41 Fishing
Court Farm, Tadley
Enjoyment - 88%
Success - 60%
Will try again - Yes
First timer’s recommendation – as I’ve said most weeks; go with someone who knows what they’re doing and already has the gear, to save you buying it all and leaving it to gather dust in the garage.
Some people would say that fishing isn’t a sport, that it’s more of a pastime, but we have been catching fish since the dawn of time, and once you start comparing the size of catches, the competitive element is there. There are apparently more people out fishing on any given weekend then there are playing any other sport, including football, so it is technically the most popular sport in the world. In the spirit of diversity, and also because I had never tried it before, it took a place on my list. For about the last six months I have been loosely following a vegan diet, cutting out milk completely and also my meat and fish intake by about 90%. Aside from the health benefits of cutting our dairy and reducing the amount of red meat I eat, reading more about intensive farming has genuinely put me off a lot of food stuffs, but I can make exceptions, such as having eggs from the father-in-law’s hens he has strutting round the garden, or eating a fish caught by a Cornish fisherman on his own in a boat. So, fishing with a line is OK in my eyes.
Kayleigh’s grandfather is one of those men who knows how to do anything practical, and has been fishing since he was five years old. He has the full set of rods, reels, hook, weights, and a couple of decent umbrellas which were essential for the day I chose. Court Farm Lakes in Tadley, just on the border of Berkshire and Hampshire has three lakes of varying sizes, and we went for Lake 1, the carp lake, which was £15 for the two of us. You need a rod licence to fish in the UK, which can be bought annually, or for one (£3.75) or eight days, and you need in case the Environment Agency turns up. I imagine they would break your rods over their knees and throw them in the lake if you don’t have one. Despite the heavy rain, we both caught decent-sized carp, Mick a 12lb, and me an 8lb, although I had two what seemed like heavier fish hooked on, who managed to break the lines. We used spam for bait, non-barbed hooks, and threw the fish back in afterwards, and I could see why fishing appeals to so many, even after one wet morning on the lake. The drive to a what is usually a nice location in the country, the intricate set up of all the gear, the skill needed to cast off, the patience and experience needed to know when you have a bite, and the satisfaction when pulling in a decent fish showed me that there is as much to fishing, if not more than any other sport I have tried this year.
