‘On a roll’ – a great week for Justin !
Lymm AC member, Justin Furzer, is, as the title suggests, on a roll! Read Justin’s own account of a fantastic week with limited fishing time available…..
Having only limited time to fish this week and also having commitments over the following two weeks, meant I was determined to use my time wisely to bank my first big carp of the new season. I’d had a couple of commons on a local water just under 20lb, close to my home of Chester in March, but had decided it was now time to fish some Lymm waters deeper into Cheshire/Staffordshire in search of some better carp. With the warmer weather developing and having seen some of the fish were on the move whilst carrying out some work with the estates team at Lymmvale, I decided it was time to plan a few sessions:
Friday April 4th – Wrinehill Pool
16:00: I started off with a good friend on an exploratory visit to Wrinehill Pool. We decided between us that the size and depth of water would be a good place to start at this time of year. Having not fished it before, we also wanted to see what the pool had to offer. As we both had commitments during the day, we arrived early afternoon and arrived to see the lake almost full but after walk round, saw a couple of swims free that looked like they might produce a fish so, after spotting a couple in-front of a double swim that was free, we rushed back and grabbed our gear as we’d just spotted some other anglers turn up and didn’t want to lose our chosen spot!I quietly got a few bits and bobs out whilst observing what everyone else on the lake was up to. I already had a rig in mind and this rig would be suitable to fish in this area, so I set up my rods afresh whist keeping an eye on the water.
We’d familiarised ourselves with the water bailiffs on the pool, shared a few brews between us all (kindly made by Rob not me!) and after seeing a few more fish show, in particular one much better looking fish in the margin, I waited for them to move off, baited the spot with some of Viking Baits tigernut boilies, set my traps ambushing the water in-front of me and settled down for the night.
Saturday April 5th
08:45: I didn’t have any action during the night. We had already been up and about quietly, watching the water and sipping some morning coffee and a having piece of toast (thanks again Rob! ) when one of my rods roared off! Once I had bent into it and could feel the hard and steady surging, I knew it was a good fish, not one of the smaller inhabitants of the lake. After a good, solid fight, with the fish not wanting to give up for a good while, I brought it to the surface to see it was a large common. After a last minute surge, the fish gave up and we slipped the net under it to see it was yet another stunning North West Common! Result!
A great way to start the week – 25lb 20z of immaculate common carp!
Wednesday 9th april – Lymmvale
After a blank, with less than perfect conditions to say the least, on Monday evening, I arrived in the same swim after a good friend from the Lymm estates team had very kindly told me he’d seen some fish under a tree next to the swim and they’d been there all day. So, after a quick check with him again to confirm they were still there, I picked up my gear and set-up in preparation.
As much as I wanted to have a go at them straight away, I had some work to do on a swim further down the pool with the rest of the estates team beforehand. Conditions were going to be stable for the evening so I was confident I’d get a go at them and the pool was quiet, so no reason for them to move on from their current sanctuary just yet.
19:00: I crept back in the swim after finishing the work to find the fish still there. I’d spotted two big Mirrors, ‘The Cow’ (a big koi) and a couple of ghosties around 20lb+, so I quietly baited the swim, again with a few of the Viking Baits freebies, sat back and watched. After a couple of minutes one of the fish rolled on the bait and was readily feeding, so after all went quiet I baited again, this time a little more, then crept back to my rods, swung my hookbait into the area, sat back and waited. After ten minutes or so the rod sprang into life and I was into another carp! The fish peeled off back under the tree and after a moment where I thought I might lose the fish, I kept firm but steady pressure on the rod, eased the fish back into open water and I was on top of it again. All down to me and the hook hold now!
I had to step into the water and get wet feet to net the fish safely as the peg was raised above the waterline and the angle was difficult, the water was still painfully cold, but after beating the fish and getting it to the surface, it was ready and I slipped the net easily under a big, dark backed, scaley mirror! What a result, this one was bigger than the common at the weekend for sure! Luckily, a good friend was nearby to come and take some snaps for me and when we hoisted it up on the scales, they revealed a weight of 28lb 2oz! I was made up, ‘over the moon’! An absolutely stunning (almost) fully scaled mirror carp!
Justin’s Lymmvale 28lb 2oz near fully scaled beauty!
I did manage to hook another before they moved out by nightfall but, unfortunately, it was lost, sadly it came while we were taking snaps of the fish on the bank. Another ten minutes and I’m certain the fish would have been mine and in the net. I wonder which of the fish it was, ‘The Cow’ maybe? It was a shame I couldn’t have started for them earlier but, then again, two stunning fish caught in five days, I was grateful for that and, of course, there’s always the next time!
Congratulations, Justin, superb angling and a lovely little write up!
If you fancy having a go for fish like these, simply visit the Lymm AC website www.lymmanglersclub.com where you will find details of all our waters and, more importantly, how to join! We look forward to hearing from you.