One in a million.

This season I saw a fish (carp) that was truly huge. I've seen big fish in and out of the water, but this fish was something else. It reminded me of comments made in the books of  Chris Yates, and Rod Hutchinson during the golden days of  Redmire Pool when like me they both witnessed something exceptional.

 Current UK carp record. A well know fish called 'Two Tone'.

The water in question is known for big carp, but they are not often seen, or caught. It was spawning time when I saw this fish among several others over a few days. The fish cruised through the water about 6' down, I was elevated and looking down. The experience genuinely unsettled me, for several days and reasons. It's one thing people telling you about big fish in your local lake, it's another thing seeing one! I've taken fish to 29lb from this water, and have seen several fish over 30lb. Best I've been told of is over 40lb.

The fish in question was massive, I'll be guessing, but I have seen on the bank, boat, pike to 40lb, Tope to 60lb, trout over 20lb, and some massive sea fish like cod and pollack. 50lb it could not have been any smaller, if someone caught it and told me it was 60lb, I'd not disbelieve them.

It brings me round to catching something of such a size. Not just all the tackle required, but how you deal with such a fish once it's on the bank. What if your on your own, do you call a friend? Most carp guys carry all the camera gear, but what if your just fishing for tench, or bream. Ok you would be lucky to land it, but boy what a fright it would give you, what if you have no camera? Would it forever spoil you for other carp?

I still think a big carp is 10lb, I mean you have to use a decent net, mat, and tackle to successfully land a fish of that size. In the hand it feels big, it is big.  I come from that era when a 20lb fish got into the Angling papers, complete with a wide grin from its capturer, don't carp anglers ever smile these days, is it really that serious? One commercial lakes owner told me he thought his fish were getting too big for the match anglers, consequently the fish were suffering for it. He suggested 3 to 5lb being the optimum size. But back to this big fish.

 Amazing world record fish, over 100lb.

I know a handful of anglers fishing the lake with the sole intention of catching that giant carp, I wish them all the luck. I'd dearly love to be there when it was caught, just to say I'd seen it. That fish would be over 50 years old, maybe older than its captor. It would have been caught maybe a dozen  times during its long life, survived flood, drought, frozen water, and more. I know it will be treated with great reverence, and so it should.

See you on the bank.