After spending 4 months on The Car Park, I really felt like I needed a break. Sometimes you just have to walk away and have a re-think about things. Although I had caught a lovely 30 plus Common, things just weren’t going to plan. There had been a lot of personal stuff going on in my life due to my mum not being well at all. The Car Park was not helping things either, confidence was at an all time low. To me there is no shame in this, things don’t always happen the way you would like them to.
I took my time to have a re-think as to where to go next for a couple of months. The first lake that popped in to my head was Fox Pool. It might not be stacked with big forties (not yet) but to me a high thirty is still big enough for me. Having a slow walk round this historical lake and looking in to the deep margins, it didn’t take long to find some fish and get them feeding on some Anchovy Pellet. One of these fish was rather on the large side, if it wasn’t forty it wasn’t far off it. I ran back to the van and grabbed my kit. Now this will sound a bit strange because I didn’t set up and fish for them. I decided to set up a couple of swims down. I chose a swim that had a good view of the lake being it was my first night on a new lake. But what I could do was keep the pellet going in on my little spot. Thus giving the fish a free meal and building there confidence.
I managed to find two nice spots in the swim that I had set up in. Two balanced pop ups tied KD style on a size 8 Drennan Barbel Hook, completed the set up. At 7:30 the next morning I received a slow take and after a spirited fight, I had my first Fox Pool Carp sitting in my net. A lovely Common of 32lb 8oz, not a bad start at all. I did move up to the margin swim for a night as all the pellet had gone. The chance had gone and the fish never returned, but a thirty wasn’t a bad consolation prize.
I returned the following week and decided to have a go at the opposite end of the lake to where I had caught the fish the week before. The rigs were tied exactly the same as before, having to use forceps to remove the hook. I lowered a rig next to a bush to the right of the swim, with 10 Anchovy baits spread round it. The night passed with nothing happening, but at 11:30 the next morning I had another bite. This bite totally different to the one last week almost pulling the rod of the rest. The Syncro XT held up to the job and after a twenty minute fight I had my second Fox Pool fish sitting in my net. A fish called Pimple and she pulled the scales round to 34lb 12oz, I was beginning to like it here. I have since gone back for a couple of more sessions and blanked. The weather is dropping in temperature and due to Fox Pool being very deep things are bound to slow up a little bit. This means I will be moving on to my winter water very soon.
John Elmer.