4th October - Boulthurst Farm, Limpsfield, Surrey

The first weekend in October saw me back at Boulthurst Farm for another afternoon/evening (what there was of it) session.

The pond is not that large, around an acre in size. Coupled to this is the fact that we can only fish one side of it so the number of fishable swims is really only 4, one of them is a double.

The double is the one I refer to as the beach swim. This is because under normal water level conditions there is a small 'beach' area which you can fish from as opposed to sitting on the high bank. See photo below:

The rod on the left was set up to fish on the edge of the overhanging tree about 15 yards out. Approximately midway between the tip of the shadow and the tree (see photo below).

The second rod was set up to fish about 5 yards in front of the lily pads. (See picture below).

I had bought some seafood boillies to supplement my supply of monster crab ones and it was one of these that tempted this 6.5lb common on the very first cast! (See photo below). Sorry about the quality.

An hour later the new boillies worked again! See picture below:

Although the 'fishy' baits caught the bigger carp, the tutti fruitti ones worked well for the small stuff.

So, by the end of the session I'd caught half a dozen carp which for an afternoon/evening in October I took to be a good return.

Just to show you that there is countryside a mere 20 miles from the big smoke here's the view I have from directly behind me.

Till the next time.

27th September - Boulthurst Farm - Limpsfield, Surrey

Another Sunday, another afternoon/evening carping trip to Boulthurst Farm.


I was set up and fishing by 13:43 in my favourite swim at the right hand end of the pond which can be seen from the photo below: (sorry about the quality).


The rod on the right of the picture was set up to fish the over-hanging tree in the margins. The depth was about 2 foot. Casting distance was no more than 10 yards.


The rod on the left of the picture was set up to fish the open water about 15 yards from the bank.

Twenty minutes into the session and this common cap was on the bank:


Both swims then went quiet for a while. At 15:57 this excellent condition common took the bait and found its way onto the bank:

Another quiet spell followed and then at 17:41 I caught my best carp of the season! As luck would have it there was somebody else fishing the pond that day and so I was able to get a 'real' photo!

I can't remember exactly what it weighed but I think it was around the 8lb mark.

Anyway that was it for the session.

13th September - Boulthurst Farm, Limpsfield, Surrey

It had been nearly a fortnight since my last carp outing and therefore I was keen to get out in the autuminal sunshine before it disappearred for the year.

Always one willing to experiment (as long as no one was watching) I'd bought some white chocolate boillies. I'd seen in the angling press that these could be quite deadly.

I arrived at the pond about 2pm to find one other fishermen and a couple of EA bailiffs! As I was only carping for the afternoon and evening I'd only taken the bare minimum of tackle and yes you've guessed it - I'd left my licence at home. A quick check on their computer confirmed that I did have one and all was well! The licence now lives in my car!

Once the embarressment had died down I set to work setting up my two rods. As usual the first was by the margins and the second was in open water.

I didn't have long to wait for the action to start. A two pound common took a carp pellet boillie as expected from swim 1.

The carp pellet boillies were working well because moments later a 3 pound common took one!

At 14:39 (camera timing!) the buzzer went on rod 2 and this 4 pounder with a liking for tutti fruitti boilies was in the net.

15:45, the buzzer on rod 2 went off again and this 5 pounder was in the net. Each fish bigger than the previous one! At this rate the carp record was all but mine!

At 16:02 the increase in size continued as this 7 pounder also to a fancy to a tutti fruitti bait!


That was it as far as the best fish of the session went, I had a couple more smaller ones before I had to pack up as it got dark.

I must say there is nothing better than sitting by a pond on a late summer's afternoon - beats the telly hands down!

Bye for now.

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WHITE COCOLATE

11th September - Private pond - Holland, nr Oxted, Surrey

This year's summer was showing no signs of breaking so on Friday September 11th, I decided to suspend my carp fishing and have a day float fishing on the club's private pond, just outside Holland in Surrey.

I arrived around 7am and my favourite peg (number 1) was free so I made way round to it and contemplated my plan for the day.

The water was dead calm so that made my mind up to fish a very light waggler tight to the lily pads in the corner of the pond to my immediate ight. The depth there is about 18 inches or so. I would also feed the margin swim to my left in the hope of picking up some bonus carp later on in the day.

I mixed some groundbait and fed two generous balls into the first swim. Coupled with this I also fed some maggots and a handful of hemp. To both swims I added a few grains of corn.

I was using my 12 foot float rod which is better suited for the bonus carp than my match rod. I had 5 lb main line to a 4 pound hook length on size 16 wide gap hook. A 2bb waggler dotted down completed the set up.

I started on swim 1 with a piece of strawberry flavoured corn. Although I could detect life in the swim nothing initially showed any interest in my bait. I put this down to either small rudd and roach or my grounbait doing its job so was not particulaly bothered.

As the first hour drew to a close I hadn't had any action at all in swim 1 on the corn. I decided to have a go in swim 2. I'd been feeding it a couple of grains of corn every 10 minutes or so.

Within seconds the float disappearred and I was into a fairly good fish. I played it within a couple of yards from the platform directly in front of me so I knew it was no monster. A couple of minutes later into the net came a very nice tench of around 2 pound.

Back to swim 1 and a change of bait brought me a few small (very) roach and the occasional small carp (mirror and common). None of them more than half a pound.

On the grounds that the corn and to a certain extent then maggots wern't working I decided to try bread. I wasn't using a punch so the flake on the hook was quite large which gave me the problem of small fish nibbling but not taking the bait. However when I did hook into a fish it invariably was a crucian carp. I couldn't keep count of them but it was something like a fish a cast for the next hour or so.

The only drawback was that once when I put my hand in the bread bag a bolt of pain shot up my arm. I withdrew my hand pretty quick to discover that I had been bitten by a wasp!

The pattern was set for the remainder of the morning. From the margin swim I managed to get another two good (for me) tench and the occasional better quality roach and from the main swim small carp, small tench and a load of crucians.

During the morning I had left the luncheon meat in the sun so that the outer skin hardened enough for me to use it on the hook. I'd been feeding the occcasional lunp or two in the margin swim all morning and at about two thirty I decided to give it a go. I was rewarded with a beautiful common carp of around 5 pound.

For the rest of the day I fished swim 1 with corn and bread taking crucians and small carp mostly and then every hour or so I would dip in the margins and take a bonus carp.

I did lose 2 good carp later on in the day.

I packed up at 7pm having had a great late summer's day. I must have caught around 70 fish including crucian carp, roach, rudd, tench, mirror and common carp. I'd learn't that if one bait doesn't work -try something different, in this case - the magic bread!

Till the next time.

Sorry about the lack of photos but my batteries went in my camera!

28th August Boulthurst Farm, Nr Limpsfield Surrey

The summer (pre global warming) should have been coming to an end but the weather was still great so off I went for another session at Boulthurst Farm.

My usual swim on the far left hand side of the pond was free and within 30 or minutes or so I had set up and begun fishing. See picture below:

By now I'd expanded my bollie bait collection to include:

Tutti Fruitti

Monster Crab

Chocolate

Pineapple

Seafood Feast

Carp Pellet.

I'd learnt over the previous weeks that no one bait is 'the killer' at this venue and that finding the one for the day is the trick. To that end I'd decided that if a bait flavour went for an hour without a bite I would change it for another. If a bite was registered or even a fish caught the clock was reset so to speak. This would ensure that I was always on "the bait of the day" at some point.

The first rod I cast down the margins just where the tree reaches over the water at its furtherest. See picture below:

The pond is not too deep (around 2 foot where I cast into I suppose although if I'm quiet I can often see them patrolling along the bank by my feet.

The second rod was cast towards the middle of the pond to the right of my pod. See photo below:

I started to catch almost immediately on both rods - here's an example of the carp that were being caught. Sorry it decided to move at the wrong moment!

I ended the session with about 6 carp.

A nice return on a late summer afternoon and evening session.

Till the next time.

19th August - Boulthurst Farm, Limpsfield, Surrey

Couldn't waste the good weather so decided to set off to the pond for another afternoon/evening session.

I suppose, because of the good weather it was no shock that I found that all of the swims that you can fish using two rods were all taken. Therefore I had to take the lily pads swim and fish one rod. See photo below:

I fished about five yards the other side of the lily pads using tutti fruitti boillies. The plan was to stay in the swim until someone went. The odds on me being the last out were good so I was confident that another swim would become available.

I set up my usual rig, 6lb main line to a size 14 hair rig on 5lb hook length. The bait was cast and the waiting began.

After half an hour in the intense heat I began to realise why this swim was the last one taken - it was completely barren of any shade! Now I was prepared as far as liquid refreashment went - I had a bottle of Coke plus there were several bottles of water in the car. What I didn't like was warm Coke!!!!

To my immediate left, separted by a tree and a bush that was overhanging the water was a father and young daughter. He was floating some bread on the surface and she had a buzzer rod set up. To be fair the rod was enormous compared to her. After an hour my buzzer went off and I struck - nothing happened and then a voice said "I think she's cast over you!". Anyway 5 minutes later I had sorted her (the tangle not the girl) and myself out and all was well. There was no harm done and everyone was ok about it.

Around 5pm the father and daughter left and I moved into their swim. I was still able to fish the original swim but now I could also fish the margins on the left with my second rod.

Within 20 minutes of having the far side of the pond to myself I began to catch. Choice of bait didn't seem to matter as they took everything I put in. The margin swim producing first and eventually the most fish however as the light began to fade my original swim started to produce.

A great way to spend a summers Sunday afternoon and evening.

Till the next time.

17th August Boulthurst Farm, Limpsfield, Surrey

This is another of my carping sessions at Boulthurst Farm.

Slight detour from the usual format I think is due this time. I think it's time to have a look at the progress I'm making in my carp fishing skills.

I believe, as with everything in life practise makes perfect. I started carping only 4 weeks previously and to be honest I've found it does bring a bit of variety to my fishing.

I like to float fish, as it is what I started off on. There is however something different about a Sunday afternoon sitting in the sun watching the wildlife going about their business while waiting for the rods to bend round that is really relaxing. For a full days fishing though I will always go for the 'traditional' method.

As far as the carp fishing goes, in terms of weight I'm no better off than when I float fish. The best fish I've had this season using both methods is about 7 pound. The difference being that because of the extra strength of the carp rods I can get the fish in easier (and more confidently).

Here's my opinion of where I am in my development:

I think I've got my set up sorted with the exception of the rod pod - to be honest it only cost a tenner and after 2 months use, 3 of the legs are super-glued on!!! They are not strong enough to go into the ground during the summer so when I do get a bite if I'm not quick enough everything heads towards the water.

I've also been experimenting with different boillie flavours. For this session I'd got some carp frenzy flavoured ones. On the first cast a carp took it while I was still putting the line through the buzzer! I did get it in once I'd got over the shock!

Anyway here is my favoured swim for the day:

I actually fish to the right and to the left of where the rods are pointing.

By the end of the session I'd bagged about 9 carp - no monsters but very satisifying all the same.

Till the next time.

Ken