Nearly a Blank !!!

Lucky Omen.


40lb 02oz PB Common.

12 November 2013

I thought these pictures would be worth sending in for the website. I caught it on a weekend overnighter during the last week of September.

I arrived at the lake on the Saturday afternoon to find it very busy with only a few swims left. I set up in 'the stones' swim which was convenient at it is right next to the car-park. As the light was rapidly fading this enabled me to quickly get the rods out and finish setting up in the dark.

Nothing happened overnight or the next morning and I was sensing a blank was on the cards. The only action on my rods was a Kingfisher (see pic.) which had been landing on them all morning. At least something had been catching.

I was stood chatting to another member. Blaming my blank on the number of lines in the water as it was busy and also the unfavourable weather conditions (not that I could have fished more effectively or that it was my fault). I also moaned about the size of carp that I had been catching recently and stated that the 'big uns' never come out on the weekend when it's busy.

I few minutes later, bang on mid-day the right had rod melted off and I was in. The carp came in easily until it saw me and the net. It then went crazy for about 15-20 minutes under the rod tip. Finally it was in the net and I was relieved after a hell of a scrap. In fact the fish was still fighting when the pictures were being taken (see pic).

On the scales it went 40lb 2oz and was a new pb for myself and my first forty. I was ecstatic as you can imagine.

It is worth noting that the carp was caught on a full moon, apparently a good time to catch a big common. This, along with the fact that the Kingfisher had been landing on the rod all morning added some superstition to the capture. I have also lost this particular fish on two previous occasions. Third time lucky!

Samuel Scott.