Back on the River

Well would you believe it; we are actually having a nice summer for once! As a result my local river is running crystal clear and it’s not carrying much water, which makes my life easier when it comes to locating fish. The Carp are still on the top of the list for me at the moment, but they have been proving tricky to catch.

I’ve enjoyed a few sessions chilling out in the sun, trying to locate the Carp in the several miles river that surround me. Unfortunately, when I have located them, I’ve managed to lose two in snags. It’s my own fault really for fishing too close to them, but when you can see the fish moving in and around the snags you just want to get as close as possible, whilst fishing safe.

The night before my most recent outing I pre-baited an area where I know the Carp ‘live’ with half a kilo of 10mm and 15mm boilies. I had a pretty restless night’s sleep, with my mind thinking about the potential Carp that could be feeding on my bait as I lay in bed. I know that pre-baiting works really well on rivers, and when a few decent fish have been spotted in the area it gives me confidence that the fish will happily eat my bait.

When the morning finally came around I was up early and eager to get out, with high hopes of catching a stunning river Carp. As I was busy in the afternoon and it was forecast to be 32 degrees, my plan was to fish for four hours or so in the morning, before it got hot. For the first hour I couldn’t see any of the Carp that I had previously spotted hidden amongst the over hanging trees. I was hoping they had moved out of the snags and were over my bait. With no action taking place I had to check if the rigs were clean, or whether they had gathered any weeds. I recast both rods to the edge of my baited area, so as not to spook any potential fish feeding, and to increase the chance of a quick bite.

Ten minutes later, I spotted a couple of Carp cruising just underneath the surface, circling where I had my rods positioned. I felt that there was nothing I could do, as the last thing I wanted was to spook them. I didn’t move whilst they were going about their business, I just watched them with excitement, knowing I might catch one. Then, all of a sudden there was a disturbance, and a Carp erupted from the water. My rod tip wrapped around, and line started stripping off my reel. I was in! This Carp knew every single snag, rock and anything else that it could snap me off on. It was full of energy as it relentlessly tore around my swim, trying to get away. The twenty minute fight was second to none, and when it finally gave up I was so happy to get it in the net!

Until next time

Tight lines

Common Occurrence

Welcome back! Since my last post I have continued to target Carp in my local area and have moved onto a lovely lake that holds some stunning fish. On my first couple of trips the fish were still spawning so it wasn’t really the best time to be fishing; as a result I put in two blanks. But eventually, once the Carp got it out of their system, I knew it would be a prime time to get a bite, as they would be out on the feed after all the commotion of spawning. The only down side was that most, if not all of the Carp, would be at their lowest weight. That doesn’t bother me though, as long as I’m catching, it’s all good.

I knew from the off how I was going to fish the lake, and when I arrived it was empty, so had my choice swims too. My chosen swim was full of above and under water features, so all I needed to do was decide which ones to fish and get some bait out.

I usually like to use boilies alone for my Carp fishing because the fish are eating the same size and shape bait that will be on the end of my rig. Also, there is no hassle to apply any amount of bait to an area and it makes little disturbance when you do.

Not long after setting up anglers started arriving, causing commotion around the lake. As I had already set up and baited, the fish started moving into my swim, but I didn’t see any signs of feeding. As the day passed by not a single fish got caught, I often thought about re-casting, but I sat on my hands and left everything how it was.

I knew Lambert was going to be joining for the night, but when he arrived the lake was full and the only option was to fish the smaller lake behind me. Within an hour of Lambert having his rods out, I heard a bite alarm screaming. I popped my head out my bivvy and, would you believe it, he had a fish on. I couldn’t believe it! Not too long after the Carp had got onto my bait and I was in as well!

After taking some pictures and safely returning the fish we just needed to get the rods back out so we could relax. There is nothing like that feeling, when you’ve had your first fish from a venue, and put an end to a string of blanks. It feels like a big weight has been lifted off of your shoulders. It wasn’t dark at this point, so I was feeling confident for another bite through the night, if not before.

As the night drew in, I could see fish feeding in my swim, so I knew it was only a matter of time before I had my next bite. Eventually, as it does, it got dark and I was left wondering if the fish were still feeding, or had they moved on to another area of lake.

Just as we had decided to call it a night and get our heads down for a snooze, Lambert’s rod screamed off, and he was in to the first fish of the night! It was a lovely little Ghostie, which put up a good fight, but definitely didn’t help Lambert get to sleep!

At around 2am, while I was fast asleep my left hand rod shot off; in an instant I was up and into a fish. With a good bend in my rod, I had a gruelling battle on my hands, in the pitch black, for twenty minutes. I eventually managed to get my head torch on, just in time to net the fish. A lovely Common weighing 19lb 04oz was the prize. After admiring the Carp and taking some pictures, it was safely returned to fight another day.

After a couple of hours’ kip, I had another screaming take that shocked me into action! This time I managed to put my head torch on and could see the fish was heading towards an overhanging tree. It was a good thing I had my head torch on, as I don’t think I would have landed it in the dark, not knowing how close it was to the snag.

As we took some pictures, the sun started to rise behind us and it was a lovely, picturesque morning. What a lovely way to start the day!

Until next time