When the Wind Finally Changed

With the temperatures finally dropping to something a little more acceptable for me, along with a lovely wind pushing across the lake, my swim choice could finally be based more on where I’d seen carp showing over the last few weeks, rather than simply chasing the shade.

It’s amazing just how much the water level has dropped in the space of only a week. I’d pitched up with the wind blowing straight into my face after seeing a couple of nice carp show out in front of me. That was enough of an invitation for me.

Setting up the Frontier was certainly interesting! I’ve found the best way to do it in these conditions is to open it up with your back to the wind, get the middle back peg in first, and let the mallet do the talking. Then it’s a case of walking around the bivvy with both hands gripping everything as tightly as possible, before quickly getting the two front pegs in.

You really do need to have the pegs in position and ready to go, along with the mallet, because if you don’t like banging pegs in, then setting up a bivvy with a 30mph wind blowing straight into your face, combined with rock-solid ground, probably isn’t for you!

I’d be spombing out a few loads of Jurassic Particles once the wind subsided later in the evening, as I wanted them to be as accurate as possible. In the meantime, I’d catapulted a few 24mm Cream Cajouser boilies around both spots.

The traps were now set, so all that was left to do was sit back, enjoy the next few nights and hope they brought something a little bit special.

0216 hrs

The right-hand rod was away.

It wasn’t quite the 27lb Ian had caught earlier from the same swim last week. It seemed I’d followed the smaller carp rather than the bigger ones I’d been seeing since arriving. They were showing further out, but with the boulders between them and me, fishing that far out would simply have been a crazy option.

10lb Common

I was happy I hadn’t blanked. It was an August carp, and more importantly, it had proved that the spot was viable.

0626 hrs

The right-hand rod was away again, this time with a 5lb-plus Tench.

I simply sharpened the hook up and flicked the same 24mm Cream Cajouser hardened hookbait back out.

0800 hrs

I was out of my pit for the day, and I’d concluded that, both on here and at Airfield Lake, the carp seem much more inclined to show themselves after 0900 hrs. Before then, they generally seem to have their heads down feeding, with very little indication of where they are.

0930 hrs

Ian popped over for a few brews and a catch-up. We talked about his early success, having caught a 25lb and a 27lb Common, both from similar tactics to mine. It seemed it was only a matter of time before my rods started producing something a little better.

1041 hrs

After a single bleep around 15 minutes earlier, the right-hand rod suddenly screamed off.

This was clearly a big carp and definitely not another Tench. After a long, hard battle in the shallow water, I finally managed to get a lovely carp safely over the cord.

25lb 13oz Common

I was well happy with that one.

I’d seen them showing at range from the swim; I just needed to get them to come in and feed. I’d been slowly introducing a few more freebies throughout the morning, and the rod was soon back out there with a fresh hookbait.

1130 hrs

The same rod was away again, although it was clearly no carp this time. Another Tench, around 5½lb.

I really should weigh one properly at some point just to confirm their actual weight!

1300 hrs

After not having a single bleep or any action whatsoever on the left-hand rod, it was time to relocate it.

I had the option of putting it closer to the other rod, but that isn’t my favourite solution in here. Because the lake is so shallow, and I fish tight lines wherever possible to try and keep the carp away from the boulders, I’ve found that when the rods are too close together, you simply don’t get the bites.

So, out came the marker rod, and I started checking Maps+.

With the depth only being around 3ft to 3½ft, there was little point in flicking the Deeper sonar around. All the information I needed was already there on Maps+.

After checking a few areas, I finally found what looked like the perfect spot: around 3½ft of water with a lovely silty area.

I reduced the spombing to a minimum because of the noise, using a small Spomb purely for the particles. I was still catapulting the 24mm boilies out, which the black-headed variety of seagulls couldn’t pick up.

1420 hrs

The right-hand rod gave a single bleep.

The bobbin lifted and dropped a couple of times, and I was convinced it was yet another Tench.

Then an angry Airfield Lake carp woke up halfway through the fight and went absolutely crazy in the shallow water. It was an exhilarating battle, although I’m always nervous when they charge around in this depth, especially with the boulders waiting underneath.

Eventually, the carp finally calmed down, and I was able to get it safely into the net.

19lb 13oz Common

Another superb result.

I wrapped the rod back up and flicked it out into the lovely headwind, which was making sitting out there so much more bearable.

0600 hrs

I was up early, wondering where all the carp had disappeared to.

It was flat calm, not a breath of wind, the buzzers had been silent all night, and I was wondering what to do next.

The forecast was for a light north-westerly breeze, with the pressure sitting at 1023mb. I also knew I wouldn’t be able to fish the following week, so the question was whether I should stay for the third night or call it a day.

My head was full of questions.

0900 hrs

Ian popped over for his morning coffees, and we sat chatting.

He’d managed another 22lb Common at around 0500 hrs that morning, taking his tally to three 20s and, amazingly, no Tench!

1200 hrs

I reeled in, and we headed off for a walk and drive around the complex.

With the water levels so low, it was the perfect opportunity to pick up the reference points for the boulders and bars again. It never fails to amaze me just how big some of these boulders actually are when you can see them properly.

I’d decided to stay for the final night, especially as a lovely cool breeze had started blowing from the west, once again nicely into my face.

It was much lighter than the previous days, but actually stronger than I’d expected.

I was now looking for another spot for the left-hand rod, as it still hadn’t produced a single bleep. I’ve always struggled to find a consistently productive spot to my left in this swim. I catch randomly from different areas, but strangely, I never seem to catch from the same spot twice.

1900 hrs

It had finally cooled down.

It had certainly been a bit hot out there during the afternoon, and, as expected, there had been no action on any of the rods.

Hopefully, the hours of darkness would bring some more carpy action.

0649 hrs

I’d been fast asleep again after watching the misty dawn develop earlier that morning. I couldn’t believe I’d managed to fall asleep again, missing another beautiful, fresh morning.

Then the right-hand rod suddenly screamed off!

The carp were bolting around on the surface in the shallow water, making the fight even more exhilarating than normal. I’m always nervous when they do this, because they can so easily knock the hook out when they head towards the boulders. It’s happened to me numerous times before.

Thankfully, the carp finally calmed down, and I was able to get a lovely fish safely into the net.

18lb 8oz Common

A perfect end to the session.

I just needed to get everything dried off from the morning dew before packing away.

0803 hrs

And then, just when I thought the session was over, the right-hand rod was away again.

Another lovely Airfield Lake Common.

24lb 1oz Common

What a way to finish.

The cooler temperatures, the wind in my face and, most importantly, the carp finally feeding properly had made this a brilliant few days on the lake.

Four carp, including two 20s, plus a few Tench and plenty of things learned along the way.

Sometimes it’s not about forcing the fishing. It’s about watching, adapting and waiting for the conditions to come right.

Until next time,

Richard

P.s. Time for another family camping trip.

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