Good Evening.
This session is turning into a very tiring one of late and for the past three days it has been work, work, and more work; I am not really talking about the fishing either. The weather has been pretty severe and a complete turnaround. It hasn’t been dreadful but we decided today to make a few changes to our base and have now erected a small area to sit under, away from the wind. We now have ourselves a little commune! Tonight in fact the temperature has dropped and there is already frost forming on our shelters.
The new wind shelter for eating and relaxing in the daytime.
The fishing has picked up a bit which is good news. I had a stop start run at 2am, which resulted in nothing. At 4.30am I caught my smallest ever carp – a picture perfect common that weighed a kilo! At 8am I had a run from my previous hotspot, which has been unproductive, the last couple of days. I jumped in my boat but unfortunately I had left my boat motor on a very low speed since 4.15am and the battery was flat. The boat was securely tied up so it was not actually noticeable! Danilo’s boat motor has malfunctioned on his craft, so I had to call for Danilo’s assistance and he rowed me out in the strong winds to the fish. After five minutes we reached the spot, only for the hook to pull, after an average sized common appeared on the surface; at least I got him out of bed nice and early!
Danilo sadly suffered a similar fate a couple of hours later, after just catching the first silver fish of the session; he then had a run at long range. The hook pulled at the net in similar fashion and it was a loss each for the day. I then had another run and this time everything went smoothly and a pristine 6.8kg common was mine. 7.8kg is now added to my total and it could make all the difference come Sunday evening when the friendly match ends!
Italian Jake, English Jake, a 6.8kg carp and Christian!
After we had taken a few shots, Christian and the ‘Italian’ Jake left for home, and this meant we got the 5HP Bandiga back for the rest of the session – brilliant news! As we decided to have a temporary break from the fishing for a few hours, it was time to head to the supermarket for some much needed supplies. More petrol, good fresh food, and a few other treats were bought back to camp an hour later; this was after we had to have our vehicles freed from the mud, due to the rain the last few days. The ground was sodden and there was no traction for either of our vehicles. Eventually I got as tow from a local angler/resident and I was back on track.
A visit from the Guardia Pesca.
I had to put my rods out once I returned as Danilo had stayed behind to look after the dogs and had done his rods in my absence. I had just finished my work when we had a visit from the Guardia Pesca. Everything was okay apart from the fact I did not have the right documentation for this area. I was told by the tackle shop we visited prior to the session that I did indeed have the right ticket, but as it turns out they were wrong. Twenty five Euros later and I was sorted. The Guardia complimented us on the state of our swim and the fact we had cleared up some of the trash left behind by others- two little angels. I kept the kids in the bivvy, while the two Guards were doing their job, and the dogs did not make a sound; they are well trained when they want to be!
My small carp rig for less mouth damage.
Today I have included a picture of my rig I am using at the moment. It is one I sometimes use for single bottom baits, or a snowman. When there are lots of small fish present I don’t like to use big curved hooks as I feel they can damage the carp’s mouth more, than a normal straight shanked hook. With my single 26mm baits I am using the Korda long shank size 4’s and some stiff tubing to keep my hair pinned to the shank, and I have used a small piece of shrink tube to make the hook point turn in. I don’t think complicated rigs are needed at this lake. In an effort to nail a larger carp I have gone with two 26mm bottom baits and on this rig I have used my normal size 2 Kurv! If a greedy fifteen pounder picks up the bait, I am not to blame as I am laying this trap for a lump. Also included is my bait which is working very well at the moment – the mussel and oyster fresh fish boilie from Dynamite Bait’s range. To add extra attraction I am using the liquid to boost the dried out baits.
The winning bait? Possibly!
We have just stuffed ourselves with a great meal, which tonight I cooked. We had sticky pork ribs, slow cooked in the pan, served with fried potatoes and a fine salad prepare by Danilo. It was just what we needed after the work we have put in today and the last few days; it was time to treat ourselves! I think there will be plenty more carp action in the next 16 hours. Come back tomorrow to find out what has happened!
Cheers
Jake and the dogs.
