Golden Paws

Been told I need a hip replacement and have lower back problems. To deal with that and the other life problems I shut myself away from the world.
 
 
A bit chilly this morning. Most of the lake froze over last night, just the area in front of me stayed clear, and it looks like the ice is gradually spreading.
I'm only hanging on from packing up just to let the 🌞 thaw some of the gear. My net got frozen to the rushes and the overwrap is covered in frost.
 
Sky however is enjoying laying in the sun outside.

This week's view from the bivvy, but has also included seeing a barn owl come out from between the trees and across the dam wall, and a video of a kestrel hovering above the tree border, as well as hearing tawny owls through the night

I can't start this without paying tribute to my beautiful carp dog and best friend of 12 and a half years George.  29th June 2022 I had to make the gut wrenching visit to the vets knowing his little heart was giving up and we would be saying goodbye.  Safe to say it ripped my heart out and left me devastated - all fishing trips since have felt forced as I lost the buzz.  I cried my eyes out packing for the first trip and broke down, it wasn't the same but I got through it coz fishing is my life and I had my daughters dog Max to soften the blow a little on occasion.
Months later and after a few rat encounters at a day ticket water - with them running right over the bivvy and eating a hole in the side I decided I needed a new dog, as this never happened on George's watch.  Today I picked up Jack my new carp dog soon to be in training, prob best not to set up near me this coming year! 
Meet Jack a 13 week old show type Cocker

I'd be wary of using either. Several years ago my mate had his garage done over despite having a decent alarm. He had sold some stuff on Facebook and on reflection he was pretty sure one bloke who he had invited into his garage to view the stuff had noted what was there and came back to ransack it. He reckons he lost about £8,000 worth of kit. A neighbours (poor quality!) camera picked up a van turning up, the alarm being smashed and they were in and out pretty quick and took the lot. Luckily his Insurance Company was really good and he managed to replace most of it but the thought of losing all your gear in one hit is a right kick in the nuts and he was in tears when he told me his tale.
The morale of the story is don't bring attention to outsiders of exactly what you've got, you don't know who you are inviting round.

I'd be wary of using either. Several years ago my mate had his garage done over despite having a decent alarm. He had sold some stuff on Facebook and on reflection he was pretty sure one bloke who he had invited into his garage to view the stuff had noted what was there and came back to ransack it. He reckons he lost about £8,000 worth of kit. A neighbours (poor quality!) camera picked up a van turning up, the alarm being smashed and they were in and out pretty quick and took the lot. Luckily his Insurance Company was really good and he managed to replace most of it but the thought of losing all your gear in one hit is a right kick in the nuts and he was in tears when he told me his tale.
The morale of the story is don't bring attention to outsiders of exactly what you've got, you don't know who you are inviting round.

Yes tomorrow will be a pike trip, easier to find than the carp or roach I hope.
 
It's got big carp, and big roach.
Couple of 2lb roach when I found a shoal of big fish over 2 weekends.


 
And a couple of carp caught within 24hours of each other

A thought for anyone with a bait boat. With the current temperatures below zero, snow on the ground and all my local lakes shut due to being frozen, bring the battery and handset inside the house - mine lives in my shed attached to the garage. Batteries hate being cold, especially for prolonged periods and they can completely discharge in these conditions and it can render them near useless. Bring them inside and fully charge them and they should be OK.
Also going to disconnect the battery from my electric bike and bring it inside and charge it up, I won't be riding it anytime soon until the weather significantly changes.
Some people also keep camera's in their fishing bags and the cold apart from killing the batteries they also may suffer from internal condensation. I keep my fragile stuff like the camera, spare batteries, binocular's and power pack in a separate small bag and always bring it in the house after a trip. 

A thought for anyone with a bait boat. With the current temperatures below zero, snow on the ground and all my local lakes shut due to being frozen, bring the battery and handset inside the house - mine lives in my shed attached to the garage. Batteries hate being cold, especially for prolonged periods and they can completely discharge in these conditions and it can render them near useless. Bring them inside and fully charge them and they should be OK.
Also going to disconnect the battery from my electric bike and bring it inside and charge it up, I won't be riding it anytime soon until the weather significantly changes.
Some people also keep camera's in their fishing bags and the cold apart from killing the batteries they also may suffer from internal condensation. I keep my fragile stuff like the camera, spare batteries, binocular's and power pack in a separate small bag and always bring it in the house after a trip. 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-derbyshire-63880157
Sorry it's another external link Nick but this is another example of dangerous practice and being recommended for use in bivvy's. I hope Nash Tackle take notice.

Most bottled gas is a mixture of Propane (C3H8) and Butane (C4H10). Butane is longer chain alkane and boils at a higher temperature and gives out more output due to the fact that there are more Carbon to Carbon bonds. It doesn't matter what percentage you add to a bottle as the end result is the same, you burn a hydrocarbon in air (the Oxygen part) and it produces Carbon Dioxide and water and a percentage of Carbon Monoxide which is dependent on how efficient the burn is. A bluer flame is best as it gives a more complete burn and hence lower Carbon Monoxide whereas a yellow flame gives a lower heat output and a higher concentration of Carbon Monoxide.
It probably wouldn't have mattered if the poor bloke had used a USA cylinder, the result would almost certainly have been the same.

It did not help that Darrell Peck actually put a video on his Facebook or Instagram feed using a bivvy heater. The post has since been removed.
 
 

Sorry, I disagree.
EVERY year, common sense fails some and they pay the ultimate price.
 
A bivvy heater in the bivvy with the door closed is asking for trouble, no matter what gas. A fire in the bivvy, or carbon monoxide, and somebody gets severely injured or dies.
Carbon monoxide is caused when the fuel does not burn properly, whether it is gas, coal, wood or oil. 
Direct quote from the NHS:
Causes of carbon monoxide poisoning
Common household appliances used for heating and cooking can produce carbon monoxide if they are not installed properly, are faulty, or are poorly maintained.
Appliances that can cause carbon monoxide include:
gas boilers gas cookers and clay ovens gas or paraffin heaters wood, gas and coal fires portable generators Using barbeques or camping stoves inside, and turning on vehicle or lawn mower engines in your garage, can also cause a build-up of carbon monoxide.

You say not this guys fault?  Of course it is - he didn't read up on it and in truth should have known better, very sad for the family but you cant blame anyone else.

Sorry but I disagree. There is no such thing as safe burning in an enclosed area. Not too sure what regulations you mean and don't think his family will be able to sue anyone.
I don't really like banning things because it smacks of the nanny state and it's pretty easy to build your own heater without too much trouble. I would like to think that any responsible manufacteur or tackle dealers would voluntarily not make or sell items that have the potential to cause death. 

Sadly every year it happens, that or a bivvy going up in flames.
I don't know how many times it needs stressing, but too often it happens, maybe this will make people think again.
 
Every angler who says "I never fall asleep with the heater on" is just ignoring the issue. The extra heat can cause you to fall asleep with the risk of death.

Cheers for that Nick. Wouldn't normally promote external links but thought that this one was too important not to highlight.

Normally I would remove external links, but not this one.
So many dangers with bivvy heaters.
My sleeping bag has changed, but my advice still holds true. Clothing to deal with the cold is better than using a heater.

Yes was very sad, I just hope it all works out for him, I never met him but had some good chats with him and we shared some ideas and he made me some special concoctions the last bait he made me was going to be our little secret for a while,as we both felt it was a great tweak and a bit special, and it did work too, but yes great angler, he seems to be loving the barbel fishing these days, and he's caught some mahoosive monster chub recently too, 
As for me I'm sure I will find another boilie that will work, but I will miss having the chats and doing the tinkerings , that's the bit I will find hardest to replace, that's what made it that bit special, all his baits I used caught first time out as well, put in the right spot they couldn't resist them, made me look like I knew what I was doing 😀

At 02:10am I bagged a new PB at the weight of 6lb 9oz. A new baby! Wifey gave birth to a perfect little girl last night 😁😁      

A topic that you can easily go round in circles and you end up confusing yourself! I started off Carp fishing using Mainline's Cell and caught from the off but it was pricier than other shelf lives. Went over to CC Moore and used both the Live System and Pacific Tuna and would happily use it again. My mate I go with seems to catch on Sticky's Krill. Recently I started using Baitworks Creamino after watching some of the video's on You Tube. (Yes I know, an advertisers dream!) I've only used it a couple of times so still early days yet.
If you have a couple of local makers and can collect and chat to the owners, that would probably be a good route to go down. Also it would cut down on postage costs and if you wanted freezer baits, wouldn't have to worry about stuff going off (especially with postal strikes at the moment.)
Go a good runs water with a new bait and get the rod bent a good few times and you won't have to worry about the bait, the rest is down to you.

I'll go back to the original post again, hopefully with some more valid input from my last 2 sessions.
The first of the 2 saw a very good result. I have a video of carp feeding on the margins, sadly too big to put up on here.
I found the carp feeding, definite so set up on them. 
Rig was a basic short Multi-rig with a whittled down pop-up, to sink but slightly lighter than the hook, essentially critically balanced to the 'n'th' degree, and a proper running lead, slack line. The whole lot was put in a PVA bag, rig, lead, bait, a handful of pellets and chops.
It worked and produced a decent, hard earned carp.
 
The second trip was different, in that the conditions made fishing a slack line rather more difficult. A wind and tow pulling silkweed down the lake through my lines meant I had to tighten up, although my rod tips were well under water.
When fishing at such short range tight lines can make the carp wary of feeding on the spot. I have seen fish spook or eject baits on semi-fixed leads, which is why I have a preference for running leads and slack lines.

I know what you mean.
Stick with your go to set up, don't change anything. 
It's been 3 years since I caught a decent fish. I've tried all sorts of different methods on a huge water.
This year I went to a small venue with the missus and kids, ended up fishing a stiff fluro rig that smashed  my original syndicate, due to nce clean bottom. It worked, so I  used that rig at my syndicate reservoir. 1st carp out, is a new pb 35lbs. 
Followed by a nice little common, 22lb, I wish I could get a 30+ common! But always seem to get mirrors?? 
Hard earned, but regret not using my best rig from the start. 
Got the bug again, but family life is very restrictive at the moment. Social meeting there tomorrow evening.
I live in hope to get bankside in the next few weeks, this is my favourite time of year to be out🥺

I'm out again this weekend for another 24hrs, I'm going to be trying a different club lake Well it's a Reservoir 20 to 25 ft deep a different challenge all together, my usual lake has got a charity carp match on it which Highy is fishing and good luck to him, So I thought I would give somewhere else a go, I have pike fished it and once for the carp with nothing. But it will make a nice change. Here are a couple of pictures. 
 

Well, it has been some time since I caught a carp!
Summer drought conditions since mid-June and fishing has been a struggle. Very early morning sessions I managed a few barbel, mostly small. But I did have a couple of decent barbel just before the canicule heat spoiled my chances....
The weed growth did continue during the heatwave - both in the river and along the river banks. Long stretches covering my favourite swims solid with Japanese Knotweed making them unreachable!
I lost three big carp over a couple of sessions due to the river weed. It made me rethink my hook-length and leader materials. Having made a few changes I tried again, my next mistake was telling my friend where I was fishing. He of course caught a 31 lb carp and a nice barbel - I blanked!
But a few days later I noted some fresh flow in my local stretch, first for months. No idea where that came from! But I had a good idea where I might get a carp, unfortunately my friend came with me! This time I was determined to catch "MY" fish!

 
had a couple of good knocks on the rod tip about 15 minutes after casting to my favourite tiny "hot-spot" where two currents converge over a slight depression. A little while later this great fish took off towards the opposite bank.
A tremendous fight ensued, where the carp headed for every snag from boulders to sunken trees. My change of trace/leader material did its job and I got the carp to the net at the third attempt.
Weighed over the water in the net, wet net deducted, gave a weight of 38.5 lbs. I had lost a couple from this swim in previous years so it was a great relief to finally get it right. Between the two of us we put the net across my thighs to protect the fish during the "trophy shot" moment. No time wasted the fish was back in the river and after a little rest it was away from the net.
My tackle changes were not rocket science. I had to give up with mono, fluoro and uncoated braid and tried ESP tungsten loaded semi-stiff braid. Despite that fish going through the usual snags there was just one small area of coating damaged, the interior braid was still intact. That and changing my lead clip to a Korum type, it did its job and slipped the lead on the take.
Oh, my fishing buddy blanked this time! 😂
 

You can use any stove inside the bivvy mate it warms everything up - key is to leave lots of ventilation, maybe letter box the door, people do use bivvy heaters - I borrowed my mates it was ace putting it on to warm your hands back up after a fish or something but the dangers are obvious, don't leave unattended, well ventilated and don't fall asleep with anything on.  There is a candle and tin style heater that will make a significant difference.  I generally don't bother but there are options.
I use gas - has to be a propane/butane mix for winter and in the morning it still will be a bit poor with a low flame - which is why people put them in their sleeping bags as mentioned.  I found my mates antics with his Coleman a bit scary, - he put me right off lol  But in the right hands I'm sure they work perfectly.
If you mean will the bites be morning/evening?  December and beyond I've found late morning through to late afternoon to be the time on a few venues I can think of.  Autumn seems more evening and early morning - but everywhere has the potential to be completely different.  December I also had spells of bites again between 11pm and 1am so 2 feeding windows then nothing until 11 the next morning.
On a lake we fished years back from Dec onwards we wouldn't have to get there until 10am - bites were generally from 2pm until 4pm then we went home - doing nights was almost pointless.