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Hi Mate, Join your local library (if you have one!) then you can order any carp fishing title you fancy and read it for free. They may not have what you want on the shelf but all libraries allow you to order in a book. Just go in with a book title or author. You may have to wait a week or two for it to be delivered to your library. check out the book review section on this forum for ideas...

Hi Mate, The likely looking areas already mentioned are good places to start to locate river carp, especially any permanent boat moorings. River carp can be somewhat nomadic in their travels but they are also creatures of habit. In my experience, most populations of river carp have a 'home' that will return to after their travels. If you are lucky enough to spot a carp in a stretch, that area is definately worth targeting. If you happen to see a feeding carp, then get a rig in there!

My first indicators were monkey climbers made from disposable fag lighters and my mum's knitting needles!

I have some of those exact same reels and I love them.

Trakker have just released a 3 piece winter suit. It looks good...

I've used Fox microns for years. My current STR's have been dropped in the lake twice, still no water ingress...

What about centre pins..?! Lol

Just for the record: I have some small shimano baitrunners for small water, stalking and river work, Emblem pig pits with daiwa baitrunner conversion caps and some crosscast big pits with front QD (quick drag) clutches. All of them are set to the tension that the angling situation dictates. This may be virtually free-spool if fishing very tight to the near margin to locked up solid for snag and heavy weed fishing. It all depends on the situation...

I have a Fox Easy Mat. just the job but quite dear at £54

What you describe is the incorrect use of a baitrunner, usually by novice anglers. Having the baitrunner set so loose that yards and yards of line are taken with no resistance before the rod is picked up is just daft. Unless fishing extremely close in, the baitrunner should yeild line but not so loose as you let the carp run for miles. it should yield line 'begrudgingly'. During the day when you are sat near the rods and awake, there is no need to yield much line at all...

I have no qualms about air drying bait. I prefer to use fresh of course, but I have used air dried a lot in the past when I was short of freezer space. I don't bother to rehydrate them, just fire them out as musket balls! Depending on the basemix, they revert to 'normal' in les than an hour. You are not losing any attractors whilst air drying, just water...

I don't usually have a problem removing hooks (always micro barbed for me). If it is stubborn then out come the forceps.

Red Signal crays... Don't you just love 'em?? The few times that I have encountered them I introduce them to the sole of my boot... CRUNCH! My bother cooks and eats them, says that they are lovely. I just like to stomp 'em...

I don't have any pets but would dearly love a trained chimp that could roll bait and wield a spod rod...

Not really fussed about the lead. I would use a lead clip rig with a little mesh bag on the hook. If you are worried about it being very choddy, then a little solid bag with a small inline inside it can give the confidence that your presentaton is good.

Some good advice there from Beanz... To answer your question: I am not a fan of the chod rig at the best of times due to the tendency for the mainline / leader to be lifted up off the bottom. This effect could be magnified fishing so close in on a slackish line. The fact that the bait is popped up is also perhaps something I would avoid when fishing over particles or chops. Just because it is choddy under the tree does not mean that you have to use a chod rig. Personally I would just swing out a little bag with a bottom bait (balanced if you like). If you are worried about the chod either drag a lead through it (you can get little "rake" leads with prongs on for this) a couple of times or give it a gentle rake - just not when you're fishing or the fish are there! The last time I fished under a margin tree, I just pulled a lead across the spot once to check for big snags and lowered a little mesh bag under it. It was away in an hour...

I thought that this book was a little expensive for what it is - a small format paperback at £15.99. It is a relatively new title published in 2010, so I suppose is priced at the 'going rate' for such a book, and is a great little book to take on the bank with you. As the title suggests, this book is all about maximising you time available and using that time in the most efficient way possible once on the bank. Although very much an instructional book, it is not a "this is how to cast a spod" type of book. The tips and instructions assume a certain level of carp angling ability and therefore it cannot be described as a beginner's guide. In addition to the tips on how to actually fish effectively on short sessions, there is a lot of information on organising your home and work life to allow the most productive fishing sessions to take place. It is quite refreshing to read about this sort of thing as it rarely gets a mention in most carp angling books or articles. There is some great advice on buying the most suitable tackle for short sessions and on being prepared for every eventuality that you may encounter on the bank. On the whole, a good read and a must for anybody who fishes short sessions whilst juggling a full home and work life. Recommended - especially for those into mid-week overnighters before work.

This book was a bargain! I got a brand new copy from Amazon for only £6. At 365 pages and a large hardback format it really is great value for money. The book concentrates mainly on Steve's foreign fishing - not just at Lac de St Cassien in southern France but Raduta in Romania, South African waters as well as some English lakes, particularly the Colne valley waters. It really is a great read and I find Steve's writing style to be very easy to read and engaging too, a good mix of technical detail and more anecdotal contributions. The book is stuffed with hundreds of good quality colour photographs taken during Steve's sessions, not just trophy shots but a lot of interesting images covering a host of carp related topics. If you have an interest in French fishing or just want a good "carpy" read then this book is for you. Highly recommended.

I take it this tree is on the near margin? I would bin the chod rigs and just gently lower in a braided rig with a bottom bait - if you are feeding chops then half a boilie makes an excellent hookbait. Fish with the rod tip low to the water with the line not too tight and you should get some action.

Great post Nick...

Sounds like a great opportunity. It's not very often that a new syndicate starts up from scratch and membership is invited to all at the same time. If I lived in Essex then I would probably join. I'm sure you will be able to recruit some members from the forum who live a little more locally. All the best with it...

About 8 miles... Fancy it Nige?

I know of a venue near Craven Arms. It is actually one lake that is spilt into two- one half Ludlow AC, the other BAA (Birmingham Anglers Assoc.). They are called Walcot East and Walcot West. If you look on the BAA website it is described as the "banana" lake. They sit in a lovely country manor estate and are very old and natural - it was dug by hand by Napoleonic prisoners of war so is quite shallow. It is near to a village called Lydbury North. I have fished both sides but I prefer the Ludlow side. The lakes are linked by a sluice and I believe the fish can move freely between the lakes when the level is high enough. There are some very good fish present. The stock is a bit unknown really ranging from ancient looking singles and doubles, a pair of mint upper 20 commons and a sprinkling of far larger mirrors. I saw a fish that was easily upper 30's once. They are very shy of any bank-side disturbance and you can go for days without seeing a fish. It is a difficult venue as the carp are so shy and spook at the slightest sign of an angler. I fished the best part of a season for two fish. It is also heaving with tench so I was on 24mm hookbaits. 15-18mm baits will mean you are up all night with the tench. If you fancy a challenge it is a lovely place to fish. Hardly any carp anglers with just a few tench and bream chaps fishing the days. I plan to return there for a sustained campaign sometime in the near future.

This is a great little rig useful in a variety of angling situations but is especially good for PVA bag and method work. It utilises a soft and supple braid with a shrink tube line aligner for maximum hooking potential. Choose your preferred braid, here I am using Merlin from Kryston. Tie a simple overhand loop in the end of the braid. This will form the hair loop to keep the bait on. To tie the knotless knot, first pass the end of the hooklink through the hook eye by going from the back towards the point as shown. Lay the hooklink along the shank of the hook to form the hair. Start whipping around the hook shank, trapping the hair against the back of the hook. I like to go around 7 times but you should continue whipping until the hair exits the hook shank opposite the point. Finish the knot by keeping the whippings tight and passing the tag end back through the hook eye from the same direction as before, i.e. from the back towards the point and pull tight. The finished knot. Select your chosen shrink tube. Cut a small section of shrink tube. Thread the tube onto the link. Push the tube over the knot as shown. Select the method of attaching you rig, i.e. swivel, rig ring, etc. Here I am using an oval rig ring. Tie on with your preferred knot (I use a Grinner). The tied rig. The last stage is to steam the shrink tube in the steam of a kettle. Note how I introduce a curve / bend into the tube. CAUTION: TAKE GREAT CARE WHEN USING STEAM AS SERIOUS BURNS CAN OCCUR. Here is the finished rig. Ideal for using in solid PVA bags or the method feeder.

If it's the ornamental lake next to the ruined country house then I believe it is a small syndicate arrangement. There are carp in there for sure. Someone I know is waiting for a place actually, which I think may become available this season. There are some other smaller pools on the Great Witley estate all have carp in and some tench too. It costs a fiver a day to fish the small pools. A couple of them are really nice, being quite old and surrounded by trees and woodland.