freeline-101 - Flipbook - Page 169
AIDEN SAVAN
fo ur really good 20 s and a be a s t o f a c o m m o n . T h e co mm o n
l o oked really hungry and wa s al mo st u s i n g h i s n o s e to p u s h
a ny stones out of the way to ge t a t t he ti g e rs . A f te r wa tc h i n g
t h ese fish for an age, it bec am e ap p are n t t h a t eve r y 2 0 mi n u te s
o r so they would vacate the a re a an d g o o n a s h o rt ci rc u i t .
The plan was laid: a ri g co n si s t i n g o f 2 5 lb s S e n s o r a t t a c h e d
to a chain link lead core o n an i n l i n e le d a n d a n e a t l i t t l e
c o mbi rig presenting two b a l an c e d ti ge r s wa s g e n t ly l owe re d
5 f t from t he bank into 3 f t o f wa te r. T h e f i s h re t u r n e d a n d
i m mediately started to ac t mo re c au t i o u s ly i n t h e prox i m i t y
o f the rig. They would move to o n e si d e a n d w i t h i n m i n u te s
would start picking up m o ut h f u ls o f b a i t q u i te c o n fi d e n t ly.
At times the big common p i c ke d u p m o u th f u l s o f b a i t w i t h i n
i n ches of the hookbait . Sh e wo u ld b a ck o f f ove r t h e h o o kb a i t
a n d just stare at it whilst g e n tly f i n n i n g , th e n w it h a d el i c a te
f l i ck of the tail, she would s t a r t fe ed i n g fa r m o re a g g re s s ive ly
a mere foot away from the b ai t . I d e c i d ed th a t t h e n ex t ti m e
t h e fish vacated that the ri g n e ed e d to b e re p o s i t io n e d . S o m e
c h anges were needed in t he p re se n t at i o n , s o t h e t wo t i g e r
n u ts were substituted for a c ut - dow n ti g e r ti p p ed o f w i t h a
p i ece of real corn. T he ho o k s i z e wa s c h an g e d d ow n to a s i ze
1 0 heavy duty wide gape , a n d I th e n p ro c e e d e d to d i s gu i s e
t h e rig by laying a number o f p e b b le s a n d o t h e r b i ts t h a t we re
s c raped off the river bed. T h e n e t re su l t l ef t p u rely t h e s u b t l e
h o okbait on show and very l i tt l e e ls e . I wi s h I co ul d te l l yo u
a tale of success, but for ap p rox i m ate ly t h re e h o u r s t h o s e
f i s h had fed on that spot , a n d I di d n’ t g et cl o s e . I n a way j u s t
to have witnessed wild rive r f i s h b e h av i ng fo r t h e m o s t p a r t
to tally naturally was an a b so lu te p r iv i le g e t h a t w i l l n eve r b e
fo rgotten.
FR E ELINE 49
