25 June 2016 – Catch Report from: Roy & party

A fascinating week’s carp fishing with nice specimens and a cracking 32lb mirror stalked from the island!

This week we had the pleasure of welcoming Roy, Chris and their wives to the venue. Roy’s a keen carp angler and Chris is a skilled trout and sea angler. Chris has caught plenty of carp before but prefers fly fishing for them off the top. Roy fished three rods but stuck to days only with a few day trips out with the ladies. Chris is used to a mobile approach and armed with one rod and a landing net spent most of the week stalking carp in the margins. It was Roy’s birthday on Sunday and after a buck’s fizz breakfast on the terrace managed a lovely 30 which was in mint condition and a sturgeon which was a first for him. I called in on Monday and had a quick look at how they were fishing and the whole approach was solid but hooks were not hand sharpened so I lent them our kit and we had a hook sharpening demo. I returned Wednesday and I was rather surprised than no more fish had been caught. Chris had been smashed by a big carp while stalking with one of my rigs an hour after I left. This time I made up some rigs as I would have used myself and this generated two quick takes. The first was a massive catfish (I saw it from the boat as I followed it in) which did its usual trick of pretending to be smaller than he was and with one powerful lunge on a short line and tight clutch smashed the 16lb mainline like it was cotton.

The second take fell to Chris who’d diligently been fishing from the island most of the week. I was determined that Chris should get to meet one of our big carp and he was happy for me to lead so armed with a single bait Beausoleil rig we crept onto the island. I know exactly what our carp stock is but even I was amazed at the number of large lumps hanging so tantalising close to the surface, tight to the bank and tree cover. We headed straight for a spot that looked good for a quick pickup but with space enough to play and land a fish. I lowered a bait silently literally a few feet from two large carp and laid the line as slack as I could away from the spot. Rod balanced on an old tree stump and clutch adjusted to give just the right amount of control, I whispered to Chris , “all yours” and by the time I’d crept back to get the landing net, Chris was scrambling for the rod as a very angry carp surged off along the margin. It was a great experience and everyone was delighted with the result! Chris went on to manage another mid twenty in the same manner and Ray banked two more carp and another sturgeon. The guys had a good holiday and learnt loads. Chris especially fell in love with the place, the wildlife and scenery. The carp and cats of Beausoleil continue to provide challenging angling for our guests which is why every capture is a special moment in time.