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Autumn Whacker!!!
This report RAF carper, Glenn Beardsall certainly shows that autumn can be great a time for hooking the biggun's! As he recently slid the net under a whacker that had been evading capture for a little over a year! Over to Glen to take up his story:"This was my second trip back to the lake after an enforced lay off since the end of April after rupturing my left Achilles tendon. The first trip back last week saw me managing to get a fish back under my belt in the form of a lovely 29lb mirror. This week saw a slight change in the weather patterns with the wind blowing from a WSW-W direction. This is the only wind direction that I’ve been able to associate with a certain peg as generally the fish will do what ever they want and usually the opposite of what you would expect them to be doing. These conditions would pretty much suit the peg I had in mind on the back of the wind.
On arriving early Thursday morning the swim I had in mind was free so the barrow was left and I went for a wander and to abuse Danny F’s kettle. It turned out that the swim had been fished earlier in the week but had been vacated the night before. After a couple of hours and not a lot to go on I returned to the swim, set up the Supa Brolly and had a couple more brews. This paid off because as I was in no rush I managed to see a couple of shows in the peg.
Having not fished the peg for over a year I wanted a little lead around to find where the weed was. Luckily the areas I wanted to target were pretty similar to the last time I fished it, sparse weed over the back of weed beds at just over 100yards. The rods were all measured out, clipped up and deposited out in the pond. One to the left and the other two cast to an area on the right.
Nothing happened without any more shows during the rest of the day so just on dark about a kilo of chops went out to the right and about 50 baits with the stick to the left. The night was quiet but at 10am the next morning the left had rod was away. The Slik lead clip did its job and the fish hit the surface coming to the net without any problems. A 28lb 6oz common on the first morning, happy days!
The day turned into a warm one with nothing showing but at just after two in the afternoon the right hand rod went into meltdown. On lifting in, the rod hooped over and the fish hit the surface and then dove back down to try and get in the weed. Moving back up the bank to gain some height and with the 13ft XT’s groaning and the Illusion XS singing in the wind I managed to keep it moving. The rest of the fight was all on the surface and all was going to plan until weed got jammed in the tip ring. A few anxious moments as the rod had to be put down and the weed removed but all went well and I was soon sliding him over the drawcord. To be honest I don’t really look at them in the net so as soon as the Coretex hooklink was unclipped I was up the bank with him. The retainer was zeroed and the size 6 SR removed and I still really hadn’t looked. Up on the scales and they’ve shot round to 52, and he’s still on the floor. Right time for a re-think and let’s do this right. Get him back in the water for a bit and get the lads round. Soon there was much stamping of feet and the banter started. They were given a new sling and the scales and told to get on with it as I didn’t want to see. They came up with a reading of 54lb 04oz and it was “The Turtle”.
The capture was all the sweeter as I’d lost him in early April due to a hookpull for absolutely no reason. It also eased a few minds as he’d not been on the bank since last August when he weighed 52lb 02oz. Photos all done and with a slap in the face off him as a parting shot he swam away strongly. I also managed a 35lb mirror the following morning on the middle rod. All 3 rods had produced over 2 areas and all on different baits, the only common denominator being that they had all been forms of New Grange. Big thanks must go to the lads that sorted me out, Paul, Graham and especially Stotty for asking for the bucket over the head shots to be re-done as he’d missed it."
