My PB Carp

[Rusty]

This’ll be a bit frightening for those who know me but I’ll guarantee not as frightening as it was for me. I found some old pics of past angling days in a drawer at home, they date from 1984. I was 24 years old then and the carping scene was gathering momentum. In my mind they were still revered as a species and the prospect of catching a big fish provided as much excitement as the prospect of catching a big perch or chub does today.

 

A freebie lake in Battle, Hastings (at least we believed it was free). I’d borrowed my Dad’s camper van and three of us fished all night. One of my mates brought along his rather attractive girlfriend and kept disappearing back into the van for extra curricular activities. The lake was stuffed with small carp and tench and I hadn’t caught either species before this visit. The photo is dated 14th September 1984, the common carp weighed 4lb 4oz;

 

 

Around the same time I quickly progressed to what was then Leisuresport membership, I knew somebody who knew the Membership Secretary and so managed to jump the waiting list for Darenth Lakes. This mirror carp weighed 15lb and I was telling the photographer to hurry up because I thought I might drop it (I didn’t). Note the rudimentary ‘bivvy’, bright red sun lounger and large torch with flashing red beacon. The home-made extension leads went to a couple of Heron bite alarms, the buzzer box was placed under the brolly. Proper bivvies were only just coming on to the market then, most shelter systems consisted of side skirts which attached to the brolly spokes;

 

 

The same fish being returned;

 

 

The pinnacle of my carping ‘career’. This is still my PB at 25lb 13oz and was caught from the Darenth complex on hair rigged boilies. My fuzzy memory recalls that this method was only just taking off then, most tackle shops sold the ingredients to make your own boilies rather than the finished products. The knotless knot hadn’t been invented and tying hair rigs with cotton was a real pain in the arse;

 

 

Happy days and they’re best remembered as just that, I wouldn’t want to go back.

[Tigger]

Great pic's Chris...thank's for sharing .

 

Sad though in'it...blink of an eye and your an old coffin dodger nearly ready for the furnace lol.

[JV44]

As above thanks for sharing didn`t realise you were one of the early pioneers at the get on it and spod the granny out of it with the puka red lounger and flashing light .

Blimey next we will have Chris Plumb piccys of him sat in front of a bivvy with rods on a pod,Just when you think you know someone turns out they were a carper all along

[BoldBear]

Rusty, you've jogged my memories of Darenth as well LOL.

 

My mates and I used to fish Darenth in the 80's, (after the first optonic came out) I used to fish the royal box whenever I could although I used to struggle to get my baits close to the long island; especially with my old Carp rods and my Abu 55s and Mitchell reels; and I also liked fishing the tip lake behind with its clear and very weedy water, but we were usually slaves to the wind as the Carp would migrate from one end of the lakes to the other as soon as the wind direction changed.

 

As you know in those days we had to make all our own boilies and drill all our own leads and invent our own anti tangle and anti eject rigs etc as you couldn't buy any of these things from most tackleshops in those days. We also had to modify our alarms to add latching, and add telephone speakers and fit up external boxes which we could place inside our bivvies.

 

I used Heron alarms back in the 70's before my Darenth days together with a couple of Jim Gibbinson Clooper Carp rods which I made from kits I bought from Goings Brothers of Southend.

 

You have brought back a lot of fond memories from those days however; I wouldn't want to go back to those days LOL

 

Keith (BoldBear)

Edited April 4, 2014 by BoldBear

[Dick Dastardly]

Best carp pics and story Ive seen in ages Chris, takes me back to when it was a lot more "real" thanks for sharing

 

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[Matthew Simmons]

Proper Carping Rusty - well done!

[Dales]

Some great Carp pics Rusty, plus some top sideburn action to boot.

[Dick Dastardly]

Jim Gibbinson "Clooper" carp rods (and the Muncher Pike) were made by Going Brothers of Southend and their claim to fame was that they were the first "production" carp rods with abbreviated handles! great rods as well.

 

Im feeling a bit sad now looking back as in them days Carp fishing was the tops and sadly todays "carp fishing" is a thousand miles away from what it was!

[Paulg]

The bright red sun lounger, and the brolly - same overnighter setup as me back in the same time frame! Not sure my torch was quite the same size as that one, although it does bring back memories of float fishing at night with a torch shining on the float for hours on end, no wonder I used to get a headache

[BoldBear]

Quote

Jim Gibbinson "Clooper" carp rods (and the Muncher Pike) were made by Going Brothers of Southend and their claim to fame was that they were the first "production" carp rods with abbreviated handles! great rods as well.

 

Im feeling a bit sad now looking back as in them days Carp fishing was the tops and sadly todays "carp fishing" is a thousand miles away from what it was!

I built myself a pair of Jim Gibbinson Clooper Carp rods from rod kits bought from Goings Bros of Southend in around 1974.

 

I may still have one lurking in the back of my shed somewhere if the wife hasn't had one of her clearouts LOL

 

Keith (BoldBear)

Edited April 11, 2014 by BoldBear