Living in Wimbledon, South London my early years fishing were inspired by my uncle at just nine years old. The Thames was local to me and I have many fond memories lunking my gear on the 131 bus and stinking it out on my return. As my school years progressed a few class mates would come too and the majority of our spare time was spent quiver-tipping on the Thames for anything that would take the bait – catching a bream was a big thing back then. I remember calling my mum up once to come all the way from Wimbledon to Hampton Court to photograph a 3lber. The progression from roach and perch to bream and chub was about as far as we got back then with the lack of barbel but it was captivating all the same.
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At 14 I fished my first lake. A mate’s dad was a member of Felton Piscatorial Society and we saw these guys hooking carp on 6lb line and waggler set-ups – it was incredible. They’d fish luncheon meat in the margins of Sivyers and an hour would pass while they played the same fish. It was mad, it was proper.
I was very fortunate as a teenager and my parents saw the spark within me and pushed me towards aiming for a career in the fishing industry. As school finished I headed for the infamous Sparsholt to undertake a year of National Diploma before a year of work experience. This in turn allowed me to complete the two years of the course. The experience saw me at Bury Hill fishery helping to manage the site and do a bit of coaching too. The course taught me a hell of a lot, fish health was a big part of the course and although I found the trout and salmon work a bit boring as a coarse angler, I just had to coast through it. Guys like Sean Lennon would teach us about fishery management, carp farming and things like that – that really was interesting. You’d learn about how carp behaved, the diseases and parasites they can contract and it all helps to build the bigger picture and learn more about your quarry. Simon Scott’s lectures were always fascinating and he’d sometimes get his old Wraysbury slides out which was fascinating. Estate management comes into its own when you’re on a syndicate and the man at the top draws on your experience for the work parties, trust me. With the likes of Viv Shears in the year above me and working with Mark Simmons regularly, my college years were spent mixing with some pretty reputable names in today’s industry.
Broadlands syndicate was a lake I ventured to after college, and the night syndicate was something I dearly wanted. Fishing alongside the likes of Cooperman and Steve Renyard – it was a sought-after ticket. I was managing Tillingbourne Trout Farm in Guildford at the time, carp farming would have been preferred but there just wasn’t the industry like there was in trout and salmon. I even spent time working in Scotland, where a three-hour drive to the nearest shop was normal.
A trio of twenties from Broadlands way back when.
Before long one of the lads on Broadlands, Micky Hill, put a good word in for me and I began to work at the Richworth factory. Now, at the time, they ran a strict ‘no anglers’ policy for their staff due to recipes and the likes, but with the right introduction I managed to secure a full time job. With Albert Romp, Matt Hayes, Steve Renyard, Chris Ball and Richie Macdonald in and out of the factory on a regular basis coming in and having a chat with you, it was something else, even Sir Pete Springate would ‘pop in’. As a young lad still a bit green around the gills it gave me a massive insight into how the bait world worked, and the free bait really opened up opportunities for me on the lakes I was fishing. If I needed 30kg of Tutti for France, then I’d ask Bob Baker and it was never a problem.
I spent four years at the factory, and it opened up a lot of doors for me. While at Broadlands in the early years, the top three anglers at the end of the year were offered the night ticket, but as luck would have it when my opportunity for the night ticket came after landing 204 carp through the year, everything went wrong. Along with two of my mates we qualified for the night ticket, but as a new owner took over and stocked a load of uncertified fish, everything died and our opportunity became pointless within two to three weeks of getting the ticket – the entire stock died, hundreds of twenties and half a dozen thirties. Back then, a heck of a lot of big fish.
Frensham small lake was steeped in history, offering a 30-acre home to around 10 leney’s, and somewhere I simply had to have a go on. It was the early 90’s and I got down for my first night, set-up and waited til the ‘chuck-in’ at midnight of June 15th. As luck would have it the spots I’d found the day previous were clearly favoured by the stock, as at first light my left hand rod rattled off despite only fishing two singles. All of the other members had been baiting heavily but when I landed an original 30lb+ leney that morning, nothing could have made me more greatful for going in with a different approach. The weight was irrelevant, to say I was a happy angler would be an understatement – truly, happy moments in my angling for sure.
A 35lb+ mirror from Frensham.
Farnham Angling Society was my next adventure towards the end of my Richworth career, where I met the then CEMEX manager Mick Barnes, who would become the Brand Manager at Wychwood in years to come and put the word in to get me my opportunity there. Trips to rainbow came with the friendship and I tended to bumble through my angling taking opportunities as they arose. Fishing Stillwater front and back lakes I caught, I believe, everything from both lakes within a three-year period, bar one fish. Penny at 36lb, Lumpy, a 30lb common, Arnie at 32lb were just a few and I think I totalled about 12 thirties during my time there – quite an achievement for the 90’s really. I was good friends with Ben Hamilton back then, who subsequently showed me a picture of a real pre-historic looking fish – Split Tail from Sheepwalk. I looked at it and knew it was something special, and being just a mile from my house, something I couldn’t ignore.
Two residents from Stillwater Front Lake.
I began on the smaller lake at around 3 acres and it was a proper unkempt venue, tyres on the lake bed which seemed bottomless in places, catching plenty up to the high twenties mark – all immaculate wood carvings, the stock was incredible. With 15 fish to go for in 30 or so acres on the big lake, which included a sunken forest, it was no walk in the park. Sheepwalk big lake soon had my attention and I spent two years properly fishing it. Another of my mates caught Split Tail too, Wayne Barrett, which upped the anti for me as I couldn’t have two mates catch it and not have it myself. The first season saw me take four months off work to fish it, such was my desire to catch the fish. I packed my job in and would fish Monday to Friday every week in pursuit of this creature for the whole summer. I lost a good fish and landed probably half a dozen twenties that summer – it well and truly chewed me up and spat me out.
I baited an area, a lovely channel the following year. You couldn’t access the spot from the tree-lined banks but I continued to bait it for months on end through the summer, autumn and winter. I could just about poke a catapult through to fire the bait in and my plan was to bait it for the entire season while I fished back on the small lake which was adjacent to it. When it eventually came to fishing it I took the trees out with just enough space for two rods, and plumbing the swim revealed the bottom had dropped from seven and a half foot to just over nine foot, such was the ferocity of the feeding on the spot. I dropped into the swim and caught right from the off that spring, nobody had seen the prep work so were perplexed at how I’d managed to drop on and catch so quickly. A big common, another fish at 32lb, a 28lb wood carving all fell fairly quickly and on my sixth session in the newly cut swim, I landed Split Tail for myself at 39lb 9oz. I remember the fish coming in fairly easily until it darted across my net and brushed its tail against the open arm, bolting for freedom as it spooked, causing an interesting last five minutes to the fight as it really fought for freedom, made worse by the overgrown trees above me preventing me from moving my rod to where it needed to be. The crunching and snapping of branches had me incredibly nervous but eventually it was in my net I walked through the door with a big smile on my face that day, and my Mrs is usually the first to ask what I’d caught, but she didn’t. She’s a keen angler too and I knew something wasn’t right, I panned round to the tele that she was transfixed on, the 7th of July 2005, the London bombings – instantly taking the shine off any emotion I had at that time.
The infamous Split Tail, one of only a limited number of captures with this fish rarely seeing the bank – and one I unfortunately caught a second time exactly one year after the first time.
Exactly a year later I’d seen one of the big, rarely caught commons in the same area. Choosing to drop back on and try and catch one of these elusive commons I did the inevitable and re-caught Split Tail, about 30 minutes apart from exactly 12 months on. It weighed 42lb this time round but I made my apologies to the lads – I really didn’t want to take that capture away from anyone but it’s just the way it went; I was racked with guilt. Unfortunately, after one capture since my second capture of the fish it died, leaving a lot of lads walking off there with their tails between their legs.
The natural progression from Sheepwalk was to head over the road to Ellis, a big 100-acre sailing lake. I landed about half a dozen fish on there in my first season, including the Penton Hook Fish at 35lb 12oz if I remember correctly. It was a real head-banger of a water that only saw me catch after acquiring a rowing boat and fishing in the middle at 280 yards range. Not only that but due to the active sailing club only finishing late in the evening, you’d often only have half an hour of light to get all four rods out and get back to the bank before complete darkness. The weed was horrendous too, you’d see birds nests out in the open water perched on top of the carpet like fauna that had reached the surface, and your lines would just sit on top of it, and when you’re fishing in excess of 250 yards it’s a real worry, but that was Ellis.
Ironically I kept my ticket for a further five years on there but never went back on after the first season. It was hard to get a ticket and I didn’t want to regret giving it up. I met up with Mick Barnes at one of the shows around the time and he recommended Frimley after we were discussing my need for a bend in the rod, rather than a few fish a season. Whether right or wrong, he offered me a ticket there and then, bypassing the waiting list – I certainly wasn’t going to refuse it, sometimes you just have to ride your luck with these things.
Frimley Pit 3 was to become a home from home for me and I’ve been on here now for around six years. Mainline Fusion was the going bait back when I started, Chilly and Spug were leathering it in but my first session with two of the bailiffs, Dan Savage and full-time Paul, it was apparent I needed to be on maggots. I returned the next time and caught from the off, low thirties and high twenties were a regular thing and I knew I’d found my place on Frimley.
I’d spent 12 years doing all types of security from close protection to door work since leaving Richworth, and eventually opted for Royal Mail after a quick year at British Gas. The carp anglers career of choice, the humble postman can finish as early as dinner time after an early start so keeping your eye on a venue goes hand in hand with the job. Add in the great holiday entitlement and I often get midweek sessions down the pit when it’s at its quietest.
Through my younger years I spent time fishing in Europe; France, Holland, Italy, Spain and have caught colossal carp such as Shoulders from Abbey Lakes at over 88lb. With my partner alongside me, fishing for the very same fish too, I can’t wait to continue these European adventures. It’s quite something finding a girlfriend who’s willing to take on a sport you love, share it with you, and develop a passion for the same things as you.
I’ve also spent time on Bushy Park and Longwater inside Hampton Court Palace, catching the lake record at 41lb just last year, and have had upwards of 25 thirties in a season before now.
Frimley is still a big attraction for me though, and there are some incredible fish I’m yet to catch. The often overlooked mirror’s that reside in Pit 3 are remarkable and I’m just holding out for one of two big mirror’s now, hoping to have one before I move on. I’ve been lucky enough to catch some of the A-team; Charlie’s Mate at 45lb 6oz, Shoulders at 40lb 2oz, Black Eye at 42lb and One Barb at 43lb to name a few, but I simply can’t bring myself to leave just yet. Unfortunately, my car got burgled and I lost the pictures of the two commons previously mentioned, Black Eye and One Barb, which really gutted me. My highlight on Frimley is probably the eight-fish hit I had in a 48-hour session during December last year – the place still amazes me.
Charlie's Mate at 45lb 6oz – the prize of Frimley Pit 3.
I’ve never been one to frequent the pubs often, especially in my late teens and early twenties. That probably accounts for the great memories I’ve had during my angling life and I wouldn’t change that for the world. I was lucky enough to catch the first forty pound carp from the Linear complex, Starburst from St Johns – you just can’t buy memories like that from across the bar, and the only way to feed my obsession was to be on the bank as much as possible.
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The first forty from St Johns at Oxfordshire's Linear complex fell to my rods.
