Pastures New

Until now, I’ve always preferred small lakes of up to a few acres because if I’m honest, it’s all I have ever known. This includes close range snag and margin fishing where I can almost hand place my rig and scatter free offerings with incredible ease. Over the past couple of years, this approach has produced some great results for me, including several new PBs to 41lb and an opportunity to fine tune my rigs and baiting approach, but I wasn’t really learning anything new and therefore my fishing was becoming a bit repetitive.

Last month I found myself with the opportunity for a new challenge, to join a bigger pit. The Dell in Rainham has been on my radar for many years but I’ve always ruled it out because it didn’t suit the intimate style of fishing that I was used to and enjoyed so much. The lake has some lovely fish to go at, is well kept and the appeal of a UK 50 was too much to resist. I arranged a walk around with the owner and it didn’t take me long to decide that it was the perfect opportunity to try something completely new. At over 17 acres with lots of weed, this was certainly going to take me out of my comfort zone and I couldn’t wait to start.

I had to wait until 1^st April to fish but I could walk and have a lead around from late March, so I did exactly that to get a head start. I’ve always found that a regular walk helps build a great picture of a new lake and it was even better that I was allowed to cast a lead around to get a feel for the topography. During several walks, I was lucky enough to see some great fish on the bank to mid 40’s. It was obvious that the fish were feeding on naturals in the mid to upper layers, because all captures were to Zig Rigs. Now, I’ll be the first to admit that my zig fishing experience is close to zero simply because my previous syndicates hadn’t allowed it. Therefore, my first challenge was to get to grips with this approach and after buying some new bits, I had some zigs at varying depths ready to go for my first session. The rules state that zigs are only allowed during colder months when the weed is at its lowest to minimize fish losses, so I knew I only had a couple of weeks left to give it go.

1^st April came around in a flash and I was ready for my first session, I had 72 hours available and after a walk around, I hadn’t seen any signs of fish. I opted for a relatively quiet bank that is furthest from the car park but it gave me a great view across the whole lake. My plan was to get the rods out and just sit and watch for the whole time. During the session I tried presenting baits up in the layers and on the bottom but didn’t have any luck. It looked like the fish were holding up in one central area which was beyond my capable range with my current set up. I realised that I would need to make some changes to my gear to hit the longer spots. I came away from that session with a blank but I had learnt loads and had a list of things to change before my next visit. This included swapping my beloved soft 2.75 Whiskers for some new stiffer 3.25 Greys Xlerates. I also changed my mono to 0.35mm which was the thinnest allowed and upgraded to heavier leads. Finally, I bought a spod and marker set up to allow me to bait at range.

I was buzzing for my next session, I had everything ready to present zigs in the longer spots where the fish were feeding on naturals, but a message went out on the members group saying that zigs were to stop in a few days time. Although I was disappointed that I wouldn’t get the chance to get the zigs out, it meant that everyone had to fish on the bottom where I was much more comfortable.

Not knowing the lake very well and due to the weed, I decided to start on Naked Chods to give me the best chance of presenting the rig amongst the weed. My second session was uneventful as I think the fish were still feeding in the upper layers, after all, most members had been fishing zigs and not putting in much bait to push the fish down to the bottom. It was on my next session where my luck changed...

I made a couple of changes before my third session. Firstly, I wasn’t too happy with the Naked Chod set up. Being a big lake and fishing at range, it was impossible to slacken off enough to ensure the line was pinned down at the business end. Therefore I changed to 4ft leadcore leaders to give me a better chance of pinning the Chods down. Secondly, I felt it was a good time to change to a fishmeal, so I popped down to DT Baits and picked up some of their Fish Blood and Fresh Orange. I opted for 15mm frozen boilies, 4mm pellet and the matching liquid, with the intention of making up a bucket of whole, chops and crumb with a nice covering of boosted liquid.

I had 72 hours available and the lake was pretty quiet when I arrived. There was plenty of choice but after a couple of laps, one of the balliffs suggested a particular area where the fish had been seen before I arrived. It was also on a plateau and therefore the shallowest part of the lake. The weather forecast was for warm days but cold nights, so the shallower areas could be a good shout during the days. I had a lead around and found an area in which I could present 3 rods, so I put a few large spombs across the area, just enough to get some interest from passing fish. I opted for bright hookbaits; yellow Cold Water Green Beast pop ups in 15mm.

My confidence was high, I knew that I was presenting and fish started to show in front of me. The right rod was away first, just a few bleeps and the bobbin pulled up to the rod before I lifted into the fish. It was a fairly tame battle which suited me as I just wanted my first Dell fish on the bank. It was a lovely dark common of 29lb 8oz and I was off the mark. I put some more bait onto the area and was hopeful for another one.

The night was very cold, misty and uneventful but the right rod was away again the following morning once the sun was overhead. It was a very similar bite to the last one, probably because I was fishing fairly tight clutches to avoid being weeded up on the take. This resulted in a 23lb 4oz common of similar colour to the previous fish. Later that afternoon my middle rod pulled up tight and I lifted into another fish, it took some line before turning to swim directly towards me. This made the battle pretty easy in the end and after a few runs up & down the margin, my first Dell mirror was in the net, it went 29lb 40z and I was made up that the changes I had made were paying off!

I didn’t expect another one that day as the previous fish had caused some disturbance plus I had to spomb some more bait out. It was also supposed to be another cold and misty night, so the sound of a one toner just before sun set took me by complete surprise. The previous bites had been a few bleeps and hadn’t taken any line but this was like a steam train. The fish was stripping line from a tight clutch and even when I lifted the rod, it was still tearing line from the reel. It knew where it wanted to go and buried itself deep into the nearest weed bed. I held constant pressure for a few minutes and tried different line angles but to no avail. I called the bailiff to ask for the boat but as soon as I did the fish kicked. With constant pressure and the fishing kicking, it managed to free itself and I was back in direct contact. It felt like a much heavier fish than the previous ones and my first look at it through the gin clear water confirmed exactly that. The margin battle is always tense when you know it’s a decent one but thankfully the hook hold was spot on and I eventually eased her over the net chord. 

By this time, the bailiffs were with me and they confirmed that I had just landed a fish known as The Big Stockie, last out to Ben at 44lb. They helped with the weighing and she went 43lb 14oz which was a new PB for me. The sun set offered beautiful lighting for some cracking photos and after being soaked with the obligatory bucket of water, I slipped her back a very happy man. I had one more fish overnight, a small home-grown mirror of 10lb.

I packed up the next morning a very happy man, not only because of the fish I had caught but because of the changes I had made to adapt to the new lake. The carp gods were certainly with me on that session and had rewarded me for moving onto pastures new!