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Crafty Carper February 2013 - Don't be afraid! Ellis Brazier's guide to fishing open-water swims with confidence. Underwater uncovered: Is your lead setup costing you bites? Rob Hughes goes sub-surface to investigate bite indication. Living the Dream: Korda's James Armstrong opens his angling journal. Plus... Mark Pitchers, Nick Helleur, Mark Bartlett, Ian Stott, Nigel Sharp, Ian Poole and Kev Hewitt. Fish for FREE! 48 hours' winter carping for the price of 24 hours, at two great venures.
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Underwater RevelationsRob Hughes
38 Crafty Carper
Bite indication – arguably
one of the most important
and yet least understood
areas of our angling. But do you
really know what is giving you the
best indication, and are you using
the right tool for the job? Over
the last few years, particularly in
the UK, there has been a trend to
fish light bobbins with slack and
semi-slack lines in an attempt to
disguise the setup and encourage
the fish to feed. In Europe,
primarily as a result of the size
of the waters and the windier
conditions, there is a preference
for swingers that provide a more
stable setup and don’t register
false bleeps. Opposite ends of
the spectrum when it comes to
indicator choices, but are either of
these setups always the correct
choice for the job in hand?
Past Experience
Through many years of diving, and
in particular, testing both my own
setups and those of some of the best
anglers in the UK, I have seen a pattern
emerging with regard to indication.
Through this feature I’d like to dispel
a few myths and have a look at which
setup gives the best indication, and
also which type of indicator anglers
should use for a particular fishing
style. Most people have one set of
indicators, which they use for the
majority of their fishing, be it under
the tips or out in the pond, but a little
like individual golf clubs, indicators
have been designed for a specific
purpose, and using them in the wrong
way may hinder rather than help your
RIGHT The current trend is for slack lines and light bobbins, but is this efficient for your angling?
BELOW The swinger is still king on the Continent.
chances of registering a bite. It’s the
same with lead choice and Bolt Rigs;
I think those new to carp fishing may
have possibly missed the point of some
setups because they weren’t around
during their inception, and therefore
don’t fully understand why they work.
“A little like
individual golf clubs,
indicators have been
designed for a specific
purpose, and using them in
the wrong way may hinder
rather than help your
chances of registering
a bite”
ABOVE Slack lines can actually be a hindrance and give the fish enough slack to be able to shake the hook.
BELOW With a tight line, hooking is aided and the fish doesn’t have much chance to rid the hook.
037-040_UnderwaterRev_CC186.indd 2 09/01/2013 09:48
Underwater RevelationsRob Hughes
Crafty Carper 39
Slack Line versus Tight Line
The fi rst thing I’d like to look at is
the compromise between slack and
tight lines. Many would have you
believe that slack lines are the best for
indication because the indicator shows
bites more easily on a slack line than
a tight line. I disagree, and feel that
this is just fashion! In numerous tests I
have looked at anglers’ indication and
measured how far I can move their
rig before a bite is registered at the
alarm. I do the same test all the time,
picking up the hookbait and moving
directly away from the rod with it.
The majority of the time I am able to
move the hook a distance of around
50-60cm before I feel the resistance
of the angler striking the rod; there
doesn’t seem to be a lot of difference
between slack and semi-slack lines,
but there is a signifi cant difference
with very tight lines, particularly when
using braid. It’s fair to say that the
bobbin can move further on a slack
line than a tight one, but that’s quite
simply because it can travel further
because of the slackness in the line
and it has little impact on indication.
Much of the time anglers use a Bolt
Rig setup rather than using a running
rig and slack line (which is the old-
fashioned style of getting indication
when a fi sh has picked up the bait and
is moving off with it). The Bolt Rig
uses the weight of the lead to hook
the fi sh and cause it to bolt off – hence
its name. The more resistance there
is at this point, the better the hooking
arrangement, because the whole point
of a Bolt Rig is to provide enough
resistance to cause the fi sh to bolt, by
which time the hook should be safely
embedded in the mouth. When fi shing
a slack line, the fi sh bolts from the
weight of the hook but doesn’t feel the
resistance of the line or reel until the
line has tightened completely. Fishing
like this is relying solely on the weight
of the lead to hook the fi sh, and it can
actually be used by the fi sh to throw
the hook should it violently shake its
head. In my humble opinion, a tight
line restricts this chance because the
line is tight and the fi sh has less to
play with. When using a slack line,
we know from experience that it has
approximately 50-60cm of movement
to rid itself of the hook before you get
indication. If the line is already tight,
then the bobbin can’t move because it
is already in the position that a slack
line gets into when it is tightened. A
tight line can aid the actual hooking
of the fi sh, and the very fact that
it’s already tight means that the
resistance from the tight line comes
into play much earlier, giving the fi sh
no slack to use to throw the hook.
One of the things that does have
an effect is stretch, and for me, a tight
line that is stretching is actually an aid
to hooking, rather than a hindrance. A
stretching line takes longer to show
indication, but unlike a slack line, it
is actually helping to hook the fi sh
during this process. Braid is known to
have much less stretch than mono,
thus giving indication very quickly, but
incredibly, I see some anglers fi shing
braided lines slack. Surely this defeats
the indication benefi t of using braid
in the fi rst place? True, the contact
will be more direct when playing
the fi sh, but when anglers use it for
better indication it is quite simply
of no benefi t if it is fi shed slack.
The best indication I have ever
seen was when testing a bowstring-
tight braided line that was being
fi shed with a heavy lead and a
springer. As soon as the lead moved,
the springer bounced back, and the
fi sh would have been hooked.
The Problem With Tight Lines
Whilst tight lines are generally more
effective at indication than slack, and
also for hooking the fi sh and keeping
it on the hook, there is, of course, a
compromise. If you are fi shing a tight
line, the chances are that it will be
much more visible than a slack one
because it rises up off the bottom
close to where the bait is, whereas
a slack one, especially if fi shing with
leadcore or a heavy leader, will sink
fl at on the bottom. To illustrate this
point I’ve taken pictures of a slack
and a tight line on the bottom of the
lake in 3m of water depth, fi shed
approximately 50m out from the bank.
I used a dark leadcore-type material
so that it can be seen better in the
photographs, because taking pictures
of line underwater is quite tricky. You
will notice that on a tight line it does
rise off the bottom, whereas with a
slack line it lies fl at, therefore is much
less visible. The deeper the water and
the closer in you are fi shing, the more
obvious this is, because it will rise more
steeply off the bottom. A long-range
shallow lake is much more suited to
tight lining than a short-range deep
one, unless it is very steep and the line
is at the same angle as the slope. One
of the ways to combat this particular
problem is with the use of what I call a
‘spook leader’, in this instance a short
length of Illusion fl uorocarbon line,
1-2m in length, which becomes almost
invisible on the bottom of the lake.
When opting for a tight line, a leadcore
leader is not the best choice because
it will be very obvious and defeats the
object of why you are using leadcore in
the fi rst place, i.e. to sink the line near
the lead onto the bottom of the lake,
and you need a slack line to do that!
Sinking the Line and Obstacles
If you prefer to use a slack line and
sink it down, it is important to make
sure that you do it properly. In an ideal
world we would have a long shooting
leader where the end nearest the
lead is heavier than the end nearest
the rod. That way the line will sink
from the lead backwards, which is the
correct way to do it. Many anglers sink
their line by casting out then dipping
their rod tip under the surface and
tightening up before slackening off
again. That will sink the line from the
rod end as well, which means that
the line may well be on the bottom
close to the rod, but off the bottom
further out. This brings me nicely
on to my next point – obstacles.
If there are obstacles,
such as weedbeds, between
FAR LEFT A slack line, with the use of leadcore, is pinned to the bottom…
LEFT & BELOW …whereas a tight line, coupled with leadcore, rises off the bottom, as you can see.
ABOVE Weedbeds can create a hinge effect because the line lies on top of them. You may think you’re fi shing tight, but you’re not.
ABOVE I was caught out recently fi shing a solid bag; when I went in to dive the spot, the lead had moved substantially, as you can see.
BELOW An Illusion leader is perfect for its camoufl age properties.
037-040_UnderwaterRev_CC186.indd 3 09/01/2013 09:48
ANGLER PROFILE
Mark Bartlett...........................Age 27...........................HometownYatton,Somerset...........................OccupationFishery owner...........................UK PB39lb 8oz...........................Favourite venueLinear Fisheries...........................RodsFox Horizon XT...........................ReelsFox 12000s...........................AlarmsFox NTXr
ANGLER PROFILE
Kev Hewitt...........................Age 28...........................HometownSwindon, Wiltshire...........................OccupationCotswold Angling employee...........................UK PB44lb 12oz...........................Favourite venueLinch Hill...........................RodsE-S-P Sniper...........................ReelsDaiwa Tournament...........................AlarmsFox MMXR
This month the boys are in Kent; can they manage to carry on their impressive run of form and catch again whilst on feature for The Session?
This is the fi nal article of the series, so will they go out on a high?
62 Crafty Carper
With hard frosts up and down
the country, this month
is going to be a challenge
for the West Country session boys as
they venture east to Kent, the Garden
of England. Kev and Bart decide to
tackle the impressive Orchard Place
Farm complex, and with eight lakes to
choose from, surely they’ll be able to
get a bite or two – or will the big freeze
scupper their best-laid plans? I join
the boys in session as they attempt
to get the better of the conditions
and put a fi sh on the bank. It’s not
going to be easy, but I have every
confi dence that they will succeed.
Sunday 8.00 a.m.
I rock up to Orchard Place Farm and
both Kev and Bart are already here. Kev
hasn’t long since arrived and is chatting
to his mate Kempy, who’s fi shing on
Lake Four, whilst Bart is more eager
and arrived just after dark the previous
evening. As he arrived the lake was
starting to freeze over and he had to
smash a channel through the cat ice in
the margins to enable him to get his
rods out. It seems all is quiet on Lake
Four; nothing has been out for a while
and Bart and Kempy didn’t receive a
carpy indication between them. Despite
Lake Four having a good head of carp,
with a good number of 30lb+ fi sh, the
lake seems very clear, indicating that
the carp are moving around very little.
Sunday 10.00 a.m.
With nothing occurring on Lake Four,
Bart winds in and the lads take a stroll
around the impressive complex. It would
appear that none of the lakes have been
fi shing very well during the past week
and nothing has been out all weekend.
062-065_Session_CC186.indd 1 09/01/2013 09:54
Crafty Carper 63
After much deliberation, the boys
decide to move from Lake Four to Lake
Eight because it has a good head of
doubles, a number of 20s and a couple
of 30s. It’s obvious that it’s going to be
a struggle on any of the lakes, but Lake
Eight had been fishing the best up until
a week previous. There was also more
colour in the water, which suggested
to the lads that the fish may well be
more active and stirring up the bottom.
Sunday 3.00 p.m.
The lads have had their rods out in Lake
Eight for a few hours now and haven’t
seen any signs of carp. The temperatures
are near freezing and a brisk biting
wind sends a chill right through me. Out
comes the kettle, right on cue. Kev and
Bart have set up in the middle of the
lake, which gives them lots of options.
With it being so cold, both Kev and Bart
are regularly casting around with small
PVA bags of maggots, 10mm boilies and
pellets, trying to search out a bite and
figure out what the carp want to eat.
Sunday 10.00 p.m.
It’s extremely cold, and it seems like
Kev and Bart are the only people mad
enough to be out in these conditions.
They are the only anglers on the whole
complex! Although it is cold enough to
clear the complex, the boys are very
upbeat and keen to get a bend in their
rods. Their motivation is infectious
and their enthusiasm for catching carp
is second to none. They are regularly
recasting their bags and searching
out different spots. There are plenty
of islands to cast to, so the lads try
fishing tight to the islands, as well as
at the bottom of the island shelves,
but still haven’t received
so much as a liner.
The SessionKev Hewitt and Mark Bartlett
062-065_Session_CC186.indd 2 09/01/2013 09:55
Why Not the Naked Chod?
Since a recent change of lake, I
have gone back to using a rig that
I used maybe 5 years ago. The rig
in question was chosen due to it
outwitting some rarely caught carp.
With the lake change I found myself
in a similar position, where I was
getting done over by some crafty fish.
The first evidence of this was whilst
using the Naked Chod. I received one
single bleep and passed it off as a
liner from one of the many roach and
rudd that inhabit the lake’s margins.
It wasn’t until I received another
single bleep an hour later that I knelt
by the rods and watched the lines
drop from the rod tip; the line lifted
an inch and stayed there. I had heard
Rig Mechanics
Since first using the 360 Rig some
years ago, I have been fortunate
enough to receive the backing of
Taska, and I knew that some of their
rig components would be ideal for
tying up the 360. The rig works
on a variety of movable parts, and
some of the Taska products would
enhance this element even more.
The rig gets its name from the hook
arrangement; the hook isn’t tied to
the hooklink but is threaded through
the eye of a Size 11 big-eyed swivel.
This gives the hook 360 degrees of
movement within the swivel, and no
matter which angle the fish takes
the rig from, the hook always turns
when the fish tries to eject the
baited hook. I always use 5-10mm
of separation from the ring that runs
along the hook to the bait. This can
be achieved by tying either a slightly
longer Hair that the bait is attached
to, or by using a threaded bait
screw incorporating a micro swivel
(soon to be released by Taska). This
was designed by Taska specifically
from other anglers that people had
started counting the times they had
been done rather than the number
of carp they had put on the bank in
a year. I found this unbelievable; I
was using a rig that had caught me
umpteen carp in recent months on a
lake only yards away. This couldn’t
be happening to me, could it? I
lifted the rod and realised that the
suspicious roach liner was, in fact,
a 27lb mirror known as The Parrot.
I had been very lucky to learn a
valuable lesson so early in my quest
to catch the lake’s residents. The
tackle box was pulled from under the
bedchair and a 360 Rig was tied.
One Rig Onlyfeaturing Mark Hogg
with the 360 Rig in mind, but surely
it will be useful for other rigs.
I have found that the best hook to
use with the 360 is the JRC MBT 360; it
works perfectly with the rig that it was
initially designed for. Unfortunately,
this hook has been discontinued, so
a change to some gnarlier patterns
may be needed. The eye of any hook
used with the 360 needs special
attention, because where the eye is
formed there is often a gap, so, in my
opinion, shrink tube needs to be put
over this gap. The reason for this is
that when the fish is in the net the
hook has a tendency to snag; shrink
tubing the gap with a 3mm piece of
tubing stops this from happening
and ensures that it is 100% safe.
The rig works by critically-balancing
the components against the buoyancy
of a pop-up. No shot or weights are
used to hold the pop-up down – the
hook, swivels and tungsten ring
stops should be enough. The only
weights I do add are a couple of small
baseline tungsten sinkers along
the hooklink, but this is purely to
keep the coated braid pinned to the
lakebed and out of harm’s way.
My History with the 360 RigI first started using the 360 Rig
about 5 years ago. I was fishing a
lake that had a stock of carp that
had seen it all; they were old fish
and very educated when it came
to getting away with it. I needed a
rig that gave me
a greater chance
of hooking any
carp that tried
my hookbait
just once. If
the rig didn’t hook the fish on
the first attempt, then the fish
would be away and not come back
because they’d treat the area with
suspicion. I trawled through the
piles of magazines I had hoarded
over the years and found the 360
Rig demonstrated
by Dave Lane. As
soon as I saw it
I was intrigued;
it worked
well and gave
a great degree of movement.
I tied one up and knew that
it had to be a winner.
“I needed a rig that gave me a greater chance of hooking any carp that
tried my hookbait”
BELOW I like my freebies to be identical to the hookbait.
Having the hook through a swivel gives it a full 360 degrees of movement.
ABOVE The MBT 360 hook from JRC was designed specifically for this rig. Bonus!
108 Crafty Carper
107-109_OneRigOnly_CC186.indd 2 10/01/2013 16:26
ONE RIG ONLY
TIE UP HOGGY’S TRUSTY 360 RIGLike the look of the 360 Rig? Here’s how to tie it...
Take a length of your chosen coated hooklink and tie it to the large ring of the swivel, like so.
Take the hook through the smaller eye of the swivel.
Two tungsten sinkers are then threaded onto the hooklink material.
Finally, take 2-3mm of shrink tubing and steam it over the eye of the hook.
Now attach the bait by simply screwing it onto the bait ring.
Put a rig stop on the shank of the hook, followed by a bait ring and another rig stop, like this.
Hookbait Choice
Bait size is critical with the 360 Rig. I
find that a smaller 12mm bait works
far more efficiently than a 16mm
version; the smaller bait also allows
the balancing to be fine-tuned. The
bait should sit coming off the top
of the hook, and this is done by
positioning the tungsten rig stops
on the hook. The first one should
be positioned in the bend of the
hook and the other further down the
shank, opposite the hookpoint. The
bottom stop is critical. If positioned
too low the hook can sit the wrong
way up, rendering the rig useless.
The hook should sit with just the
eye touching the lakebed. I cannot
stress enough the balance of the
components against the buoyancy
of the pop-up. Take the time to get
it right and the rig is devastating.
Using the Rig to Its Full PotentialThe rig is, in my mind, one of the
best rigs out there and somewhat
underused. The fish has so many
obstacles to overcome when trying
to eject the rig that I would say it’s
near impossible to eject. I also opt
for a running lead setup using a 2oz
Gripper lead, just to try to give the
fish another hurdle to overcome.
My Success Using The 360
I’ll give a few examples of my own
ideas on where to fish the rig by
explaining the water I am currently
targeting. The lake is very dense with
onion weed in places, and the fish
were definitely using these areas
but feeding on cleanly polished spots
within it. The areas were small, and in
my mind too obvious to place a rig. The
outside areas of these spots were ideal,
with a light covering of chod. Casting to
the clean areas and dragging the lead
back ensured that
the lead setup was
in the chod out
of sight. The rig
works best over
clean or lightly
chodded areas; the
reason for this is that there are many
components within the rig, and if these
are masked by weed or heavy chod
it certainly hinders its performance. I
normally foam up all these key areas
with PVA foam nuggets before the
cast. This takes away any doubt that
the rig isn’t presented right, and also
gives you a little time to pull the rig
into position and straighten everything
out. When the PVA detaches from
1
3
5
2
4
6
the rig the coated hooklink pushes
away from the lead setup, and the
nuggets of foam on the surface also
give a sight marker to bait around.
The margins were also used
frequently by the carp, as patrol routes
from the top end of the lake to the
bottom. The bottom of the shelf was
clean and an ideal place to ambush the
carp with a single pop-up hookbait. The
intimacy of fishing the close-in margin
spots was perfect and something the
carp didn’t seem to have come across.
These fish had
been heavily
pressured in
previous years
and were, in my
opinion, very
wary of beds of
bait, so the single hookbait approach
with six or seven identical freebies
fed at 2yd intervals up and down the
marginal shelf was the perfect baiting
pattern for the 360. The carp only
needs to make one mistake with the
360, and that is simply to try the bait.
Tight multiple baiting doesn’t increase
the chances of a fish; the chances
are that a carp would suss the rig
before getting the chance to try it.
anglers were confirming that I was
doing something right. Winter was
approaching fast and work was still
busy, meaning I couldn’t spend as much
time at the lake as I had hoped, but I
know for sure that the ever-faithful rig
will certainly work again when I return
in the spring. I just have to hope that
the lads on the lake don’t read Crafty
Carper first. I’m sure they’ve got their
‘one rig only’ for this situation, which
just goes to prove that everyone has a
different approach to carp fishing. As
I have mentioned, I am not a one-trick
pony, and every lake I visit has its own
characteristics that need addressing
with different approaches, but if
there was a rule stating you were
only allowed to use just one rig,
then it would be the 360. I would
just have to find the areas of
every lake in which to fish
it efficiently. CC
I had John Hallet at Rollin’ Baits
make up some Nutrabaits Plum &
Caproic cork balls in 12mm for me.
These were perfect for the job,
and gave me the confidence that
the rig would maintain its position
for 48 hours, or more if needed.
The first bite I had on the rig a week
later was proof of its hooking qualities,
when I received a one-toner. This was
something of a rarity on the lake due to
the carp’s cute nature that I mentioned
previously. In the following few weeks I
caught another three carp, the biggest
of the bunch being a twice-a-year
fish at 34lb, and the word
around the lake was that
I was doing OK. Good
“The margins were also used frequently by the
carp, as patrol routes from the top end of the
lake to the bottom”
One Rig Onlyfeaturing Mark Hogg
BELOW The Parrot at 27lb, and I thought it was a liner from a roach.
A 12mm cork ball pop-up seems to balance the rig just right.
ABOVE A small gripper-type lead on a Running Rig is my choice.
Crafty Carper 109
107-109_OneRigOnly_CC186.indd 3 10/01/2013 16:27
Welly Bound
The plan was to get home, have
a quick shower, and pick up
some boilies before making the
100-mile journey down to Wellington
Country Park in Berkshire. It was whilst
driving on the M4 that I got a text
from a friend telling me he had a 44lb
mirror in the sack and that I should
hurry up. I wasn’t that far away, and
some 40 minutes later I pulled into the
syndicate car park. The barrow was
loaded up and I made my way round
to my mate’s swim. On the way round
I left my barrow in the Wides Swim
and carried on round to the Grassy
to do the pictures. My eyes nearly
popped out of my head when I saw
how big it was – very short, deep, and
broad across the shoulders; it was a
cracking-looking carp, that’s for sure.
After the carp was returned the kettle
was fired up and we had a good chat,
and I learned that there had been a
few good carp showing around the
area over the past couple of days.
I made my way back to the Wides
Swim, from where I had caught a few
carp recently. Due to the inclement
weather, the first thing I did was get
the camp set up. On my way to Welly I
had made a detour to pick up another
spool of Gardner Mirage, so I got the
rods out and respooled the line that
had been ruined at Elstow. All the
rigs needed to be changed over, and
I sorted all three rods with a metre of
112 Crafty Carper
ANGLER PROFILE
Ian Stott
Age 48
HometownSt Neots
Occupation Groundworker/landscaper
UK PB 49lb 10oz
Favourite venueElstow complex
Rods Harrison Torrix 13ft 3.5tc
Reels Daiwa Basia
Alarms Delkim Tx-i Plus
IAN STOTTWe left Ian last month just as he’d finished a hugely
successful session on Elstow. He was about to head back home to pick up some boilies and go straight off to Wellington
Country Park, so we’ll let him take up the rest of the story.
BELOW The Peach & Pepper really is the one for me when it comes to attractive pop-ups.
Pt2
112-115_MostMem_CC186.indd 1 08/01/2013 11:33
leadcore. Two little Hinged Stiff Rigs
were made up with Size 5 Gardner
Covert Chod hooks. The third rod was
set up with a little rig that I have
been playing around with recently.
My hookbait choice was the awesome
Sticky Peach & Pepper-fl avoured
16mm pop-up. One rod was cast at 85
yards towards an island, a spot that
has produced a couple of good carp
for me in the past. The middle rod
was cast slightly further right into a
silty gully. The third rod was tackled
up with a small PVA stocking of 10
boilies attached to the rig before
being cast to a spot at 70 yards.
I continued to scatter half a kilo of
16mm Sticky Vor-tex boilies over all
three rods, and then went back to the
bivvy to get the kettle fi red up once
more for a much-needed coffee. During
the course of the next few hours I saw
three carp show in the area, which
certainly helped boost my confi dence
levels. It was whilst trying to fi nd my
lighter that I came across the penny
that I had found the previous day over
at Elstow, and it had been joined by a
50 pence piece. I put both coins in
my hand and hurled them into the lake,
making a little wish as I did so. By
11 o’clock I could take no more and had
to get some sleep; I’d only had about
6 hours’ sleep over the last couple of
days, but once my head hit the pillow I
was soon sound asleep. I was awoken
a little while later by a couple of
Egyptian geese that had landed on the
lake – they don’t half make an awful
noise. I checked my phone and it
showed that it was almost 1.00
a.m. I was just drifting back off
when I heard a couple of bleeps; I
opened my eyes and saw that they
had come from my left-hand rod.
A few seconds later the same
rod absolutely tore off. I got my
boots on and ran over to it pretty
quickly. When I picked up the rod I
was shocked at the sheer power of the
carp and could only hold on and watch
as it stripped line from the spool. I tried
to gain line, but every time I applied
pressure the carp would just power off,
taking yet more line from an already
pretty tight clutch. Some 15 minutes
after hooking the fi sh, everything
locked up solid. I tried cranking the
pressure up and really laid into it, but
it just wouldn’t budge. I put the rod
back down in the rests and legged it
round to the hole in the bush where
the boat was tied up. I also gave my
mate a shout and told him I needed
his help. We soon had the life jackets
on and made our way back over to my
swim. Being out on the lake in a boat
in the middle of the night was very
spooky; there was also a strong wind,
which did a good job of blowing us all
over the place. We were soon making
our way out to where
the carp was. I was
gently pulling on
the rod while my
mate slowly got us
closer with the oars.
I couldn’t feel a thing
through the rod and
was unsure if the
carp was even still attached. As we
got above where we thought the carp
was, I increased the pressure on the
rod and at last felt a couple of kicks
from the fi sh as it started to move. We
were getting pulled all over the place,
and I couldn’t do a thing with the carp
as it showed us who was king in his
environment. I had the rod fully hooped
over and a big ball of weed appeared
on the surface, and my partner in
crime reached over and pulled it off
my main line. The carp just didn’t want
to come in, and as we both sat in the
boat doing battle with an unseen
monster, we heard a few bleeps come
from my mate’s swim. What could we
do? I apologised to him and carried on
trying to get the carp to the surface.
It was like trying to pull up a breeze
block that was being used as a plug.
Eventually the carp started to tire
and I felt I was getting the upper hand.
It took another 10 minutes before
a huge carp appeared on the lake’s
surface, and at last I managed to slip
the net under my prize. We made our
way back towards my swim as quickly
as possible because his alarm was still
letting out the odd
bleep now and then.
As soon as we
beached the boat,
my mate was off to
his swim in a fl ash.
I secured the net
over the side of the
boat before getting
everything ready for weighing the fi sh.
As I bit through the line and lifted the
net, I knew I had a very big fi sh and
struggled up the bank with my prize.
It wasn’t until I had the carp on the
unhooking mat that I realised it was
a bloody great big common. The fi sh
was unhooked and put in the weigh
sling and hoisted up onto the scales.
I watched gobsmacked as the needle
steadily settled at 48lb 3oz, my new
personal best for a common. Did I
let out a little whoop?
Damn bloody right I did!!
Most MemorableIan Stott
Crafty Carper 113
ABOVE Some Sticky Vor-tex was scattered over the spots.
LEFT The Gardner Chod hooks in Size 5 are a must for my Hinged Stiff Rigs.
lake – they don’t half make an awful
noise. I checked my phone and it
showed that it was almost 1.00
a.m. I was just drifting back off
when I heard a couple of bleeps; I
opened my eyes and saw that they
had come from my left-hand rod.
rod absolutely tore off. I got my
quickly. When I picked up the rod I
ABOVE scattered over the spots.
LEFT 5 are a must for my Hinged Stiff Rigs.
“The needle steadily settled at 48lb 3oz, my new personal best for a common. Did I let out a little whoop? Damn bloody right I did!!”
The Small Tailed Common at 48lb 3oz. What a way to start the session!
112-115_MostMem_CC186.indd 2 08/01/2013 11:33
Diary of an Everyday Carp AnglerJulian Cundiff
124 Crafty Carper
“I have three waters very close to me, but with two still iced up, the third, albeit
not ideal for time, would have to do”
(4)
(6)
Monday 3rd
Despite having the day booked off work
to go fishing, with temperatures down
to -5 and snow in the air I decided to
save the day’s holiday and so I went to
work. Both my local venues were solid,
and with more to come I decided to
reorganise my fishing diary from local
to further afield. The larger southern
waters were less likely to freeze and
more likely to produce the goods, so
it was time to get travelling again.
Friday 7th
Another hard week at work, but it was
treat night because I had tickets to
meet another one of my rock heroes,
Steve Vai (Whitesnake/Dave Lee Roth,
etc.) in Manchester. The journey over
in swirling snow was not easy, but
after a stunning show I got to meet
him and chat about guitar playing and
the like. An amazing yet humble guy,
and it was almost midnight before I
left. With the M62 closed due to snow
it took me almost 2½ hours to get
home, so it was a very tired Jules that
climbed into bed in the early hours. At
times it is easy to think, ‘This can be
done another day,’ but mum taught
me to live every day to the last, so
I do. Over and out... zzzzzzzzzzzz.
Saturday 8th
The BCSG rigs chapter was due in
at the end of the month, so the
bulk of it was completed. Normally,
writing is not a problem for me, but
how can I write ‘just a chapter’ on
carp rigs when it once took Kevin
Maddocks and me a whole book to
do it justice!! I did my best because
I was fishing the next day.
Sunday 9th
I was up at 6.00 a.m. and the weather
looked decidedly iffy. With the Jeep
white over I was hardly surprised
when I found my local water frozen,
and the next one too, and the canal
as well. Flipping heck (or words to
that effect)! I hate getting up early
at weekends, especially getting up
early to have to go back to bed. Well,
that’s life, and at times it is not fun.
Monday 10th
Part of my job entails travelling round
North and West Yorkshire, so I was in
York, Northallerton and Harrogate all
in one day! Thank goodness for the
trains, but bearing in mind how many
of you work outside in the cold, I’m not
going to complain about my lot – much.
Tuesday 11th
It was just a half day at court and I
was free, and luckily one of my local
waters was ice-free. I have three
waters very close to me, but with two
still iced up, the third, albeit not ideal
for time, would have to do. I’d recently
stocked up with some of Nashy’s Amber
Strawberry Frozen 10mms and so
trickled some into the lake. Two were
fished on a single Hair, with paste
wrapped round the Hair and hook to
stop tangles and add instant attraction
to the presentation. The water was
gin-clear, and I found some carp in what
looked like a torpid state very close to
some overhanging trees. I threw in a
few pieces of the Strawberry paste, and
they seemed to like it because they
were soon moving and then taking the
bits. The rig was lowered in, and within
5 minutes I had a fish just as darkness
was falling. The commotion must have
spooked them because it was the only
one I had, but a fish is a fish, and with
the temperature hovering between
0 and -1, any bite was a result.
Friday 14th
I tend not to do a lot of interviews,
but I do remember, as a young
keenie, stars like Andy Little, Chris
Ball, Kevin Maddocks and Kevin Nash
being good enough to invite me to
their homes to interview them for
Carp Fisher. So when a young lad
called Matt Clarke asked me if he
could interview me, I knew I should
do my bit. I was back from work by
6.00 p.m. and Matt was with me just
after 7.00. We chatted and I showed
him round my home, and then we did
an interview that looked at my early
years from 1976-’92. Yes, I am that old!
Sunday 16th
With Thin Lizzy deciding to call it a
day, I didn’t want to miss out on the
last shows, and whilst I would love
to see them in Australia with KISS
and Motley Crue, I thought Leeds was
a little kinder on my wallet. We had
passes for the after show meet-and-
greet, so Roz and I made our way to
Leeds. The band was stunning, as
always, with hits like Boys Are Back In
Town, Rosalie, etc. going down a storm.
We got to meet the band afterwards
thanks to Lizzy management, Ace
and Duff Press, and it was almost
2.00 a.m. when I turned the lights off at
home, which was a problem, because…
Monday 17th
… my alarm went off at 4.15 a.m. and
I staggered downstairs to fuel up on
coffee, orange juice, toast and vitamins,
ready for my trip to Drayton. With over
100 miles to go in the pouring rain,
it took all my powers of motivation
to do it, but I did. I arrived just after
(3)
(4) (5)
123-126_Jules_CC186.indd 2 14/01/2013 12:29
Diary of an Everyday Carp AnglerJulian Cundiff
Crafty Carper 125
“Luckily they released Roz and she was soon safe at home, so I managed
to sneak in a quick session”
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PLF_CC186.indd 1 08/01/2013 15:26
6.30 a.m. and was first in the queue
before a few others started to arrive
at 6.45 a.m. I’d been told that the
water had been frozen, but some fish
had been caught from the sailing club
Boards Swim, so the Nash barrow was
pushed gingerly over the frozen boards.
It was slippy, icy, and I was wearing
moon boots – not good for stability.
Luckily I didn’t fall in, and I soon had the
rods in position where I’d been told the
carp were holding up. Both rods were
fished at the 60-yard mark towards the
boat with just single hookbaits (one a
Nash White Chocolate and one a Nash
Amber Strawberry) on ‘bomb-on-the-
end-of-the-line’ rigs. Because I wasn’t
going to be fishing at range I had only
taken my middle distance gear with
15lb fluorocarbon as my main line. Duff
joined me at 8.00 a.m. and we soon had
our rods in position and the coffee on.
I expected a bite pretty soon, but with
no action by 10.00 a.m. I tried to induce
action by Spombing out some Nash
White Chocolate Soluballs soaked in
milk. Nothing came of that either. Sadly,
due to the lack of a plan B, I didn’t have
my long-range gear, and with the wind
in my face I was restricted to an arc of
no more than 90 yards in front of me.
The lads on the dam wall had nothing
and the point area was sewn up. Duff
managed one at lunch and then another
mid-afternoon. I tried Zigs, but it wasn’t
until 3.00 p.m. that one made a mistake,
and then another 20 minutes later.
Clearly we weren’t on the fish because
a lad to my right had nothing at all, but
at least I’d gritted my teeth and done
it when it would have been easier to
stay at home; sometimes the hardest
bit about winter carp fishing is doing it.
The new S5 Sirens performed well, and
with the latest HIM album to listen to
on the way home, there are worse ways
to spend your time. Note to self – don’t
put all your tactical eggs in one basket.
Friday 21st
There’d been a week of heavy rain
that flooded most of my local waters,
so I was left with just one choice for
Saturday’s hit-and-run session; a local
one in the village. With the tackle
prepared and plenty of the Nash
Amber Strawberry 10mms ready, I
was really looking forward to it – until
the phone rang and Roz needed
taking to the A&E in Doncaster. She’d
had a bad tummy for a while, and I
had threatened to take her in myself
unless she got better, but it had taken
a turn for the worse and it was out
of her hands. It was time to get a
move on, and eventually she was in
A&E and then in the Royal Infirmary
for at least one night, maybe two.
As it was Christmas I did give in
and spent £6 on the TV hook-up for
her. I know, I know, I’m going soft.
Sunday 23rd
Luckily they released Roz and she
was soon safe at home, so I managed
to sneak in a quick session (as you
do). I managed a nice double into
dark, but flipping heck, it was so cold!
A trimmed-down Amber Strawberry
15mm frozen bait with a mesh bag
of crumb did the trick, and with
cold hands it was time for home.
Monday 24th
A manic day, and with Roz out of
commission I made the 160-mile
round trip to deliver her family
presents to Middlesbrough, then
a dash to Eric’s Angling in Leeds
to get my retiring boss his leaving
present (a Drennan Quiver Tip rod
and reel), and finally back to Selby
for midnight mass at my mum’s old
church, St James, with dad and Alison.
I climbed into bed at 2.00 a.m. after
almost 300 miles of driving. Happy
Christmas! The fat man with the
white beard got a mince pie and
a glass of wine for his troubles!
Tuesday 25th
Happy Christmas it truly was. Roz felt
good enough to eat her meal, so we
had a wonderful family day at dad’s.
Home later that night and time to
watch the Korda Underwater 7 DVD
and relax. All I can say is well done
Ali Hamidi and co., and what a great
adventure it was. Certainly some
of the changes made a difference,
but as always the carp really do
have the upper hand, which, in a
masochistic way, is really quite
nice. It’s not the answer to all our
problems, but it makes you think.
Saturday 29th
With the work week over it was time
to sort out a new freezer for 2013. I’ve
got one at dad’s but I need a freezer
at home too, and eventually settled
on one big enough to accommodate
as much Monster Squid and Amber
Strawberry as I would ever need. With
the freezer sorted and gym session
completed, I got the tackle ready for 24
hours at Chestnut Pool. The Monster
Squid was crumbed and the sweetcorn
liquidised. New rigs were tied up, a
Titan Bivvy, rather than the Titan Brolly,
was packed, and the last Carpworld
winter series piece was completed and
emailed to Brian Skoyles. I was hoping
that the conditions would improve.
The gales had caused havoc locally,
and more rain had once again flooded
the roads. Come on, give us a break.
(3) The amazing Steve Vai, who once trod the boards with Whitesnake and Dave Lee Roth.
(4) It’s Christmas! Time to unwrap my presents.
(5) It was hard going, but action at last.
(6) First blood to Duff, with Mark doing the honours.
(7) The joy of winter fishing – mud, glorious mud.
(8) Not the best start to Christmas – I had to take Roz to hospital.(6)
(7)
(8)
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