A Mixed Bag from Pallington Lakes

With the EEC bringing in a ban on the use of lead in all fishing products I thought it was time to interview Simon Pomaroy of Pallatrax Ltd the man who gave us the Stonze weight.

I chose to travel south last Sunday 1st July being a quiet time on the roads, I left home just after 6am. I suppose it was around noon when I arrived in Dorchester Dorset, with a no smoking ban now in place I decided to take lunch in a local Inn. After lunch I should have gone off to fly fish the river Frome, that idea was out. The river was bank high and the colour of oxtail soup.

Instead I went off and visited Thomas Hardy’s cottage, his home until the age of 34 where. It’s where Hardy had written Under the Greenwood Tree and Far from the Maddening Crowd. Having looked around the cottage, I then spent some time just sitting in the traditional cottage style garden, admiring the flowers and talking with other visitors. I also got a good photograph of the Comma butterfly.

Monday morning I visited the town of Dorchester spending a pleasant three hours roaming around the place, most of the time was spent in the second hand book shops. Lunch was a Cornish pasty; it was excellent I have never had better.

After lunch I went off to Pallington lakes to interview Simon and hopefully fish the Pallington lakes complex. Simon and his wife Tinni were with their two boys Jack and Ben. I soon got roped in to take Jack off fishing, How could I say no to a young lad with pleading eyes who said “Are you going to take me fishing Martin” I said “Yes” so of we went with a box of gentles and a float fishing outfit.

In between the showers Jack caught 5 rudd average about 6 – 8 ounces and 4 roach about the same size. It was a happy Jack that went off home with his Mum. After a mug of tea and a chat with the Boss of the outfit. Simon Tarrant the fishery manager showed me a swim where he said some good rudd was caught last week.
Now rudd are one of my favourite fish especially when they grow to 3lbs plus.

Collecting my gear from the car I made up a 13 foot float rod, centre pin reel, with 4lb Gamma line and a size 14 barbless hook. I attached by double rubber a red tipped quill float to take 3 bb shot. Plumbing the depth I found I had seven feet of water under my rod tip.

A few feet to my left was a willow tree many of its branches in the water? No doubt the home of the big rudd. I had been told about, perhaps a perch or two. I pinched one BB shot about four inches from the hook, the other two shot were evenly spaced between the tell tale shot and the float. Bait was a single grain of corn.

Having got everything ready, and on the advice of Simon I made up some method mix, feeding a pigeon egg size lump into my swim every few minutes with three for four grains of corn. Within minutes of starting I had my first fish a rudd about a pound, this was followed by a tench about five pounds.

Then I hooked something big and powerful, it was a carp which quickly got itself in the willow branches that trailed in the water. I could feel the line grating as it passed to and fro over the branches. All I could do was cramp on all the pressure I dare and waited. After a minute or so the fish was clear and out in the open water. It was a long slogging match under the rod tip, the pressure of well balanced tackle and my years of experience told. Soon I had a super common carp in the net.

One angler said “That was a good display of how to play a fish” It weighed 15-8-0 there wasn’t a buzzer or bivvy in sight. I had another common carp of 14lbs and lost one that broke me after I tried to stop it getting in some reeds. My best tench weighed in at 6lbs. Though I didn’t catch any big rudd, I was seeking; I did catch a few Rudd and roach to about a pound. Bream and eels also had a liking for corn. It was what I would call a mixed bag.

Gamma Line and Sugar Puffs

As many of you know I have been using Gamma line for the past four perhaps five years with great success both in fresh and saltwater, it’s the best I have used. The knot strength and abrasion quality of this line are excellent I cannot fault it. In the years I have been using Gamma my listerners and readers have asked where it could be purchased. All I could say was in the United States. I didn’t know of any UK tackle shops that stocked the product.

For some years Pallatrax have given us the amazing Stones weights and various baits in paste, boily and stick form which have accounted for a lot of big fish including the record barbel. Now Pallatrax Ltd has the distribution of Gamma line in the UK and Europe. It should be in a tackle shop near your in August.

You never know it all in this great sport or pastime, perhaps it’s a passion. I reckon its all three. I certainly learnt something new from Simon Pomaroy; it’s what he calls, the Sugar puff mix. A new idea of baiting with the method mix. So simple, yet so effective. Simon adds one or two handfuls of sugar puffs to his method mix, which causes the mix to float, where it slowly breaks up sending a continuous trail of fine crumb down through the water. Having watched it in action I could see lot of possibilities. I will keep you posted.