John Elmer made the long trip from Kent to the Linear complex in Oxfordshire recently and a good bit of angling was rewarded with one of the lake’s most prized mirrors. Here’s John with the full story:
‘It had been well over 14 years since I last visited the Linear Complex and how it had matured since then. The works bank which was being worked back then was now full off long grass and trees round it. The lake was quite busy for a Thursday, but after a walk round and talking to a few of the lads, good swims were becoming free. I opted for a swim on the works bank, while chatting to the bloke that was packing up I noticed a couple of fish head and shoulder at about 50 yards range. Once the fella had packed up I got all three rods set up, all fishing helicopter style with ESP leadcore. Two rods were set up on chods with a size 5 stiff rigger and the third rod was set up with a bottom bait tied up with a D7 size 7.
Two rods were fished a the range that I had seen the fish show and the 3rd rod was fishing near a set of reeds right up on the shelf at about six feet of water. The first day and night passed with the odd fish showing in the area. It was the next morning that things really started to look up. There was a nice drizzle, but very humid and the fish were starting to go mad right in front of me.
The first bite came at 7:30 in the morning which turned out to be a nice 21lb mirror on the chod rod at about 50 yards range. After a couple of pictures the rod was re-done, and before I knew it the rod on the reeds was away which turned out to be a mirror of 24lb 2oz. My friend Jayson and I sat there drinking tea after tea as the fish was were still in front of me. By now the weather had really turned with really heavy rain. I had a feeling that the rod fishing up on the shelf needed to be fishing in slightly deeper water. So I decided to fish the bottom of the shelf in 9 feet of water. The day passed with fish still showing in the area. At 8:30 in the evening the rod at the bottom of the shelf near the reeds was away. This was a slow fight with the fish just holding bottom all the time. It was at this point I knew I was in to something a bit special.
After a twenty minute fight I got my first glimpse of the fish and Jayson and I just looked at each other in disbelief. We both saw the big Linear scales down one flank of the fish. Now there was only two fish that size in the Manor, The Birthmark Linear or Kempy’s, Another five minutes later and she was coughing water and Jayson netted her at the first attempt. Once in the net she looked massive and there was no mistaking it was Kempy’s.
John with Kempy’s at 44lb 6oz
I just went into melt down. The hook hold was some two inches back and I needed forceps to remove the hook. Lifting her onto the mat her shear bulk just grew. Up on the scales she pulled the needle round to 44lb 6oz unbelievable. After doing the pictures I returned her back absolutely buzzing. The rest of the session passed with nothing else happening, but it mattered not I had caught Kempy’s and that was more than enough.
John Elmer