First session I put three carp on the bank, amazing

The water level was still up so I drove straight round to the other side of the lake. Unlike the previous week the wind was not blowing so I was less than super confident but with an increasing bank of cloud at least the night would be mild. The daylight stays a little longer now, which gives me a chance to lead about a bit to find clear areas in the covering of dead weed littering the bottom of the lake. One rod was cast to the clear patch of gravel that I had been concentrating on over the last couple of months, that was now producing some good results, even if the tufties had found it as a source of food, but at least they were keeping the bottom clear of drifting weed. The PVA bag landed right on target, the line cutting down through the water before the thud was felt through the rod as it touched down. After a bit of leading around, I found a large area of clear silt on the side of a gravel hump over to the left towards the shallows, so this was where the other rod went. All set, I was more than confident but despite that, the evening drifted to night and the night to early morning before I packed up without experiencing a single bleep, oh well, next time. After catching the 21lber the week before on a tiny white pop-up, I used one on both rods this session. My usual bait is a fishmeal and although it has no oil in it I was doubting its effectiveness in the cold water. After all thatís what they say in the angling press about fishmeals, not that I believe everything I read or hear. However a couple of winters ago I fished right through on another Colne Valley pit, not far from this one, and was catching well on the fishmeals up to mid October. Then my catches slowed right down, others were still catching so I knew the carp were still having it, so reluctantly I swapped to a strawberry concoction with the small white pop-ups as hookbaits. First session I put three carp on the bank, amazing. This run of success continued, culminating in the capture of a 23lb 6oz common in December that at the time was rarely caught, I paid a heavy price for that fish however. The lake was flooded after heavy rain but I found a few carp close in, the nearest swim was under water but I could fish it by putting the rods on a pod in a foot of water down in the swim, with the brolly and bedchair positioned high above it on the path. Between me and the rods were three steep steps but I could negotiate them when I got a run, no problem. The run came at 1am and half asleep, I tripped up on a storm rod and fell down the steps, falling onto the rods, a loud crack sounding above the screaming buzzer. Sitting in a foot of water I found that the rod that was not in two halves had the common attached to it, so somehow after a spirited scrap I landed it. When I saw what fish it was the pain, physical and mental, was eased but upon inspection in the morning the rod was beyond hope as was the reel that was sporting a broken handle and bail arm. I have never fished that swim when it was flooded since! Back to the bait, the lake gave up producing for anyone in mid January but by mid March carp were being caught again. Some of the guys were catching well and they were on fishmeals. I was catching a few on the strawberry pop-ups but nowhere near the results of some others, so not being too slow I switched back and hey presto, my catch rate soared. So what they say about fishmeals is probably true, they loose their edge in very cold water, but keep an eye on the carp and other anglers catches as spring approaches and donít hesitate to get back on them when the time is right. A couple of days later I was back down the Colne Valley pit. When I arrived I found an old fishing companion Robbie just setting up. The water level had dropped a bit so I was able to fish my area from the gate side of the lake. It was easier to find the spots from here, so before long the rods were out and I was sat chatting to Robbie in the dark. He had not been fishing much during the winter and was surprised to hear that the lake was still producing. Knowing Robbie from old I knew he was thinking how he could get some action himself. Around teatime a screaming buzzer had me running over my rods to find it was the least fancied one that had produced the goods. The carp did not do much and was soon rolling around close in. Robbie was wielding the net but as he had no boots on it was a bit of a farce. Finally the carp fell into the net. It was obviously small and turned out to be the smallest mirror in the lake at 14lb exactly. The next hour was spent with Robbie interrogating me about baits and feeding spots, the lake was going to get a bit more pressure over the coming weeks from him, I could see that. Finally around 8pm Robbie left with no further action and his parting comment about hoping I catch no more (and meaning it) was typical of him. He hates it when others catch, with a passion. That makes it very hard to fish the same lake as him as a fishing companion as it turns out to be very competitive, something I hate with a passion. I had forgotten how bad he is and was about to part with a large sum of money to rejoin Littleton Lake, (aka Ellis Water), near Chertsey where Robbie had been fishing for the last couple of years, however I quickly decided that to fish the same lake as Robbie was not a good idea. When we fish separate lakes we are a good team but to compete against each other only causes resentment. Strange, but thatís the way it is. I fish with other friends and we act as a team and are delighted for each other when we catch, treating each capture as a result no matter who is the lucky captor. I much prefer it that way. Still, we are all different. The rest of the night remained quiet and fishless. The rain began to fall heavily around 5am so as it did not look good, I decided to retreat before I got too wet. I went to one of my last Committee Meetings of Walton Angling Society during the week. I had been Secretary for the last couple of years, and on the committee for many years before that. They have two lovely but contrasting waters. The main water is at Painshill and is a 12 acre estate lake set in the grounds of a park. The banks are just grass with no trees and the public wander round each day. However the carp grow well and there is a huge head of 20’s. The other lake at Pyrford is a 2 acre lake surrounded by trees and reeds and the fishing is superb for carp up to 20lb. This is a great lake to start carp fishing on, plus it has the added attraction of large crucians and tench. It is a superb stalking water and I used to enjoy fishing it with a centrepin, watching for areas of coloured water and bubbles, then gently lowering a lobworm on a lift float setup. The bites were dramatic and the fights fantastic. Oh happy days! However time moves on and I have now caught most of the carp at Painshill and I am sad to say that 12 or 13lb carp do not have the same attraction anymore, even on stalking tactics. So to stay on the committee would be an injustice to the membership. However, it is a great little angling club to join, if you fancy finding out more contact me via the website.My fishing is going to be severely restricted over the next few weeks with only one outing a week at best. Still by mid February the carp will be really waking up so I will save up my brownie points for then and hopefully put a lot more time in. However, technology willing, i.e. Geoff actually receiving my offerings, Iíll keep you entertained!

Have fun!