Short Session Carp fishing

Nice article Phil.

Short sessions are certainly winners in my eyes and allow me to stay focused.

Prebaiting?
Don't start me on that one again, more people should do it, but can't be bothered.

Short sessions are the only thing i can do these days...and because I am actively hunting the carp, I have had more and bigger fish in 2001 than any other year.

Well said Rik

I haven't fished a night for six years now, although I reckon there may be a few this year.

I started short session fishing when I chose a water that was strictly days only - I found I became far more in tune to the lake , the fish and their habits than when I fished for longer periods of time.

The short sessions made me work to catch, after a I'd got into the swing of it minimal gear, mobility, watching etc it didn't take lond to realise that more than one fish in a day was possible.

The days sessions quickly turned into three of four hours after work, the weekends being pretty unbearable. I found that I instinctivly knew what swim I should be in whether I was wasting my time or going to catch - I'd learnt more in four months than the previous six years.

I fished the lake again for seven evenings last summer (after five years away) and landed two decent mirrors and a lovely common, plus a couple of monster tench. Using the same methods tactics from when I fished there regularly - to give a pointer my mate landed his last fish on my third visit - he hasn't had another since July and thats fishing two days mid week every week, but fishing from the car probably hasn't helped him turn on, tune in and pull em' out.

Thank you Forestry Commission

Rob

P.S Rik, what were you mentioning about pre-baiting on the phone? The Forest Drums have been beating - not best pleased with a certain member of the 'Team' who has managed to let the entire club know the score within days of eventually finding out - I reckon May / June is going to be, shall we say not so 'uncommon'.........

I agree with Rob that you do become more in tune with things on regaular short sessions
it really is fun fishing but can be very effective as well.
The bait going in really is the key and Rik I think hits the nail on the head when he says basically people can't be botherd to do it. If you can't do it alone then maybe get together with one or two mates and take turns.

Phil

I'd agree with Rik too - a lot of anglers seem to think that you only prebait if you are in a top syndicate or are sponsored by a bait company - silly me! it would be a waste of time on a day ticket lake anyway!

The same goes for amount of bait used on short sessions - vitually every angler fishing the lake I have referred to (Rik knows it) seems to think that bait scares the fish off (this stems from a couple of blokes who did well on bags but not over bait) so for the last three years the carp are lucky if they ever find more than 2 boilies in the same acre. The few sessions I did last summer involved no prebaiting but a bombardment of 2kg of bait and a bag of ball pellet when I arrived - it worked very well too - yet many anglers view things like this as a fluke, the theory that your hookbait is the last to be taken shows they haven't much faith in their rig, hookbait and freebies. I want my bait to be eaten like all the others - carp don't read mags!!

Yet single Fluoro pop-ups are all that can catch a carp these days......

Rob

Talking of short sessions and pre baiting...Oulton Broad is the place for this. Everyday the water there is prebaited with bread and duck feed thanks to tourists and kiddies. If you are very careful, you can see 20 pound carp cruising about under the ducks. I reckon if you got the ducks next to a boat, and flicked a piece of breadflake actually under the boat (to keep it away from the ducks), you would be onto a killer method.

I'm eady for a good year of short prebaited sessions... Well I as assoon as Haiths deliver...

Excellent article, Phil - interesting, thought provoking and easy to read.

Congratulations on your success. Hopefully, we'll have a follow up before long.

Good read Phil i can't wait to get back out there and do a short session myself

Nice one Phil.It has inspired me.

Not sure about the leader above the article but very good piece Phil.If only I lived 20 minutes from the Seine.If only I lived 20 minutes from a river I wanted to fish.Why are they always 2 hours plus from home.
Best of luck on the river and I hope one of the real monsters graces your net very soon.
Thinking about it I could probably just about get to the Seine in 2 hours if I took the eurostar all the way to Paris.
As for not fishing in the rain well I tried to fish the Thames Friday night and It poured for hours.Eventually gave up when 5 oz wouldn't hold bottom.Yes Paris in the sunshine looks very inviting.

Nice article Phil
I fished the Seine once where it meets the river Yonne and I could not hold the bottom with a 1lb of lead.
And when one of those hugh boats went by with three hugh piles of sand or gravel it was dragging my rods off the rests.
As luck would have it we found a side bit which opened up into what looked like a big lake.
So I for one can appreciate your fishing.
good luck in the future

Wow, thanks for all the kind words. Best bit is hearing people say its inspiring them to give it a go! I have to be honest and say the fishing is really not that difficult..if you can find em they will eat just about anything.
Just out of interest Large rocks tied to weak links that break on the take is something I 've messed about with when the current/boat wash becomes impossible for normal leads.

Back out there in June so let me know if your rock theory works,how are you going to get it out !

Cakey, easiest way I have found is to wrap one of those large thick rubber bands tightly round a suitably sized rock and tie the link to that. Depending on the size of the rock you can sometimes get away with an underhand lob but if you go too big then the rod will struggle even underhand and the weak link becomes too heavy. I found a much easier way was to basically just chuck it in by hand. Much of my fishing is in the edge anyway but I think in the sort of raging currents where you would consider this tactic the edge probably offers your best chance anyway.

I know some guys on the huge lakes are also using these big break off leads at massive distance so they can really tighten up to it although obviously the only way in those circumstances is to boat it out.

Where are you off to in June by the way ?

Phil
I will give the rubber band a go with a under hand lob ,boating it out when I was there would have been out of the question it was so fast I would have been through Paris and out to sea in five minutes.
Im spending the 1st week of June at Etang De Vaumigny which is at Chateaudun near Chartes then the 2nd week in June Im onto the Seine at Montereau fault-Yonne,where the Yonne meets the Seine just south of Paris.