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Quick overnighter last night, set up in “catfish corner” at Hawkhurst main lake (swim 6) and baited the island margin with the new improved boilies I make at home, as it got dark, I had a strange twitchy run, when I struck, there was nothing there, but the lead had moved about 20ft to the left, I was holding the rod watching it kite across but the strike came up empty, still early days! Next run produced a 16lb common that flapped out of my arms and landed cleanly in the lake without a picture! Still the wonders of self timing photography! I then lost a fish when my right hand rod one noted, but it kited right around the back of a small island and slipped the hook, but you can’t win them all. I then had a savage drop back that produced an 18lb mutant common carp one only it’s mother could love! Next take was a bit odd, I had a twitchy run, one or two bleeps then nothing, when I got out to investigate , I found the clutch spinning and the bobbin jammed against the neville, preventing the roller from spinning! I struck, I could feel a weight, but it didn’t feel “attached” if that makes any sense, I ended up with my rig in the tip ring and loads of old line running into the lake - I’d picked up a trailer, so started hand lining it in, but the fish slipped the hook about 5yrds out, shame it couldn’t do that earlier rather than dragging this big ball of line and twigs about. As I was dozing off, another twitchy take developed into a one toner - I’d moved the butt eye to just in front of the buzzer, so the bobbin couldn’t jam in it again, which made all the difference, this resulted in a 16lb catfish it went through my other rod meaning a total retackle of both as it was a twisted mess of tubing, leads and catfish slime! I finally got both rods out fishing again and tried to get some sleep, it was nearly 6am by now… at 8am the left hand rod melted off, a powerful fight saw me being ran all over the lake, as the take just one noted from the off, I hoped a big carp was responsible, but another catfish was the result, going 28lb. I’m now lounging on the cocoon bedchair contemplating a wet and soggy wrap up in the rain! I’ll give it 30min I think…

Bit of a looker from a social on the awesome Wraysbury 1.

I recently snuck in for a cheeky overnighter, Didn't get there til 6pm found some ripples cast a marker float and spooked one off the spot then just went with 2 rods minimum fuss, just a cast and an underarm plop and a few handfuls/pouchfuls of reaper nut mix, just after sun rise my left hand rod was away, lifted into it walked back away from the pads, went through some weed and had an annoying pendulum of slime on the leader knot but I eventually won the battle 27lb 12oz, job done packed up a lot happier.

Just back from 3 nights on Kingy Sunday till Weds, was tough going as always, tried the margins, out in the middle, bottom presentations, adjustable zigs but not a touch, then a sighting on Tues afternoon meant another change and some jungle warfare. I got done on the last night but reset the rod early morning and when the sun came out late morning I managed a 2nd take having to jump down from the tree and run in fully clothed and wade out to fight my prize. First time I've jumped from a tree to a take, and being right at last knockings made it a mega buzz. 28.10 of old knarly mirror, perfect!

Buzzing 👊 had this little beaut within 15 minutes of getting the rods out. Was just about to put the first spomb out and it ripped off. Real strong fighting fish, wondered what I hooked into at first 🤣 anyway lads I'm off the mark 👌👌👌

22.5lb 👌 😂

Thanks mate, really enjoying it here so far 👍 Yes mate it's going really well, theres something about big waters and not knowing whats in there that does it for me 👍 I have had 10 fish so far and only had the rods out for just over 24 hours 👍 Just had my biggest at 15lb 4oz 👌 They really are hard fighting fish, this one was unstoppable to start with, peeling line off and kiting to the right, they feel like right monsters 🤣

Right lads, I can’t say that this write-up will be anything like my usual slog of a session (I was limited to one swim on a social after all), but it’s a great opportunity to review the venue which was the island on W1 South Lake. Let me start by saying it’s hands down the best social venue I’ve fished. Absolutely brilliant place. It’s not cheap so not best suited to regular trips, but as a special occasion or a bit of a treat it’s awesome. Me and five of my pals arrived at midday as required by the venue rules and crossed the bridge to the island. First thing we did was take a tour of the island which holds a fire pit with benches, an undercover area with BBQ, tables, worktops, electric points, a fridge, wood, and coal. About as luxurious as you’ll find in the UK. There are 5 swims around the island, well-spaced to avoid anglers interfering with each other. Three of the swims offer open water fishing, one has its own bay, and the other faces another island. All of them have access to funky margin spots so between them you have access to all types of fishing. Something for everyone. We did several laps in preparation for the swim draw and spotted the odd fish round the whole island. Numbers were drawn from a hat and 1st place really struggled to choose. All the swims looked good, and the consensus was that we’d all be happy in any swim. I came out of the draw 3rd and got my first-choice swim which was swim number 3, an area of open water facing southeast. As there were 6 of us, 2 had to double up which isn’t so much of a problem in that 3 swims are double swims. The afternoon was spent leading around to find spots and this did take time. It’s a very weedy lake and I’d say not suited to anyone that’s not seasoned in fishing heavy weed. With all those leads flying about we kind of knew that a take on day 1 was unlikely and so it proved as the carp we were seeing went to ground. Hardly any sightings for the rest of the day. With all that said, I was lucky in that my first cast found the spot I wanted to fish. A bit deep for this time of year at ~13ft but nice and solid, and surrounded by weed. Line lay was brutal due to fishing over a bank of weed bigger than my house but hey, needs must. So, with rods sorted we open the beers, chill out, crank up the bbq and light the fire. As the sun goes down, we do the odd lap to soak in the atmosphere and check for signs of carp. I did spot one off the back of my spot, so I was confident. The night was tricky for some of the group and a couple of takes got lost due to hook pulls in the weed. The sun came up and tbh I couldn’t believe I hadn’t had a take, such was my confidence the previous night. It was 08:30 by the time my right-hand buzzer finally told me a carp had made a mistake, so I consequently picked up the rod and beasted this carp over the majority of the weed and played it out under the tip where I could keep an eye on it. After 10 mins plodding about in the margin, I scooped it up and had a quick peek. It was a minter, black along the back, chestnut flanks, with half linear scaling. I secured the net and called for my mate but as soon as he came over his buzzer went into over-drive, and he had to leg it back to swim number 1 to have his moment. His was another cracking mirror with irregular linear scaling, and we got to share the moment with the lads as we held a photo session in the morning sun. Brekky time so we got the BBQ on and let rip. Another pal lost a fish in the weed at 11am which was disappointing, but it meant that every swim had done a bite which was promising for the next 24 hrs. We chilled for the day, redid the rods, and swim number 2 did the next fish at around 7pm. Another dark coloured linear. The quality of these fish is right up there. As we headed into darkness, I was a little concerned that I wasn’t seeing anything of interest in swim 3, and I was kind of expecting a blank night. So it proved but the action continued elsewhere with one more lost and 2 more banked by the lads. One was a nice fat black linear mirror and the other a gnarly little fully scaled mirror. By 10am we were due to leave, and we were already planning next years trip. Action had been consistent (although I do think that now we know the swims/spots we’d probably have quite a few more on the next trip). All swims did bites, and the fish were well spread out. Not great for competitive feeding, but great to give everyone a decent chance of a take. The quality of the fishing is good, but it’s the quality of the fish themselves that really sets the place apart. The majority of the fish are quite young but to look at you’d think they’ve been there forever. All black and scaley and awesome. So, to summarise: excellent place, great facilities, pretty swims, nice and secluded, good fishing and GREAT fish. Too pricey for a regular venue, but as a treat: awesome.

23lb on the nose, felt like I hooked into a submarine 😂

I think for me my PB really comes down to the fish that mean the most to me. I try and enjoy all captures and I have a few favourites that I have caught over the years, the 17lb pond record was the one that made me become a proper carp angler I think. We had our tactics sussed and we slayed the bigger ones in that pond. We used to freeline dog biscuits right in the edge. Feeding off the smaller ones to create the frenzy, The 26lber I caught from the club lake all those years ago I prebaitied for 2 weeks and that taught me something I have used many times since. To the modern times my goal was a 30lber I nearly did that a few times and caught some cracking high 20s beating my pb a few times before my most recent one which completed that challenge and was a fish I really wanted in the album. That meant a lot but it seemed more fate than effort if that makes sense, i am always working at it week on week so it's not like it's zero effort but i didn't think I was building up to it, it just happened. But for me the fish that meant the most was probably this one a new pb at the time but it was not long after my dad passed away and it just meant so much at the time still does, I noticed someone else caught it a few weeks back and it just made me feel really happy to see it again. Fishing is just great, I love being able to go and relax regardless of if I catch or not, just being there is enough these days, but catching a few along the way makes it the special journey it is. Just enjoy the ride and challenge yourself as you go as you are the only person you need to be better than.

Just back from an overnighter 2nd uk 40 and pb of 42lb 14oz

Another session on Kingy, took over a corner swim Sunday in the scorching sun and the banker rod was sorted straight away with big numbers of whackers chilling out under the willows. Baiting pole coming in very handy, pushing a rig under the canopy. Right rod went next to the pads. Middle rod out on an adjustable zig 1ft under the surface. Early evening one mouthed a leaf just underarm distance right in front of me so I fired some mixers out in the hope of getting something going. The rain came and the mixers kept going out but with just one greedy fish it was hard, he mouthed the fake mixer a couple of times but didnt like it. I swapped back to the adjustable zig and set it at around 1.5ft under, kept the mixers going in and just when a couple more fish joined in I was away. A good fight as it tried to reach the marginal trees but thankfully it went in the net. At 29.2 it was a good start, but the smile faded when I realised it was a repeat from a few weeks ago - unreal! I got a better picture though and no blank. Next 2 days the fish were in those snags just feet from my rig but no take, no surprise as it gets fished almost daily, weather became unsettled and no more surface interest. A very exciting trip again, love watching fish in trees, could do it all day.

Finally got that mirror 👊

They are on it today, caught one pretty much on the drop, just as I put my bobbin on it ripped off, then the other rod went a couple minutes later, haven't put any bait out this morning 🤣 Biggest of the two this morning was just over 12lb 👍

Getting bigger again, 15lb 12oz, there's a change in colour in the fish, looks wicked 👌 Fish number 12 lol

Had another 2 small carp, one about 2lb and then this one Angry little carp 🤣

With the intention to fish 2 nights this weekend from Saturday - firstly a look around Bluebell lakes, but too busy in the area I wanted then onto my 3 syndi lakes but again the areas were taken and whats left uninspiring, rather than make do I decided to go home and try Bluebell again the next day. That worked and I got in the swim I wanted for 24 hours. Late afternoon I spotted fish coming in and out of the bay and after an hour or so I was away, going in fully clothed as there's just not time to faff about with waders in this situation. Landed a nice common at 28.14 and managed to get self takes without anyone noticing, as those nearby had gone to collect their takeaways - result. 9pm the same rods off again, this time a 24 mirror. I reeled that rod in at midnight as I was down to my last set of clothes and put it back out at 6.30. Sadly the morning was chilly and as a result they didnt come back in time for another bite before I left, but I was treated to the sight of serious feeding going on out in the middle between 8-11am. Hindsight I should have left the rod out all night, but cannot complain another good trip.

19lb7oz of rudd and a few nice roach in 5 hours that was my daughter fishing, I just unhooked and did the bait, there were some clonking roach and rudd caught today, she came 3rd overall and won the £10 for being the kid that caught the most, I lost something that felt quite big and heavy in the night, got it all the way back and it done me in some pads after weeding me up a good few times. I want to pretend it was a catfish so it doesn't hurt as much. We had a nice time though, bit rushed last night as we didn't get there til gone 6pm as my other daughter fractured her wrist, rods went out nice, went right downhill after for me lol but we had a really nice time and packed up this evening after having a bbq, all my kit is wet and dirty though, going to have to sort that mess out tomorrow 😭😳

Unexpected 48. Mrs said as long as oi take my 11 year old. He's loving spombing out the bait. Happy days

I came home Friday evening mate, rain was on its way and is in for the next couple days so packed up while it was dry 👍🤣 I had a wicked session though mate. Really pleased that I got to fish there and having them 2 mirrors just topped it off 👊 met some cool people and the bailiffs were wicked as well I need to sort my fishing gear out and try and slim it down a bit, I took 2 barrow loads on that trip and didn't use half the stuff I took 🤣

Really happy with this one, only 11lb 4oz but the shape of it is amazing 👌

I'm here mate and it's roasting, I don't think I've been in heat like this before, melting away 🤣🤣🤣 managed to get all the gear to the swim, bivvy up and rods on the pod but gonna just sit in the bivvy for an hour and make some rigs up, haven't got it in me to stand there feeling the ground with a marker and putting bait out, absolutely dripping 🫠🫠🫠🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 Carp are showing and they've been coming out 👊

Nash titan hide xl with the nash indulgence ss4 wide all set up, loads of room 👌

Rods are out for 24 hours 👍

Just got 10kg of premier superaminos base mix with their shellfish sense appeals flavour

I thought it was a air dry your baits at work day

Yep! Hooked it at midnight, 40min fight in the lashing rain, it was biblical, finally got back to sleep about 3:30am, still pinching myself mate

Just got set up. Lovely little venue. Nice to put names to faced on the social

The only times my Alarms go off is while I am setting the bobbin, got to get some value out of them 😂

I'll go 1 man I reckon with not knowing where I might end up , be silly for the bivvy to hinder my swim choice . @dalej2014 drawing for swim choice is the normal way of things . Numbers 1-5 number 1 gets first pick 5 last . I'm always last with lads i regularly go with its gone beyond a joke 🙈

Awesome mate. I stayed on there an extra year trying to catch the Patch Common but it was not to be. It never came out again so I think I was fishing for a dead'n!! I was lucky enough to catch Scaley. Twice in fact. What a kipper that was!

Ah , the warrior returns home triumphant 💪 . It's been very entertaining waking up in the morning reading about your latest news , thanks very much . 🍻

Going to have a look at my kit this weekend.... last time out I came down really ill with covid & it all just got chucked in anywhere 🙈 Looking forward to this time next week 😎

This time next week......

Thanks, the fishing is that good mate I'm tempted to book friday/saturday/Sunday night as well, found an animal feeds supplier so can get some flaked maize if needed 👍👊 Thanks mate 👍 I was under the impression it was fishing to see what it holds because they used the word "trial", but yeah this reservoir is owned by South West Lakes and they will only allow carp fishing for the removal of carp because they were illegally stocked (by carp anglers I assume, there's been some stories lol) It's to improve the water to keep it as a trout fishery. They have refused to open it up permanently as a carp water 🫤 The fish caught are being used to stock other trust/club course fisheries that they own and the small stuff are being sold on for revenue for the trust as well. I wasn't sure how I felt about it all at first, because you're removing them from their original water, but if it helps the other trust waters i fish I suppose I'm all for it really. Also fishing here has been like a dream for me, always seen it on the maps but never been able to fish it, now being able to is just awesome 👌 I know the lake that mirror is going in so would be nice to try and catch it in a few years time 👍 Anyway I've had 18 fish so far, reeled in last night at midnight to get a couple hours solid sleep. Feeling it today, got the wind blowing in my face, rods are out and some more bait 👊

I've had 9 fish mate, 3 have been doubles biggest was just over 13 and a half 👍 hopefully get something bigger mate but to be honest I'm just happy catching anything from this size of water on my first go 👌

Yeah mate I was under the impression it was a trial the way it was worded, but we have big retaining pens in every 50 yards or so along the bank to put the small ones in which get removed. The small commons are being used to stock other club waters where stock is low. Any mirrors that are caught get sacked and the balif is called, apparently they are like gold dust here 🤣 The fish are tested etc before being transfered to the new waters 👍 Anyway I just had a double run this morning and will get some pictures 😆

Not a purchase as such more of an apology and gift. Back a couple of weeks it was an air dry your bait at work day. So I did but unbeknown to me the housekeeper on the job I was working at was feeding the baby seagulls from the bedroom window i was decorating with my bait 😳 laughing she apologised today and gave me two bags of homemade frozen bait and a tub of corresponding cork pop-ups. Her son is a Carp angler who belongs to 3 syndicates he gave them to me as as an apology for what his mum had done.

Go on lad, sounds wicked, well done and a cracker to boot! More of these venues popping up all over which is great, I think I'm at the age where I'd rather pay more and go less often but have a better experience overall 👍

Bought a boat and pole during lockdown, had to do something! Anyway since used both and both have caught me fish, generally it's been the stealth that has been the successful element, measuring to areas of fizzing going on, then dropping a rig right on it once the fish have moved away. Those spots did loads of bites, especially in December when less active, and the quieter recast maybe sped up the next take. The pole is useful in the same way but more of a pain doing it, still a good tool though. Vast majority of the time I find my spots through observation first, then casting, first choice is still to cast the rigs and spod, however the tools are a decent alternative or addition to the casting and spodding. I've used the boat attached to the spod line just to bait up several times, that's an edge IMO. I spoke to a guy with the all signing all dancing boat, he explained that he was using the drop down camera to find little dinner plate sized holes in the weed and dropping the rigs on those, then checking the rig and amount of bait eaten the following day etc. Sounded mega but he hadn't caught anything in the 50 nights he had done on the lake to that point. To me this proves that it's just a tool, without the observation, watercraft, basic fishing skills it still will not help you catch fish. I see people blindly using boats a lot, no checking of drops, pulling back for snags etc nothing, even with sonar I have to check the drop manually, and I don't trust autopliot and spot saving completely either and still clip up the rods and have far back markers, nothing much changes tbh you have to be able to carry on effectively even if the boat stops working at the end of the day. Sonar has been really interesting on some lakes and has shown me features that I didn't know about, however on other lakes I've found the readout totally confusing, making it appear far weedier than it really was, areas that looked solid weed top to bottom were in fact fishable, I could get drops where I wanted them, very weird and misleading at times, although I'm sure that's rare, lots of suspended matter. At the end of the day casting gives me clear, instant and understandable info so it's first choice still.

I suppose it’s a bit late to dig a well 🤔

I wouldn't say I've caught more since using a bait boat, but there are certainly times when it pays to use one over casting and spodding, it certainly a bit more stealthy and probably more accurate,it's also great if you know your spots already or its dark,simply wrap your rod up, rig in, bait in,ahoy there shipmates and there she blows, and and it's also brilliant for prebaiting you can deposit a load of bait without having to make loads of noise, but they also come with drawbacks they can malfunction, you can get your leader caught in the props, it doesn't open properly etc etc, and can also be a faff when things go wrong But I shan't be selling mine anytime soon now I am getting to grips with it.

quick overnighter tonight, set up in catfish corner

I'll more than likely go all 3 on zigs .... & watch my water for a good few hours . Unless they've obviously got there heads down on a spot then it will be set the traps . Looking forward to meeting you all & here's hoping for a fish or two each🤞👍🎣

Just mixed up a 6 egg mix with the new ingredients, after 20yrs+ of using the premier aminos, I fancied updating it, so brought the superaminos base which is the aminos with added kelp, robin red, liver with a spicy note, I’ve finally had to retire the smoked ham flavour as I’m struggling to find a supply from a reputable manufacturer that I trust, so I got a bottle of the premier shellfish sense appeal, which is quite pungent! So 2ml of shellfish sense appeal, 2ml of original sense appeal, 15ml of salmon oil, cream palatant, robin red and six eggs have produced a lovely firm bait which a savoury, spicy aroma with a note of shellfish. They certainly smell good, they have a totally different smell to previous mixes I’ve made up, yet on the aminos base I’ve got so much faith in. I crumbled up a few baits into the garden pond and the carp went mad for it, so that’s a good start I suppose! The test will be tomorrow night when I slip out for a quick overnighter

Well I got to say they work a treat and if I might add very cheap too whats not to like 👍

I'm the same regarding hamidi. Something about him that I've never liked and you've summed it up in one of your words "loudmouth". He thinks he's Something else and as for this contraption he's selling he should be ashamed of himself. Not surprised to hear you say dinton has banned it, Simon who runs it doesn't allow any gimmicks on his waters and good to hear that many more waters have done the same.

I'm scared of scuffing em, had em on a walk with dog, commmmfy.

1pt red maggots Pole. Elastic for a quid (for a boa rig trial) 4lb line Ready for rudd match 2 tomorrow. Hoping for a carp later, once I finish work at 2 I am home bound pack and get the daughter then head off to the lake to get settled In for a bbq and the night ahead. Can't wait