Fishing on a warm but moon-lit night at one of the well-known Kent lakes I was able to make out the sub-surface movements of some hefty carp way out in the eastern bay. I knew the water to be deep there – 12-15 ft – and knew that a chunk of crust presented on a standard running leger or even on a 3-4 ft paternoster would lack the buoyancy required to pull 60yds of line through the water and make it to the surface in so doing.
I figured that a paternoster trace as long as the water was deep would completely eliminate the problem – and it did, without any spooky swivels, shots or beads on the line’s business-end; the paternoster-trace swivel would sit directly upon the crust making for a bizarre-looking arrangement with the bait actually touching the rod’s tip eye and the 2oz bomb scraping the ground.
Of course, this necessitated a pendulum cast, or one of the ‘South African’ style where the bomb is launched from the ground. Lacking sufficient space I went for the former and after a few swings I was able to fully load the rod and send the rig – bomb first – into the centre of the bay.
With the bale-arm left open it was with much satisfaction that I heard the lead plosh then, half a moment later, the sound of the bread lightly smack the surface – and stay there! On a loose line, the paternoster swivel would have slipped back and well away from the baited hook. Once all was settled I carefully wound-in just a little of the slack without pulling on the bait; I then folded a piece of silver foil on the line but I certainly didn’t rely on it given the very loose nature of everything: this was a sight job.
After twenty minutes or so I did, indeed, perceive a distant, oily wallowing in the vicinity of my bait and immediately picked up the rod; the Baco-foil rose only a few inches but that was enough to make me strike and pull the hook home.
