North, South and Long Pond Syndicates Catch Reports 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024

We opened the North Lake to fishing in 2013, the South Lake in 2014 and the Long Lake in 2017, time as they say does indeed fly!

Chris and I believe that the first ten years of fishery management is all about establishing the conditions required to create the “best specimen carp fisheries possible”, and, that after that things start to get interesting…

Week in week out we graft away continually developing and improving our waters, we are on the right track and the growth rates and weight gains of the fish in all our Lakes are on a clear upwards trajectory.

During 2023 we saw 23 new 20lb+ specimens grace the bank for the first time including several between 23lb – 24lb 15oz, it’s intriguing to think that their first recorded captures as new twenties were close to mid twenty pound!

So far; between them our venues have produced over 145 20lb+ fish including 13 30lb+ and 1 40lb+ carp.

Kingfisher is a forward-looking Syndicate that has passed several milestones so far; first twenties, first thirties, first forty, numerous big carp etc., and we are confident that there will be many more milestone moments as we continue our journey to create the “best specimen carp fisheries possible”, to this end as part of our strategic development plans:

We aim to net our Stock Pond towards the end of 2024, there are 60 carp growing on in here, we estimate some of the larger ones to currently weigh around 18lb, with another summer’s growth ahead of them hopefully the best will make 20lb+ at harvest.

The North, South and Long Lakes will all receive some of these quality carp, they are fish that are proven to grow and continue growing very well in our cooler northern climate, these stockings and other plans we have in place will help to ensure the continued success of our Syndicate going forward as we firmly believe the best way to predict what happens in the future is to create it…

Best fishes wherever you wet a line,

Chris and Steve

New Twenty 24lb 15oz First Recorded Capture @ 20lb+

The average weight of all captures from the North Lake for the year to October was 20lb 9oz, nearly half of all fish caught were 20lb+ (47.73%), and the Lake record increased from 37lb 11oz in 2022 to 40lb 12oz, several fish were caught between 27lb and 29lb 8oz either early season or spawned out, and they certainly have the potential to break through the 30lb+ barrier in the coming months.

North Lake 40lb 12oz

Starting his fishing year with a bang was Daniel who opened his North Lake account in February with the capture of a 29lb 2oz mirror, purely belter as we say in the north east. Barry managed a fish on the same day albeit 10lb lighter when he netted a 19lb common good result though as the water temp was only around 5℃.

North Lake February 29lb 2oz

Three new twenty pound plus carp were banked in March; Lee M caught one @ 22lb 7oz, Barry had another at just over twenty with a 20lb 2oz mirror and Liam had a cracking lump @ 24lb 8oz. It wasn’t just twenties getting nets wet as Justin scored a hat-trick of fish when he netted mirrors of 18lb 8oz, 19lb and 24lb 4oz, a canny start to his seasons fishing.

North Lake New Twenty 24lb 8oz March

Amongst Members weighing in with twenty pound plus credits in April were; Greg and Dan A with a mirror of 23lb 8oz each (different fish), Daniel with a 24lber, Tommy also had a 24lber (different fish) and Nigel a 24lb 12oz mirror, a guest showed his host how to do it by banking a 27lb fish, Michael D had a nice brace @ 19lb 11oz and 29lb 7oz, but catch of the month went to Dave P with a four carp hit comprising of 16lb, 21lb, 22lb mirrors and a 29lb 4oz common, well done that man!

North Lake 29lb 4oz April

Dave B became part of Syndicate history on 2^nd May with the capture of the venues first forty which weighed in at 40lb 3oz, he also had a backup fish of 27lb 8oz on the same session, a historic result massive congratulations to you Dave!

North Lake First Forty 40lb 3oz

A flurry of good carp visited the bank during the first week in May, Justin had a fine brace a mirror/common combi at 23lb 4oz and 21lb respectively the common being a new twenty for the water. Paul S managed a 29lb 8oz lump, Gary C diverted his attention away from the Long Lake for a couple of nights fished two different swims on his two-night session and banked a hat-trick of carp from each landing fish of 14lb 2oz, 18lb 8oz and 20lb 8oz (another new twenty) on his first night and a brace of 18lb mirrors and a 21lb 4oz mirror on his second night.

North Lake 29lb 8oz May

Greg had a great haul during the first few days in May he weighed in with fish of 15lb 6oz, 15lb 8oz,18lb 4oz, 20lb 8oz, 22lb and 34lb 10oz, a repeat capture for him as he caught her last year @ 32lb 1oz, a decent weight gain 12 months after her first capture as a 30lb+ though, and a great result!

As a point of interest pretty much any fish caught from the North Lake under 16lb in weight is a home-grown carp. Both commons 8 – 13lb and mirrors 11 – 15lb 8oz are recruiting through the ranks and feature in the catch reports they accounted for approx. 15% of all captures, and we aim to rehome some of them to the South Lake in due course.

Also, interesting to note that several of the known thirty pound plus fish avoided capture during 2023, the only marker captures year on year of the known thirties showed weight gains between 2lb 9oz and 3lb 1oz, which could make for an interesting start to 2024 if those on the missing list put in an early season appearance, they should be at their best ever weights.

North Lake 34lb 10oz

As the carp geared up to spawning a lot of excitable upper double male fish were caught, they use more energy and are constantly horny and hungry until the main event occurs, which is normally when the water temp reaches around 20℃ for a few consecutive days.

Other noteworthy captures for the month included Dave B with a brace of low twenty males @ 20lb 14oz and 21lb, Garry L with another Brace of males @ 19lb 11oz and 21lb 3oz, likewise Justin with fish of 20lb 6oz and 23lb 2oz, and Steven H with a 22lber.

North Lake 20lb+ Male

Nigel increased the Lake Record to 40lb 12oz on 19^th May when he landed the big girl, she was being followed around the South Bay by those excitable males but wasn’t ready to join her companions who had started grouping up in the North Bay prior to spawning commencing, well done that man congratulations to you!

June saw a fair number caught, around half being male fish looking to regain weight after several bouts of spawning activity, that said there were some good post spawn weights recorded including Justin with a brace @ 24lb 8oz and 24lb 12oz, Jamie with a brace @ 24lb 8oz and 27lb 10oz, best result for the month went to Dave B who had a good session netting some nice ones @ 16lb 10oz, 19lb 6oz, 21lb 4oz, 23lb 8oz and 27lb 7oz, other members also caught twenties between 21lb 4oz – 23lb 6oz throughout the month, all good fish for sure.

North Lake 27lb 10oz June

Highlights for July and August included; Nathan with a 23lb 14oz mirror another new 20lb+ fish and there were several other new twenties reported ranging in size between 20lb 8oz – 22lb 8oz. Paul S had a 24lb 3oz common, Michael D a 29lb 3oz mirror, Colin banked a 29lb 8oz well spawned out mirror and Garry L had the big lass post spawn on 16^th August @ 39lb 5oz, she was caught on the same date in August 2022 post spawn @ 37lb 11oz so is doing well, as was Gary, nice one!

North Lake 24lb 3oz

At the start of September, a heatwave arrived which lasted a fortnight, during this hot spell the fish in the main switched off and weed that had been steadily dying back saw a resurgence in growth. Only a handful of captures were made during the scorching conditions, best two were by Nathan with a 21lb 1oz mirror and Neil with a 20lb 10oz common, at times it was just too hot to fish and it wasn’t until cooler weather moved in that a few more fish visited the bank, the best captures towards the year end were by Liam who had a 23lb 12oz mirror, Stuart with a cracker @ 27lb 9oz and Steven H with a lovely 31lb 12oz mirror.

North Lake 27lb 9oz September

Well done to everyone who got amongst them during the year, keep on keeping on in 2024!

We rehomed 4 home grown carp weighing between 8lb 7oz and 12lb from the Long Lake to the South Lake during the year, the overall average weight of all captures in the South Lake to the end of October increased from 16lb in 2022 to 17lb 9oz, with one in four captures being 20lb+ (24.82%).

South Lake Average Size Carp in 2023

The South Lake is within a barbules distance of producing its first 30lb+ carp, the Lake Record fish was banked spawned out @ 24lb (previous capture was 29lb 12oz) and several fish were caught between 27lb 14oz and 29lb 5oz either early season or post spawn, that and the fact some fish haven’t been banked for 3 or 4 years means there are now at least seven carp that have the potential to become new Lake Records.

South Lake 27lb 14oz

Peter landed his first carp in January banking a 15lb 10oz mirror he followed it up a couple of weeks later with a 23lb mirror which was a new twenty pound plus carp for the South Lake, a great start to the year.

Early season catches mainly consisted of mirrors and some really nice ones visited the bank, amongst those weighing in with upper doubles  were; John S who had an 18lb 4oz, Bailiff Dave an 18lb 11oz, Ewan with an 18lb 4oz and Tommy with a 19lb 2oz, Colin K managed fish of 14lb 9oz, 17lb 14oz and 18lb 13oz and a 23lb 7oz mirror, other fish captured weighed between 15lb 1oz and 16lb 4oz, given the number of upper doubles caught over the year it bodes well for a good percentage to pass the 20lb+ barrier in 2024, well, hope so!

South Lake 19lb 2oz On The Way to 20lb+

Nigel had a good hit towards the end of April bringing mirrors of 16lb, 18lb 12oz, 19lb 8oz and 25lb 2oz to the net, good fishing that. Connor opened his South Lake account with a 28lb 6oz mirror, a nice start for sure, Nathan wasn’t far behind with a 27lb 9oz fish and Graham had a 29lb 5oz mirror this being one of my ‘marker’ carp that seems to be making good progress it was caught in April 2021 @ 24lb 10oz, which is a steady growth rate for a male fish over a two-year period.

South Lake April 25lb 2oz

Michael D scored a hat-trick of doubles landing mirrors of 16lb 4oz, 17lb 13oz and 18lb 8oz on the 2^nd of May, Paul J banked a new twenty for the water in the form of a 20lb 3oz common, not many commons in the South so always welcome to see another twenty-pounder come through. Jamie had a nice brace @ 15lb 2oz and 18lb and John K also managed a hat-trick when carp of 17lb 10oz, 18lb 5oz and 24lb 2oz wet his unhooking mat.

South Lake 24lb 2oz

Colin S trumped the aforementioned hat-tricks catching three twenties in a session @ 20lb 4oz, 21lb 4oz (another new one) and 22lb 8oz, result! John T landed a spawned out fully scaled at 27lb 14oz, this was one we thought might have tipped the scales over thirty pre spawn as it was last out three years ago around 21lb.

South Lake 22lb 8oz Part of a Hat-trick

Paul St nabbed a larger one which I think was a new UK PB for him at 28lb 4oz, lovely! Amongst Members landing doubles and twenties combo’s which are a fairly regular feature throughout the year on the South Lake were; John K with mirrors of 15lb and 28lb 8oz, Mark T with fish of 17lb 8oz and 24lb, Michael D with a brace @ 15lb 3oz and 20lb 14oz and Gary P who netted a 14lber and 24lber, bracing results…

South Lake 28lb 8oz

A lot of mid to upper doubles were banked in June as the male fish geared up for or were recovering from spawning, they were on the munch! Most Members banked at least one per visit of these testosterone fuelled fellas some more than one including Peter with a brace @ 15lb and 17lb, Stephen J caught a home-grown 7lb 4oz, 14lb 10oz and an 18lber, Peter scored again with another three @ 12lb 8oz, 15lb 8oz and 19lb 6oz and John K managed a brace of seventeens @ 17lb 2oz and 17lb 4oz, Ryan R didn’t miss out on the action bringing four to the net with 12lb 1oz, 13lb 12oz, 16lb 2oz and 18lb 3oz mirrors.

Colin K consistently wet his sling during the year his best two braces in July went 15lb 6oz and 20lb 5oz followed up on his next session with a 19lb 15oz and 25lb 12oz combi, well fished! Peter chipped in with a 21lb 2oz mirror and Gary P who had got his eye in by now had a couple of twenties @ 20lb 2oz and 22lb 14oz before getting his biggest of the season @ 29lb on the dot, superb.

South Lake July 29lb

Late Summer saw Chris S net a fine 24lb 6oz mirror, Tom caught a cracking fully scaled at 26lb 10oz a rare one at that, its first visit to the bank that I’m aware of since 2019, he was rightly very pleased, still a few surprise ones to catch in here! Mike banked a lovely hat-trick comprising of mirrors of 18lb 8oz, 21lb and a 24lb 15oz common a new Lake Record common and its first recorded capture over 20lb+, a nice surprise, get in! Colin K brought three more to the bank when he caught mirrors of 17lb 4oz, 18lb 5oz and 28lb 12oz his largest for the year, great going.

South Lake Scaley 26lb 10oz

October saw Graham scoring a hat- trick of twenties weighing 20lb 4oz, 22lb 4oz and 26lb 6oz, fishing over a fair bit of bait all takes coming on the same rod 4-5 lengths off his near margin bank, well done that man! Gary C finished his fishing on the South with a low double and a nice 24lb mirror, and Tommy caught a bonny 20lb 5oz new twenty pound plus mirror on the 28^th October, which brought my stock assessment for the season to a nice conclusion.

South Lake One of a Hat-trick in October

Several more chances and fish were had by Winter Ticket Holders to the year-end which aren’t included in this catch report purely and simply because it takes a considerable amount of time to undertake a detailed stock assessment, produce the stats and review all the photos of carp captured throughout the season.

All this is essential fishery management work though as if you don’t know your biomass and record the progress the stock are making you cannot manage the venue effectively to ensure it becomes the best specimen carp fishery it can be.

South Lake Winter Twenty Another New 20lb+

Two thirds of the carp in the Long Lake have made 20lb+ (67.27%) the overall average weight of all captures to the end of October was 20lb 2oz, numbers of home-grown fish and recent stockings of carp under 20lb were caught during the year, on a low stock venue (55 carp in 4.5 acres) this not surprisingly lowers the overall average weight recorded, a handful of single figure fish and the capture of a few 16lb – 17lb stockies does have an impact…

Long Lake Stockie November 2022 16lb 8oz

To gain a better insight into how the stock are progressing we monitor the average weight of 20lb+ fish caught, in 2022 the average weight of twenties was 25lb 14oz, in 2023 it was 25lb 3oz, down slightly as we stocked several 21lb – 22lb carp in 2022 which featured amongst the captures recorded in 2023.

Suffice to say the carp are heading in the right direction as evidenced by the capture of a New Lake Record @ 37lb 9oz at the end of October it’s last capture in 2022 was in September @ 34lb 8oz, it’s a male fish to boot!

Hopefully the previous Lake Record of 37lb 3oz last caught in May 2022 having had two summers growth will have made similar weight gains, there are also a few carp that haven’t visited the bank in 2 – 3 years that could make three zero plus, as mentioned previously things are starting to get interesting…

Long Lake Hopefully She’ll Have Grown

Observation is key to catching on most waters, on the Long even more so, getting an idea where the fish are, or more likely where they are travelling to or from, and then finding an area they might feed on or be caught from and paying keen attention to their behaviour is important.

One Member who’s watercraft regularly pays a dividend is Peter, March saw him bank a couple of the new stock fish and one of the smaller male’s at 16lb 4oz, 16lb 10oz and 18lb 2oz, he followed this up on 6^th April with a hat-trick of carp an 18lb 12oz common and mirrors of 21lb 2oz and 24lb, returning a few days later he caught his first thirty of the year which weighed in at 32lb 4oz, in May he had his second thirty for the year @ 35lb 4oz, in June he managed fish of 20lb 14oz and 27lb 14oz. September he had another newbie at 17lb 8oz as well as a home-grown @ 11lb which was rehomed to the South Lake, a good effort well angled!

Long Lake April 32lb 4oz

Life events impeded Gary R’s angling and he only managed to get bank side up until mid-May, he knows the water well though and used his knowledge to catch four in April, an 18lb 8oz mirror was followed by a hat-trick which included a 12lb home-grown a 19lb 14oz common and a 23lb 10oz mirror, he saved the best until his last visit though when he netted a cracking 32lb 4oz mirror, an enjoyable one to finish with!

Long Lake 32lb 4oz

Tommy managed to bank ten between the end of May and end of August, three of which were home-grown up to 8lb 7oz, most of which were rehomed to the South Lake. He was well pleased with his first captures of the year when a 32lb 2oz mirror and 21lb 2oz common made for a pleasing brace! His back up fish weighed in at 17lb, 18lb 12oz, 19lb, 20lb 12oz, 21lb 8oz, some steady fishing there.

Long Lake 20lb 12oz Back Up Common

Gary C fished regularly and had a cracking year catching twenty in total, a great season’s fishing his impressive result started in March with a 22lb 8oz mirror. April, he managed two different braces @ 19lb 8oz & 22lb 6oz and 16lb 4oz & 23lb 14oz, his May session produced a hat-trick of carp at 17lb 6oz, 19lb 8oz and 35lb 4oz, this fish is a real battler and led him a merry dance, but that’s his story to tell, lol! June produced a 15lb well spawned out common that had been caught in April @ 19lb 14oz, amazing how much spawn they can carry. July started well with a 20lb 2oz mirror a 16lb 14oz mirror, and a mirror/common pairing @ 18lb 12oz & 28lb 12oz and a bonny 20lb 8oz newbie. August was  productive for him bringing an 18lb 2oz common a brace of mirrors at 17lb 6oz and 28lb 4oz to the bank, he signed the month off with another hat-trick of carp weighing 19lb 4oz, 20lb 10oz and 21lb 8oz, congratulations that’s a tremendous catch for a seasons fishing on the Long, well done!

Long Lake 28lb 4oz

Chris Dave and I managed a few nights fishing in May. I nabbed two hard fighting male fish one at 18lb 14oz the other at 20lb 10oz, I was chuffed with the twenty as it was a new twenty pounder for the water and only its second ever capture since 2017. Chris had mirrors of 17lb 12oz, 21lb 4oz and a 21lb 12oz common, and Dave a 12lb home-grown which was rehomed to the South Lake and a 19lb 12oz mirror for his efforts. Other Members catching included Dave T with carp to 19lb 12oz, Les with a 22lb 8oz mirror, Barry with a 18lb 9oz upper double.

Long Lake 21lb 4oz

I returned to the Long Lake at the end of September fishing one session then and two in October for a total of seven nights fished. There had only been two fish caught since the end of August, both falling to Peter’s rods, it was fair to say the fishing had become tricky! The carp normally show well in the Long Lake, if you don’t see them, you normally hear them lump out through the night which gives a clue to their whereabouts, but neither Peter or I heard anything or saw anything move throughout September and October, they were playing hard to find never mind catch!

On my second session in October with the water temperature having fallen below double figures I decided to try and elect a feeding response I fed 4kg of pellet and 1.5kg of boilie over one rod it worked… At midday on the 24^th October the rod ripped off, this was one serious hard fighting carp, in fact the scrap was a full-on brutal affair, nearly 20 minutes later and he was in the net, I was left shaking with the adrenaline rush.

Gary C arrived just after I’d netted the fish. I secured the net and went to get him to witness the fish, saying I had a goodun and to save me setting up the self-take gear would he mind doing the pics, he willingly obliged. He had a quick peak in the folds of the mesh and thought it may have been the thirty I had last year around 32lb, I said no its way bigger than that, I didn’t look at the scales and heard Gary say that can’t be right its reading 38lb, after deducting the weigh sling its actual weight was 37lb 9oz, a new Lake Record by a few ounces, what a fish and what a fight!

I had a mate fishing in Norfolk who landed a thirty on the same day, the big difference being the water temperature, in Norfolk was 14oc, up here on the Scottish borders it was 9oc, oh and my carp was bigger, lol!

Long Lake New Lake Record October 37lb 9oz

A special capture for me and an unforgettable end to my fishing year, not sure if I’ll be able to do better in 2024, but I’ll certainly try!

Best fishes, Steve.

2022 flew by all too quickly, it certainly did in fishery management terms, which is often a battle against time to complete the numerous tasks, behind the scenes day to day work, and ongoing maintenance that is required to create and provide quality specimen carp fishing.

I’m pleased to say we completed a lot of jobs around the Lakes last year, and we’ve made a good start with our scheduled work so far this year.

The Kingfisher Team are on site regularly and as always will continue with our endeavours throughout 2023.

Running our fisheries isn’t just a labour of love it’s a long-term commitment, a demanding but ultimately satisfying conscious life style choice, we get a great deal of pleasure from constantly improving and developing our waters.

Our reward is seeing Members (and ourselves on occasion) catch some cracking carp knowing it’s our efforts that have created such a special place to fish.

Last year we stocked an additional 20 carp to 18lb 1oz into the South Lake thirteen of which were doubles averaging 14lb 9oz.

The Long Lake received a stocking of 10 fish between 16lb 8oz and 26lb, with the average weight of the carp stocked being 20lb 11oz.

During 2022 our waters produced numerous new 20lb+ fish and six new 30lb+ specimens which is testimony to the fact that our carp are continuing to grow well.

Between them our Lakes have now produced over 120 20lb+ carp including 13 30lb+ fish.

The Kingfisher Team is delighted with the progress our carp are making and are hopeful that 2023 will see an increase in the number of new twenty and thirty pound plus carp getting banked, and also see a further increase in the overall average weight of all fish caught.

Best fishes for the year ahead!

Chris and Steve

Numerous New Twenties in 2022 This One Went 22lb

There were some tremendous carp caught from the North Lake last year; the venue produced 11 new 20lb + carp ranging in size between 20 – 23lb 15oz and 3 new 30lb+ fish when mirrors of 30lb 9oz, 31lb and 32lb 1oz graced the banks for the first time, the Lake Record also increased to 37lb 11oz when a belter of a mirror was banked, a canny year for sure!

North Lake Record Mirror 37lb 11oz August 2022

There were many memorable captures made by Members during the year I’ll highlight a few of them now:

Graham landed a brace of 20lb+ carp from the Lake when he banked mirrors of 20lb 10oz and 23lb 15oz, incidentally both were new twenties for the water what a great first brace for him!

Braces of twenty pound plus carp are becoming somewhat of a regular occurrence at Kingfisher and several Members chipped in including; Justin with a brace @ 22lb 12oz and 23lb, Big Paul with 21lb 8oz and 24lb 10oz fish, Greg with two to 22lb+, Liam had a brace @ 22lb and 26lb, and Anthony managed a couple @ 20lb 10oz and 27lb, well done all.

North Lake Jaffa 26lb August 2022

Dave B caught one of the new thirties from the water in the shape of a 31lb scaley stunner, this fish was captured as a new twenty @ 21lb in 2019, so making steady progress and one to watch going forward.

Jamie had a nice hit on one of his sessions when he had a quad trick of fish @14lb 8oz, 18lb 2oz, 29lb 10oz and 31lb 14oz, a good result no doubt about it.

North Lake New Thirty 31lb May 2022

Sean had a hat trick of twenties on one of his trips including a new twenty @ 20lb 10oz, followed up by fish of 20lb 15oz and 21lb 12oz, always a thrill to add to the growing number of 20lb+ carp in the Lake.

Michael R’s best hit was also a quad trick of carp he was ever so slightly chuffed when carp of 17lb, 26lb 6oz, 28lb and 30lb 14oz paid a visit to his unhooking mat on his best session of the year.

North Lake Big Tail Common 28lb

Lee H also managed a hat trick of twenties@ 20lb 15oz, 22lb 5oz and 22lb 5oz his first twenties from the venue all caught a couple of rod lengths out in the near margin…

Greg had a brace of thirties, both being new 30lb+ carp for the North Lake @ 30lb 9oz and 32lb 1oz it’s the first brace of thirties the North has produced which makes his result very special indeed!

North Lake New Thirty 32lb 1oz Greg’s First 30+

Franky managed a well-earned hat trick netting fish of 16lb, 25lb 9oz and 27lb 2oz, which he was more than pleased with.

Gary R banked four at the end of the year netting fish of 18lb 2oz, 19lb 12oz, 20lb 8oz, a new twenty and 23lb 10oz on a short session towards the end of the year, a nice result.

Bailiff Dave timed it right in August with the high temperatures easing and a low-pressure system bringing a splash of rain he had mirrors of 17lb, 23lb (a new scaley twenty) and a Lake Record mirror of 37lb 11oz, good going on a quick overnighter, well done that man!

North Lake New Twenty August 2022 23lb

Congratulations to everyone who caught during the warmest year on record, it wasn’t at times easy going especially during the heat waves, it’ll be interesting to see how the fish have grown and what weights they will reach in the months ahead.

It’s a fact of fishery management that all fisheries lose some of their stock at some point, like us fish grow old, and as they age, they pass away, the stress of spawning may weaken older individuals, or they may not spawn at all and become spawn bound, young fish may not survive their first attempt at spawning, and harsh winter conditions may see over wintering casualties occur etc.

We record any losses and amend our stock assessment figures accordingly, as it is vitally important to have an accurate biomass figure and know the quantity of carp in each Lake so the venues can be managed effectively.

We have an on-site stock pond that we grow fish on in, so over time we can replace and offset any losses and also introduce additional stock as required into our waters.

We are also fortunate that the North and Long Lakes have numerous year classes of home-grown carp coming through the ranks, and as part of our management plans any caught are moved to the South Lake to boost fish stocks.

Of the additional 20 carp to 18lb 1oz that we stocked into the South Lake last year 12 came from the Long Lake, they ranged in size between 8lb – 18lb and 8 came from the North Lake ranging in size between 6lb 4oz – 15lb 8oz.

South Lake Home to Over 220 Carp

The current stock level in the South Lake now stands @ 222 carp plus home-grown fish from successful spawning’s 222 stocked fish in 2022 whats the odds on that all the twos…, not surprisingly 2022,  was the most successful year for numbers of fish getting caught so far…

Amongst those getting nets wet last year were;

Greg who had some cracking results, regularly having multiple fish captures, his first hit included a pair of low doubles to 13lb+, an upper double @ 18lb 10oz capped off with a  27lb 4oz mirror, on one three night session he banked fish of 13lb 1oz, 16lb 2oz, 16lb 4oz, 17lb 7oz, 18lb and a brace of twenty pound mirrors @ 20lb 7oz and 22lb 8oz, both of which were new 20lb+ fish for the Lake, he followed this April session up  3 weeks later with an 48 hour visit and had an 8 fish hit netting carp of 12lb 7oz, 14lb 8oz, 14lb 10oz, 16lb 4oz, 17lb 9oz, 18lb , 20lb 7oz and 22lb, good angling for sure!

South Lake April Scaley Twenty 2022

There aren’t many commons in the South Lake but a few decent ones have been spotted so it’s always nice to see pics of any that do get caught, Colin did well to snare one of them post spawning at 21lb 10oz, we think she’d easily be 25lb+ if caught before the carp engaged in their nuptials, time will tell…

South Lake Uncommon Common 21lb 10oz July 2022

Most Members managed a few chances on their sessions and lots of braces, hat tricks and quad tricks were recorded, some of the more notable ones include; Bailiff Dave with a nice brace @ 17lb 8oz and 25lb, Josh with a 17lb 8oz mirror and 22lb 4oz common, Justin with mirrors of 23lb and 28lb 4oz.

South Lake Lump 28lb 4oz

Stuart banked a canny couple in the form of mirrors at 23lb 2oz and 24lb 5oz, another new twenty for the South Lake, new Member John K had a great first session netting four doubles to 17lb and a 22lb mirror for his efforts, Aaron also first-time fishing on the South had four takes and converted them bank side with carp of 15lb 2oz, 17lb 10oz, 20lb 12oz and 26lb 8oz gracing his net.

South Lake 22lb 13oz August 2022

Dave B had a session on the South and weighed in with a nice brace @ 21lb 4oz and 22lb 13oz, Dave L landed several during the year his best carp of the year going 26lb, and Bailiff Dave caught the last fish of the year in when he banked a lovely twenty pounder, which was also a new 20lb+ for the venue, great going all!

 South Lake One of Several New Twenties in 2022

The South Lake produced several new 20lb+ carp to 24lb 5oz during 2022 and saw its Lake Record increase slightly to 29lb 12oz. There are a least five fish swimming in the South that could make 30lb+ in 2023, fins crossed we’ll see one go past that magical barrier this year.

With several fish that haven’t been banked for 3 or 4 years there could well be a few surprises to brighten Members fishing when they do slip up, who knows what swims within the confines of the lovely South, time will of course will eventually tell…

South Lake 3am Wake Up Call 29lb 12oz

Those Members who hold a Long Lake Ticket consider themselves privileged to be able to fish the water, they enjoy the challenge of fishing for 50+ carp in 4.5 acres.

Long Lake Aerial View

The fish move around a lot are very active and often very moody, you’re not trying to nick a bite here you’re trying to get the fish feeding for long enough that they make a mistake, not at times an easy task as a lot of the bigger carp are solitary feeders, it’s a venue that can open your eyes, if of course you keep your eyes on the water, the most observant anglers are the most successful here…

Gary R is one Member in tune with the carp, he had his best year on the Long capturing 20 fish over the course of the season, 7 were home grown fish between 8- 17lb which were moved to the South Lake, Gary also landed several upper doubles and low to mid-twenties up to 25lb 10oz, but cream of his crop were two thirties a 30lb 14oz common and 30lb 10oz mirror, both being new 30lb+ carp for the Lake, well done that man!

Long Lake New Thirty 30lb 10oz

Peter managed 8 fish for the season which included three upper doubles to 19lb 14oz, three twenties to 23lb 2oz and two thirties @ 34lb 8oz and 36lb 2oz, well-earned carp for sure.

New Member Gary C hit a purple patch when he started fishing in June bagging a string of fish up to 19lb 4oz before landing his season best in the shape of a 28lb 8oz mirror, a good start which he’ll hopefully build on during 2023.

Tommy worked hard for his captures during 2022, it’s fair to say it was a tricky year for him, his highlights were banking a new twenty @ 22lb 2oz and best of all a Lake Record mirror @ 37lb 3oz, it doesn’t get much sweeter than that, congratulations to you!

Long Lake Record Mirror 37lb 3oz May 2022

Other Members managing to sneak one or two out included Dan H with his first at 21lb 3oz, Jamie with a solid 25lb common which was his first as well, a bit of stalking paying a dividend for him, Barry with a 23lb 10oz mirror, Tom with a 21lb mirror and Bailiff Dave with a 20lb 5oz mirror, Barry’s Tom’s and Dave’s fish all being new 20lb+ specimens for the water, keep them coming men.

Long Lake Stalking Result 25lb Common

My own fishing tends to be late season or early season such is the joy of being a fishery manager, as my time is taken up not surprisingly managing the venues I operate.

I did wet a line on a few occasions though, starting the year fishing on New Year’s Eve, which is better than being in the house or pub in my view, I had two takes on New Year’s Day, unfortunately suffering a hook pull with the first, pretty certain this was one of the thirties that live in the Long as it jumped clear of the water during the scrap at short range, a disappointing start to the year, but hey ho that’s carp fishing… I had a 14lb 4oz consolation home grown mirror a couple of hours later which was rehomed to the South Lake so not all bad a couple of takes in January, at least my bait worked.

Fishery works took over and it was May before the rods came out to play again, I fished a 75-hour session it being my first-time fishing in May since 2017…

I always dreamed of catching a Cumbrian 30lb+ and probably told almost every Member that was my target for the year; well four nights in and BANG; target achieved 32lb 5oz of gorgeous mirror carp, a NEW 30lber for the Long to boot, last out in July 2021 @ 28lb 6oz, happy days!

I followed her up with a mirror of 18lb 1oz, a common of 22lb 11oz, a NEW 20lber for the Lake, and a mirror of 23lb 5oz, a very enjoyable and rewarding session.

Once the carp spawn I generally don’t get the rods out again until September, just my thing, I’m not really interested in catching big fish down in weight I prefer to leave them to recover and grow throughout the summer months.

I fished another 6 sessions or so between September and the end of November, I managed to get the carp feeding on 5 of those 6 visits, but not for long enough to hook another, such is how it goes when fishing for those solitary feeding fish.

A memorable year for me though, note to self, must do more fishing…

Best fishes and further best fishes to you all,

Steve

Long Lake New Thirty May 2022 32lb 5oz

Having introduced another 10 carp into our “cretaceous lagoon”during 2022 we are hopeful they’ll settle in well and start putting on the pounds and ounces at a steady rate, over 65% of the stocked fish weigh in excess of 20lb+ currently up to 37lb+  and still growing, and those exhibiting the best growth rates consistently exceed 3lb+ per season, we’re pretty sure some interesting fish will visit the bank this year, exciting times lie ahead!

Long Lake 23lb 2oz One of Ten Stocked in 2022

Staycation was the buzz word last year and people explored what was on their own doorstep or in the countryside around them, it reminded a lot of us how lucky we are to live where we do and to appreciate the wealth of activities and facilities we have close to home.

In angling terms, it showed the importance of fishing in people’s lives as participation in all forms of the sport increased, this surge in demand certainly applied to all aspects of carp fishing be it Club, Day Ticket or Syndicate.

As most Syndicates do, we limit Membership numbers and operate a Waiting List for prospective Members who’ve submitted an Application Form to us, and we usually have a few places available each season.

One of our core belief’s is that it is important to continue to invest in, improve and develop the Syndicate to benefit our Members the fish and the fishery as a whole.

So; not being ones to rest on our laurels we stocked 100 C3 carp averaging 7lb 4oz into our Stock Pond in January these will be grown on to a good size before stocking out, we also have some C5 and C6 fish on order for stocking into the Long Lake in the autumn.

We are committed to ensuring our venues become the best specimen carp waters possible, and 2022 will see us continuing the works required to ensure our carp thrive and the Syndicate flourishes.

All our waters produced new 20lb+ fish last year, in fact between them they’ve now produced over 100 different 20lb+ carp including 8 30lb+ fish, all the Lakes saw a good number of upper doubles between 18lb – 19lb 12oz and several upper twenties between 27lb – 29lb 8oz featuring amongst the catches recorded.

The North Lake produced a new 30lb+ fish a mirror @ 32lb 2oz, the Long Lake produced a new Lake Record mirror of 35lb 8oz, and the South Lake saw its Lake Record increase to 29lb 8oz.

Obviously, we are very pleased with the progress our carp are making, and with numbers of upper doubles and upper twenties continuing to come up through the ranks at a steady rate we are quietly confident that we’ll see an increase in new twenty and thirty pound plus carp gracing the banks over coming months as the fish are growing well in all of the Lakes, fins crossed for a great year ahead!

Best fishes,

Chris and Steve

Stock Pond Jan 2022 C3 @ 8lb 3oz one of 100 being grown on

2021 was another busy year for us at Kingfisher, we had the challenges that storm and flood events left us to deal with, we undertook several netting operations which resulted in all our Lakes receiving additional stockings of fish, and we completed a host of jobs around the site.

We introduced 5 carp up to 15lb 15oz into the North Lake, these are young fish that will hopefully grow well and it’ll be interesting to monitor their progress. We have a fair few home-grown fish coming through which can have an impact on the growth rate of the older stock, so by tracking these ‘marker’ fish we’ll gain an insight into how to manage the water to attain the best growth rates we can going forward.

One of the young fish stocked @ 15lb+

There were some cracking fish caught throughout the season too many to list here but weighing in with some of the more notable captures recorded were:

Tommy who got the ball rolling in March with a brace @ 16lb 4oz and 26lb 14oz, rumour has it that apparently, he got lost while on his way to the Long Lake…

Garry L kept at them during the course of the year his best result being a hattrick of fish @ 15lb 5oz, 19lb 6oz and 19lb 12oz, several other mid to upper doubles visited his unhooking mat before he banked a lovely 25lb mirror.

Michael F started getting his net wet with a string of mid to upper doubles before banking his first twenty of the year @ 24lb, a cracker to boot!

A Scaley Cracker 

Jamie had a welcome brace in April comprising of a 20lb 13oz mirror and 24lb common, he landed a few others during his infrequent visits including a ‘chunkasaurus’ common of 6lb, well someone occasionally has to catch one of the home-grown’s…

Anthony chipped in with a cracking 4 fish haul in May landing mirrors of 16lb 8oz, 20lb 8oz, 20lb 10oz and 22lb, a couple of which were new twenties for the North Lake, well done that man.

Dave B, got straight back at them netting some good carp to upper doubles before landing a brace of twenties @ 22lb 3oz common and 23lb mirror.

One of several New 20lb+ Carp Caught in 2021

Ryan R helped himself to a quad trick of mirrors with fish of 14lb 2oz, 19lb, 21lb and 23lb, Michael R got amongst them a few days later banking a mid- double and a couple of upper doubles topped off with a 21lb 3oz mirror, another new twenty for the Lake.

Mark H got his net wet banking four nice ones on his first trip of the year when he weighed in fish of 17lb, 18lb 5oz, 19lb and 22lb 6oz, his best trip saw him land mirrors of 19lb 2oz, 20lb and 23lb 4oz.

New Member Paul S introduced himself to the inhabitants of the North and quickly made friends with the stock landing a brace of twenties to 22lb on his first trip, a 22lber and a belter of a thirty @ 32lb 2oz, his UK PB on his second visit, his third attempt saw a canny haul with an 11lb 12oz home-grown, and others of 19lb 12oz, 21lb 8oz, 22lb 4oz and 24lb 12oz gracing his net, a cracking result!

North Lake Belter 32lb 2oz

Another new Member doing well was Greg who managed three on his first visit with fish of 19lb 3oz, 22lb 10oz and 24lb, a great start, on subsequent trips he had some mid doubles, and his best for the year went 28lb 8oz, nice going.

Bailiff Dave chipped in with a brace of mirrors @ 20lb 5oz and 25lb and a handful of doubles to 18lb+.

Dave P got his season off to a good start weighing in a brace of twenties @ 20lb and 27lb 8oz, he followed it up with a hattrick of carp to low twenties a few weeks later, and his best session yielded carp of 21lb, 28lb and 29lb 8oz, good angling sir.

North Lake 28lb

Big Paul had a great hit of fish during the July heat wave, only fishing evenings until 1pm he had 13 runs and landed 10 carp @ 12lb 2oz, 16lb, 16lb 7oz, 17lb 2oz, 19lb 11oz, 21lb 2oz, 21lb 5oz, 21lb 10oz, 23lb 6oz and 29lb 2oz, bloody good angling during red hot conditions that.

Some impressive results there well done all, onwards and upwards!

Big Common 29lb 2oz

We stocked 40 carp up to 15lb 12oz into the South Lake during the year, the majority were stocked between Jan – April, the average weight of this spring stocking was 12lb 8oz, so it’ll be interesting to see how they’ve faired after having had a summers growth, hopefully they’ll have gained an additional 2-3lb in weight each.

Taking into account any casualties that occurred this brings our current stock level to 210 carp, plus home-grown fish from successful spawning’s, this is in keeping with our stated aim to offer a variety of different challenges on the same site with all three Lakes having differing stocking levels to reflect this.

We intend to move any home-grown carp caught from the North or Long Lakes to the South Lake during 2022 to further boost fish stocks.

One of 40 Stocked into the South Lake in 2021

The fresh stock livened up catches somewhat, there were twice as many fish caught as in 2020 and 1 in 4 captures were of 20lb+ carp, hopefully this trend will continue and if Members start using more bait to induce the increased biomass of carp to feed, we’ll see a steady upwards swing in catches and size of fish caught!

Honours for first capture of the year went to Justin who caught 6 on a day only session, his cracking haul included fish of; 13lb 7oz, 14lb 4oz, 14lb 6oz, 16lb 4oz, 18lb 10oz and 20lb 6oz, fine angling for sure.

Josh on his first trip of the year banked a nice brace a mirror @ 13lb 12oz and 21lb 8oz common, the twenty being a new 20lb+ carp for the venue and Lake Record common, a canny start, well done!

Josh managed a few other fish during the season including a 22lb 8oz mirror, his partner Jasmine nearly got bragging rights for who’s had the largest South Lake carp when she netted her first from the water when a 22lb 7oz scaley mirror graced her net, a nice fish to open her account with.

Account Opened

Getting among some of the larger fish early season were Ryan L with a fine brace of mirrors @ 22lb 10oz and 24lb 10oz, his first fish from the Syndicate and a UK Pb to boot, a memorable catch and a good result.

Peter managed a couple of belters banking mirrors of 26lb 8oz and 27lb 2oz on two separate overnighters, he followed them up with a brace of mirrors to 18lb 10oz before heading off to pastures new on the Long Lake.

Bailiff Dave dropped on for an overnighter and helped himself to a hattrick of carp @ 18lb 11oz, 18lb 13oz and 25lb, he also banked mirrors of 13lb and a brace of 15lbers to 15lb 13oz on a couple of other overnight sessions, the bait still works well then, lol!

24lb 10oz April 2021

Philip cast to a showing fish and was rewarded with a bonny 26lb 8oz mirror, a fine piece of opportunistic angling.

Several Members caught new 20lb+ carp from the water in May and June including Paul with a 20lb 3oz mirror, Nigel had a 13lb 4oz mirror and a 22lb 10oz cracker of a new twenty, Garry L also had a brace with a low double and 20lb 6oz mirror, Neil banked one bang on 20lb and Kirk had a brace of twenties @ 20lb 5oz and 23lb which was a lovely new twenty, really great to see new 20lb+ fish coming through the ranks, congrats to you all!

New Twenty 22lb 10oz

Michael F had a change of scene away from the North Lake and landed a brace of twenties @ 20lb 8oz and 25lb 6oz, returning for a second visit a few weeks later he a couple of smaller ones @ 8lb 7oz and 17lb.

Lee F fished well throughout the year, not being shy with the bait and getting his bait application right brought a run of success during his quick overnight visits he banked several low to mid doubles and one or two upper doubles to 18lb 3oz, his best overnighter saw him net fish of 10lb 1oz, 15lb 8oz, 16lb 7oz, 20lb 6oz and 21lb which just shows what can be achieved if you use more than a handful of boilies…

Other Members getting a few runs consistently were Scott who brought a string of doubles to 15lb 10oz to the net, his best overnighter produced 4 fish to 14lb, Colin also had got them going with a quad trick of doubles to 15lb 5oz hitting his spreader block.

21lb 2021

Amongst Members persuading the twenties to get photographed were;

Andrew B who was chuffed with his brace when he weighed in an 11lb+ common and a 25lb+ mirror, James with a 10lber and 21lber, followed up a few days later with a new UK PB @ 25lb 3oz, Paul with another nice brace a 17lb mirror and 21lb 6oz common, and Graham who got off the mark with a 21lb 7oz mirror, his follow up visit saw him bank a beauty @ 27lb 8oz, some good results being had there.

Alister was well pleased with his brace of twenties first up on the bank was a 21lb 4oz mirror, followed shortly afterwards by a New Lake Record in the shape of a 29lb 8oz mirror, congratulations to you, well done that man!

Keep at them, keep the bait going in and the results will keep coming.

New Lake Record 29lb 8oz

Our aim for the venue is to continue to develop it as our out and out specimen water, to this end we stocked an additional 10 carp into the Lake in 2021, fish of; 15lb 3oz, 16lb 2oz, 16lb 7oz, 16lb 14oz, 19lb 10oz, 19lb 15oz, 20lb 2oz, 21lb 4oz, 22lb 10oz and 23lb 7oz were introduced, and we look forward to monitoring the progress the new additions make during 2022.

New Addition 23lb 7oz

The Long produces numbers of home-grown fish each year and as part of our management plan to ensure the bigger residents in the Lake continue to grow well, we will move any caught into the South Lake to further boost its fish stocks.

Other than the four 20lb+ fish stocked the Long saw three more carp pass the 20lb+ barrier for the first time; Gary R nabbed the first @ 22lb 14oz which was last out at 17lb 5oz, Tommy bagged the second new twenty when he had 21lb 2oz common, and Tom the third when he netted a lovely 23lb 10oz common which was last banked at 19lb 12oz, well done men, always nice to see fish make it past the 20lb barrier for the first time.

New Twenty 23lb 10oz

It’s amazing how some carp can avoid capture for lengthy periods of time, mind in a water like the Long Lake there are plenty of areas the residents can avoid the attention of anglers in. Bailiff Dave caught one such hook shy creature when he landed a 28lb 14oz mirror in April, almost 4 years since this one was last on the bank a noteworthy capture indeed!

28lb 14oz April 2021

Barry had an 18lb 8oz mirror in early April and followed it up with four upper doubles to 19lb over the course of his season, he was a little unlucky not to get amongst the twenties to be honest, as indeed was Steve who managed two braces of upper doubles to 19lb 4oz on a couple of trips at the end of September and October.

As well as catching a new 20lb+, venue regular Tommy added carp of 15lb 6oz, 16lb, 16lb 12oz, 18lb 12oz, 19lb 6oz, 20lb 10oz, 21lb 10oz, 23lb 8oz, 26lb 5oz and 28lb 10oz to tally during his sessions, good going that, 6 out of 11 fish caught being over twenty pound very pleasing!

Tommy’s best for the year 28lb 10oz

Anthony made a couple of trips to water well worth his while banking a 19lb mirror on his first and a brace @ 18lb 6oz and 32lb 2oz on his second, well done that man.

Peter’s been a Long Lake Member for a few years now and June saw him cast a line in the water for the first time. He got off to a flier banking a brace of mirrors @ 25lb 12oz and 27lb 2oz, his next trip resulted in mirrors of 17lb 6oz and 24lb 4oz, on subsequent sessions he had mirrors of 16lb, then 16lb 12oz, another brace of twenties @ 20lb 6oz and 28lb 6oz, followed next visit with a 19lb 8oz mirror, then a 16lb 8oz mirror in November and a cracking brace in December @ 17lb 14oz and 27lb, 50% of his fish being twenties, what a first year that was, very well done!

Well Worthwhile 32lb 2oz

Gary R had a good start to his year banking a 13lb home-grown that was rehomed to the South Lake, an 18lb 2oz mirror was a step up and in the right direction but he saved his best for last a brace of carp weighing in at 22lb 12oz and a lump of a thirty at 35lb 8oz a fantastic result and New Lake Record mirror, congratulations to you Gary.

The Long Lake is starting to produce some good-sized fish, and one of its challenges is catching those carp that haven’t been on the bank for two or three seasons or longer… you have to love a challenge, bring it on!

New Lake Record 35lb 8oz