I was watching the telly when my wife said, “You haven’t been night fishing for a few weeks. Why don’t you go for a couple of nights?” She was correct; I had only done a single night’s fishing in each of the previous three months. Of course, I had done plenty of day sessions, but that’s the way I like to go in the winter…
I have had a great year’s fishing, catching 10 thirties and my first UK forty. I have been concentrating on a syndicate water in Ringwood and this is currently my second year on there, but this year I have managed a few special ones. My first memorable session was during the middle of March. I decided to set up on the Woods…
There can’t be a more exciting way of catching a big carp (or any carp for that matter) than watching it feed close into the bank, planning your approach and then watching the moment the fish is hooked! It is an easy and effective way of fishing, but too many anglers get caught up in the three-rods-on-a-spot-and-sit-back-and-wait…
In the early spring last year Tom Oliver, Andy Loble and I had a brilliant long weekend trip to France, visiting a lake called Lac de Laneuville. We all managed bites, which was a result given the freezing cold conditions, and I managed three thirties topped by a 36lb common. At the end of March 2014 I was lucky enough…
In 2012 I was lucky enough to get a winter trip to the famous Abbey Lakes complex in France with the purpose of doing some filming for the Gardner Tackle website and YouTube channel. We did really well with all three of us catching new PBs and even two fifties between us. We had been keen to get back ever since…
Understandably, I was full of excitement and anticipation as I arrived for my first session on Horton Church Lake. With the carp barrow loaded, I headed off on to the banks. I’d never even seen the Lake before and came to an abrupt stop when I first gazed across the water, almost pulling a muscle in my cheeks with…
Since the start of the year I've been doing one night a week on a local water near me called Winterley Pool in Sandbach. I've been so busy with work that travelling and fishing longer sessions has just not been feasible. It’s a shallow lake, only averaging four feet, so it has good cold-water form. I have enjoyed my time on…
Margin fishing and stalking have always been a big passion of mine, even from the early days in my carping career. I would often use paste baits to outwit my quarry, only being able to fish a few yards from the bank. This was more due to the soft bait really, but this close range carping has always stayed in my blood…
It can take years of personal findings to perfect a rig. Despite all the rigs shown in magazines or websites for you to try, I notice there’s always something missing: you’re own confidence and understanding! As I take you through my findings from over the years, I will try my best to rub off some of my confidence on to you…
