Boating Lake Dreams

ALEX GRICE: Dan, this isn’t the typical type of water most anglers would fish, how did you stumble across this place?

DAN WHITFORD: “My first initial encounters with the place take me right back to when I was around 15/16. At the time I had just dropped out of school, there was problems going on in my family and I just wanted to go fishing to get away from it all. I was fishing in the week and working down the local tackle shop at the weekend, which at the time was called Specialist Tackle. Local anglers would regularly bring in photographs of these amazing looking carp: dark, old-looking commons. Back then it just got my heart racing and I would often ask the old boys where they were from, quite happily telling me the location of the local boating lake.

“As you can imagine, I was more than eager to get out and fish the place, constantly thinking of one of those lovely carp gliding over my landing net. At the time I couldn’t drive and I struggled to get lifts to and from the place on a regular basis. The odd day I would get dropped down with all my kit, which I used to walk with round the big lake; it sometimes felt like an ocean of water trudging the kit round to my chosen swim. I struggled to catch from the sailing lake, so moved onto the smaller lake next-door and caught my first one. It brings back some great memories.”

Boat dramas

A slate grey common

It sounds incredible Dan. Could you briefly describe the lake, the atmosphere and day-to-day goings on around there?

“The water itself is sort of pear-shaped, with a wider bowl of water at one end, which narrows up to a shallower end split by a couple of small islands. It’s pretty much uniform throughout most of the lake, with depths of 10-12ft in most places, where the fish hold up regularly in the colder weather. There is a sailing club at one end, which means at certain times of the day it can be pretty chaotic. Add to that the fact that there are regular school trips, where hundreds of kids take to the water, splashing paddles and shouting all day long. Behind one bank is a golf course and the site sees regular dog walkers. On some occasions I’ve had people sunbathing in my swim, starting BBQ’s right beside my rods, it does make me laugh, but I really do enjoy the crazy atmosphere over here.”

It got quite manic at times

What lit your fire to target the boating lake and describe the type of carp the place contains?

“I came back over here in the middle of June 2015, the lake still has a traditional close season which I find quite nice. I had been fishing over at The Essex Manor and had caught a few but I just didn’t get on with the type of water it was. I needed a new venture to put my angling into perspective, some excitement and something a little more interesting.

“We took the dog for a walk at the lake one evening and my girlfriend mentioned that I should come over here and give it a go again. I had a little think and it seemed the perfect solution; it would be like having a trip down memory lane. I really fancied having a better crack at the water now, over ten years on, so I joined and started making some plans for the start of the season. I knew the lake still contained some of the original fish that were stocked nearly 40 years ago, plus the wild, exciting nature of the lake simply drew me back in. I realised it was time to fish for what I really wanted to, even if they weren’t huge, these fish had local history and that’s what meant a lot to me.”

Brace!

So you began your new campaign when the season began, June 16th, describe how you felt walking the banks again with your rods?

“I literally couldn’t wait to begin again; I’ve never felt a buzz quite like it, which says a lot in itself! The lake is only five minutes from work, so I regularly walked the banks leading up to the new season on my lunch breaks and sometimes after work. It felt like a completely new adventure and I was thinking about the place most days, trying to work out a plan of attack. One evening, while I was out walking the dog with my girlfriend, I noticed a few fish top on the end of a new wind. I literally jumped with joy, while the whole time my missus was laughing at me buzzing to high heaven! When the season came round I felt like a kid once again, the emotions were in overdrive and trying to contain my excitement was difficult.”

A rare mirror

I can imagine how you felt! How did you prepare to fish a venue like this and where did you even start?

“With the lake itself being so open and with a huge amount of boat traffic during the days, I knew the fish would get pushed around the lake regularly. I often saw fish showing at one end at first light and by lunchtime they were stacked at the other end in the shallows. I had a few good areas lined up to trickle some bait in to, creating areas where the fish would feed, but having walked the water on endless occasions I knew they often moved about and this is where I adopted a very lightweight mobile approach.

“Because I could drop by the water regularly, I learnt so much again in such a short period of time. I tried to get down in changing weather conditions to monitor the fishes activity, and this would give me a good insight into where I needed to be on certain days. I watched the fish move around the lake, often moving quick and sometimes being herded by the boats. This was interesting, as it helped me to adopt a one-step-ahead type of approach, predicting the fishes behaviour and movement patterns.

“The biggest advantage I had when it came to preparation was being able to quickly nip by the lake the evening before I decided to fish, it gave me a constructive idea of where I needed to be when I turned up 8hrs later. I caught a few over the baited areas, but it became apparent that the single hookbait approach was the way. It allowed me to fish quickly and effectively to showing fish, and when I needed to, pack down and move when they were off around the lake. I carried minimal amounts of kit on my barrow, and the rods were often the only things I took off. Watching the water and being active was the biggest edge when trying to fool the carp here.”

What is your most memorable capture to date from the boating lake?

“This would have to be the cold, depths of winter during the first year I came back over here. I hadn’t been fishing for at least a month and one day I just decided I had to get out. It was towards the end of December, the 30th I think, and a strong southwesterly wind had just blown in. The conditions were prime and I just had to get out!

“I decided to get right on the end of it, as I knew the fish would really take to the new wind. I managed to get two rods out down the edge, but due to the crazy crosswind, I struggled getting my third rod to an area where I wanted to be at the back of the island. By about half ten, the wind had completely died off so I went about getting that rod positioned in the silty gully just off the island. This was a spot I had done particularly well from and having a little extra depth, I knew it was prime for a winter bite.

“The night passed quietly but around 7am I had a slow, steady take as the bobbin pulled tight on the rod I had repositioned in the night. By now, the brisk wind had picked back up and the fish kited in the tow towards one of the buoys anchored to the lakebed. The wind was howling and the line was making the typical squeal as I tried to steer the fish free. I couldn’t stop it in the strong wind and before long it had me solid around the snag. Luckily, the fish kicked free and kited back round towards me in the crosswind.

“Before long I had it safely in the folds of the net, which I left resting in the edge while I made a morning brew to warm up. When I went to lift the net, I was quite surprised to feel and see a heavy, deep-bodied fish lying in the folds. It turned out to be a lovely, dark 30lb+ common and was made even more special in the depths of winter.”

Setting up from the barrow helped quickly get rods to where fish were showing

Does your approach change with the seasons, or do you still stay mobile and on the move?

“I think the mobile approach can be adopted all year round; the biggest factor in my fishing is observation. The fish in here don’t tend to be riggy, if you’re on them, you will catch them. During the summer months they tend to move around more, so it’s important to keep the kit on the barrow so you can make a quick move when necessary. When the colder temperatures come round, they do tend to group up in the deeper water, but that doesn’t mean I get lazy and sit it out in a swim. I’m always looking for signs of fish, it’s just as important to get the location right in winter as it is in summer, if not more so.

“So I would say I’ve still got a mobile mentality, I want to catch fish and the best way of doing so on limited time is to find them. The single hookbait approach is tailored to this type of fishing, as long as I get a drop and know the rig is presented, the hookbait is then doing all the work. I boost the attraction of my hookbaits so that they are super potent, as I really do feel this is a huge edge at drawing fish in from nearby.”

I know you have a manic job as a mechanic, how does this affect your fishing over here?

“With the water being so local, it has very little effect on my fishing. In fact, with shorter windows of opportunity I feel it has made me a better angler. I’ve had to tailor my whole angling style on here, stripping back my kit and keeping proactive to get the results. I have had great results over here doing quick 4hr morning sessions, turning up and trying hard to find the fish. Then having multiple takes having only had the rods out for a short while. Being local, I can use my lunch breaks to drop by, find the fish and see where other anglers are. This gives me a much better idea when I turn up 5hrs later, so I am always looking to maximise my time and be efficient in order to catch.”

Ice cream anyone?

Good angling, Dan! It’s quite manic over here – we’ve just had a speedboat nearly wipe out all of your rods! Do you find it difficult to deal with the everyday goings on?

“I love it; it’s what makes this place different and unique. You can’t change a lake for what it is; I am here to catch the lovely fish that reside in this water, so I’m prepared to take what this place has. You have to have an open mind, keep positive and understand that the carp are used to the commotion as they deal with it most days. I’ve witnessed carp lump out straight after a boat has passed by, literally in the wake, which is quite an eye-opener! On one occasion my good friend had a take while there were a group of kids smashing the water with paddles directly above where his rigs were placed. It’s all go on this lake, but it’s how it is and that’s what makes the challenge even more special.”

Getting the rods re-done after a quick move onto showing fish

Characterful common

What does your end tackle consist of on this type of water?

“I would say my end tackle has to be tailored to cover enough situations the mobile approach demands. My go-to set-up is a distance casting monofilament with a shockleader, this means that if fish are showing out at range, I have the best possible chance at getting close to them. For 90% of my fishing over here I use a Hinge Rig, it’s the perfect solution in my eyes and offers me 100% confidence in my single hookbait approach.”

The lake was a public place, so I made use of the facilities

They certainly liked the jetty area

You must have witnessed some strange things in your time fishing here, could you share one of those experiences?

“I can certainly recall a pretty scary experience and one, which fortunately turned out to be okay. It was back in the winter again; I was with two other friends, bivvied up near the footpath to the car park entrance. It was dark and a middle aged woman walked past crying her eyes out. My friend, Warren, asked if she was okay, but she carried on walking. We sat there drinking tea on the cold evening when my other mate Greg heard a faint cry of a woman crying. It was about an hour since the lady had passed, so we went to investigate further down the bank. As we got closer it became apparent that the lady had jumped in and as a result began to panic and shout. She was so drunk we struggled to lift her out, but in the end the three of us managed to pull her out. The whole time she was screaming to leave her and let her go. We carried her back to the pub where we called an ambulance, as by now she was nearly reaching hypothermia. Still to this day I’m surprised that she managed to stay alive in the cold water during that chilly winter night. That’s one of a handful of mental events that have happened during my fishing over on the boating lake. Quite literally mental!”

That’s pretty scary. What are your plans now with your fishing?

“I am at a bit of a loose end to be honest; I’m trying to find somewhere that excites me as much as the boating lake has. I worked hard over there, so having a short break is quite nice! I’m sure it won’t be long before I’ve found a new water and I’m back out in an eager spirit again.”