The Lindners-top guys from "across the pond"

If you're a UK angler, unless you're a real devotee and afficianado of lure fishing, chances are you've never heard of Al and Ron Lindner. In the States, however, they're household names in the world of angling. Both inductees into the National Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame ( can you imagine such a thing here in Britain!), former owners of the Lindy lure company and for many years well loved TV angling personalities, they also founded the legendary In-Fisherman magazine that's a mainstay of North American newstands. Their style behind the camera is much more "high octane" than it is "Passion for Angling", with fast commentary, fast boats and fast-talking but it gives a great insight into the boatmanship and expertise with artificial lures and echo sounders that seems to come so easily to American anglers. Not only are these guys (who must be well into their sixties) still as excited about catching fish as a young boy with his first fishing rod, they're also committed Christians who are unashamed to talk openly about their faith. Check them out on their website or take a look at their book "First Light on the Water."

Singing in the rain ...

After several days of balmy weather it was back to June as we've come to know it this year, the rain falling veangefully from a dark sky accompanied by blustery winds. Undeterred, although predictably disappointed, I loaded the car and was  at the estate lake by 7:30am for another session targetting its tail-thumping, elastic stretching crucians. My goal for the season is a two pounder, and on my previous session I'd managed half a dozen fish up to a pound, this time an immensely enjoyable session turned out to be more about quantity than quality, with 31 crucians coming to the net (along with about a dozen roach and rudd) in just three hours. Feeding a small pinch of maggots every put-in, I fished tight to the marginal reeds just yards from the bank, presenting double maggots on a size 20 hook to 2.5 lb mainline and a 2lb bottom using a short pole. Action was frantic, with crucians coming steadily to the bank, and although they were all in the quarter to half pound size bracket they gave a game account of themselves on the light tackle. I returned home wet, no nearer to my two pound target but happy that the inclement weather had failed to either ruin the sport or dampen my spirits. Now for that two pounder ....

Plus ca change

In the early days of the 20th Century HT Sherringham was the doyen of fishing writers. He described carp fishing in these words: "Having laid out the rods you are at liberty to smoke, meditate, read, and- I think- sleep ... you and the rods and the floats gradually grow into the landscape and become part of it. It is like life in the isle of the lotus."
In other words, carp fishing, by nature, involves long periods of inactivity punctuated by brief flurries of action. In contrast with the frenetic activity and fish catching of my current crucian campaign, my only session so far this year after their bigger cousins proved Sherringham right. I travelled from my East Midlands home to Hertfordshire to fish my brother's Club Lake with him on a guest ticket. The texts and telephone conversations in the week running up to the session were full of optmism- after all, my brother had never blanked on the club lake, so why not?
In the event, we remained fishless all day, our bobbins troubled only by the wind, our boilies untouched, and the batteries in our bite alarms unecessary. We fished well enough, picked our spots thoughtfully, used good baits and fed in sensible quantities, but you can never tell with carp.
Meanwhile, in the swim next door my 11 year old son and 8 year old nephew added insult to injury by steadily catching small roach, rudd, bream and perch while deriding the angling impotence of their "elders and betters."
Some things stay the same, and it appears Sherringham was right about carp fishing, and I can't wait to get back to the crucians!
Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose.

In praise of Izaak

As an angler who's also a Christian (or should that be the other way round!) it gives me great satisfaction to know that the most reprinted book in the English language is the Bible, and the second most reprinted Walton's classic "The Compleat Angler". It's hard to explain why Walton's work, written as a dialogue between Piscator (the angler) and Venator (the novice angler) has proved so enduring; written in Old English prose-style it ambles along, interspersing angling wisdom with the odd poem or recipe and the occasional reference to Walton's own firmly held Christian faith. Walton's life took in the English Civil War, the Great Fire of London and outbreaks of The Plague, yet despite the turbulence of his times Walton lived to the ripe old age of 90. Anyone desiring an introduction to Walton, but unsure if the book will be their "cup of tea" could do worse than to get hold of the excellent eponymously titled DVD made by Rae Borras and Geoffrey Palmer which brings the timeless charm of Walton's writing to life with quotes from the book woven into their own fishing adventure. There are hundreds of books available to the angling public that are full of the latest rigs, baiting theories and advice, and doubtless they help people to catch fish, but for evocative writing and a literary work that captures the spirit of angling, Walton is still the unsurpassed master.

Crucians- a new obsession

2012- "the year of the crucian"

My fishing has always been characterised by a certain fickle faddishness. A sort of restlesness that doesn't quite sit easily with Walton's description of angling as the "contemplative man's recreation". In my time I've had spells of pursuing carp or pike, a period when I exclusively lure fished, I've done the whole "Chris Yates" thing with old tackle and quill floats bulky enough to divert an oil tanker in the Suez Canal and even fished a couple of matches, and just recently I've become afflicted with the crucian bug. A lovely old estate lake near me has been recently opened for day ticket fishing, and as well as tench, roach, rudd, a scattering of commons and mirrors and some lovely big perch it contains the most gorgeous, chunky, hard fighting crucians. My first trip fishing intentionally for them saw me land half a dozen crucians between half a pound and a pound, as well as an indignant bristling half pound perch and hordes of roach and rudd, all caught on a pole with 3lb line and 2lb bottom fished tight to the marginal reeds. That's settled it for me. No doubt 2012 will see me  do a bit of carping and the occasional trip to the canal to spin for perch, but this year's fad is going to be crucians, and the "search for the holy grail"- a two pound estate lake crucian. I'll keep the blog updated with my progress, or more than likely my lack of progress.