Monday 30 July 2012

Caught on the horns of a dilemna

I've just returned from the estate lake where I was watching Roger, a friend from church fishing for the ubiquitous crucians that are the lake's main attractions. The fishing was slower than it can be, but Roger managed to tangle with three of the lake's crucians as well as an assortment of roach and pretty little perch, but the fact has to be faced that my son, myself, Roger and two other angling friends from church, Dave and Anthony have all fished the lake (in my case with reasonable regularity), have all caught crucians, but have none of us come anywhere near the 2 pound target that I set at the beginning of the season. I've only managed a couple of crucians over the pound mark, with my son managing one of around the same weight. The average stamp is around a quarter of a pound, with a fair few in the half pound range, but (although I have seen a genuine photo of a 2 pounder caught from the lake) it's becoming clear that it'll be a matter of both luck and wading through vast numbers of smaller fish before I'm likely to tangle with the "dream fish."
 So, what to do?
 Do I persist with the quest till October turns my seasonally affected attention to pike fishing, or do I take a "time out" and spend the odd evenings or mornings that make up my current fishing opportunities stalking carp with floaters at another local lake?
 As yet, I'm undecided, but I'm leaning towards continuing the pursuit of the crucians; after all, they may be small, but the lake is tranquil, the fish breathtakingly beautiful, and there's far more to fishing than the mere pounds and ounces to which we often reduce our noble quarry.
 So, will my next trip be with dog biscuits and controllers or pole, maggots and pellets? Watch this space and I'll keep you posted.


Roger with a typical crucian.

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