Latest Catch report from Keith

Posted by Keith on February 6, 2010 under Carp and Coarse Fishing, Catch Reports | Be the First to Comment

Stenhill Carp Syndicate,
Nr,Collumpton, Devon.
5th February 2010.

Hi all.

Well this is my first report for 2010 and at last I’ve had the opportunity like many of you to get back out on the bank side. Many reasons for not getting out which include the obvious horrendous weather which as blighted the UK for the best part of a month and a half.

We personally had some of the heaviest snow we have seen in Wales since moving there some 6 years ago. The children obviously enjoyed themselves hugely and the schools remained closed for two weeks. Thus giving the local kids a four week Christmas holiday! Poor parents! lol

Winter has always been one of my favourite fishing periods in the year. The banks are quieter, the fish are in their finest dark conditions and if your brave enough to really stick it out, catching fish during winter conditions gives you the most incredible feeling of accomplishment.

I have already started 2010 with a good spell of luck in the form of a new Syndicate ticket. The venue in question is the feature of my first catch report for this year. At just around an acre and a half, it’s not the biggest and most complicated water I have fished.

Albeit a very good level of stock to mid thirties and a big stock of twenties, it still requires a level of skill to catch these somewhat wary carp. The water is shallow, around 4ft maximum, with two small islands, a short horseshoe channel section and plenty of tree and reed growth to target the many very attractive specimens held in there.

I first went to the venue early last week for an informal meeting with land, fishery owner and extremely keen carper himself, Brian Cox….. Brian is a real gem, proper character, and all out genuine gentleman. The welcome was second to none and I truly hope we will over time become very good friends. The venue itself is set in some of the most glorious Devonshire countryside and the quiet hamlet of Stenhill.

Extremely good security, solid standing car park, running water, toilets and of course top quality fishing make this water one to certainly have a ticket for…..hence I jumped up and down when I received one of only 25 tickets issued per year for this very exclusive opportunity.

So, the day came on Monday of this week. My first chance to get back out on the bank side and of course my first chance to wet a line at the new water. I arrived mid morning to a lake covered almost totally with a thick layer of ice…..not what you want to see after 2 hours driving on the motorway!

Well, Brian was very helpful by clearing a couple of small areas for me to get a line into and gave me a few guidelines on the rules and of course the all important hotspots! I’m not saying that I need help to locate these spots, but of course every little bit of help edges you closer to bagging the all important first fish from a new water.

I set up on a nice grass section of bank next to a small island channel……the only clear patch on the lake. It just so happened that a few nice fish were clearly visible under an overhanging bush. I decided to target this area only for the first night. I managed to use the Microcat to position a bait just under the overhanging bush, which Brian assured me was totally clear underneath.

This was baited with a Mainline Milky Toffee 14mm white pop up on a split shot multi rig and size 8 Korda Choddy hook to 20lb Hybrid. Lead was a 2oz inline semi fixed set up to 2 feet of tungsten tubing.

It wasn’t long into the session before my first take. In fact the rod had only been in the water some 40 minutes or so before it tore of. The fight was a brief affair and a little one sided as the fish had little opportunity to head anywhere other than straight into the waiting net.

It was all over before the fish knew it was even hooked! Feeling totally relieved to have banked one already, I felt sure that there was others still under the bush waiting to be caught. I weighed the fish, a very pretty white Koi Carp of 13lb 10oz. Brian runs a strict ruling of using only onsite nets, weigh slings and unhooking mats….this is to obviously ensure that no disease is past onto these stunning fish.

Around 10pm on Monday night the lake was already struggling to stay away from being completely iced over as temperatures again dropped to well below zero for a consecutive night in a row. I managed to keep the ice away from my little spot and around 10.15pm I had another nice run from the bush rod. This fish fought a bit harder and I was happy to bank a nice mirror of 14lb 2oz.

By early morning the wind had swung around to the West and rain started to come in. This brought the air temperature up and started to melt the ice on the lake. This had a somewhat detrimental effect in that the ice obviously melted into the lake and dropped the water temperature by a further degree.

Doesn’t sound a lot but the difference between 3-4°c in angling for carp can mean the difference between catching and a total blank! Subsequently the day passed by with no action whatsoever. My next run came around 5pm on Tuesday and from around the still partially un-iced area near the island bush.

A small common soon breached the rim of the net and took the dial around to 11lb 6oz. The night pass by with no activity and I was left feeling a little disassembled by day break!

I felt my chances of bagging yet more fish from the small bush were pretty slim now. There was certainly very little activity around and under the bush and no fish were now visible. I decided a move to the open, deeper water section was the order of the day.

After breakfast on Wednesday I checked the water temperature and was chuffed to see it had at last risen to 5.1°C in the margins. I decided to position a rod to my left down the margin to a lovely set of tree roots which invades the water by some 2 feet. The other two rods were placed out into open water and some nice choddy spots.

I thought my luck was up by midnight as I’d had a few liners but no takes. I made the choice to recast all three rods around 2am and after a brief shower of rain, everything was ready to go again.
3am and the RH rod ripped off. A good scrap ensued and a few minutes later I was self taking pics of a nice 17lb 10oz Common.

I placed the rod back out and around 6.15am she again tore off at a rate of knots. A very pretty deep and dark mirror graced the net and swung the Reubens around to 18lb 15oz. A great way to end a cracking winter session.

So, it just goes to show that even in the hardest of weather conditions you can still catch Carp!

Get out there and bag a winter whopper! I’m off to Brasenose 1 next week for 3 nights with site regulars and good pals Jess(The Jester) Collins and Keith (Travelling Hawk) Paris.

Tight lines boys and girls!

Keith
x

63lb 14oz Catfish from Hazel Court Ponds

Posted by Keith on September 25, 2009 under Carp and Coarse Fishing, Catch Reports | Be the First to Comment

Keith Supple recalls the capture of a Personal Best Catfish from Hazel Court Ponds

The session was a short over niter which only came around because of a cancellation that occurred in my diary this week. With the Mrs and sprogs all having a dose of the dreaded flu lurgy, it meant that the usual 4 day excursion to Berkshire had to be put back a bit.

Never mind a quick session on a local pond with a few pulls was pretty much all the doctor ordered.

I decided to fish as close to home as possible as money’s been a bit tight this last few weeks and running back and forth to Reading cost’s a few bob I can tell ya! Venue choice…..Hazel Court Ponds near Cowbridge.

I popped into the site shop and purchased a bag of 24mm halibut pellets and headed round to the swims. This time I had the lake to my self. Pukka! A quick drive round with the bait boat and a few likely spots jumped up.

Quickly deciding on the places to plant my traps, I sat back with a sandwich and awaited some action which only took around 3 hours to come.

Propping my eyes open at 9.30pm wrapped up snug from the rapidly cooling air in my 5 season bag. I was sure something was soon going to happen.

The air was chilly, misty and had the feeling of fish action to it! I’d just shut my eyes when I heard a few quick bleeps ring out from the receiver perched on my bait bucket.

I looked at the middle rod which had been placed about 2 yards short of a lily bed in a slight bottom depression. The bobbin was slammed to the rod blank.

I flew from my bag and kind of ingested my Skeetex boots, picked up my headlamp and grabbed the rod all in one fowl swoop!

It instantly felt like little else I’ve hooked before on rod and line…..The first run it made left me with sore knuckles and fear of a broken finger.

The rod squirmed under the pressure I was having to apply to keep her from snagging me up.

After about 3-4 minutes of arguing with the fish over who was going to give in first….she buckled and let me gain a few yards.

This felt great and I was sure I’d got the upper hand. Ummmm, not likely….off she blasted again and I was just left in awe of the shear immense power of whatever was on the end of my line???

A few more serious pulls with the rod under some of the most load I have ever put it under and she was nearing the spreader block.

I lifted the head under headlamp light and saw it was definitely a catfish. My first thoughts were that it may go 30lb?

My first attempt at trying to net her were almost laughable as I got the head into my 45″ net, thinking she was all but in the net I lifted…….oh god!

There was another 3 and a half feet of fish still to get in and certainly not enough net! Another 2 attempts made me quickly rethink my approach.

She came close to the bank with her nose up so I gave her a tap on the nose.

She sat quite still so I threw the rod down and chinned the fish. I slid her onto the waiting wet mat and nearly fell over when I saw how long it was!

I somehow managed to weigh her on the tripod and after watching it spin around twice…..It settled on 63lb 14oz!

Keith Supple UK PB 63lb 14oz Catfish

My first coarse fish over the 60lb barrier! I can’t honestly describe how I felt.

There was a massive feeling of total overwhelming excitement, contentment, fear,……….I must have woken the whole of Glamorgan up as I let out the biggest ‘Hoorah’!

Tight lines Guys

Keith

Nuts about Carp

Matthew Randall produces early season 10lb 12oz cod from Ogmore!

Posted by keens on September 23, 2009 under Catch Reports, Sea Fishing | Be the First to Comment

A Ray and Bass fishing session on Sunday 20th on Ogmore Beach produced a welcome suprise. A 10lb 12oz cod!

Caught at a range of 150yds on a long and low rig baited with a double ammo sand eel. It was also a good christening of his new Century C3 purchased from Keen’s a few weeks before.

The monster came up just 30 minutes after low tide over clear ground. Hopefully a sign of things to come.

Surfcast Wales International a Big Hit!

Posted by keens on August 18, 2009 under Catch Reports, Sea Fishing | Be the First to Comment

What an absolute privilege and a pleasure it was to welcome the worlds top casters to our club for the Century / Surfcast Wales International 2009. We had 41 casters from Wales, England, Ireland, Scotland, Belgium, Germany,
Argentina and Australia come to compete in two days of casting heaven.
The weather was fantastic wall to wall sunshine with a light westerly wind both days straight down the field; you know what they say “The sun always shines on the righteous”.
Everyone was in great spirits meeting up again to re kindle old friendships as well as forging new ones; there truly was a tremendous atmosphere both on the field and at the Saturday night get together with loads of laughs and good humoured conversations. Talk of the night was the massive prize table and with everyone guaranteed a prize to take back home what could they achieve.
Day one was the 150g where casters had 10 casts or until 16:30 to nail their 2 best which would go towards their final score. After an easy start with casters making sure of having 2 measures things started to wind up full blow tournament style absolutely awesome display by the worlds best. Way out in the lead was the undisputed world champion Danny Moeskops a lead that he kept all day with a succession of massive casts. Behind Danny things were tight with the positions constantly changing until the very last round where the finishing positions were
finalised .
Going in to day 2 the 125g Danny was first ,Andy 2nd followed by Steve Boyt with only meters between them, all to play for now but what to do ? Play safe and get those mandatory measures or go all out from the get go , well some took the safe option and others put down the gauntlet . Once again Big Danny held his form hitting leads right out the back of the court with his Century TTR leaving the rest of the world’s best to sort out the rest of the finishing order.
This was one of the hottest contested competitions ever at our club with the positions changing cast after cast, round after round, right down to the last cast of an incredible event and no one really knew for sure where they had finished up.
The officials then took the numbers and hid away in the cabin for what seamed like an age while others set out the prize table which just blew everyone away they couldn’t believe that our generous benefactors had been so
supporting of the Surfcasting community by providing awe inspiring selection.
Century GB in particular Mr Simon Chillcot who was our close partner in the event and to whom we hold a
massive debt of gratitude for their contribution which consisted of a staggering six TTR’s an absolutely fantastic rod that hold numerous casting word records and used by the vast majority of the top casters ,six E1000 eliminators a brand new design , slim but very powerful and already setting records and three Kompressor SS top end casting fishing rods all with bags and reducers not to mention the t shirts and badges. A special thanks much be said to Mr Lew Marsden for all his input and help getting this together.
We had many other companies help to make this event so prestigious and with great gratitude we would thank them all for their help and support. Keens tackle and guns , Pure Fishing , Chris Macey , Sakuma , Anyfish
Anywhere Torbay Angling and QTC. Please take the time to let these wonderful benefactors know what this
support means to you.
Finally just to say thank you to everyone casters, sponsors, organisers and spectators for all you efforts and
congratulations to the winners .
Kind regards Surfcast Wales

Tom Green shows off his 12lb common

Posted by admin on August 5, 2009 under Carp and Coarse Fishing, Catch Reports | Be the First to Comment

Tom Green shows off his 12lb common and an even bigger 15lb caught from the specimen pond at Hazelcourt ponds.

Keith Supple Gets Off to a Flyer!

Posted by admin on under Carp and Coarse Fishing, Catch Reports | Read the First Comment

The first pics of ‘09 are 3 crackers sent in by Keith Supple of www.nutsaboutcarp.co.uk
All 3 fish were caught in January and February giving Keith a brilliant start to the year.

From Left, 24lb 8oz Mirror, 31lb 8oz Mirror and a whopping 32lb 10z Mirror all produced from Whitesprings fishery, Swansea.