North, South and Long Pond Syndicates Catch Reports 2017

Creeping ice on a winters morn

From a weather point of view the first week of November started off relatively quiet, nice and mild, and the fish were very active often showing where you wouldn’t necessarily expect them to be.

The second week of the month saw a procession of westerly/north westerly fronts crossing the region at frequent intervals bringing with them pulses of heavy rain interspersed with a few short periods of dry sunny conditions followed by cool overnight temperatures.

Nine Members managed to fish a total of fifteen nights between them across the course of the month, some Members reported lots of fish activity over their bait, but regrettably no takes were forthcoming, although a lot of liners were!

Unfortunately no fish were banked although a few were hooked and lost much to the frustration of the Members whose hooks slipped and lost grip!

Hopefully we’ll see a few of you on the bank in the weeks ahead, it’s true to say; you can’t catch them from your living room, unless of course you’re living under cloth.

The weather turned cold and the ice took hold

Five Members wet a line on the South Lake during the month with most of the line wetting taking place during the first ten days of November, fish were seen moving and showing albeit not to the extent they were on the North Lake.

A similar story to the North Lake in that no fish were banked throughout November, one fish was hooked and unfortunately lost which was very frustrating for the Member concerned, sadly it happens to us all on occasion!

There was a very brief mild spell between the 20th – 23rd when overnight temperatures even reached double figures, this mild interlude brought lots of wind and even more rain, in fact the Lake level rose by over 6” within a twelve hour period of the heavy weather arriving, got to love the Cumbrian climate.

The last week of the month turned very cold and the Lake froze over stopping play, a mild wet December wouldn’t go amiss.

A cracker from the Long Lake for Ian

The Long Lake has been very lightly fished since it opened to fishing in June, a trend that seems to be continuing as only two Members fished it during November.

The venue differs from the North and South Lakes in that it’s shallower and reed and rush fringed around most of its margins. The fish show regularly and seem to keep active later into the year, even when the water temperature has fallen considerably it’s not unusual to see them showing and see them moving.

On the 11th November the water temperature was around 5oc, the reeds were twitching the mare’s tail was moving and one or two fish had shown in open water, it looked promising for the chance of a bite and so it was.

The carpy activity resulted in Ian landing his first from the Lake when he banked a lovely 18lb 10oz mirror, not many anglers catch their first fish from a venue in November, very well done to you a good result!

Late November saw an Arctic blast arrive and cold northerly’s saw temperatures plummet and the water turn stiff and inflexible.

Let’s hope ‘La Nina’ doesn’t have the effect on the weather she did during the winter of 2010-11!

Gary’s North Lake 14lb October stunner

October can be a strange month for fishing; feeding spells and carp activity being very much tied to water temperature. Stable weather conditions that prevail over consecutive days normally offer a decent chance of a capture though.

If you’re lucky enough to be on the bank for two or three days at this time of year you’ll often witness short spells of carp showing and brief periods of feeding activity early morning or late afternoon, such spells often only being 30-40 minutes long.

On occasion though the fish are very active for a much longer period and can be seen showing regularly and feeding for three or four hours at a time, the trick of course is to be on the bank when such spells occur.

I’ve never quite sussed out during steady and stable weather conditions what the ‘trigger’ is that produces this more intense feeding response and increased level of fish activity. I suspect that such spells are linked to a change in feeding rhythms of the carp and the length of time taken for any food eaten to be digested which are both water temperature related.

I have a theory that a 48/72 hour feeding cycle develops during the autumn months, the fish feed for longer and more heavily once during this 48/72 hour cycle, then a bit like us after we’ve eaten a heavy Sunday lunch they go to sleep to digest there meal…

After the carp has digested its meal its biological clock wakes it from its slumber and the need to feed cycle begins again; all we can hope for as anglers is that we will be in the right place doing the right thing at the right time to take advantage…

First South Lake twenty for Stephen 22lb

October started with a succession of frontal systems moving across the region with brighter showery weather in between. The month was dominated by warm south-westerly winds which brought stormy conditions and a fair amount of heavy rainfall, in short it was cloudy dull and wet a lot of the time!

Five Members fished during the month and half a dozen carp were banked by those wetting a line. After having a few nights fishing on the North Lake in September Gary returned to the South Lake for a night and proved he hadn’t lost his touch by weighing in with a nice 15lber.

Bailiff Dave kept on keeping on and landed four mirrors across the course of the month all being doubles to 14lb 12oz with the exception of one being a 9lb+ home grown fish, we have a few of these recruiting through the ranks now in all of the Lakes on site.

Honours for biggest fish of the month went to Stephen S though when he brought a lovely 22lb mirror to the net, his first twenty from the venue a nice result, congratulations to you!

Stocked at 17lb November 2013, now 26lb 6oz October 2017

Only three Members cast a lead into the Lake during October, a month that saw ex-tropical hurricane Ophelia passing over followed by storm Brian, a touch of grass frost and the first widespread white frosts of the year.

Some strong feeding activity was witnessed by those fishing whenever there was a lull in the changeable weather conditions, but despite this the carp remained difficult to tempt.

After having given myself a good talking to for losing a decent fish last month I was lucky enough to be fishing when the carp decided to feed heavily enough to slip up and make an error of judgement during a 48/72 hour feeding cycle.

My luck, bait, line and hooks held up well and I was fortunate to bank fish of 16lb 9oz, 18lb 14oz and 26lb 6oz during my session, yeeha and all that!

Obviously I was pleased with my result, but was left wondering what I was doing wrong on the other two sessions I fished where I had a good feeding response from the fish, but not quite good enough to catch again, a little more thought and effort required on my behalf I think….

Gary’s first twenty from the North lake

Funny old game this carp fishing malarkey, you would have thought with the weather during September being largely dominated by Atlantic weather systems that it would switch the fishing on, but despite above-average rainfall and the relative lack of northerly winds keeping things on the mild side these conditions seem to have been responsible for keeping the carp in the main switched off.

With the amount of rainfall the area around the Lakes received, it’s no surprise that the hours of sunshine recorded were below average, this lack of autumnal sunlight probably had more influence on the fish activity and fishing then many would give credit to!

A few carp were hooked and lost during the month possibly indicating signs of finicky feeding or perhaps presentation problems with hooking arrangements, which is certainly the case if they bump off fairly soon after having been hooked, still it’s all part of the carp fishing puzzle figuring out how and why such losses occur.

The only fish banked during the month were captured by the ever consistent Gary who has a knack of winkling them out when others can’t; he caught three for the month netting fish of 10lb, 16lb 6oz and his first twenty from the North Lake in the shape of a lovely 20lb 6oz mirror, nice one, well done and congratulations to you!

Two tone 25lb mirror for Dave

The South Lake produced a few more fish then the North Lake did during the month and it was good to see Joint Syndicate Controller Chris get on the bank and wet a line, and bag a few as well, on his first visit he managed fish of 16lb 5oz and 19lb 14oz and followed them up on his second trip with a hat trick of carp banking fish of 12lb 2oz, 16lb 2oz and16lb 6oz, good to see you getting the rods out again!

Tommy netted a 17lb 10oz mirror at the start of the month and even I picked up a 13lb 12oz fish at the end of the month for which I was very grateful.

Top rod though was Bailiff Dave who banked a low double and a belting 22lb 10oz mirror in the first week of September and then went on to catch four more at the end of the month when he weighed in fish of: 11lb 14oz, 16lb 11oz, 18lb 8oz and a very distinctive 25lb mirror, good angling and very well done to you sir!

Watching rainbows, chasing carp!

A quiet month on the Long Lake, a few Members fished but despite at times a lot of feeding activity taking place no carp were landed.

There was one fish hooked and lost during the month, it looked a good one as well. I was the unfortunate angler who fluffed up, I tried something different with my hooking arrangement from what I would normally do the end result was a hook pull, still don’t know why I changed things around, I did however give myself a good talking to!

On low stock waters with a lot of natural food like the Long Lake I always try to elect a feeding response from the carp when I’m fishing, this normally involves using a fair bit more bait then most other anglers use. I figure if you can get them feeding you are always going to be one step closer to catching.
In fact I consider it a result if I manage to get them feeding in my swim and on my bait even if I don’t always manage a pick up…

I reason that hopefully I’ll not be that far away from success and watching carp feed in, on and around the areas I’ve applied bait can be quite exciting; it certainly keeps me focussed and scanning the water to look for signs of feeding activity during my sessions.

The best motto I can think to apply to carp fishing has to be; Watch Look and Learn, perhaps followed by: Be Lucky…lol!

That’s the way to do it!

The carp were well spread around the three Bays that make up the North Lake. During the month they were very active and could be seen feeding heavily on naturals kicking up plumes of debris and silt off the lake bed as they gorged on rich pickings.

This preoccupation with natural feed obviously benefits the carp but at times frustrates the anglers who are trying to catch them; such is the joy of fishing in August.

That said a few nice fish were banked by Members, amongst those encouraging a carp or two into their weigh slings were:
Tom who managed his first from the North a 14lb 12oz mirror getting him off the mark, Justin with a very pretty low double, Neil D with a stunning 16lb 1oz mirror, Simon with a long lean 17lb 8oz common with a big old paddle of a tail on it, and Michael who managed a short bulky deep bodied common of 17lb 12oz, it seems like there are a few nice commons coming up through the ranks to compliment the existing fish stocks.

Nigel landed a nice brace of mid-doubles at 15lb 10oz and 16lb 14oz, and young Member Rory had a cracker of a fish @ 19lb 4oz which gave a good account of its self before behaving nicely to have its photo taken, well done young man keep catching and enjoying your time on the bank!

New Member Mark had a lovely introduction to the venue when a 20lb mirror graced his net during his first session; it doesn’t get much better on a first visit when your first fish also happens to be your first twenty from the water, it was a new 20lb carp for the North Lake to boot, congratulations to you.

September is upon us and hopefully we’ll see a few canny carp on the bank in the weeks ahead.

Ah now I remember….

Much like the North Lake there was a degree of preoccupation with the carp feeding on naturals; they weren’t shy of boshing out and showing you where they had been feeding. The fish in the South Lake seem to be patch feeders, feeding on one patch at a time and rarely returning to or showing over the same areas that they had previously shown over.

The trick of course is to find out where they’ll feed next before they do, which is easier said then done; it certainly makes for interesting and thought provoking fishing!

Only a handful or so of Members had a dabble on the South during the month.
The ever consistent Gary managed to bank three the best being a couple of low doubles to 12lb 6oz, good going considering the tricky feeding habits of the fish at the minute.

Stephen S got a few fish feeding and caught a well-earned 16lb 10oz mirror for his efforts his first on the bank since June, if only the ones he hooked while stalking had stayed on he would have had a cracking month, still the one’s that get away are one of the reasons we keep returning!

I even wet a line on a couple of occasions and got the carp feeding long enough to get them to pick up a hook bait, 14lb 8oz and 14lb 9oz mirrors were most eagerly received into the folds of my net as indeed was a heavily plated 18lb 14oz stunner, it was pleasing to remind myself that I could occasionally catch one or two.

Nice one Dave!

The Long Lake saw a few more Members wetting a line throughout August a total of 9 nights were fished, so another quiet month from a fishing perspective.

I suspect that September and October may see the banks get a little busier and hopefully see a few carp slip into waiting landing nets.

Three fish did however put in an appearance during scratching time:
Tommy on only his second attempt on the venue caught a Long Lake ‘mini’ in the form of a little home grown common of 4lb 2oz, always good to get the first from a new water, just wait until you meet his much larger father!

Bailiff Dave did a quick overnighter and was rewarded with a brace of carp visiting his unhooking mat, a 12lb 13oz common and 17lb 5oz mirror good going that, well done that man.

Best fishes for the weeks ahead……

North Lake Record Mirror 27lb 8oz for Phillip

A quieter month in terms of Members fishing than June was, with fewer Members on the bank less fish were caught but those that were banked were cracking carp.

Ash kicked proceedings off for the month with a low double, Scott C managed a brace @ 11lb and 17lb his Guest Jamie wasn’t far behind with a 16lb 8oz mirror float fished worms proving the successful method, nice to see an alternative hook bait being used, beware the eels though…..

Lee F spent an hour or so stalking about and banked a cracking 21lb mirror for his efforts hooked and landed within minutes of finding a couple of fish fizzing up, good tactic not being static, well played!
Nigel managed a brace of braces with fish of 15lb 2oz and 17lb and 14lb 4oz and 17lb 11oz coming during two separate visits steady away and all that, keep at them.

Phillip had a belting result netting a new Lake Record mirror in the shape of a cracking 27lb 8oz carp, incidentally a different fish to the previous Lake Record mirror from August 2016 which went 26lb 6oz, congratulations and a massive well done to you!

Phillip’s fish is one of several carp that are growing well in the North Lake it was caught in July 2015@ 21lb 5oz, June 2016 @ 24lb 6oz and now in July 2017 @ 27lb 8oz, a very pleasing growth rate for sure!

Another nice twenty for Paul 22lb 8oz

The South Lake is a venue that gets under the skin and keeps you coming back for more, its inhabitants can be quite cagey being particularly line shy they tend to drift away from bank side noise and disturbance making them a tricky target for cagey anglers…..

It was a case of third time lucky for new Member Tom who was rewarded for his efforts during an overnight session with a 23lb 8oz mirror, a good first fish from the venue for sure, not everyone gets to join the ‘South Lake Twenty’s Club’ that quickly!

Paul set up stall for a two night visit and had two chances, losing a decent fish he made sure he didn’t let the second escape him and banked a lovely 22lb 8oz mirror to make amends for the one that got away.

Gary has kept plugging steadily away over his last few trips in fact he’s banked a hat trick of braces during his last three trips his first brace going 15lb 6oz and 18lb 12oz, his second 13lb 12oz and 21lb 6oz and third 7lb 12oz (a little home grown mirror) and 17lb 2oz.

Good angling Gary, the 21lber was his first twenty from the South Lake as well very pleasing for sure, congratulations on some very consistent carping, keep at them!

One from June Dave’s 27lb 4oz Mirror

Well, what can I say about the Long Lake apart from:
It’s been very quiet….. In fact only three nights were fished by three Members during the whole of July; unfortunately no fish were captured by those who had a little dabble.

The carp have been witnessed feeding well and are starting to come back into condition after spawning at the end of May and we’ve seen some real nice fish swimming happily about in the venue.
Hopefully we’ll see a few Members wetting a line and exploring the fishing possibilities in the next few weeks.

Good luck to those of you who do, it’s all still to be learned, go get em…….

Looking good on the North Lake for Craig’s post spawning 24lb 6oz mirro

With three bouts of spawning activity having taken place, two in May and one in mid-June, most of the different year classes of carp in the North Lake have now completed their spawning rituals the fishing settled into a steadier rhythm and some good fish were caught during the month.

Obviously the majority of captures made throughout June were fish that were a little on the thin side having recently spawned; that said it was pleasing to note that a lot of post spawning captures were of carp at the best weights or best recorded post spawning weights, which bodes well for later in the season and I’m sure we’ll see continued good growth rates and weight gains over the coming weeks.

Most Members managed a fish or two, or had a chance of a fish or two when they visited, if only all the ones hooked made it safely into the folds of the landing net……..

Amongst those banking some were:
Young angler Rory who banked a brace of mirrors, a low double and a lovely 17lb 8oz mirror on his first visit, well done young man. New Member Bob landed his first from the venue on his second trip a canny 16lber being his reward, new Member Phil got his stalking rod out and had a few chances including a hat trick to low doubles, a good start.

Scott Mc didn’t manage much sleep on a quick overnighter bringing three doubles to 18lb 4oz to the net during the night, he left tired but happy with his result.

Stephen S was in the right place at the right time and weighed in with a brace of spawned out twenties @ 20lb 6oz and 22lb 2oz, good going.

Ash had a few throughout the month including a brace of braces @ 10lb 2oz, 18lb 8oz and 19lb 4oz and a cracking 26lb 6oz spawned out common which was pictured in the 16th June report, another good result.

Craig had a 17lb 14oz mirror and returned a few days later to bank another 17lb mirror along with lump of 24lb 6oz, a good example of one of the fish at its best recorded post spawning weight.
Well done to you all, until next month be lucky and sharpen those hooks…..

One of several from the South Lake for Gary

With the carp having finished a second attempt at spawning just before the warm weather broke in the middle of the month the fishing on the South Lake throughout June could best be described as being moody.

Some heavy and prolonged spells of rain and below average temperatures for the time of year saw the water temperature fall from 19oc to 15oc for the best part of a week and the carp switched into a ‘grumpy and not interested’ fettle.

One or two Members ventured out though and a few fish were caught, unfortunately a few were lost possibly because they weren’t feeding properly due to afore mentioned conditions.

New Member Peter had a couple of chances and converted one into his first from the venue when he banked a 16lb 2oz mirror, also netting his first from the Lake after his brace of twenties from the North Lake was Stephen S who chipped in with a 17lb 6oz mirror, always good to get the first one under the belt!

Gary has been focussing his attention on the Lake for a while now and he’s started to catch consistently as he becomes more familiar with the water, opening his account for the month with a 16lb 12oz mirror he went on to have a four fish catch during an overnight session topped off by doubles of 15lb 2oz and 16lb, good going that man, I’m sure more and bigger will come!

One of several from the South Lake for Gary

The Long Lake opened as intended on 1st of June, the first week of fishing was offered exclusively to those Members who had helped with our labours at various voluntary work parties throughout the preceding months, a small thank you for their efforts in helping us prepare the venue for opening.

With spawning just having taken place the week before the Lake opened we knew any captures of carp made were likely to be on the light side weight wise so it was pleasing to see a few captures at pretty good post spawning weights on the bank.

First off the mark was Paul who on his first night banked a cracking 25lb 6oz mirror which he followed up with a low double and a little home grown mirror of 7lbish.

Not far behind was Neil who had with a brace of mid-doubles to 16b 6oz and Ian who bagged a similar sized mirror.

Catch of the month though belonged to Dave P who had seven takes he banked six fish including a mirrors of 15lb 8oz 24lb and 27lb 4oz, a great result well done that man
.
In fact well done to you all it absolutely hammered it down later in the week and fish activity and chances dwindled the heavier the rain became, they don’t like it wet apparently………

Good luck going forward fellas……

New PB 26lb 6oz

Like most of the waters in our local area the carp in Kingfisher Lakes had a good go at spawning during the ‘hot spell’ that preceded the May Bank Holiday weekend, with their annual ritual completed and the fish having had a couple of weeks rest it was time for Members to get their rods out again.

Ash did just that and banked a lovely 26lb 6oz post spawning common on the 15th June a cracking fish and a new PB for him.

Amongst other Members catching some nice carp from the Lakes over the last few days were;

Paul with a well spawned out 25lb 4oz mirror, Stephen S who managed a nice brace of fish @ 20lb 6oz and 22lb 6oz and Dave P who netted several carp including a brace @ 24lb and 27lb 4oz, the larger fish from each brace being new 20lb+ specimens for the venue!

With well over forty different 20lb+ carp to target and new twenties coming through the ranks at a steady rate Kingfisher Lakes offers its Members quality fishing in peaceful and stunning surroundings.
We have a limited number of Membership places remaining for the season that commenced on the 1st June 2017.

If you are interested in joining and would like to be considered for Membership please complete a Syndicate Application Form (which can be found in the Welcome Pack available to download off the website) and email it to: kingfisherlakes@hotmail.co.uk

Another new twenty for the North, 22lb

Although the fishing was a little patchy either side of some of the colder and frostier nights the North Lake continued to fish well throughout the month, and some impressive multiple catches were made including a good hit for;

Dave P who worked hard to get in touch with the carp during a few days fishing, moving no less than five times to catch up with the fish, cool north/ north easterly winds made for tricky conditions.

Having found a large group of fish Dave started off feeding quite small amounts of bait maybe ½ kilo per rod. As the fish switched on the feed amount escalated culminating in well over 20 kilo of bait, (mainly boilies) being used, resulting in 14 fish ranging in size from a small home grown mirror of 9lb to 21lb+, well done on a cracking and eventful session Dave!

Ash managed ten fish mainly smaller male fish on a pre spawning munch, his fish were all doubles ranging in size between 10lb 4oz and 16lb.

Ian managed another successful session when he banked fish of 10lb 12oz, 14lb, 15lb, 16lb 2oz, and 17lb and 19lb 8oz during his two night visit.

Scott Mc had a lovely brace of mid-doubles including a real nice common, Gary also banked a brace @ 17lb and 18lb, and Justin managed a ‘brace’ of braces his first going 14lb and 18lb, his second going 11lb 12oz and 22lb, incidentally a new twenty for the venue.

Several other Members weighed in some nice fish as well, great going and a pleasure to see everyone enjoying their fishing!

South Lake Record 25lb 13oz

Not many Members ventured out on the South Lake during the month, the fishing was a bit iffy as the fish started engaging in pre spawning activity that would probably have seen them start to spawn if it hadn’t been for very cold and strong northerly winds holding them back.

Banking their first fish from the South were Bob with a brace to 13lb and Franky with a brace of fish a small male @ 11lb and a lovely two tone female @ 25lb 10oz, well done that man!

Baliff Dave also netted a brace to 16lb 9oz, and Tommy a brace to 15lb 12oz, better was to come for Tommy though;

He’s had his eye on a certain big fish he’s seen in the South Lake, he thought he’d caught it when his rod ripped off and a good scrap took place resulting in a Lake Record mirror of 25lb 13oz, (a different fish to Franky’s) ironically not the one he was after, but most welcome and his first twenty from the venue to boot!

Good angling Sir, congratulations!!

Not a bad little brace!

Bailiff Scott, had a last throw of the dice doing a little test fishing on the Long Lake on the 7th May he managed a hectic double take banking fish of 22lb 6oz and 23lb 8oz to whet Members appetites further ahead of the venue opening on 1st June…..

April fool’s day fish, no joke @ 23lb 8oz

Some good fishing was enjoyed by Members fishing on the North Lake during April first out the starter blocks on the 1st was; Ian who fooled a hat trick of mirrors @ 12lb, 15lb 14oz and 23lb 8oz into visiting the bank…. Ian returned later in the month and also banked a few more including mirrors of 17lb 4oz and 20lb 4oz, great stuff.

Justin caught several throughout the month his best fish going 19lb 12oz, 21lb 7oz and 23lb 12oz, not far behind was Ash who banked nine during April including mirrors of 17lb 8oz, 18lb, 18lb 2oz and 18lb 3oz.

Paul weighed in with a lovely 21lb 6oz mirror and Dave P netted the biggest of the month when a 25lb 2oz mirror graced his weigh sling.

Several other Members landed individual fish and some cracking carp were caught, the majority being mid to upper doubles ranging in size between 15lb 7oz and 18lb 10oz.

Well done to you all.

Simply stunning

Not many Members went fishing on the South Lake in April most focussed their attention and time on the North Lake.

A handful of Members did spend some time focussing their efforts on the South Lake though including;
Bailiff Scott who wetted his net with a couple of hat tricks of carp his first trio on the 2nd going 12lb 12oz, 15lb and 15lb 10oz, his second trio on the 10th going 15lb 14oz, 16lb 14oz and 19lb 10oz, a good result!

The ever consistent Tommy kept a few coming to the bank his best a solid looking 15lber, Paul caught a rare mid double common from the lake, good going as their aren’t many in the venue.

Arguably the prettiest of all the carp caught during the month was a stunning 20lb 2oz linear for north east rod Ian T, a new twenty to boot, congratulations to you!

Keep at them Lads.

Long Lean Fighting Machine 26lb 4oz

We’ve continued slogging away to ready the Lake for opening on the 1st June, we’ve been making some good progress and the end is in sight, at last!!

Bailiff Dave continued with a little bit of test fishing in between sessions working on, in and around the Lake and was rewarded with a stunning looking 26lb 4oz mirror, which I’m sure will have whet the appetite of those Members looking forward to fishing the venue when it opens.

25lb 4oz a new PB for Scott

A wet and mild start to the month which looked promising from a fishing point of view seemed to keep Members away, and no one wet a line to try their luck until nearer the middle of March, in fact more Members ventured out during the colder frosty spells than the warmer wetter spells.

Honours for the first fish of the month went to Les who banked a lovely 18lb mirror on the 10th. Some nice carp were caught during the last couple of weeks of the month as well getting amongst them were;

Storm Chaser Justin who managed a brace of wild weather carp as ‘Stella’ and her accompanying gale force winds hurtled past a 13lber and a cracking 21lb 4oz mirror were his reward for toughing it out, the twenty being another new 20lb+ fish for the North Lake, well done that man!

Best hit of the month went to Scott C who netted a hat rtick of carp during his session landing a 17lb 12oz mirror and a brace of commons at 16lb 2oz and 25lb 4oz, a new PB for him to boot, great result Scott, keep at them.

Amongst other Members weighing in with a fish a piece were Stephen S, Gary and Ian who landed carp of 18lb, 14lb and 15lb 8oz respectively, always good to bank the first one of the year, and I’m sure there’ll be more to come as the weather improves.

Mad March Mirror 24lb – March 2017

No Members chucked a lead into the pond until nearer the end of March and the only anglers setting a foot on the bank were the Herons and……. Bailiff Scott who owned the month catching eleven fish in three visits, bloody good going in my book!

On his first session on the 3rd Scott landed a brace of doubles to 15lb 6oz; this kicked off a successful run of captures.

On his next visit on the 10th fish of 13lb 6oz, 15lb 4oz and 17lb 8oz visited his unhooking mat, good going the 13lber was a lovely common and there aren’t that many commons in the South Lake so nice to see one on the bank.

Returning on the 17th Scott enticed six fish into the folds of his net they included a home gown common and mirror to 8lb 15oz, it’s always nice to see a few home grown fish recruiting through the ranks, in fact all of the Lakes have a sprinkling of home grown carp starting to put in appearances, which is very pleasing to see.

The other fish in his haul were a hat trick of double figure fish to 13lb 6oz and the icing on the cake being a stunning 24lb mirror, well done to you a cracking result for sure!

Bailiff Dave did another little bit of test fishing and on the 17th he banked a hard fighting 23lb 6oz mirror, nice one Dave. Interesting point here; Justin, Scott and Dave all bagged their twenties fishing on 17th March all caught in the gale storm Stella brought across the region, a little bit of Syndicate history was made that night as it was the first time all three Lakes produced twenty pound plus carp on the same night, yeeha and all that!

Very cold north- north easterly winds only saw a couple of Members wet a line during the month, lack of angling activity and associated ‘iffy’ weather meant no carp were banked throughout the month, although unfortunately for the Member concerned one was lost, ggrrrr…..

The weather patterns have been a bit unpredictable this year, the snowdrops were late to flower, the daffodils have been early to bud and even start to flower, which is hopefully a sign that some settled spring like weather will be arriving soon .

I’m sure it won’t be long before the indicators and alarms will start to rattle and buzz on the North Lake again.

Bonny 15lb 8oz common from the Long Lake

During a little bit of test fishing Bailiff Dave has managed to catch a fish or two during some pretty foul conditions, including a common that was stocked at around 4lb in February 2014.

Dave’s bonny common visited the bank this February @ 15lb 8oz; great growth rate for a fish stocked this far north I’m sure you agree.

Much the same story as on the North Lake, only a couple of Members fished a couple of short sessions, the fish were still in ‘hide mode’ and none were seen moving throughout the month.

March however is bound to produce a few……

Walking the plank to the Island swim on the Long Lake

We have built seven well-spaced swims that cover some interesting areas all offering their own water to fish.

We intend to develop the venue as our out and out specimen venue.

We are getting quite excited about the prospect of existing Members starting to fish the Lake when it opens on 1st June 2017.

Nearly three years of hard graft have gone into preparing the venue for opening, and although we still have a fair bit of work to crack on with everything is certainly starting to take shape now.

A nice one from the netting – June 2017

Only a couple of members cast out in search of a January fish, always the most difficult month to catch a carp in, it’s a great achievement if you can put one on the bank at this time of year so fair play to those of you who had a go!

The only carp that were banked during January were those we caught during a netting operation to recapture some of the fish that escaped from our Stock Pond over a year ago.

The fish caught represented a good cross section of the stock and have provided a good insight into the progress our carp have made.

Amongst the fish netted were 11 twenties including a brace of 27lb+ fish to 27lb 10oz, we think at least 3 or 4 of them are new 20lb+ carp for the venue!

Included in the haul were loads of mid doubles to 16lb 9oz and a dozen fish between 17lb 8oz – 19lb 12oz.

All of the fish were in fantastic condition; in fact we only saw one fish with a leech attached to it so they’ve obviously kept on the move during the last few months.

The plan included moving any fish netted less than 10lb in weight to the Stock Pond including any home grown carp that have recruited through naturally.

We ended up moving 46 carp to the Stock Pond, 24 of which were less than 10lb in weight; we suspect 10-12, (possibly more) of these fish are home grown carp as they weighed in at between 6lb – 8lb 8oz they included a few scale perfect little commons, the other 22 fish were all doubles to 12lb 9oz.

The Long Lake received an additional 6 fish between 14lb 1oz and 16lb 2oz, and the South Lake received an additional 8 fish between 12lb – 14lb 1oz.

Although bloody hard work, as nettings tend to be it was an absolute pleasure to have undertaken the task and witness and photograph all the fish we caught, Chris and I are still buzzing now!!

The average weight of the North Lake carp was 17lb, looks like a great year’s fishing is ahead……