River carp are known to be pretty tough creatures and none highlight that better than this ancient river character, which captor Duncan Hayward described as "having been through a war."
He landed the incredible 31lb 1oz mirror during the early hours of the morning on a recent fishing trip on the River Thames, his second largest fish from the river to date.
FANCY CATCHING YOUR FIRST RIVER CARP? HERE'S HOW TO DO IT!
"I had to slide down steep, bramble infested banks and jump into the water up to my waist to land it," he told us.
"You can't beat old river characters like this."
The fish fell from a heavily pre-baited gravel area, on which Duncan presented a snowman boilie hookbait wrapped in paste, over a scattering of whole and chopped freebies.
At the business end he used a 6oz inline drop-off lead system with a size 2 curve shank hook on a short hooklink.
YOU NEED A DECENT ROD TO LAND CARP LIKE THIS. CHECK OUT OUR BUYER'S GUIDES TO THE BEST RODS FOR CARP FISHING.
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