Warwickshire Avon - Balers and Ballistocardiographs

Fishing is great isn't it, take your mind off the modern world for that moment of time, anyway a tale of two halves this one, because after stopping off at the 'Untrodden' for bailiff duties during the middle of the day wasn't exactly ideal fishing weather, but with Sam's mate Matthew over from Chester and Sam pestered me to bring a float rod and catch his first fish.

Luckily the field had seen the haybailer recently so it was much easier to get around because it was a bit of a pain I must admit. Not so much the length of the crop, but the tiny bits that came off them and stuck to your socks. 

Matthew went home happy because not only has he a fishing licence of his , but he caught his first fish. In-fact he caught quite a few with Sam and Matthew taking it in turns to man the rod. The maggots were getting taken on the drop so simple tactics to winkle out a few fish, before the sun beat us up in to submission.

The water fight in the garden amplified after dinner so I buggered off to another stretch of the Avon where I'd fish in to dusk.

There was a match on the previous day and the chub and elusive (for me) barbel hadn't fed whatsoever so I was gutted that when I sneaked in to an elevated swim and dropped some bread crust into the swim, a chub after a couple of nudges took the bread where I struck and pricked the fish.

It looked a good fish too, but yes a stupid question, it never came back !!!

I tried another couple of spots but they were as cagey as anything so ditched the floating bread and got set-up and hour before dusk to see if I'd fair better when the light levels had dropped.

It's a nice swim this, shallow fast water upstream, tree cover over at the far side and a bed of reeds to my left. In the middle it carries some depth and that's where I'd drop the bait just off the creas. 

Sadly just one chub pull before the curfew kick-off time, however not entirely unexpected considering the conditions, but I'm sure a decent fish will turn up sooner than later. 

I'm enjoying just spending time outside now, despite the fishing not being brilliant, but my fishing time is about to be curtailed because the Wife has a well deserved break in Edinburgh from early Thursday through to late Monday so I'll be in charge of the reprobates. 

Still plenty of things planned and sadly none of it fishing and one of the planned trips we will be venturing into Birmingham on the train of all places for some revelry, wish us luck.

So one more day to go fishing and that is tomorrow where after a curry with a mate post work from the office, I'd have a few hours max to try and catch something half decent.

I plan to don my waders this time round however because I know where some decent chub have been hiding but they are difficult to get too. I will also fish a bait static at dusk again like I did before for a last gasp barbel before the drawbridge comes down.

On to the next one !!

Warwickshire Avon - The Untrodden Pt.7

A fanatical coarse fisherman had long wanted to buy a house by his favourite river, the Thames. At last the chance came and he bought a small cottage with a long garden running down to the river. He then bought a small boat and began to prepare for the opening of the coarse fishing season. He cleaned his rods and reels, sharpened his hooks, checked the meshes of his landing net and did everything possible to ensure that his life by the river started in the way he meant it to continue.

On his inaugural outing he decided to fish a few hundred yards above a weir. It was an area of the river known for its big pike and if there was one species this fisherman loved catching above all others it was pike. He'd caught his first pike a lively six-pounder when he was just ten, and now forty years later he wanted to celebrate the acquisition of his dream house by landing a pike over ten pounds.

On 16 June, the opening day of the season, he got up at dawn, prepared sandwiches and a large flask of hot tea, checked his tackle one last time and walked proudly to the end of his garden. His new boat was bobbing happily in the current and he loaded his tackle aboard and set off. The weir was about half a mile downstream, but the river was running quickly and it took just ten minutes to reach the chosen spot.

He threw out his anchor, set up his best pike rod and cast a large sprat into an area of slack water just a little to the side of the main current. On his first cast the float vanished and a good pike was soon engaged in a fierce tussle at the end of the line. It was an eight-pounder, not quite the hoped-for double-figure fish but a good start nonetheless.

According to the newspaper reports that later appeared, it was at this point that everything started to go wrong. As the fisherman tried to unhook his pike, he slipped over backwards and was lucky not to have fallen into the river. The downside of the tumble was that the pike fell on the fisherman's face and sank its teeth into his nose. 

The fish's sharp teeth had only a slight hold on the skin, but in an unthinking reaction to the pain the fisherman yanked the fish away, leaving a nasty wound that immediately began to bleed. Trying to keep his temper despite the pain and the blood now dripping freely on to his shirt the fisherman gently returned the pike to the water and took stock of his situation.

As he stood dabbing his nose and wondering whether or not to call it a day he noticed that his home-made anchor a chunk of concrete with a steel ring through it - had come adrift and his boat was slipping rapidly downstream. 

The fisherman lunged for his oars, but one had already slipped overboard.

What on earth was he to do? 

The boat had picked up speed as the water began to race towards the weir and he suddenly realised that in a few moments his idyllic trip had turned into a nightmare.

If he couldn't stop the boat before it reached the weir he might even be killed. 

He tried using the remaining oar as a paddle but it had little effect against the power of the current. 

He glanced back to the security of the bank, but there was not a soul to be seen. He shouted for help, but no reply came. The few houses he passed seemed deserted and he began to panic. 

He tried to steer the boat away from the main current, but without success and then looking over his shoulder, he realised that the boat was now no more than a few hundred yards from the foaming waters of the weir. Just before the weir itself there was narrow wooden footbridge, but there was no way the fisherman could jump from the boat and reach it as he passed underneath.

Then he had an idea. It was a long shot but it might just work. He quickly attached his heaviest wire trace to his line, added four large treble hooks and a weight and sat down to wait for the boat to reach the bridge. He had just one chance but he was ready. At the moment the boat cleared the bridge the fisherman expertly cast his weight and hook back at it. The weight went high over the bridge and landed in the water on the upstream side. 

The fisherman, his boat still moving downstream, reeled in as fast as he could and as the weight and hooks were dragged back over the footbridge they caught in the bridge's wire superstructure. The fisherman turned side-on to the bridge and gradually allowed his rod to take the strain. 

The rod bent into a hoop and the line sang in the breeze, but the boat began to slow and the line held. If the fisherman had decided to try for pretty much any species other than pike that day, his tackle would not have been strong enough to hold the rowing boat in the current. 

But the pike tackle was powerful and the hooks held until someone crossing the bridge a little later noticed that the man standing in a boat in the middle of the river and apparently fishing for a footbridge was actually in serious trouble. The police were called and a motor launch rescued the fisherman just as his line finally gave way.🤯

Anyway, enough of that !!

Back to fishing, well the recently bought maggots needed reviving by the Jimny's demister because the fridge for some reason had gone really cold, just off freezing which meant the maggots were like Joe Biden on the campaign trail. 

To be fair it didn't take long for them to kick in to life and we were off to do some fishing !!! I left all my feeders all at home though and not only that but the back-up catapult was also left behind. Tw@t, so I could only really fish as far as I could chuck the maggots. 

I need not worry though the amount of fish really was an eyeopener really especially when the river is gin clear. I fished two swims and it really was a bite a chuck, predominantly chub, but also some small roach and dace to add to the mix. I fed some bread to see if any bigger chub were about but they were nowhere to be seen with the sun high and the skies blue. 

Bleak were plundering the pieces though and from time to time they were getting chased by perch. Anyway I stupidly forgot my sun cream and sun hat so decided to call the session early, but boy, a river alive with fish, so nice to see !!! 

Warwickshire Avon - The Untrodden Pt.1

It's worth looking more closely at things floating down the river. They may not be all they seem.

Naturalist Dieter Plage, filming in Indonesia, noticed a leaf moving upstream against the current. He netted it to find it being used by a small fish to protect itself from predatory birds, swimming upside-down and manoeuvring the leaf with its ventral fins.

Pretty smart fish, that, smarter than the birds anyway, who still haven't cottoned on.

A strange floating object nearer home was the artificial leg which came adrift when a bloke fell out of his dinghy at Lancing, in Sussex. Luckily another boat was passing, and the skipper saved the bloke, his boat and his leg. (What do you say at times like that?: 'Excuse me, is this yours?')

Anyway enough of that we've a virgin bit of water to fish for this season, it's around 700 metres in length with some deeper bits, pools, lots of cover and also some nice trottable swims. This untrodden stretch hasn't been fished for years I believe. Before the hymen is broken on this virgin bit of water I went for a nose a couple of days ago to take some pictures for the like-minded.

It was discounted for this year for a reason because there was a pollution incident a year ago that might well have affected this stretch, so we've an opportunity to try and winkle out some fish before committing the hard earned pennies.

Now judging by the size of the bankside Dryad's Saddle or Polyporus squamosus, it's going to an interesting water to explore, because it's so unknown and hasn't seen any angling pressure. Btw John 'Lofty' Wiseman once told me on a survival course I was on as an apprentice, said that any fungi on trees can be eaten, so I might give them a go 🍄

Anyway when I was there the other day for a nose I drifted some bread down in various swims to see if any chub were going to take it off the top but I didn't see any sadly. The water is gin clear at the moment and I could see 6 foot down so not unexpected to be honest.

I did see some flashes of silver and also some fish that were topping that might have been bleak so at least there was some fish activity. 

The stingers are 6ft in places and blocking access to the river however the further you go upstream the access improves and you can get down to the river. So i'll return with the hedge trimmers to make a couple of swims in the area of the river that looks pacier where a barbel might feel at home. 

Anyway for this evening trip in to dusk and in to dark I decided to see if I could at least get a bite from something to put a bend in the rod so chub or barbel were the target. When I came for a reccy the fish didn't rise to take the bread of the surface but what a change for this evening because a swim I couldn't really get to had some fish taking it of the top quite readily.

I followed the unabated bread to the pool swim where it slowed in pace and out of the blue a huge boil on the surface where a chub I assume came up to take it 😎

I derigged the barbel rod and tied a hook directly to the line and cast out a chunk of bread where the nearside flow took the bread in a 20 foot arc skirting the surface, where within seconds a boil on surface and a chub had nailed it.

I was in to a decent chub for the first cast and it was pulling back a bit I must admit and as I teased it in to the landing net the size 6 Korum Grappler hook looked like it had a decent hold. It's an elevated swim so luckily I had the long landing net handle with me as it was a bit of a reach. A cracking first fish of the new venue.

Jacob who was also fishing this evening had arrived just as I had landed it, so I shouted him over for a nose and told him about the fish taking it off the top. He employed similar tactics and also ledgered to catch 2 chub himself during the evening, where his waders came in handy to battle through the stingers as he was fishing the downstream section.

Catching that fish spooked the other fish that were in the pool however I fished another couple of swims and caught another 4 chub on ledgered bread. I baited up one swim with some goodness grenades (© Buffalo Si)  and rested it for an hour, and  as the sun was setting I got the boilie out with a PVA bag of freebies to see if dusk would bring some good fortune.

I couldn't believe the amount of fish activity just in this one swim, it really was quite ridiculous with fry everywhere and bleak breaking the surface and getting chased by perch from time to time. Maggots I'd imagine would get mullered but I might bring Sam sometime to see what we can winkle out.

A lovely evening and with the sun now set it felt a bit nippy with the temperature dropping considerably. The boilie was getting attention from the smaller fish and a few small chublet pulls but generally it was a quiet evening. 

I gave it a good forty minutes after dusk but that rod never hooped over and it didn't for Jacob either as he and I arrived back at the car at the same time. Considering I didn't think I'd manage to get out because with lots of things going on at the moment limiting my time on the bank, I'm glad I decided to go even if it was just for a few hours.

A great start I feel especially when this area was in the pollution zone a year ago, and myself and the members are looking forward to see what we can catch on this stretch. It's summer so the reeds are a hindrance in accessing some swims and I'm sure that will improve as the weeks and months go on. 

Warwickshire Avon - Phantoms and Phantasmatography

Anglers often like to make things as difficult for themselves as possible. How else can we explain the rule on some chalkstreams that dry fly is the only allowable method and that no casting is allowed unless the angler has first spotted a rising fish? How else can we explain the fact that anglers will try to fly fish in the sea for bass when spinning or using bait would be so much more productive? 

The love of difficulty of course stems from the oft- repeated fact that there is more to fishing than catching fish. The more difficult it is to catch your trout, the greater the satisfaction in doing what few can do well. But the pursuit of the difficult can be taken to extremes. Dr JC Mottram became an enthusiast for fly fishing for barbel. 

That would be reasonable enough if barbel were taken every now and then on fly, but records suggest that, as a general rule, barbel simply will not take a fly. However, the records clearly did not convince Dr Mottram. He spent several seasons developing his barbel fly-fishing techniques and against all the odds he actually had some success. How on earth did he do it?

The answer is simple. Mottram was a scientist and before he tried to catch his barbel using this most unlikely method he made a careful study of his intended quarry's habits.

Dr Mottram noticed that early in the season, when barbel tend to shoal in large numbers wherever there is shallow fast water running over gravel, it was possible to trick them using a fly tied to look like a tiny minnow. Dr Mottram experimented with painstaking research and endless days on the river he landed two barbel on his fly a fish of four and a half pounds and one of six and a half pounds.

Mottram is almost certainly the only angler mad enough to fish deliberately for barbel with a fly and actually catch anything. But the odd thing about barbel is that very large specimens are now and then caught by accident on a fly. 

A sixteen-and-a-half- pounder was caught in about 1880 on the Hampshire Avon by an angler fly fishing for salmon and in 1948 a fisherman on the Kennet caught a five-pound barbel that had taken his fly as it floated on the surface of the river.

Even among the more eccentric branches of the fishing world this dry-fly barbel fisherman did not produce a flurry of imitators. Some things are too difficult even for fishermen!

Now I wanted an easy session for this one, so simple tactics really when I arrived at sunrise, a rod to catch chub off the top if any were feeding and also a float with red maggots. Despite the river being really low and clear you can bring the fish out in to the open with a trickle of maggots.

The picture above this one an hours worth of trotting where predominately dace and small tiny chub were up for a feed. The odd bleak, small roach and perch also made an appearance but in this one particular swim it was dace that outnumbered the rest.

I did rove around for some of it trying to find the chub but it was only in two swims where they were taking it off the top. Not in numbers either just the odd fish. Not unsurprisingly because not brilliant conditions after all. 

What didn't help was that the phantom tree cropper has been down here again most likely to make better access for canoes (only permitted access once a year) because one swim was a shadow of its former self, the cover removed in large quantities with the freshly cut branches and trees plain to see.

It's happened before on this stretch where one of the stretches willows was hacked down with the Angling club wondering why the hell would someone do that. Canoes and paddle boarders seem to like it down here since the pandemic because they were a rare sight on this intimate stretch prior to that. Anyway apart from that much smiles to be had, as a few lovely hours down the river which I had to myself, and plenty of fish caught including a couple of chub.

Both chub came to bread, despite a bite a chuck on maggots in two swims for some reason the chub didn't show at all and yesterday the first chub I caught yesterday coughed up loads of the wriggly fish attractors. Plenty of dips on the float though and rare session for me, not tangles or snap off's either, so that was a bonus. On to the next one 1!!

Warwickshire Avon - Braai's and Bumboats

I've not really had the urge to go fishing, well apart from the odd hour or three here and there because well the conditions are not really conducive for a decent session, because it's gin clear and very low indeed. I've a trip booked with Wye maestro Nic from Avon Angling  where hopefully I'll put my new trotting set-up to good use because I really want to catch a barbel on the float. 

I'm just hoping that the river will stay at a decent level so I can don my waders and fish the Wye like I want to fish it. There is nothing like seeing a stick flow bury under the surface and the Wye is chalk and cheese compared to the Avon where barbel numbers are concerned. 

It's BBQ weather at the moment and I would rather be sat in the garden chilling out rather than on a river bank with the sun beating down. Moo Ping with a thai dipping sauce is often my go-to these days. So easy to make and beats a boggo burger the kids were having, give them a go if you fancy something different. The pork loin needs to be bashed thin with a rolling pin and cling film is my only tip, the marinade is pretty easy. 

Anyway the chub are definitely wising up to the surface bread method as I only managed one during an hour early morning session. A couple of hours later I was back with Sam this time in my long sleeve t-shirt as the temperature had risen considerably and would turn in to another nice day despite the threat of a thunder and lightning. 

Despite the heavy rain showers recently it had hardly touched the water levels and it's not coloured it up either so you can almost see every single fish in the swim, which can be disheartening when there is literally nothing whatsoever swimming around. 

This is Sam's favourite bit of river though so he dictated where we headed for this 2.5 hour trotting trip. It took a good few swims to start getting bites and then it really was a bite a chuck. Nothing big but plenty of dips of the float to keep a kid entertained. 

Mostly bleak and small dace but with the odd perch and tiny chub in the mix they were certainly up for the maggots drip fed in to the swim. 

I drifted bread down in every swim we tried and it was only swim where a decent sized chub came for a rise. It disappeared as quickly as it arrived though and I'm sure it was because I spooked it trying to get to a better vantage point. 

Sam was happy enough as he was occupied catching plenty of small fish but I was left wondering where had all the gudgeon gone. Canoeists and a paddle boarder didn't help matters either, it's a small waterway where especially the chub scoot off never to be see again, as one swim were were in there were quite a few milling around until their sanctuary was disturbed.  

Anyway back the gonks here was our best stretch to catch them but swim after swim where you usually seem them milling around they just not there. Even the 'bleak swim' was devoid of bleak and apart from the odd tiny minnow milling around the swim was barren. 

On the way back we stopped off at another club stretch for a nose and then once over at the syndicate stretch where again the chub were just not up for taking bread off the surface. It was very muggy though I wonder if that has anything to do with it. No real plans for next week to be honest but if I do get out I'll fishing in to dark most likely for a better chance of catching something a bit bigger. 

To be honest looking back at my blog its like this every year, it's always a tough month or two on the Warwickshire Avon, so I might look at fishing the smaller rivers for that fix. In-fact the Alne might be worth a go as I had a nice sized chub follow the lure the other day and it looked well worth catching. 

Warwickshire Avon - L-Plates and Lumpenintelligentsia

Now the little Jimny's ALLGRIP PRO system includes three modes: 2H, 4H and 4L. 2H and 4H are rear-wheel and four-wheel drive respectively. Where as 4L engages the low-range transfer box which is a great for off-roading when the conditions are challenging. Wet grass doesn't seem to be an issue and I rarely need it in 4H even for slopes where many cars would be struggling for grip. 

To be honest I've not got it stuck yet despite driving some testing deep muddy tracks. The low ratio means that once moving and the clutch lifted off the car creeps at snails pace and you could open the door, get out the car and literally walk next to it admiring its scale (less than half the weight of a modern defender)

It also means 11 year old Sam who with the seat slid all the way forward can actually drive it without issue as doesn't need to use the clutch. After the initial stomping of the throttle pedal I'm allowing him to drive from swim to swim. Thankfully the cheesy radio station turned down for him to concentrate. 

There are a couple of stretches where there is plenty of scope for him to have a drive without any drama, wish I had the opportunity when I was his age. 

 

Ideal really as when we got bankside for a couple of hours of fishing the rain really was quite heavy.

There are bait fish in numbers here and initially after casting a maggot baited float rig out you'd wonder what the fuss was about, but bung a handful of the grubs in to the swim, within minutes it will be a bite a chuck.

Not just annoying bleak either some proper miniature species, from dace, chub, roach and the odd rudd.

The fish eventually start to get bigger when the small fish have their fill so if you want a few for the predator rod that initial half an hour plays dividends.

This session was no different in-fact both swims we fished held bait fish in decent numbers with one swim in-particular chock full of tiny dace. 

Now what we didn't expect was that it took a good while to get a bite on the predator rod, in-fact the perch that were here in numbers last time just didn't show whatsoever. 

To be honest like many of the local river we are desperately in need of some rain. It's surprising how baron the rivers look at the moment for the bigger fish, especially the chub that have seemingly gone to their hiding places. 

Sam was happy initially catching the small stuff as it was literally a bite a chuck but he got bored in the end and fancied something a little bigger. 

It didn't take long to get his request though because in the last swim a jack nailed the bleak within a minute of getting it out. A bit of a scraper too, proudly displaying his nashers that will terrorise his fellow water dwellers. 

There was a reason why I wanted to fish this swim last though and that was because there are some decent chub milling around here. 

So with Sam sheltering in the car from the heavier rain his stupid Dad was fishing a chunk of liver in to dusk. A ridiculously powerful bite out the blue I struck so hard in to nothing the 3SSG link ledger came flying out the water and 'PINGED' against the passenger window glass with Sam wondering what the heck just happened.

After getting the windscreen replaced recently that was a close call as it thankfully went the right way of two of the possible outcomes.  I fully expected another bite but it never happened, oh well, some good father and son bonding time, it's not all about the fish these trips out.  

Warwickshire Avon - Mohawks and Mogigraphia

"Do sticklebacks look like minnows with Mohawks ?"

"If you put an acorn in your pocket with some mud would a tree grow in it ?"

"How would you go about catching a basking shark ?"

"Is cannabis illegal ?"

I love my sessions with Sam because he like any 11 year old has random questions that do make me chuckle, this a selection from this sort morning session. 

Now the tide is turning where the predators will be up for a feed, and what a stunning misty setting that us as anglers are lucky to see whilst the masses are still curled up in their duvets.

A whip rod for some bites and a predator rod to try and catch something bigger the session had its ups and downs. The baitfish were in numbers so catching fish on the whip was easy enough. Bleak mainly but with roach, minnows and small dace in-between.

With the predator rod out it didn't take long for the first bite when a pike nailed the bleak in a split second and moved the float a metre and a half in the process. Sam wanted in on this and after tightening up to the circle hook he had a hard fighting pike on the end.

He did really well playing the fish and after a couple of runs where it was taking line after a spirited battle it was in the net. A nice fish too in-fact Sam's biggest pike I think of around 7-8lb. He was well chuffed and wanted me to take a picture of its big mouth so he could WhatsApp his friends.

He still doesn't want to get near big pike but with teeth like this, can you blame him. Anyway with an hour left of the session it was a disappointing ending as two decent perch were lost on a bleak bait and the last one from the weir swim was a couple of pound all day long.

Its headshaking after it breached the surface dislodging the bait and returning to where it came from. The predators really seem to be on it at the minute and there is nothing like a predator float bobbing and going right under as it could be a 6 ounce perch or a 16lb pike. 

On to the next one !!!

Warwickshire Avon - Cadets and Caduceators

Work slowly easing up, the last DFM (Design for Manufacture) ticked off on all the components I own, just the dotting of i's and crossing of t's left, which to be fair can be a laborious affair. 

3 years of full on work coming to fruition thankfully, although when the parts start to come off tool can be the fun part, but it will be nice to see the next round of prototypes and eventually cars rolling down the production line. 

Still I will worry about that when they do, which at the moment could be later than expected as Chongqing in China where one of my suppliers resides, are on enforced Government shutdown at the moment. 

A heatwave (43 degrees) meant factories were ordered to close to allow the grid to cope with the extra demand for air-conditioning, fans and the overly stocked beer fridges. 

Bugger !!! 

I've already been told of the next project I'll be working on, which is back to what I like best. Conceptual and Concept work, and it sounds right up my street too, no rest for the wicked. Cannot complain though, as it will see me to retirement at this rate. (I wish !!!)

Now 11 year old Sam is 7 years in to his fishing and he likes nothing than going back to basics with his fishing.

In-fact a whip is very much in his angling armoury because what kids doesn't like catching fish, sometimes its all about the bass, all about the bass !! 

....sorry bites.

He is a dab hand at chucking a lure, can bully a chub from a snag, holds the Newey roach bream hybrid record, can stalk fish off the top with bread and more recently confident in unhooking and handling fish himself. 

That has taken some time to be fair because he doesn't like "pooping rudd" "they are disgusting" and after feeling the spikey dorsal of a perch once, he is very wary of those too.  

So he was well chuffed to win the Cadence Cadets competition where I entered the out of focus gonk picture that still brings a smile to my face every time I see it.  Who doesn't love a gudgeon, one of the most characterful of all our coarse species. 

So when his prize of a CP10 4.7M elasticated starter Pole turned up this week he wanted to go to where he caught that gudgeon and that was the "brook brook". His cap is still en route sadly but still won't stop Sam getting a few bites now will it. 

"Daddy it has elastic on the end !!"

The fishing to be honest was tougher than expected, but still enough bites to keep Sam entertained. Not unexpected though bright sun and a gin clear river. 

Bleak, small dace, tiny chub and the odd small perch were hardly tackle testers but the best was yet to come. Sam did moan a bit about the weight of it but to be honest the cheapo Drennan Acolyte whip is amazing considering the quality of it and the fact it is feather light. 

That would have struggled with this 2lb 2oz perch though, where it pulled the elastic quite far out the end of the pole. Sam doing a sterling job of playing it and I did the honours for him and landed it. He's not seen a proper perch and was amazed at the scale of it. 

I was well chuffed for him as he really was shocked an impressed on what he just caught. He didn't want to hold it mind you, cannot blame him though, a serious impressive looking predator.

Another hour the same again, small bait fish and the odd perch mixed in with them but this fish was the highlight and we will both remember this session in years to come.

'The biggest fish of all' they certainly are when they reach this statue !!!