The Sessions - April 2019
Spring Carping 😊
I signed off last month having finished the river season with an epic session and a big Trent Barbel to end another great season for me. My plans for Spring were carp and Tench……
29 March – Gingerbread Lake.
My Spring fishing started on the last weekend in March, I only had time for one nights fishing but wanted to make a start and get back into sitting behind three rods and still water fishing.
I arrived in the morning and spent a couple of hours walking round looking for signs of Carp and saw very little and finding most of the good swims already taken. I stood in a swim called the Pylon chatting for two hours for two reasons, one, the angler fishing was a nice guy and good company and two, the wind was blowing into the bay and I felt that was the place to be looking and sure enough I soon started to see “shows” although they were very subtle. The guy was packing up and had been Tench fishing with maggots so I felt this was my best bet as there was no boilies scattered around the area.
I set up and had a quick lead around to check the markers I had previously used in this swim, they were all as I remembered and one area had light weed that wouldn’t be a problem. All three were set upon my stiff hinge rig baited with single 10mm white black current pop-ups. I’d purchased a bottle of the flavour and boosted the tub of boilies which improved them no end, they smelt gorgeous. The only change I made was to the hook, I changed to a Korda Chod size 8, I felt the rig looked more balanced with the smaller hook and 10mm baits. I marked my spots, clipped up and cast them out and baited with 16mm and 18mm Pandemic, putting 15 baits over each.
I’ve talked about trusting my instincts a number of times and I had one of those feelings with the left hand rod so after 6 hours of nothing I had to check the rig and sure enough it was tangled, so was sorted, clipped up and recast.
20:05 hours – that was the rod that went first and although only a 6-01 male Tench it could have been a record, if I hadn’t of checked the rig when I had that feeling I wouldn’t have caught it.
I had to wait until morning for another take and took another Tench and this lovely Common at 18-03 before packing up for home.
5 April – Gingerbread Lake
The week had been a lot colder with frosts at night and I anticipated the fish would have moved to the deeper road bank bay, it had warmed up a bit with easterly winds that were moving to a north easterly through the night, the fish in this lake for some reason move onto a north easterly instead of being on the back of it so I knew where I wanted to fish before leaving work. I was pretty sure I wouldn’t have to rush as I thought no one would be there and all be favouring the usual spring swims. I arrived at 17:45 and went to the deep bay and after looking and seeing fish show I went in a new swim for me on the entrance to the bay, it’s fished so little it doesn’t have a name!! I had a lead around and found suitable weed free areas and soon had a stiff hinge on each baited with a 10mm black currant pop-up. The right hand rod was in the margin, the middle cast to a gravel seam on the bottom of the far bank drop-off, the left was on a gravel patch in the deep water where I’d seen fish show, all were baited with 20 Pandemic over each.
19:15 hours – the margin rod went quite quickly resulting in one of the stockies growing well at mid-double which again proved my instincts to be right.
Fish started to show regularly as it got dark and I was expecting a busy night but it cold very cold and clear.
6 April
The morning was cold and frosty but it was lovely to be out, I’d made the decision to leave the rigs alone as I was sure they were all laying correctly so it was just a case of getting the kettle on. One of the bailiff’s Mick was stood talking to me and we were discussing the fish in the lake and the one I really wanted which was Moonscale. It had been the biggest in the lake and generally always over 40 pound but she was old and had started to drop back a bit, however I still really wanted to catch her.
08:10 hours – the middle rod went as we were talking and it felt a food fish, Mick said “wouldn’t it be funny if it was her”…….
I kept gentle pressure on and eventually Mick scooped it up in the net and then he went quiet, he was squatting down looking at the fish and I could see it was a good one. I broke the net down and carried it to the mat and then set about weighing the fish, Mick was still quiet but looking at his phone, when I opened the mesh I could see and was sure it was her but waited for Mick to confirm, sure enough it was Moonscale, you could not make it up and we both stood there laughing at the situation. On the scales she was well down at 36-11 but looked healthy and I was totally made up with the capture and the moment, a really historic fish in our area.
I carried on fishing and with Julie busy I did the second night but didn’t get another touch, but what a great start to my spring fishing.
12 April – Gingerbread Lake
The weeks weather had been much the same with temperatures dropping to freezing with frosty mornings but the days sunny and feeling warmish, with north easterly winds. I wanted to get back in the same swim as I was sure the fish would be there again, I’d left markers on the bank that would have been moved if people had been there and I was pleased to find them still in place when I arrived at 18:00.
I quietly set up and already had the rods clipped up so was able to make one cast with each and bait up with 20 boilies over each spot. All the swims in factory bay were taken as I expected and they were spodding away which was great for me as the disturbance pushes the fish towards where I was fishing.
20:02 hours – it didn’t take long before the margin rod went and I was playing another heavy fish, it all went to plan and I slipped the net under a fish known as Baby Orange at 33-03.
20:10 hours – while I was weighing the fish the middle rod went, I had a bit of a nightmare with only one net that was broken down and had my foot on the rod as I was making the net back up, the fish charged all over the swim but it all ended well with another one of the stockies at 18-03.
I carried on until morning but didn’t expect any more after that last fish had charged all though the swim. It was cold and frosty so I waited until the gear had thawed and dried and went home.
28 April – Gingerbread Lake
Two weeks of work had scuppered any plans to go fishing but I had a free night so got down at 14:00 and started to look round for signs of fish. Easter weekend had been 28 degrees but it has slowly dropped to spring temperatures with the last two days seeing lots of rain and 45 mph winds.
I spent over two hours looking and finally found fish showing in front of a swim called the Fridge, it got its name as it sees approx 45 mins of sun a day due to the trees round the swim. I spent a bit of time leading to find my spots and finally got rigs out for 17:00. The middle rod went quickly and I caught another of the stockies at 15plus, slipped it back and got a rod back on the spot.
This is where I didn’t trust my instinct and made a tactical mistake, fish had started to show behind the spot I’d caught the fish, instinct was telling me to check the area and cast to it but I didn’t, my thinking was the fish would move back on to my spot, I was wrong!! Apart from an 8 pound Bream I didn’t get any more takes.
The fish were still showing on that spot in the morning, I cast a bare lead to feel the bottom and found it was a lovely clear flat spot in front of a weed bed in shallower water, a real error on my part not checking when I thought I should have and I’m sure cost me a bite or two. But all in all not a bad month with the little fishing I managed I get in.
May was fast approaching as was mine and Julies trip to Jurassic in Thailand, until next month tight lines and be lucky 😊
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