yonny

P.s. this bit was clearly a lie.

So after banging on about zigs on here last week I got to Thursday and the conditions are just looking more and more perfect for the black foam. I'm sitting chatting with the heavily pregnant Mrs and drop the question: "If you don't have a baby tonight and I can promise to be back within 20 minutes of getting the call, can I do a quick day session tomorrow"? She chuckled at me thinking I was joking then rolled her eyes as she realized I wasn't. "Go on then". BOOM. So Thursday night is spent rushing around setting up the big water rods, re-spool the reels (it's been a while since I've fished this place), new shock leaders, load up etc etc. By 11pm I'm done so get my head down. The place I'm fishing is days only and the gates don't open until 06:45 so no need for a silly early morning. Alarm is set for 6am. This will likely be my only day on the water this year due to the baby so I'd dearly love to make it count. 6am comes and by 06:30 I'm at the gate. The clock strikes and I head up the long track to the lake. It's looking absolutely glorious. The sun is already well up, the water is flat calm, and within 1 minute I've clocked where the carp are. I can see a handful of little black dots peppering the surface between ~130-~170 yards. They look like little leaves or even flies but I know that they tip the dorsals of some of the very cool carp this place holds. I eye up a couple of swims looking at angles but another chap is on which kinda forces my hand a little. I end up in a big open grassy area, plenty of room for the big chucking which is good, no shade at all which is slightly less good but no big deal. There's a sheer 5 ft drop to the water which could be a problem but there's little ladder so I'll worry about that if I get a bite. So I start with 2 @ 6 ft and one at 4 ft in 8 ft of water. I just bang them out as far as I can and sit back to survey the scene. It doesn't take long to see there's a pattern to movements and a couple of the rods need a recast. The 4 ft comes off and on goes a 7. One of the others fell a little short so that gets a recast too, still on 6 ft. They both land perfectly so at this point there's not much more I can do. You'll be wondering why if their backs are out of the water in 8 ft am I fishing a foot or two below them? Simple answer, I find you don't get zig bites off carp with backs out, the bites tend to come a ft or 2 down. So the next few hours are frustrating, it's baking hot and I kinda need a little bit of wind to get these carp right off the surface. The forecast is looking ok with a gentle 7 mph breeze set to arrive in the afternoon. I get a little kip and when I wake the breeze is here and looking PERFECT for it. I have a cuppa and keep my eyes peeled but don't see much which is either very good or very bad news. Either they've dropped in the water or they've done the off. Eventually I spot one milling about not far out in front of me which is defo a good sign. The wind is coming from the NE and has a slight chill to it, you couldn't ask for better zig conditions, and I'm just thinking that these rods have to go when the right hander on a 6 ft rips off. So I hit it and hobble about trying to get the waders on before sitting on the edge and hopping down into the drink. First thing I realize is the net's still up on the bank so after gaining a little line and steadying this fish I have to struggle trying to reach the net. I manage to get it and then I can settle down to enjoy the fight. It kites left and right but with bow string lines at distance it's dead easy to get the fish in without taking out the other rods. It's a great fight at range and I love every minute of it. I'm buzzing my you-know-whats off as it goes in the net, happy just to be out, let alone catch one. It's a common, one I've not had and I don't recognize. I call matey over to help with the pics and I'm glad he's there tbh. Dragging this thing up and down the ladders in a retainer would not be the one so it helps immensely to be able to pass it up to him. On the bank this common is looking cooler, and cooler, and cooler. It's a cracking dark fish with a black head and tail, classic overslung mouth, and a bit bigger than I'd thought it was in the net. I give matey a crash-course in using my camera and I can tell from his first couple of shots that he has the eye for a pic so no need for self takes. Another result. Pics done we put her back and I'm just smiling from ear to ear, over the moon with that result. This is not an easy water and to tackle it with one 10 hour session is a tall order so obviously I'm buzzing. It's still looking class out there and I'm just about to tie another zig to get the rod back out when me and matey spot a fish to my left. We're just staring at this fish when the middle rod gives a couple of bleeps before tearing off. It's a bit easier with matey on hand to help. I hand him the rod and climb down the ladder and he passes it down to me, followed by the net. Good man. This one fights completely differently. There's no kiting at all and it just wants to stay where it is, using it's weight to hold position. This is normally a very good sign so I just carry on trying not to get excited. Slowly it comes back towards me and as it gets near matey from his elevated position tells me it looks a good'n. Eventually it bobs about for a bit 10 yards out then this big black bony head with sunken eyes pops up, telling me it's very possible I have one of the handful of original mirrors on the end. I play it very lightly under the tip with a loose clutch on my 10 lb zig line and it does the trick, within a few minutes it's in the net. A quick check of it's flank and I recognize it straight away. It IS one of the special ones, and one I've not had before, so the session has gone from great to absolutely awesome just like that. I'm even more glad matey is here to help with is one. This mirror is proper ancient and rather heavy too, not the kind of fish you want to be messing around with. I pass it up to him and we check her out ready for the photos. She is AWESOME. Her old bony head looks every bit of its age which is getting on for 45 years now. She has clusters of irregular scaling, the scales being a dull bronze colour. You can tell they would have shone bright gold back in her hey-day in the 80's. She has a humped back and a thick wrist to the tail. Her black and grey skin is old and wrinkly. She's certainly what I'd refer to as a proper one. Pics done and we pop her back. Well after that little episode I'm that happy that I'm prepare to call it day. I bring the other rod in, pack up, get home early to surprise the Mrs, and thank her repeatedly for letting me go. If I don't get another session this year I'll probably not complain. I'd have taken a stocky today so to come away with that absolutely beautiful common and one of the special mirrors is just a fantastic result. I hope you like the pics and my overly wordy catch report. Until next year...... lol.

Clearly a special place for you mate😀

That's proper unusual. Usually the light half is up front. You're tempted ain't ya 🤣

Mate. Savage.

@Highy there are 3 separate alarms on ebay at the mo, all starting @ 99p with no bids and 2 days left.

Good man. Try 2ft and 3 ft under the surface👍

This is tackle firms in general nowadays mate. Bags within bags within bags. You end up with as much weight in luggage as you do in the tackle it hold!!

For me spodding over zigs is only good for overstocked places. On waters that aint stacked you'll just scare them off. Don't be afraid to just have three bits of black foam out there. You'll only need one red letter day to see how deadly it is.

Put them all on zigs mate. On 99% of waters at this time of year they're feeding for an hour or two at most first thing in the morning. They're cold blooded creatures and they're still warming up. All they want is temperatures. On the water I fish there's not been a bite off the deck since November. In the last week 25% of the stock have come out on zigs. The conditions are PERFECT for it.👍

Get the zigs out mate.

Nah. For the water bottle I just use on of these type thingys: https://johnsonrosstackle.co.uk/carp-porter-accessories/14069-water-bottle-bracket.html If you whack them on the front it helps balance the barrow out.

@elmoputney I got a Trakker after my mk2 and regretted it. It wasn't this one, it was the X-Trail Galaxy..... (I think).... either way it's just not as good as the Carp Porter.

I completely stopped using oils a fair few years ago now, A) because carp have no receptors to detect it and B) because it tells other anglers where my spots are when it's slicking up/being fed on. As far as I can tell my catch rate hasn't changed one bit. @bluelabel, when it comes to zigs don't think about how far off the deck you are, rather how far under the surface you are. This time of year you want the top third, 3 to 5 ft under the surface is a decent starting point.

Exactly my point sir!

Is this not a byproduct of fisheries banning the creative tactics that can by employed by using different tackle and baits? If we ban such tackle and baits because we can't be bothered to ensure our fishery members understand basic carp safety then of course we end up with non-thinking parrot/sheep. We're taking away the opportunity to think creatively and innovatively by banning everything, so what do we end up with.... anglers that do not think. Lead clips, braid, nuts, maggots, barbed hooks, lead core, home prepared particles, in-lines etc etc....... all fantastic and completely safe when used properly but no, lets just ban the lot so we can let any old idiot on the lake, charge them 25 quid and let them run rife. It makes no sense whatsoever. Ban the idiots, not the gear.

See for me the ability to adapt to various angling situations is what makes an angler an angler. Take this away and it's no longer angling. It's just guys queuing up to take their turn to chuck the same rig at the same piece of water. There is no challenge, skill or excitement in doing that. Although I agree that rig checks are acceptable. Rules should be policed or there's no point having them.

That's where vetting members, enforcing rules, and bailiffing effectively comes in to play. Tbh not knowing any better is no excuse for unsafe rigs these days imo. There has never been so much info relating to safety available, it's all right there at the tips of our fingers for anyone that can be bothered to look. But the fishery has to stand up and take some responsibility too. Banning everything so you don't have to look after the membership is not a healthy way to run a fishery.

It is not the only way to stop people fishing with inappropriate setups Nick. There are countless fisheries that allow clips etc without issues. It is counterproductive to ban decent tackle because idiots aint using it right. Ban the idiots, not the gear. We can ban whatever we want but that doesn't stop idiots from being idiots which is the root cause of the problem. It is this mentality of banning the use of tackle and baits to fix the problem of idiots that sees fisheries ruined imo. You end up with everyone queuing up fishing running rigs on tubing with boilies because every other set up and bait is banned. But an idiot can still cast his running rig/tubing/boilie into someone else's swim or into the snags. Ergo the tackle/bait bans solve nothing. Imo banning tackle/baits to account for idiots is just an excuse for running a lazy fishery that can't be bothered to vet members, enforce rules, or bailiff effectively.

Any fishery or bailiff that considers clips/in-lines/heli's to be examples of fixed lead set ups is just stupid imo. Anyone with any experience or sense knows that a fixed lead is simply a set up that cannot ditch the lead.

As much as I hate to say it I am at the age when I have to agree with this.

The spinner/ronnie is perfectly safe. Both a lead clip and a heli set-up are perfectly safe when set up correctly. They us the 35 Boom solely for it's stiff properties. You don't have to use such materials. You can use whatever you want.

You're supposed to do the research before you book fella 😅 Never been, but there used to be a thread on another forum I know that contained lots and lots of horror stories from customers☹️

Fantastic angling buddy. Zigs come into their own this next 3 months or so. Absolutely deadly, as demonstrated by your good self👏

My brother had one. Very fun car. You'll feel sick when you see what they go for now mate. Proper classic.