I can’t describe how happy I am this morning! I have finally achieved my first milestone at Sierra Brava and broken the forty pound mark and it feels fantastic to do so. I remember when I caught my first 40lb common at Cassien and feeling pleased about it; this however means so much more, as it is my local water. I really do think on a personal level that this could be the start of things to come, and as I am planning on fishing as much as I can over the next four months, I am hoping there will be more big fish to show you all.

It is now tipping it down with rain. The weather actually changed yesterday evening, just before it fell dark. I checked the weather forecast and sure enough, it confirmed a low front was moving in, bringing slightly warmer temperatures, cloud cover, low pressure, and rain. The weather for the past two days has not been brilliant, and this favourable change until the end of my session, might help me out a great deal more.

Due to the sudden change in climate I was on the edge of my seat for most of the night. I ate early again, conjuring up a chicken curry with rice (there is a familiar pattern emerging here)! My first take came at 10pm and after a spirited tussle I netted a common which weighed 18lbs. I returned the rod to the mark and quickly topped up the spot with my spomb.

No matter how hard I tried, I just couldn’t sleep. It is as if I knew something good was about to happen. At 3am I was actually sat in my porch on my chair when a single beep alerted me. I watched the rod in question as the tip bounced back slightly. Another beep followed as the tip slowly pulled forwards, by which time I was already on the rod. Nothing really happened to begin with until the fish woke up and then it took line. There was no need to try to stop it so I let the fish chug away like an underwater barge. Finally it slowed down by which time I had switched my boots for my waders and was now stood in the water. I could feel the fish kiting to my right. The fish had taken a lot of line and the danger to my right was a tree. The fish clearly knew where she was heading so I quickly had to get some line back on my spool. I heard the clatter of my stop-knot through the rod rings and breathed a sigh of relief, as I know the tree is slightly farther than the distance of the stop-knot. The fish continued to kite right and then as I wound in line I experienced that horrible feeling as everything went solid! The fish suddenly and very powerfully went on a ballistic run. Whatever was caught before had now been pulled free by the fish and I breathed another sigh of relief. The fish slowly changed direction and started to head for the shoreline to my right. I was trying to pinpoint its precise location when it suddenly boiled a couple of yards from the bank. Realising it was now in shallow water it then slowly headed back to open water.

I now felt like I had things under control with the fish in front of me and the shockleader knot almost on the reel. I still hadn’t caught a glimpse of the fish and was starting to wonder what was attached to my hook. Three times as I heard the shockleader knot rattle through the rings, the fish decided to have another go and forcefully took line. On the third attempt however, I could feel her energy reserves were waning. Out of nowhere I saw her come to the surface. She stayed there, so I slowly drew her towards me, and into the net she went, first time of asking.

I peered into the net and saw a fish that was definitely a good thirty. I waded along the margin with my prize in the net and left her in the edge whilst I put the rod down. I rolled the net down to carry her to my unhooking mat and now my estimates suddenly changed. Was this possibly my first forty in fact?

On the money!!!

I was quite lucky to be honest as when I went to unhook her, the loose hook and bait was rolling around in her huge cavernous mouth. I transferred her into a weigh/retention sling and hoisted her up onto the scales. Well would you believe it – forty pounds exactly – on the nail. I had to take a picture as I couldn’t quite believe it myself!

The smile says it all!

My new Spanish PB - Happy Days!!

At first light I self-took photos and released her to swim free once again. She looked magnificent as she sat in the water preparing herself to swim off. Certainly not a young fish by any means and on closer inspection her mouth was in excellent condition, still sporting the curtains in the upper part of her mouth. As public water carp go – they don’t come much better than this!

Blow-back rig, size 2 hook, and big baits. The perfect combo!

The rig I used was the blow-back rig with a snowman for bait; a 24mm OR-O bottom bait and a 20mm Strawberry Scopex fluro pop-up and the carp was caught from my open water spot, no more than fifty yards from the bank.

I am now going to have a siesta!

Back tomorrow with more news from Sierra Brava.

Cheers

Jake and Flash.

Yesterday was a day of patience. I left my rods where they were, just topping up the spots with a few spomb loads at approximately 4pm. Approaching my fifth night I was keen to see if the previous quiet night would be a stark contrast and this night would be a night of runs. I prepared my dinner slightly earlier than normal, a meal consisting of chicken, rice, and finely sliced cabbage, essentially stir fried with lots of black pepper; simple yet delicious and great fodder for the colder nights.

Defrosting chicken breasts after five days...gas fridges are fantastic devices!

It now gets dark at approximately 6.30pm. It gets light at around 7.30am. This means the hours of darkness have extended so it is important you have some entertainment to stop you going stir crazy. I have a new book I am reading which unlike the last one, is quite tough going, so it should last me until the end of the session. I also have a few episodes of some series on my laptop, enabling me to pass the time whilst waiting for a run.

The first run arrived shortly after my dinner had been eaten. I was just flicking a page of my book as the alarm went into a one-toner and the reel engaged into meltdown. I stumbled into my waders and grabbed the bent over rod and started to do battle with the first carp for 28 hours. I had been waiting patiently and now I was into what I had been waiting for – a carp.

The fish put up a good account of itself and after walking to my right as it kited in that direction, I slipped the second mirror carp of the session into the net. Another lovely looking example of the mirror strain in Sierra Brava. I weighed the carp (17lbs) and admired her scale pattern as I released her. The rod was soon returned to the spot, the spomb was dispatched a few times, and I was soon back in the world of imagination, bringing the characters and scenes of my book to life.

After a spot of Facebook I called it a night. I now have a new account exclusively for anglers at http://www.facebook.com/thebigcarphunter If you want to add yourself click on the link and send me a friend request – it’s that simple.

Happy to use a stone for a pillow!

I woke at 2am as Flash returned to the bivvy after a call of nature no doubt, or he just fancied a sniff and a stroll in the dark. I fell back to sleep until I was woken by another blistering run. I have fished many places in Europe but I have never experienced runs like the ones you get at Brava. This fish probably took about twenty yards of line by the time I got to the rod, and then another thirty yards in an impressive burst of power and speed. After controlling the run I started to claw back some line and after about three minutes I heard my powergum stop-knot ping through the rings of my rod. I was now back to where the fish started from. After another five minutes or so I had the fish boiling in front of me, and I now knew the fish was close to giving up after its display of sheer courage. I drew the fish towards the net and saw a deep set of shoulders as the folds of the net closed around the common. Very nice indeed!

This carp took 50 yards of line in about thirty seconds.

Carp number eight - 28lbs.

At 28lbs this is now the biggest of the session. Eight carp, five over twenty, and I am getting closer to the 30lb mark with half of the session left. On public waters such as Sierra Brava, you often only get a brief big fish window. A small period of time or one night when you might have the opportunity to catch a really big fish, or two, or three. This is not a small overstocked commercial venue, don’t forget, and the fish have many hectares to swim in. Law of averages tells you that the big fish are never far away, but when you get your chance, you must ensure things go smoothly, or you may not get another window during your session. Unlike a lake such as Cassien, which has a smaller head of carp, but there certainly seems to be a better average in Cassien by a country mile. In my first session at Cassien and after 29 carp, my average was 41.5lbs. At the end of my session and after catching a total of 69 carp, my average was still an impressive 36.5lbs. The big carp are certainly in Sierra Brava, but the sheer numbers of carp, and the large head of back-up, smaller sized, yet fast growing commons and mirrors, just means catching a big fish is a little bit harder. That factor for me though, is why I like this water so much. If I wanted easy fishing with a massive fish every chuck, I wouldn’t be sat here now.

The Sierra Brava theatre of dreams.

The sun's on fire and giving off smoke!

I love Sierra Brava!

Sierra Brava has the scenery, the wildlife, the ruggedness, the impressive sunrises and sunsets, the carp fight for all their worth, and I simply love the place. There are plenty of other waters within an hours drive but I don’t want to fish anywhere else. I have a slice of heaven right here on my doorstep, a stone’s throw from my house. I am very lucky indeed!

I will be back tomorrow.

Jake & Flash

At eight-thirty yesterday evening I heard a carp roll down the left-hand margin. My rod placed in eight feet of water was near to where I heard the carp give away its presence. I heard another rolling sound, so I quickly slipped on my Wellington’s as the red led from my receivers lit up, and the tip subsequently whacked round. “What timing with the boots,” I thought, as I made a dash for the rod in question. As soon I was stood holding the rod however, I knew something was wrong. That terrible grating sensation came back up the line, and sure enough, it was probably caught on one of the many loose branches that adorn the margins at this time of year. This is one of the additional challenges that lay in store for anglers who fish when the water levels are at their maximum – the perils of driftwood!

One big branch = one lost carp.

I felt the fish pulling hard so occasionally I gave it a few turns of freedom. The fish didn’t feel particularly big or strong for that matter, so I started to gain line bringing the carp towards the snag. The line continued to grate, the fish pulled sharply a few times, and it was suddenly gone, leaving my hook embedded in the woody tangled mess. I put my rod down and donned my waders. In the darkness I waded out till my shockleader was back on my spool. I then applied pressure and the whole lot began to budge. Ever so slowly the big branch appeared from the depths, and there was my bright purple pop-up, hooked neatly on a small stem. The last time I was snagged I won the battle – this time I didn’t, and that’s the way it goes I guess.

Around nine o’clock the star’s twinkle was hidden by dirty clouds and the first drops of rain descended. It was comforting knowing the temperatures had dropped slightly and I lay there watching my isotopes in the dark. I was abruptly awoken at 3am by a single beep. The glare from the led illuminated the front of my swim as I waited for another burst – nothing. I needed to pee (!) so I nipped to the nearest bush and hopped back in the bag. Flash stuck his head out from underneath his cover on his bed as if to say “Do you mind mate, I am trying to sleep here!”

Thirty minutes later I had a liner on the margin rod from earlier. The three quick beeps had me into my boots in seconds and I studied the rod tip and checked the line was still in the clip on my SK3. Everything seemed in order so I returned to the bag again. Animal noises were in abundance last night; dogs, wild boar, otters, and a host of other park-life poachers. The otters are regular sightings at Brava and I see at least one every night. I remember a session last year when a family of otters were working the margins thirty yards along from my swim. It seemed the young were being trained by the parents and they had obviously just successfully executed a kill of some description judging by the splashing and fighting in the edge.

At seven-thirty I finally got the sound I was waiting for. A couple of beeps were followed by the thrill of the ripping baitrunner accompanied by my two receivers two-toned chorus. I was on the rod in seconds and immediately I felt the grating again. I continued to wind and suddenly the line pinged free. I wound down for what seemed like ages until I made contact, and the carp was actually right in front of me! It suddenly woke up but never left the shallow 18inch margins, instead preferring to do its battle, right here, and right now. There were a few tense moments as the carp almost tail-walked across the shallows to escape the net, but finally and with the help from my headtorch, she was mine – and what a beauty too!

I left the carp in the net and prepared the necessaries. I sat on my bed for a moment and took in the last few minutes. Deep down I felt I deserved that one. On the scales she read 14.75kg or 32.5lbs; I left her in the retainer, popped her back into the water, and got the kettle on whilst I prepared my camera equipment. There is nothing like photographing a nice common in the morning followed by a cup of PG tips!!

That will do for starters!

After the pics were done and she was duly returned I then made some breakfast. My boy Flash was given a long cigar-like rawhide chew to keep him occupied for twenty minutes(a normal dog would spend days eating it!), and I was just photographing him in full chew mode, when the margin rod signalled something was going on – another liner or a pick-up. I reeled in to find my fluro pop-up was not fully buoyant from the night before, so I changed it for a fresh one, filled a pva bag with some treats, and slung it all back into position; this was quickly followed by four spods of the margin mix for this particular rod!

OH YEAH!!

How is my new line faring? Well I got snagged earlier whilst reeling in one my rods. The 16lb held up fine and in fact the hook I was using, snapped first. I used to get snagged sometimes at Cassien whilst reeling in, and then would have to go out in the boat to try to free the hook or lead. Directly over the snag in the boat would allow a direct pull from above and quite often my hook would bend and free first, before any line breakage occurred – that’s what you call knot-confidence! Boats aren’t allowed at Brava so I always reel in quickly with the rod held high. If you get snagged then there is little you can do apart from waggle the rod around, walk in different directions to get another angle on everything, and then if all else fails – pull for a break. I hate losing tackle – not because I am tight, because there is already too much lying around on lake beds all over the world, and it really used to irritate me when I used to see anglers at Cassien pulling for a break, because they were too lazy to go out in their boat to free the end tackle, which to be honest, 99% of the time you get everything back.

Tuna - Frank W swears by it...

Tuna fish is an ingredient I am adding to my spod mix this session along with my other ‘bits’! The great thing about not having a bait sponsor anymore (and I don’t ever want one again)  is I am free to use whatever I want, and I no longer have to worry about saying the wrong thing. My spod mix is Vital based in that it has the SB-X boilies in it, but to this I have added some pellet, various Dynamite Baits liquid attractor, the tuna (Spanish!), and a few DB Mussel and Oyster boilies that I have to use up. Together it makes a fantastically fishy concoction that I am positive is helping me this session. The carp incidentally was caught on the snowman comprising a 24mm Vital SB-X bottom bait with a 15mm Mainline pineapple pop-up. This was fished with the blow-back rig using a long curved hook, and I placed a piece of shot behind the bottom bait to stop anything sliding on the hair, and to add some extra weight; so when the carp sucks it in, essentially it drops lower in the mouth making it harder to eject.

My fishy fish mix.

The rods have all been sorted for the next 24 hours and I have a feeling there is more to come. I said in a post a few days ago that the margins held the key when the levels are high, and it seems to be proving correct. However, if I do suffer from anymore losses due to branch snags, then I will definitely move swims tomorrow morning; only slightly further down the bank to my left, therefore still concentrating my efforts in this bay, where there do seem to be a few fish sheltering from the cold easterly, along with Flash and I, of course.

Cheers

Jake & Flash

I would like to begin this post by saying how grateful Flash and I both are for all your kind and sincere messages about the passing away of Charley. It meant a great deal to me and has certainly helped me deal with the whole process of adjusting to being one man and his dog! Flash, bless him, has adapted quickly to being the ‘only’ dog in my life, but Charley won’t ever be forgotten by either of us, and during our long walks together, he occasionally looks around for her, and I am sure I can hear her trotting beside me, watching out for her master. Thank you once again.

Charley at the mighty Orient.

I am now back in Spain and have been for the past week. I am settling back in but my feet haven’t really had time to touch the ground. My plans are going ahead for my guiding business but much has changed and it is now a sole independent venture. In a nutshell anyone who chooses to book with me will get professionally guided and catered for – completely by myself. That will mean quality fishing using quality tackle whilst eating quality food!

Over the next month I am gradually putting everything in place. The new website is already underway, a suitable house for myself and my clients, within close proximity to the lake, has been found and is being transformed into a fishing lodge, and high quality tackle is sat waiting to be used. I have been in talks with two bait companies (Quest and Vital Baits), to deliberately give clients choice; but rest assured they will work, and they will be priced to offer options for different pockets. Whilst I was in the UK my trusty van was sold and I returned with a 4 x 4, and a large, secure, box trailer. This transport will be used to safely get clients to the lake with enough space to carry equipment, and the kitchen sink.

All the tackle for hire has been chosen very carefully and is specifically for use at Sierra Brava, where boats incidentally are banned, but close range fishing is very effective. Having fished the lake and after catching many Sierra Brava carp from 10-90yards from the bank, I know what is required, and this is why certain tackle choices have been made. However, as everyone is different, I also carry alternative stock to cater for specific needs or requests – bigger reels, stiffer rods etc… For a list of the tackle you would be given during your trip take a look below:

• Sonik SK3 12ft 2.75lb/tc rods x 2 combined with Shimano 10000 Baitrunners loaded with Pro-Gold line

• Sonik SK3 Spod rod combined with a Diawa Emblem Spod reel *

• Sonik Sk3 Marker rod combined with a Shimano Navi 7000 *

• Gardner Scud rod rest system

• Atts alarms and receiver

• Pram style shelter

• Nash Indulgence Bedchair

• Trakker Compact Chair with arms

• Nash Monster Coral unhooking mat

• Venture XL Recovery Sling

• Reuben Heaton Scales

• Nash weighing tripod

• JRC Defender Landing net

• Korda Eazistik 20 & 25mm

Plus a host of other Trakker Bankside goodies such as stove, kettle, cookset, utensil pack, 10l camo bait buckets, cool boxes etc…

As you can see you will get provided with a brilliant selection of the latest tackle available, and if certain products do turn out to be unsuitable, for whatever reason – a better product will be sourced. More importantly specific items will be replaced every year anyway, to ensure customers are always using gear in great condition, rather than some old tackle that looks like it needs to be binned!!

One crucial aspect that I have looked at closely to ensure quality control is I only intend on catering/accommodating a maximum of four anglers during any one week. This is purely to keep standards high, and to ensure everyone gets equal attention, and professional guidance. I am more than happy to teach certain skills, help with rigs, or casting techniques for example, and I will always stay with clients for the duration of your holiday. Whether I actually fish with you myself will be purely down to the clients preference. Personally, I will be more than happy just to guide, cook, and take photos of your catches. Flash will obviously be on hand to serve and protect, so if the alarms don’t go off one night, you can be guaranteed of a safe nights sleep!

With regards to packages available there will be no restrictions or limits to what I can offer. Sierra Brava will be my offered water for year one as it has so much potential and I am addicted to the place; but if you are interested in other waters I can pass you onto another very experienced guide in the area. In year two I myself will be stretching further afield, allowing clients to explore other waters, individually guided by myself. I will specifically tailor individual holidays if necessary, and I will also cater for single clients if that is requested. I fully understand that any client who books a fishing holiday expects just that – a holiday.

With regards to staying on the bank at night there is good news that has been made official at Sierra Brava. Legal night fishing is now being made possible at SB and after speaking to the president of the local club, he confirmed this as of March 1st 2011. You were allowed to stay on the bank at night in the past, but whether you fished or not was down to your discretion or balls! This is great news for anyone wishing to book, worrying about getting caught, as now the path has been cleared. It is good news for the tourist trade and local economy.

As for the delicate subject of toilets and showers – well you know me! I have all of this in hand and suitable solutions to these facilities ‘bankside’ are being looked into. They may be a little Heath Robinson, but if it means you can take a hot shower every few days, and use a spotlessly clean toilet in private, whilst you’re fishing, that can’t be bad can it! I know some anglers are happy to nip behind a tree and go without a wash for a week, but firstly there is too much human waste on display at carp fishing waters around the world (Cassien for example) and it is disgusting and unnecessary, plus there is nothing like having a shower every now and then to freshen up or to get rid of the smell of carp slime!!

I have plenty of fishy tales of the ones that got away, and ones that didn't!!

Whether you just want to come to pick my brains whilst fishing and listen to fishy tales about Cassien and beyond, or simply to spend a week in mine and Flash’s company, or you are just in urgent need of sampling some fantastic Spanish Extremadura carp fishing – it doesn’t matter as we are both looking forward to seeing you soon.

My boy - happiest when in the sunshine!

Flash incidentally is making waves in the village and everyone is making a fuss of him wherever we go. I think he realises there are big advantages to be the only dog, as he now gets all the strokes and titbits to himself! I myself am settling in well and last night I went to a small Spanish gathering for some food and had my palm read. The results were very interesting indeed…

I will be doing some fishing very soon and will update you of any developments when they happen. My new website will include full details of everything you will ever need to know, such as what you will need to bring with you, travel options, other activities on offer, and lots more.

Catch you soon.

Jake & Flash

As I write this post, it reminds me of many mornings sat at Cassien. The sky is now blue, the sun is shining with strength, and the sharp morning frost has all but disappeared. Cassien in January, February, has very similar starts to the morning. You wake to a bitterly cold morning, a layer of frost lines the ground, and clings to unhooking mats; landing nets resemble stiff cardboard, and a warm cup of coffee is certainly needed to begin the day. I am on my second cup, and I am going to enjoy some quality time lapping up some late November rays of goodness! With the waves lapping the shoreline, if I closed my eyes and imagined, I could be on a beach anywhere in the world. Happy days!

I caught my sixth carp of the session from my little tree spot. I was actually spodding to my open water spot as I noticed the take coming. I had just cast my spod out when out of the corner of my eye, I noticed the rod tip start to pull round. This gave me time to drop the spod rod in the margin, and then after a quick grabble with the rod in imminent crisis, I was attached to the next victim! A short fat common had taken a liking to a larger bait presentation I offered. Big baits don’t necessarily catch big carp; however, my snowman trap, consisting of a 26mm boilie and 20mm pop-up fished with a blow-back rig, was laid down to see if a big hungry mouth liked the look of it. I don’t think this little carp could actually fit the whole lot in his mouth but he tried, and was hooked in the process. He put up a determined scrap though, and kited in a big arc from start to finish. I had to thread my rod under my other rods, including the spod, as tubby junior tried in vain to escape my clutches. An upper double chunk was unhooked on the mat, and returned after telling him to stick to baits his own size next time!

Wellies at the ready!

Waders or Wellington boots are essential at Sierra Brava. The margins are very shallow and whilst the practice of netting the carp whilst stood on the bank is possible, it’s not very wise. The margins are lined with gravel and sharp little rocks, so not only might you lose the fish, you may also damage the fish in the process, with scrapes or by scale loss. A big fish would probably beach itself, and if the hook pulled and it got away, you would only have yourself to blame. In the summer when the water is warmer, netting in bare feet is a lovely thought; however, now the water has a distinct nip to it, some foot protection is definitely needed. I have some Wellington’s which I slip on once I have the fish under control. I either slip on my desert storm side-zipped boots before leaving the bivvy, make a dash for the rod, and then switch into the Wellington’s whilst playing the fish, or I run out in socks and put the wellies on once things are looking in my favour. I have a long bankstick near my wellies to help with balance, as trying to put them on whilst playing a fish is not always easy. My wellies are too big which helps slip them on, and this wasn’t done deliberately, Le Chameau had a sale on, and the fur-lined pair that should have cost a massive price, were knocked down to a cheeky little number. The only drawback was they did not have my 45 size, so their last pair, a 49 (!), was taken home – best buy ever in my opinion!

I do now have a new foot friend though which I thought I would tell you about. Sonik’s breathable waders. These are very comfortable, they can either be worn using the floppy neoprene feet they feature, or with a pair of boots that are waded in. The actual wader clips onto the boot and the boots have slip-proof soles to keep you steady on shiny, moss adorned rocks. I just have the wader and last night I gave them the full test – wearing them in bed! The idea behind this is it means you can forget about wet feet, and worrying about whether or not you should put boots on etc… Instead once that alarm sounds you make a dash for it and it cuts the time it takes to get to your rod by those vital seconds you sometimes need. They are breathable, and even in my sauna like bivvy, I was not hot, I did not sweat, and my feet were dry this morning – plus I did get to test them with regards to a fish take.

Pink...

Orange...

Encore!!

I stayed up till 9.30pm last night. I could feel the air turning cold, and as the moon has now gone for a couple of weeks, the night seemed very dark indeed. I drank some coffee, some tea, followed by a glass of Canalva’s Tinto Fino Reserva (it was a Saturday night after all!), whilst gratefully watching the amazing sunset. If clouds are present on the hozizon then that is when you get the amazing coloured skies as the suns rays refract through the obstacles. I watched as the packed Saturday night theatre backdrop turned pink, then orange, followed by a blood red – quite a show by all accounts,and the best thing – the seats were free.  Finally I needed to lie down, so I donned my waders, and slipped into the bag. It felt comfortable, there was no rustling, and I was soon drifting off, when all of a sudden a loud “bleeeepppppppppp” came out of nowhere!

I often find that when I first drift off at night I am far more confused as to what is happening when a take does arrive. I shot out of the bivvy, and although a blue led was angrily glowing, and the reel was in a blistering meltdown, I still had to check which rod I needed to pick up!! Fortunately, I chose the right one, and immediately walked slowly to my left to draw the fish away from the obvious danger – a large submerged Spanish Oak tree. My 2.5lb SK3′s are becoming a joy to use as determined side strain is applied and the fish has to change direction. The fish reacted beautifully and started to kite left, I walked back to my starting point whilst keeping in contact, and the fish then turned and started heading right. In she came, reluctantly shaking her head a few times, when suddenly she forcefully took ten yards of line. I controlled the run with my backwind, and turned her back towards me. I was now winning the situation!

Another five minutes of angling tension passed, mixed with happiness I might add, whilst stood in the water watching the rod tip. The fish was not yet giving up, and after another marginal display of power, I finally saw the specimen in my headtorch. Mirror? Common? Mirror? Common?  “Common”!! I led her into my net and quietly let out a mini “Yay”! I had just landed my biggest common since arriving in Spain – no wonder I was grinning from ear to ear. 15kg was the recorded weight and a stunning common she was – deep, wide, and long, and fairly dark in appearance. I decided to do the shots at first light so I put her in her own sleeping bag in the water, checked she was upright, and then got the kettle on for a warm up drink.

Whilst the kettle boiled I got the rod back out to the spot, followed by three spods of boilies and three of tigers and hemp. The tea was needed, and tasted much sweeter than normal. I got back into my warm cocoon and was half-expecting more action, but was actually pleased this morning when I woke, to know that nothing else had happened, as I was well rested, and I had my prize to attend to.

Vital Baits.

Vital baits were the winner on this occasion, with a little help from the green joker – the Mussel and Anchovy fluro pop-up was combined with one of Nicky’s personal wafters, to give the whole presentation more lift for my 360 rig. I fished this with a three bait stringer, over a combo of the 15mm K-12 and SB-X  boilies soaked in the K-12 liquid attractor. The K-12 is Vital’s fish meal boilie, whilst the SB-X model has green lipped mussel combined with pineapple. For more details about Vital check out their website on my links page.

Take a test shot and adjust as required.

Job well done!

A happy carp angler with a 15kg common.

Self-take photography really is one of my passions, aside from the fishing, cooking, writing, and caring for two dogs; and I like to do a good job if I can, of everything. My remote for my Canon is still not working for some reason (note to self – I must buy a new one); fortunately, the ten second timer is an alternative method for taking trophy shots on your own. Important things to take into consideration are a good unhooking mat, and the fish must be relaxed before you attempt to begin. I usually get the fish comfortable on the mat, and cover it with a wet sling or sack. Pour lake water over the carp, and let it settle. (I was tempted here to write: finally add salt and pepper, and a basil leaf, but thought better of it!) Incidentally, I always take some test shots before I get the carp out of the water in the first place, and in this instance I did a manual focus on a bankstick where I would eventually hold the fish. I set the depth of field to 8.0 and used a powerful flash to add more light, due to the aperture size being smaller, and to add fill-in flash to take away shadows caused by the sun. The greater depth of field means you too, are in focus, as well as the fish. The end result is a much more balanced photograph. The trick with timer photography is not to lift the fish till she is ready. I usually do a couple of practice lifts first. If she struggles, then I cover her back up and leave her to have a tantrum. I also sometimes turn the fish upside down in my arms, which seems to help calm them down a little. When the fish is properly ready, and you know you aren’t going to have a fight in your arms, then you begin. Now ten seconds may seem like a long time, but it goes very quickly. In your head you should work out your fish pose, press the shutter release button, and then hurry back to the carp. Pick her up, smile, and wait for the click. I then gently place the fish back down, quickly check the result, and adjust the pose if necessary. When the sun is shining brightly, and at a low height, the most important thing to check is that the sun is not bouncing off the fish, straight back into the camera lens, creating horrible glare; turn the fish slightly at an angle to bounce the sun away from the lens and you get a fish that lights up beautifully displaying all of its splendour. I am very happy with the results on this occasion, and the fish was returned safely, without any damage, and swam off strongly.

That’s it for today folks. I am going to enjoy the rest of my day.

Cheers

Jake and the dogs.

Encouraging news but no carp landed unfortunately. Sadly the hook pulled at some point as I was on my way out in  the boat, and I ended up skimming my pink pop-up across the surface about 150m away from my marker. My 10oz grippa lead had released and I can only assume that the hookhold wasn’t nailed or the hook had caught the corner of the carp’s mouth and tore out. Either way it is encouraging news, and the move into deeper water was obviously a good one.

If I had landed this carp it would have been my deepest capture in the last 30 months. The depth I am fishing this spot is around 36ft; one night at Cassien back in 2008, I caught a 23kg mirror from 28ft. I do prefer the range from 13-21ft personally, as it covers a good range of temperature and depth, but if the fish are showing where the water’s deep, then it has to be worth a shot.

The run was quite amusing actually as the 6v battery in one of my ATTs heads is practically finished. I heard the low battery warning (a few quick and repetitive beeps) as the line moved the roller. This was all the indication I got but I then heard my baitrunner as the fish pulled line off in short spurts. Thankfully I have good ears, but the fish was lost so that makes little difference now! I have now ditched this alarm and am back to three rods. I have moved another rod out to join the deep spot rod so I have two hook baits in the area, and if I catch tonight or tomorrow morning, I will then put all my eggs in one basket, and stick all three out there!

I am off to sleep now, and lucky me – I have some dodgy restaurant music to send me off!

Cheers

Jake and the dogs.

Listening to radio one, online yesterday, revealed that the weather in the UK is pretty fine at the moment. I would imagine most of you have been out enjoying the sun, or even fishing perhaps? The football will be on most people’s minds today, so I decided to only write a weekend update to fill in the gaps since Friday’s post.

I have come to the conclusion that this lake is incredibly noisy at this busy time of year! Being a public lake it might be what you would expect, but after fishing several in the past 30 months (!) this rates as top of the pile for volume. We are in fact in a very isolated swim, down a steep track, off a fairly quiet road. This track separates a nursing home and a hotel. On Friday there was a wedding held at the hotel, followed by another one yesterday. The Italians certainly know how to sing, and by the sounds of it, also know how to throw a good party. The highlight of Friday’s wedding was when the newly wed, and happy couple, ventured down to the edge of the lake on the hotel grounds, just yards from our swim, to have some romantic photos taken. My friendly and inquisitive dogs decided to investigate this odd occurence, and the bride was last seen running towards the reception with brown stains on the back of her white satin dress! The photographer was a keen angler, so he enquired as to whether or not we had caught, took a snap of the dogs, and wished us luck!

I told Jon not to feed the animals!

The nursing home is, not surprisingly, a laid back and chilled location, and apart from the odd enquiry as to what we have caught from the residents, and the sight of one of the ‘hot’ nurses taking a dip in the outdoor pool, this has been the calming and peaceful side. Opposite our swim, 250 metres away, is the very busy main road. The traffic just never seems to stop in Italy, and as it is now the height of summer you can add to this constant hum-drum of noise, the late night parties, the revellers who have to scream and shout (for no apparent reason) all through the early hours, and the host of other unexpected raves above and beyond. Don’t get me wrong, I sometimes wish I was in attendance, rather than trying to sleep in a bivvy, looking at a green ceiling, but the worst noise is yet to come!

The dogs. Not my dogs, but a gang of dogs that obviously live opposite, outdoors, in someones garden, and I can’t understand how on earth the owners get away it. It can only be described as noise pollution! There seem to be three hounds, all with their own unique vocal range, that just do not stop howling and barking. The area opposite is made up of houses, on the mountain side, and there are several of them. Don’t get me wrong – I love dogs, but if that was in the UK, the RSPCA would no doubt be called out, along with the police, and I am positive there would be a film crew, shooting the next series of “Neighbours from hell!” We are probably half a kilometre from the yappy dogs, but it sounds like they are in Jon’s bivvy!

The Italians call this lake the Italian Cassien. The number of tourists and pleasure seekers it attracts could possibly be the reason that it is compared to the southern French venue; and the fact it is long and thin in places. It also holds some big carp, and these carp do seem to be quite nomadic, similar to Cassien. We have caught more carp since Friday, but only mid-doubles. I had one on Friday night on the tiger rod, Jon had two this morning from his hot-spot weed rod. It seems the bigger specimens are elsewhere for the time being, but just like Cassien there is a good chance they will pass through at some point during the next week. I have one week left and Jon is off home to his family this morning. I say I have one week left, I will fish till Saturday morning, and then head back to my base, in preparation for the next two-week session I have planned.

I can not move swims incidentally as all swims must be booked as I mentioned in the week. This is the swim we booked and it is here I must stay. One slightly irritating aspect of the booking system (it is actually a good idea) is the fact many people book swims and then don’t turn up. There are obviously vacant swims but you are not allowed to carp fish in them unless you have booked the space. You are allowed to book one particular swim in your name for four weeks of the year and it seems there is no limit as to how many swims and weeks you can book up for the year. I am sure some people book up so many, and then don’t arrive, unless they can be bothered, or the weather suits them. They should bring in a rule, where if you do not fill your swim within the first 24 hours, by confirming with the town office by text or telephone, then you forfeit your right to the swim. The booking system is a very good idea though, and for this reason: the town offices have all of your details so if you leave the swim in a terrible mess, they can chase you up, and ban you from ever booking a swim again. Cassien – maybe you should consider this system? Despite all of the above, I am more than happy with our swim choice and I am confident it may throw up a big fish before the week is out.

Shrinktubed hook baits ready to go.

After catching another small common from the pads on Friday night on the tigers, I yesterday moved this rod out into the middle channel to join my other two rods. I don’t think this is necessarily a spot for catching many carp, but I reckon it could pick up a big, lone, passing carp. That is now my plan and I am sticking with it for the rest of the week. So far it has thrown up the 35lb common and I am confident that was not a fluke. I am confident I would keep catching from the pad spot, but I don’t want to get up for anymore mid-double commons at 3am.

Clipping up...

To give it the biggun'...

Spot on!

In all fairness the action has slowed a little and the fish have got progressively smaller, but I am positive we had more fish here at the start of the session, that were hanging around to finish off the spawning. That has now stopped as they can no longer be heard, and quite possibly the carp were just ensuring they were completely done and dusted for the year, or maybe they were just perfecting their technique for next year!

What a sight!

Another successful landing by the road!

Ooops a daisy!

Here comes the rescue squad powered by 70HP!

You may have seem from some of the pictures that in front of us is a very high mountain. It probably rises up over a kilometre from the road and this weekend has seen a constant flow of paragliders. We have the best seats in the house for this display, and every ten minutes, a brightly coloured parachute drops from the sky, zig zagging its way down, and they are landing opposite on a very narrow strip of grass between the reeds (hiding the lake), and the dangerous and busy main road. There is an Italian red cross emergency boat on standby for any accidents, and yesterday afternoon at approximately 5pm, one of the daredevils got their landing slightly wrong. They landed in the reeds – sorry in the edge of the lake! The boat rushed to the scene and I am glad to say no one was hurt. The daredevil was later seen drying out his wet chute by the roadside, and Jon and I could make out a very embarrassed and red-faced guy, pretending he was just flying a large kite. It all happens at public lakes!!

Enjoy the football, enjoy the rest of your weekend, and come back tomorrow for another update.

Cheers

Jake and the dogs.

P.S Flash and Charley, although from German heritage, are supporting England, and predict England will win by two goals to one; and Rooney will score!

I hope you all had a good weekend. I am very glad to say that I didn’t waste 90 minutes on Friday evening, watching England play a game of football, that was by all accounts a truly dull affair. I will listen to the next game on the radio this week, but as usual England are making it very difficult for themselves. This is a true and classic England scenario; struggle at the start, if they win the next game they are through, but they always blunder their way through the group stages. It happens every single tournament they play in and it seems they have to take every England fan to the cleaners and back. Where is our consistency? I am not really a football fan and I couldn’t care less really, but I am patriotic, and I like to see my country do well in any sporting event. If we do get through to the knockout stages will the usual penalty fiasco be relived? I am not a betting man (anymore), but I would definitely stick ten Euros on England losing to yet another penalty shoot out… It is written in the stars!

Three rods a piece!

I am fishing again and set up with my English acquaintance Jon who lives 30km from the lake in question. We are sharing a small swim, so it is a slight squeeze, but more than manageable if fished sensibly. We have already caught three carp, Jon taking a couple, and me the one. It seems the prebaiting that Jon carried out may have been worthwhile after all, and judging by the number of carp we have seen show since we have arrived, there are certainly a few in the area. The biggest so far is a 25lb common that Jon caught after an early morning recast, more to check the state of his boilie, more than anything else.

My little mutant carp!

My carp was caught from the edge of some pads to my left. I used corked tiger nuts, fished over Frenzied tigers and hemp. My other two rods are sporting the Mussel and Oyster pop-ups which I am fishing over the Carp-Tec Mussel and Shellfish boilies; these are what Jon had been prebaiting with. I decided to start off trying pop-ups, and Jon went for the bottom bait. His two carp therefore came on the bottom baits.

Jon's early morning recast carp!

When we arrived yesterday the rain was in full flow. It drizzled for most of the day, so we got the shelters erected and then slowly got the rods and other bits sorted. I took Jon out for a recce in the boat and using the echo sounder we identified a large bed of Canadian pond weed in front of us. We have decided to fish in front and behind this feature, and that’s exactly where Jon’s two carp came from. It seems our placement for the first night was spot on and I am sure the carp have been returning to look for boilies that they have been coming across for the past two weeks.

There has been a close season on this lake for the last month so the carp can spawn. The lake has therefore been devoid of carp anglers and the lack of bait going in will have had an effect on their feeding no doubt. This was the reason we decided to prebait for the last two weeks to give us a start on the competition. This is a public lake and you actually have to book a swim, you can’t just turn up and fish. The booking procedure is quite tricky and complicated and involves phoning three separate towns that surround the lake. The swim you wish to book must be allocated to you, then you must fax in completed forms with license numbers and ID etc; a public lake with a difference. The old Italian carp record was apparently caught from here a few years ago at 72lb (a common) and that fish is still in here.

Steep mountains surround the lake - they're quite a sight!

The lake itself is long and thin. Four kilometres is the length, we have two hundred metres to the other side, boats are permitted but only for feeding, searching, and playing of carp. No dropping rigs from the boat is allowed, so it’s casting only – just like Lac de St Cassien actually, although sadly not many people pay attention to that rule!!

The Armo in action, and fishing out of the back of the van - love it!

Unfortunately my Colossus bivvy is somewhere in Europe! It was dispatched from Trakker on Tuesday and should have arrived on Thursday. TNT… where is it? I actually think it would have been too big for this swim anyway, plus my van is at the back of the swim so I have my extra storage space. Dave Mills at Trakker is now trying to trace where my bivvy has vanished to, and as I will certainly be needing it at the next lake, I am also keen to know what has happened to it. I have decided that I am not done with Italy yet and after this two week session I am going immediately to another lake and fishing for another two weeks. The Italian job is far from over! I am now going to tie up a few bottom bait rigs in preparation for later as it does seem that they prefer these to the pop-ups which certainly makes a change of late. I will report back tomorrow with more news from the “new lake” for the next two weeks.

Cheers

Jake and the dogs

I thought I would write one more post before I leave for the UK tomorrow evening. A few twists and turns happened in the last twenty-four hours at the lake and I feel I must tell you what happened as it was amusing, yet it caused a great deal of problems. You may remember I said I was going to stop fishing in my last post and just enjoy my final night at the lake. I still had two rods in the water so I decided I may as well leave them where they were to see what happened. This is what happened!

We even had our own ducks for company!

I explained earlier in the week that my mate had to go off to work every day as he works in a garage. It was a shame for him because he missed the morning feeding period, and most mornings when he got up to reel in his rods, I was out in the boat playing a carp. I am sure it was rather frustrating for him, knowing he would be at work, and I would either be sleeping or hauling – both beat working! Chesa incidentally had managed to catch twelve carp during the session and I was really hoping he would catch a few more on the last night. Only time would tell.

I began clearing up and had a take!

I had begun to have a clear up during the afternoon when one of my rods took off. It was the 20kg rod so I had a good tug of war before taking to the boat. I noticed the wind had begun to pick up a little before the take, and I had to drop my anchor to keep me steady, once I neared the fish. The carp put up an amazing fight and I was relieved when I glided the golden creature into my net. The increasing chop made netting it quite difficult but I took advantage of the tiring carp and the swell, and steered it on the surface into my waiting net. As I returned to shore my friend had just arrived. “Everytime I arrive or go, you are in that boat with a carp,” he laughed! “Get the rods out mate, this wind is going to get them on the munch big time,” I shouted back!

Kite surfing winds!

Now I should explain here that my friend is much younger than me. He is a nice lad, he has a good heart, he speaks good English, but he talks far too much! He would strongly agree with that statement by the way. He has grown up by the lake and loves his fishing and has been undertaking the sport for about four years. On a recent trip to Morocco’s Bin El Quidane he managed to catch 15 carp to 22kg, and in fact caught the biggest carp in his group of Italian anglers. He is a fairly competent angler but he would catch more if he heeded some advice and stopped nattering all the time! I am sure any Italians reading this, who know the guy, are probably laughing and nodding their heads in agreement.

Rather than get his rods out immediately, he started telling me about the morning at work etc… “Chesa, get your rods out!” By the time he had got two out, which took him two hours, the wind had now picked up to epic proportions. It was now unsafe to go out in the boat, and in a way I was relieved for myself, as it did mean my session had come to a premature, but welcome end. I knew it was the type of wind that wasn’t going to die down, and although my friend kept hoping it would, I told him it wasn’t, and he should feel lucky that he at least had two rods out in the water. “If you get a take, you will have to play the carp from the land,” I said. “So be prepared.”

I had to carefully play it from the bank!

Take to the water...

Pick the right moment...

And somehow get it in the net!!!

The final carp of an incredible week's fishing!

Just as it was getting dark, my final rod registered a take. I played the fish very carefully and much to my surprise the carp fortunately did not kite to the left or right. I manage to guide it all the way across the bay, and then had to jump into the choppy water in the deep margins, in my waders, and get the fish into the net. It was tricky but reminded me of a time when I was playing a 49lb leather at Cassien in very similar windy conditions. I had to angle the net against the direction of the strong winds, and allow the carp to float in on the top. It worked, and I was pleased with the final outcome of a carp caught in conditions when you would certainly expect to lose them. Once again I think my pilot float helped keep the line away from the many snags in the bay. Incredibly out of all the fish I caught I only lost four carp. Two were down to hook pulls and two were from takes whilst I was out in the boat, and the fish managed to drop the hook, before I had any chance. This really proves how effective my pilot float idea was.

The wind was now at what I would class gale force. No boats, no fishing, take cover in a safe place away from trees, and watch out for flying objects. The wind continued all night and in the morning, if anything, was getting stronger. We now had a serious and annoying problem. Packing up and getting our equipment to our vehicles was going to be a logistical nightmare. The distance from the swim to the vans was over two hundred yards. The water was too dangerous to even consider a boat trip, and the wind was also against us – we had to go right, the winds were blowing left! I told my friend to get a wheelbarrow from home and we would have to take all the stuff by hand and in the barrow (don’t forget we had several massive lorry batteries). We had no other choice and it was going to take ages. To make matters worse, with the waterlogged ground, and all the flood debris, littering the ground between ourselves and our vans, travelling the distance was a complete headache. The wheel of the barrow kept sinking in the mud, getting stuck in debris, and as we were both exhausted from the very demanding week, it was a final ‘kick in the teeth’ that we could have done without. The lake had the last laugh for sure, as we started packing up at 9am and we got home,a mile away, at 5pm. I ate some food and then fell asleep within minutes on the settee in my studio flat, and woke up at 8pm this morning with a dog lying on top of me!

Despite the final drama that has to go down in history as my best ever week’s fishing. There was certainly nothing easy about the tough conditions, continuous rain, and rising water, and I am sure many people would have given up and gone home (as most people on the lake actually did). My stubborn will, and sheer fight to the end got me the carp I have been trying to get since I arrived in Italy last year. It is not a personal best common, but it has to rate as my most deserving common, and the multitude of marvellous mirrors I landed, just made the week an unforgettable one in my eyes. Why did I catch so many? I was obviously in the best part of the lake where the fish were holding up. The actual fishing itself wasn’t that difficult. I wasn’t using an echo sounder, I was just casually dropping my rig a couple of metres from the reeds, but the timing was impeccable. The fish clearly liked the bait I was using, but hand on heart, I don’t think the bait mattered too much this week. The carp were going crazy and scoffing anything in their wake. To put it bluntly they were being suicidal!

They just could not resist it!

I will see you all again very soon. I will be fishing again, starting on the 30th of May. Make a note in your diaries, or better still, if you haven’t registered to the RSS feed, do so now, as you will be automatically notified when I post the next blog, or alternatively follow me on Twitter which also informs you of new posts, and brings you short live statements, during my sessions.

Cheers

Jake and the dogs.

I am not a particularly religious man but with the abundant rain that has fallen from the skies, and the fact it is Easter Sunday; I thought I would include this parable from the bible. At the moment it seems rather apt!

Then the Lord said to Noah, “Go into the ark, you and all your household, for I have seen that you are righteous before me in this generation. Take with you seven pairs of all clean animals, the male and his mate, and a pair of the animals that are not clean, the male and his mate, and seven pairs of the birds of the heavens also, male and female, to keep their offspring alive on the face of all the earth. For in seven days I will send rain on the earth forty days and forty nights, and every living thing that I have made I will blot out from the face of the ground.” And Noah did all that the Lord had commanded him. The lord then directed all of this rain to a large lake in northern Italy, where Jake and the dogs are fishing!!

February 2009 in Aviron at Cassien.

I remember sitting through eight days of solid rain in Aviron, at Cassien last year. It was a miserable and wet experience (I even shouted at the heavens for it to stop at one point!), yet just as I am now, all you can do is try to get through it, and keep your spirit’s high, and your mind focussed. The lake has obviously risen a few inches and if it rises any further then I will be in serious trouble. Fortunately the rain that has fallen non-stop since yesterday is not too hard; it is just persistant. This in turn means that the rain water is not flowing through the forest with such a force as before, after a few of the torrential downpours I have endured.

It's a cracker!!

How many of you fell for my chicken egg wind-up yesterday? Come on, be honest, I got you didn’t I?! It was my belated April fools joke for all of my readers to tie in nicely with the ongoing Easter theme, just to show you all, that despite the conditions, I do still have a sense of humour. The unusual bird I saw was not a wind-up though, and in fact is a black woodpecker. I have not managed to get a good shot yet, so I have posted a library picture.

One of these birds was five metres behind my bivvy yesterday!

I am currently on bucket and sponge duty in my sleeping bivvy because the water is coming through the pathetic ground sheet that Mr Nash decided to use on the Double Top Extreme MK2 bivvy. Why am I using it when I am with Trakker? Well I have already explained a week ago that I am waiting for my Colossus to arrive and until then the dogs and I need a big shelter for these long sessions. One common problem I have noticed with ground sheets in general, is too many of the manufacturers make them with a join in them; a stiched join I might add; and where will the water come through – the stiched seam of course. Trakker have managed to find a source for a wider roll of their groundsheet material which ultimately means their groundsheets will soon be one piece. One piece groundsheets – one step ahead!

The great thing to take out of this soggy situation is I could get a run at any moment. My faith is strong (Amen) and with the continous rain and the muddy water that is trickling into the lake, the carp may come into the margins searching for food at any time.

Hope you all had a great weekend!

Jake and the dogs.