A Good Overnight Session...

[Miggy]

I got a phone call late Friday evening from my uncle asking whether I would like to fish an overnight session. Having only ever fished 2 previously -and thinking it would be rude to refuse... I jumped at the chance, but at 7 o'clock on a friday evening there are -of course- not many tackle shops open, and -barring a couple of bags of pellets in the shed I had no bait. So raiding my mums kitchen cupboards was in order...

 

Having found half a loaf of bread, a tin of luncheon meat and some vanilla essence and red food colouring, I decided to fish the method feeder with a white crumb groudbait and a hair-rigged piece of luncheon meat. So after blitzing the loaf..and making a mess of the kitchen I grabbed a carp rod, and bite alarm with my chair and I was ready..

 

My Uncle and I arrived at the lake at roughly 9:45 and were setup just after 10, but, as ever, I had forgot something. The Day Shelter... so a phone call to mother again was in order and -very kindly- she nipped it through to the lake for me

 

Mothers ey...

 

I left my uncle with the gear at about 11:30 to get my shelter from the car park, on my way back i heard the sound of my bite alarm going off, again..., however, when I got there my rod was still in the water and everything was quiet, and my bite alarm didnt move. I decided to refill the method feeder and bring the rod in, but when I picked it up, it was heavier than usual and I could feel that a fish was most definitely on and after a stereotypical poor fight the first fish of the night was in the net - a nice bream.

 

Here's the bream, I apologise for the quality of the photos as they were taken in the dark with my headtorch, and the first is quite blurry, I have tried my best to edit the photos to enchance the lighting, but anyways...

 

 

A good bream by my standards and a good start... the next fish came at roughly 1:30, the bites were more confident and having taken my time to strike; I didnt want to have to re-cast without a fish, I struck on a confident bite and I was in again... however, this one was a little heavier and the fight was stronger, after a few minutes I had the fish wallowing on the surface and my uncle was ready to net it, at this point I thought it may be a carp which would have been great, but when I got it on the bank I was amazed...My First Tench!! and a decent size too.. For the record I have always wanted to catch a tench; they are -in my opinion- lovely fish. This one looked about 5 1/2 to 6lb in my opinon, but having left my phone in the shelter, after I got it I didnt want to keep the fish out of the water for too long so I didnt bother weighing it, I wish I had now, but it didn't matter...

 

Here's the tench... Can you give me your opinions on an estimate of the weight please

 

There is also a dark picture of me holding the tench to give you another Idea of the length...

 

 

 

After calming down somewhat, about an hour later I received similar bites ad again struck into a fish, smaller this time, but what a fight, it ran straight for the weed and across my uncles line, sending his bite alarm into a frenzy, after a longer fight this time I had the fish in the shallows and eventually in the net... Another Tench!! Not one for a few years and 2 in one night!!

 

One of roughly 4lb this time, but I dint get a good photo, I will put it up, but it's hard to see

 

 

A little while later my uncle, after having no luck on pellets changed to luncheon meat and after a short while he landed a nice bream also... shortly followed by another nice bream from my rod, and as the sun rose the fishing grew quiet and we had only a few small bites. So I grabbed a few nice photos and we packed up about 6am. A great night for me and my first Tench...also, my first fish landed at night!!

 

 

 

 

Mitch...

Edited July 6, 2009 by Miggy

[Andy Macfarlane]

Have you been taking pics through a pair of tights or something?.....lol

 

 

Well done with the tench, even if it could be a ling for all the good the picture is....lol

 

 

....andy....

[DavyR]

Well done with the tench, even if it could be a ling for all the good the picture is....lol

 

Would that be a tinca ling?

[Dick Dastardly]

Nice one Miggy! sounds like you enjoyed yourself! Glad that your angling skills are a bit better than your photography ones!

[Miggy]

Nice one Miggy! sounds like you enjoyed yourself! Glad that your angling skills are a bit better than your photography ones!

 

The bottom ones are with the same camera... and the pictures are clear, but when I enhanced them they became unclear, but they allow you to see the shape and size better than almost total darkness...

[Miggy]

Can anyone give me an esimate on the weight of the tench -in their opinion- please