Paul Cooper is a very experienced carp angler with many successful French trips under his belt.  In this article he takes you through the tackle he takes. He’s produced a 4 part video diary of all his preparation considerations – you can watch Part 1 here
What tackle do I need?
Do I need a tripod or can I use bank sticks?
  • This is a very important bit of research that you can do, as every lake is different. By reading through previous articles and feedback reports you can usually gather what the banks are like at the lake. It is no good turning up with bank sticks only to find that banks are made up of hardcore, rocky or simply not suitable for using bank sticks.
  • As I am visiting Blue Lake in April, I know that on some of the swims I will need a rod pod, so I will take a rod pod and bank sticks.
  • When in transit my rods (3 or 4 fishing rods, I spod rod, and a marker rod)  are in thin rod sleeves and all tied together with either tape or elastic or long shoelaces, so as to create a long but compact package.
Carp Fishing
All the rods are broken down in pairs with safety covers at each end. The rods along with the landing net all tie together to make a tight bundle to save space in the car.
  • I thin out my entire end tackle etc and only take what I think I will use. All of this fits in one small bag. The larger bag is used for cooking utensils, and additional tackle such as spod and marker reels, spombs etc.
Carp Fishing
All the tackle that I need for the week fits in these 2 bags
What cooking facilities are at the venue?
With Blue Lake I know that there are no cooking facilities so we will have to take our own pots, pans, portable table and cooker etc. We will also need an additional umbrella or as we have used in the past a large piece of tarpaulin sheet to erect a make shift kitchen.
Can you use bait boats or is a boat available to use at the venue?
Now more and more anglers depend on bait boats for presentation of their baits.
It is important to enquire prior to a trip to one of the Angling Lines venues to ascertain:-
  • Are bait boats are allowed on the water
  • Are there are charging points for the batteries etc.
  • If there is a boat on site for use by the anglers it is important to take a life jacket as most lake owners will not allow the boat to be used without one( Due to insurance reasons)
Most of these answers are easy to find by researching the web page of each individual venue.
My Tackle List
I generally make a list so that I do not forget anything. I have missed out important tackle in the past.
Carp Fishing
Bed chair, day chair, bag containing weighing tripod and rod pod and sleeping bag
  • Bivvy
  • Outer bivvy skin
  • Large umbrella to use as a kitchen
  • Folding table
  • Barbeque
  • Bed chair
  • Chair
  • Bivvy table
  • Sleeping bag
Carp Fishing
3 Fishing reels spooled with 15lb Gama, along with a reel for marker work and a reel for spodding, also Bite alarms, receiver and bobbins
  • Fishing rods and reels
  • Spod rod and reel
  • Marker rod and reel
  • Bite indicators/ receiver and bobbins
Carp Fishing
Bait delivery/ spombs, catapult, throwing stick
  • Spombs
  • Spods
  • Stove
  • Pots, pans and kettle
  • Cutlery
  • Landing net and pole
Carp Fishing
Unhooking mat, weigh sling, landing net and water bucket
  • Unhooking mat
  • Weigh sling
  • Weigh tripod
  • Camera with spare batteries.
  • Camera tripod
  • Camera self take equipment
  • 2 head torches plus spare batteries
Carp Fishing
Bite alarms, receiver with indicator bobbins, and 2 head torches
  • Weighing scales
  • Rubber mallet (to deal with driving tent pegs into hard ground). This is an essential piece of my tool kit as I have been caught out in the past.

With all the preparations and planning completed I would hope to have a successful trip and be in a position to report back on yet another great carp fishing holiday.
Paul Cooper
Fishing France at Blue Lake