The secret mere. Part 1.

I came across "the secret mere" as i called it a few years ago whilst doing some woodland clearance and coppicing for a customer. Whilst taking a break i had a walk around the estates grounds and stumbled upon paradise. On the edge of some woodland at the south of the grounds lay a small lake of a couple of acres, the water was gin clear with deep shelving margins. Sedges and wildflowers grew around the lakes banks and in the water aquatic plants thrived.



Dragon flies hovered and hawked and in the distance the only sound which shattered the lakes spell was the mew of a hunting buzzard. The lake looked undisturbed, no trodden banks, no litter and no sign of another living person.



I searched the water and as i walked along the northern bank my pulse quickened and my eyes bulged as a group of three superb common carp ghosted into view. They where not fat, bloated specimens but long lean and powerful looking fish. Was this a dream? Had I fallen asleep on my break? This didn't seem like reality but if it was i had to make the most of an opportunity like this that would only come once in a lifetime if at all.



I contacted the owner to enquire about the lake. I was told that the place had not been fished for years. He was unsure about fish stocks but was more than happy for me to fish there providing i returned all the fish i caught and left no litter. That very evening i returned so keen was i too discover more about this hidden gem, armed with a rod, net, rucksack and a tin of the yellow peril. I felt like a child at Christmas it was like being part of an angling adventure written by the likes of Yates, Hearn or B.B.

The evening was overcast yet with a sultry heat. I stashed the tackle in the long grass and took a bucket of corn for company. Searching along the margins looking for tell tale signs where fish could have fed. A handful of corn here a handful there i made my way around the water. On returning to my tackle i sat down in the grass pouring a drink from my flask, i took in the atmosphere of the place the lake was still and all around hung the smells of summer. After a welcoming brew i made my way back around the water rod in hand checking if any "visitors" had taken up the offer to dine on the golden kernels. The first few spots lay undisturbed but on checking the next baited area i froze stiff as a small common was feeding confidently. Not the hoped for monster but the first fish from a new water is always memorable and i began to bait the hook. A movement in the water caught my attention, the grey green shape of a Tench moved into view. Now this was no ordinary Tench this was simply breathtaking, words like enormous and monstrous ran through my mind, i was aware of nothing else only that this Tench (a male) was bigger than the carp!
The Tench moved around the bait and then dropped down tail up feeding on the corn. The water began to cloud as the fish competed. I snapped out of my trance this was my chance, the float was cast beyond them and drawn back. Time stood stood still until the inevitable happened and the float jagged under, the Tench bolted to the right but the common remained writhing and battling attached to the hook. DAMN. After a spirited scrap in the deep margins the common slid over the net. I wouldn't usually weigh such a fish but i had to get an idea what the Tench could have weighed. On the scales the fish weighed 10Ib and ounces. Things had now turned very serious i was fishing on a lake i had to myself which contained a double figure male tench!