Stalking Success On A CarpSchool Tutorial | Angling Masterclass
Stalking Success On A CarpSchool Tutorial byCEMEX Angling
Added 8th November 2005 at 14:49
Myles Gascoigne reports on one of his Carp School guided stalking trips...
Stalking Success On A CarpSchool Tutorial | Angling Masterclass
Stalking Success On A CarpSchool Tutorial
After a 10 fish catch on his first CarpSchool 1-to-1 session Mark Woodings and friend Ryan Finkill decided to book some more tuition to learn about the exciting method of stalking carp. The chosen venue was the Blue Pool at Burghfield because of it's crystal clear water and deep margins. At this time of year when the banks become a little quieter the fish are happy to spend parts of the day close into the bank often only 1 or 2 feet from where you might be standing!
The lesson started by taking a stroll to locate some fish and introduce some bait. Polarised glasses are a must for this as are drab clothing or some of the Realtree kit that is now readily available. Remember if you can see the fish they can probably see you. Both Mark and Ryan found some good fish and began flicking tiny particles of bait into the swim. Mark was using paste and Ryan Dynamite Baits Marine Halibut pellets in various sizes. It wasn't long before both anglers had fish feeding on their baits. The trick is to gain the fish's confidence and if possible create competitive feeding amongst the fish in the swim.
The pair were really excited at this point and couldn't wait to get a hook in the water. This can be where many anglers fall down. Putting your hook bait in too soon, before the fish really get there heads down reduces your chances of success. The swims were left with a few more free offerings and rigs for each situation were tied. Both used X-Line on the reel and clear leaders with small lumps of tungsten putty to make sure the leader was tight to the lake bed. Small Korda inline leads were used with 6 soft braided hooklinks. Hooks were Korda wide gapes in size 10. These hooks are strong enough in open water but larger hooks should be considered in swims containing snags. Ryan used a Halibut Pellet on the hair and Mark wrapped some paste around a 10mm pop up.
Both anglers quickly learnt how slowly and quietly moving into position must be so as not to spook the fish. A short purpose designed rod will help in many swims. Mark had bought a new 8 ½ custom made rod from Yateley Angling Centre and Ryan used a Free Spirit rod of the same length supplied by CarpSchool. The short rods also help to keep control of the fish in the tight swims.
Once in position the fish could still be seen in the swims. A few more baits were introduced and were quickly cleaned up by the fish. Perfect, now it's time to get a hookbait in. This couldn't be done with the fish still there, so a small piece of bait was thrown in a little harder than usual. The fish didn't spook off startled but they left the swim for long enough to get the hookbait into position. The rod was placed on the ground with the baitrunner engaged. Mark couldn't help but look over the vegetation to see if the fish had returned but as he did the line came tight and he was in!
The fish put up a fantastic fight as all the Blue Pool carp do and was great sport on the short rod. Up on the scales the fish went 19lb 12oz. What a way to christen a new rod!
The two friends went on to catch a total of 7 fish during the remainder of the session both in the edge and out in the lake, with 2 fish falling to a zig rig.
If you would like to learn about stalking carp or any other aspect of the sport give CarpSchool a call on 01962 865 850 or take a look at www.carpschool.com.
You can check out the YAC stalking kit review here.
