A new year and therefore a new thread. Arrived at the estate lake at 07:00 on Sunday morning to find the car park empty so took the opportunity when the light levels eventually rose to do a couple of laps of the lake in the hope I may see a sign of activity. The recent heavy rains had flushed through the land drains from the adjacent fields and the lake resembled a strong cup of bovril!
With no obvious fish activity I really was unsure as to where to pitch up but eventually chose a swim in the south east corner of the lake with a marginal reed bed and small bay. This has been known to produce before in the winter. One rod was on Carp Hunter Baits 1st Blood pop up on the chod rig positioned right in the bay amongst the debris with the second rod baited with twin 15mm 1st blood bottom baits and positioned near the entry to the bay. I pulted 20 or so free offerings into the area.
After a couple of hours I decided on a rethink and elected to go for a more blatant approach and changed the pop up to a single hellraiser pineapple pop up tipped with a tutti fruity single grain of fake corn. I thought this may have a chance with the heavily coloured water.
An hour or so later and I saw the first signs of life from the lake as a swirl appeared in the bay shortly followed by the tail of a carp as it's head was down and clearly feeding in the shallow recess. My confidence levels rose and I waited with anticipation but unfortunately nothing was forthcoming and by mid-afternoon I decided to head on home with the first blank of the year under my belt!
With no obvious fish activity I really was unsure as to where to pitch up but eventually chose a swim in the south east corner of the lake with a marginal reed bed and small bay. This has been known to produce before in the winter. One rod was on Carp Hunter Baits 1st Blood pop up on the chod rig positioned right in the bay amongst the debris with the second rod baited with twin 15mm 1st blood bottom baits and positioned near the entry to the bay. I pulted 20 or so free offerings into the area.
After a couple of hours I decided on a rethink and elected to go for a more blatant approach and changed the pop up to a single hellraiser pineapple pop up tipped with a tutti fruity single grain of fake corn. I thought this may have a chance with the heavily coloured water.
An hour or so later and I saw the first signs of life from the lake as a swirl appeared in the bay shortly followed by the tail of a carp as it's head was down and clearly feeding in the shallow recess. My confidence levels rose and I waited with anticipation but unfortunately nothing was forthcoming and by mid-afternoon I decided to head on home with the first blank of the year under my belt!
. Did a day sesh today from 06:30 to when the rain
started to fall at 4pm. Had a medusa rig under a marginal tree snag and CHB sweetcorn with stringer out in the middle over some dead pad growth where fish had
shown a couple of weeks ago. At least I got to have a go with my new baby big pits from shimano, which, at a first outing, seem a great acquisition.
but no further action was forthcoming during the day. At just gone 8pm there was a
stuttering take on my right hand rod out in the middle and it was clear a red eyed tinca was to blame but hey it was my first fish in several months. Just
before 1am and it's a one toner on my left hand margin rod. I lept out of the bag and out the zipped-up bivvy door like Dwain Chambers and onto it in a
flash.....well more a spark than a flash but anyway a couple of minutes later and I net one of the smaller commons at around the 13lb mark. A carp nonetheless
