During a session on Monument carp lake in France Paul Cooper gives hints & tips on how to safely look after our beloved carp.
Carp Fishing in France at 36 Carp Lakes
Wednesday, 30 May 2012
Knockout Start for Notaire’s with 46 carp
New PB for Steve – 38lbs 4oz
Steve Grant got the Notaires season off to a flying start landing 46 carp to 38lb, fishing daytime only.
The fishing wasn’t easy in the first half of the week as Steve battled high winds and heavy rain but as the weather improved mid week the lakes really took off.
Rachel's 1st ever carp -17lb
Steve’s tactics were to bait up several spots with a mixture of the house hemp/parti-mix, and then move between them, topping up the freebies after a take.
The runs were coming so fast that Steve downsized to just two rods and even then had three double takes while playing fish that he had to leave to be dropped.
On the Thursday Steve hooked into a big fish and after a good fight landed a new PB of 38lb. This also became the first fish that we chipped in our new fish management programme (more about this later).
The icing on the cake came on Friday when he persuaded his wife Rachael to have a go and she landed her first fish at 17lb (and lost a bigger fish – sounds like an experienced angler already!).
Congratulations to Steve and Rachael on their new PBs
A Different Approach to Carp Fishing
A Different Approach…
by Salv Licata
Most, if not all, anglers head to France with a single minded mission to capture a monster carp & I suppose I’m no different… it’s something anglers all dream of and it’s something that seems to be more readily available in France. However, if I’m brutally honest, a lake record wasn’t the be all and end all for me. I wanted ideally to catch fish using traditional tackle, simple methods, preferably stalked, and anything that pulled back on the line a bit.
My two fishing buddies, Brian “Ealy” Steeley and Paul (Stoke on Trent champion distance rower) had been toMas Bas before, and I have listened to 2 years of tales that were spoken with much affection and wonder for this lake and location.
So did it live up to its name? Yes… and then some more!
From the car park I walked up the stairs at the side of the house and not 20’ away was the lake. To the right was a beautiful willow; on the left bank across the water were trees with red leaves. The left bank caught my eye past the little island – this looked an ideal stalking place (if there was a way through the branches), as did the far end of the lake which had an inlet and lots of overhanging trees.
I had bought carbon rods and bait runners, alarms and all the other gear which is standard carp fishing gear now a days, this was the first time I would use them, so they were set up and organised.
Then the rain set in & I was getting cabin fever sitting behind buzzers! I was catching the odd fish, grass carp mostly, & I know this way of fishing works for most people, but I found it a very detached way of catching fish. So on the third day when the rain stopped, a centrepin, cane rod, float and a tub of fat worms were quickly put together.
The first dip of the float was the cause of enough excitement for the video camera to come out. I was sure it was a good carp as the fight was so much more dogged than that of the grassies. Eventually my first ever sturgeon came to the net.
Brian had actually caught this fish the same morning and believe it or not we caught it six times over the week between us, all on different baits! It was 9lb 6oz and had two marks behind its gill plates, so anyone who catches it in the future can see how it’s growing.
So armed with my wellies to plough through the puddles and mud I started exploring. There are some mouth watering little spots and as you get towards the shallows there is evidence all over the place of big fish feeding… and being spooked by me as I heavy bootedly worked my way around.
I stopped by the inlet which was a torrent because of the two days of heavy rain. I looked down and not two feet away from me were some huge carp pushing for prime position for food coming in through the pipe.
I set the float at about four feet and put a shot about six inches from the size six hook baited with four of the biggest worms I had. I very slowly lowered the worms down but the flow of water was so strong the next time I focused on the bait it was twenty foot away and surfing on the top!
So the split shot was made heavier and the worms went down again. They bounced across the bottom & all I was thinking was will it be the huge common or the massive mirror with the yellowy belly?
Within sixty seconds I was in! I was waiting for the pull from a thirty pounder, it never happened. This fish I hooked was fast and zigging all over, trying for the sunken snags… but it lacked the power.
When I got the fish out of the net I saw the most beautiful fish I have ever seen & I am very happy to have caught it. I call it “the fire fish”, it was around around 6lb or so & when you look at the photo below you’ll see how it got its name.
After a few snaps I was stunned to see fish still by the inlet. So I baited up and did exactly the same. Within sixty seconds the float went down and I was in again. This fish caused me to get a good grip of my centrepin handles. I couldn’t afford to let any line out, the bend of the rod would have to fight the fish for me, there were too many snags in every direction.
Eventually the ferocity of the runs receded and another odd looking fish was on the bank. This was around 18lb and is actually the big orange fish Giles is photographed with on the Website.
Half an hour later & another location – that’s the thing this wonderful, moody and charismatic lake offers for anybody who cares to move away from standard buzzer fishing. Looking down from a high vantage point I could see through branches that were still waiting for leaves to grow yet more big carp!
I set everything up, landing net on the left, unhooking mat soaked and on flat ground, hook baited and big split shot changed for small split shot, worms swung out in a left to right arc which put them almost under the overhanging b
ranches. I tightened up on the line so the weight of the worms were cocking the float.
This time it took longer for action, at least two minutes, and the float slid away sideways. I had a hell of a battle that in all fairness I shouldn’t have won. But I did and I’m glad to say I did it my way!
I shouted Paul & he thankfully came around and helped with weights etc – 27lb 15oz. Strangely this was the first of four 27lb carp that I caught while stalking during the week.
This is just a snippet, or a taste of what you can find at Mas Bas. I spent more or less the rest of my week doing this. I had a small interlude with the bass which have now changed location on the lake as a result of the sturgeon stealing their patch! The bass are a great change of scene from the carp; I would urge anyone to try for them.
What I hope comes across in this report is not so much what flavour boilie or what rig works (for the record the £5 worth of worms caught me 80% of my fish compared to the £80 or so of boilies), but the feeling I got of pioneering and exploring a brand new Redmire. It does have that kind of mood about it, you never know what you are going to find around the next corner or under the next snag.
Looking forward to my next trip & thanks to Giles’s dad for creating the pool in the first place, to Giles and Leslie, ginger cat… and of course the wonderful carp!
98lb of Common Carp in 24 hours!
Jonny smashed his Pb – 49lb
Rob & Jonny have just landed 2 commons for 98lb in just 24hrs at Lac du Val !
Rob baited up the big tree with corn pellet and Lac du Val’s to land his Pb @ 49lb 8oz and hit his target – his method was a pop-up tipped with corn
Jonny baited up the willow, left it all day then dropped a rod on top of mixed size LDV`s ( 10, 15 & 18mm). A snowman nailed it and smashed his Pb by 20lb!
Heaven is Lac du Val!
Rob hits his target - 49.08
Monday, 28 May 2012
New Lillypool Lake Record Common – 43lb 3oz
43.03
A new Lillypool lake record common for Martin Larner @ 43lb 3oz - a new PB for him.
It was his last day and it came with the last cast of the week!
Record Breaking Week at Molyneux…
42.12 – The lake record Common
Molyneux Report to 14th April 2012;
Saturday arrived and after an early breakfast, Paul was on his way. Living Ooop North, means he has an awful long drive from Dover, so he set off in plenty to get home during daylight.
Our next anglers consisted of two parties of friends who all travelled across together.
Richard Dawson, his sons James, and Matt, and their mates Reece, John, and a non angler Perry who had come along for the social side of things. The guys had the obligatory cuppa and after introductions and a chat about the lake we wandered round and showed them all the swims.
John, and Matt decided to plot up in the double, whilst Richard chose to fish from the Barn swim. James set up In Social 1, whilst Reece joined him fishing in Social 2
The weather was much the same, chilly, although a lot more overcast, and there was the promise of a massive drop in air pressure, and rain to come on Sunday night/Monday morning.
There were two fish caught late Saturday evening. James was first out of the blocks with a 27lb 6oz Mirror, John following closely behind with a common of 19lb 8oz.
Matt had an early morning call in the shape of a 28lb 8oz mirror at 2.30am, he was up again at 5am to photograph a stunner of 36lb for his dad Richard in the Barn swim.
Just before tea, James was in again, this time a 24lb common. With the promised weather closing in, things were looking very good.
The next morning the chill wind had died, it felt distinctly warmer, and the pressure had dropped, large clouds loomed over the slopes of the valley, and it looked like we were in for a drop or two of rain any moment.
The fishing had followed the pattern of the night before with four fish being caught between 2am and 7am, Matt started the ball rolling with a 32lb mirror, John chipped in with a 23lb 5oz mirror, Matt then had a 24lb 2oz mirror. James around the other side of the lake had only the one fish, but what a fish. A cracking mirror at a weight of 40lb 2oz. The first time this fish had been caught over the magical barrier.
40lb exactly!
The rain came at around 2pm in the afternoon, dropping steadily straight down as it moved slowly across the lake. At around the same time, the two guys in the social swim suddenly became very busy, with James landing a gorgeous 30lb 2oz common, Reece following closely with a mirror of 33lb, and James catching his second forty of the day with another new one of 40lb exactly.
Two new forties in one day was excellent news for Helen and I, and of course Molyneux. The lake has so much potential, with lots of lovely big carp in, it is a slowly slowly scenario, where you watch and wait for the carp you know so well to grow and prosper. Finally it seems they are getting there.
9pm saw John land another fish of 27lb 4oz. shortly after Reece landed his second of the trip at 28lb, this was quickly followed by his third a 31lb mirror. James then capped his day off in style with a mirror of 38lb 4oz just prior to midnight.
Richard had a 23lb common during the night, and James landed a 30lb 4oz mirror at dawn the following morning.
After a slow morning, things picked up again at lunchtime, with James away again, this time landing a 15lb common. At the same time John in the double swim was photographing a 32lb 12oz mirror. Half an hour later, James lands another corker of 36lb.
At 4pm Richard landed a 37lb mirror. After dinner the guys headed back to their swims and it wasn’t long before James was in again, this mirror weighing 37lb 8oz.
At midnight, Matt caught a 29lbmirror, at 12.30 James had a 31lb mirror, a short while later John caught a 25lb 8oz mirror. Then at 1.30am Reece landed a 38lb mirror.
At first light John had another, a mirror of 25lb 8oz, then as the guys were gathering for breakfast, someone spotted James playing yet another fish across the lake in Social 1.
This was to be the highlight of an already extraordinary week. A stunning common of 42lb 12oz, a new lake record common. Surely this could not continue.
That afternoon James had a 29lb mirror. 7pm and Richard in the Barn had a 36lb 12oz beast, his third fish over 36lb’s. There were two fish out around midnight. James with a mirror of 24lb, and Richard again with a 23lb 2oz common. John then landed two before first light, 23lb common, and 25lb 12oz mirror. James also had another just after first light, a mirror of 23lb.
For the first time this year fish and plenty of them had been coming out during the day, so Matt having had no luck in the double during the day decided to try the cabin swim and see what happened. His luck changed is what happened. Within half an hour of casting out, he was in, the result a 23lb mirror, and it wasn’t long before he and I were guesstimating the size of another much bigger chunk in his landing net. Neither of us guessed it right though, it was a massive 37lb’s. A male fish, built like a pit bull with attitude to match, it fought like a brute and looked like one.
Meanwhile, just before tea, James who was on a mission now to beat our previous record of 48 carp for a group, almost single handedly, landed another thirty in the shape of a 33lb 4oz beauty.
By breakfast time on Friday four more fish had been added to the ever increasing total,
Reece contributing two mirrors of 25lb 4oz, and 29lb 12oz. James had of course chipped in with two, a 21lb mirror, and another massive fish of 38lb 4oz.
Reece had fish in front of him now and was making hay while the sun shone, (so to speak as it was still peeing down more than it was dry.) He caught two more mirrors of 30lb 4oz, and 26lb.
40.02
That evening Matt, deciding to do the last night in the cabin swim was rewarded with three lovely mirrors, of 29lb 6oz, 33lb 2oz, and 27lb. Richard landed a 30lb 2oz mirror.
In the early hours of Saturday morning Reece had two more, both mirrors weighing 26lb 10oz, and 36lb 4oz.
A record breaking week in so many ways, A total of 52 carp landed, for a total weight of 1’543lb’s between 5 anglers. The average weight across the 52 fish being 29lb 10oz, Incredible!!
It proves that all the winter feeding is doing the fish and the lake the world of good, Almost all the fish were in stunning mint condition, with a few showing signs of flanking or flashing over either stones or branches and having the odd nasty scratch, all were treated with a very good Koi treatment and will heal well, and continue to thrive.
It was a pleasure to meet you all guys, I am so pleased that everything clicked for you with the weather conditions and the fish playing ball. You undoubted angling skills shows that with a little application and working at your fishing, dreams can indeed be made at Molyneux.
Tuesday, 22 May 2012
54lb 2oz Common for Leanne
54.02
Lac du Val lady angler Leanne lands 54lb 2oz common breaking her Pb by 6lb
20 minutes previously she had landed a 15lb 4oz lake record tench.
What a start to her week!!!
Monday, 21 May 2012
Margot – The Carp Lake of Dreams
Margot – The Lake of Dreams
by Rob Allen
65lb 8oz
I have been to Margot several times & thoroughly recommend the place to anyone looking for big carp… but with runs too. To me it really is the Lake of Dreams.
This April 2012 trip was my seventh to the lake and it just keeps getting better and better and has never let me down. I organised the trip with a group of 7 friends all eager to fish the lake I keep talking about. So in a way pressure was on me for the lake to deliver.
This time round the fishing got off to a great start, normally we wait 36 + hours to bank a fish…. but Craig Holt was quick to get his rods out first and managed to bank a 47lb common before any other person in the group had even put their rods out. That’s when I knew we were in for a good week, it was a slower start for me like always, but that was soon to change.
My aim was to bank a 50lb’er this time round as I have had plenty of 40′s here before but never a 50lb or a 60lb so that was my aim…. but I was soon into something that sure felt like a 50lb and couldn’t wait to get it into the net.
The fish was soon netted and weighed, a big mirror that weighed in at…
65lb 8oz !!
I was over the moon I had to weigh the fish several times because I couldn’t believe my eyes, I had jumped from the 40′s straight to a 60 but I wasn’t complaining.
Soon to follow was a stunning 52lb mirror… so you can see why I said the place fulfills your dreams.
My tactics are always the same, running lead system with a 6in dacron braid fishing a pink 14mm pop up, must be pink, popped up 2in with a stick of pellet mixed with halibut stick mix.
Feed the fish plenty but not all at once coz they won’t bother at all. Feed them half a kg every time you get a take to keep them there, but only do this when fish are there and until that your stick alone is fine.
My personal tally for the week was - 52 carp, made up of;
* 1 x 60
* 1 x 50
* 11 x 40′s
* 24 x 30′s
* and the rest 20′s and only 3 carp under 20!
I also banked my third 30lb koi in the last 5 years.
Amazingly our group banked 143 fish with a total weight of 4,736lb !!
I have to say I love the new bakers delivery service, which was eagerly awaited at 10am each day. Gorgeous!!
Follow my tactics and I’m sure you won’t go wrong.
Tight lines, Rob Allen
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Monument French Carp Session – Lessons Learnt
Lesson 1
You have spent a year planning this carp fishing trip; so make sure you allow enough time to get to the ferry!
The impressive Pont de Normandie
I should know better after all the Angling Lines trips I’ve been on but an hour’s spare time always seemed enough in the past. After leaving home and driving only half an hour we hit the A14 and stopped! In fact we didn’t move for over an hour, just long enough to miss the ferry!
We did manage to squeeze on the next one and after a relaxed lunch on board we were soon on the A16 heading for Abbeville then down to Le Havre and crossing the spectacular Pont de Normandie spanning the river Seine to Honfleur. We were soon heading for Rennes on empty auto routes and onto our hotel for the night.
I had booked a twin room in a Campanile online well in advance and paid only 47 Euros. I always travel on the Friday and book a hotel close to the lake. This gives you plenty of time to chill out, enjoy some fabulous food and wine and get a good nights rest. Saturday morning and you are refreshed, wide awake and fit for a weeks fishing, after all this is a holiday. You also have plenty of time to do all of your food shopping on route to the lake.
Le Monument was easy to find with the directions from Angling Lines and Mark the owner was there to greet us as we pulled into the lake.
The lake is unusual; split by a long island with giant rocks emerging from the water in one half. The same granite rocks form a row of what appear to be megalithic standing stones, but were in fact created when the stones were extracted from the lake during construction.
Mark is a mine of information and was soon updating us…
100 Carp Mega Catch Ends with 46lb Mirror!
46.07
Frank, Matt and Chris Baynes ended their Commons mega-catch in style when Matt banked this 46lb 7oz mirror on the final morning. The 6th and biggest 40 of the week’s catch.
Final tally was 100 fish, made up of 6 x 40s, 24 x 30s, 61 x 20s, 4 x cats to 79lb, 4 x doubles and one roach. Total weight – 2,876lbs!
Full details of a remarkable weeks fishing are here.
What a Family Holiday!
The Hope family enjoyed a fantastic week at Beaurepaire (w/c 12th May)havingg 48 runs with 44 landed;
* 32 carp all mirrors
* 7 x 40′s
* 13 x 30′s
* 11 x 20′s
* 1 @ 16lb
* 2 grass carp 19.8 & 24lb
* 2 catfish 12 & 37lb
* 8 bream
Here’s what they had to say;
” I would recommend Beaurepaire to anybody, its a runs water but with big fish. After reading the last two feedbacks we was not expecting much, but we have had a fantastic weeks fishing. The owners and family are lovely people and they invited us to their house for coffee and cake and for our two boys to play in their garden, they could not do enough for us. We have had a great time and would definitely go back.”
Angling Holidays at Beaurepaire
Friday, 18 May 2012
The Testers Return to Blue Lake
A view of Blue lake from swim 7
Last year Jim Kelly and I visited Blue Lake in almost monsoon conditions, with freshly dug swims with marl and mud everywhere, it was a trip to forget and we finished our trip early due to the adverse conditions.
On our return to the UK we reported our findings to David Keep of Angling Lines so that he could consult with the new owner of the Lake. As a result of our findings a massive stocking programme took place over the winter of 2011/12 with carp to just under 50lb being stocked. It was on my list for a return to Blue Lake to see what improvements had been made and…
Fishing France at Blue Lake
Red Letter Week at Lords!
Terry with a 41.08 Mirror
Terry Cheesman has just added a great article detailing the fantastic week he & Stephen Harris had at Lords w/c 28th April when they took 59 fish including;
* lake record common at 49lb for Stephen
* 7 other 40′s
* 31 x 30′s to 39lb
* 4 grass carp
* only 2 x 20′s
* plus 1 cat at 41lb (pb for Terry)
A Red Letter week indeed!
Pb broken 3 times in 24 hours and sets a new lake carp record
48.04
Matt Groves has, in the space of 24 hours, broken his personal best 3 TIMES.
Before Matt came to Le Monument his personal best was 27lb caught in France several years ago. On Monday he hit into a 29.10lb mirror which beat his best by 2.10lb… then by 13:00 on Tuesday his rod screamed off which brought a 32.12lb to the bank – again beating his PB by another 3lb.
Matt was over the moon as now he was in the 30 and overs club.
Well his smile was still beaming when his next rod roared off, 10 minutes after he just put the 30 back. This time he landed the new lake record of 48.4lb!!
He smashed his PB by yet another 16lb & all in the space of 24 hours!
Needless to say his grin stretched all the way around his head and back again!
Top angling Matt!
Carp Fishing in France at Monument
Margot Record Grass Carp – 50lb 4oz
David Winters landed this 50.04 Grass Carp at Margot (w/c 5th May). It is believed to be the record grassy… unless you know different?
It was part of an 18 carp haul including 5 x commons to 37-10, 8 x mirrors to 36-14, 1 sturgeon at 36lb & 2 x grass carp.
Wednesday, 16 May 2012
Breathalysers Arrive
From July 1st 2012 it is compulsory to carry a breathalyser kit in the car in France.
We told you back in March that we’d try to get some of the kits into the UK so you could buy them from us if you wanted. Well they’ve arrived and we’re happy to sell them at no profit.
They will be £2.50 + 60p P&P.
They contain 2 tests (which is what the French are recommending – see below).
We only have 50 so it will be first come first served & one per customer. Just give us a call (01773 590077) & pay by card & we’ll get them in the post to you the same day.
Background
From July 1st 2012 it is compulsory to carry a breathalyser kit in the car in France.
Two kits per car are advised (so if you use one you’re still able to stay legal) & 15 euro fines for non-compliance will be levied from November 1st 2012.
France has strict drink driving laws with blood alcohol levels being stricter than in the UK (0.5 mg/ml rather than 0.8). This equates to 2 x 12cl glasses of wine for a man weighing 75kg (11½ stones).
France also has a no tolerance position if you are stopped and prove positive for any drug substance, including cannabis. The penalty for this is the loss of your driving licence.
More information here - http://www.thelocal.fr/2487/20120206/
New Catfish Record Set at Old Oaks
70lb
Congratulations to Rick for setting the new Old Oaks catfish record with a 70lb moggy! Last time out this cat was 60lb.
Carp in the 50′s and 40′s are still coming out week after week. This really is a fantastic year for Old Oaks.
Tuesday, 15 May 2012
Morgane Carp and Cat Mayhem
Here’s a short video interview with Mick Holmes at Morgane during their epic session in which they took 67 fish… 7 x 40′s and 17 x 30′s from the carp lake and 21 cats to 74lb 8oz on the cat lake… & they didn’t even fish at night! Check out the damage to the chair caused by fighting the cats!
Drought? What Drought?
John does a quick tour of the lake showing us the effects of a monumental downpour at Bletiere in April ’12.
Fishing Holidays at Bletiere
Too Much Bait Left in Swim – What Would You Do?
Readers Question;
If you arrived at a lake and found that the previous anglers, for whatever reason, had either dumped lots of particle because they had it left over, or just used an enormous amount of pellet or particle as their tactics – what would you do?
Jim Kelly replies;
It is always difficult to know what to do unless you are at the lake and can observe what is happening e.g. fish activity. My initial thoughts is that there is no point in just compounding the problem by adding more bait.
If I knew where they had fished I would initially try fishing a very bright fluro over the top of their bait, with no freebies introduced by me (an in your face bait to get the fishes attention).
The other alternative would be to employ a one fish at a time tactics and try small PVA bags in places that would naturally hold carp. If an area started to produce fish I would start to trickle some bait in and play it by ear. What I wouldn’t do is put a lot of bait in at the start.
Jim
Paul Cooper replies;
This is an all too often occurrence on commercial waters where anglers have too much bait and do not want to take it home with them, either because the bait has started to go off or they simply have taken far too much bait with them.
A lot of this is caused because too many anglers in magazines and on blogs are over stating how much bait would be required at a venue. If they are the only ones on the lake a large amount of bait could be used but if there are say 6 to 8 anglers on a lake then the amount of bait should be drastically reduced.
Too answer your question; I have come across this problem on a number of occasions and IMO the only answer is;
Too answer your question; I have come across this problem on a number of occasions and IMO the only answer is;
- fish another area of the lake
- fish off the bed of bait that has been dumped
- use single fluoro hook baits that are popped up
- do not introduce any more bait until you think the previous anglers bait has been eaten.
This happens more often than not. Often on some of the French lakes that I fish I do not start catching well until Wednesday or Thursday – and the reason is because of other anglers bait. It is simply a waiting game for the fish to finish off last weeks bait.
I hope this helps but really there is not much that you can do other than educate irresponsible anglers.
Paul
Set in Stone… I Don’t think So! Part 2 – Bait
Set in Stone?
Part 2 – Bait
by Jason Rider
When Fred Wilton made public his HNV bait theory it had its doubters and still does to this day. It was pure genius and so far ahead of its time but was ultimately perfect for the time. Fred had no doubts that he was right and if he did I am pretty sure they vanished very quickly as his baits totally tore waters apart. Carp fishing is very much like life, if you know when you are right and you have won you are in a good place and confidence is high. Some people will never even know when they have it all but that is another story.
Now, having said I understand how the theory works and taking the giant step in proclaiming that carp can recognise what is good for them, I also believe that the theory is nowhere near as relevant today as it was back then. Just as important as the quality was I believe, the quantity. Here was an easy meal with everything needed for a healthy life in one convenient parcel that would quickly satisfy the needs of the carp. At the time of the boilie revolution the fish were not really subjected to anglers baits at anywhere near the level they are now.
Boilies have become a very clean and efficient way to fish, furthermore they are available to all and at a price where we can afford to use plenty as free offerings. There cannot be a fish that swims that does not realise that they are food or encounter them on a day to day basis.
The bass of the theory is that the fish can tell the difference between baits and will always pick the best, if you follow this literally you will always be looking for a better bait that will catch you no more fish!
Most bait companies offer good quality baits and we know this for sure just by looking at the weight gains in our lakes. The fish just get bigger and bigger and within the next twenty years the UK record will way 80lbs and that is a fact. So looking at the HNV theory we have to think about what the carp is lacking in its diet now and the answer is very little. They probably have a lot more nutrition than they could ever need and resemble farm animals that are produced for weight gains. I am again talking generally and could never hope to deal with every exception with the space available to me here. In my job I meet a lot of people that do not have the intelligence of a carp but I would like to think that I have a lot more going on upstairs than a cold blooded fish!
I know exactly what I should eat and no specific nutrition that I need for my health and wellbeing but I choose to ignore most of it. I am 44 years old and still struggle to hydrate myself most of the time because I do not like water. I also prefer a good Vindaloo and a pot of Hagen Daz to a balanced meal. From this I can conclude that I eat what taste good to me and also that I am drawn to foods that have drug like qualities such as chocolate. I have at my disposal the choice of anything I want and still choose the stuff that will do me little good. The same NOW applies to fish, it is all available and other things will determine their preference.
I have fished a lake in Slovenia for a few years now and for one reason or another I have not done as well as I should have and the main reason why is sitting in the bucket of bait in the picture. The lake is fished by various Europeans of differing angling abilities but nearly all approach the lake with the same tactics which is a handful of boilies over maize. Carp can learn and do so by getting caught and any carp in the lakes knows that if eats 20 boilies it will get caught. The other option is that it eats as much maize as is possible and does not get caught. Maize has a few things going for it in as much that it is bright, has a low pH and contains enough nutrition to sustain life, it is nowhere near as beneficial as my really good boilies that catch me very little out there!
A nice result but I would have caught a lot more using maize.
A similar thing is happening on our home waters all over the country. By feeding particles and pellets we also make it harder to hook fish on our rigs. The fish can feed hard on a spot hovering up these bits and pieces and do not really have to swim or travel which in turn makes it easier to get rid of hooks. I am not a rig boffin my any standards but we pretty much all use bait tied on to a hook with some line of some sort of another. Rig development has not really come very far at all in the last twenty years and the way we feed can also make these rigs a lot more effective but I will go into this in greater depth in the next part.
Various particles and certain ingredients can also have drug like affects. When you get a situation when half the lake get on the going bait it becomes a staple source of food. An example of this is a certain type of yeast in one of the popular baits at the present; the fish clearly love the taste of it and are constantly on the lookout for it. Tiger nuts have a similar sort of affect, although there is much better food available they just love them and get caught over and over again which I believe is due to a particular taste faction found in the shell of the nut and of course the different texture of the food item itself. This is quite an important factor as well because if you look at peanuts they can be a great carp catcher but peanut meal is a very poor boilie ingredient.
The fish above has been caught by me on the same bait 8 times; it clearly likes it and eats it in preference to other items that are less dangerous.
I would hate to give the reader the idea that Fred’s HNV theory does not cut the mustard, he was a big angling hero to me and the concept was revolutionary and brilliant at the time and for a long time afterwards. The future of boilies for me now resides in the last 5% of the mix in trying to trigger a response within the water through a chemical change or finding substances that the carp show a very positive reaction to.
Carp and Cat Mayhem at Morgane
74.08
Mick Holmes and Penny Wilson end their week at Morgane with a haul of 67 fish. The final tally included 7 x 40′s and 17 x 30′s from the carp lake and 21 cats to 74lb 8oz on the cat lake.
They didn’t even fish at night!
45.10Monday, 14 May 2012
Set in Stone... Carp Fishing's Golden Rules Challenged
Set in Stone?
Part 1 – Wind Direction
by Jason Rider
In the following series of articles I will challenge of carp fishing’s Ten Commandments or the golden rules that are accepted as fact in our sport. The art of angling has been practised since the birth of mankind and although carp fishing for sport is less than a century old a lot of these commonly held beliefs are now pretty much out of date and misleading. Of course these are only my own views but I approach my fishing with an analytical mind and when I know I am right I catch a lot more fish.
The first issue a want to tackle is that of wind direction. I am pretty sure that most carpers know that fish will follow a wind but how many of them will ask why? It is just one of those things that are set in stone and people believe in but there are very few informative articles as to why the fish will do so. There are two reasons as I see it and these are food sources and temperature.
If you have ever been lucky enough to fish for virgin or uncaught carp you can expect the fish to follow the wind slavishly and the reason for this is natural food. All fly hatches and emerging life will be carried on the breeze and ultimately the carp will follow it. The question you have to ask yourself is, in how many carp fisheries these days, does the carp rely on natural food?
The picture above is not a very exciting one but if you look at the top left corner of the swim, I can tell you that every single carp in the lake was to be found in this area. We are talking about an area of about half an acre in a horse shoe shaped lake of ten acres which probably hold about 180 fish. They stayed there all week and even though the wind changed directions many time it did not have any effect on the fishing whatsoever. The entire area of the lakebed was covered in about seven inches of silkweed and universally flat. Yet this small area holding all the fish resembled an egg crate in terms of lake bed formation and was virtually weed free. I do not believe the fish were in this area because of the bottom features, I think they had made them. I should probably now explain that this is a French lake that had only just reopened after a winter break. My conclusion was that the fish had been fed here all winter and it was also a spot that got plenty of winter sun.
The fish above is one of three forties caught in an hour following a move onto a bitter cold wind in April.
Having said that following the wind can be a complete waste of time I have to justify that statement and the photo above would seem to compromise my argument but let me give you the reason for it. The lake is closed from November to March and sees no fishing and no supplementary feed, the fish have a very simple choice which is to search for natural food sources or hibernate. For the first couple of weeks of the season the fish always move on the wind and the lake is incredibly rich in natural life which can be deduced by constant blooms of emerging fly life. On this particular like I once witnessed an incredible amount of fish rolling about fifty yards out over the top of four bowstring tight lines. There had to be something very special happening under water for them to do this and my friend Steve Ross brought all is rods back about 60 yards to fish the spot. Runs were pretty much non-stop for 2 hours as clouds of emerging life came out of the water.
Pictured above is one of Steve’s fish which was a direct result of watching the water and letting the fish tell you what to do.
The point I am trying to get across is that the fish follow winds to exploit natural food but on most UK fisheries there is an artificial food preference in place where angler’s baits dictate the movement of fish. I do not want to get into bait to deeply here as that is coming in part two but I think it is fair to say that there is more than enough anglers feed in our lakes to sustain the fish most of the time, to the extent that they can pick and choose what they want and where they want it.
As the season progresses I would say that wind direction has virtually no bearing on my swim choice. I would rather have a wind blowing though as a good stir in the water is invariably better for fishing than a flat calm, I think it disguises us a bit. The sounds of leads hitting the water and general disturbance are muffled a bit with a good chop on the water and it just seems better for fishing but I am not fussed about the direction of the wind at all.
The fish above came from a recent session at the lake in picture one. We sat watching Paul catch for the first four days and also observed the fish continually rolling in his swim. Day four saw the arrival of some high pressure and the warm sun which in turned brought a few carp up to the surface layers for a sunbathe. Whilst not ideal for fishing it did at least get a few fish moving and we all started to catch. It was the temperature and not the wind that had effected the fish movement and something that I think is a lot more important. During the cooler months I will always try to look for an area that gets the first sun and the most sun.
I did mention at the start of this piece the affect the wind has on temperature. Primarily this would be a factor at the back end of the season but it is not unusual to find a much lower water temperature on the end of the wind and a lot of fish can be caught by fishing in the sheltered spots on the back end. Fish will move for a number of reasons and comfort is a big factor and they will often look for warmth.
To summarise, I have explained why carp move with the wind and outlined the fact that very few of these reasons have any relevance at all to angling these days on our carp fisheries. The bottom line is that fish observation and watching the water will have the greatest results and pre conceived ideas will ultimately cost us fish.
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