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Thought I'd give you an update on this, we've done about 5 successful sessions so far, it's been an absolute pleasure. No problems at all really, she will sit and watch the birds on the lake without giving chase or barking at them, she loves meeting other anglers and always gives them a nice greeting when they come into the swim. Once the rods are out we do a lot of training on the bank followed by a some play time (no swimming or being noisy) she's a bit jumpy around catapults and still hasn't seen a fish on the bank yet, so will have to see how it goes lol. All together though, taking her fishing is the best thing I've ever done, it's completely changed her behaviour. She used to have a few bad habits at home (nipping/biting, thought she was boss basically lol) but after a fishing session she is that wiped out she gets in the door, has some food and heads straight for the bed without being a little [censored] lol.

Another point I'd like to make about brollies is they don't need putting together on the floor, when it's wet theres nothing worse than getting your shelter covered in rain and mud before you've even set up. Plus if my brolly is wet I can leave it in a corner somewhere, namely the shed to dry out, try doing that with a pram hood bivvy.

Check out Fox's channel mate, loads of good stuff on it. If you want some easy watching where you'll pick up the odd tip or two then check out The Challenge with Mark Pitchers, Essentially just two mates having a laugh while fishing but they are hilarious to watch and you do learn a thing or two at the same time.

KBO have recently released a load of old videos on youtube. Kevin Maddocks, Alan Taylor and so on. Old but good viewing for those into a bit of nostalgia

I'm fishing this friday for 24hrs, it's a bit of a long session for me. I've changed things slightly on the bait front and gone more for stink and dark. All my hookbaits are now wrapped, I just need to get the pva bags done tomorrow then I'm all set. Good luck BC

We've gone from roughing it to the ultimate in bankside accommodation and back to roughing it again The only time I ever use a front on my brolly is this time of year to keep the dredded mozzi's away, as soon as it cools off again, it'll be open front all winter. Wraps and groundsheets I just find are an unnecessary ball ache, so I don't bother with them.

My thoughts exactly. Brolly erection, unscrew boss protector, put up, replace boss protector, then put on storm rods or poles. You can set it up in a minute or so and keep your gear mostly dry while you sort your rods out. Then put on the overwrap and peg it down. The stormpole sleeves on the TFG are velcroed, so you don't need to remove the poles to put the bivvy overwrap on. Every few years Fox, Nash, Trakker, JRC et al all replace models, and as Yonny mentioned earlier in the thread, often make an inferior product in the process. I look at this years Fox EasyDome, and I think what an abomination. The inner capsule may have needed enlarging, so put the extension frame pole section on the front, not the back, as you can then use the space inside and still have a useable porch. The 'flat back' does not improve the bivvy. If I was to buy a Fox shelter it would be the Easy Shelter! It is strange how shelters have evolved since I started fishing, from homemade plastic or canvas covering an umbrella to overwraps, then domes, tents, bivvies, and back to brollies and overwraps.

Banged a couple of kg in last night on the local small water, the dogs have worked out that the boilies are like sweets to them. No more chasing after a Jack Russel when it's time to go home lol..... Looks like we've got a break in this hot weather coming in a day or two, for a couple of days, so I'm aiming to go on Wed/Thurs when some rain is expected...…. No one on the main lake, must have spooked at least 3 fish right in the edge as I walked round, wouldn't say they were feeding, just milling around, none the less a good sign as they were areas I'd been sprinkling a few handfuls in...….. Fingers crossed I can get back on track 😀

Good luck Gaz, hope it works out...…. 🙂

I have a chub super cyfish 2 man - doesn’t get used anymore due to being way to big and buying a scope ops brolly system which suited me perfectly until I got the Titan tc pro at an unbeatable price scope ops brolly - goes in the car when I go fishing no matter what.....just in case I’m in a confined swim,or head to the river and it will also be used in winter for day sessions otherwise it’s the.... Titan tc pro goes everywhere with me and is super quick to put up and pack down has loads of room inside for all my gear so does me perfectly. And the vents in the back where a god send on Friday night I think if I hadn’t had that little bit of air movement I would have headed home

forgot about this one, going on the potentials list. Let me know how you get on with the wrap. maybe some pictures too

I felt like an excited little boy again walking round Savay for the first time clutching my copy of that book.

My favourite shelter by far was an original Aqua Evolution-one of the very last made by Chris Manifold in his old workshop in Crewe before he sold the design to Fox. Fantastic design and quality. Had it for about 15 years before the poles became brittle and 2 of them shattered on a memorably stormy night on the Mangrove in Shropshire. Would gladly pay top dollar for a replacement!

The shelters I have been through over the years...😮 Home made overwrap over a brolly, Steadefast 50 inch brolly, Jekh shelter overwrap, Fox EasyDome original, Hutchy Apotheosis, JRC Roamer Dome, Nash Outlaw Hurricane shelter, Fox EasyDome again, TFG Hardcore Brolly, TFG Oval brolly and overwrap. I might have missed some out in that list. I never bought into the pramhood bivvy being the best, I always thought they were too big and heavy. The EasyDomes and Apotheosis bivvies are the best I have used in winter, but are standard camping style tents just in a green colour. The Apotheosis packed away smaller than the EasyDome, but the EasyDome was quicker to set up, although the inner capsule was quite small. The JRC Roamer dome was ok, but I didn't like how easily the fibreglass poles delaminated, its replacement the Nash Outlaw is still around, although my heavy handed treatment has broken an aluminium pole, which a sleeve fixed. The TFG Hardcore brolly didn't like being put up facing into winter winds, and while massive inside, no overwrap meant it was quite cold. So we go back to the various brollies with an overwrap. I honestly think now after years of fishing they are the best option for my fishing. The current TFG Oval provides the room I need, it does seem bigger than the 50inch and Jekh shelter, either that or I have gotten tidier over the years.😆😉 My biggest gripe about bivvies from many manufacturers is the cost. Fox, Nash and the like now do charge premium prices for gear that is not necessarily premium gear, hence my preference for some other brands I like B.C.'s post, especially about looking after your kit. I use and abuse mine to destruction, and often find when I need to replace kit there is no perfectly suitable replacement. I have got some kit I simply can't replace as the more modern version is not suitable.

Good read BC 😎 Sod buying a new shelter I’ll just give my Stealth some TLC. As you’ve said it really is bulletproof.

I used a jrc stealth brolly system for about 10 yrs before I had a break from fishing, it never got re coated and it never let me down. I absolutely loved it...… Small and compact on the out side, but somehow, loads of space inside, before that, always had a brolly ranging from 45" canvas type until sometime in the early 90's I bought a wavelock nubrolly it had a rubbery material and was like lugging an anvil around...….. Tbh, I've never been able to achieve the same level of "I don't know what", call it comfort, but that doesn't really explain it, since I ditched the Stealth system. Yes it was a bit on the heavy side, and it used to get a puddle above the doorway in heavy rain (I used to rub a candle on the stitching now and then above the doorway, just in case it leaked, but it never did).. It was rock solid once pegged and storm poled, and so many door and window options as well as a zip in/out panel, I have to say , that even to this day it is the most versatile shelter I have ever owned..... It's still being used by the lad I gave it to and is at least 15yrs old...…. Since getting back into it all, finding the right shelter has been the biggest pain in the backside for me..... Started with a budget brolly system, Carp zone , Similar in design to the JRC Stealth and not bad for £130... But as soon as I put it through some serious weather, realised it wasn't really up to it..... So, after deliberating, went for a used Tempest Brolly, have to say, I hated it. It's not a brolly, it's a bivvy and takes a lot longer than a brolly to set up and I didn't like the thin material, and in true Trakker style, you have to spend extra on other bits in order to have a complete set up... Once you add that lot up, I feel it's a bit overpriced for what it is... Luckily got what I paid for it and the wrap.... Next up was a used mk1 fox supa,50" really liked it and used it in conjunction with a mk2 cammo wrap.... Perfect combo for my kind of fishing, tiny shelter cammo'd up , close in, like being in a bird hide...… However, the wrap was a really tight fit and to get it all spot on was a bit of a fiddle about and had to be on the lowest peg setting...… I've got to say though, that the wrap is brilliant, really lightweight and a blackout coating on the inside to block out the sunlight and any bivvy lights from the inside totally blocked out...……. I outed it before it sprung a leak and also because it wasn't perfect and I was having a clear out (bloke got a bargain £50 all in)……. This brings me to my current brolly set up, Which is the Cyprinus version of the Aqua fast and light 55"..... Really like it, extended storm sides, magnet sticks and an extra rib above the doorway to allow better run off and forms a tiny peak. Think it ways in at 4.5 kg without the extras. And for £95 a steal. Although light in weight, the material is quite thick and has a blackout effect too. I bought a wrap for it, which meant buying some extra sticks for the front (side sticks came with it). The wrap is lightweight at 2kg...…… I haven't used this set up much as it's fairly new, but so far so good. I had it all set up in the garden with the wrap and extra poles ( like you do), and it's rock solid with the extra poles, so I'm pretty sure it'll be ok in severe conditions...... I also own a Trakker Cayman bivvy with wrap, which served me really well a couple of winters back. Being quite small, easy to keep warm inside with a large peak that helps create an extra porch area when the wrap is on, for mucky boots and buckets etc...… The Cayman is a brilliant little bivvy imo and at £250 with wrap (at the time), I thought was good value from Trakker, they put some nice little touches on their shelters that make life easier, especially the elasticated pegging points and on both of their shelters I've owned, the wraps are actually held off the main shelter by spokes or frame bars, which virtually eliminates condensation and gives a more thermal effect, I just think their price points are a bit out of reach for a lot of anglers...…. The Cayman price was pretty good, I doubt I'll part with it, even though I don't use it much, it definitely has a place for winter sessions , when I can blank in comfort , should I wish...…….. Ok, so there is a familiar theme to my shelters...…. Compact and with an infill or wrap, whatever time of year...…. I just try not to be there, when I'm there, I like close in fishing and want to be hidden away, like I mentioned before, almost like being in a bird hide. If I light a smoke or stove I don't want to spook a sparrow, that might spook a moorhen etc, I don't need to see the entire lake, or any of it really, my traps are set in places I know the fish visit, so being tucked away is important to me...…….. The larger place I'm starting on this month will be different at times, so I'm hoping that the Fast and Light will prove it's worth if I need to be mobile, the wrap , all 2kg of it, will be stowed in an under barrow bag...... So after much trial and error, buying and trying and clearing out I'm finally settled on a couple of shelters that cover every situation for me. My advice to anyone is, that if you currently own a shelter (or any kit) you really like, then take especially good care of it, because these days, products are discontinued as soon as they hit the shelves, you may never be able to buy a replica. 🙂

I've got a Union Jack M3 that I can't remember the last time I used. Also have an Aqua Aqualite that I used for a few nights earlier this year, first time out in years. Every other news night I done over the last four or five years has been under my Nash Groundhog. It's not the lightest, but light enough, has a really good coverage and the material seems bombproof. It's quick and easy to put up and pack away, it's rare for me to put in more than three pegs. I always pack it away with the stormpoles attached and have never worried about packing it away wet. As and when it gives up I'll get another one.

Had an ESP Hideout for a couple of months now. Paid £170 delivered. So far, very pleased. Its certainly light, flexible and large enough for a wide bedchair. The door height allows me to sit on the edge of the bed without stooping to see. The material is very thin but no issues so far. I’ll be using till winter when the bivvy will come out.

mine😁 lol, i'm not exactly great at it so I can always do with a few more subscribers😉 Mark Carp

Probably as it’s where it all began. Historic lakes, historic fish. No doubt in 20 years a few of the ‘now’ anglers will have books out and people will be reading them either reminiscing about ‘back in the day’ or captivated at how it used to be fishing for the carp in the waters of the 2010s. Where otters were an issue, the scene was a bit more cutthroat on the circuits, social media made stars and made them disappear just as quickly. I look forward to reading those books. And probably my own writing too, just to see the changes.

@yonny You've probably seen on instagram I've been collecting older material, both reading and watching. What do you think it is about the older stuff that appeals?

Just a little update on the crayfish front, I was dead against wrapping my hookbaits, thinking any leakage would be seriously slowed down until I saw Korda's perforated shrink wrap, after a bit of practice I'm quite happy, I just need to see how they perform with the crayfish now, fingers crossed

Dare I say ‘Passion for Angling’ There a bit different to the Korda ones,but if the above doesn’t want you drop everything and go wet a line,nothing will ! 😉