A morning of maintenance, a pasty and a surprise carp.

Arrived early to help Jan with the lake maintenance - the sort of steady, necessary work that keeps the place running smoothly. First job was changing the dip‑tank water, something that needs doing regularly, then clearing the outlet pipe of its usual mix of algae and leaves. After that we moved on to peg 14, where some of the fill had slipped beneath the front board. Progress was good… until the power cut arrived in the form of flat batteries. Work party over. Peg temporarily closed. Reinstatement soon.

The upside? Tea, biscuits and the usual banter before the rods came out.

Other anglers were already into carp, so prospects looked bright. I settled into peg 9, set up the float rod, and began lunch — a proper locally made Cornish pasty. Dragonflies were everywhere: Golden‑ringed, Red Darters, and Beautiful Demoiselles flickering over the margins. Our lonely young buzzard called across the valley. And the pond skaters… thousands of them this year. A moving carpet.

Out on the water, the mallard family — at least a dozen strong — held court in the centre of the lake, inspecting anything edible left by anglers or moorhens. A large bite of pasty coincided with the disappearance of my float. Missed. Bait gone. Recast. More pasty. Magpies chattered, wrens scolded, and the lake settled into its familiar chorus.

Then the float vanished again. Strike. Solid resistance. A carp tore off, taking line, circling away from the reeds into open water. Side strain, breathe, wind down, steady pressure… and into the net. A lovely common, around 9lb — except it wasn’t on my hook. I’d caught someone else’s escapee by the swivel. Anyone else managed that trick?

After that came a run of hand‑sized roach, 8–10oz, likely some of the recently stocked fish now looking healthy and bright. Time was ticking, so I packed up and chatted with the other anglers: perch to 2lb, eels, bream to 1.5lb, carp to 15lb, our familiar 1.5lb crucian (again?) plus another around a pound, and plenty of small roach.

And just as I was stowing the gear, a flash of electric blue — a kingfisher arrowing the length of the lake.

Another thoroughly pleasant day at the lake.

Julian Little

Secretary - Marazion Angling Club

5th September 2026