yonny

No syndi worth being on will have tickets left at this time of year mate. Most of them will take 2 or 3 years to get on if you joined the waiting list now. Taking a year off work without a water lined up is a massive mistake bud. There are LOADS of great waters all along the Nene Valley but unfortunately you'll not simply walk on to any of them. You need to join the waiting lists and in many cases start with a winter ticket before obtaining the full ticket. Your best bet for big fish in the short time is probably Bluebell which seems to have no limit on the number of season tickets.

That makes it sound a bit like a license to stitch each other up but it's actually the opposite - I'll explain: If you're baiting a spot and the carp get on it big time, someone will eventually clock them. An angler that isn't your mate might have no idea it's been baited, he'll jump in there and have it off and he's done absolutely nothing wrong. The swim is therefore only off limits to your mates, those that you are closest to. You're kinda inadvertently stitching them up.

That's difficult mate. Whenever I'm fishing a water with mates we have an agreement that any/every spot/swim is fair game. End of the day you can only fish for what you can see and if the fish are clearly having it off somewhere I'll fish for them regardless of who's been baiting where. Likewise my friends. It's the only fair way imo - it's not right that you feel you shouldn't fish certain swims because others have been baiting them. You end up with each angler having their own baited spot and it becomes a bait-and-wait situation, that's not what angling is about for me. I truly feel for you buddy but at the same time if your mate finds them lumping out in a given swim he's hardly going to go down the other end of the lake. Is it really fair to ask him to?

Lucky dog. Years ago I was fishing with a mate and I was lining up a cast (a solid bag). I went to hit it and basically the rod wouldn't move. Turned round and my mates rottweiler was chewing away on the bag. Similar story, he got away with it thanks god!

😎

Agree. That's a proper p*ss take. I'd be livid.

I've been so envious hearing reports from mates and you Phil that the Mrs says I can go next year. Let's see if she's still saying that come this time next year though eh!

The air bomb serves a purpose but is no good for distance. The dot is pukka for heavier baits but useless for light baits (pellet, maggot etc). The fox impact spod is decent now they sorted out the issues with the pin/hinge. The original spomb is still the best all-rounder. Imo.

That's what I do. Less hassle then leaders etc imo.

Whallop. Good skills mate.

Gents, enlighten me, why would you get a 10ft spod rod? I can't see what benefit it offers. I can just about understand 10 ft carp rods, I guess there is a shout for tight swims/overhangs (even though in 20 years I've never found a spot that can't be fished with 12's). I guess there is a weight saving too (although very, very small) if you only fish small waters. But for the spod, you're not going to be spodding in some tight little snag swim anyway so I can't see that benefit?

💪 Deserves a 60 that.

Mate, brutal.

So I hear, my mates are down at Cherpont in the Limousin region, they reckon it was absolutely savage last night! They moved to the deeper water yesterday and it seems to be paying off, a fish a piece I'm told. Gutted for the loss mate. Keep at it.

Not a chance for me fella. What kind of catty?

Might be worth seeking out the deeper water Phil, temps are due to drop over the coming days.

100% yes Phil. At 100 yards you can fish them proper bowstring and the last 40 will still be on the deck imo. That'll help you land them, so much easier to work around tight lines. I'd up the baiting too - work it baby!!

In summer i.e. post spawning they'll eat almost anything but I find boilies are at their most effective at that point. In my experience boilie and pellet will out-fish particle at the height of summer. The carp go mental trying to replace the weight/energy/condition they lose during spawning and boilies are pretty much the best bait for doing that imo.

Yes mate. Great line. They are not snag lines buddy. The CM90 is a great line apparently, very supple I'm told, does everything Pretty well. I believe it's semi stretched however which compromises abrasion resistance.

Good answer Elmo. If I have a couple of fish in the margins to go at in the middle of summer I'll pop a few pellets in by hand. If I see most of the stock going crazy out in the middle in January (rare but I have seen it) I'll fill it in. All depends on the fishing situation.

I bait according to the level of activity in front of me rather then the time of year. If I'm on fish in summer that normally means filling it in with the spomb.

The lightest one they do (the BaseCamp) is actually the Wychwood Tactical with a different label. Decent bedchair - I use the Wychwood version.

I agree. It could be some time before they're really grubbing around mate.

You can spot where the carp are prepared to feed a mile off on silty lakes mate. Just look for the areas of coloured water and for fizzing. Silt is imo the most forgiving substrate to fish, you can chuck almost anything at it, but I'd go with a heli set up and a balanced hookbait bait. My first port of call would be to focus on observation. Your eyes and the fish should tell you what you need to know. Good luck.

Not copies lads, they're the same product from the same factory with a different label attached. They even come in the Trakker/Aqua boxes.