I’ve been using an assortment of shelf life and frozen baits well before becoming a bait consultant for Quality Baits. Despite the success I’ve had with the shelf life baits I still favour frozen baits over all and here is why. As we all know one of the main problems with frozen baits is its deterioration […]
Here’s your step-by-step guide to handling big carp. Originally written by Mark Lambert for anglers fishing Villefond, it’s worth a read if you’re targeting those french carp. Firstly don’t panic, once the fish is hooked it shouldn’t come off so relax and play the fish. Very large carp won’t be bullied, you will just end […]
It has been a real pleasure to watch Villefonds fish grow into some real monsters and it has been discussed for a long time about which fish are going to be the next biggest caught so I decided to compile a new list detailing the top 5 to date, as of February 2014. Our lake’s […]
The guys from Solar Tackle give you their top 3 baiting tips… Tip 1 – Packing your boilies with attraction is a great way to get your baited area noticed quicker, and visited more often, than the guy in the next swim. By soaking your baits in a proven, amino liquid such as Solar’s Marine 17, […]
Does resting a swim increase your catch rate? On certain waters and situations I believe that it does. Now, what do I mean by resting a swim? Basically, it means removing all lines out of a swim for some considerable time to allow the carp to gain confidence in feeding on a baited area. I have used […]
Cracking start to the year with three forties in a row at Old Oaks… Holiday date: Sat 8th Feb to Sat 15th Feb 2014 Name of customer: Eddie Faulkner Number of anglers: 2 Details of your catches: One angler caught four fish, at 44lb, 41lb, 40lb and a 31lb. Your best tactics/bait/rigs: Cell boilies, topped with plastic corn, fished the far bank […]
Trout Pellets have been used in fishing for over thirty years and are used regularly by thousands of anglers. Bryan and Kev from Hinders go through an easy to follow step by step guide on how to use pellets for your fishing.
Over the years I have had more than my fair share of hook pulls and some with very large fish on the end. At one time I would be messing around with different hook patterns all the time, which in hindsight wasn’t a great thing to be doing as I never really got to understand […]
Despite the name, this carefully engineered setup does not involve heading down to your local Turkish fast-food establishment, however tempting that may be. There’s no chilli sauce, pita bread or strips of greesy, grey matter simply labeled ‘meat’. No, the kebab rig is in fact Solar Tackle boss Martin Locke’s favorite presentation. Having landed his […]
On January 1st 2014, Gilles decided that it would be a good idea to drain down the main lake at Mas Bas, to take stock and remove the irritating bream, catfish and the surplus grass carp that have been an annoyance over the past several years. So whilst the majority of the world were nursing […]
Over the last couple of years I have built up a reasonable size library of Angling books and on a number of species. Now I don’t just buy new/modern books but also old ones by the likes of Richard Walker etc, as I believe it gives you a really rounded overview of our favourite pastime. […]
Should I contain a carp in a carp sack or retaining sling for photographs? Paul Cooper discusses yet another controversial subject in carp welfare. Carp sacks have been around for years now and nearly every carp angler had a couple of sacks with him so that a carp could be retained until a decent trophy shot […]
The ongoing Otter debate needs no introduction for 99% of you reading this. However, for the 1% that aren’t up to speed, it amounts to this… The recovery of otter populations in the UK has brought about an increasing concern about predation, particularly on still water fisheries and on specimen fish, including our beloved […]
I’m sure everyone is familiar with the phrase “Carp Angler”, often followed by photos of 20, 30, 40+ pound fish, but has anyone actually considered what defines a carp angler? Is it someone who only targets big commons, mirrors and leathers? Or can the phrase be used in a wider sense? This mini series […]
Every year hundreds of British anglers invade France in search of those monster carp. With literally hundreds of lakes to choose from, it seems that more and more Brits are traveling to France in the hope of smashing their PB’s. A week seems to be the average length of time that an angler would spend […]
I visited Castle Lake for the first time and was quite surprised at how it reminds me of La Horre. This impressive 42 acre water lake nestles in the valley, just behind a picturesque small village and has no noise pollution other than the occasional bellowing of the cream Charolais cattle in the valley. The […]
Here are two guys you’ve probably seen around the online carp world already. We’ve been watching Carl and Alex’s youtube channel for a while now and have been incredibly impressed by their angling and filming skills. We’re going to start featuring their videos here on the blog once a month, beginning with their experience netting […]
Glehias Carp Lake are well on the way to finishing the Floating Island Cabin in readiness of the 2014 Season, here’s the latest update from Lee… Despite the wind and the rain and a couple of terrific hailstorms, Saturday turned out to be a pretty productive day. After finishing up the rest of the decking, […]
Water temperatures are the key to fish moving and feeding in this changing time of the season. Carp naturally look for the warmest part of the lake and so we will often see them in the margins or in the upper layers of the water. This is especially true of gravel pits and deep lakes. […]
Paul Cooper was recently contacted with a few questions posed by an angler heading out to Boux this year. Boux is a 12 acre water with a reputation for top class carp fishing since the 1980’s. However, it is best to go prepared to this lake and the Q&A below is definitely worth a read… Hi Paul Apologies […]
