New water

[Lumeymorris]

Guys me and a friend are trying to crack a new water and we've been walking the lake talking to people trying to learn what we can but a lot of people claim to not know what works so we're going to have to do it the hard way and run a few tests and possibly blank a few times but when testing a bait to see if it works how long would you test it for before trying a different bait? As my friend caught one the other day on pink fake corn but being this is the only one we've caught I don't know if it was a fluke just in the right place at the right time. But at the same time I don't want to ignore it in case either corn or pink is part of the key so I was thinking of going with a small pink pop up while he uses pink corn. But not sure how long should persevere before changing as you never know when your on the fish as they are quite shy and don't really show themself to much 

[greekskii]

Until you catch on it! A carp will eat anything when it's in the right place!

[oscsha]

Being in the right spot is more important than the bait  , use a good fishmeal boilie and or corn or maize . Part of the fun is sussing a water out your self .

[Ginger9991]

So for me, Any fish in the first few sessions is a bonus. If your going to really attack this water and do a year or 2 on the lake then you might as well use the first few sessions to lead the lake to death. Know everything you can know about your swim and any other swim thats free. Make notes, Begin to build a picture of the lake (wheres shallow/Deepest, Wheres the bar or the weed etc). Get up before dawn and watch the water, Are they showing? Where are they showing? Are they always showing over the same area? Are they always following the wind? Pick a swim with a large view of the lake and the other swims, Can you see people catching, Does one section seem to get bites in the day whilst another section seems to get night bites? is there a certain time bites seem to happen?

Theres 2 of you, so you can have the lake mapped out pretty quickly, Dont worry about your bait yet. Find the fish, Find where they patrol, Where they tend to be at certain times of the day (Night/Dawn) Then start to work on your choosen approach. Its not a bad thing or cheating to watch joe bloggs from across the lake hauling and learning from him.

Its all learning. Effort = Reward.

[B.C.]

3 hours ago, Lumeymorris said:

Guys me and a friend are trying to crack a new water and we've been walking the lake talking to people trying to learn what we can but a lot of people claim to not know what works so we're going to have to do it the hard way and run a few tests and possibly blank a few times but when testing a bait to see if it works how long would you test it for before trying a different bait? As my friend caught one the other day on pink fake corn but being this is the only one we've caught

4 hours ago, Lumeymorris said:

I don't know if it was a fluke just in the right place at the right time.

But at the same time I don't want to ignore it in case either corn or pink is part of the key so I was thinking of going with a small pink pop up while he uses pink corn. But not sure how long should persevere before changing as you never know when your on the fish as they are quite shy and don't really show themself to much 

If you are going to put some time in, just get on a decent food bait and stick with it...… Be patient and it will all come together...… Asking for advice from those that have put the effort in already, might be a blind alley, most times they will say very little and what they tell you might be duff info, that is, until you have done a bit of time and you can exchange info, two way street in this case.....

TBH, what I find, is that a lot of anglers come and go, they try a place , and a few blanks later they are off to the local runs water...… If you stick it out and become a regular, the barriers come down a bit, people open up a bit more, plus, just by spending time at the venue, you will learn the place, and a bit about where the fish will be...… No real short cuts imo, time and effort...… But bait wise, I find chopping and changing can just give you a head ache. Just stick to a proven bait..... Knowing where to put it, will come with time spent on the bank, not holed up in a bivvy, but walking and watching for signs, climbing the odd tree etc......

Not a fluke buddy...…… Right place, right time, that's what its all about... Make a note of the spot and the time of day and time of year and that's a tiny piece of the jig saw sorted..... Before you leave, bang a marker float over the spot, see if there's some kind of feature there. Chuck a few baits in on leaving...… All these little bits of effort will add up long term 😊

[Liquorsnurf]

I tend to pick a bait for the season and stick to it, sometimes for multiple seasons. As a lot of the guys have said here already its more about location carp are like pigs they will eat anything.

 

[kevtaylor]

Pink - that's irrelevant IMO, this is not 'The Key' as you put it.  As others have said they will eat anything on the right spot at the right time.  Its about knowing where they feed and why, where are the natural food beds, where do they go in certain weather conditions, wind directions, hot and cold temps, how do they respond to angling pressure, getting a clear understanding of your quarry in that particular lake. 

Then with appropriate baiting, hard work and determination you might find the key to consistent success on that venue.  Its never about being on a certain bait, because without all of the above you're still likely to be in the wrong area to begin with - best bait in the world or not. 😉

 

 

[crusian]

Hello Lumey 

In addition to what the others have said , ( i.e. location , location ,location and why the fish are where they are ) , as there are two of you why not have one of you on a pink pop up while the other one tries white or yellow ? ; personally pink has never really worked for me , but white seems to work on the few  waters I fish .

🙂

[cloud9]

Take a notepad and note down anything that you see or hear, times and locations your fishing, fish seen and where, fishing spots wraps and target areas, baits used and methods, chat with anyone else that's happy to talk, don't always go in with"what you caught mate" chat about the weather is always a good start, if you can find a bailiff ask him, most of the time they are happy to help out, but don't believe everything you've told ....

[salokcinnodrog]

On 19 September 2018 at 10:00, Lumeymorris said:

Guys me and a friend are trying to crack a new water and we've been walking the lake talking to people trying to learn what we can but a lot of people claim to not know what works so we're going to have to do it the hard way and run a few tests and possibly blank a few times but when testing a bait to see if it works how long would you test it for before trying a different bait? As my friend caught one the other day on pink fake corn but being this is the only one we've caught I don't know if it was a fluke just in the right place at the right time. But at the same time I don't want to ignore it in case either corn or pink is part of the key so I was thinking of going with a small pink pop up while he uses pink corn. But not sure how long should persevere before changing as you never know when your on the fish as they are quite shy and don't really show themself to much 

The obvious answer is walk and locate, watch and learn. I mentioned last year on a thread how carp didn't show on a water, they do, I just wasn't up early enough! In the end I was having to wake up before first light to see them.

 

If you can get down with a marker rod then have a play and find features. Feature wise, remember it is autumn, coming up to winter. If there are any weedbeds, then they can be good winter spots.

 

Fake pink corn, is extremely unlikely to be the key. It is more likely the carp was being inquisitive!

Bait, keep trickling in a few boilies, a decent food bait, but don't forget sweetcorn. Sweetcorn is a particle that often does work all the way through. I would save one out of three rods (if it is a three rod allowed) specifically for trying different baits. If it is two, I would be playing with one rod for various baits, and using the other on my baited area.