15 bite-sized tips for success in winter
Bite-sized chunks of angling advice for the chilly months
1 Comfort zone
Locate their ‘comfort zone’, for example this might be 6ft off the bottom in 16ft of water. As a starting point, opt for the middle of the north bank and try to eliminate wasted time and just fish around bite times. Finally, watch the bird life.
2 Keep moving
If you’ve not been to the water before, it’s a case of trying a swim for an hour or so before moving on. Watch for line bites all the time, which can be quite subtle but often the only indication of the fish’s location. Find them and you’re onto a winner.
3 The right depth
A lot of the time, carp are nowhere near bottom, choosing to hang around halfway in the warmer thermoclines. Basically,
we should all be working harder at our suspended fishing – i.e. Zigs Rigs. Move them around as the sun moves, fishing the warmest bits all day.
4 Bite time
By moving around as much as possible, once you’ve located the carp, it is a case of finding out roughly what time bite time is. You’ll often find that this time doesn’t vary much, so you can fish short sessions with maximum confidence.
5 Keep warm
This winter try wearing a thermal vest and ‘long johns’ under your normal fishing clothing. This extra under layer is light and comfortable but doesn’t half help keep you warm.
6 Cover or open water
Carp do prefer cover if there is any. Dense snags will almost always hold carp, as will weedbeds. However, reeds are the very best. If your lake is largely devoid of snags, weed, reeds, etc. then the carp will almost always be found in the centre of the lake. Obviously this is easier to discern on a round, oval or square lake, but generally the middle of the largest expanse of water is a very good bet.
7 Warm your gas
When it’s cold, the gas to fuel your stove will turn to a liquid and your stove will splutter a lot. You need to warm it up so when you get into your sleeping bag at night put the canister at the bottom by your feet. Come the morning it’ll be roaring.
8 Mega paste
One of the best winter baits has to be Richworth’s Active X Tracts Fish and Squid paste. Mix a small amount with lake water to create a stiff paste and then mould it around a small 14mm boilie that’s had the sides trimmed – it’ll stick better.
9 The warm hotspots
Seek out the shallow areas of the lake that get lots of sunlight. On clear, bright sunny days, the carp will find these little hot
spots the most comfortable places to sit. Finding these areas can be the difference between a winter cracker or a big bad blank!
10 Pin down top tip
At this time of year, when the lakes are very clear, it is vital that you pin everything down on the lakebed even more than usual. However, tungsten putty does harden up and become tricky to work with when cold. To overcome this, take a blob and place it on the lid of your kettle whilst brewing up. In under 30 seconds it’ll be far more useable and will stick to the hooklink easier.
11 The right background feeds
What is the best background feed for this time of year? We hear you ask. The answer is simple: maggots, especially because they can induce a feed when other baits such as boilies are failing. In short, they’re an incredible bait that will get you a bite when other carp foods won’t.
12 Watch the weather
Keep a close eye on the weather forecast through the winter months for big drops in air pressure, which usually accompanies milder winds from the southwest. These drops can really switch the carp on to feed, even after long periods of relative inactivity.
13 Keep the bait going in
Not necessary just for the winter this one: fire out some freebies (20 or so baits) regularly during the course of the session, say anything from every half-an-hour to every two hours. Basically baiting like a match angler would: little-and-often.
14 Zig Rigs
Either a piece of foam or a 10mm pop-up fished on a Zig Rig is a killer winter trick. Through the cold months, carp spend a great deal of time suspended in mid-water in quite large shoals sometimes. Recast regularly, adjust the length of your Zig Rigs and watch your lines for liners - you’ll soon find them.
15 Work hard
On busy pressured waters signs of carp activity is very hard to come by between the hours of dawn and dusk during the winter months, so turning up at a water late in the evening and walking around looking for a chance until the early hours is a good move. It’s hard work but well worth it.
