freeline-99 - Flipbook - Page 206
BOBBY
STEVE
LEE
BILL
DICK
CRAIG
GRIFFIN
PHILLIPS
GAYNER
BRIGGS
McEVOY
COOTE
to catch my PB canal carp o f 3 5 l b 6 o z ! N ow fo r t h e i m p o rt a n t
b i t … When you find a stre tc h t ha t c o n t ai n s t h e s e m on s te rs ,
yo u will need to do every t h i n g i n yo u r p owe r to ke ep i t to
yo urself. This includes where yo u h ave yo u r tro p hy s h o t ta ke n !
I t ’ s amazing how many wo u ld - b e d e te ct ive s a re o u t th e re , a n d
t h ey will blow up your i ma g es an d l o o k fo r a ny c l u e th a t w i l l
g ive the location of your c a p t ure away. I l ea rn e d t h e h a rd way,
a n d the location of my big c o m mo n wa s s o o n d i s cove re d , a s t h e
n ext time I turned up, the b a n ks we re li ne d w i t h B ro te l s an d
m atching rods! It loo ked li ke a s ce n e f ro m L i n e a r F i s h er i e s ,
a n d when I spoke to the guys , t h ey h a d n o t i c e d gra f f i t i o n t h e
b ridge and a blue covered fe n ce . T h ey k n ew ro u gh ly t h e a re a
I was fishing, so had walke d t h e tow p at h un t i l t h ey fo u n d t h e
s p ot that matched the pict ure . G o o d an gl i n g, b u t I wa s g u t te d .
L e sson learnt , I soon took t h e p i c tu re d ow n o f f my Fa c e b o o k
p a ge, but the horse had alre ady b o lte d. L uc k i ly I k n e w o f s eve ra l
s t retches that contained ra th e r la rg e c a r p , a n d I wo u l d n eve r
m ake that same mistake a ga i n . W he n f i s hi n g t h e c a n al I h ave
m ade several observatio ns t ha t a re wo rt h n o ti n g an d w i l l a i d
yo u in your quest .
Elusive Nomads: Firstly, location… Canal carp are notoriously
n o madic and can roam mi le s a n d mi le s o f c an al . Howeve r f ro m
my experience the fish w i ll b e i n d i f fe re n t p l a c e s a l o n g th e
c a nal at different times o f ye ar. I n wi n te r l o o k towa rd s th e
m arinas and areas of a hi gh p o p u la t i o n o f b o a t s . N ot a ny b o a t s ,
b u t preferably boats that are l ive d o n . T he s e p rov i d e wa rm t h ,
c over and regular food fro m t h e p e o p l e th a t l ive o n t h e b o a ts .
Winter – A great tip in w i n te r i s to wa lk t h e ca n a l wh e n t h e
weather is really cold, and I m ea n re al ly c o l d. T h e c an a l s h o u l d
b e frozen solid. Walk its b a n ks an d l o o k fo r a re a s t h a t a re n o t
FREELINE 82
