Big S Surfaces - Peg 10 - Mon 10/06 to Tue 11/06.

If there's one factor that keeps carp anglers coming back for more, it's the fact that at any moment (whilst ever a baited rod is in the water), even the most unpromising session can be turned in the blink of an eye into a glorious triumph, should a fish of our dreams choose to suck in our bait and get firmly hooked.

As I arrived on the banks of Wetlands Lakes at 7.00 am on 10th June 2019, had I known what epic adventure awaited me, I would have approached it with rather more enthusiasm than was actually the case. After several days of persistent and mood dampening rainfall, with only the prospect of more to come, little wonder that I struggled to find much appetite for the 24 hours ahead. Worst still, the dank conditions were to be accompanied by a cold north easterly wind. If ever there was a time when the conditions seemed wholly unpromising, this was most definitely it. Even though the rain had eased off for a brief spell in the morning, more was expected before midday and a distinct nip in the air called for several layers of warm clothing instead of last week's T-shirt and light weight trousers.

Not surprisingly, Richard had greeted me at the gates with the news that all the pegs were currently free. However, he suggested that I avoid pegs 3 to 5, so that a couple of anglers practising for the British carp cup matches might be able to fish together when they arrived later in the day. Richard had also plied me with a couple of bags of free test bait to trial, with a view to developing a bespoke, lake special boilie range.