Hit the road Jake: New city, new luck

Wind, waves, a slightly salty taste on the tongue. With every step I sink slightly into the fine sand. The brackish water washes coolly around my bare feet. I can't see the ground, even though it's only a few centimeters deep here. The waves have clouded the entire lagoon. “Sea urchin” whispers through my head every now and then. But the velvety softness of the floor is as comfortable as a wool carpet and takes away suspicion from every step. A few seagulls are circling above me, the evening sun is shining on my back and everything I need to live right now fits into the fold that I am dragging behind me...

A shrill whistle makes me whirl around abruptly, just in time, otherwise the tram would have crushed me mercilessly. The “1 Happy Future ”, so I don’t laugh. The train probably has the Witzebox as its destination station. The tram driver apparently doesn't, because he makes it clear to me that I no longer have them all. With my heart pounding slightly and babbling something about “groundbreaking shit comedians,” I spend the last few minutes walking to my shared apartment, annoyed by the abrupt end of my lovely daydream.

A lot has happened since those peaceful steps through the lagoon, and even more since I last fed this blog. Most recently I wrote about Holland, the lockdown, and then there was the unforgettable session with Alex at Bled. We met in Bled because I was up to mischief in Slovenia at that time, August and September to be precise. Slovenia is my home, and the little house in the mountains is my little paradise. For eight weeks my life was adventure from morning to night.

Back in Germany everything happened very quickly. Less than three weeks later, in mid-October, Karlsruhe was no longer my home; I now live almost 600 kilometers further east. Berlin, Leipzig, Dresden, everything is within reach... But no matter how exciting it all may be, after more than half a year of almost non-stop travel, the change of scenery was, in a sense, a kick in the face. Soft forest floor replaced by brick pavement, mountains on the horizon replaced by house facades, morning birdsong gives way to jackhammers, fragrant flowers - well, they aren't around right now anyway...

But as we all know, you quickly become jaded and now I'm finding my way around quite well. Not least because my surroundings are bursting with water. Quarry lakes, canals and also a river. Of course it's obvious where I started.

In order to get a feel for my new home water as quickly as possible, I started fishing the places that seemed obvious to me. Actually, I proceeded as I did on my travels and first looked for promising places using Google Maps. When it comes to rivers, I particularly look for curves, harbor basins or barrages.

I started on an inside curve, just a few minutes' drive from my shared apartment. Four evenings in a row I rode my bike to the water and fed about two kilos of boilies. Through BadgersBest I learned to really appreciate the benefits of high-quality food. It took time to find baits that met this level again, but with the best food in hand, I approached this fall very optimistically.

Despite the best preparation, I had to pack up after the first night without any carp. But ten monstrous bream robbed me of sleep. Oh well !

Wanting to fish as many spots as possible this fall, I moved on and prepared a spot a little further downstream next. I was supposed to be successful here and caught a strong mirror straight away. What was noticeable was that the bite came early in the afternoon. Not, as is typically the case in the early hours of the morning. That's why I decided to fish from midday until the next morning.

Even though it had bitten, I moved on again and fed an area that I had high hopes for. After a tight curve, the river opens up here, becomes wide and flows relatively slowly. For 10 days I distributed boilies and also some tiger nuts here. In fact, after just three feedings, fish were already rolling onto the spot. I couldn't wait to fish here. Nevertheless, I was patient and every evening I grabbed my bike and went to feed them.

A mild breeze blows through my dreads, the smell of “ herbal tea ” hits my nose and my eyes wander vigilantly over the rippling surface of the water. It's early lunchtime. After a round of jogging and a relaxed breakfast, I drove to the water full of anticipation. Chubs keep breaking through the surface. Could they have spread out on the food and left nothing for the carp? I patiently tie two new leaders. 4 Choddy, mono with soft hair, a good 30cm long. True to the gypsy style, nothing can go wrong...

With a slight swing I put both rods into the current. The first on the edge of the bank and a little downstream, the second a good ten meters further out and a little above the first rod. This way the lines don't get in each other's way or the carp moving upstream.

I am overcome by slight nervousness, from now on it can bite at any time. It's no coincidence that I'm sitting here today, there's a full moon at 3 p.m. The coming hours are hot, very hot. I drink tea, sit on a tree trunk and stare at the rods...

Minutes pass, then the first rod snaps around. My opponent shoots down the river at lightning speed and is difficult to stop. With the foresight, I spooled my reels with sturdy braided line and a 60 gauge chalk line...

The fish keeps trying to escape into the main current, but with brutal pressure I pump the carp onto the bank and into the landing net. No chance amigo.

I quickly flick the rod out again and feed properly. There is no time to waste now. On the mat I can marvel at a beautiful squall that has the proportions of a future buffalo and is clearly looking for crabs.

I quickly snap a few pictures with the self-timer and sit back on the tree trunk.

A coffee later the same thing happens, a rod is jerked around and whistles at full speed. The second bite after just an hour of fishing. Checkpot, we're clearing out today!

This fish feels heavier, doesn't fight as explosively and stands full broadside into the current. Minutes pass and with each headbutt my knees become weaker. No doubt, this one isn't small.

Shortly in front of the landing net I see the bright flank of a mirror. But before I can pull him over the landing net, he flees down the edge again. I manage to release the brake just in time. Now I've had enough and am pumping up the carp mercilessly. Enough of the games now, get into the landing net with you.

-To be continued –