New best Tench

After trying sporadically for a few years to get a good sized Tinca with little success (other than the ever obliging Bream!), I've managed to finally crack it. Apart from one particular fish that was my previous best of around 3lbs I've never had a Tench from a 'proper' water, just a few from commercial lakes. My old PB was caught from Packington Trout water on a fly rod and I didnt set out to catch a Tench there until I saw one infront of me in the water, so it didnt feel like I had achieved my goal despite being chuffed to bits with a fly caught Tench!


This lovely Doctor Fish proved that being in the right place at the right time is truly the key, I saw him cruise through my swim 3 times while I was setting up, on the 4th patrol I managed to coax him to stop infront of me with a few scopex flavoured red maggots. As soon as I'd seen him tilt down to start chomping on the wigglies it was just a case of casting a couple of feet to the side of him, letting my double red maggot hookbait fall naturally past his head. The hook never made it to the bottom as he spotted it and quickly grabbed it while it was still dropping - seeing the fish take your bait really is brilliant! /forum/smilies/big_smile_smiley.gif

What a fight these fish have! I was battling this one for around 5 minutes, he really did not want to give up at all! This is the first hard fighting fish Ive had on my 'pin too so it will stick in my memory forever im sure.

You forgot to say what weight it was .........

Haha oh yeah! silly me. I didnt have scales (always the case when you break a pb it seems), but we estimated it to be around 4 - 5lbs. Might not be a huge Tench in the scale of things but it came from a tiny crystal clear pond and it meant a lot to me /forum/smilies/smile_smiley.gif

Nice fish ..well done !

Nice one Fin /forum/smilies/wink_smiley.gif

cheers Ed and Steve /forum/smilies/hot_smiley.gif

Lovely fish indeed. Tench are my favourite, andI don't care about the weight or size.

Although a rule of thumb is that the females of the same age are twice the size. Looking at your pictures, that is a male, so with luck there should be 8-10's in there too!

We have a club water where you can regularly catch 4-5 inch tench. Little beauties they are !

well done Fin

Congrats Fin, Looks like a scrappy fish, Tight lines, cat

Well done Fin, lovely tinca. Hope you catch many more.

Just goes to show....size isn`t everything /forum/smilies/big_smile_smiley.gif

Fin,

Well done on your new PB, and on the pin is even better.

Any new PB is a Special fish, just don't get caught up thinking big fish all the time, enjoy your fishing no matter what, as I am sure you do.

Well done once again

Well done Fin, but your tench is pulling a very miserable face for the camera!!!

Nice tench Fin well done

Well done Fin, nice fish. /forum/smilies/smile_smiley.gif

nice tench man

Thankyou everyone for your comments.

Ray you certainly are right, when I was younger I was far too wrapped up in catching bigger and bigger fish, because of this I got frustrated at times because I couldnt catch fish of the sizes I wanted. So much so that I spent about 5 years fishing for almost nothing except barbel trying to get a double, even though I'd already had one at 11lbs 4oz that fell (fairly mouth hooked) to a spoon! It was a case I believe of not really knowing I was born /forum/smilies/tongue_out_smiley.gif

Now however I understand that your outlook on life is very important and effects the outcome and enjoyment of everything you do, so now I enjoy every minute of my fishing, blank or no its always better than golf! /forum/smilies/wink_smiley.gif

Veeeery interesting information thankyou Scott, it certainly was a male and I have seen larger fish in there that at the time I thought were around 5lbs. Now I've had this one out and could compare the size in the water to on the bank some of the others must be at least 7lbs, its incredible that the Tench get to such sizes in there. I may take a picture of the place because its so small youd probably not believe it!