UK Carp & Coarse Fishing

With a few family things to sort and some gardening due at the end of the week, I found myself back out on Sunday afternoon again. It’s becoming a bit of a habit lately, although it probably won’t last much longer. Once the gardening season gets properly underway, I’ll be back to my usual slot later in the week. I wouldn’t say the conditions are getting any easier, but it’s the only time I can get myself out on the bank at the moment.

Arriving at the lake, I honestly didn’t have a clue where to pitch up. The west bank was getting the full force of the cold east wind and felt absolutely freezing, so that didn’t appeal to me at all. The only swim I might have chosen was already taken — in fact, it was the only one I had in mind on the drive down.

I spent a bit of time looking around an area known as Night Ropes. These days it’s almost like Snag City with all the sunken branches and cover. If I’d actually seen something show, I probably would have given it a go, but the place looked lifeless.

In the end I settled on a swim called New Point — not that new anymore — but I’m hoping the weather forecast doesn’t change because it still feels like my best option if the conditions improve.

First job was getting the Fox Frontier up to keep that easterly chill off me. Once that was sorted, I flicked the Fox marker rod out to an old spot that’s produced carp for me before. After that I started having a look around with the Deeper Fish Finder app. There wasn’t enough wind to drift the sonar around properly, and I didn’t want to disturb the lake too much, so I relied on lining things up with bank markers and the horizon — something I’ve found to be very accurate over the years.

With the spots located, it was time to mix up the bait. In the winter months I like to measure everything out properly. All the ingredients are kept in my Korda Kontainer, then mixed together in the RidgeMonkey 7.5L bucket.

The mix contained:

• EnerGize 15mm boilies

• Co-De Activator

• Co-De Sludge

• Co-De Active Bag Mix

• Jurassic Particles

• Hemp and buckwheat

• Himalayan pink salt

Both spots were baited with this mixture. Over the top I fished two simple rigs. One rod had a single orange Blank Saver with a tiny mesh bag of Nutrabaits pellets. The other was a snowman setup — a 15mm EnerGize boilie topped with a 12mm EnerGize pop-up.

Once everything was sorted in and around the bivvy, it was finally time for a coffee.

Overnight I had three quiet bleeps, just enough to give me hope that something might move into the bay. By the morning though, I was starting to wonder. I checked the forecast again and the sunshine that had been promised had completely disappeared, apart from maybe a bit around sunset. I’d really hoped the sun would warm the water in the bay, but it stayed pretty chilly all day. In fact, it was cold enough that I ended up putting the bivvy heater on.

I decided to leave the rods exactly where they were and not top the swim up. I wasn’t even sure if I’d stay for the third night. If the next day turned out the same as this one, I wasn’t convinced it would be worth it.

Later that night, around 2300hrs, the alarm gave three bleeps within about ten minutes. That lifted my spirits straight away. It felt like something was at least investigating the baited area. But by morning everything looked exactly the same as it had 48 hours earlier.

I decided it was time to change the hookbaits. One rod went out with a white Blank Saver, the other with a 12mm Pink Pepper pop-up. Conditions had improved just enough for me to commit to the third night. We were due a bit of rain but nothing heavy. The sun had broken through a few times during the day and warmed things slightly, although there was still a definite chill in the air despite the wind turning southerly.

Fingers crossed tonight would be the one.

At 04:03 the left-hand rod gave a couple of bleeps. At first it sounded different to the odd raindrops that had been hitting the bobbins during the night. I was straight out of the bivvy and watching as the bobbin slowly dropped back, giving a few more bleeps.

I lifted into it.

At first it felt a bit like a bream — heavier than expected but not really fighting. As I gained line though, it began to feel more like a carp, just not a particularly big one. There are double-figure bream in here, so I still wasn’t completely convinced.

That was until my head torch picked up the silhouette in the clear water.

Happy days.

All I needed to do now was get it in the net — although the fish had other ideas. It suddenly woke up and tried its hardest to power down the margins to my left. Eventually I managed to draw it under the rod tip, and it was only a matter of time.

As it rolled over the cord and into the mesh I thought, that’s a nice one.

I hadn’t realised just how nice.

37lb 2oz Common.

It had taken three days and nights of believing they should move into that bay. The weather had let me down on the first day when the sun was supposed to warm the snags. The second day was better but still not ideal.

Something kept telling me the third night would be the one.

I probably should have gone back to sleep afterwards, but there was no chance of that. I was wide awake and buzzing, so it was time for a brew and a pot of porridge while the sun slowly came up.

Before long it was time to pack up and head home, but I didn’t mind at all.

I was still buzzing from the result.

That fish had been properly worked for.

Until next time.

Richard

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