B.C.

You'll have to play that one by ear mate...….. The heat will be reduced when you put the boilies in, so depends how quickly it heats up again and how many you put in at a time. Can cause a few issues if it takes a minute or two longer than you want it to, to heat up to boiling point again if you have a lot of solubles in the mix, they may start to wash out of the boilies...…. Basically, all depends on the mix...….. Another option that some guys use for small amounts of boilies is a deep fat fryer with water in it, you can pick them up new for about £20 and they have a nice basket with them so you don't need to use a sieve to fish out the finished baits, worth a look if the hob isn't up to it..... Thinking of getting one, as I was told they hold the heat better, or re-heat quicker , if you know what I mean...……… I recon the hob will be ok, though, once you get used to it..... The coleman, yeah good little stove.... My petrol mower packed up and I had a gallon jerry can almost full with petrol..... So seemed a shame not to give it a go for my particle and it worked ok, better than I thought..... Glad I found a use for the coleman as since I got a bulin stove for the bank, it doesn't get a look in......

Should be ok, depending on how much you want to do at a time. Baring in mind that as long as the parti' has had a real good soak, you won't need to boil the granny out of it, half hour simmer for most and it will carry on cooking in it's own heat for a while once removed from the hob, especially if you put a lid on it...…… I've been using a Coleman to boil particle this year with an 11litre pot and although it won't get a rolling boil, there's enough heat to cook the particle after a good soak... Good , space saving idea them hobs by the look of it...

And doing a few "hard yards" yourself...… I've always found that Winter time is a decent time to get chatting to a few hard core regulars on a lake over a brew.... Once they see you are making an effort and are in it for the long haul , one or two will open up, just through conversation. Once you've done a bit of time on a venue, you become "one of them" the info thing becomes a two way street...…….. It's not all plain sailing down this neck of the woods. (Essex)Some waters, it's very much , who you know to get on them. Some £500 a year syndies are rammed 7 days a week and club waters too at this time of year...… The fish are there, but there is a bank space issue, especially as the kids are off atm...…. I think , the hush, hush thing is mainly to protect some little known places from becoming camp sites. One thing I've noticed over the last 10 years or so, is that, as trophy hunters attention is drawn towards the big fish syndies, there are one or two club lakes, that are relatively neglected, that throw up some decent fish. Bit over crowded for me during the Summer, but late Autumn and early Spring are worth targeting.... Unless you can do midweeks.... Another thing I notice, is Syndie tickets getting snapped up, before a place has even opened, such is the demand..... Bit like people buying property before it is built...…… The rivers are a good bet for some tranquil fishing, but try to get some info on the right stretches? Now that is hard work 🙂…. Lot of leg work needed.

Have to say Mark, In the South, fisherman tend to stretch the truth in the opposite direction. We are blessed with a larger average size of fish and I've known anglers to take a few pounds "off" the weight of a fish, just to stop the circus turning up...… In Essex, we live in the realms of Nash, Korda, Mainline, to name a few..... Last thing you want is a load of "labled up" full timers taking over a lake, that does pretty well without all the fuss.... Could be , that in your neck of the woods, things are kept a bit hush for the same reasons. Not so much to deter fellow anglers, but to deter sponsored glory hunters. So photo's and finer details would be thin on the ground...…. I know of at least one 40lb fish, that has weighed 38.12 for at least five years on every capture, Spring,Summer Winter.... Pre spawn/post spawn...… With no glory hunters publicly claiming it's true weight, the lake remains a relatively quiet place to fish, very rare these days in my area..... A couple of seasons of regular fishing and a lot of tea bags needed, before the regulars will open up a bit, by which time, you would already have a fare idea of what's in the lake....

Love reading these sort of tales, thanks for posting...… Looking forward to the next installment,

Don't forget PandA, there are different sized bags that can be used, or you can half fill a larger bag, if you don't think your rods will take the weight...… Another thing to consider is the current water temperatures... You may need to double bag everything atm, to prevent it melting on the drop, 6ft plus deep, and this can happen. Ok for getting the bait out, but can hamper rig presentation if the bag melts before hitting the deck.....

Back on your favourite rods... Amazing what a bit of confidence does.... Nice one...🙂

I don't read that much into it tbh. purely down to not getting out enough... I think you need to be a real bank rat, ie, do enough nights outside the moon phases to be able to compare against them...…. But who am I to disagree with Dave Lane?...… I was under the thinking that a full moon was good for commons, and a new moon was good all round, must have picked that up from an article somewhere...…. Funny thing is , I always buy a callender that shows the moon phases even though I don't really plan anything around them. If I'm on my way out to fish and look at the callender and see that it's on, or near a new moon, it's a bonus, and a little confidence boost. If the moon phase is nothing special, I just take no notice lol...🙂

I like those mini marker floats, I trashed one by stepping on it, but the 2 pack lasted me 10yrs......

That's funny...……. Can't get more accurate though 😀

Just use your spod rod bud...…. A decent marker float and lead is quite a payload...….. Marker rod is generally too soft for spod work at any real distance but a spod rod will be ok for markering……… I'm looking to buy one myself after giving my 3.75 marker rod away, it was a bit soft for getting a spomb out too far. OK with mini spomb, but that means more casts...……….. Your spod rod will be ok for markering, less kit to lug about, too ,with just the one set up...…. Just tie a big loop in the end of the braid and you can quickly interchange marker set up to spod and vice versa...…….. Find a spot with marker set up, clip up on reel, quick change to spod set up on same rod, and you will hit the spot bang on when baiting...…...Allow for water depth if it's a tight spot.. Depends really on how much you need to fine tune your markering, or whether you are just looking for a clear spot...….

Unfortunately, I didn't go mate, as much as I would have liked to...… I have one or two issues that get in the way, so sometimes when I plan something, it doesn't always happen..... You are right about the conditions though, they were still good. I did manage another walk round tonight to put a few handfuls in and saw two lots of feeding fish, sheeting bubbles up about 7pm...…. One group over a spot I baited yesterday, it's quite an obvious place to put some bait and I dare say others have put some there too. But it was still a confidence boost, and I'm sure they would have eaten what I put there along with anything else.... I am determined to get the rods out as soon as, thanks for asking...🙂...

If you can't find any cheaper ones, these a pretty good @dayvid….. mega bright...…. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/ICEATOPE-3-X-ICE-GREEN-Isotopes-Isotope-Betalights-3mmX25mm-FULL-MAX-POWER-carp/381732633855?epid=883116653&hash=item58e109bcff:g:~3QAAOSwaB5XrD-L

That's the fella 🙂

Nice of you to be doing something like that, not everyone can be bothered to retrieve snapped off tackle. But I have to agree with Cloud9 about the life jacket. Safety first bud, regardless of what others do. The owner should be telling them the same...…. It could be game over in a matter of seconds.

It must be a month since I got the rods out, the recent hot weather has just sapped my enthusiasm from getting on with a lot of things, not just fishing...….. Last night we had some rain and as I speak there is a nice light cool wind and a few clouds in the sky...…. Sometimes you just have to say "sod it I'm going fishing"... I may have missed the best conditions, pretty sure they will be getting their heads down right now. But I will be out tomorrow evening for 24 possibly 48 hrs, once the weekend boys have had their space...….. Just been fine tuning some hook baits, gonna give the kit a look over this afternoon/evening as it hasn't been out of it's bags for a while...…. Later today, a walk round the lake with the dogs and a bit of bait, prime a couple of margin spots if there aren't many lads left on the lake, ready for tomorrow evening, some nice easy close in fishing, just what the Doctor ordered...🙂

There is a theory that the older a carp gets, the more refined/sensitive it's gustatory and olfactory senses become, so a "fresh" baited area, which is attractive to younger fish, is a bit much for the more developed senses of an older fish. Possibly uncomfortable, or just unnatural and spelling danger...Can't remember the guys name, but heard this on one of the carp casts a while back...…… This also adds to the theory of "big fish" baits, with less flavours and more focused on the right levels of nutrition. Also, younger fish will have to eat certain foods/vits/mins to support growth rates. Where as a larger "topped out" fish can obtain enough vits and mins to "sustain" current size, via osmosis in a decent environment...… So, imo, there will be slightly different dietry needs..... I am talking very young fish, where experiments have been done with vit c, for instance, which is widely regarded as non essential in quantity for mature fish, however small fish will take in orally , as mentioned, to support growth rates.... Lets remember that not all smaller fish are young fish. But young fish tend to be small. I'll try and dig out the Carp Cast, there's a good 20 minute chat/interview.

You're not alone mate.... I've stayed in the house most evenings this week, simply because I can walk around in my pants without offending anyone...….🙂……. Put a clean T-shirt on and it's soaked through in no time...… Here's one my stepdad told me, stick a couple of fresh T-shirts in the freezer for a bit..... Nice little end of day treat lol.

Typical that, probably be clear again in the morning...……. At least we had a couple of hours of much needed rain tonight and a bit of cool breeze. Not much chance of seeing the moon atm tho'.

Raise a glass today lads..... Rod Hutchinson is laid to rest today...… " Legend" is a much over used word these days, but I think it's highly appropriate in his case...… R.I.P.

Some good points there mate. The man induced, learning by association, is one that had slipped my mind..... Just add, I think the type of bait being put in plays a big part too. An easily digestible food source, would imo, lead to a quicker recovery and perhaps an extra feeding spell on a lake..... Too much stinky winky bait going in, could lead to longer digestion periods and perhaps fewer and less vigorous munch ups. Your post has certainly given me food for thought (oooh dodgy joke in there somewhere)…….🙂

You could probably get them rolled bespoke by most decent places mate if you gave them a call. They shouldn't mind at all, as even if they had to roll you 5kg by hand, at that size they are a doddle. Might be an idea to get a couple of pots of mega hard hookers too, in the large size, as if you are being picked up and dropped by smaller fish, they will stay intact for longer..... RE paste..... In these temps it won't last long, any solubles within will disperse very fast . I might try the hard hookers I mentioned above with some paste around them to beef them up for a bit size wise...….. Once paste dissolves you'll have some soluble attraction around your hook bait...……… Failing that, and if they are allowed, a chunky old Brazil Nut might be worth a go.....

Yes mate, when Capitalism meets Nature, two different worlds collide, square peg round hole... They will never co-exist as by it's very nature, Capitalism destroys the natural world in the name of money......

Think we all have at some point...

As far as rods go, there's no point in looking for absolute perfection on my budget..... Having said that, some of the more affordable rods these days, would have been considered "out of this world" imo, 25 years ago...…. My all time favourites were some Fox Aquos rods I bought around late 90's, nothing fancy, but at 330 for a set of three were quite an out lay for me at the time, I felt like I'd reached the promised land. I cherished these rods and really looked after them. A through action rod, fantastic fish players, comfortable to around 80 yds casting, which was plenty for me and they really suited my small water venues, club lakes etc.....Eventually, as I moved onto some slightly larger venues, they had softened slightly and really restricted how far out I could fish...… I could never sell these rods, they just wouldn't have sold for what they were worth "to me". And it may sound silly, but I was so attached to them, that I just wanted them to go to someone who's eyes would light up when they saw them, and in my eyes someone who would look after them in the way that I had. So, after a massive clear out this year, I finally passed them on to a youngster, who absolutely loves them, uses them regularly and looks after them. He's a dedicated young angler , whom I shall be hopefully meeting up with next week on a runnsy club lake, where we can try and beat his 12lb pb………..(He did a 2lb plus river roach last month, it would be great for him to nick a pb carp as my pb was also caught on those rods). Moving on , I tried to replace those rods with some second hand NG's, 2.75tc X2 also a fish playing rod for the same sort of venues. I loved these too. But after a torrential downpour one session, noticed that some of the varnish had lifted on both butt sections.... This just really bugged me and the cost of having them restored was a bit much to justify, so these were sold on for half what I paid...….. The last session with the NG's, had me twice wrapped around some low branches above the bivvy in the middle of the night, so with some trepidation, decided to go down the 9ft route. I bought a couple of budget 9ft dwarfs. They felt weird at first, as I was used to 12footers, these felt like tooth picks, but they have turned out to be great for a couple of over grown small lakes I fish. I watched a guy land a 38 cat on one, and I've had a few 20lb carp on them from right under the tips and they've done alright...… I was testing the water on a 9ft set up ,with the budget rods, but I will definitely invest in a better quality 9ft set up after using these...……. For slightly larger venues I was recommended some Shimano Tribal Velocity 3.25 a couple of years ago on here. Shimano haven't got the best reputation for rods, but at 50 new each, I couldn't fault them, for my needs and budget...….. Apart from...……. In 6 months use, I never caught a bloomin fish...… It literally got to the stage where the carp demons were blaming these rods, so out they went. Pretty much got back what I paid and am now using some Sonik S6's 3.25tc for a larger water I joined. These were "end of line" and cost 50 each (rrp 200)… Haven't used them much yet, but I do like them, I've improved my distance casting with these, coupled with some reels I bought. They will get a decent work out through the Autumn..... I'm going to settle on these for a while, just can't be arsed to keep trying rods, which are all a bit samey on my budget...….. Getting back to the 9footers, I make you right @yonny , the marketing spin would have people believe that these are ok for general purpose. I don't think they are having used some. They are a specialist rod for a certain type of fishing. Handy and compact if you are fishing small venues at 40 yds or less, but not an all rounder.....