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This was my view yesterday morning after sleeping in my van after an evening on the beach. The sun rising over keyhaven with the the isle of wight to the right.

Misty morning has arrived, was Definately a chilly one, and needless to say, its been a quiet night 😂

One must try… was thinking of upcycling them with a coat purple for Highy or leave them for the natural look for Blue 🤔

Reunited and it feels so good

My view this morning. No carp out since last year on this resi😏 Maybe next trip 🤞

Makeshift DIY bobbin, never gonna catch with non matching bobbins

You could have a go at making one of these,

Same I've got 25kg of 8mm Aller aqua pellets, I think I am going to start shovelling them soon 🤔

Think in a way mine, give more attraction, but well see Friday.... Going all Krill to use up my last bucket of it... About 2kg.

This is ACTUAL Sticky ACTIVE Baits.... Left - Manilla Hard one, Middle - Manilla Wafter, Right - Krill Wafter My attempt with Standard Boilies in matching Glug, topped with Matching Active Mix. Krill on left, Manilla on Right.

Bit of prepping for Friday already 😁 Boosting my Pop Ups, Zig Pieces n Fake Bits Few Rigs Tied up n sorting some Zig lengths out. Bit of Bottom Bait making n Mesh Ball Bags will be done too. Something to do while home alone....

The fish haven't moved into the margins yet, still a bit cold, so everything is going on any shows, which can be rare to see, or previous spots. Problem with that is that once an area either becomes pressured, or the natural food is gone, the fish can avoid the spot. They also don't seem to follow the rule book on wind direction. I've waded out to past feeding holes, and the carp haven't fed on them for a couple of years. They have just filled up with soft silt again. This week 4 of us saw fish in an area, so between us we 'bracketed' the area. Only 2 caught. I know some members have gone over a year between captures, it is low stock in a large water. You can easily miss rolling or jumping fish, simply by not looking in the right direction. I heard fish in winter, but they were rolling in the dark, so pinpointing them is not easy. Winter captures are rare, equinox to equinox. Bruce saw fish feeding in the margins last year, lowered a bait in and had 2 in a Night. Good angling! Nowhere near Russian Royal family. Originally my Grandfather had a Germanic name which he anglicised on coming to the UK around 1905.

Yes mate would be a bit far for you I actually work alongside the Mersey that’s how close I am but the better marks are a 15min car journey for me my mate informs me it’s getting quite a reputation for the rays up this end. When I was a kid the Mersey was just a polluted dirty hole but it’s cleaned up over the years. Glad your enjoying your angling matey

Fair enough mate,yes I’m all good thanks. I did something similar that carp angling took a back seat and I spent time on the rivers and also targeted other species by design instead of lucky catches on the carp rods although I still have the odd session i class myself as an all round numpty instead of a carp numpty nowadays 🤣🤣🤣 I’ve still not had a session on the Mersey for the rays even tho I’m literally 5 mins away something I’ve promised myself to do and my angling buddy is a decent sea angler it’s the old too many fish not enough time to catch ‘em all 🙄🤣🤣 Glad your enjoying your angling matey.

I'm good thanks stevo . Yes I've got the sea fishing bug good and proper. I didn't fish for carp at all last year and that for me is rarer than rocking horse poop but i didn't miss it. The year before that I only went because of travel restrictions etc during covid as I'm 90mins from my nearest beach. I've not renewed my syndicate lake ticket this year but I have kept hold of one ticket as its a proper history water that's had its highs through the 80's and 90's ,though been through a low the last 15 - 20 years but its been slowly restocked over the last 5 - 10 yrs with a few different strains of carp mainly in single figures that are now doing 20's and low 30's and I reckon it will be doing 40's before too long. I've got a couple of social sessions planned on there this year to have catch ups with mates but sea fishing is for me at this moment in time. The never really knowing what's on the end of your line is huge buzz for me. Different species are about through the seasons and if you're lucky you can eat a few and it doesn't get any fresher than that. Plus working out tides, features, watercraft in the sea is a whole new ball game and a challenge which carp fishing for me had become stale and boring. Also, if you know the stock of the lake then you know pretty much know what you're going to catch, no real mystery to it anymore. Hope you're well mate.

Emmcee how are you ? I seem to remember that you got into sea fishing a few years ago so have you packed in the carp game all together? I seem to remember you catching some right lumps

That's it mate just means you have to work that bit harder, just need to find some new angles and areas to work that get largely ignored, can't wait for the weed to come back to be honest, from someone that had never fished in heavy weed a few years ago, I love it now 😂

Same as me mate, a common came out at 37lb over the winter and a mirror at 34lb, there crazy weights for a lake up my neck of the woods. Membership closed on April 4th because of an influx of new applications. I was nervous at first because of the extra competition but it soon disappeared when I realised not everyone’s willing to pack up five times a day and move on to showing fish 😉

Strangely enough, my ancestors come from a town on the Ukrainian Romania border called Reni when it was under the Russian Tsarist Empire.

Theirs always a way, iv had to adapt in the past as well 🙄…

Surprisingly busy today settled In no carp corner,

I’m pretty much with you on this. However, time waits for no man and as I’ve aged I’ve had to invest in a decent Bedchair and Chair; opting for the Solar SP C-Tech versions for both. Not cheap but I’ve been impressed with the quality and my back has thanked me for it. In actual fact, I believe the chair to be a real aid-I can watch the water for hours in comfort!

I’ve upgraded a few bits over the past few years but that’s just down to wear and tear and me chasing other species over the past few years. I caught a PB roach last month on a rod that is 22 years old and a reel that is 19 years old…… still my go to set up when fishing for smaller species…… my rod actually snapped (it’s more than paid for itself over the years) but it’s that good a rod instead of shelling out a couple of 100£ for a new one I got it repaired…….. I genuinely cried when it smashed giving it the big un after bream and roach…… it was like loosing an old friend 🙄🙄🤣🤣 It is tempting to buy new shining things but as Yonny has said is it better than the kit you already have I see so much half decent tackle for sale due to upgrades I think what you upgrading to gold plated reels 🤔🤔🤣🤣

Tbh I'm way past all this. It's why you don't see me on the Latest Purchase thread. I've been fishing way too long to see any need for short rods or buckets with trays. There really isn't that much tackle that genuinely influences your ability to catch carp imo. You need rods that can reach the area you want to fish, line that can deal with the topography of your chosen water, a very sharp hook, and a half decent bait. The rest is all just "stuff".... none of it really matters. The way I see it the cheapest way to set yourself up is do some research and get the ABSOLUTE BEST gear for your type of angling, regardless of cost, and stick with it for many years. That might sound silly to some but saving up and spending a fortune on the best gear once is cheaper than upgrading poorer gear over and over again for 10 or 15 or 20 years (I learned this the expensive way). You'll find if you have the absolute best gear, you very rarely come across anything that's a genuine upgrade. I'll often go 2 or 3 years without any significant purchases. A few quid here and there on hooks, line and bait. Job done. I'm genuinely not really tempted by all the gear sitting in tackle shops, it's just dross that will empty your bank account.

I wasn’t the only one up early this morning…

One or two of mine

Well... my plans for a bed of bait are out of the window... my mate Bully and I managed to get two swims as two lads pulled off... so according to them they blanked and spodded about 5kg per rod over 2 days.. so singles and small glugged bags it is then... gonna wind one in in a bit and put on a Zig... got about 12' in front of us on clear gravel... fingers crossed

Big gaffe this... 24 acres, in the teeth of an easterly that is quite cool... ya have to drop in where you can due to rule breakers and stroke pullers... Seen two fish topping... but we're well off them...