his usual feeder and pellet method he managed 6.80kg of carp and mullet. Second from peg 35, was Tony Flett with 5.09kg fishing the pole and using maggot and bread. Third from peg 29 was Steve Fell who had 4.49kg of mullet from peg 29 and fourth was Jeremy Fardoe with 3.10kg using pole and bread on peg 38.
After the match, a number of the members went to Café Uno in Catral for an excellent meal. Thanks to Alan Smith and Steve Higgins for sorting the food.
WINTER/SPRING 1
The first round of the new Carp-R-Us Winter/Spring series was fished on the stretch commonly known as Nancys. The club has not fished this water since the gota fria of 2019 and we were pleasantly surprised at the number of pegs and the depth of water. Unusually for this stretch the water was flowing quite quickly and a strong breeze made presentation difficult on some of the downstream pegs.
Roy Dainty won the match fishing the pole at 14.5m with the wind blowing across him, no mean feat. He caught a number of carp on corn to finish with 5.68kg. Second, continuing his good form, was Tony Flett with 2.28kg caught on the pole alternating bread and corn. Third, from the adjacent peg, was Dave Hutchinson with 1.63kg. Dave also fished the pole with corn. Fourth was Jackie Breslin who had 1.26kg on the feeder and corn.
For more information, visit our website www.carp-r-us.weebly.com
AUTUMN 10
Carp-R-Us fished the final match of their 2021 Autumn Series at Bigastro/Jacarilla. Despite heavy overnight rain, and more heavy rain during the match, the venue was in a surprisingly good state and the fishing was quite good, with everyone catching. It was particularly pleasing to see a number of small barbel being caught, hopefully this bodes well for the future.
The match was won by Willy Moons from peg 8 using method feeder and corn to take an excellent 23.89kg. Second, from peg 1 was Steve Fell who fished the pole alternating bread and corn to take 10.68kg. Third was Dave Hutchinson with 7.69kg from peg 6 again using the pole with bread and corn. Fourth was Tony Flett with 3.70kg caught using the feeder.
This means that the series was won by Steve Fell with 210 points with Tony Flett finishing runner-up with 201 points. Well done to all who took part in the series.
AUTUMN 9
This week nine members of Carp-R-Us made the long journey to Embalse de Argos for the penultimate round of the Autumn Series. The temperature was a cool 6°c, autumn has definitely arrived, but seeing lots of fish topping gave people confidence. The match was won by Alan Smith with an impressive 19.14kg from peg 5 caught using method feeder and pellets. Second, with his best results at Argos, was Jeremy Fardoe who had 8.48kg from peg 8 using method feeder and corn. Third was Steve Fell on the adjacent peg who managed 7.54kg using method feeder and corn or pellet. Fourth Roy Buttress with 5.58 from peg 1 on the dark side again using method feeder and corn. A few of the anglers stayed the night before at Hotel Argos and, as usual they were well looked after with a lovely evening meal and good breakfast.
AUTUMN CUP
Carp-R-Us took a break from their Autumn League to fish their Autumn Cup at the El Bosquet complex. It was the first morning with single figure temperatures and the feeling was it could be a hard match, and so it proved. Fish were very loath to feed, and everyone struggled for bites. The match was won by Willy Moons from peg 5. Willy had 11.88kg caught on his normal feeder and pellet method. Second was Tom Marshall from peg 7 with 5.47kg again using the feeder but this time with bread on the hook. Third was Terry Stroud (peg 3) with 4.99kg using feeder with corn or maggot and fourth was Jackie Breslin (peg 1a) on feeder and maggot. There were also four anglers on pegs 20-23, but the less said about that section the better, although Steve Fell did manage several carp before he had to leave early.
All in all, a very disappointing day where, unusually for the venue, feeder triumphed over pole.
AUTUMN 8
Carp-R-Us fished the 8th round of its Autumn 2021 series at Bigastro (Jacarilla) on the Rio Segura on Thursday 28th October. It was a close call whether to cancel the match, and move elsewhere, as upon arrival the river was in full spate. It was just touching the lips of the bank and was boiling along at an incredibly fast pace. Fortunately, Willy Moons had been down the afternoon before and reported that then the Segura was over its banks. As the level had dropped overnight, we decided that the match would go ahead and, that in all likeliness, the river would continue to fall which it did by about 300mm during the five hours of the match.
Pegging from downstream upwards, Roy Dainty was drawn on peg 1 (third week in succession with peg 1) whilst Alan Smith was on peg 2. Coincidentally they had fished these same pegs the previous week when Alan made his first visit to this venue. Then both had 15 decent carp and Roy too many terrapins. This time, peg 2 had the only slack water on the stretch and, as Alan found, in the spate this was ripe with terrapins. Roy came out winner with four carp for 3.60 kgs fishing cage feeder and bread flake against the inside margin. Unlike the week before, pole against the far bank failed to produce. Second was Willy Moons on peg 5 using feeder and pellets for 2.23 kgs and third Alan Smith with 2.21kgs also catching against the near margin. Jackie Bresin, on a rare day away from the Pond, won his section on peg 8 with 1.76kgs. It was good to have maestro Dave Hutchinson back now that his wife Marleen has recovered from her joint replacement. However, like so many others, he struggled to catch given the pace of the river. At least the sun came out.
AUTUMN 7
Carp-R-Us fished Round 7 of their Autumn Series on the canal near Mercadona, Guardamar. This is one of the best ´trotting’ venues we have and most of the anglers expected to fish this method for small carp and the bass that have now become present in this stretch. Unfortunately, it just didn’t work today and most switched to other methods after a couple of hours. First, from peg 2 near the N322 was Steve Fell who caught a number of small carp and mullet fishing pole and bread tight to the far bank to finish with 2.76kg. Second from the adjacent peg was Roy Dainty who fished the same method but using maggots instead of bread for 2.28kg. Terry Screen persisted in trotting maggots to catch 2.04kg from peg 8 and Tony Flett fished magg and wagg on peg 10 for 0.81kg.
AUTUMN SERIES 6
For Round 6 of the Carp-R-Us Autumn Series the club took the long trip to Embalse de Argos near Calasparra. Normally we have a good turnout at this venue but this week a combination of illness, appointments and other commitments meant only seven fished, all pegged on the warm side. It was a very pleasant autumnal day and with the temperature rising to 24 degrees and a light breeze, a good days fishing was expected. However, the fish had other ideas and, apart from our Welsh contingent, everyone struggled for bites.
First was Dough Hornblow with 37.68kg from peg 6. Doug started with the slow sinking feeder with but quickly abandoned this to fish mainly method feeder with pellets. Next door on peg 7 was Alan Davis who persisted with the slow sinking feeder to take 24.33kg although these were taken quite deep and not up in the water as hoped. Third was Steve Fell from peg 5 with 9.28kg caught on method feeder and pellet and fourth was Jeremy Fardoe from peg 4. As can be seen, the further along the bank you went, the better the fishing became, with both pegs 1 and 2 not producing any fish.
AUTUMN SERIES 5
Carp-R-Us fished Round 5 of its Autumn Series on the River Segura near the CV91 road bridge (Eden 2). Water levels in this stretch remain quite low, and during the match dropped another 15 to 20cms. This makes fishing challenging but interesting. Winner on the day, fishing one of the new downstream pegs, was Ken Wilcock with 6.08kg caught on feeder and bread. Second was his travelling mate, Roy Buttress with 3.53kg caught using feeder and a variety of different hook baits. Third was Tony Flett with 2.48kg using pole and corn and fourth was Ann Fowles with 1,55kg caught using the method feeder and pellet, the first time shed tried the method. Catch of the day goes to Jeremy Fardoe who had the biggest crab yet seen, a good 20 to 25cms across.
AUTUMN SERIES 4
This Thursday saw Carp-R-Us finally return, for the first time in nearly two years, to the Rio Segura in the centre of Murcia. Much has changed since out last visit with a nice new pathway and plenty of plants lining the bank, making this a very attractive venue. The river itself seemed quite low and coloured but this didn’t stop our visiting Welsh members from taking the honours. First off peg 10 (above the bridge) was Alan Davis 9.70kg, second from peg 5 (which was below the bridge) was Doug Hornblow with 8.59kg. Third, making a welcome return after a break of several month, was Dave Sutton with 6.30kg which would have been more if he hadn’t dropped a large fish back into the river instead of his keep net. Fourth was the ever-consistent Willy Moons with 5.25kg. All fished the feeder.
PETER KERR MEMORIAL CUP
Sometimes the stars align, and nice things happen to nice people. Today the Carp-R-Us Peter Kerr Memorial, match fished at El Bosquet, was one of those days. Peter Kerr was a long-time member of the club and his travelling companion used to be Roy Buttress. Today was Roy’s 82nd birthday and it was wonderful that Roy ran out match winner with 13.30kg caught on feeder and corn from peg 26. Second, from peg 18, was Tony Flett who had 11.35kg using pole and corn. Fourth was Terry Screen from the other end peg, 38, who had 10.89kg and fourth was Willy Moon with 6.95kg caught using pole and bread tactics.
AUTUMN SERIES 3
Earlier this week members of Carp-R-Us and The Lime Bar cleared some paths and new pegs on the stretch of the Segura termed Eden 2. Some of these were included in this week’s rather underwhelming match on this stretch. The river looked in good condition with a decent level and flow, but the fish just did not seem interested, in fact most anglers found that from around 11.30 on, bites just stopped. Winner, and again proving age is just a number, was Roy Buttress with 2.95kg from peg 2 caught on feeder and corn, second was Roy Dainty from peg 1 with 2.74kg caught using pole and bread tactics. Third was Jeremy Fardoe, on one of the new pegs, who dug out and old Avon float and caught2.35kg down the edge using bread and corn. Fourth was Willy Moons with 1.31kg.
On behalf of the clubs who did the work on pegs here and Bigastro, could we ask that anyone fishing these stretches just spends a couple of minutes before or after a session either cutting back any reeds they see have grown up in the pegs or just take a walk along the paths to keep the undergrowth trampled down. Thank you.
AUTUMN SERIES 2
Carp-R-Us continued their Autumn Series on the Rio Segura at Bigastro/Jacarilla. Members of the Lime Bar and Carp-R-Us clubs have done a lot of work on this stretch and there are now at least 14 pegs plus paths down from the road and along the river. The weather was again very hot, the temperature was 35 degrees when the match finished, a light breeze just about making this bearable. It was obvious from the results that the further downstream you were, the better the fishing, although some would say (i.e., Ken and Tony) that it was the better fisherman were on the downstream pegs!
First, with his first club victory, was Ken Wilcock with 7.64kg from the end peg caught on feeder and bread and second, from the adjacent peg and again a personal best result, was Tony Flett with 2.36kg caught on feeder and corn. Third and fourth were separated by just 20g with Willy Moons with 1.76kg just pipping Ann Fowles.
AUTUMN SERIES 1
Carp-R-Us resumed its Thursday matches on 2nd September after its annual August ‘heat’ lay off. This was the first round of its 2021 Autumn Series and was fished at the El Bosquet commercial complex near Catral. With some regulars unable to attend, only section 1A to 7 was used. After several days of intensive heat, sometimes accompanied by thunderstorms, the day proved quite fair; low cloud cover and a more comfortable temperature without any wind. In fact, for most for the day the water was like a millpond.
The winner on the day, continuing his run of good form, was Willy Moons. Willy fished method feeder with chick pea. Without a bite in the first hour of this five hour match, once the carp began feeding, he then caught throughout the day unlike most of us. He weighed in 21.30 kgs from peg 5. Tom Marshall, also on the method feeder, got off to a great start with a large carp but then found himself pestered by mullet for much of the match. He weighed in 18.65 kgs from peg 1 whilst Paul Davis next door on peg 1B fished pole and pellet for 18.51 kgs. Alan Smith was fourth on peg 1A with 12.72 kgs.
MINI SERIES 5
Carp-R-Us members fished the final match of the Club’s Summer Mini-Series at the El Bosquet complex on Thursday 29th July from 09:00 until 14:00. With just 8 anglers available to fish, the first channel pegs of 1a to 7 were selected, leaving out peg 3. It proved another hot day although there was still some mud from the downpour earlier in the week. Willy Moon on peg 3 maintained his good form and caught from the outset and throughout the match using pellet feeder towards the far bank. He managed 35 carp and mullet for 18-38 kgs. Second was Ken Wilcocks on peg 6 with 17 fish including a bass for 16-79 kgs using feeder alternating between bread and pellet. Third was Roy Dainty on peg 5 with 15 carp and barbel for 16-64kgs using pole with maggot in the nearside deep water during the morning and the monkey with bread on the far bank during the afternoon. Tony Flett struggled on peg 1 but landed a carp of around 3kg as the final whistle blew.
The result of this Mini-Series, with the best 3 results from 5 counting, was 1st Willy Moons with 88 points, 2nd Roy Buttress with 85 points, 3rd Ken Wilcocks with 83 points and 4th Roy Dainty with 82 points. Congratulations to Willy.
The complex is a haven for wildlife and during the match we were entertained by a low flying flamingo which flew parallel to the stretch and landed briefly towards the edge of the saline lake
MINI SERIES 4
The temperature hit the high thirties as Carp-R-Us stalwarts visited the Rio Segura at Bigastro (Jacarilla) on Thursday 22nd July. Brollies with UV protection were essential. The river was fairly high and fast flowing with lots of plant debris pushing down from further upstream. The river looked like it might produce plenty of fish, unfortunately the fish thought otherwise whilst the terrapins didn't. Apart from Willy Moons on peg 1 with 11.12 Kgs using the method feeder with 8mm pellets and micro pellet groundbait, there wasn't much to choose between the other anglers. Roy Buttress was second on peg 4 with 2.92 Kgs and Tony Flett third on peg 5 with 2.69 Kgs.
MINI SERIES 3
Not having fished it for a couple of months, Carp-R-Us returned to El Bosquet near Catral on 15th July for round 3 of its Summer 'Mini Series'. Fortunately, the 40C+ temperature of a couple of days previously had dropped to a more accommodating low 20Cs. However, a strong breeze from the East made pole presentation difficult at times. Pegs 1b to 6 and 18 to 23 were used; two separate channels which performed significantly different on the day. Fish were being caught from the off on 1b to 6 and continued to feed throughout the day, mainly in the top half metre of water though not actually on the top. Mullet up to 2kg featured, often keeping the carp at bay. Ken Wilcock was overall winner on peg 5 with 18.27 kgs. Terry Screen and Roy Dainty followed close behind with 17.44 kgs and 16.61 kgs respectively from pegs 6 and 1. Bread with maggots as feed was the predominant bait. The top 6 weights came from this section. Pegs 18 to 23 performed poorly with the end pegs doing best but with only 7.42 kgs at best from Alfonso Yagues (Click and Catch tackle shop) on 23 and 5.88 kgs from Willy Moons on 18. Whilst spectacular weights can be caught from this venue, it can be moody. Club Secretary Steve Fell fished peg 20 yesterday caught probably 40kgs, today, the fish had moved elsewhere. or just weren´t feeding.
The Club will be fishing the River Segura at Bigastro (Jacarilla) on 22nd July. This will be the fourth match of the Mini Series. No matches will take place during August because of safety concerns due to the usually high temperatures. Finally, with the new Covid restrictions, the Club has had to cancel its monthly meeting at El Bosque Animado and postpone it's, so very much delayed, 2020 season presentation lunch of 23rd July.
MINI SERIES 2
WATCH OUT FOR THE CRABS
Carp-R-Us fished the second round of its mini-series on the Rio Segura downstream of the CV91 road bridge. Like many other places on the Segura, without constant work the pegs quickly become overgrown but the fishing on the stretch often makes it worthwhile. The other problem with this stretch is the varying water levels, between the Wednesday when the venue was checked and the day of the match the water dropped a foot. Sadly, one other thing that may also be as problem, is that several the dreaded Blue Crabs were caught, five by one angler. We thought these had disappeared from the river, but today the were back with a vengeance.
The match itself was won by Steve Fell with 8.09kg from peg 6 caught using pole and bread tight to the far bank. Second in the next-door peg was Willie Moons who had 4.04kg using his usual feeder and pellet tactics. Third was Roy Buttress one peg 1, just above the inlet, who managed 3.48kg on feeder and corn as well as five crabs. Fourth was Tony Flett with 1.23kg from the same peg as he had 18 fish from the previous day, showing just how much the river can change overnight.
MINI SERIES 1
Not many years ago members looked forward to matches on the Eden stretch of the Rio Seguro, they were usually evenly contested with many pegs capable of producing winning weights and you could almost guarantee that everyone caught something. Sadly, this is no longer the case and even when conditions are reasonable, the fishing is extremely hard. Whether this is due to the of Blue Crabs that invaded the river a few years ago (fortunately they now seem to have disappeared) or some other reason, no one knows, but whatever the cause, the fishing is now poor with almost half of those fishing todays Carp-R-Us match not catching.
One person who did find a few fish was Roy Buttress who had 3.63kg from peg 2 using feeder and corn. Second, from peg 7 was Roy Dainty with 2.40kg using pole and corn. Third was Jeremy Fardoe with 2.32kg caught using pole and bread on peg 14 and fourth was Steve Fell with 0.15kg from peg 6.
MURCIA SERIES 1
For the first time in a long time Carp-R-Us fished a match in Región de Murcia. The Embalse de Argos is amongst the most picturesque venues on the club calendar and the fishing generally makes the long drive worthwhile. Today was no exception with almost half the anglers recording double figure weights.
The winner, from peg one on the cold side, was Ian Brown who caught an excellent 31.40kg using slow sinking feeder and pellet tactics. The next the places all came from the warm side with Ken Willcock with 18.28kg caught on feeder and pellet just beating Steve Fell who had 17.22kg from the peg next door using similar tactics. Tom Marshall finished fourth with 11.10kg from peg 11 using the method feeder and pellet.
SUMMER CUP
After a short break, Carp-R-Us restarted match fishing with its Summer Cup on the Rio Segura at Jacarilla/Bigastro. Rain was again predicted, something that seems to have been more common than normal this year, and sure enough, just after the match started, we were subjected to a heavy shower with plenty of thunder rolling around. The river was not in a great state, looking very muddy and with lots of rubbish being carried downstream, presumably due to overnight rain further upstream.
All this made for a tough match, and although everyone caught something, in some cases it was a solitary fish. The match was won by Steve Fell who had 5.10kg from peg 3 fishing with pole and bread. He just managed to pip Willy Moons who took 4.96kg from peg 6 using feeder and pellet tactics. Jeremy Fardoe who, after a fishless first couple of hours, had a walk along the bank to see what others were doing, was next. Obviously, this helped as he had 1.72kg on feeder and pellet to finish third. Fourth was Tony Flett with 1.56kg caught using float tactics close in to the near bank.
SPRING SERIES R10
The final match of the Carp-R-Us Spring Series was fished on the Eden stretch of the Rio Segura. This often maligned stretch can produce decent weights when conditions are right and, on most occasions, nearly everyone catches some fish. Lately though it has been strange, very few fish are seen ´topping´ and the mullet that used to be commonplace seem to have vanished (along with the blue crabs, thankfully). Unfortunately, there are still plenty of terrapins around.
For the second match running, Willy Moons ran out winner with 7.10kg caught from peg 14 using feeder and pellet tactics. He finished well ahead of Doug Hornblow on peg 2 who managed 3.45kg using the method feeder and corn. Third, continuing his good form, was Terry Stroud with 2.92kg from peg 11 again using feeder and pellet tactics and a single carp of 2.60kg was sufficient to give Jeremy Fardoe fourth from peg 12.
All this meant that the series was won by Dave Hutchinson with incredible 229 points out of a possible 240 with Willy Moons finishing runner up with 213 points, Steve Fell third with 211 and Roy Dainty fourth with 206. Congratulations to Dave and well done all those who took part.
PAIRS CUP
Carp-R-Us took a break from their Spring Series to fish their Pairs Cup at the El Bosquet complex. Seven pairs took part plus two members who were not part of the main match. Doug Hornblow, finally managing to get over to Spain from Wales for the first time in several months, and long serving member Geoff Tempest, who came along to say goodbye to everyone before he returned to the UK. The club would like to wish Geoff all the best for the future.
In the match, one half of the pair fished pegs 1a to 7, the other 17-24 and it was the anglers on 1a-7 who had by the best day with 17-24 fishing very poorly, particularly the lower numbers.
The overall match was won by Tom Marshall with 13.70kg from peg 4 with Terry Stroud second with 8.25kg from peg 6. Terry has only been fishing for a few months and this was only his second match. Third was Ken Willcock with 7.38kg (peg 20) and fourth Willy Moons with 7.05kg (peg 1b). The results mean that Terry Stroud and Terry Screen are the Pairs Cup winners with Tom Marshall the Individual Cup winner.
SPRING SERIES - R9
The penultimate match of the Carp-R-Us Spring Series was held on the Eden 2 stretch of the Rio Segura. This stretch of water is below the CV91 road bridge and you never know from day to day what the level of the water will be. Today it was quite full and flowing steadily on most pegs, which usually is a promising sign. As it turned out, most people caught although for many it was a strange day, with a number of anglers on the downstream stretch catching a few fish early in the match but then their swims faded, and the rest of the match produced few bites.
It is pleasing to report that Willy Moons on peg 11 won his first match with the club with an excellent 13.74kg caught using feeder and pellet tactics. He finished well ahead of Dave Hutchinson who had 8.40kg from peg 2 at the top end of the stretch and Steve Fell on peg 3 who had 7.40kg. Dave and Steve both used the pole with bread and corn or pellets. Fourth was Roy Buttress with 4.34kg caught on feeder and corn from peg 10.
SPRING SERIES - R8
Round eight of the Carp-R-Us Spring Series was held on the Eden stretch of the Rio Segura. This stretch of water takes a lot of work to keep open due to the quantity of reeds that line the river. This week, members of the club spent several hours ensuring sufficient pegs were available for the match, it’s a pity the fishing isn’t always that good.
With Dave Hutchinson having an unusually quiet match Roy Buttress ran out a clear winner with 7.70kg from peg 2. At the other end of the stretch Roy Dainty had 5.55kg from peg 17 for second, with Steve Fell third with 3.70kg (peg 10) and Dave Sutton fourth with 2.70kg (peg 6).
SPRING SERIES - R7
For the first time in several weeks the Carp-R-Us match took place in much calmer conditions. Sadly, the recent rains had left the River Segura at Jacarilla/Bigastro running high, fast and dirty so, whilst Round 7 of the Spring Series took place mainly in sunshine, the fish didn’t feel inclined to feed. First, continuing his good form, was Dave Hutchinson with 4.12kg caught on pole and corn from peg 7. Second was Ken Wilcock (peg 4) whose single carp of 2.30kg caught on feeder and maggots was enough to just pip Richard Crawshaw who had 2.28kg from peg 11. Fourth was Willy Moons with 2.14kg caught using his customary feeder and chickpeas.
SPRING SERIES - R6
Well it was a Thursday so it had to be raining when Carp-R-Us fished Round Six of their Spring Series at El Bosque Animado, but at least this time we got to lunchtime before the heavens opened. Apart from the rain, conditions were not too bad although the fishing was patchy, with four of the anglers getting double figure weights and the rest struggling to get to 3kg. In his customary first place was Dave Hutchinson who fished pole and maggot to capture 15.88kg, just beating Willy Moons on peg 15 who had 15.70kg on feeder and chickpea. In another close run thing for third and fourth Steve Fell came out on top with 12.82kg on pole and maggot from peg 10, narrowly beating Alan Smith who had 12.30kg on feeder switching between maggot and pellet from peg 3.
SPRING SERIES - R5
The weather was again poor as Carp-R-Us fished Round Five of their Spring Series at El Bosquet. The rain at least held off until about 10.00 but after that the match was fished in a steady downpour and a temperature of no more than 12°, typical UK April weather. The match itself was won by Steve Fell who had 22.60kg from peg 1 caught using pole with either maggots or bread. Second from peg 2 was Alan Smith with 12.30kg. Third was Roy Dainty with 6.25kg of mainly barbel caught late on using maggots and feeder and fourth was Ken Wilcock with 5.75kg of mainly decent mullet caught on the pole.
SPRING SERIES - R4
Carp-R-Us returned to the Jacarilla/Bigastro stretch of the Rio Segura for Round Four of their Spring Series hoping the weather would be kinder than on their last visit to this venue. As it was, the day remained dry although cool and breezy towards the end. Dave Hutchinson predicted a difficult match following the changeable weather of the previous days, and so it proved to be. This didn’t stop him winning with 5.50kg from peg 5 caught using pole and bread. Second was Roy Dainty with 4.50kg from peg 8, his catch included a rare gudgeon. Third was Dave Sutton with 2.07kg from peg 2, beating Steve Fell (2.05kg) on peg 6 by just 2g.
SPRING SERIES - R3
Round three was fished on the Eden Stretch of the Rio Segura. Conditions looked good, they day promised to be warm and there was a slight flow on the river, so we were hopeful of some reasonable fishing. This didn’t prove to be the case; the fishing was hard, and this is a worry. There is a real concern that there are not the fish in this stretch that there used to be. Whether this is due to the blue crab invasion or because they have been taken, no one knows.
The match was won by Dave Hutchinson on peg 6. Fishing the pole at 13m and using with bread or pellet Dave managed to catch 3.30kg. Second was Jeremy Fardoe who had 1.30kg on peg 10. Third was Ken Wilcock with 1.2kg from peg 13 and fourth Tom Marshall with 1.15kg from peg 11.
SPRING SERIES - R2
After the poor weather the week before it was good that the second round of the Carp-R-Us Spring Series was fished in pleasant conditions on the El Bosquet complex. However, the fishing turned out to be quite hard with many members struggling for bites. First was Alan Smith with 12.50kg from peg 26. Alan fished most of the match one eyed as the other eye kept watering, which did not help him spot the bites. Second was the ever-consistent Dave Hutchinson with 9.74kg from peg 37. Third was Steve Fell with 5.18kg from peg 36 and fourth was Dave Sutton with 4.42kg from peg 39.
SPRING SERIES - R1
After another forced hiatus due to Covid-19 restrictions Carp-R-Us resumed fishing with the first round of their Spring Series on the River Segura at Bigastro/Jacarilla. The forecast had been saying for several days we were in for a spell of poor weather and this materialised shortly after the match started. Cold and steady rain made conditions difficult, particularly trying to get back up the slope at the end of the match, and didn’t do much for the fishing, either. In the end, only four anglers caught with Dave Hutchinson running out winner with 3.94kg and Richard Crawshaw second with 2.60kg. Roy Dainty was third with 2.30kg and new member Willy Moons fourth with 1.70kg.
WINTER SERIES - R5
Carp-R-Us continued its Winter Series on the Eden stretch of the Segura. It was a frosty morning and several members had to scrape their car windows before setting off, not a common occurrence, fortunately. The recent rain had put some water back into the river but fishing was still hard although all but one angler managed to catch. First from peg 16 was Dave Hutchinson with 5.06kg caught using pole and bread. Second was Roy Dainty on the new peg with 3.00kg using pole and flake. Close behind was Steve Fell (peg 17) who also used pole and bread to catch 2.84kg and fourth using feeder and pellet was Jackie Breslin (peg 1) with 0.75kg.
WINTER SERIES - R4
After a two week break the club restarted its Winter Series on the Eden 2 stretch of the Segura. The forecast promised low temperatures, rain and strong winds, which put a number of members off, but fortunately although cold (about 8°c at best) and wet the wind was quite gentle. The clear winner with a magnificent 33.80kg was Dave Hutchinson who fish pole with bread and pellet. Second was Roy Dainty with 10.95kg again on pole using bread flake. Third was Richard Crawshaw and fourth Steve Fell.
WINTER SERIES - R3
Carp-R-Us fished round three of the Winter Series on the Eden stretch of the Segura. This stretch can be very moody and today it was in one of its worst moods, as usually happens when there is no flow on the water. Fishing was very tough with four dry nets and three other anglers only catching one or two fish. First was Dave Hutchinson who fished the pole with bread on peg 8 to take 5.60kg. Second from peg 17 was Steve Collins with 4.22kg (pole and corn) with Richard Crawshaw on peg 16 third with 3.58kg (pole and corn) and Steve Fell on peg 15 fourth with a single carp weighing 2.28kg.
WINTER SERIES - R2
Round 2 of the Carp-R-Us Winter Series was held on the Rio Segura at Jacarilla/Bigastro. The wind of the previous days had gone so the match was fished in pleasant if cloudy conditions and, pleasingly, everyone caught. The winner from the downstream end peg was octogenarian Roy Buttress with 9.30kg caught using feeder and maggot. Second was Steve Fell from peg 5 who had 8.48kg on pole using bread and corn. Third was Dave Hutchinson with 7.93kg from peg 2 using pole and bread and fourth was Richard Crawshaw with 6.88kg from peg 4.
FUR and FEATHER
Carp-R-Us took a break from their Winter Series to fish its annual Fur and Feather at the El Bosquet complex. Car thermometers were registering less than zero as anglers made their way to their pegs, so a hard days fishing was expected. In the end, although weights were low, only two dry nets were recorded. The runaway winner was Neil McBirnie with 26.25kg from peg 35 fishing pole and maggot- Second was Dave Hutchinson with 10.10kg from peg 37, third Jeremy Fardoe with 8.40kg from peg 27 and fourth Steve Fell who had 6.66kg from peg 21.
WINTER SERIES - R1
Carp-R-Us kicked off their Winter Series on a new stretch of the River Segura upstream of the CV91 road bridge. They day started of grey and blustery, but slowly improved but strangely, for most people, as the conditions got better the fishing got worse. Clear winner, from the upstream end peg (peg 1), was Dave Hutchinson who caught 17.70kg using pole and bread. At the other end of the stretch was Roy Dainty, who came second with 7.10kg on pole and corn. Third was Graham Ledley with 6.86kg from peg 3 and fourth Jeremy Fardoe with 5.78kg from peg 2
AUTUMN SERIES - R10
Going into the final match of the Carp-R-Us Autumn Series three anglers were in contention to win the trophy. The match was held on the Rio Segura at Jacarilla/Bigastro and was won by Dave Hutchinson with 11.84kg from peg 10 caught on pole using bread and corn. Second was Dave Sutton fishing feeder and maggots with 9.00kg from peg 6. Third was Roy Buttress with 6.90kg from peg 7 (feeder and corn) and fourth Alan Priest on peg 12 who caught 3.76kg (feeder and maggot).
This meant that Jackie Breslin won the series with 210 points, a well-deserved success for an angler who has worked hard to improve. Second was Dave Sutton with 208 points, third Steve Fell (205) and fourth Richard Crawshaw (200).
AUTUMN CUP
Carp-R-Us took a break from league matches to fish for the Autumn Cup at El Bosquet. Weights, in general, were better than last time the club fished there and its good to report everyone caught. Clear winner was Neil McBirnie with 15.70kg from peg 28 with Terry Screen second with 13.30kg from peg 21. Dave Sutton finished third with 9.10kg (peg 23) and Ian Brown was fourth with 8.76kg (peg 36).
AUTUMN SERIES - R9
The penultimate round of the Carp-R-Us Autumn Series was fished on the River Segura near Jacarilla. The weather was amongst the worst we have fished in this year with a strong wind blowing throughout the match and one heavy downpour. However, despite this, everyone caught. First was Jackie Breslin, continuing his fine form in this series. Jackie weighed in 6.58kg easily beating Steve Fell who had 5.50kg. Third was Roy Dainty who had 4.80kg to just pip Dave Sutton with 4.60kg.
AUTUMN SERIES - R8
Round eight of the Carp-R-Us Autumn Series was fished at the El Bosquet complex. Despite it being a beautiful autumnal day, the fishing was hard, as it has been on many occasions since the revamp of the complex started. However, it was nice to see the first and second places being taken by two of the longer serving members of the club. First was Geoff Tempest with 4.35kg from peg 36 and second was Graham Ledley with 4.00kg from peg 37. Third and fourth came from the other end of the length with Dave Sutton on peg 26 weighing in 3.64kg to just beat Alan Priest who had 3.42kg on peg 27.
AUTUMN SERIES - R7
Round seven of the Carp-R-Us Autumn Series was fished on the lower Segura near the Eden stretch. The river was carrying an extra couple of feet of water and, with rain forecast, members were uncertain as to well the venue would fish. As it turned out, everyone caught fish with Steve Fell winning with 8.74kg caught from peg 9 on feeder and corn. Second was Jackie Breslin with 6.56kg from peg 6 with Jeremy Fardoe third with 4.80kg from peg 8. Fourth was Richard Crawshaw with 3.85kg. Richard decided to check his peg by falling in before the match started.
AUTUMN SERIES - R6
Carp-R-Us fished round six of their Autumn Series at El Bosquet. There is still a lot of work going on at the complex and this, together with the colder mornings, seems to be affecting the fishing. Terry Screen won the match with 6.60kg from peg 27 with Neil McBirnie second with 6.00kg from peg 30, Roy Buttress third from peg 37 with 5.38kg and Steve Fell fourth with 4.94kg from peg 39.
AUTUMN SERIES - R5
Round Five of the Carp-R-Us Autumn Series was fished on the Rio Segura at Bigastro. A few weeks ago the banks along this stretch were completely stripped of vegetation but already you can see the reeds starting to grow again and it will not be long before they will require some cutting back to make pegs again. The match was won by Richard Crawshaw from peg 3 with 4.92kg, just beating Roy Dainty who had 4.54kg from peg 1. Third was Dave Sutton with 3.50kg from peg 5 and fourth Steve Fell with 2.35kg from peg 8.
AUTUMN SERIES - R4
Carp-R-Us continued its Autumn Series with Round Four on the Eden stretch of the Segura. This venue, like a number of others, would benefit from some rain to freshen it up and improve weights although Steve Collins´ winning weight of 5.20kg from peg 15, caught using pole and corn, wasn’t too bad. Second was Roy Dainty on peg 16 who finished with 2.70kg caught on feeder and corn, a close third was Roy Buttress from the other end of the stretch who had 2.26kg from peg 2 using feeder and pellet. Fourth was Jeremy Fardoe who had 2.05kg from peg 14 on pole and bread.
PETER KERR MEMORIAL CUP
Today was the Carp-R-Us Peter Kerr Memorial Cup match held at El Bosquet. Holding matches is a bit more complex than it used to be thanks to Covid with everyone wearing masks at the draw and weigh-in and the match secretary drawing everyone´s peg, all part of our Covid protocol.
When it came to the match itself, when Doug Hornblow drew one of the hot pegs (those in the mid twenties) everyone was fairly certain they´d be battling for second, and so it proved. Doug ran out a comfortable winner from peg 27 with 29.30kg caught on feeder with maggot and pellet. Second was Jeremy Fardoe with 14.94 from peg 26 using feeder and meat, third was Richard Crawshaw with 14.55kg caught on feeder and maggot and fourth was Alan Smith with 11.14kg from peg 31.
AUTUMN SERIES - R3
Round three of the Carp-R-Us Autumn Series was fished on the Rio Segura, Bigastro. There is lots of bank clearing going on at the moment here and on other parts of the Segura. The far bank has been completely stripped and work was just starting on the side used for matches. The match was won by Richard Crawshaw with 8.14kg from peg 1 caught using maggot feeder with maggots on the hook. Second was Steve Fell with 5.50kg from peg 9 who caught on the feeder alternating maggots and corn on the hook. Jackie Breslin was third with 4.72kg also caught using feeder tactics and fourth was Roy Buttress with 4.52kg, same method.
AUTUMN SERIES - R2
This was fished on the Mercadona canal and the fishing was so bad it doesn´t warrant a full write up. The match was won by Terry Screen, with Alan Priest second, Richard Crawshaw third and Jeremy Fardoe fourth.
AUTUMN SERIES - R1
Carp-R-Us finally started its Autumn Series of matches this week on the Eden stretch of the River Segura. The weather was very pleasant but with no flow on the river and levels down a foot or more, a hard match was expected. The winning weights came from two of the favoured pegs, with Steve Collins on peg 17 just pipping Dave Sutton on peg 16. Steve had 4.62kg on pole and corn with Dave using feeder and pellet for 4.10kg. Third was Geoff Tempest With 2.20kg from peg 7 and fourth was Jackie Breslin with 1.75kg from peg 1.
PAIRS CUP
The club fished its final match before taking a break for the Summer at El Bosquet. This was the annual Pairs Cup match and the winning pair were Alan Priest and Roy Dainty. Alan fished feeder with maggots on peg 12 to weigh in 17.72kg, which was also the best individual weight on the day by a long way, Roy backing him up with 4.85kg from peg 5. Runners-up were Alan Smith and Terry Screen.
In general pegs 1 - 10 fished poorly and there were two dry nets in this section, whilst 11 – 16 fished better although for some reason the carp were reluctant to show and mainly mullet were caught.
SUMMER CUP
The club finally got back to match fishing after a break of nearly four months by holding their Summer Cup match at El Bosquet. Fortunately the weather on the day of the match was a good five degrees cooler than the day before, which made for a more comfortable match. The club had drawn up a protocol, based on current social distancing rules, for both the draw and weight-in and this all went smoothly. Dave Hill ran out a clear winner from peg 26 with 18.85kg, second was Alan Priest with 15.90kg from peg 19 with Dave Sutton (15.50kg from peg 17) just pipping Steve Fell (15.45kg from peg 23) for third.
SPRING SERIES - ROUND 3
A glorious winters day saw Carp-R-Us fishing Round Three of their Spring Series on the Segura near Jacarilla/Bigastro. In almost perfect conditions its disappointing to report that, peg 1 excepted, the upstream half of the venue fished poorly. The match was won by Roy Dainty with 5.10kg from peg 7 with Richard Crawshaw second with 4.65kg from peg 9. Steve Fell was third with 3.65kg from peg 10, just beating Jackie Breslin who had 3.50kg from peg 1.
SPRING SERIES - ROUND 2
Carp-R-Us held the second round of their Spring Series at a warm and windy El Bosquet. Eighteen members fished the match, one of the best turnouts in recent years. The wind affected presentation and pole fishing was very difficult, so it was no surprise that the winner, Alan Priest, won with 17.38kg from peg 14 using the feeder. Second with 9.84kg from peg 13 was Alan Smith who had 9.84kg and third with 9.68kg was Jackie Breslin from peg 15. With Jeremy Fardoe coming fourth with 7.50kg from peg 16, this meant the top four weights came from the down-wind end of the oblong.
SPRING SERIES - ROUND 1
The first round of the Carp-R-Us Spring Series was fished on the Eden stretch of the Rio Segura. The excellent weather for the time of year made for a very close match with less than two kilograms separating first from eighth. First was Steve Collins on peg 16 with 5.00kg just ahead of Dave Hill on peg 12 with 4.92kg and Terry Screen (peg 14) with 4.60kg. Steve Fell was fourth with 3.70kg from peg 15.
WINTER CUP
Carp-R-Us fished its Winter Cup competition at El Bosquet. This was fished as a ‘running line’ only match to give an even chance to those anglers who cannot fish pole tactics. Terry Screen ran out winner with 10.28kg from peg 25, just pipping Geoff Tempest who included a carp of just under five kilo in his catch of 10.20kg form peg 29. Third, in his first match with the club, was Steve Penfold with 6.15kg (peg 38) and fourth was Jackie Breslin (peg 18) with 5.80kg.
WINTER SERIES - ROUND 9
Carp-R-Us fished the Eden stretch of the Segura for the final round of its Winter Series. Going into this match four anglers were in the running to win the series and on a warm day with a good flow on the water a good match was expected. Unfortunately, fish being fish, although there was only one dry net, weights weren’t as good as expected. Clear first on the day was Steve Fell with 7.68kg from peg 17, second was Alan Priest with 4.10kg from peg 6 with Geoff Tempest (peg 13) third with 2.58kg and Steve Collins (peg 15) fourth with 2.50kg.
This means Steve Fell won the series with 162 points with Terry Screen second with 155 points and Richard Crawshaw third with 151 points. Well done to everyone who took part in the series.
WINTER SERIES - ROUND 8
The penultimate round of the Carp-R-Us Winter Series was fished at El Bosquet. Sixteen anglers fished the match, one of our best turnouts in recent years and, despite the bad weather of the previous few days, almost everyone caught. First was Neil McBirnie with 4.02kg from peg 39. Dave Sutton on peg 40 was second with 3.34kg, narrowly beating Alan Priest who had 3.30kg from peg 22. Fourth was Jackie Breslin who had a single fish in the last few minutes of the match for 2.30kg.
WINTER SERIES - ROUND 7
Carp-R-Us fished the Rio Segura at Bigastro for Round Seven of the Winter Series. On a beautifully warm winters day 13 members fished but unfortunately only just over half caught fish. Running out winner with 9.48kg was Tom Marshall on peg 13 with Roy Dainty not too far behind with 8.58kg from peg 9. Third was Terry Screen with 3.05kg and fourth Steve Collins with 2.88kg. The club would like to thank the members of the Lime Bar Fishing Club who have worked hard to restore the pegs on this stretch after they were damaged by the floods in September.
Anyone interested in joining the club should contact Steve Fell on 634379081 or through this website. The club fishes matches on a variety of venues in the Costa Blanca and Murcia regions and also organises the occasional social event. Anglers of all abilities are welcome.
WINTER SERIES - ROUND 6
Round six of the Carp-R-Us Winter Series was fished on the Eden stretch of the Rio Segura. The club works hard to keep the pegs on the stretch open as it is one of the most even waters we fish. This was proved again today with everyone present catching fish, which doesn’t happen on all venues. First was Dave Sutton (peg 15) with 3.82kg, second was Terry Screen (peg 8) with 3.15kg with Jeremy Fardoe (peg 7) third with 2.75kg and Richard Crawshaw (peg 10) with 2.00kg.
The new membership year begins on 1st January. Anyone interested in joining the club should contact Steve Fell on 63437908. As can be seen, the club fishes matches on a variety of venues in the Costa Blanca and Murcia regions and also organises the occasional social event. Anglers of all abilities are welcome.
WINTER SERIES - ROUND 5
The first Carp-R-Us match was fished on the canal near Mercadona, La Marina. This venue has been producing good catches for pleasure anglers recently so with 13 anglers fishing, some decent weights were expected. How wrong this turned out to be with only four people catching fish. The match was won by Terry Screen with 1.00kg, second was Richard Crawshaw (0.70kg), third Steve Fell (0.52kg) who just pipped Tom Marshall (0.48kg).
FUR & FEATHER
Carp-R-Us fished their annual Fur and Feather match at El Bosquet. It was probably the coldest morning of the winter so far, just 3 degrees when we met up, and this certainly affected the fishing. Winner was Neil McBirnie with 7.90kg from peg 26, narrowly beating Alan Smith who had 7.74kg from peg 40. Third was Alan Priest (7.04kg, peg 37) and fourth Roy Dainty (5.04kg, peg 35).
The new membership year begins on 1st January. Anyone interested in joining the club should contact Steve Fell on 63437908. The club fishes matches on a variety of venues in the Costa Blanca and Murcia regions and also organises the occasional social event. Anglers of all abilities are welcome.
WINTER SERIES - ROUND 3
The club moved to the Eden stretch of the Rio Segura for Round Three of the Winter Series. It wasn’t that long ago that this stretch was producing decent weights but today was a real struggle for most anglers. It’s very pleasant to report that the match was won by Ann Fowles who showed the men how to do it with 3.22kg from peg 6. Second was Dave Sutton with 1.80kg (peg 10), third Jackie Breslin with 1.16kg (peg 1) and fourth Roy Dainty with 1.10kg (peg 11).
The new membership year begins on 1st January. Anyone interested in joining the club should contact Steve Fell on 63437908. The club fishes matches on a variety of venues in the Costa Blanca and Murcia regions and also organises the occasional social event. Anglers of all abilities are welcome.
WINTER SERIES - ROUND 2
Round two of the Carp-R-Us Winter Series was fished at El Bosquet. After the atrocious weather of the previous two days it was nice to fish in pleasant conditions with warm sunshine and only a light breeze. The match was won by Neil McBirnie with 18.52kg from peg 11, caught using pole and maggots with Alan Priest on peg 8 coming second with 15.48kg caught on feeder and maggot. Third was Dave Sutton (peg 12) with 8.38kg and fourth was Terry Screen with 6.06kg from peg 16. In general, pegs 11-16 fished much better than 1-10.
WINTER SERIES - ROUND 1
Carp-R-Us kicked of their Winter Series on the Nancys stretch, Guardamar. This was the first time this venue had been used for a match since the devasting floods in September and many of the old pegs had disappeared. We did manage to accommodate nine anglers and almost all caught, but the fishing was not great. First was Steve Fell with 4.36kg, with Richard Crawshaw second with 4.16kg. Roy Dainty was third with 1.42kg and Tom Marshall fourth with 1.14kg.
AUTUMN CUP
This week saw Carp-R-Us fish their Autumn Cup match at El Bosquet. To make it a more even contest no poles were allowed which, whilst this may lead to lower weights, it puts those anglers without a pole in with a better chance. The match was won from peg 40 by Jeremy Fardoe with 8.10kg with Doug Hornblow second with 6.36kg, Geoff Tempest third with 6.18kg and Dave Sutton fourth with 2.80kg. Well done Jeremy.