40lb mirror carp from Nottinghamshire stillwater
Picture a carp in its winter colours and you would probably conjure up the 40-pounder being held here by Nick Burrage.
The Gardner and Nutrabaits-backed angler tempted this 40lb 9oz mirror during a chilly session at a Nottinghamshire water.
The Shropshire rod said: “Turning up to a cold, windswept lake, with temperatures taken right down by the wind chill, I had a feeling the carp would be somewhere on the back of the wind.
“After a very quick bite in the shape of a 28lb fully scaled mirror just as the light was fading, I got talking to a friend and, the way the liners were coming, we were saying a lump was well and truly on the cards.”
After a quiet night, Nick began boiling his kettle for the first coffee of the day when one of his alarms let out a fast series of bleeps before falling silent.
“As I stood by the rods I watched carefully and saw a slight twitch as the bobbin tried its best to settle again. Not taking any chances, I picked the rod up to be greeted by a surge of power running the other way, stripping line and trying to hide in the nearest weed bed.
“I was soon playing a fish along with a clump of weed. With the line grating as it made contact with snail shells and the like, the soaked weed made the whole battle a bit of a nervous one.
“After uncovering my prize through the mountain of weed, I was over the moon to see her dark flanks catching the morning light!”
Nick fished Nutrabaits Trigga Ice boilies at 40 yards and used a snowman rig made with 20lb Gardner Trickster and a size 6 Wide Gap Talon Tip hook.
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18lb 9oz barbel smashes River Rother record
The River Rother barbel record has been smashed with the capture of an 18lb 9oz specimen.
The fish, caught by Ian Duffy, was banked from a Petworth and Bognor Angling Club controlled stretch of the Sussex waterway.
Amazingly, the Littlehampton-based rod only started targeting the species a year ago but his latest catch – which is also believed to be the biggest barbel to be recorded in the county - has seen him achieve what many big fish hunters wait a lifetime for.
Arriving at first light, he cast a running feeder filled with small halibut pellets and groundbait into a narrow swim and received the all-important bite just 20 minutes.
He told Angling Times: “I only joined the club this season so haven’t been fishing the river very long. I am so glad I joined, though, they have done so much work to improve the venue and have also been great by helping me to catch this superb fish – I’m totally hooked on barbel fishing now and have got a few other rivers in mind which I’m planning on targeting.”
The fish, which was weighed and witnessed by fellow club member Tom Beirne, is thought to have originally come from the nearby River Arun but could have entered the Rother during last year’s floods or via the new Environment Agency fish pass at Hardham which allows fish to pass between the two rivers.
Anyone wishing to join the club and fish both the Rother and Arun should visit their website at: www.sussexangling.co.uk.
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300lb Mako shark found in Wales
Expert have been left baffled after a deadly 10ft shark was found washed up on a beach in North Wales, thousands of miles from its natural habitat.
The 300lb dead Mako shark, which was found with significant wound marks down its flank, was discovered by fishermen on Barmouth Beach in Gwynedd, a popular UK tourist destination. Dozens of stunned locals and holiday makers turned up to take photographs of the huge predator, with one member of the public even leaving it a bunch of flowers.
Known as the fastest shark in the world, makos normally feed on squid or fish such as mackerel and tuna but they are a threatened species usually found in tropical waters like the Gulf of Mexico or the Caribbean Sea.
Shark fishing expert David Turner told Angling Times: “It is a female mako which is extremely rare in UK waters, only three out of 65 ever caught have been females. I don’t think it had been dead long before it was found as it still had the ‘metallic blue’ sheen which usually fades an hour or so after death.”
He added: “I also don’t think it was attacked by something bigger, the marks look like they have been made by a swordfish as swordfish is a favourite food of mako's but sometimes the swordfish comes out best in the conflict.”
An autopsy undertaken on the shark has since revealed a recently ingested harbour porpoise in its stomach but why the fish died remains a mystery.
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Two 3lb-plus perch in one session from the Great Ouse
After setting himself the target of catching a 3lb-plus river perch, James Armstrong achieved his goal twice in two sessions.
Taking a couple of days off work, the JAG Products media manager targeted a stretch of the Great Ouse and settled for a swim where he could trot a float over to a set of overhanging willows.
Feeding red maggots over a lobworm hookbait he caught several fish to 1lb 8oz before hooking in to a 3lb 2oz specimen.
The following day he headed to a deeper swim further along the stretch and fished a lobworm in conjunction with a maggot feeder. After catching steadily from the off he hooked in to something much more powerful in the afternoon.
He said: “At first I thought it was a chub but when I saw a bright red tail break the surface I knew it had to be a perch – and the biggest I’d ever seen at that. At 3lb 15oz it was a true river giant.”
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8lb chub for teenager
A teenager from Nottinghamshire has banked one of the biggest chub of the season in the form of this 8lb specimen.
Ryan Donnelly (16) from Clifton braved a heavy frost on undisclosed section of the River Trent near his home to land the huge fish which fell to a prototype Stotabaits 18mm Grandad’s Feet boilie Feeding his swim via a PVA bag filled with crumbled baits, Ryan had to wait until the early morning when he was awoken by a screaming run as the fish duly tested his running rig made up of 18lb mono fished straight through to a Drennan Specialist size 8 hook.
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World pike record shaken
This enormous 52lb 9oz (24kg) pike was caught from Holland last week and shook the world record for the species.
It fell to Dutch angler Jelle De Jong and measured 121.5cm long, having been hooked while boat fishing a huge water. A video of the specimen was also taken showing the length and weights being taken. The official global best pike, as recognised by the International Game Fish Association (IGFA), is a 55lb 1oz fish (25kg) from Germany in 1986 by Lothar Louis. However a few pike claimed to be over 60lb have been reported and photographed, including another German fish of 67lb, plus one at 63lb from Poland.
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Giant zander from the River Severn
A quest to land a British record zander gathered momentum this week when Gary Bagley boated this huge 18lb 4oz fish from the River Severn.
The 56-year-old, from Stourport – who doesn’t fish for any other species - has now banked three fish over the 18lb-mark and his latest specimen came just after darkness on his local waterway.
This single-minded approach to his fishing has seen him gain an in-depth understanding of the resident zander’s feeding patterns which allowed him to position his legered coarse deadbait on size 8 trebles in the right place at the right time.
“It’s a real dream of mine to beat the current British record of 21lb 5oz that was caught from this river in 2007. I never lose sight of what I’ve achieved already, though, as three fish over 18lb is mind-blowing,” Gary told Angling Times.
“As soon as I lifted the rod I knew it was a special fish and even though I’ve caught lots of big zander, nothing can ever completely prepare you for the awesome sight of a big zander as its eyes reflect menacingly in the light of the head torch.”
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Short session produces brace of 30lb-plus carp
Focusing on short sessions has given Josh Jones a string of big fish from a low-stock southern park lake.
The 24-year-old student has taken a 33lb 8oz mirror and a 33lb 4oz common in three eight-hour sessions that have also yielded commons of 28lb 4oz and 18lb 4oz.
The Londoner said: “In those three nights I managed five takes with four landed. The common was a personal-best common and came a couple of days after my birthday, which was a nice touch.”
Josh fished Sticky Krill and Pineapple & N-butyric pop-ups on combi rigs over a spread of boilies around weed at long range.
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Midnight start pays off with 42lb mirror carp
A decision to head off fishing at midnight paid off for Geert Ooms in the shape of this 42lb mirror.
The Belgian angler noticed perfect weather conditions after a night out with his wife and was given her blessing to head off in search of carp.
He said: “In the pitch black I set up in a swim that had not produced the previous week, but with the wind and rain forecast there was a decent chance of a fish or two moving towards this area so I just had to give it a try.”
Shortly after first light, Geert, who used Solar Chilli Club boilies, got the bite and tamed the fish after a 10-minute battle. He said: “On the mat I stared at this immaculate fish with four big scales sitting nicely in a row on one flank.”
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Pristine common in icy conditions
Temperatures down to -4c and a lake that hadn’t produced a fish for nearly two months didn’t stop Craig Runham from bagging this pristine common.
The Berkshire angler travelled to a local syndicate water more in hope than expectation, but came away with the beautiful 27-pounder.
The Korda and Mainline-backed angler said: “It was a dreary December day and the forecast did little to raise my enthusiasm, with the coldest night of the year ahead of me.
“After three laps of the lake I had nothing at all to go on. There was a cold north-easterly blowing across the lake so I decided to set up on the back of the wind fishing into the calmer water.”
Craig found two spots – one in 14ft at the base of a gravel bar and one a foot deeper in silt – and baited with maggots and washed-out Cell boilies.
With ice forming on the bivvy by 6pm, Craig endured a cold and biteless night.
“It was around 7.30am when my middle rod’s bobbin became unstuck from its frozen position on the ground and rose by a couple of inches. I was quickly above the rod when the bobbin lifted again and I watched the line cutting up through the clear margins.
“I picked up the icy blank and was met with no resistance. I tried winding down instantly but the line was frozen in the line clip on the rod. After a few nerve-racking seconds I freed the tangle and the fish woke up and almost pulled the rod from my numb hands.
“As the fish rolled into the mesh a large grin came across my face as I knew how lucky I had been, given the weather.”
Craig fished chod rigs made with 25lb Mouth Trap and the new Heli Safe lead-release system.
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Double celebration at Shropshire syndicate
A fishing trip to celebrate having a plaster cast removed and his 30th birthday yielded two fine twenties for Matt Wilding.
Six weeks after breaking his wrist, and a few days after his birthday, Matt was back on his Shropshire syndicate to bank a 29lb 11oz common and a 26lb 8oz mirror.
He said: “I have been a member of this syndicate since April and was yet to wet a line, so I decided that I would finally fish it.
“I was made up with the result and new blood on my syndicate. It was also a great belated birthday present.”
Matt spread 3kg of Baitcraft Savay Salmon boilies over a film silt patch at 60yds and fished chod rigs over the top.
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Long haul rewarded with 35lb mirror from Linch Hill
Park ranger Paul Webber made the trek up from Devon to Oxfordshire to catch this pretty Linch Hill mirror.
The 32-year-old snared the 35lb 6oz fish from Christchurch at the popular day-ticket complex.
Paul, from Honiton, targeted a silty area about 60 yards from the bank and baited with crumbed-up Sticky Krill boilies and maggots. His hookbait was a 12mm Krill dumbbell presented on a size 8 ACE Razor Point hook and a length of 25lb Black Deception hooklink material.
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Big bonus as banker bags Scar at 49lb
Banker Frank Cunningham got a Christmas bonus in the shape of this 49lb 2oz mirror from Kingsmead One in Berkshire.
The weekend-only angler benefitted from fishing away from other carpers to land the new personal best, which is known as Scar.
The 57-year-old said: “Working all week, I’ve been arriving late on a Friday evening and tending not to follow the crowd and doing my own thing. Last weekend was no different. The kennel end of the lake was quite busy so I decided to fish where the least angling pressure was, and this just happened to be on the back of the wind.
“After settling in I found a lovely silt spot at the back of a piece of gravel and was rewarded at 7.30am the next morning with the awesome Scar Mirror at a new pb of 49lb 2oz. What a fish! I must say a big thank you to Alistair and Jamie Gold for their help with the taking of the picture – as luck would have it my camera decided to pack up!
Frank added: “I’ve been doing really well on the tactic of seeking out the quieter swims and areas, and have also landed the Moonscale mirror at 43lb 12oz earlier in the year.”
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42ins hooklength helps bank brace of thirties
A massive 42ins hooklenght helped Lee Collings overcome a multitude of problems to bank two thirties and a twenty.
The 3ft 6ins hooklink was used to lie on top of dying weed during a two-night session at a busy Farriers Lake in Gloucestershire.
Lee said: “There were 14 anglers on when I arrived, with all the going swims stitched up, so it left me no option but to head to one of the weediest swims on the lake.”
After failing to locate any clear spots, Lee decided to fish on top of the retreating weed. He said: “I was fishing an area about 6ft deep, but the weed was 2ft to 3ft off the deck, and higher in some places. I had seen a couple of fish show in the general area so I opted to fish long 3ft 6ins ESP Stripteaze hooklinks to sit on top of the weed.”
The Midlands rod used a Mainline Hybrid pop-up as a hookbait, but struggled to bait up due to the resident birdlife.
“After the all the commotion of setting up and the birds diving I didn’t expect much to happen the first night, so I was more than surprised when I managed a 25lb 8oz common in the middle of the night.
“The next day was spent cursing the birdlife as they drove me nuts wiping both rods out on numerous occasions, but eventually managed to get everything settled just on dusk. Half an hour before first light the left-hand rod melted off and after a short battle and a load of weed I netted what felt like a good fish. After I had got the rod back out I was just sorting my camera out to do some self takes when the same rod ripped off again. It was a good job I had set up my spare net, and after a brief tussle I had two fish in the nets – and I still didn’t have a clue how big they were.
“The first fish weighed 35lb and the second fish weighed 37lb 8oz. I was over the moon with two thirties.”
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39lb 2oz mirror from southern gravel pit
A rain-lashed overnighter gave Richard Effamy this 39lb 2oz mirror.
The 29-year-old plastering contractor flicked his baits just 20 yards under a willow tree at a southern gravel pit to tempt the specimen.
The West Sussex angler said: “It was a very wet 12-hour overnighter. I got absolutely soaked!”
Richard fed about half a kilo of crumbed and chopped Sticky Krill boilies and fished a matching hookbait on a multi rig made with 25lb Atomic Jel-E-Wyre and a size 6 Gardner Chod hook.
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4lb perch after two year wait
For the last two winters Dave Horton has set himself the target of catching a 4lb-plus perch – and he finally achieved his goal with this 4lb 8oz specimen from the River Lea.
The experienced predator angler and Pike Anglers Club member –who has over 20, 30lb-plus pike to his name – found success with a floatfished roach deadbait on the Hertfordshire waterway
He said: “On a couple of occasions I fallen short by just two ounces and I can honestly say that I am as delighted with this fish as I am with any of my 30lb pike.”
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35lb 6oz pike from Ravensthorpe Reservoir
This cracking 35lb 6oz pike from Ravensthorpe Reservoir is believed to be the biggest of the species caught from any of Anglian Water’s portfolio of fisheries this season.
The impressive specimen was boated by Mat Kasjaniuk while he worked a lure in a central area of the 100-acre Northamptonshire venue.
The large esox set a new personal best for Mat, and he completed the memorable session with a second pike over the 20lb-barrier.
Boat fishing for pike at Ravensthorpe will resume on February 14 -22. To book a boat call 01480 810531.
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New rods help catch monster zander
Steve Budd christened his new rods in style with this 17lb 11oz zander from the River Severn.
The huge predator was caught just after dark at the end of the day session on the midlands waterway after the Tewkesbury-based gas engineer moved to a spot which he hadn’t fished for a while but fancied to produce a big fish.
The 51-year-old, who is no stranger to catching large zander from the Severn having landed one of 20lb 6oz a few years ago, said: “I’d just bought some new 10ft, 2.5lb test curve TFG carp rods for my zander fishing and I couldn’t have asked for a better fish to christen them with.”
Steve tempted the specimen with a roach deadbait fished close a bend on the river.
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63lb 4oz common carp from the River Ebro
This huge 63lb 4oz specimen equals the River Ebro common carp record and was banked by globetrotting angler Martin Hodgkinson.
During a week-long trip on the Spanish waterway with Mequinenza-based Catfish Tours, the Nash Tackle consultant overcame tough conditions to also net four carp over 40lb, six thirties and nine twenties.
“We had to use 20oz of lead just to keep our rigs in position and battle against the huge rafts of weed that were hurtling down the river, but it was so worth it as the carp fishing on this river is absolutely terrific even in such testing conditions ,” Martin told Angling Times.
The Wolverhampton rod fished over beds of pellets with a 32mm pellet and a 20mm Nash Squid Scopex boilie fished snowman-style on a size 6 hook.
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Second 50lb-plus common for Dave Lane in a year
Dave Lane’s phenomenal 2014 got even better with the capture of this 51lb 4oz common on his birthday.
Having banked the elusive Burghfield Common at 55lb in July, Dave became possibly the only angler in history to land two 50lb commons in the same season with the capture of Kitch from Northey Park near Peterborough.
The Mainline and TF Gear-backed angler had only fished the Cambridgeshire venue for 12 nights since acquiring a winter ticket in October. Before last week’s momentous capture he had already caught two mid-thirties and a 22-pounder.
He told Angling Times: “The week before, I found the perfect spot from up a tree and put a bit of bait on it. I watched the swans come across and try to dive on it, but it was just out of their depth, which is crucial on there.
“When they went I caught the 22-pounder, so I put quite a lot of bait out and went back this week. In between, there had been two forties out of the lake and one was close to that area so I knew they had been on the bait.
“I did 24 hours and didn’t have a bite. Normally I would move, but I had a walk round and it still looked like the best spot. It was my birthday and I had been visualising catching that fish on that day, just dreaming about it as you do, but it got dark and the lake hadn’t done any bites between sunset and midnight so I thought my chance had gone.
“At 6pm I had two beeps and the fish came in like a lamb. That’s its signature so I had an idea which fish it was, but it was only 20 yards out and it came in with 20 turns of the reel. I did struggle to get it over the net cord and had to ‘double shake’ the net to get it in – that was a very twitchy moment!
“It’s a fantastic-looking fish, it’s like the Burghfield Common’s brother.”
In just over a year, Dave has caught 71 fish from Monks Pit in Cambridgeshire, 44 fish from Berkshire’s Burghfield and has now conquered Northey Park in a matter of weeks.
“I will have to go a very long way to beat this year,” he said. “I’m now going to Bundy’s Pit for the rest of the winter, and that has three 49lb-plus commons, so a hat-trick of fifties before Christmas would be nice!”
Dave fished Mainline Hybrid boilies on 360-degree rigs.
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