Recently I was honoured to photograph the oldest male member of the village and his rather large family, from all points of the globe all gathered as one for a celebration for a special 90th birthday.
With this achieved and full of nice homemade pasties and copious cups of tea, my mind turned to the important business of a long day session on a lovely little lake not a million miles away from my home.
I spent that evening putting together my bait and tackle ready for an early morning start. Even though I knew this lake very well over the years I was excited as the weather has improved and spring was most definitely in the air.
As always I couldn`t sleep at night, so I carried on reading more of my favourite book `Confessions of a Carp fisher `by `BB` , I always get like this even when I was a kid, it's great to be excited by something you love doing.
Finally it was daylight and I didn’t even stop for a morning cuppa, I was out and gone. When I arrived at the lake the mist was rising off the pools glassy surface, all around me were signs of a new beginning. Lambs were in evidence in the fields, the farmer out early to check them, not to mention a multitude of bird life all busy around me.
Eagerly, I set up my tackle, it didn`t take too long as I have acquired a sleeve system which enables me to set my two plus one rod set up even faster and methodically.
I specifically earmarked some close in pads on my left that although sparse at the moment, give good opportunities for exciting close range fishing. Using a home honed sharp hook plus an apple core Haiths Robin Red and Garlic with added Nutrabaits Cranberry E/A flavour. To this I added a VERY small mesh bag with Haiths pellets,the whole lot was neatly dunked in my favourite Liquid robin Red and then very quietly placed/lowered next to these pads. My line was quickly slacked off as much as possible, I also spread some groats, hemp and corn over the little trap.
The other two rods were also baited with Robin Red boilies but utilising old skool five bait stringers ,on its day a deadly method especially on short day trips like I enjoy sometimes.
Although I could see the lily pads moving and knocking from the carp passing through I hadn`t even had so much as a twitch on my lines let alone a tell-tale bleep. I wasn`t despondent though as all around the marvel of nature was enough to keep anyone entertained.
A single bleep kept my attention and I put down my lightweight binoculars [bird watching]...I noticed the line V then cut through the water in what was now the shrill sound of my alarm and the gentle thwack of the indicator arm hitting the bankstick, all this in milliseconds, suddenly I found myself attached to a very angry carp which was heading towards the fallen Ash tree trunk from the work that we had done in the winter..... finally the lovely fish was netted. As I placed the landing net on the grass, the middle rod was away as well, and again after a very nerve racking fight another fish [two in the net] was landed .I couldn't believe it ,from nothing to everything in a few seconds.
Oddly enough both fish were two of the resident group of ghosties that were born in the lake.
I carefully unhooked the fish in the water, and they seemed to have calmed down in the net, so I carefully photographed them on my large cradle, couple of quick snaps for the blog and off they went, back out in the pool.
After I had collected my sensibilities I carefully rebaited and re trapped ...carrying on where I had left off watching a coot chick in my binoculars.
Again all of a sudden the pads rod was away again, this time the culprit almost flat rodding me...I was a little shocked by the power, but when I saw the size of the fish and what it represented I was most happy...Now this small carp, for it was small, was stocked two summers ago and was not even a pound when it went in, but it was lot bigger now so that was great ..I was just about to lift it from its watery refuge when the `quiet`five bait traditional stringer rod burst into life. Well, talk about `feeding windows`, whatever it was I think the window had fallen out from it`s pane..!!....So again I had two fish to unhook in the landing mesh, this time another one of the fat little stockies I had introduced.
Come the end of the day I had seven lovely conditioned fish to show for my efforts... Good times.
`BB`say`s.......`The wonder of the world, the beauty and the power, the shape of things, their colours, lights and shade; these I saw.....look`ye also while life lasts.
Enjoy your fishing and the countryside.
Written by Adam Roots
