katfish

In Oct I fished a very silty lake in Melbourne with with silt all over the lake from about 2" to a foot depth. My on-the-side rigs with bottom baits failed miserably, but as soon as I went over to a chod rig I got instant action - still with a bottom bait on a short Mantis Gold hooklink! Presented in this way my boilies must have just been sitting in the upper layers, or even on top of the silt in the slightly harder patches. It'd certainly be worth giving it a go?

I had a walk around Lilydale a few weeks ago. It is a big lake with two large islands, and is pretty deep up near the outflow. It was one of, if not the first man made dam to supply Melbourne with water, so it has a lot of history. There are carp in it, but I'm not sure what sizes they go to, though due to its maturity one would presume they are big. The biggest problem there is the foot traffic, there seems to be a gazillion dog walkers and joggers doing laps around it. Consequently, it is highly unlikely you will left alone in peace to fish it, particularly if you are carp fishing. There were only two swims were you might get left alone on short sessions, if you don't draw attention to yourself by putting up a bivvy or umbrella. One of them is very shallow, and the other, the better of the two, currently has a boardwalk/jetty being constructed next it - which is why I left the rods in the car! It's a pity because I think the lake has a great deal of potential, but a lot of contact with the public is inevitable should you decide to fish it If you are brave enough to get your rods out of the car, I'd love to hear how you go with it???

G'Day Ben, Firstly, congratulations on becoming a mod for Carp.Carp - you are a top man to have doing this, what with being a UK based Aussie carper. I for one was gutted to see the removal of our 'Australian' section. Due to my participation with the forum over the years it has enabled me to make contact with other like-minded ex-pat carpers. This has led to many fishing trips and lifelong friendships with other 'Downunder' fisho's, that otherwise I would not have had. This is something I'm very grateful to this forum for, and this sense of mutual reciprocity is something I wish to see continue in the future Thank you Carp.Com for this reprieve. Wishing you all the very best from Perth Katfish AKA Niblet

You did well mate, sadly there are few carp books circulating Australian book shelves. Ebay, Amazon and trips to the UK have been where I've sourced all mine, but I've always got my eyes open at car boot sales ATB Katfish AKA Niblet

Due to the severe lack of waters to fish in here in the veritable 'carp desert' of Western Australia, I'm forced into having to "guest" some very dodgy places indeed. When I do, I can't help but think of some of the escapades that Hutchy got up to in this brilliantly funny book. It is a permanent addition to my bookshelf, and I get a bit of a 'tear-in-eye' feeling of homesickness every time I read it, as it's serves a reminder of some awesome times I spent fishing in the UK during the 1970's and 80's. Thumbs up for this classic carp book Rod Katfish AKA Niblet

I really want to get a copy of this book, I may have read it as a child along with Bernard Venables writings, but I'm not one hundred percent sure? I've just finished reading 'Richard Walker - Biography Of An Angling Legend' by Barrie Rickards, which has rekindled my desire to re-read 'Still-Water Angling', as it is mentioned many times in Rickards work. This biography although interesting, I found to be quite hard going at times, and found it a bit like reading a text book in places. However, it gave a very detailed look into the many accomplishments Dick made in his life. And I found out a lot I didn't know about him; for instance: like we were born on the same day - which is kind of cool! Certainly a must read for any other Walker fans out there. Katfish AKA Niblet