A Bit Of Interactive Bank Chat

[muftyboy]

I'm jealous.

I had an inch of slush in the back garden.

 

[welder]

3 hours ago, nigewoodcock said:

We are due minus 9 tonight and with over a foot of snow still on my lane, it’s going to be fun trying to get the car down it and onto the clearer roads in the villiage for my drive over to Lincolnshire tomorrow morning! 

You need a Mitsubishi Shogun, Nige. You know it makes sense.........

Ian

[nigewoodcock]

2 minutes ago, welder said:

You need a Mitsubishi Shogun, Nige. You know it makes sense.........

Ian

I have the Isuzu trooper but that’s staying put incase the wife needs it for the boys. 

 

[welder]

Can't argue with that. Family first.

I was forced to take the day off today. The Shogun got me to work but steel supplier's trucks were snowed into their yard and couldn't deliver to me. Been reading a cracking book beside the fire, instead.

Ian

[ianain]

5 hours ago, muftyboy said:

I'm jealous.

I had an inch of slush in the back garden.

 

I'm jealous, I like to look at photos of snow but don't enjoy it any more, causes chaos; disruption; lunacy and worst of all mindless hours of video footage from people and animals falling over / making fools of themselves or cars crashing - I must be getting old and grumpy

[cyborx]

11 hours ago, ianain said:

I'm jealous, I like to look at photos of snow but don't enjoy it any more, causes chaos; disruption; lunacy and worst of all mindless hours of video footage from people and animals falling over / making fools of themselves or cars crashing - I must be getting old and grumpy

getting? 🤔 😂 😂 😂

[ianain]

Doh!

 

Getting even more...

[greekskii]

Well I'm currently on my third blank in a row. Both bays were iced over so I went back in the area I've been fishing since September. I had nothing to go on but on Wednesday I got a text from the bailiff telling me a fish boshed out over it. Maybe it'll pay off this morning who knows. Plenty of silvers showing in front of me. 

[greekskii]

Springs are hardly running. Overflow out the lake is raging though. Still a mystery as to where they are held up. I've not seen any signs for a while now but I'm not here enough. 

At least the pair of kingfishers are a joy to watch this frosty morning! 

[nigewoodcock]

41 minutes ago, carpmachine said:

Vik, estate lakes are a nightmare in the winter, far more difficult than a pit or the river despite holding a higher stock, that learning curve will serve you well and make you a better angler, different challenge, dont get down, more blanks coming and hopefully more fish, the springs should be running, you know where they are, fish near them in the shallows around midday and forget the night fishing for a while, the run off pipe from the field has caught me some good fish during cold weather, Mick as well.

Why are estate lakes harder than any other lake during winter? Genuinely interested to know your thoughts? 

[greekskii]

I'm watching the lake ice over. I can actually see the sheet of ice growing. 

 

 

[yonny]

59 minutes ago, carpmachine said:

Because there is very little surface movement due to wind, the temperature remains constantly low for longer periods

Imo estate lakes respond more quickly to temps due to lack of depth. Talking generally here obviously.

If I wanted to catch a fish and I had the choice of a small estate lake with a hundred fish in it, or a 30 acre 20 ft deep pit with 100 fish in it, I know which I would choose. Its not the pit lol....

[greekskii]

17 minutes ago, yonny said:

Imo estate lakes respond more quickly to temps due to lack of depth. Talking generally here obviously.

If I wanted to catch a fish and I had the choice of a small estate lake with a hundred fish in it, or a 30 acre 20 ft deep pit with 100 fish in it, I know which I would choose. Its not the pit lol....

Depends where that pit is! 

As I sit here now. About 30% of the lake is iced over. The deepest bay, the shallowest bay and the boathouse bay. Plus a bit of open water. The deep bay has been iced over for a few days now. It started icing last Friday night. The first part of the lake to go. 

I think everywhere has it's own microclimate. Here it seems to stay hotter for longer  in the summer but also stay colder longer in winter. 

Best winter lakes are the shallowest. Just wish there was a shallow old washing pit close by. 

[yonny]

For sure Vik. If we're being brutally honest I think when water temps are this low we'll all struggle for a bite regardless of venue lol....

Our pits have a lid on too.

[greekskii]

3 minutes ago, yonny said:

Our pits have a lid on too.

Shocked at that. But again highlights the microclimates that are about. The valley is always fairy extreme in conditions I think. When it rains, it pours. When it's cold, it's arctic. When it's hot, it's very hot. 

Differs from further up the hill to where I am now. Little 5 acre lake not fully iced over. Your lot are much bigger and deeper and have got majority of it with a lid on. 

[greekskii]

I'm off out Thursday night, the winter solstice. Shortest day of the year coupled with an almost new moon and 10c during the day and down to 9c at night, early morning 7c. Xmas eve looks even better but thats not happening!

Anyone have any views on the solstices (summer & winter) fishing wise?

[cyborx]

3 minutes ago, greekskii said:

I'm off out Thursday night, the winter solstice. Shortest day of the year coupled with an almost new moon and 10c during the day and down to 9c at night, early morning 7c. Xmas eve looks even better but thats not happening!

Anyone have any views on the solstices (summer & winter) fishing wise?

must be good, the Druids were all over it!!

 

[yonny]

35 minutes ago, greekskii said:

Shortest day of the year coupled with an almost new moon and 10c during the day and down to 9c at night, early morning 7c.

Cracking conditions for this time of year mate.... best of luck.

36 minutes ago, greekskii said:

Anyone have any views on the solstices (summer & winter) fishing wise?

Nothing other than we're one step closer to Spring !!!!

[greekskii]

3 minutes ago, yonny said:

Cracking conditions for this time of year mate.... best of luck.

Hope to come out of the rut. 3 blanks in a row and not even seeing any signs of the carp. I may be missing something though as my rods arent out until gone 1pm on arrival and I'm packed up and off by 11am. Potentially bite time is sometime inbetween that! luckily getting to stay on longer on Friday so we shall see.

[yonny]

16 minutes ago, greekskii said:

Hope to come out of the rut. 3 blanks in a row and not even seeing any signs of the carp.

I wouldn't consider it a rut at all Vik. Water temps have been as low as 4 degrees. There is no getting away from the fact that that will render activity almost non-existent. I have spent entire days dropping live maggots on top of the heads of dormant carp in snags in temps like these with no response. Sometimes nothing will work, regardless of what you do. You just need to hope you're there when they decide to feed for more than a couple of minutes at a time......

I once spent an entire winter fishing one water without catching, or even seeing a carp, for nearly 4 months. It's winter fishing at the end of the day. It will happen eventually but while it's not we need to just sit back and enjoy the season, we can still try hard to catch a carp, but there's little point in hammering ourselves when we don't bag one.

[greekskii]

1 hour ago, yonny said:

I wouldn't consider it a rut at all Vik. Water temps have been as low as 4 degrees. There is no getting away from the fact that that will render activity almost non-existent. I have spent entire days dropping live maggots on top of the heads of dormant carp in snags in temps like these with no response. Sometimes nothing will work, regardless of what you do. You just need to hope you're there when they decide to feed for more than a couple of minutes at a time......

I once spent an entire winter fishing one water without catching, or even seeing a carp, for nearly 4 months. It's winter fishing at the end of the day. It will happen eventually but while it's not we need to just sit back and enjoy the season, we can still try hard to catch a carp, but there's little point in hammering ourselves when we don't bag one.

true. I just feel like I've been missing something and I should have been catching. They are still using the area I have been baiting and catching from. The bailiff saw a fish bosh over it the Wednesday and I fished the Friday night. In the cold water temps i'd not expect them to move far. Oh well, another session is another chance to catch!

[greekskii]

Well I'm out tonight in the mild weather. 4 others were here when I turned up and meant I couldn't fish my normal area. Luckily last week I spread bait all over the lake before I left. I'm giving the other open water area a shot after seeing nothing for 2 hours worth of looking apart from silvers. 

Three rods cast out with pub chucks looking for a decent drop. Had a single bleep on one but still yet to see/hear a carp! Fingers crossed they get active during the dark and I can locate them. 

[cloud9]

Good luck Vic , your mad doing night's in my mind but the best of British to you ......

 

[greekskii]

7 minutes ago, cloud9 said:

Good luck Vic , your mad doing night's in my mind but the best of British to you ......

 

It's double figures still. Nice and mild tonight. One pair of socks and open front with the sides clipped back on the bivvy. 

[cloud9]

It's well over double figures here and with a whiskey to hand I can just about cope with the conditions indoors ....