I’m back on the hunt again! This week, I managed to get Ian out for his first trip of 2025. I let him choose where to set up, while I found a swim nearby so we could have a drink and a chat without traveling too far.

I arrived just before 10:00 AM and took a drive around, chatting with a few syndicate members. The lake still wasn’t fishing well—no one had seen any carp. This didn’t deter me; as I learned last week, they’ve become very shy.

Ian settled on a swim in Winter Bay, one of the warmest parts of the lake—a great choice for his first session of the year. I opted for the Gap swim, which has historically produced well for me, though not recently. That needed to change.

The wind was set to shift frequently over the next couple of nights, dropping temperatures at night while keeping daytime temperatures relatively mild, with a good chance of sunshine. Rain was forecast for periods tomorrow, and pressure was rising from 1013mb to 1034mb by Friday. On a brighter note, we now have over 12 hours of daylight.

To build attraction in my swim, I spombed out some boilie crumb mixed with Co-De boilies and solubles. Each day, I planned to add another six medium-sized Nash Dot Spombs and adjust my pop-ups to see if the carp favored something different.

Castaway PVA mesh bags plus Hemp Oil

The first night produced a bream at 4:30 am on the right-hand rod. I was up like a whippet, but I knew it wasn’t a carp—the bobbin was bouncing up and down. Still, you always hope until the fish is in.

I rebaited with a fresh mesh bag and a 12mm Co-De pop-up, hitting the clip perfectly, though slightly left of my spot. I left it until first light to reassess. Unfortunately, I woke to heavy rain, so I had to wait—I didn’t want to risk another bag landing off course and introducing too much bait.

By 1:00 pm, the rain had passed. I gave it 30 minutes, as sometimes takes come just after a downpour, but not today. I spombed out 10 small Dot Spombs over each area, refreshed my hook baits, and switched the left-hand rod to a Trigga Ice 15mm Wafter paired with a 12mm Liver Supreme Pop-Up.

The afternoon saw a few short showers, but soon, the sun broke through, bringing a lovely evening. I even spotted a carp sticking its head out—the first I’d seen in months. Could this mean they’ve turned a corner?

Late afternoon and evening were a mix of sunshine and brief rain showers. I soaked up the warmth for about 40 minutes before settling in for the night.

Just after 8:00 pm, the left-hand rod was away. It felt like another bream, but as soon as I picked up the rod, I knew—it was a tench. Another followed four hours later. While not ideal, I was encouraged to see carp crashing on the far side of the lake. Confidence was high, and sleep was difficult, knowing a take could come at any moment.

Glad of my Wallop Clothing Today

That moment arrived at 6:05 am. The left-hand rod screamed into life—this was no tench or bream. After a tense fight, with the carp constantly diving for snags, I finally slipped the net under a stunning 27lb 5oz common.

I was overjoyed. My last fish from this water had been on November 14th—a beautiful ghost carp. While the club water had been kind over the winter, this was a fantastic result. I quickly got the rod back on the spot, hopeful for another, though not greedy.

The afternoon was gorgeous—full of sunshine, with a few carp spotted along the far margins. As the sun set, I tidied up, aiming to leave the lake early.

At 7:45 pm, the right-hand rod produced another bream. I swapped the hook bait to an 18mm Cream Cajouser Wafter, hoping to deter the nuisance fish and give any carp in the area a chance.

The rest of the night was peaceful—I slept like a baby, exhausted from the fresh air.

This morning, I poked my head out of the Aqua M3 Compact bivvy to find frost everywhere, a surprise that likely affected the carp. With consistent conditions forecast for the next week, I’m confident they’ll be on the feed soon.

Until next time,

Richard

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