I decided to fish a local water as I had only twenty four hours available and after the torment of fishing the big fish waters up until now, I fancied getting the confidence boost I needed.
Sink Skin, Covert Hook Aligners and Covert Incizor hooks - a deadly combination

I pulled into the car park of the Cefyn Mably complex and was greeted by the owner who was actually laying some paving as they are in the middle of renovating the site. I carted my gear round to my chosen swim which I was told is always good for a bite. On this water to catch one or two each session is not a bad result, so I decided to keep an open mind as I had never been the water before.

After a few exploratory casts with the rods (as I use the Gardner Hydro Sink braid), I found the water was about twelve feet in front of me with a smooth bottom lacking in weed. I decided to fish for one bite at a time, so my two rigs were cast out and within half hour the first carp of the session was on the mat. Nothing big but it’s always nice to get one under your belt and took the pressure off. I was only fishing about thirty yards, so I sprayed out thirty boilies and settled down for the night.

Mark looks pleased with this carp - one of twenty carp he caught!

It was quite uneventful evening until midnight where I caught three carp in quick succession and then it switched off again. I awoke to motionless bobbins, so while I sat there drinking my first cuppa of the day looking at the water for any signs of carp, there seemed to be a warmer wind being blown across the lake. I wondered if I should give them a bit of bait, so a couple of kilos later I was happy with my situation. As the lake is quite murky I decided on something visual to top my bottom bait. I tried every colour combination until I hit the right one, which turned out to be pink!

I didn’t have to wait long for one of the rods rattled off and while I was playing that one my other rod signalled a take as well. To cut a long story short I soon had them both on the mat and the guys in the lakeside tackle shop were soon doing the honours with the camera. After every carp caught I put out another thirty boilies around the area and due to the amount of runs I was receiving I was getting through plenty of rigs and bait. I remembered that I had some of the new Gardner Covert Hook Aligners, which were a god send as I really didn’t have time to steam shrink tubing. They were just the job and with just a few swipes of the Point Doctor to hone the hook and the rigs were super efficient.

The trip turned into a red letter day as at the end of the session I ended up with twenty carp to 24lb 12oz, which I believe to be a record for the venue for the most carp caught in twenty four hours. It just goes to prove that with the right bait application and the right rigs it can make all the difference.

Mark with one carp from his hectic session