Roughtor

Back in the mists of time, I used to make my own baits ,I mean they were based purely on attraction ,semolina ,soya flour and so on ,known then as a 'stinky winky bait ' only thing was ,they totally outfished well known carp catching concoctions from the main bait companies at the time... It was so successful I caught someone stealing my bait from my titan ,if they'd asked I'd have given them the recipe..the main constituent was low boiling points ethyl alcohol flavours and Asafoetida essential at 2 drops in a pound mix .....it was coloured yellow or orange ..it was truly devastating.. Especially when critically balanced with a round bean bag foam thingy pushed inside ,then a coke bottle cut in half to hold up infront of myself biting tiny bits of putty off ,until it sank ,ohhh so slowly.... I reckon and I'm always honest ,around 90% of stock , of the several waters I fished in the 90s fell to that bait ...thats no bs ...Good fun at that time ...

Just got a copy of A fool and his eel by Mark Walsingham aka Skeffington Dolrimple and the other Along fisherman's paths by Mike Winter ,who is Skeffs mentor .. Lovely read both..

I just use a pair of jog bottoms and a hoodie over them and have been nice and warm ..I got the socks too,but not tried them yet.. A good purchase ..

I knew I had it somewhere..

Althoigh it's not really cold at the moment, and to continue doing my winter sessions in some sort of comfort I always use base layering .. Anyway I thought to upgrade and have bought Zerofit 'heatrub' made in Japan....all I can say is get some !!!!

Very, very interesting..Not me but my father was one of the first members of BKKS .. We used to go around various members gardens/ponds and learn from each of them ..My Dad used to go straight up to Heathrow, a long drive to pick up his Koi from Japan,this was in 70s,things different back then.. One story ,he bought two Koi,introduced them to the pond ..we all went to school/work ..When I came home I found one newly stocked Koi had jumped out ..and was not looking at its best ..!! I think it survived ...

I know those supersonic baits you speak of ...I tried them ,had more on two plastic fake corn critically balanced and a few crumbled freebies in a mesh bag ...

Literally ,right in,amonst those dying reeds,i had placed my bait..you can see the line cutting down from the peg on the bankstick it was good knowing your freebie and rig were spot on

Across the field from our cottage are a couple of small pools ..its where I go in the colder months ,or should I say rain ,..I thought I'd try the washing line method as they seem to spook off the lines very easily...any way this fish was one of two I fluked out ..

Ha,no 8 is lightweight I don't just polish my stainless ,I take two sod pods ...think I'm.joking pic to follow To be fair though ,those gravel banks are rock hard ... Thats my excuse..! 2+1 solar porn

Thanks for info 007,I'll carry on my search ,I don't want a broomstick, but hopefully I can find one that actually bends a bit

It's a mine field ,is tackle even for experienced fisherthems lol ..

Thanks for info ,that's part of what I'm after,a short rod that actually bends ,I tried a ESP ,3lb stalker in a shop, it was proper stiff ,that was a 10ft tho Those NGT ,look good for the money ...its hard finding gear to look at before I buy as most places I fish are very quiet

One of my favourite pools ,is gradually being dominated by trees ,I can't cast overhead anymore .. I don't want to spend a lot of money ,so ..does anyone have any experience of NGT 9ft 2.5tc rods ,or can recommend any other 9ft rod ,I don't want anything over 3lb tc.. Cheers 🥂

I'm not going to get all technical ,here's what I've learnt over time .. I had an old friend 'Egloskerry Tom' Tom had a massive influence on me as a youngster ,as far as carping went he was God.. I used to watch him set up a rod ,cast his latest rig out ,with the latest homemade RH recipe, Partridge hook ,then came attaching backleads ,sinking the line ,....you get the picture !...a right kerfuffle!.. He didn't catch many ,but I loved him as a friend .. Anyway I used to turn up with a bag of Richwoth tutti, some not looking to good ,just found some ,spots that I felt held fish ...one Sunday I turned up he'd been there hours same routine etc ....and nowt ...by lunch time fishing simple running rigs and so on I had 7 nice carp...what that taught me is over complication looses against simplicity .. I fish similar even today, simple is best ,no gadgets or gimmicks ,just a sharp hook in the right place carp are simple creatures...if they don't feed there is nothing you can do about it...and boy ,don't those tackle manufacturers know it they play on people's insecurity..

I've been fishing and re finding intimate waters I visited from 35 yrs ago ,one of which I looked around ,but never fished ,it's all overgrown ,and farmer is 90 yrs plus.. Had around 12 fish to 8lb ,no monsters at all ,but the Oaktrees are centuries old ,ps,thats my 50 inch Mhr dwarf ed by just one of these amazing trees

I bought a pot of Buchu popups/wafters ,from Opti baits ,.... I know the chap who makes them ,but he's moved up the line now.. They seem very good baits for single hook bait style ,they seem to attract ghosti heritage carp more than the common,mirror varieties..

To do our 2 acre lake ,12 yrs ago ,I reckon was 900 quid ,we only had one solar panal at that time . also the pics dont show it ,but the mesh is double ,and in one stretch triple meshed .. battery i showed earlier ,will niw be used as a spare,i have another already on the system in my insulted box ,and on thurs ill buy a brand new one for this winter I did all the work ,and continually maintain it ...

Good question, funnily enough for the last 12 years ,the lake in question is fully otterproofed with two very large solar panals,the battery is trickle charged from the solar panals .. The panals also have a USB charging outlet built in so we use it to charge mobile or power bank,its great cept ,no signal much ... I change the battery ,maybe once a yr ,unless it shorts ,generally caused by the local hounds ,bending the isolators and hitting the mesh .. System works very well,...

Local river adjoining the lake ,went into spate yesterday river looks like Bovril .. The search for an easy food source starts now,being extra vigilant, as always ,but even more so as two orphaned otters have been rewilded locally from Shropshire, let go in a 500 acre rewilding estate..The stream where let go ,leads via other ditches and streams to many local pools and lakes .. Battery on charge ,new battery for fence ordered, isolators checked ,no shorting out ...the rest is down to god ...

Same as me ,simplicity is key .. Location Presentation and bait .. Got taught that by Gerry Savage many,many years ago I've got LP.B engraved on my landing net ,stainless butt. Can't add anymore ,what you wrote is spot on...( I used to blog,test for Haiths )..was good fun ...interesting..

Just remembered to say Haiths have changed the make up of Robin Red it's not the same ,a while ago now .. If you go on Haiths baits blog ,you'll see Ken talking all about it ,he's been the face of Haiths for yrs ..

There was also a well used push through ,hollow leading drekkly to the lake ... Just be vigilant one and all,it starts now,when first frosts come and rivers spate ,that's the time

No,makes no difference if they want the fish they'll take them ,found my first female spraint of the yr ,they smell a bit like Jasmine ,seriously .. This is on a pool I recently discovered

We had 70 Ash trees removed due to die back ,then the Oak fell over and that was a load of Gabion cages to reinforce the bank .. There's always something needing doing on a lake/fishery ,it's about now the sprainting starts ,so I'll be checking that fence everyday That Ego saw is blooming brilliant ,cuts like nothing I've ever used ..