Commercial fishing tips with Des Shipp
CSPold snaps are still a possibility in early spring, and the water on commercial fisheries won’t yet have coloured up fully.
That means sport can vary from day to day, so we need to think carefully about where to fish and how to feed to maximise our chances.
For example, the margins could come good in a mild spell but if the wind is cold and it’s raining, few fish will feed at short range. You’d do better to target carp and F1s further out.
However, never ignore any potential fish-catching line, even in the coldest weather. Preston Innovations and England star Des Shipp is well aware of this.
“Much depends on the colour in the water and how mild the weather has been,” Des said.
“Colour will encourage the fish to move closer to the bank and this brings into play margin and short pole lines. An overnight air temperature rise isn’t enough to make the fishing better in late March. You need a good spell of three or four days of warmer weather to see the water temperatures pick up.”
Join Des now as he pinpoints the areas to target on a typical commercial lake and explains how to fish and feed them…
Margins
A bit of a throwaway line, this. The edge can produce nothing or it can be very good, depending on the depth and water clarity. I’d still set a rig up for here even if I felt conditions weren’t ideal, as just one bite from a big fish can make it all worthwhile.
In an ideal world I’d find 2ft of water with a bit of colour in it, but fishing into corners with a bit of reed cover can be brilliant at this time of year.
We’re not into the groundbait and dead maggot period yet for the margins so I’d go down the pellet route, fishing a big 6mm or 8mm hard bait and potting in over the top with micros. Meat is also a very good margin bait and corn should also be on your side tray.
The edge is a line to keep having a look on throughout the day, only staying there for a couple of minutes at a time. If nothing happens, come off it but if you get an indication, stick with it. A carp is at home and it’s obviously there for one reason – to eat!
Short pole line
In late spring this 5m line can be brilliant when fishing meat but it’s still iffy at the moment. What I want to fish here is colour in the water and a decent depth, either at the base of the marginal slope or actually on it. F1s will move close to the bank but colour will make them less wary and give you more bites. A top kit and three or four sections of pole is as far out as you need to go.
Pellets are the bait and feed for this line but at this range I can feed 4mm pellets by hand. However, that’s not accurate enough for early spring so I’d still use a small pot on the pole, fishing a banded 4mm on the hook, only feeding by hand when I’m not fishing this line.
It’s well worth beginning on this line to see if any fish are there already. This line can be changed over to a maggot swim mid-session if pellet hasn’t produced. Switch to feeding maggots and fishing one on the hook, and plan to catch well in the final hour at close range.
Long pole line
This line puts the bait well out into the deepest water, but I don’t stick to one distance. Carp and F1s can come closer to the bank so plumb up at 11m, 13m and 14.5m or 16m if your pole is long enough to get a picture of the swim.
This allows me to move closer or go further out to find bites if things are a bit quiet at my original 13m. On this line I fish a 4mm or 6mm hard banded pellet. I prefer these to an expander if a lot of small fish like skimmers are about.
Carp and F1s are moving away from eating just maggots at this time of year and a bite on a pellet always equals a better fish. Feeding is done via a small pot on the pole to sprinkle in 4mm pellets.
I’d also have some corn with me, though, in case pellets don’t work. Dumping in a big pot of around 200 grains of corn can be ‘make or break’ when the chips are down and it may just trigger a carp or two into having a go if you fish a piece of corn on the hook.
Feeder Line
Beyond the long pole line there will be open water, so it pays to have a feeder rod set up. You can fish this line as somewhere else to go when resting the pole lines, but it can also come into play if the pole isn’t producing but you can see an odd fish topping further out. The cast will be short and on to a flat bottom, so you only need a 15g Method or pellet feeder to reach the mark.
A Method feeder is my first choice, to use in conjunction with micro pellets and groundbait, but on venues where groundbait is not allowed a pellet feeder packed with micros will work as well.
For the hook, pick a banded 6mm pellet, although changing to a piece of corn can also catch if the water is on the clear side. A white Band’Um can also stand out to the fish.