What features should you head for at a new water this spring?

Question

You’re fishing a new water for the first time this spring, where would you head for and what features/depths are you looking for?

Adam Penning

“I am not really looking for features or depths. All I am looking for are the fish and in spring, they will be showing somewhere. Every venue is different, there are no hard and fast rules so simply find the fish and fish for them regardless of whether they are over deep water or shallow water!”

Ian Chillcott

“I am actually heading for wherever the carp are, and that is far better than setting a trap where you think they may be. Features and depths may well play a part, but a little bit of hard work finding the fish is what is needed at this time of year. And as the weather warms they shouldn’t be that hard to find. The wind will play a big part in the equation at this time of year, so start looking on the end of the wind.”

Gaz Fareham

“As soon as the light levels start getting up in March, and certainly from April onwards, I’ll be looking for the shallower and sheltered areas that are warming up quicker. They’ll be looking for warmth to re-charge after the winter, and they always like a show in the spring so I’ll just be angling wherever they are jumping, that’s usually my primary location tool in the spring.”

Nigel Sharp

“I tend to head for areas where the lake’s residents are known to have been caught from: snags, old weedbeds or major features like islands, preferably these will be near to shallower water and will receive a fair amout of the sunshine. If I were to be targeting a lake that I’d not fished or knew very little about and it lacked all of the above I’d head for an open water swim with a big view and take it from there.”