The best laid plans

Last season I was able to turn up in the afternoon and spend an hour walking round the lake baiting up four or five margin spots and see where the carp were willing to feed. Having the lake to myself meant I could take my time and any baited spot I did not fish would be left alone for the carp to feed on at their leisure. This year two or three other members had sussed my moves and were cashing in on my efforts. Having made the mistake of baiting three or more spots and then having others move in to fish them straight after meant all I was doing was baiting up for them. Therefore I decided to turn up, put all my eggs in one basket and bait and fish just one margin spot until dark – and then move into whatever swim looked best at the time for the night. The best laid plans! The first session of the week started well. It was a nice sunny day and carp were showing on top, one guy was just leaving as I arrived having been flummoxed by the carpís refusal to eat anything off the top, a behaviour I knew well. After he left I found several groups of carp that looked well up for a floater despite their usual reluctance. I got some mixers from the car and was getting the carp beginning to take well when the resident ducks moved in, better than swans but still a pain. I then had to start feeding the ducks off and was having some success when the sound of the gate banging open and shut broke the spell. I suppose nearly an hour alone on the lake was some result this season though. I left the carp to their devices and wandered further around the lake. Another group of carp were milling around over a shallow bar, this looked a reasonable situation so I dropped some gear in the swim before I was gazumped. Sure enough, a minute later the angler who just arrived bundled into the swim. After I had got rid of him I wasted no more time casting out, putting just single bottom baits out onto the shallow bar. That was about as good as it got, as over the next half-hour five other anglers turned up and all the carp disappeared. I felt hemmed in now in this swim with anglers to my left and right and one threatening to set up opposite so I wound in around 7pm and went for a walk. Up in the shallows the tench were spawning yet again, fizzing up the bottom as they rolled around in tight balls. Amongst them though was also the odd carp so I considered moving up there. The problem being the lack of clear bottom as the whole area is covered with thick black and green bottom silk weed. One area was a possibility but it was only 18 inches deep and I was thinking about the night as well so decided against it. In the end I moved to a swim that covered the back of the shallows thinking that the carp may be intercepted as they moved off into deeper water as night fell, that was the plan anyway. By dusk there were 14 lines out in a one and a half-acre lake, the carp would be having none of this that was for sure. By morning not a bleep had been heard; I packed up very frustrated. Refreshed and with my new plan in mind I returned two days later. Again I found I was not alone, a guy had just caught a 25lb common from one of my margin spots. I had caught this particular common already this season so I was not disappointed but it was obviously one spot that I would not be baiting this season. If I ever found it free however then I would fish it – cashing in on his baiting up, if you canít beat Ďem join Ďem! Leaving him to it – after telling him that the carp would return to the same spot later, knowing damn well that there was no chance of that after catching one – I wandered back around the lake. At least it meant he would stay put. I put bait in a couple of spots and on my second circuit I found a large carp feeding well very close in over an area of light weed where I had put some bait half-hour before. From the tree above it I recognised the carp, the lake’s big leather. Not a target fish but a carp, it would not budge though, even when I dropped some bait on its head from the branches of the tree. Eventually after 20 minutes it wandered off to sulk so I jumped from the tree and dropped a hook bait in. It did come back but as had been the case a couple of weeks previously it was not happy and did not get back to its feed. An hour later another chap turned up and said he had seen a carp feeding up the other end of the lake, yep youíve guessed it, over the other spot I baited up earlier. This was turning into a nightmare. I spent the next half-hour convincing him it was not worth fishing for it and finally he foolishly agreed. I was waiting for him to make his final choice of swims before moving up there myself when from up a tree, I spotted a carp appear out of some thick weed. As I watched, it headed up through the water and stuck its head out right over a clear patch of gravel that I know had been baited by others, in fact I even put some bait in there myself. That would do for me, so I went round to collect my gear and cast out just as dusk gathered. I was not too hopeful as nights had slowed down a bit on the lake and rarely were the carp caught from the margins at night – but I was beginning to get a little confused as to the best course of action and was in fact spending more time second guessing other anglers rather than the carp Not surprisingly then, yet another blank resulted for me, and for the other two anglers who fished the night. This is getting silly, if the situation does not change very soon then Iíll be on the move!

Have fun!