As i opened the front door the dank musty smell off the landing net hit me again.. the rod sling had stood in the hall where it had been left for the best part of three days. F*ckin 'ell man you had better sort the gear out. The natural high had carried me aloof for a couple of days administered a touch lengthier with a few litres of alcohol.. i was sledgin'
It's happened mate, it was meant to be.. Emotional? yeah it was a very emotional event, though the aftermath hit me very hard. Many personal reasons made the capture hard to take in.. i won't go into any of them they are mine. It was a long time coming, and when it did i wasn't prepared mentally for the hit i would recieve.. Okay, in relative terms it was a capture of a fish, albeit a big one. Any other person than a long time angler would find my words laughable. Those in the brotherhood, those that have spent half their life waiting for an event like this to happen. The sacrifices, the hardships and heatbreak that many have had to endure along the way... they will know.
I had to get back down there.. weekend was approaching fast, and i had nothing prepared. A full afternoon was spent sorting out the mess that had been thrown and stuffed in every compartment i owned. Sorted, and i am at the gates around tea time Friday evening. The drizzle was heavy. The trees heavy with foliage drooped with the weight of the persistant heavy rain. The car park was empty.. In the gloom a feeling came over me that something wasn't right. i went to close the gates and noticed they had been got at with an heavy duty set of bolt croppers.. the other gate had been mutilated too. I phoned Eagle.. Don't leave your motor there mate. I made my way down to the lake, and after sitting under the Evo for an hour, i decided to do one.. it was spooky, a really strong feeling that things wern't right came over me in a shudder and i looked over my shoulder all the way back to the car. Bbbrrr!! cold sweats rippled through my body. I closed the last gate and jumped in the car.. whooah! get a grip man. On the drive back home i was spooked.. the gates had been chopped at with something heavy, and declining to sit on there alone had i think been a wise move... I will return first light and spend the day there.
I suppose the total desire to get back there overtook the logical inhibitions, and the desire had me back at the car park in the dull damp dawn.. In the urgency to get on the bank i left the car on the car park. It would be sound.. i am only doing the day. I was surprised that there was another angler on there, he had been dropped off after i had departed the evening before. I settled for an area that a fish pushed out in a couple of times a few swims onto the lake.. they dissapeared. Around 11.00 am the guy further down waved he's arms for attention.. i photographed a tidy 26lb mirror. I decided to check out the shallows.. it was like returning to a place that you visited way back and had happy memories from. I stopped and looked out at the far margin,the wind was pushing in nicely in a perfect grey sky. I lit a cig and sat on the boards, it looked bang on. Get in there mate my rods are all out directly in front, besides i'm f*ckin off in an hour or so. Cheers mate. Within fifteen minutes i was sat with the rods positioned perfectly reliving every moment of the events from the weekend before.. yeah! A few fish turned up and started to do the rituals.. yes sir.. i will have another one please.
One thing about this gaff is.. everyone that visits you, always seem to creep up on you ...'F**ckin 'ell man' you sh*t the life out of me. It was Bizi.. want a brew? He had come down to check out the damage to the gates, and to arrange the repairs etc. I enjoy the chat with the local guys, they are from the completely opposite side of town, and they always know things you don't.
The late afternoon had broken the greyness with intermittent bright sunshine, and every now and then a fish dipped out in the steady ripple.. looks good for another fella, give us a shout if you want any pics.
I settled back in the chair.. 10 minutes later the phone rang '' Bizi''.. before i answered, i knew what he as going to say... F*ckin 'ell man your windows have been done on your motor. In the space of half an hour Bizi had spent on the lake with me.. my side window and the rear windscreen windows had been tw*tted.
I packed away and made my way back to the car park.. I had come back to Earth allright... with no parachute. If only?.. only one. If only i could have got my hands on the c*nts that wrecked a family car that held nothing at all of any worth to anyone. I wouldn't be sat here typing this.. i would have a few charges against me.

unlucky fella

glad you found the keyboard again though

The tw&ts hope you get your car sorted soon mate

bad sh it m8 its a awful feeling that

fackin c@nts mark, people just dont give a sh!t when it happened to me it got me angry as fack, how to feckin ruin someones day.

Unlucky Tudge .. had it happen to me not a nice feeling..

Monday
The Art
I couldn't believe it... nice little eight metres on a block of flats locally, then get off boys. The air was fairly humid as we got all the gear back down the three storey block.. come on i want to get fishing.
Two rods were bundled, a light 2lb Harrison a Free Spirit ES, along with a small selection of floaters and a few bits for the bottom. Travelling light today, i wanted to be on em and if i had to walk round the Park a couple of times then i wouldn't be killing myself on the 'yomp' round. It really was a glorious morning and a quick chat with a couple of overnight boys saw me on my way again. As i pushed through the trailing leaves off the Willows i stopped dead on the narrow path. I immediately turned into slow motion as i clocked a group of fish a few metres out against some weed beds. I inched backwards up the hill and noticed another group beyond them, and another even further out..'kinnell there were loads about. I baited a rod with a couple of floaters and flicked em beyond the close in fish.. they spooked and moved out toward the second group... b*stard.
After a very frustrating hour or so of missed takes and spooky swirls.. the fish suddenly started to leave en mass. I clocked em going straight down the middle. Eagle stopped by for a chat and witnessed the fish leaving wakes as they headed off to who knows where. Done owt?.. done my head in mate.. they were proper cagey.
A light Westerly got up as though the fish had knew in advance, and pushed in the direction that they had left.. thats it i'm off. I arrived at the end of the lake where the ripple had steadied into a moderate.. i hitched up a tree and through the glittering reflection spotted a group of fish three feet below the surface, and they were moving around tightly. Another group arrived, then the odd straggler joined up with a tidy head of fish. Strange how looking in on fish is almost as exciting as catching them.. well not really but i get a proper buzz. Anyone seen the throwing stick that dog walkers are now armed with? Dayglo coloured piece of placcy with a cup that launches a tennis ball a good way into the lake today it was followed by a Springer Spaniel, that bellyflopped a few times before i had to give him a word... The Springer didn't know any better, it is the closest it will ever get to working in the field and probably the only chance it will get to working with a gun is the owners sons BB gun. Nice one mate!.. Sorry! didn't see you there, yeah.. but your not the reason i paid out for the camo gear... try f*ckin specsavers you kn*b. I tried hard not to unleash into a full on barrage of abuse and looked the other way biting my bottom lip.. hard. Strangely the fish refused to move from there gathering spot, and after a few hard stares he f*cked off. A mirror with a linear pattern halved out only rod length out to my left, then again. Each time the fish sent a black patch to the surface with masses of bubbles fizzing and popping. I quickly tried a line of floaters 20 metres up the bank and they were ignored.. what the f*ck is wrong with em.. again another batch was given the cold shoulder. The mirror came up again in the same place. I quickly fixed up a float set up on the 2lb rod with a small Tiger nut as an hookbait. I cut up a few tigers into small pieces and fired them gently into the area of the show, and directly on top the bubbles that were still exploding to the surface every couple of minutes. My hands shook with anticipation. Get a grip.. i poured out a cup of coffee and lit a cig then moved up the bank to set the depth of the quill to set at half cock. The move up the bank a little was simply not to spook the fish by casting amongst em. Sorted.. i flicked the quill and bait beyond the spot and gently drew back sinking the line as she went. The quill wavered sat upright then leaned back rocking in the waves.. this is what carp fishing is all about fella. A ballast of bubbles broke surface feet beyond the float.. I turned my head as a fish continually rolled to my left a little further out. My feet started to ache in the cramped position i was in and started to go dead, f*ckin ell my feet hurt.. the float rocked round in a circle then jabbed down twice hard. F*ckin 'ell i should have hit that. Masses of bubbles continued to move towards the float, until the float sat in the middle of a fizz resembling a champagne glass full to the brim. A few minutes later the float sank to the tip then lifted and as the float lay flat on the surface i struck hard over my head. Tench? The soft action of the rod threw me and the fish.. i reckon neither of us knew what was going on. I pumped it towards me then away the fish went up the lake. A couple of guys a little further up came and looked on at a battle that went on for a good ten minutes.. it's a Common tudge, i've just seen it.. it was and as it rolled in the net i felt a huge sigh of relief. Man! that was one major battle. A mint looking Common of 23lb on the float.. the early days of my ongoing apprenticeship had paid off handsomely. Float fishing is simply pure magic, and is a practice i try to use as often as possible. The art of angling is still alive, long may it continue.

nice one tudge,back to the old school tactics and still catching em i see

You just can't beat float fishing...

bet you can not catch the tench off the top hey