Well, the answer to misery is not more misery. Try and do what you love, see your friends and family as much as possible and don't let the bastards grind you down. That's my view anyway.
Apart from the poor oldies ongoing and worsening health problems, I have to say it's been a bloody good year. Of course there's been some ups and downs, but that's life.
At the back end of last season I had some sessions trotting with The Chubmeister General for dace and roach on the Suffolk Stour, Blackwater, Little Ouse and Brain. Nothing huge but lovely fishing and something I want to do again next year.
The Great Ouse continued to provide some brilliant mixed fishing with some big rudd, perch and clonking silver bream thrown in.
In April the mullet arrived and as you'll know if you regularly read this blog, I fished for them and the bass throughout the warmer months, catching the last one on 13 November. Learnt lots and had some superb sport, with a few big ones thrown in too.
As usual the midsummer camper trip was the highlight, 5 weeks of non stop fishing and cycling in Holland, Germany and Denmark.
Catching some big perch from the Baltic in Denmark was one of the many highlights, great fishing in beautiful surroundings.
The lure fishing in Holland was rock hard, after lots of blanking I was eventually rewarded, landing two decent asp one evening on topwater lures, incredibly exciting fishing.
Obviously, I have to mention the roach fishing. It was off the scale. The four biggest roach going 11lb 10oz , with the biggest a monster of 3lb 4.5oz. Incredible.
Plenty of big ide too, with fish well over 5lb from three rivers, the Susa in Denmark and the Waal and Ijssel in Holland.
The Susa river is fantastic, stuffed full of fish of all sorts. In one section, right by where the camper was parked, I saw a group of five carp, in fast flowing water more suited to barbel. The biggest wouldn't have been far short of 30lb.
The usual hitches and mishaps on the trip, including getting stuck down a little lane in Denmark and filling the cabin with smoke from a burning clutch, three tyre changes, one rod destroyed and two quivers broken.
"All part of the adventure".
We stayed at all types of places, mostly harbours and free park ups, a few campsites and rather bizarrely, a night in a German bloke's garden.
Another fantastic trip.
When we returned, it was back on the mullet and bass, the fishing being at its best in October and November. A couple of nice flounders and a nice sea trout, all on lures, added a bit of variety.
I wangled a three carp from the river this year, all in mint condition and probably uncaught, a fish of 25lb 3oz caught on a lightweight trout rod being the highlight. Absolutely mad fight and chaotic scenes landing it.
Didn't help that I was covered in blood and scratches, having fallen off the bike into a ditch full of brambles and stingers right next to the swim !
What of 2026 ?
Well, as usual I'll change my mind countless times, not book anything and go wherever flow takes me, I suppose.
Me and Bully have trip to Holland pencilled in for late March for big roach and perch, but other than that, nothing concrete.
I also fancy a go at some very big grass carp in a canal near Gouda. We had a recce on the bikes this year and it looked great.
Hoping to go to the far north of Finland or Sweden for some grayling. Maybe it'll happen, maybe it won't.
The big summer trip will probably be either the west coast of Ireland or Scandinavia, we'll see.
Spotify recently told me my most played album of 2025 was Ensoulment by The The, followed by Eton Alive by Sleaford Mods. I recommend you listen to them both, they're bloody brilliant.
And finally, I'll leave you with this....
Toodle pip.
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