freeline-104 - Flipbook - Page 169
ASH
DAVEGEDEN
HYDE
j o in it . By the time the ke tt l e h a d b o i l e d, t h e s l u g s h a d g o n e ,
t h ank god! I hate the thing s . W i t h t h e c o f fe e f i n i s h e d I s e t tl e d
d own, quickly shining the to rc h a ro u n d t he s l e e p i n g b a g to
m ake sure that none of t h e s l u gs h a d c rawl e d i n s i d e, b u t
fo rtunately I could see the m b a c k o n th e mi l k ca rto n a ga i n . I
c a n remember just as I wa s d o z i n g o f f th i n k i n g t h a t t h e m i l k
m ust attract them.
I had only been asleep for a b o u t 3 0 m i n ute s wh e n t he O pto n i c
s o unded for the first tim e d u ri n g th e n i ght , a n d a c o m m o n
o f about 15lb was soon la nd e d . I h ad two o t h e r f i s h i n wh a t
s e emed fairly quick succes si o n , o n e a b o u t 1 6 l b a n d t h e o t h e r
a b out 18lb. So far all the a c t i o n h a d c o me to t h e l e f t h a n d ro d ,
which had been fished to th e li ly b ed ab o u t ei gh t ya rd s away.
I hadn’t had so much as a l i n e b i te o n t h e o t h e r rod f i s h e d
t wo yards to the right of t he sw i m un d e r a b u s h , whi c h wa s
h a rdly surprising consi deri n g t h e am o u n t o f t i me s I h a d b e e n
j u mping up and down to la n d f i sh . B ec a us e o f t h i s , I d e c i d e d
to recast to another area f u r th e r f ro m t h e b an k . I p u t my h a n d
i n to the bait bag only to fi n d a ra th e r b i g a n d s l imy b o i l i e , a n d
o n looking closer I co uld se e i t wa s a h ug e s lu g . T h e to rc h wa s
s h one into the bag to reve al ab o u t a do ze n of t h e m e a ti n g my
b a it . I now realised what th ey h ad b ee n d o i n g – cl im bi n g u p
t h e milk carton, crawling o n to th e ru cks ac k a n d t h e n i n to t h e
b a it bag. Not only had I d eve lo p ed a g o o d b a i t b u t p ro b a b ly
t h e ultimate slug attracto r as we ll . T he o f fe n d e rs we re s o o n
re moved with the ai d of fo rc ep s an d th row n i n th e l a ke fo r
g roundbait and then the b a i t b a g wa s f l u n g f ro m t h e h i gh e s t
b ranch I c ould find . l reca s t to s o m ewh ere i n to th e we t b i t .
W here it landed, I’ll neve r k n ow, an d to te l l yo u t h e t r u t h
I wasn’t too bothered. All t h at I wa n te d a t t h a t p a r ti c u l a r
FR E ELINE 39
