The Car Park Lake - By Joe Miller

It would be fair to say, I would’ve liked to have begun my Car Park campaign in a better state of mind. A combination of working night shift for six years, an increased workload due to some questionable management decisions and a tough split with the girlfriend left me in a bit of a mess.
I was signed off work for two weeks and told to spend more time outside doing things I enjoyed. I decided then and there that I was quitting and never going back to night shifts. Being jobless and single, obviously meant I had plenty of time to fish but I needed to get my head straight first.
When the time did come and I found myself in Yateley Angling centre asking Kingy for my membership card, I think he could tell of my nervousness. He reassured me that at the end of the day, its just another lake and its inhabitants are just carp at the end of the day. It made me feel much better and I knew that if I remembered that, I could catch from the Car Park Lake.

It wasn’t long before I began my first lap of the lake, water bottle in hand. Due to its immense history, the Car Park was the only lake where I knew every swim name and location before I had even stepped foot on the place.
I first reached the Islands swim which looked inviting but with no signs of life, I carried on, and was soon stood in the famous Dessie’s swim. The angler occupying it was another new member, Jason and being keen to get to know a few people, I stayed and chatted for a bit before carrying on my lap.
I skipped past the rarely fished Traybins and surveyed the Curly swim. The Curly offers a long chuck out into the middle of the lake and was an option.
Next up was the Bars swim. Having read Darrells’ book and of the success he enjoyed in this swim, it was quite a cool feeling standing in the very swim where it all went down.
Next up was the snags swim. As the name suggests, quite confined with a snaggy margin either side of you and a small island just an underarm flick out in the 10 o clock position. I didn’t see anything in the snags and being my first session, if I couldn’t find fish, I wanted a swim with a good view of the lake. As a result, I wrote off the snags swim on this occasion.
Next up was the Chair swim. This was occupied by a guy who introduced himself as Scotty. I soon learnt nearly everyone on the Car Park had nicknames and so to this day, I still don’t know if Scotty is called Scott, or it's just because he’s Scottish. Either way, Scotty told me how, come early spring, this end was generally the place to be, as it was the shallower end and the fish sought the warm water on top of the bars.
With this useful information I bid Scotty farewell and continued my search. After completing the first lap, I really had nothing to go on so using Scotty’s information, I decided to spend at least my first night in the Bars. This gave a good view of the open water and gave me multiple options for my rigs. The leading rod soon revealed the location of the bar and I leaded until I could find the base of it. The first rod would go there, the second would go to the right with a couple handfuls of boilies spread between the two.

"I decided to spend at least my first night in the Bars"

I was in no rush to get the rods out, so set up the brolly and bed chair and started tying some fresh rigs. When I looked up and scanned the water, something caught my eye. Was it bubbling? It certainly looked like it. As my eyes focussed on the spot, a massive mirror rose out of the bubbles, side on, right up to the wrist of the tail before going over on its side. I just sat there stunned. That was clearly one of the bigguns, if not the biggest: 2 scale.
Eventually I snapped out of it and quickly began tying a choddy to flick towards where it showed. I didn’t get much of a drop but I didn’t want to risk a second cast so left it as it was. The remaining rod went out to the bottom of the bar that I found earlier. It had only been out an hour or so before it ripped off!
Again, I just sat there in disbelief staring at the spinning clutch before realising I should do something about it. A bite from the Car Park after a couple hours of being there? Surely not?

Of course, it wasn’t. After picking up the rod, the line was pointing directly round to the right before pinging off and I retrieved the rig from where it was cast. Clearly a trailer was responsible, and my nerves soon calmed. The rest of the session was largely uneventful. Despite being up at first light each morning, I failed to see another carp but the number of tench showing was truly incredible. I had never seen anything like it.

I returned the following weekend and set up my plot in the Islands swim. Again, this session was largely uneventful, until a quick opportunity on the Pads Lake yielded a 20lb 2oz common from the swim directly behind me. Syndicate members are allowed to fish the Pads as long as there is no group booked on. The number of fizzers in front of the swim behind me couldn’t be ignored and when my double tiger nut rig was cast past the fizz, then drawn back mid water, it only took 20 minutes to get a bite.

"A quick opportunity on the Pads Lake yielded a 20lb 2oz common"

That session turned out to be my last at Yateley for quite a few months. I had a new job now and after paying my syndicate fees for my other lake, I quickly got distracted by that and spent most of the spring and summer there for very little reward. By mid-August I had had enough and was soon making the long drive back to Yateley.

Needless to say, the lake had changed drastically since I had been away. The weed was right up to the surface and all the known spots that I had been told about were now glowing. There are some awesome climbing trees on the Car Park, giving a mega view of the lake and its spots. There were a few other anglers fishing but after a quick lap, I settled in the Curly. It didn’t look like it had been fished for while and there was some bubbling out on the long spot. I thought it was most likely tench but it was more than I had seen the rest of my lap.

I held off on investigating the area with a lead. It was too early in the morning for that and I didn’t want to ruin it for those around me. Over on the Match Lake, I had learnt that if the fish fed on a spot in the morning, and were not disturbed, they would generally come back the following morning. I hoped this was also the case on the Car Park.
The day was spent just killing time and meeting a couple more of the Car Park members. Rigs went out about 4pm, just like on the Match. Baiting wise, I went in quite conservatively. With a stock of roughly 35 fish, I felt that the chance of having a group of fish feed on the spot was pretty slim, so I just needed enough bait to get a bite from one fish. Then once I had got that, I would fish for a second.

I ended up crashing out just after dinner and when my 4am alarm went off, I felt ripe and ready to go! The kettle was soon boiling and as the light became good enough to see, I checked the long spot with the binoculars, only to find it bubbling out there. No surely not? I put it down to tench and hoped their feeding activity would bring the carp to the spot. I didn’t need the binoculars to see the next set of bubbles though.
A massive jacuzzi of bubbles hit the surface, just as the Neville screamed and the bobbin cracked into the butt of the rod. This was no tench! Despite the weed, the fight went exactly to plan and as I scooped up my first Car Park carp, I let out a huge sigh of relief. Phil, the bailiff, fishing in the Bars, and Tony, in the Snags, both heard the violent take and were now by my side to help weigh and photograph. On the scales she went 22lbs 8oz, a small fish by the lakes standards but I was just relieved to be off the mark.

"I was just relieved to be off the mark"

Despite it still being relatively early in the morning, I opted not to redo that rod. The spot was 65 yards out and not that big and felt that the chances of me hitting it first time were very remote. Therefore, I decide to let them feed on whatever was left out there undisturbed and maybe, just maybe, they would come back again in the morning.
This risk paid off, as right on first light, the rod on the long spot ripped off again and just like the previous morning, didn’t cause me many problems. Upon picking up the rod, it kited straight into the thick weed bed to the right. It went solid momentarily, but gentle pressure pulled it free, along with a big ball of weed. Once the weed covered its head, it was just a case of slowly bringing the ball within netting range. Once the net was underneath it gave a massive kick, but it was too late. She was mine. Immediately I knew it was a better fish and went to wake up Dean, who had moved into the Bars after Phil left. On the mat, Dean identified her as “The Suicide Fish”, one of the lakes big girls that had broken the 40lb barrier the previous year.

"The Suicide Fish"

With spawning still relatively recent, we knew she wouldn’t be as big, but I had no complaints at all when we recorded a weight of 36lb 11oz. Before we weighed her, I had quickly got the rod back out, with it being my final morning but unsurprisingly, it didn’t go again. I cared not though. My target had been just to get one bite from the Car Park all year and I had got one on my 5^th and 6^th nights. I packed up and drove home a very happy man.

"I packed up and drove home a very happy man"

With that success I was keen to get back but due to being busy with work, I couldn’t get two nights to make the drive to Yateley worthwhile. Come September though, I did have a whole week at my disposal to give the Car Park another go. I had other plans though……


Until next time


Be lucky


Joe

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From the Match Lake to the Car Park - by Joe Miller

The following is Nash Baits backed Joe Millers account of his incredible fishing adventures on the famous Yateley Match Lake. If you want to read how the story began, you can do so by picking up a copy of 'A History Of Yateley, Volume 4'.

Match Lake adventure continued…

It was late September before I decided to make the long drive back to Yateley, although things didn’t start to happen for me until a couple trips in, and I found myself plotted up in the 'Left Hand Birches' swim, whilst my mate Chris, went in the right side. At least it would be social if the fishing was slow. In my absence, the 'Redmire' had been caught from there, along with a few others and gentle bubbling over what looked to be a nice clear spot out in the weed, was enough for me to give it a go, for at least one night. It was gone mid-day by the time the fish had done the off and the leading rod revealed they had been feeding on what was, for me, the perfect spot - smooth silt with the odd tap of gravel transmitted down the rod. There was also a clear channel all the way to the spot, which saved me having to make one for line lay. Given the vast football pitch of weed out in front of me, I didn’t have many options spot wise but felt the spot was just big enough to fit two rods on. My favourite mix of flaked Key Cray boilie, hemp and tigers was soon spombed out to the spot, followed by the rigs, and I settled down for the evening.

“Everything looked perfect”

Both rigs were still in position come morning after the dreaded catfish failed to make an appearance. Everything looked perfect and the wait for the first bubbles over the spot began. Eventually they did and it felt like it was only a matter of time.
It was just the way it happened at Yateley. The first couple bubbles, then a few more, then nothing. Then they would start again and your confidence would rise - its only a matter of time. Then as they continued to fizz and no bite materialised, you would begin to question everything “Surely both didn’t tangle?, Point must have gone over?, rig cant be sat right".
Nine times out of 10 though, nothing was wrong at all and the Neville would sing its tune as the bobbin cracked into the rod. This morning proved to be no different and after a short fight, a 33lb 4oz mirror lay beaten in the net. With it being late in the morning, and the other rod still sitting pretty on the spot, I opted not to redo the rod I had just caught on.
Bigger fish can often move in after a fish has been caught on the spot so I hoped this ploy could pay dividends. It wasn’t to be though and the day faded out with nothing of note really happening. Both rods were reset, bait topped up, and Indian takeaway ordered. I went to bed super confident that night. I had found that if the fish were willing to visit a spot one morning, they would often return the following morning too.

“A 33lbs 40z mirror lay beaten in the net (September 2017)”

Return they did and given my confidence of another, I text Jordan, telling him he would be needed on camera duty soon. I then set the camera on the tripod, set it to video, focused on the rods and hit record. It didn’t take long before the bobbin lifted slightly before flying to the top as the fish moved up in the water against the solid clutch.The culprit turned out to be the leathery character known as 'White Stripe' and after closer inspection, was a repeat of the mirror I caught from the 'Right Hand Parties' the previous autumn. With Jordan behind the lens I managed to get much better pictures this time around and she was soon slipped back.

“With Jordan on the lens, I managed to get much better pictures (White Stripe, September 2017)”

With two more captures under my belt, obviously I was keen to get back down there. Unfortunately, things took a turn for a worse and a bout of tonsillitis and a delay in getting the right medication kept me away for a couple of weeks. By the time I felt better, it was late October. By now, the weed was beginning to drop and the lake was beginning to slow down. The spot I had fished in the 'Left Birches' had been opened right up, and now the fish were reluctant to visit it. Thankfully though, they still fed on the spot in the 'Right Birches' and I manged to bag a repeat in the shape of the mirror I caught from the 'Stumps' earlier in the spring. Bites were becoming harder and harder to come by but I did manage one more before calling it time for another year; a pristine common of 31lb from the 'Golf Tees'. 

 “The weed was beginning to drop and the lake was beginning to slow down (October 2017)”

“I did manage one more before calling it time for another year (October 2017)”

As with previous years, I had booked to do a long session in October, but with the lake seemingly shut down early, four nights spent in the 'Right-hand Parties', yielded nothing for my efforts. I did get to meet Oz Holness though and his two night blank next door in the 'Left Parties' told me all I needed to know. I did have two nights left of my session though and had my syndicate lake to fall back to, so the car was loaded and I headed back closer to home, down to see the rest of the year out on there. Fair to say it went rather well, but that’s for another time…

“Fair to say it went rather well, but that’s for another time”

The 2018 season brought with it the usual renewed enthusiasm that a tough winter brings. I had spent the whole winter plotting my spring attack and when March came, I couldn’t get back fast enough. This spring though, nature seemed behind compared to the previous. Whereas, the same week last year, there were tiny frogs everywhere on the 'Copse Bank', this year there was hard frosts with thick snow forecast for the end of the week. 

“This spring though, nature seemed behind compared to the previous”

As a result, the Match Lake just seemed to take forever to wake up. It turned out, all thoughts of the Match Lake were soon forgotten when I got a phone call from Chris saying there was a ticket for the legendary Car Park Lake available - if I paid immediately. Needless to say within the hour, and with a dent in my bank balance, I was on “the other side of the road” and shaking hands with Martin Gardener. The ticket began in April and it couldn’t come soon enough… 

“All thoughts of the Match Lake were soon forgotten”

Until next time

Be lucky.

Joe

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Want to read a fishing story? - The On The Bank Angling Blog is back, and we want your stories!

IT'S been a long time since we posted on our blog but this post is just to say we are back and are going to be creating as much fishing content as possible.

So why are we back and why should you have a read of the blog?

On The Bank Angling was originally set-up to share fishing stories between a small group of friends and anyone else who was interested. Since then we have grown to have a small following on several of our social media platforms but the one thing everyone says we lack is consistency - that's something we aim to change!

Ever since I was a young lad, I've always loved reading, listening and watching good fishing stories. Whether it be reading a copy of the Angling Times, watching Matt Hayes Record Breaking Fish for the 100th time or having a chat with an angler on the bank - I can't get enough of hearing other peoples fishing adventures. I feel this not only helps me learn more but also inspires me to get out on the bank to see if I can catch a monster fish myself.

We are obviously just one of hundreds of blogs out there and that is a great thing - if I had time to watch everyone's I personally would. I do feel the story telling in angling has been lost a little by some over the last few years with the coming of the social media age. It is great seeing peoples captures but its even better to hear the work that went into catching the fish and what it means to them.
Those of you who know me closely will know that I now have a job very close to Angling and I love every minute of it. So its great to try and use any knowledge I gain to pass on to others.

Our aim for On The Bank Angling is to hopefully revitalise the classic 'fisherman's tale'. We will hopefully do this by providing you guys with some great content on here and on our YouTube channel.

Its not just our stories we want to share and tell though - its yours. I have a lot of exciting ideas of things I would like to do with the blog and channel. This includes fishery catch reports, inside info, podcasts, you name it!

So if you do have a fishing story or you are a fishery that want to share your catch reports then here is what you need to do:

Join our Facebook group with 500-plus members - I honestly have never seen a bad word said in the group, its awesome!

Or you can email us at: onthebankangling@gmail.com.

So that's about it really, stay tuned for lots of fishing content and tight lines!!!

Here's a few pictures of what we have coming up on YouTube...

A species hunt at Anglers Paradise

Surface stalking at a secret lake

A mental Creedy session

Tench on the float!

The hunt for a winter Carp. Part 1- Stafford Moor Fishery

Well February is well and truly here with weather patterns and temperatures all over the place. Such conditions are hardly inspiring to go fishing but even in February if you time your trips right you can have some good results. As I've mentioned in previous posts I myself like to change what species I'm fishing for depending on the conditions. This month however I have done anything but this as almost every session I have had on the bank this month has been after Carp.

Winter is not the best time for consistent Carp action but it is however a very rewarding time of year if you can motivate yourself to go out fishing for them. Carp often look more stunning at this time of year as they take on their "winter colours", they also are often at a very good weight. Most Carp at this time of year however will not be feeding heavily. They will instead be seeking shelter in snags, looking for areas of warmth and picking up odd items of food. With the Carp being more lethargic and not moving around the lake so much it is important to locate areas they may be holding. 

The choice of venue is therefore also very important if you are to have any success when fishing for Carp during the winter months. 

Our choice of venue for our first session this winter was known to have winter form and had done several fish in the weeks prior to our visit. This is just the kind of water that would offer the best chance for a winter bite. The venue was Beatties lake on the Stafford moor fishery complex. The lake itself is  decent size at 8 acres but is well stocked with 400 carp to 35 pounds. Having never fished the lake before we didn't really know what areas were going to be the best so a bit of hard observation and help from the owners would be needed to hopefully put us on fish from the start.
On arrival we headed straight into the shop to get the tickets and hopefully that much needed tip off on what the best areas were. After a long chat with the new owners of the complex they kindly advised us of what the best spots in the lake were. We then had a couple laps round the lake to see if the fish would give anything away to suggest anything different. They didn't.
So with the advice of the owners are only real thing to go off we set up in two comfy swims known as the summerhouse pegs in front of the luxury Stafford moor lodges. I would be fishing with Kev on this session with the pair of us just hopeful of getting some winter action. Kev's swim was the first swim which looked a lovely intimate area full of features. The swim had two islands, a small snaggy bay and deep open water to fish to. This would give Kev a number of options and areas to present a bait which was vital seeing as we had no previous lake knowledge to go off.
The swim I was in was to the right of Kev and looked more out onto the middle of the lake. The area had a large island to the right and a no fishing bank going to a point up the left hand margin. The swim allowed a good view of the lake which is important in winter as you can often spot tell tale signs of Carp if you keep your eyes peeled.
Happy with our swims we set up and started fishing with a cautious and varied approach. On any new water I have found it's important to not put all your eggs in one basket but also to stick to what you know works elsewhere. With this in mind I set up one rod on my ever faithful chod rig and the other on a small pva bag presentation. The chod rig would be cast out on the left hand side of my swim to the point of the no fishing bank. This was a noted area according to the fishery owner as just off the point was a depression that the Carp often hold up in. The rig was then followed by approximately 20 free offerings and the trap was set. The right hand rod was to be a searching rod with limited loose feed around it. I would be moving this rod consistently around the swim to try and locate the Carp. Often in winter bites can come quickly from fish that may be laying dormant when your bait just appears in front of them.
After we had got everything sorted it wasn't too long before the night had arrived. Long winter nights on the bank can sometimes become a bit boring and therefore I probably would advise taking something to keep yourself occupied while you wait for those alarms to start screaming. Me and Kev however had not done this and as we waited we began to get more frustrated by our lack of success even though it was winter and are rods hadn't been out that long!!
This restlessness was about to be numbed however when at about 9pm my left had rod shot off with an absolute screamer. The chod had done it again it seemed. The fish didn't really fight as it came in towards me very quickly. A short sharp battle of 5 minutes or so then saw the first winter Carp of the year in the back of the landing net. As I gazed over into the net I gave a bit of a girly "ooooooohh" as I looked down onto a very chunky mirror Carp.
Before taking the fish out of the water Kev quickly zeroed the scales and got everything ready as we knew we would want to weigh this one. We quickly put her on the mat and removed the hook which was nailed in the bottom lip. Kev lifted the sling and the dial shot round to a couple ounces over twenty pounds. Happy days!!!! What a great way to start the Carp fishing year.

20 pounder!! Stafford Moor

20 lb 2oz

We slipped the fish back into the lake and were now full of excitement and anticipation for the remainder of the night. This anticipation was soon heightened as Kev's rods began giving signs of fish. He began to get bleeps on both rods indicating fish were in the area and hitting his semi-slack lines. Kev was now on tender hooks and sat almost hovering over his rods awaiting a take.My rods however were motionless and it seemed as if I had just caught one fish out of the blue.
The night grew darker and colder so we settled down to try and get some kip. This didn't last long as my left hand rod again let rip another screaming run. Being awoken in the cold is not the easiest and I think my reactions were slow to say the least. By the time I had got to the rod the alarm had stopped. Not happy with what had happened I reeled in to find a decent size branch attached to my size 6 choddy hook. I had been well and truly done!!! How do they do it?
Kev had a very similar occurrence an hour later as his island rod let rip resulting in a fish crashing on the surface as it shot free of the area. Unfortunately ditching Kev's rig in the process. There were definitely fish about but this would turn out to be the last bit of action for the night as a hard frost soon set in.
With such a cold night I have to say I wasn't the quickest to get up in the morning. This is always a mistake however as first light can often be the best time to spot Carp. The night that had started so well had resulted in only the one Carp and although we had other chances we couldn't help but feel the chance of another fish had gone. With little movement on Beatties lake we set about a plan to fish one of the other lakes on the complex.
We reeled in our rods on Beatties grabbed some bait and headed up the hill to a lake neither of us had seen before. The lake was "Jospeh's" and is the second specimen Carp water on the Stafford moor complex. As we arrived on the lake we could see that there were already a significant number of anglers set up and fishing for the larger number of Carp that were present in this lake. Not letting this deter us we set off on a walk round the lake. The lake was beautiful in its own right and full of character. Plenty of islands leading to sheltered bays with snaggy margins. It looked the perfect place to hold big Carp.
After seeing the beauty of Joseph's lake and some tell tale signs of feeding fish in the snags we headed back to Beatties to collect our gear. As there wasn't long left in the session we headed up to Joseph's with the minimum amount of gear possible. The tactics would be similar to those used on Beatties a light scattering of boillies accompanied by a handful of corn. The rigs had to be changed slightly however as the Chod rig which is usually fished on a slack line would not be suitable for such snaggy conditions. It is important to fish locked up when fishing against snags as any give in your set up could be the difference between landing and loosing a fish.
With the spot and tactics all sorted we were full of confidence. Our confidence was soon justified as literally minutes after setting up Kev landed his first fish of the session. It wasn't the largest of Carp but was a proper little stunner and certainly made Kev smile.

Joseph's Lake Mirror

Kev returned his fish and we were both happy that we had made the correct choice in moving onto Joseph's as the lake just looked a lot more alive. I had not even cast a rig into the swim yet but when I did I didn't have to wait long!! As I was adjusting the bobbin on the rod after casting out the line literally shot out my hand. I was into my first Joseph's Carp about 20 seconds after making my first cast into the lake!! The fish dogged it out in the middle before trying to ditch the hook in the snaggy margins. The fish was soon in the net and I had caught a nice little 12lb mirror.

12lb Joseph's Mirror

What a buzz to hook a fish so quickly after casting out. The surge of quick action did have a knock on affect though as we struggled to get a bite from the snaggy area for another couple of hours. With the sport slowing down I decided to try a rod out into the main area of the lake. This change in area rewarded me with a nice little mirror within about 10 minutes of casting out.

Stafford Moor Stunner

I slipped the fish back and decided to pack that rod down as the light was now fading. Just as I put the fish back my other rod that was still fishing to the snags screamed off!!! Get in!!! The culprit was another Mirror of the mark simmons strain. The fish weighed in at 11 pounds and was a nice way to finish the day.

Stafford Moor Double

It had been a very enjoyable 24 hours at Stafford moor and we were rewarded in total with 5 Carp between us. Not bad going for February!! The complex certainly does offer a lot of variety in terms of species to fish for and lakes to fish. We may have only managed to tempt one of the Beatties beasts on the session but the Joseph's stock were more than happy to show them selves. It just goes to show in the winter Carp can be caught, you have just got to choose your venue and find them fish!!! 

Tight lines!!!

A look back at 2014. Part 5-The Creedy Chronicles

Hello again, so I am nearing the end of the looking back at 2014 posts now and it wouldn't feel right if I didn't mention our fishing at Creedy lakes. We ended up spending most of our summer evenings at the venue tempting the lakes residents into taking mixers off the top. We were very lucky to have some amazing results too. In fact it would take me far too long to write and you guys far too long to read about every one of them. So this post is just going to show some of our best captures from what really was a great few weeks at this busy Devon day ticket water.
Our tactics for fishing Creedy were simple. Mixers, mixers and more mixers. We would tempt the fish into a feeding frenzy on the surface and then cast our trimmed down pop-up hook-baits out amongst the free offerings. This often resulted in instant action. Once hooked we then did battle with what I have to say are some of the hardest fighting Carp around.
Below are some of our best captures:

17lb 

16lb

17lb

18lb

20lb

14lb

22lb

16lb

21lb

19lb

16lb

18lb

15lb

19lb

21lb

18lb

So as you can see, we certainly got amongst them off the top. Not any massive fish but great fun on a summers evening and as I said before these fish offer tremendous sport even on heavy gear. It also is just nice to be out with mates and family at a beautiful lake like Creedy and just really enjoy your fishing. Too often nowadays people get carried away with chasing big fish and putting numbers on every capture, therefore ranking it higher than others that actually may have taken more finesse to catch. 

There was one occasion in 2014 however were I decided not to fish on the top at Creedy. On the day the lake had been rammed with anglers and the fish had been under a lot of pressure. With it being a Sunday though to my surprise by 7 pm I was the only on the lake!!! I then randomly decided to give the fish some bait and heavily baited an area in the silt off the island with Cell boilies. I then cast two of my ever faithful chod rigs out over the area. Within an hour I had fish rolling all over the area. They were straight on the bait!!! It wasn't long before I had a mid-double Common in the net soon followed by a high single. I put more bait in at that point but actually didn't have much left to offer them. Just after baiting up over the top of it my right hand rod roared off. I bent into a heavy fish that then lead me a merry dance all over the lake. It was at this point I was thankful that no one else was around as it may have cut some people up. The fish was just so strong! After a long battle though the fish was mine. I looked down in the net to see what was quite clearly my personal best common Carp. My best at the time was 22lb but it now was 27lb!!! What a result! From a spontaneous act of heavy baiting.

Pb Common 27lb

I think looking back maybe this capture was more being in the right place at the right time and I feel very lucky to have caught the fish. But however you decide to angle whether on the top or on the deck, Creedy really does have a lot to offer. For me though there's nothing better than a summer evening, a bucket of floaters and those big rubber lips slurping em down! 

Tight Lines!!!

To see more of our Creedy adventures check out our you tube video- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wQg9ct_22WQ

A look back at 2014. Part 3- The Horseshoe Holiday

Hello again. Been a little while since I last posted as have been updating our You tube channel and doing various other things. But here we go and continuing on from the last post we are looking back at 2014, so hope you enjoy reading as much as we enjoyed being a part of it.
In the spring of every year the Haydon males usually take part in our annual fishing holiday. The trips are usually a lot of laughs and normally defined by some silly moment. The venue for 2014's trip was the Carp society's Horseshoe lake. The trip would be all paid for by my kind Grandma and Uncle. Happy days!! Unfortunately we were running out of time to fix a date and the trip that was supposed to be four of us ended up being just me and the old man. Anyway we headed off to Horseshoe in the early hours of the morning full of anticipation of a good few days fishing. Horseshoe will always hold a special place in my heart as it was the venue at where I caught my first twenty pounder. A stunning fully scaled and a fish that defines what horseshoe is all about.

The weather for the trip was looking good for fishing. Strong south westerly winds and mild temperatures. The aim for the trip was to have a good time and hopefully get amongst some of the much fabled horseshoe thirties. Our expectations had be dampened a little however by learning of the tragic fish-kill the venue had suffered a few years earlier. Was the venue still going to hold its magic without such a large head of special fish? 

When we got to the venue we were to surprised to see quite a lot of anglers already present. With it being mid-week we thought we could pretty much be able to go where we wanted. This wasn't the case. So after purchasing our tickets and having a look over the fence into the famous lagoon swim we set eyes on our first horseshoe Carp. The bay opposite the lagoon was always a good spot to see the Carp and it looked like nothing had changed. Unfortunately the swim for this area was already taken but with the area being on the back of the wind we felt certain there would be fish in other parts of the lake. A short drive to the point of the horseshoe revealed the windward end of the lake. The wind was smashing into the banks like waves hitting the sandy beaches of Exmouth at home. Not the nicest conditions to be sat in but conditions that just screamed Carp. As we walked along the banks we could already see a number of anglers had the same idea and the area was heavily pressured. We then managed to witness one angler land a decent double. The fish were there and they were definitely feeding. Indecisive about what to do we spoke to the bailiff who was patrolling the banks. He advised us of an area that had been producing fish in the last few days and was well worth a go.

So we headed to an area off the wind in a part of the lake known as the summer bay. The summer bay is the shallowest area of the lake with heavy weed growth throughout. It was in the summer bay that I had caught all my previous horseshoe fish so I wasn't new to the area. On the day though all my Carping instincts were telling me this wasn't the place to be. However we set up camp and began setting our traps for the horseshoe Carp. 

I set up two Chod rig presentations and began casting around the swim looking for the clearer areas. It wasn't long before I had found an area of light silk weed. This kind of area is full of natural food and although not all presentations suit this area it would suit the chod rig perfectly. I proceeded to lightly bait the area with a few boilies, trying not to bait too heavy as I was almost certain a move was on the cards. It wasn't long before night had arrived and I went round to Dad's swim for a bit of a social and some grub. On returning to my peg I flicked out two rigs into the same area and settled down for the night. At about 1am I was awoken by a screaming take on the left rod. As I got up and put on my shoes to go and strike however the run had stopped. I stood over the rod and seeing the bobbin was pulled tight struck into what I was hoping would be a big horseshoe carp. There was nothing but weed on the end!!! Was this a missed chance? Was it a carp?? Was it a Tench??? Is my rig presented??? All these questions went through my mind and prevented much more sleep being gained for the rest of the night. 

The next day came and went without occurrence and it wasn't until early evening when we began to get indications that the horseshoe Carp were in the area. As we sat eating our food in Dads swim we looked out to see a very subtle roll from a Carp just a little left of Dads baited area. Surprised and excited by what we had just saw we stood up and looked harder at the spot. It was at this moment when Dad's right hand rod roared off with a full blown take!! The first horseshoe Carp was hooked! After a short battle we were presented with a stunning horseshoe mirror of 19lb. It was Dad's first horseshoe Carp and the first of the session.  

We were off the mark but was this a one off fish or a sign of better things to come?? The night ahead now looked a lot more promising but actually in reality was entirely uneventful. Frustrated by my own lack of success the following morning I began looking in other areas of the lake. With the wind still hacking down the same end I felt less inclined to approach this area which would now have become stale. So as I walked the banks and talked to the other anglers it became apparent that apart from Dad's fish the only areas of the lake producing were at the ends of the two bays on the back of the wind. With this in mind I headed over to the Lagoon swim to find the angler occupying the area was just packing up. Without hesitation I rushed back to my Bivvy and began moving my gear to the area. I'm not one to jump into someones swim while they are in it but this was a chance that couldn't be missed.

By the time I had moved my gear the swim was now completely vacated. With the area having ample space for two bivvy's I couldn't help but go and persuade Dad to join me. So by the time we were both set up in the swim the light had already began to fade. We did however know there were Carp in the area. With this in mind we baited  lightly and fished all our rods to the bay opposite which had a rope across it signifying a no fishing area. Being in the closer spot I fished to our own margin whilst Dad fished out and across. The tactics were the same as those used in the previous swim and a quick lead about revealed clear areas closer to the rope and along my margin.

As the light continued to drop our first bit of action in the lagoon occurred. My right hand rod was pulled round with a stuttering take. I struck into the fish and began to battle with my first Carp of the session. The fish pulled hard and eventually found a snag mid-way between myself and the rope. Not believing my luck I began cursing and fearing the worst. As I slackened the line though the fish suddenly pulled out the snag and began swimming straight towards me. Dad quickly grabbed the net and after a lot of flapping in the margins the fish was in the net. It wasn't a monster at 15lb but was another stunning example of a horseshoe Carp and well worth the move. 

The night then came and as previous nights went without action. Looking back this was probably a good thing as the next day was to be truly unforgettable. We awoke in the morning curious on the nights lack of action but before we had a chance to even make a cup of tea to talk about it my right hand rod was off again. This was a much better fish and I could feel it plodding away again towards the area the other fish had snagged me up. As I pulled hard to get it away from the danger it kited hard out of the bay and into the main lake. Eventually I began retrieving line and up popped a unbelievable looking mirror in the margins. We got it in the net and after a shout of "Yes" from myself we set eyes on a rather large but bizarre looking Mirror. The fish was definitely one of the old warriors of the lake and one of the real characters too. We weighed it in at 27 pounds so he wasn't a small chap either!! I lifted the fish to see that it only had one eye, and had really tiny fins. It was an odd ball but strangely beautiful in its own right.

The target was achieved in catching a big old horseshoe warrior. It wasn't a thirty but I didn't mind. The day then went on as it started. The spot which was doing the business was a couple feet off the rope along our own bank. We were baiting the spot after every fish with 50 to 100 boilies and it wasn't long before fish came investigating even after the disturbances. Two more mirrors fell to my right hand rod before darkness one of 14lb and another of 17lb. Both of these fish an example of the newer stock that is present in Horseshoe. 

The day wasn't without its frustrations however as we had lost and equal amount of fish in the snag that appeared to be attached to the rope. We contacted the bailiff and thankfully it was removed and revealed to be a massive spiders web of lines all attached to the rope. Amazing really as a lot of the takes we were getting were not that close to the rope at all. With the snag out of the way though we looked forward to another nights fishing and hopefully another good morning the following day. The night again though came and went without action. It had now become apparent that the fish were moving out into the main lake during the hours of darkness and coming back into the bay for sanctuary during the day. 

We awoke the next morning to a slight change in the conditions and a change that had definitely affected the fish. A look into the bay revealed a lot fewer fish were present and our chances had lessened dramatically. Never the less we stuck at it as it was our final day of the horseshoe adventure. My rods unfortunately saw no further action but Dad managed to sneak one out and unfortunately lost one. The fish was another stockie but a nice looking fish of 16lb. 

It was a nice end to the session. We hadn't caught that Horseshoe thirty but we had caught our fair share of the stunning stock that resides in this magical lake. As we began to pack up we talked of how I could get out of work so we could stay longer. Always reluctant to leave, I think we could have stayed not another night but the whole summer. Just two bivvy's, the lagoon and the horseshoe Carp. 

Tight Lines!!!

A look back at 2014. Part 2- Digger lakes Dreams

Hello again, here is the second part of the summary of my years angling in 2014. Towards the end of the winter and the beginning of spring I set my sights on Carp. I am very lucky in Devon to have a number of fantastic Carp fishing venues to choose from. The venue I was going to concentrate on for the coming months however was a fairly new fishery situated on the outskirts of Cullumpton. The fishery is right next to a popular attraction known as Digger land, where kids can have a go on all sorts of machinery type rides. Due to its location therefore the fishery is appropriately named Digger lakes. The venue consists of two lakes, Perseys pool and Snails lake. The complex has got quite a good reputation for bites during the cold months so therefore was my number one choice to fish during the changeable weather conditions.

My first session on the complex was just a short day trip accompanied once again by Kevin Dobson. With a brief mild spell after consistent frosts we felt certain of a few chances but knew that we would have to take it easy on the feed. The plan of action was to travel fairly light and try a number of different swims on the complex. During the winter Carp are far less active and often spend weeks in the same parts of the lake. These areas of the lake are often the warmest but could also be areas where the fish feel safe such as snags. With this in mind we headed to Persey's pool in search of areas with depth and cover. As we walked up the hill from the back of snails and up to Persey's we could see we had the whole lake to ourselves. But with no obvious areas and a lack of knowledge of this particular lake this actually just made things harder. We stood and watched the water for 15 minutes or so when suddenly a mid-double mirror came clattering out of the water in a swim just to are left. " I will go here then" I said, met by laughter from Kev. However as Kev chuckled another fish head and shouldered out directly in front of him!! " Ha I will go here then" soon followed. So we had found some fish,but how were we going to catch them?

I set about tying up two rigs both identical but with different hook-baits. Reluctant to spook the fish by leading around I chose a rig that could be presented over any bottom, that rig being the chod rig. The chod rig really has revolutionised my own Carp fishing and has accounted for nearly all my biggest fish in previous years. The version I would be using on this session though was scaled down to accommodate a 10mm pink northern special pop up. For variation the other rod would be presented with a white northern special pop-up . 

Taking note of the area I had seen the fish, I cast the rigs out and felt the lead down on to a fairly soft bottom. Both areas were then baited with a couple pouches of 10mm CC Moore live system boilies. I then sat back confident of a take from one of the digger lakes Carp. An hour had soon passed and both mine and Kevs rods had remained biteless. Without seeing another fish roll on Persey's we began to formulate a plan for the Snails lake below us. As we talked out of the blue my right hand rod let rip a screamer of a take! I bent into the fish expecting to feel much lighter resistance as the average size of fish in Persey's is about 8lb. The fish plodded around in open water for about 10 minutes which is often the sign of a better fish as smaller carp tend to tare around all over the lake. The fish came to the surface and we were pleasantly surprised to see what looked like an upper double or maybe if we were lucky a low twenty. She was soon in the net and Kev grabbed the sling so we could weigh her. The scales went round to 18lb 12oz I believe. What a great way to start the digger lakes sessions. It was one of the biggest fish in the Persey's pool which was the highest stocked of the two. Before we did any more with the fish we treated a wound she was carrying on her side which looked almost like a gunshot wound. We gently applied some anti-septic to the areas and hopefully she could fully recover in the coming weeks.After a few shots we slipped the fish back and re-cast the rigs hopeful of another quick bite.

A couple of hours soon passed and we hadn't had another indication. Time was now not on our side as is often the way on short day sessions. We quickly packed up our gear and headed down on to the much lower stocked Snails lake below. Snails is a far more feature filled lake which can only really be likened to a maze. Snails is a series of intricate channels leading to open pools and can often be quite mind blowing when first fished. We worked our way down the lake trying a number of different areas for about 20 minutes or so using the same methods as we did on persey's. It wasn't long till we had reached a swim at the start of the lake near the carp park. The swim was a Carp anglers paradise, two islands, a channel into another bay,reed fringed margins and a large group of snaggy overhanging trees on the left margin. My confidence had suddenly shot straight back up as every area of the swim looked certain to hold a few fish. I quickly re-baited the two rods and flicked one chod to the end of the island in front and the other to the snaggy trees on the left. Full of anticipation I then went around to Kev's swim to see what his plans were. I hadn't got more than 10 yards away when the rod cast to the trees had an absolute belter of a take! I ran back to the rod and hit into what again felt like a decent weight fish. This fish was a lot more energetic however and was using all its muscle to try and ditch the rig in every feature of the swim. After a battle that seemed to last a lifetime she was in the net. We peeled back the mesh to reveal a smaller mid double but a much prettier fish with apple slice scales and a broken linear pattern down its flank. The fished was weighed at 16lb and returned. I was absolutely buzzing the first trip to Digger had produced a fish from each lake.

As with the Perch fishing it wasn't long before the light had faded and it was time to go. We loaded up the car and set off on our 20 minute dive back to Exeter. On the way home we had already started planning the next trip, which we hoped would be a much longer session to try to get in contact with the bigger fish on the complex. When we got home the discussions continued over a few games of Call of Duty and we had even convinced one of our good college friends to come down and join us.

It was not until a month and a half or so after the first session till we returned to Digger lakes though. It was now early spring and the temperatures far warmer. We set about taking our friend from college John Jackson on to Persey's pool for his first proper Carp fishing session. John had caught plenty of decent Carp before but was still calling this his first serious carp session. We set up in three swims located in the area that I had caught the fish on the last session. John on the right hand swim had open water options and an island directly in front. Kev's swim was almost identical to Johns but in addition had a sheltered corner of the lake to his left with a large reed bed to fish to. My swim was located directly in between two islands with a small amount of open water to fish. We set up in late afternoon with the intention of fishing the swims for the next 48 hours. I had chosen to fish the same rigs as the previous session. John was using a method known as solid bag fishing, a method which presents a small patch of feed directly around your hook bait. Full of confidence we cast our rigs out and waited for the first bit of action, in the meantime we sat in the middle of the swims and had a drink and a catch up. It wasn't long before darkness had come and we still remained fishless. We got an early night certain of some action throughout the hours of darkness. At about 1 I was awoken by a slow shuddery take on the left hand rod. About 5 minutes later I had the first fish of the session in the net, A small mirror of about 7lb.It was a start, however I couldn't wait to get back in the big snooze sleeping bag as the ground was now covered in a thick frost.

It wasn't till daylight until I was awoken again, this time by an absolute flyer. Not on my rods though, it was Johns. So I got up to give him a hand and was happy to find out he also had some success through the night. I grabbed the net and landed what looked like a low double common. The session was coming together nicely. It wasn't long before we heard Kev's rods screaming off and he got up to land a lovely scaley little mirror!! It was a good start to the day for him as he ended the previous day on some what of a wet note shall we say ;).

It was soon mid-day on the second day and John had been having a great session with consistent takes every couple of hours all on his solid bag presentation. Pleased by what we had caught we couldn't help but wonder if we were going to see any bigger fish put in an appearance. As I wasn't getting as many takes and was fishing in a different style I felt certain a bigger fish would fall to my boilie approach. In the early hours of the afternoon though John connected with a slow take on his left hand rod, as he bent into the fish he said "this feels a bit better". With Kev and myself beside him he started to battle the fish which was plodding slowly around the pool in front of him. We all began to wonder was this the better fish we had been waiting for? The fish began to pull hard for the bottom and we all became certain it was a decent fish, John however was still saying it's not that big. We began joking around saying what if its the "Fat Lin" which is the biggest fish in Persey's pool and a fish of over 30lb in weight. The more we joked the harder the fish battled to escape. Until eventually John had tired the fish out enough so we could just get a quick glance. "Oh my god" I said as my eyes caught a glimpse of a very fat linear mirror. "He's got it, he's got it" I was saying just knowing that he had on the end the fish I had been dreaming of catching. John at this point was shaking a bit more than usual, however was saying "No its not". Then out of the depths rolled over a truly breathtaking and enormous Carp. "Get it in the net!" Kev yelled as I think we had all just paused for the moment. She went in first time and we all gave out a big yell. The next few moments were just superb and my initial jealousy of knowing what John had caught quickly faded as we could all just see how buzzing he and all of us were. This was the first time the "Fat Lin" had been caught from Persey's pool since being moved from Snails. It was a great moment, we weighed the fish to reveal it had smashed Johns personal best of 21 lb and his new pb was over 31 pounds. We then tried to get some great photo's to capture the moment as best as possible. John had now taken to the water with the fish in true Carp fishing style and then returned the fish slowly by hand back into the lake.

What a day it had been for John and we couldn't have been more happy for him. The session wasn't over yet though and we still had another night to go. As we sat down for are takeaway maccy d's and reflected on an amazing day Kev's rod let rip a bizarre take where the bobbin lifted dropped, lifted and then held. Kev jumped up and hit into it and said "Yes, that's on the zig!" the take was actually a typical zig take but it was the first time any of us had tried them this session. Kev battle a fish which had his rod bent doubled! He began to say "This is big and I think its foul hooked". The fish then began about tearing line off of Kev's reel and gave him one hell of a battle. The fish then popped up to the surface and I think the next moment completely took the wind out of our sails. It was the fat lin again! However this time we could see the hook had gone right into the base of the pectoral fin. Worried about the welfare of the fish we quickly removed the hook and began reviving the fish in the margins. We were all a bit gutted but none more so than Kev, it would have been his first UK thirty and a new personal best. Kev's mind was well and truly on the fish though and as he picked it up to return her we took a quick shot to reflect what might of been and as Kev held her in the margins she gently swam off back into the lake. A strange end to what had been a great day's fishing. I then wandered down on to snails to see my Dad and look after his rods for the evening. 

The night came and went without any action for the three of us on Persey's and we began packing up after what had been a truly memorable session. As I walked the barrow back to the car though I couldn't help but feel I'm not done yet. So as we approached the car park area of Snails lake I dumped my gear in a swim known as Tyler's bay. An angler had just left the swim with reports of a couple of fish. That was enough for me. So I stayed to do yet another night. Confident in the presentations I was using I cast them out to the far side of the bay and felt them down into what only could be described as deep silt. This kind of bottom meant the chods would be perfectly presented and would have a distinct advantage over other rigs in this particular spot. I baited the area hard with nearly a kilo of Live system. I wasn't messing around this time and it wasn't long before I was rewarded. Only an hour or so after setting up in the new swim my rod cast tight to the far margin was away. A short battle followed and I had a pretty mid double in the bottom of the landing net. This was the type of fish that was typical of Snails a stunning scaley little mirror. 

The fish was a massive confidence booster for the night ahead and had restored any confidence I had lost in the chod rig. The night however flew by and before I knew it, it was mid morning the following day and I hadn't caught another fish. Perhaps maybe the initial disturbance had spooked the fish out of what was a small and secluded bay. It was then I decided to move back onto Persey's for the remaining few hours of the session. I headed straight to the far end of the Persey's pool where I had seen a number of fishing topping the days before. The lake was now completely empty and the chance of a bite looked very high. The top end of the lake had also been extremely muddied up as the fish mopped up what was left of the weekends bait. With this in mind I didn't want to bait heavily and risk spooking the fish. So I lowered two P.V.A bags down in amongst the mud clouds. Not ten minutes later was my left hand rod away with a pristine little common. As I was returning that fish the right hand rod was away with an equally stunning common of a similar size. Well why couldn't it of been like that all weekend? !!!. After about an hour or so I packed up as the quick bites had blatantly spooked the area and slowed the action. I headed back to the car after a long hard time on the bank however my mind was again already on the return visit. 

Time just seems to go so quickly and again it wasn't another three weeks or so until I returned to the Digger lakes complex. This time I was on my own as I had a couple day's off from the stresses of work. I decided that my target would be the bigger fish in the Snails lake.  On arrival to the lake I began to walk around and could already see a number of the key areas were already occupied by other anglers. Not being disheartened I stopped in the swim where I had caught from on the previous visit, I waited for about 10 minutes when I saw a decent size fish crash straight out of the water at the bottom of the bay. This was soon followed by another three or four shows before a fish delicately head and shouldered on the left hand side of the swim also. I had found the fish for sure. I headed back to the car and grabbed the gear as quick as possible. I set up in the swim as quietly as I could mean while another five fish had showed around the bay. The rods were still set up from the previous session but I was not leaving anything to chance and tied to fresh chods to go onto the pre-tied lead core leaders. I also began to gradually bait the areas where the fish were showing with a dozen or so boilies every few minutes. This was hopefully enough bait to get the fish interested but not enough to spook them. By the time I was fully set up the light had almost completely gone and it wasn't till the hours of darkness when I made my first cast. I cast the right hand rod to the bottom of the bay where the fish had been showing and began slacking the line off as you always should when fishing the chod rig. Whilst I was gently slackening the line the line pulled bow string tight and line began to peel off the clutch. A little stunned I paused before picking up the rod and striking into completely fin air. Was this a missed chance? I began to worry that what had just happened would affect the swim so I baited with a few more boilies and re-positioned both rods. 

A couple of hours had passed and the heavens had now opened. I lied in my sleeping bag wondering if I had again blown my chances and spooked the fish out of the bay. As I slowly began to nod off my right had rod went into absolute melt down shortly followed by my left hand rod. Surely not? I jumped out of the bag and grabbed the left hand rod first. My strike was again met with no resistance and was met with a large amount of swearing from myself. The right hand rod however was still ticking away and I picked it up to lean into a solid weight. My mind went into overdrive and for some reason I just knew that I had one of the biggest fish in the lake on the end. The fish plodded about the pool for a while before turning over to the left of my swim. I could see it was a big fish but how big? I slipped the net under the fish and before I even parted the mesh to see the fish I knew it was the big girl. I opened the net to see a massive mirror carp with little scales. The fish was "Baby M" the queen of Snails lake. With the fish in the margins I jumped up and down and shouted before then trying to figure out how I was going to deal with the fish. I left the fish securely in the net and walked just round the corner to the gentleman in the next swim who kindly came to assist me. He had himself caught Baby M before so knew straight away it was her, We weighed the fish to reveal she was at her biggest ever weight!!! She went over 36 pounds in weight. It was my second biggest Carp ever and I was just gob smacked . It was also a new fishery record. What a buzz. After getting the best photos we could in the pouring rain and treating a nasty wound on her tail she was returned and I began to tell everyone the good news!!.

Not being sure how that moment could be topped and now being absolutely soaking wet I returned to bed but just couldn't sleep. Another quiet night passed and it wasn't till early evening the next night when I caught my next fish. It was another mirror and a decent fish of 19lb. Still buzzing from the previous night I probably didn't appreciate this fish as much as I should of done as at the end of the day they are all special. 

I packed up the following morning as happy as you could be. Most other people would probably think I should have been locked away for staying out in those conditions to catch big slime covered fish. Once again though for me however it was target achieved and the Digger lakes complex had cemented its self in my mind as not only one of the best fisheries in Devon but the UK also. 

Tight Lines