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Gar Rees Fishing This page is dedicated to the pursuit of carp and other coarse fish

Springwater Fishery July 2025
04/07/2025

Springwater Fishery July 2025

A nice road trip to Ayrshire
04/07/2025

A nice road trip to Ayrshire

Two lovely mirror carp at Springwater Fishery just outside Dalrymple in Ayrshire. The mirror carp (Cyprinus carpio var. specularis) is a domesticated variety...

That was a good morning in the sun.
30/06/2025

That was a good morning in the sun.

Great fish on a short session. Just a couple of hours. Caught on Sticky Baits 16mm The Krill pop-up with a Ronnie rig into the margins. Scientific Descriptio...

23/05/2025

Didn't realise I'd caught two fish at once 🤣

21/05/2025

🎣 The day that changed British carp fishing forever🎣

On the morning of September 13th, 1952, at Redmire Pool, Dick Walker made history.

Armed with a rod he built himself, a simple hook whipped straight to the line, and a pheasant-egg-sized lump of paste and bread crust, he hooked and landed a common carp weighing 44lb , a fish that shattered every belief about how big carp could grow in British waters.

No alarms. No fancy rigs. Just pure skill, nerve, and homemade tackle.

📸 The moment was captured on the cover of Walker’s 1953 book Stillwater Angling, and the image remains one of the most iconic in angling history.

And then came the phone call…

“Sometime about 9am I went up to the big house and asked if I could use the phone.
I rang London Zoo and said, ‘Do you want a forty-pound carp?’
They said, ‘We’ve got a fourteen-pound carp.’
I said, ‘Not a fourteen-pound carp , a forty-pound carp!’”

After some firm persuasion (and the threat of ringing Bristol Zoo instead), they sent a van. Two rather unimpressed-looking zoo staff turned up, fully expecting a wind-up , and left absolutely gobsmacked.

Later, a telegram was sent to Bernard Venables simply reading:
“Caught carp, 41lb.”
(Actual recorded weight: 44lb, confirmed with official weights and measures.)

🔧 Tackle used:

Rod: Home-built Mark IV by Walker

Reel: Mitchell fixed spool

Line: 12lb Finlayson’s ‘Green Butterfly’ plaited nylon

Hook: Allcock’s ‘Model Perfect’ taper shank

Bait: Balanced paste & bread crust (pheasant-egg size)

Length: 37" (est.)

Girth: 31" (est.)

📍 Swim: The Willow Pitch, Redmire Pool
🕔 Time: Approx. 5am

Clarissa eventually lived out her days in London Zoo, but her impact lives on lakeside to this day. A defining moment. A proper legacy.

I think I've made enough carp rigs for now. Ronnie's, chod's, slip D's and others. Bernard approves 👌 Need a night away,...
10/04/2025

I think I've made enough carp rigs for now. Ronnie's, chod's, slip D's and others.
Bernard approves 👌
Need a night away, now.

Just a quick morning wet of the lines. Alarm went off once early doors but it was dropped.
24/03/2025

Just a quick morning wet of the lines.
Alarm went off once early doors but it was dropped.

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