Back To The Pond - Scott Kingsley

This entry was posted on 21st December, 2015

After a hard three months of a river campaign it was time to return to the pond and get ready for some Autumn fishing. With the weather still warm things should have been easier, but they weren’t. I was working hard for the odd fish here and there; I love a good challenge and this water has had me scratching my head from day one. A water where one minute you will have a few captures then you will see a dry net, sometimes for weeks. I have found myself many times being on fish but they will not be fooled easily.

My first few sessions back found me trying to find the location of the carp as I was out of tune from the lake, this was not easy as the carp were not giving up their whereabouts like they did in spring and the fish were becoming harder to catch and wising up to bait and pressure on the lake. I started introducing CC Moore Pacific Tuna boilies in the areas I was fishing in small quantities. Over 6 nights in two separate sessions I had managed to get quite a bit of bait spread around the lake whilst trying to find the fish. This strategy was a sneaky baiting technique whilst getting to know the whereabouts the fish were visiting and giving them doses of the irresistible Pacific Tuna.



I had not caught on these sessions but knew the carp would get on the bait at some point when travelling around the lake. On my last night on these two sessions I had fish all over me but unfortunately the buzzers remained silent, this really started to get me thinking. Finally, after keeping an eye out, I found an area where the fish were holding up.

I arrived one morning and could get in the said area, where I could fish at close range for them. This was the week after I had found them and I knew they wouldn't move too far as there was a fresh weed-bed present. The fish had been forced to move from other areas of the lake as many of their favourite weed beds had started to die off.

I applied around 3 kilos of 2 day washed out tuna boilies that were also soaked in the tuna extract to a gravel plateaux, which I knew was a feeding spot. Washing out the boilies made the carp think they had been in the water for a few days and they would feed on them instantly when found. They would be considered ‘safe’.

A hinge rig with a glugged matching popup also soaked in the new CC Moore Tuna extract was cast onto the plateaux. The boom section of this rig was made with a Gardner Tackle material called Hydroflex. It's brilliant and I have been experimenting with this strong and extremely supple mono material for a few weeks. I used this to make sure the rig was sitting correctly on gravel areas and the rig was properly presented; if I used a stiff boom section I think the rig would have sat up unnaturally on the rocky debris which formed the plateaux, as it wasn't fine gravel! The Hydroflex material is also almost invisible and has a light green tinge to it which blends in perfectly with light silk weed which was also present.



The other rod was fished in open water to a silty spot just off a big weed bed, again with the same rig but with a stiff boom made of 15lb disruption skin. The camo effect on this material is perfect, I love the stuff.

The evening came and I was feeling pretty confident with the rigs on the spots and the bait placed perfectly around them, I woke early that morning with no action through the night. I knew that the fish were not far away so I decided to stay put. At around 10.30 that morning the heavy rain came that was forecasted. I looked out of the Brolley to the plateaux spot and a small stockie launched itself right out just behind the plateaux, I started rubbing my hands together knowing the fish were now on the spot beginning to feed on the Pacific tuna.

The fish continued to show in the area throughout the day over the bait without receiving a bite, this was strange as I knew they were feeding on the spot but still no pick up. I decided to leave the rig out there for the evening, I didn’t want to recast and risk spooking the fish. I topped up the area with 30 or so baits every 2-3 hours to keep the fish interested and hold them in the area.

Once again the following night passed without incident and I woke the next morning with no action. I had started to think that perhaps my rig wasn't presented properly or that I had overdone it with the freebies.



The heavy rain was still coming down and the fish were still present. From about 8 am in the morning the fish really started showing over the baited area, there were quite a few carp feeding on the bait. You could tell from the shows, they were boshing like mad. Absolutely loving the boilies, they were really going wild for them! Suddenly a good fish stuck its head out just to the left of the spot, I was starting to think about re-positioning rig, but it was a real catch 22 situation! I sat on my hands for around another couple of hours again applying 20-30 baits every hour or so with fish still showing.

The time eventually came around mid day, the bobbin slowly lifted to the rod blank and stayed tight. Finally I was in! The fish had made its way into a mass of weed behind the plateaux and went solid! Surely after waiting so long for a take I couldn’t lose it!?



Unable to do anything I calmly put the rod back on the rest and waited for the fish to swim out and naturally free itself. After five minutes, just as I was fearing the worst, that the fish had shed the hook, the tip jerked around and the fish started once again to take line. After a tense few minutes I eventually steered what I hoped would be the fish and a lump of weed (about the size of my bivvy!!) into the landing net.

Feeling for the fish in the weed I couldn't feel anything, pulling it apart and dumping it in the swim, I eventually noticed my line entering the green mass along with my leadcore leader, tracing it down to the hook I was greeted with the sight of a proper chunk!

After a few blanks from the previous weeks I finally had good’un in the net on the Pacific Tuna, I was over the moon! I prepared the mat, sling and scales and text my mate Rich, who had popped home, to tell him I had one in the net. He was soon back down and taking some pictures for me (much appreciated!) of the fish, which on the sales weighed in at exactly 31lb.

Successful session, I went home that evening happy!



I returned the week after at first light and walked around the lake in search for the carp. I entered a swim I was familiar with which had also seen a bit of bait on the session the week before and it felt right. I hadn't seen any fish anywhere so I decided I would go on instinct. I was speaking to a mate at work the day before saying how strange it was that I had not connected with a common as yet, he advised me to tip my bait with a colour.

I fished my usual hinge rig again with the Hydroflex boom section on a small bar that was close in, a Pacific tuna pop-up tipped with a piece of yellow plastic corn. Around 30 baits were scattered around it, the other rod was position off the island in front of me. This was my usual banker spot that I had been successful from on previous occasions. The rods were out and the south westerly wind was pushing through the swim nicely, everything seemed spot on. I sat back and relaxed taking in the view for the day and left the rods for the night, I set the alarm clock for 5.30am to take in the picturesque views of first light and lookout for fish.

At 7am a brutal one toner sounded on the Delkim from the rod that was placed on the bar with the tipped bait, a good battle was in play and finally a common broke the surface. The fish was far from huge but I was happy to have a common in the net, it's what I wanted despite the size. It went 18.2lb. I done another night in the swim with no luck and went home at midday.



I had a break the next week and went to the River Trent for some barbel fishing with a mate from work, another successful trip but that's another story.

Back to the syndicate I went the following week, armed with some new toys. I had bought myself some new rods and I had a feeling the new gear curse was with me. Lovely flicking the Air curves about but they remained with no action for a number of weeks; it really started to do my head in. All I caught in the space of about 6 sessions were tench and a very big bream. Finally everything came right when a lot of people had been struggling. I had found a way to catch the carp when they were not interested in bait at all. They were on the naturals hard, watching them fizz up on beds of natural food I had to try to trick them into picking up my rig when they were not interested in boilies.

Combi rigs consisting of a long subterfuge fluorocarbon hooklink of around 12-14 inches paired with the Trickster heavy coated braid and a size 8 covert Incizor hook. Also fluorocarbon leaders were used, I wanted everything to be invisible whilst they were being even more so tricky to catch. I mounted a 12 mm northern special to the hair and balanced it with a size 2 shot, then trimmed the popup to around 8mm making the bait even smaller. Not my usual rig choice for this time of year due to leaf matter and debris on the lake bed due to the Autumn conditions but I thought I would try it as the fish seemed to be burying their heads deep in the silt.



This rig tricked the carp and did so very quickly. I would wake up in the mornings and look for fizzers, areas where the carp were feeding hard on the naturals and then cast the rig carefully on top of them. I was receiving the takes within 15 minutes to half an hour.

The first result was one of the best lookers in the lake, within 15 minutes of casting to a fizzing spot mid morning a massive battle was on. I couldn't believe how quick the bite came. On the new rod the fish was running ragged all over the place, you could tell it was really caught out and it was shocked to have been hooked as it was supercharged and very aggressive.

A very spirited fight commenced and after about 10 minutes I had seen the fish roll about 25yards out, it was one of the fully scaled beauties. My legs turned to jelly and the adrenaline was pumping, after a few heart in the mouth moments eventually I had one of the lakes finest prizes in my net. What a fish, at 22lb, not one of the lakes biggest residents but who cares when they are so good looking! That really did make my day, what a way to break the new rod curse! I decided to stay one more night, but unfortunately I had no more action.



The next session was very much the same, it was four days later. Arriving in the dark I headed straight for the swim where I’d seen activity the week before, someone was a few swims away and he was a good angler so I quickly popped down to have a chat with him. He assured me he had heard a couple of fish in the corner of the lake, between the swim I had in mind and his, I just knew the fish were here! A huge forceful south westerly wind was battering the boards in front of me and it even smelt carpy, by this I literally mean I could smell carp in the area. Some believe this and some don't but I have found this a few times you can smell the carp, a rare occurrence, strange but true!

I left everything on the barrow and got the rigs on the rods, again the combi rigs were armed with the northern specials. The left hand rod was lightly flicked at the bottom of the marginal shelf where I had seen the show the week before which was around two rod lengths out. The right hand rod was flicked slightly further away leaving a good gap between both rods as I thought the fish would be spread about in the area.

The kettle was on and within 15 minutes the left hand rod belted off, the fight was underway and yet again I was battling another turbo charged resident. These fish were getting caught off guard you could tell by the takes they were brutal.

With the rod almost bent in half I eventually managed to get the upper hand and lured another mirror into the back of the net. Another good fish that went 26.4lb.



The rod was recast back to the same spot and I stayed put for the rest of the day and into the night.

The next morning I woke at first light keen and eager to see if I was able to spot anymore ‘fizzers’. Luckily just beyond the left hand spot some bubbling occurred around 9am. I flicked the rig right into the fizzing and like previously it didn’t take long to roar off, I hadn’t even finished toasting my croissants in the Ridgemonkey!

I was soon leaning into another decent fish, this one I could do nothing with, my first though being I had perhaps hooked the lakes resident catfish!! It was a while before I could get proper control of the fish but eventually it begun to tire and I was able to gain some line back. I saw the fish about 35yards out boil on the surface, it looked like another common! After a few more minutes I eventually steered the fish into the waiting net.

A wide framed common with big shoulders, a known fish I had been saying I wanted to catch for months! So much for the croissants by now they were smouldering and a little too well done!

On the scales the fish went 31lbs and was one of the lakes true big commons, definitely one for the future and one that in a few years time could do a really big weight.



Yet again I left the syndicate feeling over the moon, mission accomplished and another target ticked off the list.

Two more sessions have taken place since and I am now starting to introduce the winter bait, the Equinox. It’s the bait I started off with at the beginning of the season and it’s always been very successful for me, it’s a bait that I know works very well in colder conditions. Hopefully this winter will be kind and there will be some more good fish to come.

Tight Lines, Scott.