Vantastic Lukas: Back in France (2)

The next horror action

Further chub action on the rigs that were still in the water finally forced me to haul in two more rods, until in the end I only had one rod left on the spot. Towards the afternoon there was a knock on my sliding door. I made myself comfortable in the van because you had to be careful outside not to be blown away. A nice couple asked if that was my boat, which had been washed ashore a few hundred meters away. A look down at the shore confirmed her assumption. Fuck!! The boat must have been torn loose by the waves. I jumped into my waders and ran to the spot where “EL Banano” was lying upside down on the shore. My long-lost tackle, especially the depth sounder, and the banana seat boards were all in the water under the boat. I turned EL Banano, threw all the pieces in and towed it along the rocky bank to the fishing spot. In the slipstream of the car I laid out everything that had fallen overboard to dry, repaired the broken oarlock holder and looked in my toolbox to replace the lost cotter pins that held the planks of the banana in place. I was happy that I didn't have to record any major losses as a result of this campaign.

Contrary to the forecast, the wind didn't die down in the evening, which meant I couldn't re-lay the rods on the boat. I decided not to fish the next night and instead reset the rods early in the morning.

I skillfully ignored the alarm clock that I had set extra early to lay the rod.

At 8:30 a.m., with bright sunshine and no wind, I was finally well rested and started laying the rods again. Satisfied and excited to see if I would catch another carp in the next few hours before I packed up, I got to breakfast. Sitting in the southern French sun, surrounded by a pleasant breeze, I reflected on the experiences of the past few days by writing down these lines...

renewal

The day went by quickly and because I felt so comfortable in this place, I tried to last a little longer with the provisions I had so that I could stay a while longer. Finally, the weather forecast called for wind again the next day, so I felt like there was a good chance of catching another carp.

The next day: It was around midday when the warm wind - this time coming from the south-east - started to blow. Around 5:00 p.m. the same rod on which I caught the Schuppi made a continuous sound. I sprinted to the rod, made contact and realized the fish was hanging. I let up and got into the boat. Because of the wind I was quickly over the spot where the chalk line had to be hanging in a root. I struggled to row around the spot again and again to loosen the line. My “search drill” didn’t bring any points this time either. After a few minutes I grabbed the line and slowly pulled the hanger with my hand. I no longer felt a fish until the leader, the weakest link, gave way. A great disappointment spread. Dejected, I rowed back to the spot, certain that I had screwed up the second carp bite in the last 7 days. It took me a while to calm down again. This action continued in the coming hours. Then things calmed down and I packed my things the next day. The food supplies were used up and on the last evening there was a meeting with Matija and family, who were also still at the lake.

The trip goes on

After the successful barbecue evening with Matija, we headed north early the next day. I was slowly planning to return to Germany, but along the way I wanted to make a stop at a small, idyllic lake that was on the way. When I reached the water in the evening, I got a quick overview and quickly looked for a spot from which I could fish a shallow water area. I placed the rods in the shallow water in the evening sun with the polar goggles on sight. Just before dark I was able to land the first tench. The next bite didn't take long to arrive, but this time the rod was much more courageous. In the moonlight I played the fish on Lake Spiegelgatten. It was a perfect moment. After ten minutes of fighting, the fish slowly gave up and I landed it without the use of any light source. On the bank I took a closer look at the mirror lady for the first time with my headlamp. A round, beautifully scaled fish that was allowed to slide back into the water after a short photo session in the moonlight. At some point late in the night one of my rods reported a full run again. With the banana I fought my way towards the fish and after a powerful fight I netted a mirror. I then realized that I had hooked the fish in the pectoral fin. The mouth was so disfigured that it would have been impossible for the fish to suck in my large bait and hook itself cleanly.

The sight made me sad and made my thoughts wander. I noticed that I was less and less enjoying fishing in such small, more or less busy waters. It was only afterwards that I really became aware of the contrast between the large lake I had previously fished and this small “club lake”. There was a lack of freedom, the wild and unpredictable things that play an increasingly important role in my fishing. After just one night, I packed up and continued my journey towards Germany...