How to fish for commercial carp in spring
Slowly, but surely, things are warming up on commercial fisheries and the carp that proved so hard to catch in February and March are beginning to feed. Yes, it’s finally time to think about a bit of bagging up in the sunshine!
One word of warning, though. We’re not yet into shorts and T-shirt weather. One day can see a hard frost followed by blazing sun the day after, so if we don’t know what the weather’s going to be doing, it’s a fair bet that the fish won’t either.
So follow these tips from four match anglers who have won the biggest events on the calendar and you won’t go far wrong...
Q. Are the margins worth fishing and if so, when in a session would you think about having a look here?
Jamie Hughes: Yes, looking at fishing the margins is worth a shot. However, at this time of year, I tend to find the edge better for F1s than it is for carp. I look for 3ft of water, no less, and feed is kept to a minimum with small potfuls introduced throughout the day – there’s definitely no place for big pots!
Jon Whincup: Yes definitely! But I would probably leave fishing down the edge until the last hour. In terms of feeding, I wouldn’t be putting more bait in here than elsewhere in the swim, opting to just trickle in a bit of feed. I’d also choose deeper water than what you’d pick in summer, ideally around 3ft.
Mark Pollard: Yes, the margins are worth a look, because the sooner it gets light (currently around 6am), the sooner the carp will venture into the margins. I would look to try the edge an hour from the end of the match, but I would have fed it very lightly every 40 minutes with just a few pellets and pieces of corn.
Pemb Wrighting: Definitely! But start in water 2ft 6ins to 3ft deep, as the carp won’t be in the shallowest water until late in the day. If you start to get liners you can always move closer in to the bank.
Q. Is there a rule of thumb to decide when to have a go for carp shallow on the pole or waggler?
Jamie Hughes: As soon as I get signs that fish are off bottom, for example, liners when fishing at full depth, I’ll think about trying to catch off bottom. That doesn’t mean slapping in a rig just a few inches deep. You need to search the swim anywhere from half depth to 10ins under the surface to cover all water levels.
Jon Whincup: I’ve caught shallow in midwinter for an hour at midday when the sun was warming the upper layers. A waggler fished shallow can work at any time, so set a shallow rig up and if you see signs of fish on the surface, give it a go.
Mark Pollard: Normally I’d feed a shallow line for half an hour before going on it. I always fish with an eye to catching shallow because I don’t want to be caught out if the fish decide to come up in the water. It’s a good idea to see if anyone around you is catching or getting bites fishing shallow – if they are, try it yourself.
Pemb Wrighting: My thinking is that if you can see fish swimming about in the upper layers, then you have a very good chance of catching them, so set up a rig and keep your eyes peeled. A warm day is often all that’s needed for the carp to come up off the bottom and even start topping regularly.
Q. It’s now time for meat. What’s your feeding strategy for this bait?
Jamie Hughes: I’ll feed via a small pot with just a few cubes at a time. I favour 4mm pieces with the odd 6mm piece. There is a danger when feeding more bait of carp coming off bottom, so keeping the feeding on the meagre side helps prevent this.
Jon Whincup: When meat starts coming into play you want to be feeding it little and often, around five or six cubes at a time from the off. However, meat often works later in the day, fished on a short line, so I’d plan on fishing it in the later stages
of a session.
Mark Pollard: For the initial feed I pot in 250ml of cubed meat and hemp, then I throw in by hand six to eight cubes on a regular basis, typically every couple of minutes.
Pemb Wrighting: I like to feed small amounts of bait little and often at this time of year to ease my way in. The water is still cool, so I don’t think that the fish will take lots of bait being thrown at them yet. As ever, if things are going well you can always up the ante and feed more meat later in the day.
Q. When faced with an island on a feeder chuck, how close would you land the feeder?
Jamie Hughes: This is simple. Start further away from the island first thing when the water temperature is still low, and move closer and closer as the day warms up and the fishing improves. Having water to move into gives you an option if the carp seem to be backing away from the noise of the feeder landing.
Jon Whincup: You don’t want to be casting into the really shallow water, and so I would always try to find 3ft of depth. That, on most of the lakes that I fish, is about 2ft or 3ft off an island. It’s only when the water really warms up and stays that way that carp will venture into the shallowest water.
Mark Pollard: When you are casting a Method or pellet feeder to an island, the tighter to it you can get, the better the fishing will be. However, this only works as long as you have 14ins of depth or more, so it is important to try to work out the contours and depths around the island before beginning to fish here.
Pemb Wrighting: Start by casting into the deeper water and work your way in closer if need be. If there’s a good depth close to a feature, though, I’ll land the feeder tight up to the island from the very start.
Q. When picking a pole rig, how do you decide on what size of float to use for the depth in the swim?
Jamie Hughes: I use a 4x12 for up to 3ft, a 4x14 for up to 5ft and a 4x16 for up to 7ft. If I wanted a bait to fall through the water, I’d fish a 4x10 or 4x12 regardless of the depth as I’m not looking to achieve any stability.
Jon Whincup: You have to take a few things into account, namely the depth of the water, the wind and which species you are fishing for. I often err on the heavy side with floats rather than light, as I like a nice positive rig that’s not going to be moved out of place all the time by wind or tow.
Mark Pollard: My choice of weight for a pole float depends on the depth. As a rule, I would use 4x10 for 2ft of water, a 4x12 for 3ft, a 4x14 for 4ft and a 4x16 for 5ft or more. Sometimes, though, when fishing at full depth with a bait falling through the water, this will change – a lighter float will be needed to get the right presentation.
Pemb Wrighting: I like to use a light a float as possible for the best presentation I can get while the water is still fairly clear. This all depends on the strength of the wind, however, and there’s certainly nothing wrong in having to change rigs to a heavier float pattern during the course of a match if the wind gets up.
Q.You can get away with a bit more feed in April. What factors govern how much you feed throughout the day?
Jamie Hughes: If there are enough fish feeding in the swim, you can feed more bait. I always feel my way in with minimal amounts via a small pot. If things are steady, maintain this so as not to kill the swim. When I begin to catch well, experimenting with a bit more bait in the pot will tell me if the carp want this. Once again, I don’t use a big pot to kick off with.
Jon Whincup: You can feed a bit more bait in April, but I still always feel my way in. I may start a session Kinder potting a few pellets in, but later I might ping a few pellets in to gauge the response – the fish will always tell you what they want.
Mark Pollard: For me, the amount I feed for carp in April is governed by how warm it is, and if the fish are responding in the correct manner when I feed. Begin by feeding little and often, and if you are getting regular bites and catching well, this is the time to think about feeding more to see if you can catch even better! Always beware of overfeeding, however.
Pemb Wrighting: My feeding regime is governed entirely by the reaction of the fish, so there’s no hard-and-fast rule. If you catch fish by feeding little and often, then stick with it – I see no reason to change what’s working. If you find that the peg slows down and you’re getting less of a response, feed more to draw the fish in.