A brace of Notts. thirties!
Lee Howard has been among the fish again from a small Notts venue. They might be repeat captures but made for a cracking brace shot of northern thirties! Well done Lee!
‘I turned up to the little pit Tuesday evening after work to find not a soul was on the lake. I set off for a look up a long shallow channel that came off the main bowl of the lake when I stumbled across a group of 5 fish ripping a spot up that I’d baited with hemp and corn a few days before. Grubbing about the clear spot amongst the weed was the lakes big common, another common called white tips plus the koi and two other smaller fish fizzing the whole area up trying to sample every grain and seed in sight.
I didn’t make it any further and quickly shot back off to the car to grab some gear! I settled into a swim that covered the mouth of the channel but gave me a good angle to slowly wade a bait down to my left and onto the spot I’d been watching the 5 fish ripping apart 10 minutes earlier.
With them already pre-occupied on the corn and hemp mix, I decided on a double maize hookbait soaked in thaumatin-b sweetener to try and blend in a bit on what they were already enjoying, rig wise was original leadcore, leadclip, 2oz flat pear and a short length of Tungsten Loaded with a size 6 Cryogen Para-Point.
I slowly creeped up the left margin until I was less than a rod length away from the feeding fish. I froze as I watched a couple of the group feeding nearly at my feet as the other few hung around the edge of the weed then they would turn and join in as the other two moved off. It was as if they where taking turns feeding on the spot and I had to stand up to my waist in water and watch for a good 10 minutes before the coast was clear enough to lower a rig in place.
With the banker rod set I started to get the other two rods set up on 15mm Complex T pop ups, rigs were my favourite Withy Pool set up on original leadcore, leadclip, 3oz flat pears, tungsten loaded and a size 5 grippa hook.
I flicked both rods straight out about 20 odd yards to another clearing in the weed that was in slightly deeper water and a spot I’d managed to catch one from the week before. Anything coming in and out of the channel had to pass these two rods so after I scattered a couple of handfuls of 15mm Complex T boilies out over the two rods I sat back and awaited something to happen on the left hand rod that I was so confident on producing the goods.
It didn’t take long before the left hand rod was away! I grabbed the rod and cupped the spool with my left hand to try and stop it gaining a foothold in a nearby reed bed then I slowly managed to gain a little line before everything went solid in the abundance of Canadian pond weed.
Armed with a net and a set of chesties I waded out to the ball of green the fish had wedged me in and grabbed hold of the leadcore, with a steady pull a big chunk of weed with a mid double mirror broke free and slipped into the net.
At 15.12 it was a nice start and definitely one of the 5 fish I seen earlier but I thought it was Sod’s law I caught the smallest of the bunch. After repositioning the left hand rod back on the clearing in the weed I was confident of another take before or just after dark on the same rod.
It wasn’t until first light when another take occurred but surprisingly it was one of the two rods covering the mouth of the channel that went! I jumped out of the bag and lent into an angry fish hell bent on stripping as much line off me as possible. I managed to slow it down and I started to gain a little line when all of a sudden she was off again on a mad dash for freedom. Again I managed to turn her and a slow tug of war lasted another 5 minutes before I safely shuffled the net under her. It was Grays mirror, a fish I’d had 6 weeks before but I thought that will do nicely before I had to pack up for work.
With it only just breaking light I decided to hold her for a while in the sling and got the rod back out to the spot for the last few hours. I sat and made a brew that ended up cold as I nodded of for nearly an hour before being awaken by another one toner! The same rod was off again at full bar! I couldn’t believe it as I held onto another fish that was as mad as the last one. I got this one under control a little quicker than the last fish or so I thought until I got it under the rod tip. The fish just kept swimming around in a big circle in front of me, at this point I’d seen the fish and had a good idea it was the big common.
Back they go
Every time I applied pressure she would pull back and go into her defensive circle technique which seemed to keep working for her and over the next 5 minutes she must of pulled it off several times before I finally bundled her into the net.
I couldn’t believe it, the lakes big common and second biggest mirror made me realise I’d definitely got a brace of north Notts 30s!