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It's probably a perception thing and to 'keep out the Noddy/non-serious carp anglers'. As with everything in life, there's snobs. I'm surprised anyone takes up fishing with the way some people go on. What with phrases like 'all the gear and no idea' and other ways they try to look down on noobs or those that can't afford to have the latest bite alarm/rod/reel/bankware/chair/bivvy.........

So I always try to make myself as invisible as possible on the bank, no matter where the fishery is.. People wearing bright colours in the countryside annoy me to the point that when I see roadside walkers wearing the compulsory yellow or orange, I want to run them over!. Summer in the UK does not need a shelter, winter is entirely different. This photo was taken of me on a seriously secret squirrel fishery in the south some years ago, well before the circus got there and ruined the place.

A fair bit of rubbish spoken in the last few posts imho. Let's face it, no-one wants to sit on the bank looking at red, yellow and blue tents. It's bad enough with all the khaki/olive and camo shelters lined up along the bank. It's supposed to be a fishery, not a campsite. These places are so busy now we can at least do our tiny little bit to blend in to the countryside by purchasing a green shelter. You can pick them up for the same price as standard tent if you look around. They're not imo. In fact I'd say you'll find plenty of anglers that snigger at this camo revolution that seems to be happening this past few years. I am more than happy with my olive brolly but, if we talk logically, if anything should be camouflaged it should be the biggest/most obtrusive thing...... which is the shelter. Each to their own at the end of the day but I can think of nothing worse than sitting staring at brightly coloured tents all day.

Made me chuckle😅

Turning up with a preconceived idea of location/tactics is one of the biggest mistakes an angler can make imo. Clear your mind of expectation and fish where you see feeding activity. If you do find them in the margins then a pva bag is as good a tactic as any. Tiny qty's of bait, particularly pellets, are defo the one in the margins for me. I'd personally go for a bottom bait over a pop up though. You need that hook-bait/rig to be as inconspicuous as possible. Carp are naturally far more cautious in the margin in my experience and a pop up will often be ignored.

I totally agree👍. I am happy to fish through winter under a little brolly too. Decent clothes and sleeping bag are the most important things for winter imo.

Great response. I've no dog in the fight either way; I was just interested in hearing people's perceptions of why these things are frowned upon. The fishery and natural world makes a great point. A brolly, bed-chair, and bag are more than serviceable in the summer months (mostly) and look way better than a crowded bank. I can see the point of having a full tent set-up during the winter months, however.

Carp fishing has been an almost impenetrable cult for ages. I got into it relatively late on but was supported by a history of silver-fish and river fish angling. I could cloak my inexperience. Imagine walking into a tackle shop now and asking for a beginners set-up. It would just be an incredible learning curve.

Check with the fishery. If the weather is dry enough, maybe no need for a tent for an overnight session, so nobody is any the worse off. As @newmarket puts it, I'm a lunatic, but sleeping under the stars is fine. In terms of the tents, olive green is more country coloured over the blue. Come to that though, ridge tents or dome style? That in itself is a fun one as if you have a low green dome tent you could 'get away with it'.