Mud pig

Saturday's sortie to the Pond taught me to cut the crap and fish to features, or at least spread  my corn in one or two tight patches. I didn't and only managed these two contrasting bream.

New boy on the Pond was doing the above and though he had a stack of hook pulls had  a corking afternoon next to me on Stage 2. I did get  a hand sized rudd on a bare hook....

Good to see Ronny Ronaldo come second best to a moth on Sunday night.....


Monday after tea and a pass out after a monsoon like downpour and I headed out on to Stage 2 with one plan in mind, fish one rod (prawn under a waggler) to the lillies. Not the cauldron of Saturday but a hint of movement in the pads. New pair of swans on the pond and not yet clued up to loose feed, but as in close attendance  a few exploratory casts with out extras. For the last couple of years I've been fishing the lift method, partly to get the bait down through the rudd and also because fishing to small patches of clear water over a lot of hemp. This year weed  minimal and have been able to get fish going on smaller quantities of corn, and just put two dust shot down to hold still in the shallow water.

The dearth of weed is shown by by the newbies search in the pads and the marginal growth for food. Perhaps they'll feck off soon. X marks the spot

The first exploratory cast to the lilly fringe saw a sailaway and thinking rudd pleased to get a bent rod in response to the strike. Nice  clean and bright fish of about 3 pound. Two more sail aways (roach and rudd) and already thinking I'd run out of prawns before  I had a chance to get a few mixed pellets in

Put some shot down to cut down  the interceptors and to maintain some yardage as not over casting and winding back to sink the line but decide against it for aesthetic, not pisatrorial reasons. Got some feed on the deck and some sporadic bubbling began. Bit more battered this one, and showing signs of a second spawning with tubercles breaking through.

Double dip and glide away. Into the pads. Tinca?. Hold firm with the Drennan 13fter  maxed out and change of direction into the open water in front. More determined lunge into left hand pads. Size 8 Owner and a whole load more grunt than a size 14 Barbless Specimen. Flash of lighter belly as it ploughed into the silt then then that tell tale line pinging off the dorsal. Mud pig then. Over the drawstring and two hands needed to lift onto the mat.

What a corker.

Fairly long but solid,with flanks of burnished copper. Coral tinge to lower tail lobe and  a mahogany head. Just over 11lb  and a joy to behold. No grin and hold it for this one.

Just time to soak in the dipping sun then home. It's always several shades darker on the Stages due to the woods behind and back though the trees past the two gate houses the light shifts up several notches.