How To Catch Monster Carp!
Hello!
Hello!I have been reading some posts on a carp forum recently and from what I have read - it seems most novice carp anglers who post on this particular carp forum only seem to be interested in Bait - specifically what's the top carp fishermen's currant 'going bait' the conversation in the carp forum went along the lines of...
Share:
Did you see Mr. Guru Carp fisherman again in this weeks fishing press with another huge carp? One novices reply came with...yea and all of Mr Carp Guru's buddies are on the same bait and having spectacular results!
The press always mentions the bait because usually it's available from a commercial bait company and some of the top carp anglers are being sponsored by these bait companies.
It turns out these novice carp anglers on the carp forum believed they were using the same baits as the top boys, but became non-believers as soon as they failed to catch any carp!
Their prognosis was - the top carp fishermen must be using something that's only available 'Under the counter'
Maybe...but I doubt it very much.
Personally I make my own baits because I feel they are far superior to a lot of commercial bought bait, plus I get a lot of satisfaction from catching on my own 'home made baits'.
This is not to say that commercial baits don't catch carp - they do, and are necessary for carp anglers who can't make their own or are to busy.
I agree a good bait - and terminal end rig for that mater are necessary for success on today's pressured carp fisheries, however NOT to the extent as to be totally obsessed about Bait in particular 'Boilies' as it was with the newbie's on that carp forum.
I consider the location of carp to be the number one factor on any lake, location or the term most carp anglers use is 'watercraft' - this is the Secret Key to Successful Carp Fishing, lets face it if you don't have any carp in your chosen spot you may as well be fishing at home in the bath tub! The top carp anglers know this only too well and concentrate on location for the duration of the fishing session. Most of them will start by walking around the lake for the first hour or so on arrival looking for likely feeding areas.
The location of carp is not just a question of where they are seen. Location is the finding of those areas within a swim where carp will feed under the conditions which prevails at the time.
Two years ago I managed to obtain membership to a notoriously difficult lake, its one of those pressured carp venues. After struggling on this new lake for the first season, last year was very successful for me, as I had worked out that the carp had shown a definite preference for certain areas under varying conditions.
One such visit produced three big carp in one day, during that session and the remainder of that week no other carp were caught.
The three carp all came to an area the size of four foot long by three foot wide. This spot I had discovered by pure chance, as on reeling in one of my rods from this area I found a couple of bloodworm had tackled on my end rig.
I decided to investigate further, with the use of my 'Spod Rod' - this was done by simply attaching some lead strips to my spod and casting this 'weight-down' spod in that same spot, dragging it along the bottom, on retrieving it I found a spod full of bloodworm - Bingo Hot Spot found!
What's interesting to note is that anywhere outside this area produced nothing, and yet fish were leaping and moving all over the place!
Sometimes these hot-spots are easy to find and sometimes there is a common factor in each case. Other times it is sheer hard work with a pinch of luck thrown in that enables you to locate these areas. Very often it is assumed that the hot-spots have been found on a lake because other anglers are having success in the known swims. It is only when someone fishes some new spot even in a known swim and has a multiple catch that it is realised what's been missed previously.
Very often the usual ploy of fishing the tops of gravel bars, the gullies or just the ends of the bars, islands, marginal slopes ect will produce the goods, but it can pay huge dividends to experiment even if you think you know the area you are fishing.
I hope that's given you some food for thought, if you want to be successful don't do what I see beginning carp anglers do regularly, set up in the nearest swim to the car park, or as one newbie carp angler said to me, he's already made his mind up which spot he's going to fish while driving to the lake!
I expect to see him on a carp forum soon moaning with the others!
The great thing is just by reading this article YOU have...
by: Dennis Black