SMALL REWARDS

     I'm sure most anglers would be mystified at my happiness, given that today's only capture was a pound and a half Bream. There is something immensely satisfying about catching any fish, even a Bream, that requires the use of a landing net when one has fed the swim diligently for three hours before the float signals a result.



     It took the biggest dendro in the box, broken in two and trapped on my size 12 by a single white maggot; the hitherto inanimate quill lifting and falling flat on the surface. I find almost biteless, one fish days rather rewarding in that whatever one catches it invariably needs the net. That single fish is never a two ounce perch and this one could have just as easily been a big roach.


     My first visit to Jubilee pools last spring was the perfect example. March had just come in like a Lion and I was expecting nothing. My floatfished bread flake had lain untouched for 5 hours when the float lifted and slid away. The strike met solid resistance and soon a beautiful gleaming 1-5 oz roach was lying in the net. By the time I had it photographed and back in the water it was time to pack but the sense of anticipation that the long wait had built up dissolved in a very special sense of achievement. These days I am always optimistic that an inactive visit will become a one bite, one fish day and that the landing net will get used. That mindset does make the waiting easier it has to be said.



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