Are you sitting comfortably? Then we’ll begin…

Not every article you read will be about the latest wonder rig, must-have bait or tactic that’ll catch everywhere. Sometimes it’s about looking a bit closer at what an angler takes fishing in order to either make his time on the bank more enjoyable or more efficient, and sometimes it’s a combination of the two. Who better than Ian Chillcott, a carp angler of four decades, to talk about exactly those little creature comforts…

My Mug

This has to be the starting point, especially as a confessed ‘tea-a-holic’, and there’s a story behind it. Tea is the most important fluid I have ever poured down my neck, despite several dalliances in the past with various forms of alcohol! The vessel that I drink tea from is hugely important – it can’t be any old cup and I can’t stand plastic or polystyrene at any level. Back in my army days they went about upgrading all sorts of kit, including changing our mugs – my old tin one being taken out of commission but I carried on using it for some time. Latterly I had one particular mug that travelled the world with me and which was by my side, or in my hand, during some wonderful as well as some very hairy moments during its many years of service. In fact, it jumped out of an aeroplane with me upwards of 200 times. It was an old ‘Fisherman’s Excuses’ mug which I think probably came with an Easter Egg in it at some point, but sadly one day I managed to break it during the recovery period after my operation. It literally fell from my hand and brought me almost to tears, I was that sad.

After mentioning it on a Facebook post I was overwhelmed with offers of replacements… it was bonkers, but eventually a guy called Matt Small posted a photo of a mug that he wanted to send me. On the side of the mug it read: “After all the years of fishing, my wife is still my best catch”. As cheesy as that might sound, no statement could have been more appropriate, so I took Matt up on his generous offer and I’ve had the mug on every fishing trip ever since.My mug has to be one of my most important items of kit.It’s certainly had some use!