The Secret Pool Part 2

[Catfish.017]

I think perhaps I have built up the 'surprise' beyond its true status? It was however, quite unexpected. It came in the shape of a tubby little pound and a half Mirror Carp! Now where has that come from I mused as it lay in my landing net, glistening in the sun of a late May evening two years on.
I had fished there several times prior to that evening; in early April I had caught minnows and a pound Eel that didn't surprise me as much as the Carp given the location of the pool. Then mid May Rudd began to show, cruising the pool in that restless manner that so excited me as a lad stalking the shoals at the Carrot pond, red Indiana style! And that's what I did here, catching them to ten ounce, deep bodied and three penny bit coloured, lovely stuff.
But I was eager to renew my acquaintance with the Tench and the Crucians and that's when the Carp turned up. Coinciding with the Rudd waking up, a profusion of Water Milfoil had emerged in the smaller half of the pool. This growth covered the whole of the area apart from a deeper hole, maybe four foot, just past the channel and a comfortable rod length out from a rather boggy margin. This is where I concentrated my efforts after building a makeshift platform of branches and reed stems. Even before I caught the Carp, I had spotted on several occasions, Tenchy looking bubbles over my ground bait in that hole. I must add here that this is one of those 'gassy' waters; deep silt built up over decades gives rise to some impressive eruptions but also slighter more nuanced 'pepperings' of the surface that looked very convincing.
However it was not until August on a damp muggy morning that I caught a Tench, two in fact, a pound and half and fat as butter. They both took two red worms on a 12 in the midst of some unmistakeable bubbling after being troubled by Minnows and already, tiny Rudd! I phoned Mark after catching the first. He was working close by and arrived as I landed the second being as pleased as myself at the results of our efforts.
Some time later it occurred to me that I hadn't checked if there were any Males in the batch of Tench? So a few days later I introduced three one pound Males from a nearby pool where, curiously the Males are in dominance. Of the Crucians there was still no sign or the Roach for that matter.
We fished it a few more times that year getting a few more Tench and Rudd. It was a delight to be there early dawn with its attendant mists and promise and the Lily's were coming on well along with Purple Irise's I had planted subsequently. Even in the midday hours one could always find some shade, huge Oaks grew along the lane and on the ridge above the rock face. Nestling as it is in a tight little valley it is sheltered from most winds too. In high summer the drone of the Bees in the Balsam was quite soporific and several times I dozed off in my low Chair when sport was quiet!
It was five years before I caught a Crucian and when I did it was just four ounces! The significance of this hit me immediately, they had obviously bred successfully. I was quite elated and couldn't wait to tell Mark who is a Crucian fanatic. Awkwardly for him, by this time he had moved to France permanently! ( He did subsequently catch one here on a break back home) . This capture however was not the hoped for opening of the floodgates and it was another year or two before I was confident of catching even a handful of them, the problem compounded by the hordes of little Rudd and now Roach too. There was one season when some quality Roach showed up, fish up to a pound in weight, almost certainly some of the original stock.
I never did catch one of the original Crucians which I would have guessed would be a good size by now? In the interim the Tench spawned successfully too and in 2020, the last year I fished there I often caught a dozen or so between ten ounce and a pound. One or two of the original Tench came out occasionally, nearing four pounds now but recognisable fish only; the bulk of them seemed to have gone?
In Part 3 I will reveal what probably accounts for the disappearance of the majority of the original stocking.

[Liphook]

Another fine chapter nicely written Catfish I have a feeling I know who the next less welcome visitors you will mention are....

[Grumpy]

Excellent part 2,very enjoyable.Looking forward to part 3.

[Wanderer]

I'm enjoying it.
More please.