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  • 2 days ago
The Grand Fishing Adventure S01E03
Transcript
00:00Weee, gotcha!
00:05Oh, that was close, wasn't it?
00:07That'd have been as rare as seeing you score at Anfield, that.
00:15Two friends.
00:16I'm glad you gave me the head end.
00:18On a fishing bucket list tour.
00:21Lovely fish.
00:22Footballing fisherman Bobby Zamora.
00:24That is the greatest fishing moment of my life.
00:27And me, Ali Hamidi.
00:29Oh, yeah!
00:31Oh, he's gotcha!
00:32We're kicking off in the Great British Isles.
00:35Look at that coastline.
00:37Visiting some of its most iconic angling venues.
00:40It's more like the Copacabana.
00:42Living it up Bankside.
00:44This is incredible. Ours is not looking like that, is it?
00:47And we'll be catching some of Britain's biggest and best fish.
00:51Wow. UK, thank you.
00:53Got my new PB.
00:55Big gal!
00:56This is the Grand Fishing Adventure.
01:00Well, it's a plodder.
01:01I think we've got a decent fish here, you know.
01:03Go on, Al.
01:04Go on, Al.
01:21Well, here we are in the beautiful village or town of Rautam.
01:26Loudham.
01:27Loudham.
01:28Loudham!
01:32What are the chances?
01:34Get it?
01:35No, I don't.
01:36I'm known for being loud.
01:38Yeah.
01:39Loudham.
01:40You get it though, innit?
01:41No, I don't.
01:42Ah, Zamo.
01:43His head has obviously been hit by too many footballs.
01:46Anyway, we were in Nottinghamshire on our way to the county's most famous river at a stretch near to Gunform.
01:52Here she is.
01:53The mighty river Trent.
01:55I'm excited for this.
01:57I really am.
01:58And so was I.
01:59The reason we were here, the Prince of the River, otherwise known as the Barbel.
02:05This torpedo-shaped river brew is built for power.
02:09To catch a double figure barbel is a massive achievement and this stretch has been known to produce many large doubles, up to an eye-watering 19 pounds.
02:18A fish called Delilah.
02:20But conditions were far from ideal.
02:22The Trent is the UK's third longest river.
02:25Some people believe that the name is linked to the Celtic word for strong flood and it was pretty much living up to its name.
02:32I must say though, I feel like I should probably have my crash helmet and my raft with me.
02:37It does look pretty lively.
02:39The thing is, one of the good things to remember about barbel fishing and river fishing is floodwater fishing can often be prolific.
02:47But it can also be completely the other way and rubbish.
02:50Well listen, I'm excited.
02:52My first time actually targeting barbel out and outright.
02:55So listen, my PB is not going to be hard to beat.
02:59One ounce.
03:00Exactly.
03:02We had two nights ahead of us and we were fishing straight through.
03:05The mission, to both catch a barbel, then hopefully to tick one off over the magical ten pound barrier.
03:11Current barbel experience, Robert De Niro.
03:14But I've come to one of the best rivers in the country, the Trent, to try and catch some.
03:19There's some huge barbel here as well and I'm super excited.
03:23It's going to be hard.
03:24This cold water is definitely going to affect the fishing.
03:27Flooding through, chucking through, white water.
03:30So the targets are modest, you know.
03:32Time for me to show Zammo the barbel rigs.
03:35So look, there's a bit of a theme here.
03:38Everything's big and bulky.
03:39The reason is you've got a ten ounce gripper to hold the bottom because the water's flowing so fast.
03:44A feeder stuffed with stinky ground bait that's eight ounces in weight.
03:48Again, to hold bottom, okay.
03:50But then the bit of finesse, you've got probably two, two and a half foot of fluorocarbon, ten pounds.
03:56Eight, size eight hook.
03:58Could go up to six, the barbel is so big here.
04:00And then really there, you've got, look, these two little, I suppose, 12 mil quad boilies.
04:05And what I like to do, to add to the smell, wrap them in paste.
04:09Okay, like that.
04:10So that gives you a little ball.
04:12And really, with the paste plugged into the big lead, paste wrapped on that one as well,
04:17and that stinky ground bait, everything is geared up to smell.
04:21Yeah.
04:22Yeah?
04:23Bit like you, 90 minutes on the football pitch.
04:25What do you smell like when you come off?
04:26Fantastic.
04:27That's what we want in that ground bait.
04:29Exactly.
04:30So, feeders and leads filled with barbel bomb baits, stinky link hook baits.
04:34Oh, it was time to rock and roll.
04:37Roads are out.
04:44Let's get a bit of grubbing now.
04:47I filled a large feeder on my extra rod to get some bait out upstream of where we were both fishing,
04:53to create a scent trail through the murky water for the barbel to hopefully home in on.
04:59It wasn't long before we realised we faced a battle with the flood water.
05:03Welcome to the jungle.
05:06It's going to be a few days of this, I think.
05:09Plenty of debris.
05:11Such a fun game.
05:12Such a fun game.
05:13Oh, and a bird's point.
05:14Has he got a really high rig?
05:16Just to love it.
05:17Love it.
05:18A shocker of a start.
05:20You look like you've just been hit with a wet kipper.
05:25Your body language is disgusting.
05:27What are you saying, pal?
05:29This is like Barcelona playing on a boggy pitch in the middle of January in scumful.
05:38You're negative, I'm positive.
05:43I'm open mate, I'm clutching, come on.
05:45We've just been here a couple of hours.
05:47Stay positive with me.
05:48Clutching some wanderers?
05:49Yeah, clutching some wanderers.
05:51I just wish I shared Zamora's optimism.
06:02Oh yeah!
06:03Yeah!
06:04We're on!
06:06You've been proven wrong mate.
06:09I've been proven wrong.
06:12I have to get down there.
06:13You alright, pal?
06:15Whatever it was, it didn't feel massive.
06:17We'll have to get down here.
06:19Oi, that's a proper surprise mate.
06:21What is it even?
06:23What is it?
06:24A grayling?
06:25I reckon the lead's heavier.
06:27What is it?
06:28That's a barbel.
06:29I'm not even joking, that's a barbel mate.
06:31Look.
06:34That's the smartest barbel in the history of the River Trent.
06:38Oi, this would be your PB.
06:40What are you laughing at?
06:41No, I'm buzzing for it mate.
06:42I'm more pleased that it shut you up to be honest.
06:45You doubted the swim, you doubted the conditions,
06:47and we've got one in the net.
06:48Shush!
06:49Shush!
06:50Shush!
06:51With a finger in the shush.
06:52Shush now, little boy.
06:53Little barbel.
06:54Ah, brilliant.
06:55Well, he's kept his dorsal up.
06:57Well done.
06:58We were at least off the mark.
07:00It was about one and a half pounds.
07:02Perfection in miniature.
07:05Several hours later, another barbel joined the party.
07:08Oh!
07:09Oh, there it is.
07:10Oh, it's a...
07:11Look at that leather.
07:12I know.
07:13Honestly, I told you.
07:18I told you it happened.
07:20I knew it was going to happen first evening.
07:22Eat your words, eh?
07:23Eat your words.
07:24Oh, there we go.
07:26They are growing in size very nicely indeed.
07:30Honestly, you need to be optimistic in this game.
07:34He knows what he's talking about.
07:36We were certainly going in the right direction.
07:39Just needed Zammo to catch now.
07:41The following morning, we were greeted by the sight of the water level having dropped,
07:47which was good news for the fishing.
07:49There was a spot a couple of hundred yards up the river called the Island Swim at the Weir.
07:55Often a prolific area for day bites, we'd been told.
07:58So we decided to give it a go.
08:00The water drop meant it was now just about fishable.
08:04Apparently.
08:05Al, this is looking very much like the river Congo.
08:11Is this actually going to hold bottom?
08:14You are asking the wrong man.
08:16I mean, have you ever fished on the bank with a life jacket on?
08:19That's a great point, actually.
08:23That puts it into perspective, doesn't it?
08:26Well, let's go, let's go.
08:41Al, I'm going to call it a day, mate, on this little stretch.
08:46I'm going to get back down to where we was, mate.
08:48Are you serious again already?
08:49Yes, mate, yeah.
08:50Oh.
08:51Have fun watching that lead bounce about.
08:53So Bob sacked off the Weir, returned to base camp and got the rods back out sharpish
08:58in the hope of breaking his barbled duck.
09:00Quack, quack.
09:01Leaving me to see out the last few hours of daylight alone.
09:08Whoa, look at that.
09:10What about that?
09:13We have caught.
09:15We have caught.
09:17Barely.
09:18I think that's a little barble.
09:20What about that?
09:21Got my new PB.
09:22New PB barble.
09:25Smashed.
09:26Absolutely smashed.
09:27Look at that.
09:28Little barble.
09:29Unbelievable.
09:30That looks suspiciously like a gudgeon to me.
09:34I'll let him know later.
09:37Absolutely amazing.
09:38Go on, off you go.
09:40Meanwhile, back at the Weir.
09:42Oh.
09:43That's a bite, innit?
09:44Yeah, we're on.
09:45Never give up.
09:49Have we got ourselves a double finger barble?
09:55Gab, get him mate.
09:56Just stay safe and stay low.
10:00Luckily, crew member Gabby was at hand to help.
10:04I tell you what, I think this is a good fish.
10:07Oh, they're big lunges.
10:09We might have a proper barble here.
10:12Oh yeah, it's a barble.
10:16Oh, it's treacherous.
10:18Right, Gab, ready?
10:21You got it.
10:22You got it.
10:23Well done.
10:24Well done.
10:25The big question.
10:27Had I completed the full mission with a double?
10:30No.
10:31No, I'm miles out.
10:32I'm miles out.
10:33It is not a double.
10:35A lovely old fish.
10:37That'll warm anyone up on a November's day.
10:40Wicked.
10:41What did it go, Al?
10:438 pounds 11.
10:45Fair play.
10:46Good angling to the man.
10:47Stuck it out in there.
10:48In that white water.
10:50With his crash helmet, his life vest and his raft.
10:52Good angling.
10:53Back she went and back I went to base camp
10:56to get the rods out for the final night.
10:59Coming up, Bob's barble bubble bursts.
11:02He be broken?
11:03Yeah, mate.
11:04It's up to bits.
11:05It's in it.
11:06So you've never had a gudging before?
11:07Barble.
11:14Less than 24 hours remained on the trend.
11:17I'd come the closest to completing our £10 barble mission.
11:20No, I'm miles out.
11:21It is not a double.
11:22And Bob thought he'd finally broken his lifelong barble blank.
11:26Look at that.
11:27Little barble.
11:28Unbelievable.
11:29What an absolute banger.
11:39Absolute chuffed with myself today.
11:42Look at it.
11:43Perfection.
11:46PB broken?
11:47Yeah, mate.
11:48Chuffed.
11:49Chuffed to bits.
11:50Seen it?
11:51Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
11:53So you've never had a gudging before then, no?
11:55Barble.
11:56Barble.
11:57No, no, no, mate.
11:59Have a close look.
12:00Little inspection, look.
12:01That's it.
12:02Have a look at that tail.
12:03Look at that tail.
12:04Barble have dots on them, do they?
12:05On their tails?
12:06Do they have, like, bright black marks?
12:08Never caught one, pal, so.
12:09Still haven't.
12:11Must try harder, Zamo.
12:16I thought I'd join the barble club.
12:19A few hours later, he was into something else that looked small.
12:25Another specimen gudging?
12:27No, it's a barble.
12:31Get in there.
12:32Hallelujah.
12:33Hallelujah.
12:34And there is my PB.
12:38What a cracker.
12:41It's the size of a cracker, more like.
12:44The following day, it was our last chance to hit the double figure mark.
12:53So, we headed back to the weir for one final roll of the dice.
13:06Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh.
13:13Swimming upstream.
13:14I like that when they do that.
13:16Only a big fish could swim against an immense current like this.
13:20Don't like the grating, though.
13:24Ah, it's off.
13:27Cut off, I think.
13:29No!
13:30So, what's happened is, where he's bouncing on the bottom, the point's been damaged, which happens out there.
13:40So, then you haven't got good penetration with the hook.
13:43When you do hook a fish, the hook is only just in.
13:46That is gutting.
13:49Do you know what?
13:53I don't normally get too upset when I lose a fish.
13:55I always think, oh, I'll get another bite.
13:57But when you know that bites are going to be very hard to come by.
14:00Today, when I lost that fish, I sort of felt like that might be our only chance.
14:05That could have been the big double I was waiting for.
14:08It wasn't to be.
14:10Gutted.
14:11For the remaining few hours, we swapped sides to give Bob a go on the more fruitful left area.
14:18Whee!
14:19Gotcha!
14:20Oh, that is close, isn't it?
14:22That'd have been as rare as seeing you score at Anfield, that.
14:26But the day flew past with, unfortunately, no more pulls.
14:32Oh, well, looks like we have missed out on the dream big barbell.
14:42Dream big barbell, yeah.
14:44But personal best barbell, I've achieved.
14:47Let's wind him in.
14:50On to the next one.
14:52I really didn't fancy to catch anything, actually, and we ended up catching a few.
14:56So, proud that we caught on our first trip to a river.
15:00I've never fished before, but just didn't get that monster.
15:03But it sets it up.
15:04We can always come back.
15:06That's what fishing's all about.
15:08But for myself, I'm a happy chap.
15:10I've caught my first ever barbell and two species on this trip as well.
15:14Since our barbell trip, the winter passed and spring had arrived.
15:25The reason for the wait?
15:27Ah, this is funny.
15:30I've managed to secure exclusive permission to fish in untapped private water,
15:35one of many in the UK.
15:37This particular top secret lake just happened to be owned by a good friend of mine.
15:41This venue is so far under the radar that even Bob couldn't know the details.
15:53Rubber.
15:54What's happening?
15:55I'm very sorry to have to do this to you.
15:58Give me your phone.
15:59OK.
16:00Give me your phone.
16:02Lovely.
16:03Now for the best bit.
16:06Batman.
16:07Think Batman.
16:08Come here.
16:10Mate, honestly, I'm not...
16:12I'm not a good...
16:15Oh.
16:16Car sickness is going to kick in, I think.
16:18Come here.
16:19OK.
16:20So, can you...
16:21Can you definitely not see?
16:22Mate, can't...
16:23Did you see...
16:24Honestly.
16:25Bruv.
16:26Did you see that?
16:27Right, OK.
16:28Honestly, you're definitely going to have a bit of my porridge over the dashboard.
16:31You definitely can't see that.
16:33Don't.
16:34Alright, no, no, just checking because this is important.
16:36It's a sharp turn.
16:37I'm really, really, really not enjoying this already.
16:41But I was loving it.
16:43We had a long drive ahead of us to somewhere here in England.
16:48Location classified.
16:50We're going to somewhere very special, mate.
16:53It's a big mystery because you don't really know what's in it.
16:58Flip it.
16:59Oh.
17:00Hey.
17:01Mate.
17:02You got this for about two and a half hours.
17:07Actually, it was only a 40 minute drive.
17:09I was winding him up.
17:11Listen, your van is going to absolutely stink if you carry on like this, mate.
17:15Honestly, I guarantee you...
17:16How is it?
17:17We're on a straight road here.
17:18Yeah.
17:19Badger.
17:20Badger.
17:21Badger.
17:22Badger.
17:23Honestly.
17:24Massive badger.
17:25I thought it was a little extreme.
17:26The distance I had to go with a blindfold on.
17:28To be honest, as soon as I put it on, I felt sick in the van as well.
17:32I mean, it just wasn't a nice feeling at all.
17:37You've arrived, you know.
17:40We're here.
17:41Can I take it off?
17:42No.
17:43I'm going to come and help you out.
17:44Don't want you to walk into a tree.
17:48God, that's over.
17:49Don't be silly.
17:50No, man.
17:51I'm not going to be silly.
17:52Wait there.
17:53Right.
17:54I'm going to guide you.
17:55We're going to go onto black ground.
17:56Sit, mate.
17:57Just walk steady.
17:58Nice clean walk here.
17:59Don't.
18:00Nice clean walk here.
18:01Sorry, sorry, sorry.
18:02Move.
18:03Sorry.
18:04I didn't see the rocks, mate.
18:05I didn't see the rocks.
18:06Honestly, I didn't see the rocks.
18:07You're so big.
18:08Change of footing coming up.
18:09You're always on holiday, so you'd be used to this feeling.
18:10Right.
18:11Stop there.
18:12Mr Zamora, I'd like to welcome you to Karpie Corner.
18:24Change of footing coming up.
18:26You're always on holiday, so you'd be used to this feeling.
18:30Right, stop there.
18:33Mr Zamora, I'd like to welcome you to Carpy Corner.
18:39Mate, a carpy corner, it's more like the Copacabana.
18:43Is there actually carp in here?
18:45Not half, mate.
18:45This secret lake appears to be a carp angler's dream.
18:55Ging clear water, tree-lined margins, weedy areas, clear spots and supposedly some very stunning carp.
19:03Only one man has info on it and we've been told to keep his identity anonymous.
19:09I got the lake about ten years ago, since I started fishing here.
19:17A hundred plus good carp have come out of there.
19:21Good carp, pretty carp and good nick.
19:23Total number, we don't know.
19:25If we did, probably wouldn't tell you.
19:27The biggest one that's come out there is 40 plus.
19:30But if you ask me, I think there's fish in there that might be bigger.
19:32I've seen quite a few mystery shadows floating around in areas that are quite inaccessible, hard to get to.
19:41If I was going to give some advice, I'd say target snags.
19:44Don't put too much bait in.
19:47Sit on your rods, tight lines.
19:49You haven't got a lot of time when a fish does take it.
19:52I'm very lucky to have access to such a special water.
19:56And hopefully we can keep it a nice secret, even after this video comes out.
20:02Only one gentleman has been fishing this lake for three or four years.
20:08So it really, really is an unknown what is actually in here.
20:13And that's the exciting part, you know, us being able to fish it hard for a few days and really see if there's something special in here.
20:19I don't think the stock in here is that high.
20:23It won't be easy.
20:25Every bite is going to be exhilarating.
20:28And size, well, that's the whole magic of coming to somewhere mythical.
20:32You never know what's going to bite.
20:35God, look at that.
20:38So many options.
20:39I really don't know where to start, but it's very exciting.
20:43It was a very special venue that even comes with bankside quirks.
20:49For example, it has wood carvings all over the shop.
20:52Hang on a minute.
20:54They look familiar.
20:55We had four nights ahead of us with limited intel.
20:58Therefore, timers of the essence and rigs were top of the agenda.
21:01Fluorocarbon D-Rig, completely invisible.
21:05Needs to be as well in this gin clear water.
21:07And if they are a little bit spooky, this would do the job.
21:13Bob was going for the same stealth D-Rig on all rods, but with different coloured and flavoured
21:18high attract hook bait.
21:19And I'd gone for two similar D-Rigs and a spinner rig, which would sit the bait up just
21:25off the lake bed.
21:26Neither of us would be casting, as we needed pinpoint accuracy to find holes in the weed
21:31and to get some rods tight to the snags.
21:35Good thing about gin clear water is you can see the bottom.
21:39I'm certainly going to get out there on the boat, have a look for some spots, find some
21:43clear areas and try and drop the rigs to start with by hand.
21:48We were both looking for spots clear of weed, either right near the snags where the carp would
21:53be hiding and visiting, or clear areas just off the bank.
21:57Well, I'm going to put the first rod out.
21:59We've got a lot of stumps in that here.
22:02They come a long way out.
22:05And then there's a big shallow area just down there.
22:09Perfect for presenting one of my hook baits.
22:12Get the rig out.
22:14I very gently placed it onto the clear spot.
22:18Bob did the same in his swim, which was about 150 yards to my right.
22:22We scattered a few cell boilies, particles and pellets to hopefully draw in the carp.
22:28We just hoped it wouldn't attract any unwanted species.
22:32We've both repeated the process for all rods.
22:38All three rods out.
22:40Obviously very happy.
22:42Hand-placed myself.
22:44So, fingers crossed for the evening.
22:46Ready to rumble.
22:50Hopefully we get to unveil some of the lake's mysteries.
22:53There's a chance on lakes like this that you get a quick bite.
22:56One of us gets a quick bite and then that could spook the fish out of the area.
23:00Because I have fished virgin lakes before and it's the opposite of what people might think.
23:05They don't just hang themselves and get bite after bite.
23:08The fish move off as soon as there's danger in the area.
23:11Just so excited for what's in this lake and what we may catch.
23:17We were setting our fishing mission high.
23:20The ultimate goal would be to catch a 30 pound plus carp.
23:24But could we do it?
23:26Well, we're away.
23:33That was a bolt out of the blue.
23:35I don't think this is a carp.
23:38How's in?
23:40I'm guessing probably a tench.
23:44Looks like a small fish, though.
23:47Tench.
23:49Well, we did say it was going to be a guessing game.
23:54Need a landing net.
23:58There we go.
24:01Well, it's our first fish.
24:04From the secret lake.
24:09Fair play.
24:11Well, our first fish.
24:14And it was a tinker.
24:16The Latin name for the humble tench, tinker, tinker.
24:19A lovely species.
24:21I just hope we don't get bothered by them.
24:22Coming up, Bob becomes bemused.
24:26What have you got, Bob?
24:27Sun, sea, sand and tench.
24:30Ha, ha, ha.
24:38We were at a secret lake somewhere in England.
24:41Even Bob didn't know where it was.
24:43It's more like the Copacabana.
24:44Our mission, to catch a 30-pound carp.
24:47But so far all we'd caught was a tench.
24:50It's our first fish.
24:55Oh, oh.
24:56Oh, there you go.
24:58Brilliant.
24:58Yep.
25:02I think I'm dragging weed rather than a fish.
25:05I can see bubbles coming up from the bottom.
25:09But it's...
25:09Yeah, I don't think there's a fish on here.
25:13Are you sure it's not one of our friends with those cute little teddy bear eyes?
25:18I seem to have myself a nice tench.
25:20What have you got, Bob?
25:22Sun, sea, sand and tench.
25:25Ha, ha, ha.
25:26He told me it's a carp lake.
25:28He told me it's a carp lake.
25:30Oh.
25:31Oh.
25:33Oh.
25:34Oh.
25:35Was this our first carp?
25:36Surely it couldn't be a team trio of tench.
25:39He's in again.
25:41I think I've got another tench.
25:43Ha, ha, ha, ha.
25:44Tinker number two for me.
25:47It was tench-tastic all around the gaff.
25:50Not really what we wanted.
25:52Sorry, Mr. Tench.
25:55Oh, OK.
25:56It's like that is it.
25:59Naughty little so-and-so.
26:01A nightmare start.
26:02Where were these mysterious carp?
26:04Had we been given false intel?
26:07Rigs were refreshed in the hope we hadn't.
26:14Surely not the quadruple.
26:20Definitely not a tench, I don't think.
26:22And then there's plenty of weed everywhere,
26:24so you can feel it every now and then, catching the weed.
26:28Come on, Zamo.
26:29Guide it through the weed and snags.
26:31What was the mystery lake going to throw up this time?
26:34Yes, that's what we want.
26:36Nice one, son.
26:37Now, first...
26:39We have a little carp.
26:42Nice.
26:46Get in there.
26:47£14.1.
26:49It's not going to beat my PB, but it's a start.
26:53Let's get you back.
26:55We were finally off the carp mark.
26:58Hopefully we'd seen the back of the tench too, at least for now.
27:02I then had a bite that I was certain was a carp,
27:05but it got instantly snagged
27:07and I went out in the boat to try and free it, but to no avail.
27:10No fish on that.
27:12So I rigged, snagged fish, gone through the trees.
27:18An hour later and Bob was in again.
27:21A mysterious shape emerged from the depths.
27:25Another carp.
27:26And this one looked bigger.
27:28They'd obviously now found the bait
27:30and were bullying the tench out of the way.
27:32And the branch as well.
27:35So, just shy of £20, but a mint, a mint little thing.
27:41So, I'm over the moon with this.
27:43Excited to see what else we can catch.
27:45Another mystical piece of the jigsaw was returned to the secret lake.
27:53The Dazzler was on fire.
27:56Another one safely in the back of the net.
27:59A carp hat trick for Zamora.
28:02Only small, but a massive achievement
28:04and one more step closer to that £30 carp.
28:14Just after first light, I got another chance.
28:18This one, I'd manage to safely guide away from the snags.
28:22Right, let's see if we can get this in the net.
28:25Look at this scaly fish.
28:26Look, that's a mega.
28:29Come on.
28:30Come on.
28:31Look at that net.
28:33Ready?
28:34Yes.
28:37Woo!
28:39Nice carp.
28:42Nice.
28:43A beautiful landmark carp.
28:46Our biggest so far.
28:48Look at that carp.
28:53How does she start with that?
28:56Well, we've worked through some tench,
28:59had some dramas, had no sleep.
29:02We caught a carp like that.
29:04That'll do.
29:06That'll do lovely.
29:08Yes.
29:09That is a proper leanie.
29:12You know, small, tiny fins, fully scaled,
29:16a proper mega carp.
29:19I am really, really happy with that.
29:21The leanie strain of carp
29:22is one of the original, most beautiful strains in the UK.
29:26We seem to have caught the carp well and truly off their guard.
29:30We needed to make the most of it
29:32in case these wily old warriors wised up.
29:35I'm really happy with the start
29:37because Bobby's caught,
29:39so his confidence will be high.
29:40He'll be happy with his swim
29:42and then I'm off the mark as well.
29:44So we couldn't really have wished for more than that.
29:47What an electric 24 hours
29:49and of course we were now hungry.
29:52I had just the answer.
29:53I smuggled carp angler
29:55and two Michelin star chef Daniel Clifford
29:57into the secret venue.
29:59Be careful, though,
30:00that I'm going to walk you around the wing mirror.
30:02Yep.
30:02That's it.
30:03On the...
30:03There you go.
30:04Lovely.
30:05Lovely.
30:06It's very smooth on the feet.
30:07No rocks on this part, right?
30:08No rocks on this part, no.
30:11Ah, we take you to some nice places, didn't we?
30:13You never expected this, did you?
30:14What a beautiful location.
30:16So we're going to do katsu chicken
30:17with pilar rice
30:19and a nice sauce to go with it.
30:20It's very, very simple.
30:21I'll take you through it
30:22and then you both can cook your dinner.
30:24So we're going to start.
30:25A little bit of oil in the pan.
30:27So onions and garlic.
30:29Now the rice.
30:30500 mils of chicken stock.
30:31The whole bottle?
30:32The whole bottle.
30:33It's all weighed out for you.
30:33That's easy for you.
30:34See, the problem is
30:36I didn't concentrate at school.
30:37I just spoke all the time.
30:38Yeah, we know that, mate.
30:40We know that.
30:41Right, so now we have the chicken breast.
30:43That goes straight into the flour,
30:46the egg.
30:46Yeah.
30:47And then that goes in there.
30:48Right, rice is coming up.
30:50Timer on for that for four minutes.
30:51Some lime yoghurt,
30:52the cucumber,
30:53coriander,
30:54shallots that have been cooked
30:55in white wine vinegar.
30:56Right, this is butternut squash.
30:58Yeah.
30:58I've diced.
30:59That goes in when we get down to a minute.
31:00What are you laughing at?
31:06Too much to take in.
31:08I mean, yeah,
31:09it's going to be fun.
31:10Right, and what we need to do
31:11is wrap this up.
31:12Right, this is really important
31:13for the rice.
31:1420 minutes on the timer.
31:15Chicken in.
31:16About six minutes cooking.
31:17Chicken's resting.
31:18Now we have the sauce.
31:19That looks like a baby poo.
31:20Rice is ready.
31:23Now we've just got to fluff it up.
31:26Put the sauce on first.
31:30Cucumber and meat.
31:30There you go.
31:31Katsu chicken.
31:34Ours is not looking like that, is it?
31:36Oh, I hope so.
31:37It might look like that,
31:38but I don't think it's going to taste like that.
31:40It's not going to be easy, no,
31:42but like Daniel said,
31:43it isn't rocket science.
31:45So it's just getting the right order
31:46for the right amount of times
31:48it's whether I can remember that.
31:50Do you want some of this
31:51because this one's edible?
31:52No, I'm going to try yours.
31:54I'm really looking forward
31:55to see if you've paid attention.
31:57I do fancy myself in the kitchen.
31:59I ain't bad.
32:00I'm above average.
32:01Better than Bob.
32:03Right, boys,
32:04let's see who the better chef is.
32:08So the cook-off was on.
32:12Wish we had a screen in between,
32:13to be honest.
32:14He's just going to copy me
32:15the whole time.
32:15Bobby, you look like
32:18you really paid attention.
32:20Yeah, well, one of us was.
32:21The other one was just talking
32:22the whole time, wasn't he?
32:23Look at the way I'm sprinkling this in.
32:25Look at the TLC.
32:27This part, I've nailed.
32:29Add four items to it.
32:33Snowing.
32:34Look at Zamora.
32:35Or dandruff.
32:36Thinks he's Ainsley Ariat.
32:42Now you need to boil for four.
32:43Yeah.
32:45Boil for four.
32:46No, that's boiled for four, no.
32:47Has it?
32:48Yeah.
32:48No, it wasn't boiling,
32:49it's just started boiling.
32:51It's just started boiling.
32:52Yeah?
32:52Yeah.
32:53You need to add the butternut squash now.
32:55Yeah, you told him, man.
32:56I think that's boiled.
32:57For four minutes?
32:58No, I think so.
32:59Really?
33:00There was bubbles at the start.
33:01Yeah, that's sweet, man.
33:03Get them in there, slam them in.
33:05Yeah.
33:06I'm okay with that.
33:07Oh, shit.
33:08And flour first.
33:14That's an interpretation.
33:17Interpretation of the law.
33:18Don't say anything.
33:19It's fine.
33:20It's fine.
33:21He's gone for the go slow and copy.
33:23I haven't copied anything you've done, mate.
33:26Why do I want to copy that?
33:28Flour in second.
33:30And goes in.
33:30You might as well throw an egg on your head.
33:32Let's have a look.
33:33Listen, you just go second and copy me.
33:35Mate, I'm not, trust me, 100%.
33:37There's nothing to you I want to copy, yeah.
33:38100%.
33:39I like my food salty, so.
33:41Oh, your attention's here.
33:43That is amazing.
33:43Yeah.
33:44Is it all right?
33:44Yeah, it's all right.
33:45I'm impressed.
33:46Yeah.
33:47How are you getting on there, Al?
33:49Beautifully.
33:49I feel very confident.
33:51What have I got left to do?
33:52Not a lot.
33:53Just got to wait for my rice in 24 seconds.
33:57Right, it looks like you're both at the same spot now,
33:59so let's get the dishes put together.
34:05I'm going to be honest with the pair of you.
34:07What's impressive is they both look really, really good.
34:12Ah, but the true gauge of quality would be the taste test.
34:16Which one of us had it in the bag?
34:18Right, Bobby, let's start with yours, shall we?
34:21The chicken's perfect.
34:23Your rice is raw.
34:26You wouldn't moan if you was on the bank, like Russell.
34:29Probably, yeah.
34:30Considering it's the first time you've cooked it,
34:33I think you've done a great job.
34:35Right, then.
34:36I was worried it was too salty.
34:39No, the chicken's perfect.
34:42The excitement in Ali's face.
34:45The rice is perfect.
34:49Oh, man, I'm going to slip you that fibre after this.
34:51There is a clear winner.
34:53Bobby, I would eat that all day long,
34:56but I would pay for that.
34:57That is as good as mine.
34:59Oh, wow.
35:01Wow.
35:02Mum, are you watching?
35:03You've blown me out of the water,
35:05because we've come here.
35:06I didn't expect you to achieve this,
35:08and what an amazing afternoon.
35:11Thank you very much, sir.
35:12Ali, congratulations, mate.
35:14Fair play.
35:14From now on, you're cooking on the bank for us.
35:17Of course, wicked to win,
35:19but the compliment from Daniel
35:21that it was as good as his,
35:24that was some accolade that made me feel good.
35:27The rice let me down.
35:28The rice let me down.
35:30Gutted to lose,
35:31but if I come up against him again
35:33and a little cook-off on the bank,
35:34give it a good go.
35:35I'm always in with a chance, pal.
35:36I wasn't far off there.
35:38Coming up,
35:38the secret lake picks a big fight.
35:42Oh, this is hairy.
35:43Pulling them back from snags.
35:51We'd already caught a few gems from the secret lake.
35:55Nice.
35:55I'd beaten Bob in a carpy cook-off.
35:57That is as good as mine.
35:59Oh, wow.
36:00And it was now back to the mission in hand,
36:03catching a 30-pounder from this mystical venue.
36:07Having caught carp,
36:08but also a hat-trick of tench,
36:10Bob and I hatched a new plan
36:12to use bigger hookbaits
36:13and just feed with boilies
36:15to hopefully avoid the tension
36:16to just target the carp.
36:18Would the new tactic work?
36:20Only time would tell.
36:21Oh, this is a proper one.
36:34Oh, my God.
36:35It's a proper fish, this.
36:37Oh, this is hairy.
36:39Pulling them back from snags.
36:41That fish was right at the back of these snags.
36:44I don't know how I got that out.
36:48Go on, Al.
36:49Excitement on the mystery lake.
36:53Oh, it's a plodder.
36:54I think we've got a decent fish here, you know.
36:57This could be a possible target for me.
37:01A 30-pounder from here would be absolutely amazing.
37:05Going on to the bigger white boilies,
37:08matching the loose feed,
37:09and you see it, look, popping out of its head.
37:12It's another scaly one.
37:13Look at that.
37:14Oh, there's something really magical
37:19about fishing these places,
37:21you know next to nothing about.
37:25You don't know what's swimming in here.
37:30Don't go around the prop.
37:31Snagging on my own boat.
37:34Absolutely nailed in the bottom schlops.
37:36Look at that.
37:37Yes.
37:41Oh!
37:42He's got it!
37:46Lovely-looking fish.
37:49As we say in the game,
37:51a scaly banger.
37:53Oh, what excitement.
37:54That was unbelievable.
37:55Honestly, I thought I was hooked into something really big,
37:59boiled up the back of the snags.
38:00I actually thought I'm going to lose it.
38:02And then I thought it's going to be the biggest fish of the trip.
38:04It is the biggest fish of the trip,
38:06but not as big as I thought it might be.
38:09Look at that.
38:11We're getting bigger.
38:13And they're not, I can't say they're getting more beautiful,
38:16because this is pretty much a carbon copy of the one I caught earlier.
38:21Unbelievable-looking fish.
38:24It was safe to say the new baiting regime was working.
38:27We just hoped it would last.
38:32Another carp, Zamo's fourth, albeit small.
38:39Here you go, Cal.
38:41A mid-double cricket bat shape common.
38:44They all count.
38:48A much quieter night.
38:50No tench, but less carp too.
38:53The lake now seemed eerily quiet,
38:55with no sign of carp rolling or breaking the surface anywhere.
38:58With rising air pressure,
39:00maybe they'd just gone off the feet for a while.
39:04The whole day passed by with nothing.
39:07Maybe our honeymoon period with the secret lake was over.
39:16Where were the carp?
39:19Would the hours of darkness see any more action?
39:22In the dead of night, Bob was into what looked like a very decent common.
39:33He just needed to net it.
39:38Silky skills, Zamora.
39:42Well worth being woken up for, that is.
39:45Beautiful.
39:46£24.7 golden chestnut common carp.
39:51You have made my night.
39:53The biggest carp of the trip today,
39:56and a belt or two.
39:57Top angling from the Bobby Dazzler.
40:16I'm really happy, you know.
40:20I think I'm probably happier now
40:22than I was at the early part of the session
40:24when I had a couple of absolute bangers
40:27because I feel like they're a pretty big achievement
40:29and I think the dream of a 30-pounder
40:32might have been a bit excessive.
40:36Just the one carp in the last 24 hours
40:39and with the air pressure and temperature rising,
40:42you'd now expect to see them cruising.
40:44But we were seeing nothing.
40:46So Bobby went on a recon mission
40:48to see if he could find any carp.
40:53Out in open water, I haven't seen anything at all.
40:56The only place I've seen them is in and around the snags,
40:59which obviously makes it very tricky.
41:01They know they're safe
41:02and they don't really want to come out.
41:04It looks like they'd gone on edge
41:06and were using the dense foliage
41:08to hide away from their unwelcome visitors.
41:1424 hours remained
41:16and we needed to make one final plan of attack
41:19to try and snare another carp.
41:25Honey?
41:26I lent you a phone, hadn't I?
41:28Thank you, mate.
41:29It's like I'm stuck on Mars or something.
41:32This secret lake is...
41:34You're taking it to another level.
41:35Now, not long left.
41:40This weather's changed as well.
41:41It's not great.
41:42Horrible fishing conditions.
41:44And they're all in the snags.
41:46How do we coax them out, mate?
41:47Listen, this is what we're going to...
41:48This is how we're going to coax them out tonight.
41:51Oh!
41:51That is some soft pellet in there now.
41:58I'm going pellet, corn,
42:01boilie,
42:02bit of tiger nut.
42:04And yeah, I'm going to go for the whole...
42:06Just see if I can bring the roach in,
42:09bring the tench in.
42:11Give it a go, mate.
42:12Give it a go.
42:13Here's a little toast
42:14to sleepless nights.
42:16Not filled with tench.
42:19Cheers, bro.
42:21So the new baiting tactic
42:29to try and encourage a feeding frenzy
42:32was put into action.
42:33Rods went out nicely
42:35on the previously successful spots,
42:37followed by handfuls of boilies,
42:39mixed particles, pellets and tiger nuts.
42:41Surely at least one cart would trip up.
42:44Anticipation levels were high
42:46for what the night may bring.
42:51The entire night passed by
43:03without a bleep,
43:04let alone a carp.
43:06Bob and I reeled in
43:07and ventured out on the boat
43:08to have a closer look
43:09to try and work out
43:11what was going on.
43:13He's done this deliberately, the boy.
43:23See any corn down there?
43:27I can't see any bait there, Bob.
43:28I can't see any.
43:29Is that a boilie up there?
43:30Might be one boilie.
43:31Is that a boilie or a stone?
43:33That's one boilie.
43:34So what you're trying to say
43:34is they've had everything
43:35but one boilie and yours.
43:37Yeah, it looks that way.
43:40Well, Bob,
43:41I think it's safe to say
43:43we've outstayed our welcome.
43:47Yeah, I think so.
43:48We had the element of surprise day one
43:50and they've cottoned on, mate.
43:52And it's not an easy water.
43:53Doesn't see any pressure.
43:55I suppose our lines in the end
43:57has been our downfall.
43:59You've just got to know
44:00when to cut your losses.
44:02I'm happy though, aren't you?
44:03Yeah, mate.
44:03Amazing what a place this is.
44:05What an opportunity.
44:06Like you say, never fished really.
44:08And to come here and catch a few
44:10is very, very special.
44:12Yeah, Mr. X's secrets will remain secrets.
44:20We got off to an absolutely flying start.
44:22Probably better than we could have ever imagined.
44:25Then, with hindsight, looking back now,
44:28we should have expected it for it to tail off.
44:31But the reality is
44:32we've caught some amazing carp
44:34and it's been a very, very successful trip.
44:37For myself, it's been nice.
44:38It's been refreshing to go off-grid as such.
44:40Not really knowing where I am.
44:42Not having contact with the outside world.
44:44But I'm ready to go back to that now.
44:46So, gentlemen, you've come to the end of your time
44:50here at the lake.
44:51Sounds like you've done quite well.
44:53Pulled out a couple of old wily ones.
44:55Hope you had a nice time.
44:56Maybe you'll be back, maybe you won't be back.
44:58Put it there, my man.
45:00Mr. X doesn't fist bump.
45:02Oh, he's left you hanging.
45:03So, unfortunately for Bob's,
45:05I think there's just one thing left to do.
45:08Ah, yes.
45:09Bob, let the fun and games begin,
45:13but you might need to come down a little bit.
45:16Thank you, thank you, thank you.
45:18Car sickness.
45:19I've got a sick bag for you for the journey back.
45:21Mate, don't.
45:22How are you?
45:22Ready?
45:23It's been good.
45:24Thank you, Mr. X.
45:25Thank you, Mr. X.
45:26We're on the road to nowhere
45:31Come on inside
45:34Take a night ride to nowhere
45:40We'll take that ride
45:43I'm feeling okay this morning
45:49And you know...