Carp fishing in the winter can be incredibly bleak at times, and many anglers choose this period to target other species until spring rolls around, when the temperatures begin to rise and the carp start feeding again.
However, for those willing to put in the time and effort, there can be some exceptional fishing on offer. What’s more, for anglers plagued by busy syndicate waters and day-ticket lakes, this time of year can sometimes mean having the lake entirely to yourself, allowing you to capitalise on any signs or opportunities that may arise.
This was exactly the case for carp fishing legend Ian Russell, who, on a trip to Frimley Pit 3, amassed a string of huge fish, including a 50lb carp known as Charlies Mate. This, adds to a previous fifty he banked just last week from the popular Linear Fisheries complex, just proving, if you aren't there, you won't catch them!
HEAD TO ONE OF THESE VENUES FOR CONSISTENT WINTER CARP ACTION...
"Despite a good walk round the lake, there weren't any signs of fish or activity to go on, so I settled into a swim I had some success in on my last session," Ian told us.
"I have found that being stealthy is of utmost importance at Frimley – they hate the disturbance of the Spomb. To combat this, I tied up 10 PVA bags of 10mm iScream boilies, 10 bags of iScream crumb and 10 bags of maggots, and catapulted them all around the swim," Ian explained.
"I put the rods out at the same range as the last session and within an hour I started getting liners which was encouraging. This happened last trip too and I was slow to react, so this time I pulled all three rods in and staggered them at different ranges to try and find out where they were feeding.”
LEARNING HOW TO FEED WITH A CATAPULT IS A CRUCIAL SKILL.
Reacting quickly to what the fish were telling him, it wasn't long before Ian was rewarded with his first fish of the session, and what a start it was - landing 'Jerry's fish' at massive 42lb 4oz. After returning the fish he wrapped up all the rods to the same distance and got them back out before another 30 PVA bags were deployed over the top.
"A few hours later, as I was making dinner I had a quick brace of fish from the new area. One of the pair was a lovely 31lb scaly mirror, the other a perfect 33lb common. It was bonkers, I had only been there a matter of hours and already had three fish on the bank," Ian said.
"By now it was completely dark so instead of firing 30 bags out, I reduced it to 15 to try and stay as accurate as possible. I would rather be less than perfect with 15 bags than fire 30 all over the swim," he added.
After a quiet night, which allowed Ian to get some much needed rest, at around 8am the action resumed and Ian was unhooking another 30lb common. After slipping that fish back, it wasn't long before he was in again, however, this time the culprit was a much larger 43lb common, making it his second forty in less than 24 hours angling.
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"It was simply mind-blowing fishing, and as before with every fish I topped the swim up with another five bags of each mixture of maggots, crumb and 10mm iScream, to keep the fish interested," he said.
“Liners continued and I was hoping for more. At 1pm I was chatting to Mark, the owner, and mentioned ‘Charlie’s Mate’ – the big ’un – when the right-hand rod suddenly pulled tight…
“I’ve caught that fish twice before nearly 20 years ago, so I jokingly said, ‘Don’t want that one again!’
“This carp came in really easily, which strangely enough is exactly how it behaved all those years ago, then it just ploughed up and down the margins," he recalled.
THESE CARP FISHING EDGES WILL HAVE YOU CATCHING CARP LIKE IAN!
As they continued to joke, a big fish rolled over and it became apparent it was that fish. This struck silence into both of them and it reminded a little tense until the fish finally ended up in the net.
“It was indeed ‘Charlie’s Mate’ and at a humongous 52lb! The bailiffs came down to help with this great big fish and, to be honest, I was a bit dizzy. It was all a bit crazy – and despite being a recapture, it was a new UK PB common!”
DON'T GO CARP FISHING WITHOUT A SET OF THE BEST FISHING SCALES.
The enormous and highly sought-after common provided the perfect end to a truly red-letter winter trip for Ian and, like the others in his epic haul, fell to half a 14mm Yellow iScream pop-up presented on his favourite Lock Ronnie Rig, with 10–12 maggots flossed on top.
Ian’s UK big carp tally since December now stands at two fifties and five forties from two different venues, plus at least 15 thirties thrown in – that’s winter carp fishing for the history books.
