howzit guys
well we finally got a chance to go out fishing again. having worked the last 3 weekends right thru firstly with the move to new premises and then with the boilie roller from the UK, it was time to sleep outside again. the dams in CT have been low and now the rains are finally starting to fill them up.
things were tight time wise in terms of preparations and halfway thru getting the kit ready, i realised i was not going to finish in time. when one is fishing a weekend i really like to have my lines in good spots by the end of friday nite. if one is fishing tough dams there are only 2 good oppertunities for a bite and i didnt want to stuff the first one by struggling to put lines in at first light on saterday. with linds help to set up camp i managed to get all my lines in on reasonable spots on friday... i was using cell with the hookbait enhancer and the pop ups in snow man rigs as i was not sure how silty the bottom was...rolling cell boilies i also had access to the paste which lets off loads more flavour than the boilies and can be moulded around the hook for added attraction especially when baits are laying for a long time (see pic)
sat morning came and went... no sign of any fish activity from first light onwards...the dam i was fishing at was a bit of a mystery: mega tough with only 9 fish out in a year and a half of other anglers fishing...and 4 of those on one weekend! its about a hectare in size and barring spawning there are about 50 fish in there with 3 fish in the 20kg+ range including the biggest fish every caught in the western cape... should i say biggest confirmed fish as people often say that they have caught bigger and there are lots of 70lb fish swimming around... after listening to more bs than a man can be asked to, i have 5 words SMTFP or show me the #*!@# photo...unfortunately those folk who genuinely do not have a pic or lost it etc get tarred with the same skeptical brush which is a great pity and goes to show how destructive lies actually are- where trust in a small community of people is eroded...
anyway after zero activity on sat morning i thought i needed to really understand the dam. some people use marker floats and others fish finders. i have used both but if you have ever swum over an area you thought you knew as a result of working a marker float or using a fish finder you will realise how totally different it is to what is actually there. swimming at this time of year is not recommended--it is freezing
. i waited till about 11am in the quiet period of fish activity but the sun was still weak...diving down in a strange dam by myself in freezing water is not my idea of fun but if i wanted to see what was going on there was no other way
the dam has a white clay base which i dont like as its infertile and can be very silty. if you had asked me before what the bottom was like i would have said silty with stones in it...what a surprise most of the bottom was very firm and there were large areas of gravel and even the silty areas were only 20cm or so in depth... it just highlights how different our perceptions can be from reality...
after the swim i moved 2 of more rods to new spots, which meant a shift in camp to get the right angle, something LInds did uncomplainingly, bless her!
as the water is pretty clear see in the photos, camoflarge was important... i was using the korda gravel colour set of rubbers and the atomic coated leads... after having swum and seen how much rocks were in the water i was less worried than i had been about the leads standing out
there is also a huge terripin (fresh water turtle) problem at the dam and they eat boiliies and particles happily- even the sweet stuff. no the last one wants is to be sitting behind still rods...only to realise that the bait has been eaten off! gardner bait armour is brillinat for this!! it works on birds, turtles, crabs etc... it is like shrink tube for bait... and you would think it puts the carp off. not at all- i have caught 3 fish at this same dam with the bait armour on....(see pic below)
sat nite came and went. it was heaven sleeping in an open brolly under 5 duvets listenign to every sound of the dam... and it was noisy...the only sound that i didnt hear was the bite alarm
... and all too soon it was time to pack up and head back to the city...
in conclusion i spoke to some other guys who fished sunday at a prolific venue and also didnt catch so i believe there was something in the weekend weather that the carp didnt like...adn i get to give the dam another shot in july
tight lines!
J
well we finally got a chance to go out fishing again. having worked the last 3 weekends right thru firstly with the move to new premises and then with the boilie roller from the UK, it was time to sleep outside again. the dams in CT have been low and now the rains are finally starting to fill them up.
things were tight time wise in terms of preparations and halfway thru getting the kit ready, i realised i was not going to finish in time. when one is fishing a weekend i really like to have my lines in good spots by the end of friday nite. if one is fishing tough dams there are only 2 good oppertunities for a bite and i didnt want to stuff the first one by struggling to put lines in at first light on saterday. with linds help to set up camp i managed to get all my lines in on reasonable spots on friday... i was using cell with the hookbait enhancer and the pop ups in snow man rigs as i was not sure how silty the bottom was...rolling cell boilies i also had access to the paste which lets off loads more flavour than the boilies and can be moulded around the hook for added attraction especially when baits are laying for a long time (see pic)
sat morning came and went... no sign of any fish activity from first light onwards...the dam i was fishing at was a bit of a mystery: mega tough with only 9 fish out in a year and a half of other anglers fishing...and 4 of those on one weekend! its about a hectare in size and barring spawning there are about 50 fish in there with 3 fish in the 20kg+ range including the biggest fish every caught in the western cape... should i say biggest confirmed fish as people often say that they have caught bigger and there are lots of 70lb fish swimming around... after listening to more bs than a man can be asked to, i have 5 words SMTFP or show me the #*!@# photo...unfortunately those folk who genuinely do not have a pic or lost it etc get tarred with the same skeptical brush which is a great pity and goes to show how destructive lies actually are- where trust in a small community of people is eroded...
anyway after zero activity on sat morning i thought i needed to really understand the dam. some people use marker floats and others fish finders. i have used both but if you have ever swum over an area you thought you knew as a result of working a marker float or using a fish finder you will realise how totally different it is to what is actually there. swimming at this time of year is not recommended--it is freezing
the dam has a white clay base which i dont like as its infertile and can be very silty. if you had asked me before what the bottom was like i would have said silty with stones in it...what a surprise most of the bottom was very firm and there were large areas of gravel and even the silty areas were only 20cm or so in depth... it just highlights how different our perceptions can be from reality...
after the swim i moved 2 of more rods to new spots, which meant a shift in camp to get the right angle, something LInds did uncomplainingly, bless her!
as the water is pretty clear see in the photos, camoflarge was important... i was using the korda gravel colour set of rubbers and the atomic coated leads... after having swum and seen how much rocks were in the water i was less worried than i had been about the leads standing out
there is also a huge terripin (fresh water turtle) problem at the dam and they eat boiliies and particles happily- even the sweet stuff. no the last one wants is to be sitting behind still rods...only to realise that the bait has been eaten off! gardner bait armour is brillinat for this!! it works on birds, turtles, crabs etc... it is like shrink tube for bait... and you would think it puts the carp off. not at all- i have caught 3 fish at this same dam with the bait armour on....(see pic below)
sat nite came and went. it was heaven sleeping in an open brolly under 5 duvets listenign to every sound of the dam... and it was noisy...the only sound that i didnt hear was the bite alarm
in conclusion i spoke to some other guys who fished sunday at a prolific venue and also didnt catch so i believe there was something in the weekend weather that the carp didnt like...adn i get to give the dam another shot in july
tight lines!
J
Do you think the carp were just not in the mood for food that day? What do you think put them off the bite?