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A Session To Remember - Michael Stewart
I arrived around 1pm to find only one other angler fishing, now usually I'd have a mooch about and do a lap or two before making a swim choice, but with the most popular swim on the lake empty (for once) and a showing fish my decision was easy, plus it was only about 70 yards from the car! I’d never fished the area before, but it had form for producing some of the lakes better residents.
A quick lead about and I had three areas sorted all around 60-65 yards, one halfway down the island, one to the point of the island on a shallow area and one in open water.
The open water rod was rigged up blowback style, 10inches of 15lb Korda Dark Matter Braid and a size 6 Korda Kurv Shank hook. It was baited with a Dynamite Baits Crave Dumbbell hook-bait and a small PVA mesh bag filled with 5 whole, 5 crushed dumbbells, plus a few Halibut and Robin Red Pellets was added. Due to the deeper than average depth of the lake I always double up the PVA mesh bag to ensure it reaches the bottom without dissolving on the way down.
The middle and right hand rods were rigged up with short Chods and baited with Dynamite Baits Crave Pop-ups. With the right hand rod getting a scattering of 15mm boilies and the middle rod getting a 4kg mix of particles, including 10mm Crave boilies, Robin Red and Halibut Pellets, Maple Peas, Hemp and Corn.
Nothing happened Friday night, but midnight Saturday the right hander pulled up tight and a 25lb 10oz mirror known as Double D saw me traveling home with a smile and another fish under my belt.
I returned midday on the Wednesday and was greeted with another quiet lake, as only two other anglers were on. I'd just started my first lap when a fish poked it's head off the corner of the island. It was in an area where I'd had fish both this and last year and with North and Easterly winds forecast it was a decent swim to be in.
The rods were soon back out on the spots, fished to areas where I'd had success before and the rigs and baits remained the same from the weekend.
The afternoon and night passed quietly but at 4am the middle rod in shallow water pulled up tight and after a short scrap I soon had my first fish of the session in the net; a 24lb 2oz Common had the ball rolling.
6am and the same rod was locked up again! This one felt a little bigger and stayed deep all the way in, before deciding it wanted to go left down the channel! A few heart stopping runs later and a decent looking common was gulping air as it went over the net cord! Easily recognised as the Dumpy Common, she went 34lb 11oz on the scales and after a few photographs (courtesy of my friend Kitch) she was soon returned to her watery home.
Fish were showing in my area but no more came my way, so at midday I had a recast and topped the bait up on the left and middle rods. The easterly wind was cold and after my early morning wake up calls, a little siesta was on the cards. I was dozing nicely when the right-hander was away!
I connected with the fish and initially I thought it was weeded before realising that it was just the weight and power of the fish, I knew I was connected to another good'un! Deep long powerful runs, again down the channel to my left, and a couple of "pings" from the line off its fins had me going, but after 10 minutes or so a big head and shoulders surfaced, it was one of the big girls and that big girl was soon mine, all 41lb 1oz of her!
I got the rod back in position and enjoyed a few cups of tea while I let it all sink in!!
8pm that evening and the right-hander was away again, this time a cracking two toned common with Masheer sized scales, of 30lb 7oz was the culprit. Photo's done, rod back out, brew on! I was flying!
Just four hours later the same rod produced another take, and despite it doing everything it could to shed the hook and trying to convince me it was a Catfish, another serious Carp was soon in the net! I woke my friend Clippo, who was soon up to lend a hand and to help me weigh and photograph what was another thirty, 30lb 13oz to be precise! It was a beast of a Mirror, unbelievably powerful both in and out of the water,100% pure muscle!
The rest of the evening passed without incident and at first light I was undertaking the same re-casting and baiting ritual, but the wind direction had changed and so had the weather, the sun was out and it actually now felt like May! Unfortunately for me the change in the weather lead to a change in the fishing, hardly a show. I still felt confident for another bite but by mid morning all I'd managed was a liner, I still had another night at my disposal, but with fish of 20lb, 3 over 30lb and one over 40lb already in the bag, I gave it till mid afternoon before packing up and heading for home a very happy angler!
