First time carp fishing experience Cumbria

[mitomaniac]

Well then the gear is getting gathered nearly there now just wondering if anyone has any suggestions of somewhere in cumbria for a first time outing, i was thinking brigham pond near cockermouth there are some near 20s that i know of in there and plenty of smaller carp which i feel would be a good experience however when we last went there just float fishing with corn or maggot the fish seemed a bit shy. i managed a okish bream and a decent but unwanted eel. none of the carp anglers seemed to be having much action but i think that could have been due to a lot of day fishers being there the previous day.

 

 

Just need a unhooking mat and a fish care kit, will have to wait and see how payday is and make sure i can get a good one.

 

 

Also if i pop a few pics of the rig set up(s) i intend to use would people please give me feedback on them and more importantly help me make sure they are as safe as possible !

 

 

Thanks in advance

Dave

[fy353]

I'm not the most experianced, but sure post your rigs up. Even if i cant help some one with a bit more knowledge will put you right

[mitomaniac]

Will mock them up tomorrow once been out with the mrs and post the pics up just to double check

[138cgj]

I believe Cumbria hold some huge old characters, im afraid they would be EXTREMELY difficult to locate and would take a lifetime of effort to even scratch the surface. Ive heard rumours of carp in some of the big glacial lakes, feeding on the bread intended for the ducks but?...

 

Commercial fishery wise, i have a book somewhere written by a local guy (Chris Sodo) and he lists all the fisheries in the area, trout,carp, rivers etc. Ill dig it out.

I do remember contacting him about one particular water my uncle and i'stumbled' across whilst on holiday in the lakes. The water was called Holehird Tarn if i remember rightly? Anyway it was the stereotypical carp lake...Lily pads, clear spots, a little waterfall with perfect natural surroundings............

Chris Sodo had praised it in his book, old warrior carp pushing 30lb, stunning mirror carp, big tench etc. It sounded perfect.

 

Sadly we were told that not long after the book was published the water, and several others in the area were ravaged by Otters Its never recovered.........

[sirlevalot]

Where about's are you based! If your up near Cockermouth then the best place I can recommend is Brayton pond www.braytonpond.co.uk in Aspatria its full of wild carp that go like steam trains and fight till your arms sore!!!

 

If your closer to my neck of the woods being Windermere then their is loads of local ponds on our syndicate WADAA check out www.lakedistrictfishing.net and click on the WADAA side for info on our ponds best one's being Ratherheath tarn, Atkinsons and Cleabarrow. Problem being though you will have to be a member to fish them. I would also recommend Borwick Fishery in Carnforth www.borwickfishing.co.uk its a brilliant fishery with loads of different waters to choose from and is probably the best all round fishery in cumbria.

 

And adding to the comments about Holehird tarn, yes unfortunately Holehird is now empty from all fish as the water level was dropped and remaining fish were removed last winter by "hand" didn't need to be netted as their was about 20 or so fish left mainly Carp and Tench. Crying shame it was so badly devastated by the otters, it was once a great water and is now sadly missed. R.I.P Holhird tarn.

 

Hope this helps.

[mitomaniac]

Im out near whitehaven, I was thinking of going to brigham pond for my first outing as its relatively cheap and has a reasonable stock of carp and tench also some nice bream from my previous experiences... Just as a tester session see how the rigs work baits work etc.... and see what bits of gear i could do with adding to my kit and what could do with improvement.... I dont want to jump in at the deep end altho i have heard some raving reviews about brayton...

 

Was considering rejoining whitehaven club as mirehouse has a few carp about of reasonable size and its nice n local to go n play about with rigs and baits until i get comfortable with the gear and the tactical side of carp

 

 

Thankyou for the reccomendations i will look into those for when i have a bit more confidence about myself and the gear

[sirlevalot]

I fished Brayton last summer and it was the best bit of fishing I'd done all year was their for about 8 hours had 9 lost 4 all around the 10-15lb mark and I was bushed when we packed up! If you get chance get on it! Lunchoen meat soaked in betain or spicy pepparami the flaming hot one on a simple bolt rig.

[andy1976]

brigham is a tough little nut to crack and can be difficult to fish, boilies work but you can't put any freebies in, luncheon meat is a good bait on here just make sure it stays on the hook,

 

a few miles up the road in aspatria is brayton tarn this is around 8 acres and full of wild carp, these fish go to high doubles with the odd one going a bit bigger, most tactics work here and for me the method feeder works really good, with hauls of up to 100lb + if you play your cards right, but these fish can be quite cagey too at times. fishing here is £10 a day ticket or £20 for 24hrs

 

just outside of wigton is crofton lake, this is controlled by carlisle and district angling club, no night fishing here but a yearly ticket can be had for under £50 and the lake record is 28lb common, there is day tickets available but these will more than likely be stopping soon if they haven't already thanks to idiots who come and leave their crap all over the swims,

 

i hope this helps

[morph72]

hi mate new to the area myself, but have fished brigham and brayton many times while visiting family this time of year if your at brigham try the zig rigs they work quite well and get on the wind ,if at brayton pretty much anything works , all the best mate , good fishing and tight lines

[grangemilky]

hi mate new to the area myself, but have fished brigham and brayton many times while visiting family this time of year if your at brigham try the zig rigs they work quite well and get on the wind ,if at brayton pretty much anything works , all the best mate , good fishing and tight lines

 

 

I'm sure he apreciated it, but you are just over 3 years too late.