Wednesday 22 August 2012

A present from the Dove, and other things...


I had an eventful day with Hannibal yesterday...
Present
We arrived at sparrow's fart hoping for a perch, I droppered some chopped worm and caster into the swim with a good helping of red maggots and ran a double dendra through under an Avon. 

First cast, the float buries, the rod doubles, and something 'long' breaks the surface and heads for the Trent! Before long the hook length knot parts and the fish is gone. 

A few casts keeping the bait still brought me lots of attention from minnows and I sussed that running the bait through gave me a 'bit' less attention from the hordes and a few runs later I'm into a fish, I get it out of the swim and underneath my rod tip quite quickly, the 'jagging' makes me think it's a perch.... it then wakes up and decides to go visit the far bank before coming back inside and getting underneath the nearside vegetation. I see it's a nice stripey and eventually I get it out and it's in the pan, the numbers say 2lb 2oz .. happy days. Hannibal does the photos and we're all happy.... for a while.

We swim hop for a while before formulating a plan for the afternoon. On the way to another swim I twist my ankle, and am proper doubled up in pain, same one I done 2 months ago whilst running, I thought I was going to puke, at least Hannibal never laughed, unlike when I was showing him my version of the Wallis cast.

Anyway, we settle again, hoping for chub now, the maggots are going through, as is the float but the minnows are everywhere so back to plan A and to find a likely Perch haunt. No sooner had I settled in my final swim then 'nice chap from Wilmslow' appears and asks me how am doing, he then 'skylines' for Hannibal, whom is livid! The best though, was yet to come. 

He comes back to my swim, I'm near the car park and tells me he is walking round to the far bank.... "Good, now **** off" I never said, but Hannibal probably did... we then get the first downpour... biblical.. 20 minutes worth, seat, gear everything pi** wet through... still.. the Gore-Tex did it's thing. An hour later I hook and land a small trouty thing, and hear a voice "Is it a little trout?"...  'nice chap from Wilmslow' has only walked all the way around the river, from the car park length, upstream, over the suspension bridge then walked back downstream and set up opposite and 20 yards upstream of me! Unbelievable Jeff!

I then hook a good fish, which leads me a merry dance. Thunder is banging away in the distance but getting closer "You've upset the gods" shouts 'nice chap from Wilmslow' anyway this is another trouty thing and weighs 4lb 12 oz. I wondered whether to summon Hannibal to take a pic knowing. a) He would see where 'nice chap from Wilmslow' had set up and get even angrier and b) There was a storm was coming directly for us. 

4lb 12 Trouty thing.
Anyway, I did get him to take a pic. Hannibal saw where ncfW was set up, he did get more angry and the storm did come... biblical x 2. Hail, thunder and lightening, immediately overhead. We called it a day.. Hannibal wouldn't go back to the car in case we got zapped so we stood under some trees, quietly, I know he was secretly plotting where he could bury ncfW. Eventually I just thought 'bo**ocks to it'  science teachers don't get hit by lightening, and as the rain poured and poured we trudged back to the car, me limping like a total gimp, Hannibal a seething cauldron of rage. 

We pack the car, Hannibal takes his waterproofs off, THEN goes to open the gate, at which point I can't find my phone so he's stood there getting pi**ed on whilst I search for it. I see the 'I am going to stab someone' body language that's usually reserved for dog walkers, cyclists and the general public.... except this time it's aimed at me! The phone was found and another adventure came to an end.





2 comments:

  1. Very entertaining!

    NIce perch and even better trouty thing.

    How's Hannibal?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Jeff.

      Hannibal is fine, he was on good form yesterday.

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