Back to the summer of 2016; I had just received the email that I had been waiting for, for a very long time. It was confirmation that I was finally being offered a ticket on the Wasing Estate’s Cranwells Lake, and with it the opportunity to fish for The Parrot. I had first seen a picture of him while fishing the Essex Manor, and immediately put it high on my wish list, ringing the estate office straight away and getting my name down on the waiting list.
After securing my ticket, I decided that I would remain on Burghfield until late Autumn, as at the time, the common was overdue and was fast approaching two and a half years uncaught!! Early November was soon upon us and my focus was now fully on The Parrot. My plan was to fish hard though the winter, getting to know the lake and putting in the much-needed groundwork whilst the lake was quiet. Work which would hopefully stand me in good stead for the following years campaign.
Cranwells was not like many of the other lakes where I have targeted the biggest carp. It has a reasonably large stock, of somewhere around 170+ carp, with lots of them being in the 20lb+ bracket. This would inevitably make singling out the Parrot just that little bit harder. But to be honest, I was looking forward to the challenge, and bagging a few along the way would be better than some of the gruelling pits I’d fished in the past.
I had also decided though the winter to part company with my previous bait company. After spending the best part of almost twenty years using their baits. Instead I teamed up with a then new, up and coming bait company. It was Jon Mac’s and Sean Leverett’s ‘Proper Carp Baits’. I class both guys as good mates, and after seeing first-hand the quality of the ingredients used in the manufacture of all their baits, I knew that I had made the right choice. I instantly took a liking to their Black-Seal range, loving the smell and taste of the blue cheese and garlic attractors, that are further enhanced with the addition an old school essential oil.
The winter passed by slowly and unfortunately was nothing like the weather we had enjoyed the year before. We had some bitterly cold snaps and the lake froze for a few days on several occasions. The fishing was really slow, even though I was seeing plenty of shows and moving regularly. But I did manage to bag a couple, up to 39lb early in the campaign. Most importantly I was learning, which plays a massive part to my style of angling.
After what felt like an eternity the weather started to turn for the better, and the longer warmer days of spring were soon upon us. With it, the excitement for what is in my mind the best time of the year. The bites were now coming thick and fast, with multiple captures not uncommon. I was really starting to enjoy my fishing and it wasn’t long before on one hectic morning I was to meet arguably the best-looking fish in the pond, the Floppy Tail Lin, at a weight of 41lb 2oz – happy days!!
I had elected early on at Cranwells to use a bait-boat, largely due to the egg box make-up of the lakebed and the fact that it was very shallow in places. It would undoubtedly aid me massively with accurate bait placement, and this was to play a big part in many of my captures. By now we were well into spring and my annul leave was fast approaching. I always take 3 weeks off around May time and fish as hard as I can. However, the lake had a rule whereby you were only allowed to fish two nights in any one swim before having to make a move.
By now I had decided, that due to past form I would try and target the Parrot in the shallowest part of the lake, which was covered by two swims: The Woods and The End Beat. There was a large plateau around 80 yards out to the right-hand side of the End Beat that was only around 18 inches deep. I would spend many hours just looking from up a nearby tree, watching plenty of carp but no sign of the Parrot!
I had elected early on at Cranwells to use a bait-boat, largely due to the egg box make-up of the lakebed and the fact that it was very shallow in places. It would undoubtedly aid me massively with accurate bait placement, and this was to play a big part in many of my captures. By now we were well into spring and my annul leave was fast approaching. I always take 3 weeks off around May time and fish as hard as I can. However, the lake had a rule whereby you were only allowed to fish two nights in any one swim before having to make a move.
By now I had decided, that due to past form I would try and target the Parrot in the shallowest part of the lake, which was covered by two swims: The Woods and The End Beat. There was a large plateau around 80 yards out to the right-hand side of the End Beat that was only around 18 inches deep. I would spend many hours just looking from up a nearby tree, watching plenty of carp but no sign of the Parrot!
I decided to stick with my plan, knowing that at some point he would turn up to bask in the shallow water and enjoy the warm rays of the sun. I fished the plateau on a number of occasions, but it seemed as though the fish were just using it to sunbathe. So, I decided that I would fish just off it instead. With the aid of my little perch up in the tree I spotted a little drop off, just on the side of the plateau, which looked that little bit deeper and had a little bit of weed on top of it. I had seen the fish pass over this area a few times and thought it would be a perfect ambush point.
I always like to keep my rigs simple when fishing for big carp. In fact, for most of my fishing I use a simple knotless knot blow back rig for bottom bait presentations, and a hinged stiff rig for pop ups. On this occasion I had gone with the pop ups, due to the small amount of weed present. I used a little 12mm yellow Pineapple & N-Butyric hookbait, and it was soon placed precisely on the spot just off the plateau, with the aid of my boat and my ‘tree’ vantage point. Bait wise I figured that it wouldn’t be an area where they would eat loads of bait, so decided to just powder up a few Blackseal boiles, just to create a bit of smell. It was a tidy trap, with only one bait that they could actually pick up.
Around an hour passed and I received what I thought was a bite and struck into it, but very quickly released it had just been a massive liner! I re-positioned the rod and hoped that I hadn’t just blown my chances. By this time the sun had started to drop slightly behind the trees as we were approaching late afternoon, making visibility very hard from up my tree. Yet, I couldn’t help but keep wondering up and down the bank to have a look. Suddenly from my position in the tree, I noticed the water directly above my spot rock slightly and with it, received a single bleep on my receiver. As I started to clamber down, I got a series of real fast beeps as the receiver went into meltdown! It must have been a real sight watching me come steaming though the undergrowth at a vast rate of knots, with only one thing on my mind. As I picked the rod up I was met with a solid, heavy resistance, and for a while thought that the fish had done me, leaving a big pile of weed for me to reel in, but as I pumped this huge weight in, and it started to get closer, I kept feeling little knocks which got me thinking that maybe there was still one on? I kept the pressure on and around 30 yards out I could now see all the weed that had gathered around my line. I then felt a huge serge as the fish shook its head and got rid of all the weed. “Oh shit I’ve got one on, and it’s not small” I thought!
From then on, the fight was slow, heavy and I must admit I was starting to think that I might actually have him? This was confirmed when I caught sight of him twisting and turning, trying to bury his head into the bottom of the lake. A further few minutes passed and all I could think about was “please, please don’t fall off”! I managed to get him up on the surface where he took a huge gulp of air, I quickly grabbed the net and scooped him up first time of asking! Even though I knew exactly which fish it was I still had to check a couple more times and once I was sure I had netted the Parrot, I let out a massive shout! On the scales, the needle went around to a massive 62lb 8oz, which was a new PB, beating my long-standing previous best of 59lb 12oz.
Suddenly my plans were thrown into chaos as I really thought I would be spending a while chasing the Parrot. I decided to stay on Wasing that night and have a celebratory BBQ, before heading off next morning to a very special Kent syndicate which I had just obtained a Spring ticket for. So, after nipping home for a quick freshen up, I was soon in Kent starring at a new challenge.
There are some very large carp swimming around in this pond too, with the biggest being one known as Black Spot, which had previously gone over the magical 60lb mark!
The lake was surprisingly busy, with only two or three swims left, but on a walk around I noticed a load of fish stacked up in one of the little bays, “that will do me” I thought. I positioned all three rods with minimal fuss and this time, due to the lack of weed, opted for snow man hook baits using my trusted knotless knot rigs, tried using products from the Gardner stable, with a 14mm Black Seal bottom baits and 12mm white Pineapple & N-Butyric Acid pop ups and fired in around 40 freebies spread around each rod.
The day and night passed with no action, but I did get to have a wicked social with two good mates, Tinpot and Leroy, celebrating my capture of the Parrot. In their drunken state they kept saying “It’s written in the stars Georgy-boy, Black Spot is yours”.
Well early the next morning, the right-hand rod ripped off and another slow and heavy battle commenced. I remember playing it in the clear water, thinking “God this one looks bigger than the Parrot”! Luckily a chap I’d met called Darrel, who was fishing just next door, was on hand to do a perfect job with the landing net. It was only Black Spot! I couldn’t believe my luck. In a matter of only 36 hours I had landed a 62lb 8oz and a 58lb 6oz!!!! How’s your luck.
I decided to see out the little time I had left on my Spring ticket, managing to bag a couple of smaller fish, before heading back to the mighty Burghfield, to try my luck against arguably the best fish in the land, a carp that is certainly one of the few remaining true history fish!
We were now well into August, and most of the Burghfield carp had already spawned. The Common had already been banked at a massive record weight of 62lb 8oz by Scott Lloyd, aka Northern Monkey, and by all accounts I had missed an epic spring, but I wasn’t complaining too much!
It was also the first year in a while that we saw the re-introduction of bait boats being allowed again. However, due to the complexity of Burghfield and its politics, the dynamics of the lake had changed again. Let me explain; different parts of the lake have been owned by various people and leased to Advanced Angling, mainly by a gentleman known as Mouldy. Yet, though the late part of the previous year a landowner had sold her part to one of the other owners, who had now decided to stop the fishing on his new bit of bank. As a result, we had lost what is referred to as the Rawlings Bank, which included swims like Laney’s, Carpets and the Scaffolding. Instead, we gained a few others, one of which really appealed to me, a swim known as Bomb Point.
The previous session I had spent many nights in the carpets and watched literally hundreds of shows in an area that could now be reached from Bomb Point. I instantly decided that this would be an area that I would target, knowing that if they turned back up, I would be in pole position.
I had a few family commitments in the later part of August and when I was able to get down, the swim had already been taken. Instead I fished around the pit without much success. I had a bit more annual leave coming up in September and October, so I knew I’d be able to get a look in at some point!
If memory serves me right it was around the last few days of August, or the beginning of September when I finally got my chance, and I wasn’t disappointed. As I had anticipated they were there and in a big way too! I started catching from the off, and with the aid of the bait boat, I could give them plenty of bait and keep them interested!
My first session in there produced fish to mid-30’s, and it wasn’t long before I banked my first Burghfield forty at a very pleasing 46lb 4oz.
I couldn’t put a foot wrong and was catching on every trip, sometimes up to 4 fish a morning, but I knew it wouldn’t be long before they sussed me. With that in mind I decided to fish really hard over my holiday managing two five-night stints and a whole seven nighter during September and October. To say it went well would be an understatement. In-fact I never blanked!
I also wanted to keep things a little low key, so was only telling close mates about my captures. On one particular morning a chap that was fishing behind, in an area called Alsatian Bay had asked me if I was getting pestered by the bream, as my buzzers had been going mad all morning; I’m a bit on the deaf side so always have them up full blast!! Through gritted teeth, I said I had been and felt really bad for it – sorry mate!
Also, on a different morning one of the bailiff’s, Craig, had popped in to see me, I had literally just got one in the sack to give it a few minutes’ rest before doing self takes. I was amazed he never clicked with the wet net and mat, 30 minutes passed before I eventually gave in and ask him to take a photo!!!
I managed around 25 bites but was still a little bit disappointed in myself as I lost around seven of those, mainly due to hook pulls. I put this down to a couple of factors and kicked myself for not realising earlier!!
I was fishing at a fair range, so braided main line was a no brainer. However, instead of switching to my softer well used 3.5TC rods, I had carried on with their stiffer brothers. Add to that the weed, and a schoolboy error was made on my part, but one that has taught me a valuable lesson that I won’t forget in future!!
Lastly, I’d like to thank the guys at Gardner Tackle for all their continued support, “every little helps”. Changing bait companies was a massive step in my angling too, and one that could so easily have backfired. Hand on heart, it was one of, if not the best seasons of my life and I really do feel this is due to the quality of bait, which I rate as second to none.
All I can say is don’t-get-left-behind!!!
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