Free Line 108 — September 2026 - Flipbook - Page 104
EXCLUSIVE
processed it. A genuine fish
o f a l i f e t i m e.
The Mid-Session Reset: The
d a y h a d n ’t e x a c t l y g o n e t o
p l a n . A f t e r a q u i e t m o r n i n g,
my spot was gatecrashed by a
c a t f i s h . D e j e c t e d, I s a t i n m y
bivvy convinced the heavy
predator
had
completely
cleared out the zone and
trick had drawn fish but might
n o w b e a b i t c h a o t i c, I m a d e
a t a c t i c a l a u d i b l e. I n s t e a d o f
dropping another rig right
back in the middle of the bait,
I tied up a tight solid bag and
cast it just off the edge of the
s p o t , f i s h i n g f o r a c l e v e r b i t e.
Heavy
Plodders
and
Heartaches: At 6:30 PM, the
spooked any feeding carp. It
f e l t l i k e a m o u n t a i n t o c l i m b.
At 3:00 PM, I decided it was
time to re-prime the area and
create some competition. I
prepped a 5kg mix of my go-to
ingredients: pre-soaked 10mm
Mainline Cell, crunchy tiger
nuts, and mixed particles,
all heavily laced and boosted
with Mainline Smart Liquid.
By 4:00 PM, half a bucket of
bait was perfectly distributed
o v e r t h e d a n c e f l o o r.
The response was almost
instant. Just 40 minutes
l a t e r,
the
rod
wrapped
round—but it was just a
small, lively common.
Knowing the main baiting
t r a p s p r u n g. T h e b o b b i n d i d n ’t
f l y t o t h e r o d t o p ; i n s t e a d, i t
l i f t e d s l o w l y, d e l i b e r a t e l y,
and locked up.
The moment I lifted the
r o d, t h e b l a n k d o u b l e d o v e r
and the compression went
right into the butt. This
was no small resident. A
h e a v y, u n s t o p p a b l e, p l o d d i n g
weight anchored itself in the
d e e p w a t e r. M y h e a r t w a s i n
my mouth as the line grated
against thick weed beds.
I t o o k m y t i m e, b r e a t h i n g
t h r o u g h t h e p a n i c, s l o w l y
gaining inch after inch of
p r e c i o u s l i n e.
As the fish finally neared
the margins and broke the
BigCarp 102
