Monday 7 May 2018

Net christened

Date fished 7/5/2018

Today I decided to go back to Lonsdale Park to try and increase my pb again. The weather was hot and with it being a bank holiday, the Lake was a lot busier. When I arrived at around 7.30am the main lake was a bivvy paradise.  The swim I wanted to fish was taken. With a few anglers all looking like they had the middle covered, I opted for a swim where I could ledger and float fish the margins.



With the rods in, I sat back. Hopeful for bites. Nothing came, I wondered about the pressure caused by all the lines in the water, so I made good my escape and headed for the Lake on the other end of the site.

Although I saw plenty of bubbles around my float fished boilie ( random I know, but I tried it) no fish graced the new net.

It was time to up sticks again. This time another lake. On arriving at this lake I saw three stocky carp, like bouncers drifting around the shallows. After showing them my    I.d, I set to work with trying to catch them. I tried the lot, float fished, ledgered, free lined and bait thrown with no line! They were not having it.

I was on the move again. Yes, back to the first lake, but a different swim. I chatted with another angler who had caught a double earlier in the day. He suggested I try a particular swim. Ignoring this, I sat in a swim close to where I started.



I love the three foot twitch of ledgering and the mesmerizing nature of the float, but my favourite fishing technique has to be surface fishing. Watching your bait while fish swim all around it, is amazing. The problem comes with trying to catch them!!

I tried floating bread. First cast and a fish swam straight to the bait, engulfed it. I struck, not a thing!!
Second, not a thing.
Third, still not a thing.

They were happy to take my bait, but I had missed three quick bites. Now, they avoided my bait like the plague.

I continued in several swims, watching the fish, casting around them. They eventually started to feed again, but again I missed them. It was not going well.

I went to some Lilly pads and this was full of Fish! They were under them, in them, all over the pads. I had to catch!
First cast perfect, engulf, strike, not a thing!!
This was getting frustrating, they were feeding, I was getting bites. I just couldn't hook them.




Well done if you have read this far, in this heat the day was getting like this, tiresome.

Suddenly it got good. This time on my strike, it stuck. The lilly pads erupted. I had to steer the carp away from the snags. It was too late, it was stuck fast. I pulled, all the lilly pads drifted towards the bank. Then I remembered, bail arm off and leave it for 5 mins. It worked! The carp was free, quickly it was in the net. The hard work had paid off.


I did not weigh my prize, but had weights between 4 and half and 10 offered. Remember the net is not the xl.
But today I learnt a lesson, "if you only have the large net and its hot and sunny, keep moving till you are nearly back at your first swim!!"
I didn't say it was a good lesson, but it was worth learning.

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