Gaz Fareham explains why the Soft Boom Hinge aka 'The Cobra' is his go to rig - sharing his vast knowledge on the most effective set up to catch bites.
We ask Marcus Clark - With the vast majority of lakes now having already closed for spawning, the season of cold lager, barbecued meats and hungry carp is upon us. With this in mind, how do you approach your angling throughout the warmer months and how does it differ from other seasons?
Yes the season of late nights early mornings and bloody mosquitos is upon us but I must admit I'm not summer's biggest fan. Being a big lad (cough cough..) I end up sweating my knackers off just being there, let alone with the setting up and chasing them part! It's not all doom and gloom though as summer can be a very productive period on some waters with fish having spawned they are at lower weights and they need to eat to recover and replenish their health and often large beds of bait, correctly positioned, can be the way especially on those venues with a large fish per acre, as these fish will need more bait as there is more competition for the natural food which might be available – a free pile of bait can be very appealing to such fish. Trying to work a swim with regularity and sitting on large beds of bait can be as good a tactic as any this time of year, as the carp often cover a lot of water over the course of 24 hours so will often mark where the food is, ready to return come feeding time. At the other end of the spectrum, on the very rich waters with a large amount of naturals and a low stock, say a fish or 2 per acre, these can be really tricky at this time of year and it can be hard to tempt such fish to eat bait. One such water I fished several years back now was Fen Drayton which was a plethora of naturals and they didn't need our bait. One thing I did find would produce the odd bite for me and some similar thinking friends was to use a boilie that the naturals absolutely loved and to find this out we tested different baits in the edge to see which ones would be covered in snails, shrimp and other aquatic life. Once said bait was acquired we would simply look for signs of fish and even when at range just boat to within casting distance and chuck long running chods consisting of the bait rolled onto corkballs and then scatter 100 freebies around the zone. I am sure the carp were picking up the boilies because they were covered in naturals and not necessarily in order to eat the boilie but to eat the naturals instead – certainly food for thought.
Yes the season of late nights early mornings and bloody mosquitos is upon us but I must admit I'm not summers biggest fan. Being a big lad (cough cough..) I end up sweating my knackers off just being there let alone with the setting up and chasing them part! It's not all doom and gloom though as summer can be a very productive period on some waters with fish having spawned they are at lower weights and they need to eat to recover and replenish their health and often large beds of bait, correctly positioned, can be the way especially on those venues with a large fish per acre, as these fish will need more bait as there is more competition for the natural food which might be available – a free pile of bait can be very appealing to such fish. Trying to work a swim with regularity and sitting on large beds of bait can be as good a tactic as any this time of year, as the carp often cover a lot of water over the course of 24 hours so will often mark where the food is, ready to return come feeding time. At the other end of the spectrum, on the very rich waters with a large amount of naturals and a low stock, say a fish or 2 per acre, these can be really tricky at this time of year and it can be hard to tempt such fish to eat bait. One such water I fished several years back now was Fen Drayton which was a plethora of naturals and they didn't need our bait. One thing I did find would produce the odd bite for me and some similar thinking friends was to use a boilie that the naturals absolutely loved and to find this out we tested different baits in the edge to see which ones would be covered in snails, shrimp and other aquatic life. Once said bait was acquired we would simply look for signs of fish and even when at range just boat to within casting distance and chuck long running chods consisting of the bait rolled onto corkballs and then scatter 100 freebies around the zone. I am sure the carp were picking up the boilies because they were covered in naturals and not necessarily in order to eat the boilie but to eat the naturals instead – certainly food for thought.
"Trying to work a swim with regularity and sitting on large beds of bait can be as good a tactic as any this time of year."
"Trying to work a swim with regularity and sitting on large beds of bait can be as good a tactic as any this time of year."
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