Here at Villefond we keep a photographic record of each fish capture reported to us by the anglers fishing the lake. This is done so that we can track the progress of each fish regarding weight gains (which are phenomenal) and so on.
Anyone interested can take a look at these photographic records via our Villefond Fish Facebook page. (Please note there are so many fish that not all albums are on this page yet, but I am getting there.)
The other great thing about keeping these records is that I get to notice any interesting trends regarding when certain fish tend to get caught. Some of the Villefond fish have a tendency to disappear, sometimes for over a year, only to turn up again just as you start to forget about them.
With yet another fish joining the ever increasing list of 50’s this week, I have decided to use these records to point out some interesting points about this latest Villefond lump.
The first recorded capture of this massive carp (which unlike a lot of big carp remains unnamed at this time) was in May 2010 when she already weighed 31lb. Being a real looker of a fish she was instantly considered one to watch out for. After this first capture she slipped into an unmistakable trend. In the years to follow she would only visit the bank twice a year, once in the late summer and again in October.
31lb 14oz – 2010
It was this October capture that was of particular interest as this was when she was in her prime condition and at her heaviest. By October 2010 she was already up to 37lb. October 2011 saw her over the 40lb mark for the first time and by October 2012 she was looking huge at 47lb 6oz.
42lb – 2012
We were now certain that by October 2013 she would be another addition to the 50lb list but strangely, although she made her late summer visit to the bank, she never showed up in October. Perhaps she had been hooked and lost or maybe she had become extra cautious around this time, who knows?
We had to wait till last week (February 2014) to see how big she had become and it was well worth the wait as she tipped the scales at 54lb 5oz. As suspected, over 50lb and looking as stunning as ever, this capture was definitely worth the extra wait. Who knows where this fish goes from here in regards to its weight, we will probably have to wait till October to find out, or maybe even longer.
54lb 5oz – 2014
Perhaps one of the reasons this fish is not often caught is the sensitive way in which a lot of the Villefond big carp feed. When they do pick up a rig they often stay in one spot, try and shake off the hook and often succeed. On this occasion the only bite indication was one bleep on the buzzer and then nothing. On investigating, the angler noticed the line was twitching slightly where it entered the water. A lot of people would have ignored this or written it off as a line bite, but on Villefond it is unwise to do this as it is often the only indication you will receive.
There are a lot of fish we expect to be over 50lbs on their next visit to the bank so watch this space in the coming weeks.
Cheers for reading guys.
Rob Inns
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