Getting ziggy with it! Zig-rig Secrets From Gardner's Alan Stagg

This entry was posted on 31st March, 2016

As seen in Coarse Fishing Answers Magazine…

Getting ziggy with it! 

Alan Stagg is, although he won’t admit it, a bit of a zig fishing expert, so who better to talk you through the dos and don’ts of this exciting method. We join him on the banks of Thorpe Lea Fishery, a venue gaining a reputation as a bit of a zig-rig Mecca. The 18-acre venue was stocked with 2,500 carp up to 18lb in 2003 and since then they have really packed on the weight, with 27 fish over 30lb and one in three fish being over the magical 20lb mark.

Fishing zigs really has grown in popularity over recent years and it is now becoming a bit of an art form, but, like all tactics, you need to get it right to ensure success.

We join Alan busily setting up in a swim that gives him great access to the middle of the lake, an area that he thinks will deliver the goods on a windy, cold day.

Hit the spot To give him the edge over anglers around him, and to reach the tightly shoaled fish in the main basin, Alan will be casting around 90 yards. At this distance accuracy is key, because a few misplaced casts will dump his carefully prepared spod mix away from his target area; distancing fish from his hook bait and significantly reducing his chances of a bite.

To get this accuracy there’s a number of stages that he goes through. Firstly, he casts out to his desired spot, clips up using his reel’s line clip, then winds back in. Next, he places two banksticks 12 feet apart. From here he fastens his line to one stick and wraps line around the first stick then the second, counting every time he goes around a stick. Alan counts out 221/2 wraps, then does the same with his spod rod and clips up when he reaches 221/2. This ensures that he’ll be hitting that same spot time after time. Also, when he has a bite and needs to get back on the mark he can wrap his line 221/2 times around his banksticks and away he goes again.



If you don’t like the bankstick method you can walk your rods out along the bank until you hit the clip. Then your spod rod can be walked out the same distance and clipped up. However, on busy venues there are often anglers walking along the bank and you don’t want your rods to be stepped on or rolled over by a barrow!

For added security Alan attaches marker braid to his line after casting, giving him a visual indicator. When casting, he lines up with a far-bank marker, in this case an unused swim. He uses this as a target to cast towards and his line will hit the clip, ensuring he drops down at the right distance. As his lead approaches the mark, Alan feathers his spool to make sure he doesn’t snap off or bounce the lead or Spomb back towards him.



In the mix Alan’s spod mix is crucial to his success. He wants to get a column of oily particles falling through the water over the top of his zig. To do this he combines CC Moore Bait Booster Response + Cream with the same brand’s Sweet Nut Cloud Spod Mix. He then adds his own liquidised hemp and corn. Alan doesn’t want his mix to be full of large particles, he wants his foam hook bait to be the number-one ‘food’ source when the carp arrive and the mix needs to form a cloud through the water column.



Tackle Up For fishing at distance, like Alan is, you’re going to need strong tackle to get out there among the fish. Alan uses a pair of ESP Terry Hearn, 12ft, 3.25lb-test-curve rods, coupled with his old-school Daiwa Emblem big-pit reels. He loads these with 12lb main line, giving him a strong setup that will deal with big carp and long-range casting. However, you don’t have to use specialised tackle like this. If you’re looking at casting shorter distances, your normal 2.75lb-test-curve rods will work just fine. Alan’s spod rod is also from ESP’s Terry Hearn range and with a 4.5lb test curve it’s able to handle a fully filled Midi Spomb with ease. Alan uses 30lb braid on his spod setup, which can take a lot of punishment from continual Spomb bashing.



The Business End Alan uses a large 31/2oz lead for his distance zigging for two reasons. Number one, it can be cast out a long away, and number two, it aids hook-ups. Because of the long zig hooklength the carp has a lot of line to pull against the weight, so the heavier the weight, the more effective it will be for hook-up success. Alan advises using slightly lighter leads if fishing closer to the bank, around 21/2oz to 3oz should do it.



When zig fishing he uses hooks that are slightly smaller than you would when bottom-bait fishing. He uses a size 12 Gardner Mugga and attaches a small piece of Gardner Zig Rig Foam. There are a number of colours but Alan especially likes yellow at this time of year. His hooklength is 10lb Gardner Zig Link – a material specially designed for zig-rig fishing and a product that hasn’t let him down over the years.



In Session The weather isn’t ideal for zig-rig fishing, with a strong wind pushing into Alan’s swim. A quick talk with the owner tells us that the fishing has been difficult but the odd fish has been coming out to bottom baits. Despite this news, Alan is still confident.

“This lake is full of carp,” he states. “A lot of guys fishing here at this time of year fish small PVA bags, cast them out and wait, but I want to be very active. Spombing will be vitally important and I want to keep a stream of bait entering the water over the top of my zigs. “I’m hoping that the carp will switch on to this and come to investigate.”



He starts off his session by sending out his two rods – one with his zig set at one foot and the other at two feet.

“If I start catching at one foot I’ll switch both rods to this depth,” says a confident Alan.

After his rods are in position he tightens the line.

“I want my main line bowstring tight to the lead. This gives me the best chance of a hook-up.”

Out go the first parcels of spod mix, despatched right on the money. He feeds half a dozen loads of his cloudy, oily mix and this creates a giant slick on the surface.

“The oily goodness of my spod mix really does get the carp going crazy in here and you can see the birds have stopped diving around my hook baits. I think the carp have arrived!”



Alan’s right and within five minutes his right-hand rod lets out a couple of bleeps and he strikes immediately.

“Sometimes you get tentative bites like that when zigging,” shouts Alan, as he feels the force of a Thorpe Lea carp kiting left into a thick weed bed.

He manages to release it from its weedy home and slowly brings it towards his waiting net. Then disaster strikes as, without reason, the hook-pulls.

“Because I’m using smaller hooks I really have to be careful when I have the carp in close. I should let them run and take my time netting them. Sometimes, though, like then, there’s nothing you can do. We’ll get one, though; there’ll be more where that came from!”

Alan casts back out a yard to the left of his spot.

“That’s not good enough,” he moans. You really do have to hit the spot. If you’re slightly off, wind in and cast again. Two minutes casting is better than sitting behind static rods all day.”



Sure enough, Alan’s next cast lands right on the spot and as he’s walking back to his chair his bobbin falls to the floor. He hits into the drop-back bite and once again he’s bending into one of Thorpe Lea’s finest. Following a lively scrap a fish of around 17lb smiles for the camera.

Alan’s not finished there, though, and he sends his winning bait – 1ft yellow zig – back out into the mixer. Over the top of this goes another few Spombs of bait.

“I’m expecting a bite around 10 to 20 minutes after I’ve introduced more bait. If I don’t get one after 45 minutes I’ll be back out with the Spomb. To get the best from zigging you have to stay active, especially at high-stock venues like Thorpe Lea,” he says.

True to form, 15 minutes after baiting, Alan’s alarm is back in action. This time a pristine 24lb mirror makes a mistake.

Keep active, keep your baiting tight and you too could have a great day’s zigging, just like Alan.

The Tackle Box ESP Terry Hearn Carp Rods Daiwa Emblem Pro Reel Midi Spomb Gardner Zig Link Gardner Mugga Hooks Gardner Zig Rig Foam Gardner Rig Bin

The Bait Box CC Moore Response Liquid CC Moore Milk N Nut Crush