Getting better

headless · #1 07-26-2011, 07:05 AM

After spending four hours on Wednesday evening being bitten by the mozzies and watching my swim fizzing from the feeding Tench, but not getting a bite, I decided that I would spend Friday after Catfish.

Wednesday night and Thursday the temperature dropped and it rained. Not ideal conditions for the Catfish but I decided I would still give it a go anyway.

I arrived at Jimmy's at 7am, choosing a swim that allowed me to cast between an island and out into the main open water. I was fishing with halibut pellet/squid and liver bollies with lob worms as bait

Looking over the lake there was no sign of fish feeding and as time went on I was thinking that it is going to be a long hard slog. The sun was out, so I thought the water will warm up and the fish will come on the feed later in the day. Around 10.30am I had a run on my rod cast towards the island; I struck and hooked into a Cat only for the hook to pull after a few seconds.

I fished until 1.00am and then decided to have a walk around the lake to see if there was any fish showing. At the far end of the lake is a small bay, as I walked around the bay I saw a large Grass Carp just under the surface and a couple of areas that the silt was being disturbed. I was straight back to my swim to pack up and move to the bay swim.

One rod was cast half way towards the Island; the other rod was cast to my right, only five or six mtrs from the bank under a large over hanging tree. Within quarter of an hour I had a run on the free lined bait cast to the right under the tree. I struck and missed it.

Ten minutes later the left rod was off, I struck and hooked a Cat only for the hook to pull again.

Time to go home I thought. Within minutes the right had rod was off and I hooked and landed a Cat of 11.5lb

Ten minutes later on the same rod I was in again, this time a 4lb kitten.

As I returned the little cat the distance rod was off, I struck and hooked a Cat, but after half a minute or so the fish was off

The near swim went dead so I added a lead and cast the right hand rod out towards the middle. Half hour passed and I was into another Cat, this time I landed it, again a small kitten around the 4lb mark.

A couple of anglers new to Cat fishing came along as I landed the small Cat and we discussed rigs etc...As I was giving them a trace I had make up the right hand rod was off again, I struck and hooked into another Cat, only for the hooks to pull again.

Five minutes after the other anglers left my left hand rod was running, this time I hooked and landed a 16.5lb Catfish

The swim went quiet for an hour but I could still see the plumes of silt coming up in the swim. I decided a change of rigs was needed. I make up a pop up rig using a Korum maggot clip, Fox pop up with a size 6 hook.

I cast the rig into the area that the silt was being disturbed, within ten seconds the line was whizzing off the reel, I struck...nothing.

I recast and just as I set the bait runner the line was going, this time I hooked a Cat and after a good scrap I landed a 18.25lb Cat...thank god for that...I was getting *issed off with losing and missing runs.

The swim went dead and with only one hour left to fish I cast the pop up rig under the overhanging tree. I did not have any faith in getting anymore runs because there fish were not showing. With half an hour to go I started to pack up my seat etc...When off went the rod that was positioned under the tree. After twenty minutes of trying to keep the Cat out of the fallen trees to the right I finally landed the Catfish. A PB for me, Bang on 30lb

I went home a happy bunny, especially after such a poor start.

Sorry if I have gone into too much detail, I got a bit carried away.

Darrell