ACE specimens and coldwater carp fishing tips

WELCOME to another of our exclusive daily blogs here on the Angler’s Mail website,  by Matt Rand on behalf of the guys at tackle brand ACE. 

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STILL CATCHING ‘EM IN THE COLD

NOW we’re officially into winter, we should probably be expecting the fishing to be tailing off, right? Well, it appears that no one has told the carp this and we’re still hearing about some fantastic catches from our anglers.

A lovely big old mirror for Simon Hofgartner.

An angler who has been getting amongst the fish of late is Simon Hofgartner. In the past month or so he has landed many decent fish over the 20lb mark, including a couple of cracking 30lb-plus specimens. Targeting a couple of different waters, Simon put his faith in the new soon to be released boilie from Dynamite Baits – the Monster Tiger Nut ‘Red-Amo’.

During a 5-day session, Simon landed no fewer than ten carp, with the majority of these weighing in excess of 20lb’s. Two of the fish also topped the scales at over 30lb, making his first outing with the new bait even more conclusive! The fact that this bait had never been introduced to the water prior to his visit has given him no end of confidence in the bait! All of Simon’s fish were landed using Camo Core hooklinks in 20lb Weed Green tied too ACE BBP Razor Points.

John Waller’s followed up his 44 with more fine fish.

Another angler that is consistently giving the carp a hard time is John Waller. On his most recent session he visited a new water he had joined and experienced similar results as Simon, when his ‘Red-Amo’ boilie produced a stunning 44 lb 2 oz mirror on his first session using it! Amazingly, even though this was to be the first fish out of the venue for two weeks, he also received another run as he was playing out the 44, but unfortunately this fish came adrift. John’s biggie was nailed using a size 6 CXS Razor Point.

Iain with his big French fish.

Iain’s been catching since he got back too. This 30 came from Farriers.

As reported last month, Iain Macmillan experienced a great session at Gravier’s, France, when a massive 65lb mirror, known as ‘The Long’ fish, picked up his hookbait.  Iain’s fish became yet another victim of the ‘Red-Amo’, and was joined by two other 50lb specimens. With extremely cold conditions the fishing had become exceptionally slow, but with three fish of this calibre gracing his net, he was hardly complaining!

On returning to the UK, Iain continued his impressive run of form by landing a string of other specimens from Farriers in the Cotswolds. This water is notorious for it’s large common carp, so he was over the moon to land a stunning mirror tipping the scales at just over 30lb. As well as this fish, he added a further 30lb heavyweight in the shape of a torpedo-shaped common. All of Iain’s fish were taken of our Razor Points in BBP pattern, tied to CamoCore hooklink material.

Colwater carp fishing tips

Think about hook size.

1. Winter bait –  Many people still continue to fish through the winter with the same boilies that they have had success on during the summer. Sometimes this can work, but it can pay to opt for a proven winter bait.

2. Hook size – Smaller baits often work a lot better during the colder months, so always be sure to scale down your hook size accordingly.

3. Location – It’s  everything in winter, so make sure you keep your eyes peeled. The times that fish show themselves may very well be short early morning periods, so be alert at all times.

4. Zigs – In deeper waters there will be a certain depth that remains warmer than all others, and this will often be where the carp are holding up. Never neglect zig rigs at this time of year, as they can be the key to producing bites in the winter.

5. Focus – It’s been said a hundred times, but in winter you need to remain warm and comfortable to fish effectively. As soon as you start to feel the cold, the chances are that your fishing will deteriorate very quickly.

CAUGHT A BIG FISH? Report it to Angler’s Mail magazine by email to: [email protected] Or use the online catch report form >> HERE.

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ANGLER’S MAIL’S NEXT BIG CARP BLOG  WILL APPEAR ON MONDAY, DECEMBER 9.

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