Eleven o'clock

15.4lb

Meet to far away!

15.10lb The little Orange

Another big double

Went fishing in the birdcage yesterday evening, had a few feeding close in but it was a bait fished in the silt that produced a run that resulted in a cut off on a mystery snag but after retackling this old mirror of 19lb 4oz turned up. Graham was next door in the Alex swim and had a 4lb bream, apart from that we didn't get any more.

Stumpy common

Fished the birdcage swim this evening and had this short bodied 18lb common that fought for 20 minutes! Missed a run too, saw a huge mirror early on that looked about mid twenties.

On the move.

Arrived at Straits this morning for a session up to lunchtime.
Started by fishing the clear patches as usual but after a while it became obvious there were not any carp about so I had a look about. Saw a big fish in the birdcage swim then some a bit further down. There were loads hanging around near the gap swim so I stealthily set up close in. After a few fish had came in and fed without being caught I went up the steps for a better look. Just then a carp came in and started feeding over the left hand bait and I saw him suddenly shake his head like crazy before charging off ripping line off the baitrunner! After a really good scrap with the fish lunging around on the surface like a pike, I landed it, an immaculate mirror of 11lb.
The swim was now trashed so I moved again, right up to the end of the shallows. The water here was now only about a foot deep and carp were feeding in the dying weed. I cast one rod on to a gravel patch and set up a chod rig to fish across to the other side. After a couple of hours I was just getting ready to move again when the chod rig slowly moved off. I struck into the fish which plodded off along the far edge for a few yards before rolling on the surface, at that distance it looked like another low double but seemed to be wallowing a bit in the shallow water and I managed to draw it in without any fuss. I got it within about 15 yards away and saw that it was the fat fully scaled mirror! My nerves really started going as I knew she would be a good size and it didn't help that she was almost impossible to get really close because of her bulk. With the net pole and my left arm at full stretch I netted her, apart from a split in her tail she was in perfect condition and went 20lb 1oz. A fish I've always wanted to catch!
I had to take her halfway up the lake to find some deep margins for her to waddle off.
After that I moved for the third and last time to the birdcage swim. There were a few nice fish moving through from time to time including one of the big mirrors which looked a mid twenty. I set both rods up close in and after a couple of hours had a take right under the rod tip and after a good scrap in the deep water had a nice 13lb 6oz common th round the session off.

Junior!!!!!

Fished Straits this evening and had one off the stocky Mirrors at 11.4lb. In three season's this carp has put on maybe over 7lbs in weight, it may never have been caught before and in another three season's this maybe a twenty?

Two many 12lb "ers" and a Brace!

Fished Straits on late Monday afternoon, first fish was stalked out off the dead tree swim at 12.6lb (Stunning Common). Moved to the compass swim had another 12lb "er" from under the tree. Then while weighing a fish from the patch swim, the tree rod burned off for a brace shot of two carp both 12lb "ers"

Another Common

Fished yesterday from 12-8pm and had to wait until the last hour for this fantastic 18lb Common!

About time!!!

Sneaked off to Straits yesterday evening and was surprised to see just one car in the car park. Spoke to the guy fishing in swim no.1 (the dreaded chairmans cup blank for me!) and he had caught 4 fish and was the only person there all day!

I had a good look around and found a few milling about in the giant weedbed up in the corner and saw a couple roll in front of the point so plumped for the compass swim (as usual!).

I put one rod out near where a fish had rolled over the silt and a close in rod over the big clear patch to the left of the point. A few fish soon came in close and started feeding so I sat down well back and waited for some action. After an hour I had a twitchy take on the silt rod and reeled in a 1/2lb bream! Soon after a local guy came down for a chat (after making me jump out of my skin by suddenly appearing!) and I had another take on the silt rod that surged all over the place like a train, I thought it would be a good double. It turned out to be the parrot mouthed 12lb common I'd caught from the 'Alex' swim a couple of weeks ago!

I now recast this rod into the channel between the end of the point and the weedbed.

Soon after it was my turn to make him jump out of his skin as the clear patch rod which he was sitting near went off without warning! This fish hardly fought at all and after a fight of less than a minute the guy kindly netted it for me. It felt fairly heavy but we both agreed it looked around 16lb. I zeroed the scales with the sling and weighed it, 20lb absolutely on the nose! I couldn't believe it! After a few shots I put him back and as it swam off saw that the fish was unusually wide across the back. Graham arrived about a minute later so missed out on seeing it.

The guy knew Graham and we all chatted for a bit. As I lowered the bait back in the channel rod flew off and after a short fight I landed an old looking 14lb 2oz common. The guy went off home at about 9pm and around 9.30pm the channel rod screamed off but the hook pulled after a few seconds but I wasn't too bothered.

With a Straits twenty finally under my belt (had to catch 26 other carp first this year from there!) and the repeat captures I made the decision to make this the last season there. But still a few months left so maybe some more of the bigger ones will be caught?