So my first session on Orchid went with a bit of a bang!

The weather was what none anglers would deem ‘horrendous’ – though to be honest for January it was really mild with strong south westerly winds with near constant rain. Lovely!

Anyway, we all know that you’ll never catch anything sat at home on the sofa, and having heard that the lake had a good track record in the winter, I decided to drive down to Dorchester to give it a go.

The journey down was nice and easy, and after a quick walk around I decided to do my first night in a swim called ‘The Middles’; but after an uneventful night with no sightings or indication of activity in the area in there I soon had itchy feet and wanted a move of swim.

My rigs were pretty straight forward, being Sly Skin (as I like the stiff nature of it) tied to a size 8 Covert Incizor.

I’d spoken to a guy that was fishing in ‘The Dug Out’ and he’d kindly mentioned that he was leaving in a few hours; so I was soon packing up and heading over there. It had done a couple of carp in the last few days and knowing how localised carp tend to be in the mid winter it had to be a good bet.

After plumbing the swim I found a likely spot 90 yards out, next to a reed line where there was a lovely clean pocket of silt. This silt area was big enough for three rods and with a bit of effort (due to the tight nature of the swim) I soon dispatched my rigs and bait out into the killing zone. The bait that I’m using is from the Mad-Baits stable and seeing as it was winter I have great faith in ‘The Zing’ in 10mm size and using the same size pop up’s over the top with a very small shot on the hair to turn it into a ‘wafter’. The silt wasn’t deep but I balancing the hookbait when fishing this type of situation just for my own peace of mind and it also gives me confidence – which as we all know is half the battle.

That evening I found myself battling my first Orchid carp, a lovely conditioned common of 33lb 6oz.

That evening I found myself battling my first Orchid carp. The fish turned out to be my biggest of the session! A lovely conditioned common of 33lb 6oz and caught on a full moon too (which I’m a great believer in).

My rigs were pretty straight forward, being Sly Skin (as I like the stiff nature of it) tied to a size 8 Covert Incizor hook of which I had touched up with a Point Doctor to make sure they are as sharp as possible.

Action was fairly consistent over the course of the session once I had moved into the Dug Out, and I ended up with three 30's - with 2 of them new ones for the venue.

Action was fairly consistent over the course of the session once I had moved into the Dug Out, and I ended up with three 30’s – with 2 of them new ones for the venue. Having caught them at this benchmark weight for the first time I was also honoured to be able to name them – and as you can probably guess I called one ‘Wuzy’s’!

With four back-up 20’s to 29lb as well, you could say I was a very happy chappy indeed; after all ending up with 11 carp during a January session was a great result! I packed the gear away thrilled with the fish I’d caught – what a fantastic venue and I will certainly be gracing its banks again through the colder months ahead…..
With four back-up 20's to 29lb as well, you could say I was a very happy chappy indeed; after all ending up with 11 carp during a January session was a great result!