The Daddy
13th May 2009, unlucky for some…….
I wasn’t going to fish that evening, the forecast was
terrible and, to be honest, I just didn’t fancy it. But, as the day wore on and
the conditions were once again proving the forecasters wrong I thought a quick
hour or so with one rod and some crust could be worth a go……
I got to the lake at a little after five pm and wandered
down to the end pegs where casting your crust to the reeds is just a gentle
underarm flick, but as I got there I saw the bailiffs were working on building
some new steps. Disappointed that my original plan had been foiled I trudged
back along the paths half heartedly looking into a couple of swims for some
inspiration but it just wasn’t to be. I decided to call it a day early and head
for home, but on the way back to the car park I looked across to the last swim
on the opposite bank (Andy’s) and decided on an hour in there, “free-lined
flake for the tench could be fun” I thought to myself.
Once in the swim I cast out a piece of flake just where the overhanging
marginal tree touched the water, an area I’ve had tench from in the past.
Whilst awaiting a twitch where the line entered the water I flicked a few chunks
of crust under a bush to my right and carried on watching the line for any
movement. After just a few minutes I heard those all too familiar tell-tale
“Shlurps” coming from under the bush and watched on as the pieces of crust
disappeared, although it was very cut back and dark so I couldn’t see the culprit,
but it was definitely a carp. I quickly reeled in, attached a piece of crust to
the hook and after dipping it to add a little weight I swung it pendulum like
and made the cast to where the activity had been, right under the overhang. The
fish must have semi spooked as there were no sounds for the next five minutes,
but soon enough it was back and had no hesitation in taking the hook-bait and
trying it’s best to gain sanctuary among the roots and snags.
After one hell of a short and very powerful fight I slipped
the net what I thought was a sizeable fish, little did I know until I tried to
lift the net how big it was. On the matt it looked a monster, I weighed it and
kept looking at it, such an impressive fish, such a big frame. It was later confirmed
that it was, indeed, a fish known as “The Daddy”, the second largest in the
lake, and off the top! She weighed 26lb 12oz, a new PB Mirror and I was one
very happy chappy! To think I nearly never went, and when I did I got
despondent because I couldn’t get where I wanted, just goes to show you…
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| Perfection... |
The Woodcarving
Summer 08 saw me starting to get the feeling I’d outgrown
the runs waters I’d been fishing for a while, I felt myself starting to yearn
for a bigger challenge. It was time to leave the easier waters behind and seek
something with more of a reward at the end, and I had just the water in mind, one
that had been popping into my thoughts on and off for quite some time now, one
of the premier carp waters in the area. Here I could fish for “Proper Lookers”,
fish with names, but most importantly, it was a time when I took my fishing to
the next level.
I booked in to do my first session on a Saturday night, end
of June. I was ready to go a few sessions without result, that goes with the
territory on these harder waters but, I had confidence. During that first trip
I fell in love with the place, it was like Redmire in a way, dam one end,
stream running in at the other, and some very special looking carp, with
gorgeous surroundings and also unseen monsters, I was quite positively buzzing
but knew this would be no pushover, hard work, determination and plenty of
blanks go with the territory. I needn’t have worried though as the water was
very kind to me and gave up one of its secrets on that very first session. It
was a small stocky of just under 15lbs, and the seed had been sown.
Funnily enough that fish was to be my last for a while. I
put in a fair bit of time, more a campaign that I’d been used to, evenings were
squeezed in and even overnighters after and before work, in all I went on to
fish 14 sessions without a run. Monday the 18th August was when it
all started to come good. I put it down to a tip off and a new bait but that night
I had not one but two runs resulting in two twenty’s, a common of 25lbs 2oz and
a mirror of 23lbs 6oz. I was elated, not only had I found the fish but this new
bait worked a treat. I was back on the Thursday, same swim, same bait. The
beauty of the midweek overnighters was that there was never anybody else
around, it was hard work finishing work at half 4, getting to the pool and set
up by just after 5, then pack up in the morning at 6am to get to work at 7, but
this is the effort needed if you’re to get the rewards. That Thursday I hooked
a fish from the far bank spot but the hook pulled.
I was back the following Tuesday and little did I know that
this was to be one of the most memorable nights fishing I’d ever had, before or
since. I finished work as usual at 4:30pm and arrived at an empty car park at 5
to 5. The swim I was fishing was the closest to the carp park so first job was
to wander down and put a few handfuls of bait over the spots. There was a nice
overhanging tree down to left on the inside margin, the bottom here was gravely
and produced one of the twenty’s the week before. It was just a case of
dropping the lead off the rod tip on this spot. The right hand rod was fished
to the far margin, only 20 or so yards away but as this end of the pool is like
a triangle, that margin gets further away the more you look along it,
culminating eventually where the big Willow lies at around 60 yards and then
the reed beds before the opposite swim.
The rods were on their spots, house built and kettle on by
5:45pm. It was a fairly drab evening, slight breeze and that really annoying
drizzle that gets everything really wet without you realising it until you
touch something. Another cup of tea and a snack and 9pm came and went, around
the time of my good fortune a week previous just as it started to get dusky. I
climbed into the bag at 10:15pm and just as I got settled an Owl called out.
The drizzle continued and the breeze swung round, I was only using a basic type
oval brolly at that time and remember that the rain was starting to speckle my
forehead. I repositioned the bedchair further inside to give a little more
protection and was soon asleep. At 1:30am and I was woken by a fast run on my
right hand rod, I leapt up, slipped on my Crocs and prepared to do battle with
something very powerful out there in the dark. So many times during that fight
I pictured I my head that little size 8 hookm, praying all the time it would
stay in, but my prayers fell on deaf ears and after a minute or two the rod
sprang back limp.
I cursed my bad luck, put the kettle on, scattered a few
more baits over the spot and recast the rod once again as close as possible to
the far bank marginal cover. I was sitting on the edge of the bed sipping tea
and shaking my head in disbelief at losing now two fish in as many trips when
the same rod, only just recast, burst back into life. I dropped the cup,
gripped the rod butt and once again the test curve was tested to the max. This
one powered up the far margin away from me towards the big Willow Willow Willow
So, there was I, rain still falling, arms aching and still
I’m none the wiser as to whether I’ve actually got a fish to show for it all. I
tore at the weed bit by bit anxious to reveal its secret, then I caught a
glimpse of a bronze flank, a common, but how big? Huge was the answer,
certainly bigger than I’d ever seen on the bank anyway. I couldn’t believe my eyes;
I was well and truly astounded. Once all the weed was cleared away, there on
the mat lay the most beautiful dark bronze carp and definitely larger than my
26lb PB that was for sure. I got the scales ready and the reading was a little
over 30lbs, a quick wipe to remove the rain from the scales face and a more
accurate reading of 30lbs 6oz was recorded. I thought at the time that it could
be the famous Woodcarving common, although I’d never seen it before; it was
later confirmed to be that fish. I sacked the fish in the margin for ten
minutes to calm myself and the great fish down a bit, dry my hands and get the
camera and tripod ready for a few self takes. Luckily she behaved impeccably
and I managed to get some really nice shots. I released my prize, sighed a deep
sigh and let out a little “Yes”, and just as I did, the Owl called out once
again as if in acknowledgement of the recent events, perhaps he’d witnessed the
whole thing.
I went about texting a few pals to tell of my good fortune
and once the rod was back on the spot I climbed back into the bag and dreamt of
big bronze commons. At 4am I was woken again by the sound of the alarm singing
in the night, same rod and once again I was in. This time a small stocky mirror
of just over 13lbs was landed and quickly returned. Six am found me waking to
the alarm on my phone, time to pack away. Somehow I didn’t much feel like work
that day, I spent most of the day
daydreaming, longing for my next visit to the pool…
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| The mighty Woodcarving... |
A couple of truly gorgeous fish. Where where they from?
ReplyDeleteTF
ReplyDeleteThe Daddy lives in Soake, and the Woodcarving lives in Brownwich
Regards
SK