Porky out at a big fat 50lb 4oz
Perseverance paid off for Glen Stones as a frustrating three-night session was saved by the capture of one of the jewels of Monk’s Pit at 50lb 4oz.
The fish, known as Porky, was braced with a mid-double common at the end of the weekend session at the Cambridgeshire syndicate water.
Glen had moved on to showing fish and baited heavily, but endured two biteless nights, a phantom bite from a fish trailing line and heavy rain, before landing the fifty and smashing his personal best.
The bite came at 7.10am on the final morning, as Glen explained: “On lifting the rod I stopped the run and felt a couple of kicks before it weeded me up. I kept gaining line the whole time and slowly pumped the solid weight closer. I felt one more kick about two minutes in and then a 7ft ball of weed broke the surface at 30 yards!
“I feared the fish had fallen off, even more so when 15 yards out I could see half my hooklink! My heart sank and I pulled the weed bed to the base of the platform. I didn't even get the net, expecting to see my pop-up nestled in the weed.
“I started slowly ripping the weed apart and couldn't believe it when I was greeted by a large carp’s head. Thinking it may go 30lb, I lunged for my net to bundle all the weed into. It wasn't until I'd got rid of all the weed and partly lifted the net to see my prize that I realised what was lying there. It was The big un, Porky at 50lb 4oz! It was the first time this year it had got back up to 50lb and my pb was smashed!”
Glen used a 14mm Trent Baits SSD Pro 9 pop-up fished over SSD pellets and crushed boilies. His hooklinks were made with size 6 Korda Krank hooks and 25lb Fox Coretex fished as multi rigs.