UK Carp & Coarse Fishing

When I first started carp fishing back in the ’80s, I was making my own bait like everyone else and over the years, due to home life ended up buying bait. Back in the day, you would create the perfect bait mix and then stick to it as long as it kept catching.

What I don’t understand is, why bait companies are put under pressure from the modern-day angler to produce a new boilie every year? It may be that some bait companies feel the need to bring a new product out every year to keep up with the competition from other companies or that the modern-day angler feels the need to swap baits every year.

I’m not really sure why anyone would, I prefer to stick to a bait that I’ve got the utmost confidence in and is consistently catching up carp. Why would you switch over to some new and basically start all over again building your confidence up? I would always be wondering how the old bait would’ve performed and would I have been catching more than I was on a new bait?

It really does seem a bit silly to put yourself under more pressure and stress. Generally speaking, modern-day anglers don’t have the time or the inclination to make their own bait and don’t fully understand what goes into a good bait and how to make one – no hard feelings meant in that statement. There are a vast array of options these days, way more than when I was making bait. I would say that my knowledge is not where it was back in the ’90s as the products and the research papers are readily available. The internet has certainly opened the search side more now.

I can understand if your not catching much after say six months or so, but you do need to put it in perspective, relating to your fishing circumstances. You may have changed rig, fishing less, or at a different time to others. It does seem that people blame their bait first and don’t look back at what else has changed. We all go through lean periods. I write about not giving up a dispair as it can simply be something you have changed and not really remembered doing. I like to go back to basics and my standard Ronnie rig set up, safety clips, mono straight through and stick to that for a bit. I then work out where I may have gone wrong, but the bait is the last thing I tend to worry about, as I have the utmost confidence in the bait company where I get my bait from.

My point is really if you have absolute confidence in the bait you are using – stick with it and quality does matter especially when moving on to another water. The last thing you need to be doing is turning up with a new bait, it could be counterproductive.

Until next time

Richard

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Sensibility and worried about the house with the storms Garlys or Franklin, I lost track of which one was which, as it was pretty much continuous, it only sent me home for a night and I have come back down in the last few hour’s of Franklin for a couple of night’s.

Richard

I have another great article in the latest issue of Talking Carp Magazine, available online.

Richard

I’m out on the bank for a few nights, hopefully dodging Storm Franklin and Storm Gladys over the next 48 hours.

Richard

I’m back out on my syndicate water for a couple of nights. The weather is certainly looking a lot better, I’m very hopeful that there’s a good chance of a carp this session. It has been a lot harder this year, mind you, I was restricted by covid restrictions last year, and if I remember correctly I was only doing days locally and then straight onto the Airfield Lake.

I did have other plans, which unfortunately didn’t pan out. I will write about it sometime in the future – when I feel like bringing it up again. All I will say at the moment, it was a big kick in the teeth for all involved.

I’m all set for another year on the Airfield Lake. I’m getting my spring plans underway, with a slightly different approach to the lake this week. With any luck, I will bag that monster that’s been spotted numerous times over the past couple of years. I may even have a play about a bit more on Meadow Lake on the summer months.

Time to focus on this fishing trip. I arrived back down the lake at just before 9 a.m, and there were a couple of other members pitched up. I took a drive about and spotted a couple of carp showing over the far side. I quickly got back in the car and took a drive around to the nearest swim. I waited a couple of minutes and sure enough, it stuck its head out a couple more times. This secured my choice of swim. The weather conditions where very favorable, there’s a dip in the night temperatures on Friday and going up in pressure on Saturday, but there’s going to be a good blow coming to stir them up over the coming days. The daylight hours are getting longer as well.

My plan for the first day is simple: to fish singles and bags until about 4 pm, then get some bait into the swim and build it up over the coming days.

I spent quite a bit of time over the day, considering my options of where to place my baits for the night. I was also regretting setting up down the same end as the Canadian Geese were feeling the coming spring – lovely.

I was still going to wait until dusk to bait up and move my rods; that’s if I actually believe there’s a  more favorable spot.

Single sticks this time as I need to have a bit of space to play the fish, when (and not if) I catch one – let’s be positive about this trip. I didn’t move them in the end as I felt that I was in the best spots already, I simply spombed out six groundbait balls and a couple filled with boilies over each area.

Just after 2 a.m, the left-hand rod gave a couple of bleeps, I was up and quickly in my boots, touched on the rod, the bobbin was up and holding up. I got out and knelt by the rod just as the bobbin dropped down and quickly pulled up. Oh, joy! The bream have found my spot again, as I pulled into my first one of 2022.

With the rod back out, a rain shower arrived, which was lucky, it would’ve been a bit frustrating 10 minutes ago.

I had trouble dropping back off to sleep again. I heard another fish crashing out over the dark hours, and I was getting a real buzz; the conditions were just perfect. 

Ian is going to pop down again, in the hope of replicating last week’s result. Fingers crossed, he should be bringing the sunshine.

Ian arrived after the ran had passed. We spent the day chatting about the recent events and planning for another session after that monster on the Airfield Lake and how we can approach it differently this year when it opens up again in mid-March. I can’t wait for those long summer days, wide-open spaces and all that open water, it’s magical there.

I rebaited both rods and put 3 half-filled spombs of Catalyst boilies out. Fingers crossed that tonight will bring a carp and not another bream! Why do I keep catching them?

I really enjoy wildlife photography. I don’t carry a DSLR anymore, it’s less to carry as my phone does an adequate job.

The night was silent in many ways, no bleeps, no sounds of fish crashing out or even the birds. Probably due to the temperature drop.

The sunrise was amazing. It was hard to pick a photo that encapsulated the moment; the morning glow, wildlife, frost everywhere. People wonder why we go out there and just sit watching, a lot of people ask ‘what is there to see?’ ‘Oh, so much!’ I say.

I’ve decided that I will head home today, one of the wife’s friends has asked her if she fancies going out to the cinema. I think that would be nice for her to go out, as it’s been a long time. There’s always another day or night for fishing.

I am going to try and fit a day trip in next week on the club lake, but I’m not 100% sure I will manage to fit it in again. Arriving Thursday morning is a real bonus at the moment and generally, it gives me a great choice of swims.

I very much enjoyed my time out as I always do. Despite blanking on this lake, the scenery and the wildlife just keep me occupied.

Until next time

Richard

Use my code for 10% discount

The discount code applies to the entire order when purchasing the Deeper Sonars PRO, PRO+, PRO+ 2, CHIRP, CHIRP+, CHIRP 2, CHIRP+ 2. The code is valid in all countries.CODE = DEEPER-H-9OCSF