Carp Catchers Blog

The Nash fishery roadshow is back again this year with six different dates spread around the UK. It’s the perfect opportunity to come along and meet the Nash team, getting hands-on with the latest 2011 products in real life angling situations. The action  packed shows will give you, the angler, the opportunity to fish in a swim with some of the UK’s finest anglers (maybe even catch a fish or two yourself!)

11th June – Linear Fisheries, Oxfordshire

16th & 17th July – Cudmore Fisheries

23rd July - Hawkhurst Fishery, Kent

30th July – White Springs Fishery, Wales

5th, 6th & 7th August – Rookley Country Park, Isle of Wight

3rd September – Great Linford Lakes, Buckinghamshire

10th September – A1 Pits, Nottinghamshire

For more details of each individual event, directions to venue, anglers in attendance and any other specific info please check out www.nashtackle.co.uk – www.nashtv.co.uk

Regular customer Sean Bowen sent in this catch report.

Hi all,
hope you all well, just got back from a 3 night session on Welham Lake, my first session in the UK since last September. Pre-baited a spot a few days prior and was lucky enough to get back on it, which resulted in 17 carp being banked with a mixture of commons and mirrors, two of which where 20′s.
All fish where taken on T1′s and rigs used where claw style made up of ESP Big T’s size 7, tied to 15lb Jelly Wire and Korda Supernatural Braid.
Back over to France next week to fish the river Gav with my mate so will see you soon.
Sean.

Nice fish, well done Sean.

Best Fishes,

John

I had another good session recently banking 4 fish, 3 of which were 20lb+ including this immaculate 28lb Common. The fish fell to my standard Blowback Rig set up consisting of a Korda Wide Gape Hook, Korda Weed Green Shrink Tube and Atomic Jel-E-Wyre hooklink with an Armaled Locjaw Safety Leadclip, 3oz Korda Pear Swivel Lead and 3 ft of ESP Leadcore. The hookbait was a 20mm snowman presentation topped with a 14mm Solar Fluoro Pineapple pop-up. The fish were all landed with the aid of the new Korda Subline.

Tight Lines

Dave

Zig rigs or Zigs as they are more commonly called can be a very effective method of angling when the carp are up in the water and not interested in feeding on the bottom. Here is a Zig caught 25lb14oz mirror from last week that was caught 2ft under the surface in 12ft of water on a hot day when the carp could be seen sitting under the surface soaking up a bit of sunshine. The fish was caught using Drennan Super Specialist Barbel Hooks and a small artificial bait.

Tight Lines

Dave

Gary Westcott and myself fished in the British Carp Angling Championship qualifier at Farlows Lake recently. Unfortunately we didn’t qualify but we did score five points for the Carp Catchers Team. Gary and I had two carp for 45lb 2oz and also lost one. Garys fish came on his own Innovate Baits boilies, mine came on Mainline Baits Activ-8. We had a great weekend and really enjoyed the experience.

                                                                                            20lb 4oz

                                                                                                 24lb 14oz

Best Fishes,

John

After a recent 24 hour session on a local syndicate I landed this stunning 25lb 8oz Ghostie along with 4 other fish. The fish fell to my standard blowback set up consisting of the new Korda Kaptor Wide Gape Hooks, Korda Weed Green Shrink Tube and Atomic Jel-E-Wyre hooklink with an Armaled Locjaw Safety Leadclip, 3oz Korda Pear Swivel Lead and 3 ft of ESP Leadcore. The hookbait was a snowman presentation. The fish were all landed with the aid of the new Korda Subline.

Tight Lines

Dave

Avid Carp Sight Stops are a useful boilie stop that adds visual attraction to your hookbait. They are available in long and short to suit your hair length and enable you to change bait size without tying up new rigs. The Avid Carp Sight Stops are made of a durable plastic and come in a range of bright and visual colours to draw attention to your hookbait in any conditions. The Avid Carp Sight Stops are availble in either Yellow or Mixed Colour packs.

Step 1

Thread your choosen bait onto the hair.

Step 2

Now attach the Sight Stop to the hair loop via the hook on the underside of the stop.

Step 3

Pull the stop into the bait and you are now ready to go.

Tight Lines

Dave

Another reminder now. There is a national coarse fish closed season on all rivers, streams, drains from the 15th of March to 15th of June inclusive. Some stillwaters and canals which are designated sites of specific scientific interest (SSSI’s) also have the same close season. So make sure you are fishing legally, as you can face a big fine and a criminal record if you are caught otherwise.

Best fishes,

John

A reminder that your rod licence is due to expire on the 15th/16th March. As I have stressed before you can get a criminal record and a fine of up to £2000 if you are caught without a valid licence so it really isn’t worth the risk. A rod licence costs £27 for the year, if you fish with more than 2 rods you will need 2 rod licences. Licences are available from the Post Office, by phone from The Environment Agency on 08708 506 506 or online at www.environment-agency.gov.uk/fish. Tight lines and happy fishing for the coming season.

John

Salt is often used by many anglers as an additive to particles and spod mixes. Although a lot of anglers don’t know why it is such a good addition to bait. Salt works well as an additive on many waters but it can be more effective on some waters than others. Now it isn’t completely understood why it works so well but I believe part of the reason it works is due to fishes requirements to regulate their salt and water content. Fish need to regulate the levels of water and mineral salts in their blood the same as we do, this is called osmoregulation. Freshwater fish absorb their required salts through their gills in exchange for waste products and through their food. By a combination of urine production and salt absorbtion fish can maintain their body’s salt concentration. Therefore the addition of salt to particles, boilies and spod mixes can be very effective when fishing for carp, especially in soft water areas where salt minerals in the water are scarce. One of the principle ions involved in osmoregulation include Sodium Chloride which is better known as Salt. So next time your preparing some bait for part of your baiting campaign or just for a forthcoming session grab some salt out the cupboard and add a generous handful to your mix.

Give it a go.

Dave