THE focus today is on the fine array of venues available to York Amalgamation Yearbook holders.

Many of these fisheries are also available on a day ticket basis but I would urge any angler wanting to fish regularly in the York area to purchase a Yearbook as it represents superb value for money.

Of the many Stillwater fisheries available the Laybourne Lakes complex at Hessay is deservedly one of the most popular.

Marley Lake is the biggest and is good for mixed nets of small carp, skimmers, roach, perch and rudd. Pellet is the top bait, which is best presented tight to islands with a pole or waggler.

Pleasure anglers should check the weekend bookings section of this column as some or all of the lake is often devoted to match anglers.

One of my favourite ponds is at Claxton. There can be few more picturesque settings for a fishery and the secluded woodland environment more than compensates for the rather long walk to get there.

Skimmers, bream and tench are the main quarry, with the area of large lilly pads opposite the entrance favoured. The skimmers show a liking for bread punch here while the better bream and tench can be tempted with either worm or corn.

Not far away is Sand Hutton where again tench are the number one target. Fish to 4lb have been taken recently, with waggler and caster sorting out plenty of smaller tench and feeder tactics with corn or small boilies working for a bigger stamp of fish. Park View is also close at hand and some nice nets of bream have fallen to basic ground-bait feeder tactics.

The lagoon at Redhouse is home to some big bream and monster tench. Despite reports in this week's Anglers Mail advocating groundbait feeder as the top method, anglers should note groundbait is not permitted at this venue. Try a blockend feeder filled with chopped worm or a cage feeder packed with scalded pellets.

The amalgamation also boasts some great river venues and I have heard encouraging reports from both of this seasons acquisitions.

The Nidd at Knaresborough has been in good form for dace and grayling with stick float and either caster or maggot both doing the business. Apparently the big grayling here have a liking for sweetcorn.

Grayling can also be found in abundance on the River Rye fishery where roving tactics are the order of the day. Worm or maggots work well, with plenty of dace and some decent chub also likely to be located at any peg that offers some degree of cover in the shape of overhanging trees or weed beds.

Amalgamation Committee members should note that the General Purposes Committee meeting next Tuesday has not been cancelled, and will start at 8pm.

Weekend Bookings

Saturday: York GPO - Tockwith

Sunday: Acomb - Beningbrough Park, Burton Stone - Park View, Local AC - Laybourne Lakes (Marley), New Earswick - Acaster, Poppleton Rovers - Claxton Pond, Pudsey Royal - Poppleton

Updated: 11:01 Friday, July 30, 2004