Young Stoborough, Dorset angler Arron O’Hara, certainly had a June 16th river trip to remember… with this huge 27lb Grass Carp falling for his trotting skills!
Arron, aged 17 was fishing a tidal reach of the Dorset Frome to start the new river season, and made 5.30am dawn start. Arron chose to trot bread flake over punch-crumb groundbait, using a Centrepin reel, a Drennan Big Stick Float and a 4lb hooklink to a size 8 Super Specialist hook.
“There were fish topping including some big roach. I baited my swim and first trot through on the pin I had a lovely trout, and another followed shortly after on the same tactics. It was now around 7am and the tide was high. I hooked a mullet and brought it to the net, about 4lb! As soon as the tide started to rise I baited with half a bag of punch crumb and ran the stick through, a mullet of about 3lb took the bait, jumping clear of the water!
Around 12pm my float just stopped and I reeled in thinking it had got snagged, but no… I was fighting a huge grass carp to death around the whole stretch! It even jumped clean out of the water as I hooked it! What a turn up for the books; it was June the 16th – the most magical day in fishing” Arron told us.
The huge Grass Carp was accurately weighed with lots of witnesses, what a capture!