How to get on them this spring
Bin those ‘I could have caught more’ thoughts thanks to Steve Hall’s advice
My entire approach revolves around making minimal disturbance. Whether I’m introducing bait or flicking out single hookbaits, my aim is to do so as quietly as possible because I’m certain big carp can spook from any kind of disturbance. I like to turn up at a lake, find the fish and get rigs in position without the carp knowing I’m there. I know some anglers say noise doesn’t bother fish, but I totally disagree. A market float or large spod crashing into the lake can be the kiss of death on some of the venues I fish week-in, week-out.
Remember this...
Water temperatures take much longer to change than air so even though the weather has been warm for a while the water may still be at its winter temperatures so tactics need to take account of this. The sun produces ‘radiant energy’ and this energy, when absorbed by water, turns into ‘thermal energy’ producing localised warm spots. Depending on how much direct sunlight an area of water gets will obviously affect this. Carp are prone to moving into shallower areas quite quickly in spring just so they can search out these warmer, more comfortable areas as well as moving up in the water for the same reason.
Small spods
I cringe when I hear large spods crashing into the lake, especially on some of the shallower venues I fish. Although smaller spods mean you have to spend longer introducing bait, it’s definitely worth it in the long run as the amount of noise you’ll create will be dramatically reduced.
Little traps
Most of my fishing consists of day sessions and overnighters so rather than introducing loads of bait, I prefer to set little traps and generally fish over ten spodfuls (usually made up of a fine crumb to add attraction to the swim without overfilling the carp) of bait or half-a-dozen boilies.
Lose of float
I rarely use a marker float set-up when I’m fishing because of the disturbance they make crashing through the swim. A bare lead is all that’s needed if I do want to have a ‘feel’ around on the lakebed and I can gauge the depth of a swim by counting the lead down through the water.
