Short session thirty
A SHORT three hour session was all the time that Craig Runham needed to catch this 31lb 12oz mirror from a southern stillwater.
On arriving at the venue, the Reading-based rod headed to an area of the lake which he’d prebaited at the end of a previous session with a mixture of Mainline Cell, New Grange and Maple 8 boilies.
He soon spotted fish fizzing over the spot and he wasted no time flicking out a couple of Milky Toffee pop-up hookbaits on to a firm patch of silt either side of the bubbling – one on a chod rig and the other on a hinged-stiff rig.
“I sat down in my day chair feeling and expecting one of the slack lines to lift up at any moment,” he told Angling Times. “After 10 minutes the pinpricking started again very close to the first rod that was cast out. The anticipation was killing me and I found myself staring at the limp, slack line hanging off the rod tip. Suddenly the line flicked and started cutting up through the water. I was on the rod in a flash and a healthy bend was made in the carbon. The fish tore off out into the lake taking 20 - 30 yards of line and stayed deep while charging up and down the clear margin.”
Craig’s successful setup consisted of a 20lb Korda Mouthtrap and N-Trap hooklink in conjunction with a size 6 Kaptor Choddy hook.
Two pike for over 50lb
THE importance of being observant when you’re fishing was perfectly demonstrated by Justin Grapes this week when he banked a superb brace of big winter pike weighing 52lb 6oz.
The 38-year-old all-rounder, from Norwich, landed fish weighing 30lb 8oz and 21lb 14oz after repositioning his mackerel hookbaits over a patch of bubbles that emerged in his swim and looked like the ‘tell-tale signs’ of predators feeding.
Justin’s watercraft certainly paid off, with the bigger of the two fish setting a new personal best after he landed it on his first session of the winter at a stillwater in Norfolk. He beat both pike with a simple rig comprising a homemade trace carrying a pair of size 6 treble hooks and a 1oz rig on a running set-up.
He told Angling Times: “I got to the lake at first light and just as the sun began to rise over the horizon I noticed a few small patches of bubbles just a few rod lengths out, so I decided to drop my bait in over the top.”
“These bubbles are often formed when predators are feeding close to the bottom, and this certainly proved to be the case, as the first of the pike I landed - the ‘twenty’ - coughed up a number of fry and a small roach.
“The thirty-pounder’ came from exactly the same spot not long after and as soon as it broke the surface I knew that it was a little bit special and one of, if not the biggest fish in the lake.”
“I’ve been trying to beat my personal best, a fish of just over 24lb from Chew Valley reservoir, and it’s always been a dream of mine to catch a pike over the 30lb barrier. I never expected to do it so early in the winter, so now I’m on a roll I’m going to turn my attentions to big river chub and perch!” added Justin.
New Year's Eve thirties brace
MICK Careless celebrated New Year’s Eve with a brace of thirties from Willow Lake on the Cambridgeshire Fenland Fisheries complex.
Fishing over a bed of hemp, pellets, maggots and CCB Red Berry boilies on a clear area which he had located, the local rod used a fluoro pop-up hookbait to tempt this 35lb common during the first evening of his session on the six-acre gravel pit.
The next morning he spotted a patch of fizzing in his swim caused by a feeding fish, and 20 minutes after casting a chod rig - again baited with a buoyant fluoro hookbait - towards the bubbles he received a take from a sparsely-scaled 34lb mirror.
He said: “I couldn’t believe it – two thirties in the depths of winter from a tricky water. I re-cast the rod and before I could even clip the bobbin on my alarm burst in to life once more, and this time, after a short and spirited scrap, I netted a 16lb common. What a way to end one year and start the next.”
For more info about fishing at Fenland Fisheries visit: www.premiumcarpfishing.com
Maggot feeder tactics score for 6lb 9oz chub
A SHORT window of opportunity between torrential rain showers was all Darran Goulder needed to slip his net under this fine River Lea chub.
Targeting a stretch of the waterway at Carthagena, the seasoned all-rounder from Kent took the fish on his first cast after casting out a maggot feeder rig incorporating an ultra-short 1in braided hooklink.
“I thought I might be in for a good session after such a promising start, but the rain got steadily heavier and the river started to rise before my eyes - within a couple of hours it was bordering on unfishable. With all the water we’ve had recently, it just goes to show how the timing of trips this winter is going to be critical, said Darran, who beat the fish using 11lb Power Pro braid straight through to a 50g Kamasan Black Cap feeder, which the 28-year-old had adapted to fish inline.
His hooklink was 6lb Drennan Super Specialist Braid, attached to a size 16 Super Specialist hook carrying a single maggot.
Gary Moore banks 'Bloater' at 37lb
GARY Moore has enjoyed an impressive run of form on the Milton Abbas syndicate in Dorset, banking two fish of over 37lb in recent weeks.
The Southampton-based carper hasn’t been put off by the winter weather and landed his first specimen from over a bed of CC Moore Odyssey XXX boilies.
He then returned to the venue a few days later and this time fed a mixture of XXX and N-Gage boilies with an air ball pop-up offered over the top to tempt another chunky mirror of 37lb 5oz.
He said: “This fish is known as Bloater and when you see the size of it on the bank it is easy to see why!”
A match with a difference at Townsend Lakes
Matches that are run to international rules are a rarity in the UK but the latest event at Townsend Lakes saw a large field turn up to compete under those guidelines.
Bosses at Townsend Lakes in Norfolk took the unusual step of implementing the same set of rules that are used in world championships for the pairs contest, with feeder tactics banned and bloodworm and joker permitted.
Leading the way in the individual stakes was John Bates who took 27lb of skimmers from peg 8 on Kingfisher Lake and he also sealed glory in the pairs event with his partner Sam Claydon.
29lb pike hits the net on debut session
Fishing a 100-acre pit for the first time could be a daunting prospect but Callum Mcinerney-Riley rose to the challenge to the net this 29lb pike.
The Essex-based rod has targeted small rivers in the past for predators but decided to take the next step in his progression by heading to a huge water in the Lea Valley.
Rather than sit in one area, the BitG Carp Clothing owner and Nash consultant took a roving approach and he eventually struck gold when the predator fell for a floatfished sprat presented on a shallow bar close to an island.
Within seconds of setting the hooks he was convinced a personal best was attached and he said: “The 3.5lb tc rods bent round with ease and once I saw the head I had a mega adrenaline rush – a feeling I haven’t had in years! I usually fish for carp but maybe I’ve now found my true calling.”
37lb 6oz common best of three in overnight session
A QUICK overnight session on the Carp Society’s Farriers Lake in the Cotswolds produced three fish for Jordan Dicks - the highlight being this cracking 37lb 6oz common.
The 25-year-old Bristol Angling Centre manager has been baiting one of the deeper areas of the venue with up to 10kg of boilies every week for the past couple of months in a bid to keep the fish feeding and regularly visiting his spot.
The heavy baiting strategy has certainly paid off and he is yet to suffer a blank session so far this winter.
His latest trip started with a 24lb common at 11pm, and the biggest fish of the trip then came in the early hours of the morning.
He said: “When I woke up the spot looked like a jacuzzi with all the fizzers coming up so I wasn’t that surprised when my alarm burst in to life for a third time as I was starting to pack my gear away – this time a 21lb common was the culprit.”
Jordan had baited the silt patch he was fishing over with a tight bed of 2kg of Nash Bait Monster Squid boilies. Over the top of this he cast a snowman presentation consisting of a bottom bait and a 10mm pop-up. This was mounted on a blow-back rig tied with a Nash Missing Link hooklink and a Fang X hook.
“I think a lot of people make the mistake of stopping putting the bait in as soon as the weather turns cold. When you do this the fish slow down and can become very hard to catch. If you keep the bait going in consistently, however, they will generally continue to eat it and you can enjoy some excellent winter sport.”
River Kennet barbel tops 13lb 5oz
While most stayed indoors as the nation’s waterways overflowed, Paul Codman braved the conditions and was rewarded with this personal best 13lb 5oz barbel from a high and coloured stretch of the River Kennet.
Confident an area of the venue close to Burghfield Lake would produce a big fish in the raging conditions, the Hampshire-based rigged up a two rod setup both baited with 18mm Caviar and Cranberry boilies wrapped in paste and micro pellets.
After a quiet opening stint, he received a gentle twitch on the right hand rod and struck into a solid resistance.
“The fish buried straight into a snag and I was forced to walk downstream and get another angle on it. Thankfully it eventually came out and stayed deep before coming to the surface and going into the net,” explained Paul, who beat his previous best by just over 1lb.
Barston Masters dates revealed
Organisers of a hugely popular annual series that has sold out each time have revealed the dates for this year’s tournament.
The Barston Lakes Masters draws some of the best match anglers from all over the country and the first of the five qualifiers will run on April 6, with those winning their five-peg sections going through to the prestigious final on August 31.
Each match will cost £28.50, with the pegging fees required upfront.
For more details email lee.taylor_1@btinternet.com or call 07539 347851.
Species hunt success
AFTER four years of trying John Shapland has achieved his target of catching 50 different species of sea fish in the space of 12 months.
Following an amazing show of dedication, commitment and raw determination the 37-year-old from Barnstaple in Devon recently completed the challenge with the capture of a thornback ray.
As well as catching more common species such as smooth hounds, dover sole and trigger fish he also banked species often overlooked by the every-day sea angler including the three bearded shore rockling, sand goby and long spined sea scorpion.
He said: “I was first inspired to try and catch so many species after hearing about a chap called Mike Thrussell who achieved a similar feat. It was a bit of a mad idea, but I have really enjoyed doing it as not many others have done it. I’ve come close in previous years but until now always fell just short. It is really hard because some of the more elusive species have to be targeted at a specific time of the year.”
Church Lake Golden Ticket Humbling Gesture
Kevin Nash has got in touch with us with a humbling story. In case anyone has missed it, Kevin launched his first major book this Christmas, Memoirs of a Carp Fisher – The Demon Eye.
His book has been massively well received and is set to be a classic. To promote the book 10 Golden Tickets have been put up to fish Kev's stunning Church Lake.
The first ticket winner, Mick Richards, couldn't believe his luck when he won. In fact, that is literally the case. Friends were texting and phoning to congratulate him, and he thought it was a wind up as he later told Kevin that he had never won anything in his life and it was a dream come true.
Now Kevin informs us that Mick has asked if he can give his ticket up in favour of his friend who has terminal cancer. Kev said to us "Isn't this a great story that humbles you. Our wonderful sport of carp fishing can bring so much comradeship as well as moments of happiness."
There are still eight Golden Tickets up for grabs for a 5 day session on Kevin Nash's legendary Church Lake. All carpers who buy Kevin's book, Memoirs of a Carp Fisher The Demon Eye at the following shows will be put into a draw the day after each show, and the lucky winner will be on his or her way to the Church in July 2013. In addition there will be a super draw for three Golden Tickets on Monday 25th March 2013 for all those who purchased a copy of The Demon Eye by telephoning the office on 01702 233 232 or via the websitewww.tunarollpublications.co.uk
The remaining shows are:
British carp and Angling Show (Norfolk) 19 – 20th January 2013
Brentwood Carp Show26th – 27th January 2013
The Big One 23 - 24th February 2013
Carpin-On - 5 Lakes 2nd – 3rd March 2013
The Northern Angling Show – 23rd – 24th March 2013
This is a unique opportunity to be able to fish the amazing Church Lake with fantastic odds when you consider that book sales may be less than 100 at a carp show, and even if your'e unlucky, you will be lucky to read one of the most momentous carp books ever written.
Big perch on the feed
IT’S COMMON knowledge that commercial carp waters hold some of the UK’s biggest perch - and Simon Buckman further emphasised their potential when he landed this 4lb 13oz specimen from a day-ticket venue in Sussex.
Offering a prawn hookbait in the margins on a low resistance bomb rig tied with a 6lb hooklink and a size 8 hook, the Arundel-based specimen hunter smashed his personal best for the species by 12oz when his supermarket bait was taken by the impressive predator.
“Targeting perch in waters that hold a large head of carp is never easy, but it’s definitely worth persevering, especially at this time of the year when the water temperature has cooled and carp are much less active,” said Simon.
“I like to keep my swim topped up with chopped prawns and maggots which the big perch love. I really thought that I’d hooked another of the venues carp when my hanger pulled up, but when it surfaced a few yards out I knew exactly what I was attached to. After catching about 10 perch from the lake over the last few weeks I had been beginning to think that the bigg’un I really wanted would never come.”
Another angler to break his perch personal best this week was Adrian Eves who caught a fish of 4lb 13oz from the River Kennet.
The Surrey-based all-rounder had spent several sessions targeting local commercial fisheries but when they all froze over he had to turn his attentions to the running water venue instead.
His first choice of swim failed to produce a bite, but a switch to another hotspot gave him renewed hope as he hooked and lost a large fish within minutes of casting out.
Determined to avoid a blank he introduced another handful of chopped lobworms and his rod tip pulled round again.
“As the fish came to the net I could see the hook just inside the mouth and when it shook its head I was certain I was going to lose what would certainly be a new personal best,” explained Adrian.
“Thankfully, lady luck was on my side and everything held firm.”
His winning presentation consisted of a paternostered maggot feeder rig with a size 6 Fox Kuro S2 hook baited with an air-injected lobworm.
Last, but certainly not least, was James Howes who landed a trio of fish over the 3lb-barrier topped by a 3lb 3oz specimen.
His haul was taken during a short two-hour session at a local Norfolk stillwater and all three fish were taken on small rudd livebaits fixed below a loafer style float on a size 4 hook.
Amazing new resource for river anglers
A NEW website that combines the latest live video camera technology with up-to-the-minute river level mapping systems is set to provide the ultimate ‘where to fish guide’ for anglers.
Farson Digital Water Cams has teamed up with the Environment Agency to combine its network of webcams at some of the sport’s most popular rivers with information from almost 2,000 of the EA’s water gauging stations around the UK.
The partnership will see vital information such as current and forecast river levels, water temperatures, weather reports and live footage assigned specifically to each venue featured.
The FDWC website, which has received over 1.6 million hits in the last year, already boasts over 100 cameras on venues including the Rivers Wye, Severn, Avon and Thames. And it’s this facility, coupled with the EA’s constantly updated river level and temperature data, that will provide a unique service for fishermen.
“The new additions to our website will see it become the ultimate online tool for river anglers, and I’m sure it will help them to catch more fish,” said Glyn Howells owner of FDWC.
“Gone are the days where you turn up to a river to find it is totally unfishable, meaning you have wasted a load of time and money on petrol. Once we have all of the information on the site to run alongside the cameras, anglers will be able to not only see what the venue looks like in real time, but also what the water temperature and levels are running at - they’ll be able to coincide their trip with the stretch being in the best possible condition.”
Dave Harrell, one of the UK’s best-known river anglers, regularly uses the FDWC website to check the condition of the River Severn and other local waterways.
“Me and my mates have been using these cameras for years, so to hear that the website will soon also feature water level and temperature data is a further massive step forward,” said Dave.
For more info visit: www.farsondigitalwatercams.com
Deep water spot produces the goods
A WINDSWEPT Bundy’s Pit produced the perfect Christmas present for Gary Hymers.
This 44lb 8oz common was caught in 45ft of water on a blustery night at the notoriously deep Cambridgeshire venue.
It was a new personal best for the Lincolnshire-based rod and fell on the first night of a 48-hour weekend session just before Christmas.
“I never thought I’d get it in,” said Gary. “Every time I got it up the steep margins it would turn around. It felt a bit weighty but I didn’t know how big it was at the time – I was just glad of a bite at this time of year.”
The 55-year-old panel beater took the fish at about 20 yards range in The Boards swim. It picked up a Rollin Baits hardened boilie on a Korda N-Trap hooklength and size-eight Korda hook.
Gary said: “I was fishing in about 45ft of water on what felt like a ledge. It was a smooth area with a bit of silt near it. I arrived there at about 3pm and I had the take at 9.30pm.
“When I started there was a south-easterly wind and I was on the back of it. I knew it was changing direction and when it turned around I thought my time was up - but all of a sudden the rod was off.
“It was pitch black and windy so I didn’t really know how big it was until it was on the mat.”
36lb 8oz mirror from low stock pit
JAMES Woraker literally found “a needle in a haystack” by banking this 36lb 8oz mirror after more than a year without a carp from a tough southern reservoir.
The 33-year-old’s patience was rewarded with one of the biggest fish in the sprawling low-stock venue after a run of 35 blank nights stretching back to October 2011.
“I’m confident I’ve always had the right tactics but I’ve just never been on the fish,” said the Essex rod.
“The fish came at mid-afternoon on the second day of a three-night session and I knew it was a carp straight away.
“It was a good fight and took me 25 minutes to land and I didn’t realise it was a big one until I netted it.”
The fish fell to snowman-style Mainline Cell boilies cast to a drop-off at 145 yards with just 30 free offerings to avoid the resident bream.
Landscape gardener James said: “At times it can be like finding a needle in a haystack on there but I’d seen fish moving to that area of the lake so I anticipated the move and waited for them to arrive.
“When I got it on the mat I was absolutely over the moon. It was the perfect early Christmas present.
“There’s one fish in there that goes over 40lb at the right time of the year and some lovely scaley upper-30lb mirrors so I’ll definitely continue on there next year.”
Big bream net wins at Bury Hill Fisheries
The consistently mild temperatures have seen the bream switch on at Bury Hill Fisheries and Andy Ryan needed 80lb 8oz of them to top the pile in the latest event.
After drawing peg 11 on the Old Lake at the Surrey complex, the venue regular started on the feeder with pellet but a switch to the pole saw his catch rate speed up drastically, with 25 slabs sitting in the net come the final whistle.
Second place went to Ray Tingley who put together 43lb 4oz from peg 18.
37lb 8oz cod taken off the Hampshire coast
THE unprecedented glut of big cod being caught from the UK coastline has continued this week with the capture of this 37lb 8oz giant.
The fish, which is the biggest to be taken from angling boats out of Portsmouth for as long as the skippers there can remember, is one of five 30lb-plus fish taken in a a golden seven-day period for the species.
It fell to the rod of Eric Binding, who set a new cod record for his local Fountain Lake Angling Club, after picking up a large double squid hookbait in 90ft of water at a mark south of the Nab area on the Isle of Wight. After a 15 minute tug of war in a strong current, skipper of the Sea Juicer, Rob Hickin, was able to net the fish.
“I honestly thought it was over 40lb, it looked a massive cod,” said Rob. “Eric was chuffed to bits. This is the biggest one from this end of the Isle of Wight for quite some time. There have been several between 30lb and 33lb recently - it’s the prime time for them,” he continued.
Maggots scoring for big chub
THE pulling power of maggots for specimen chub has been proven once again this week with two anglers catching fish over the 7lb-barrier.
Raphael Kyte demonstrated experience beyond his years when he twitched his hookbait across the bottom of a swollen River Great Ouse to bank this 7lb 11oz specimen.
The 14-year-old Northants-based schoolboy found his favourite stretch of the waterway way above its normal level, so headed to an area off the main flow where he thought the fish might be holding up.
After settling in a swim with an overhanging tree on the far bank he cast a simple maggot feeder rig towards the feature and repeated the process every 15 minutes in a bid to coax any resident fish out from the snag. And to make his triple maggot hookbait even more appealing he slowly edged his rig back towards him before reeling in.
“After about an hour I felt a very heavy fish pulling back against the rod tip,” said Raphael. “It took me about 10 minutes to get it to my own bank and even then it kept trying to bore under the rushes by my feet. I finally got the better of it and called my dad, Patrick, to come and help with the weighing. On the scales it smashed my old best of 4lb 9oz which I caught from the River Nene in the summer.”
Another angler to break the 7lb-barrier using maggot tactics was well-respected big fish hunter Alan Stagg - slipping the net under a superb 7lb 3oz specimen during a trip to a southern river.
A maggot hookbait and a PVA bag filled with around half a pint of white grubs proved to be the winning combination for the Hants-based Gardner Tackle media manager. After a spirited fight he beat his prize with a rig comprising of 10lb mainline, a coated braid hooklink and a size 12 hook. He said: “I had a feeling there was a chance of catching a decent fish from the river before the cold snap. It was a very long fish and not one which I recognise from venue.”
Fortieth forty for Peck
CARP catching machine Darrell Peck has achieved a feat many anglers can only dream of – catching forty carp over the 40lb-barrier.
The landmark fish came in the form of this 50lb 8oz mirror, his first ever fifty, during a session on a southern gravel pit.
Amazingly, he also landed fish of 26lb, 39lb 8oz and 42lb 8oz during the memorable trip.
The session didn’t start brilliantly for the Korda employee when he arrived at the venue to be told that the lake’s second biggest resident had been caught in the last few days from the swim he had been focusing his attentions on.
Disappointed, but undeterred, the Essex-based rod dropped in to a different peg where he caught fish to over 40lb from recently and cast his hinged-stiff rigs out to a long-range spot at 165 yards.
The area was then baited with a scattering of a new boilie he is testing for Mainline Baits and he didn’t have to wait long for his first bite.
“After a slow and heavy fight I bundled a huge, thickset mirror in to the net,” he told Angling Times.
“When I hoisted it on to the scales I was delighted to see the needle settle on 50lb 8oz. Despite catching Two Tone at 65lb and having 38 other fish over 40lb I’ve never actually had a fifty before. I’ve come close on a couple of occasions with the Fat Lady from St Ives at over 49lb as well as Babyface from Charity Lakes in Norfolk close to the magical mark too. The catch was made extra special as this was the first time the mirror known as Single Scale has broken the 50lb barrier.”
Darrell wasn’t finished there, though, and over the next couple of days his homemade pop-up hookbaits accounted for mirrors of 26lb and 42lb 8oz along with a new lake record common of 39lb 8oz.
