Gary's day

A bit of a random one today with a test fish on the Small Lake to see if it could be used with the large lake to host the triple cup.

It was hot! Most of us started with a bit of shade but it quickly disappeared - the odd breeze did though help take some of the edge off. Peg 18 was my home for the day and I was pretty happy with it being in one of the corners - as it turned out the wrong corner though. I had a couple of small carp and crucians along the edges to start but then it went quiet. With the lake holding lots of small fish I had brought some maggots along and had been feeding a few whilst trying closer in. It soon became clear that maggots were the wrong choice as the long line filled with small roach and rudd. Even with a whip I was going nowhere quick when the roach were an ounce a piece or less. So it was back in close and a long slog trying paste and corn but having to keep moving once the ravenous hoards of micro roach found where I was fishing. There was the odd carp cruising around but they managed to stay just out of range with the pole and showed no signs of feeding. Trying to fish for them was not pleasant with the pole being too hot to hold.

In the other corner Mark was having a very different day and finished with a tidy net of mostly carp caught long on paste.

1st Mark Halverson 31lbs 6oz, 2nd Gary Pickard 12lbs 3oz and 3rd Fred Hunt 9lbs 8oz

Today's photo has Fred ready for the all in with Jeff just visible over to the left. I don't think Fred was expecting to need 4 nets!