Have I sinned against the spirit of angling?

[Wordbender]

Be gracious, old fella, t'was your veiled admission of extreme longevity that gave the game away!

 

A gross and damnable lie, Sir!

 

I'm all sorts of hip, and nary a one's been replaced.

 

Now then.

[irons64]

I feel I may have done something disrespectful and I throw myself on the mercy of this noble forum.

 

It's OK, I haven't gone to the dark side and resorted to fish finders or bait boats, but I am a bit worried. You see, I've recently returned from a refreshing 48 hours on my syndicate, where I was lucky enough to catch a 22lb common a 31lb mirror and a 10.2lb tench. The action was fast, furious and incredibly satisfying, with the 31 mirror giving a particularly fine account of itself during a fight that last just short of 10 minutes. So, what's the problem? Well, to the astonishment of my angling chums who witnessed these captures, I declined the option of having a photo done with any of them.

 

I have my reasons, mind. First, as magnificent a fish as that double-figure tench was, I was fishing for carp when I caught it, and I was using seriously heavy gear that didn't give the tench a chance once that chod rig took hold. I'm consistent with my 'accidental capture' stance, and have always declined to claim any of the specimens I've caught while targeting carp.

 

The common was caught next to a snag which contained carp to 50lbs or very near offer, and I wanted to get my trap re-set in the shortest possible time, with the least amount of disturbance. It was a nice fish but I was after bigger ones and 'sacrificed' the photo opportunity to get back into the fray.

 

The mirror was just plain ugly. Yep, a proper minger. I loved the fight, truly appreciated the capture and took the greatest of care with my prize...but a photo? No thanks. One unattractive creature in a trophy shot is quite enough.

 

The thing is, a few years ago I'd have been opening the champers to celebrate catching a 30, and mightily chuffed to bank a nice 20 in the same trip. Have I changed my attitude for the worst? Have I become an elitist git? I'm not a bad person, but there's that guilty itch which only the ladies and gentlemen of the Anglers Net jury can truly scratch for me.

 

Over to you - be gentle with me.