Fishery Focus: Ashmoor Lakes Barbel

I am lucky enough to be part of a family who own a fishery. Ashmoor Lakes in Old Basing.

It is a small, mixed coarse fishery packed with many species of fish.

Initially they were dug for me, and I have been fishing there all of my angling life, over 30 years. It's where I learned to fish, and as such I have extensive knowledge of the venue and how best to catch the fish.

So I figured it was about time I shared some of this information I've acquired through the years and how you can best target and catch certain species by design.

ASHMOOR BARBEL

Though Ashmoor Lakes is a mixed coarse fishery packed with many wonderful species, the Carp have always been the most sought after. That is, until the addition of the Barbel to the lakes.

When Ashmoor Lakes was first dug and opened up to the public the Barbel were not present. Prior to opening, the lakes were stocked with mainly Roach, Rudd, Perch and Tench, and on opening we stocked the lakes with a healthy supply of Bream, Crucian Carp and Carp. The fishery flourished with the new additions, and as they grew, attracted more and more anglers to come and catch them.

In January 2010 the decision was made to stock the lakes with 2 brand new, and somewhat controversial species at the time, Barbel and Chub. 

The decision was made mostly due to the fact that the dreaded KHV (Koi Herpes Virus) had been spreading around local fisheries and killing off all their stocks of Carp. If the virus made it to our fishery and similarly affected our stocks of Carp it would have been catastrophic. Though Ashmoors other species would should be more than enough to keep people coming, unfortunately the main draw of most fisheries is their Carp. Most people want to catch big powerful fish. It's as simple as that. Our fish supplier, when quizzed about it, suggested adding Barbel. And so the decision was made.

Incidentally, the Chub were added alongside them to help the resident Perch keep the small fry population managed.

Barbel and Chub are traditionally a species found only in flowing streams and rivers, and have evolved to thrive in these conditions, so there was some controversy to adding them to still waters from anglers. These fish, however, had been bred in a fish farm, and had never seen so much as a gravel bed or weir pool, so we felt confident they would be fine.

Over the years the Ashmoor Barbel have thrived!

I personally had dinner and discussion with a VERY famous angler a few years back, who still didn't believe Barbel did well in stillwater fisheries. The ones he had caught from lakes and ponds had been skinny and emaciated, and very rarely grew bigger than 4lb maximum because of the environment they were in. Fisheries with very large Barbel in, he suggested, were stocked in that size, perhaps poached from local rivers and added illegally (to which I feel this is often the case). However, I was able to show that it's not always the case, and the Ashmoor Barbel population proves it. 

Never added any bigger than a few ounces, the Barbel at Ashmoor Lakes, though more commonly weighing 2-4lb, at their biggest are now tipping the scales at 6lb and as anglers who now catch them will attest, are strong, healthy, powerful fish. In fact, word has got out now that the Barbel are actually, pound for pound, much better fish to catch than the Ashmoor Carp, and believe it or not, some anglers travel miles and miles across the country to target the Barbel over all the other stocked species! 

In fact, and this is very rarely believed by many as Barbel need flowing water and gravel beds to breed in, the Barbel here are so healthy that they are breeding in the still water and silt!

Some anglers are catching small Barbel, below 1lb in weight, and these fish could only have bred in the lake, as a stocking of them hasn't happened in over 8 years.

With so many anglers travelling so far to catch some of these fish from Ashmoor Lakes, it would be a shame to travel all that way and not catch them. So here are the tips to help you:

A Typical Ashmoor Barbel

LOCATION

The Barbel are found throughout all 3 lakes at Ashmoor, so wherever you fish, you will find them. Not only that, but it doesn't even matter which lake you fish on, as surprisingly to some, the lakes are all joined together. Beneath the ground joining Lake 1 to Lake 2, and Lake 2 to Lake 3 are two large pipes, allowing water and fish to pass through between them.

The main reason for this is so that when the lakes are topped up with water from a water holding pond in the summer when the water levels drop, the water flows evenly between them. But it also provides a channel between all the lakes that Barbel regularly use to travel between the lakes to feed in different ponds.

Many a time have anglers caught a notable Barbel in Lake 1, especially a particularly noticeable one eyed fish, only to come down a separate time and catch the same fish in Lake 2.

The Barbel in Ashmoor Lakes tend to hug the margins, often right underneath your feet, and near features such as lilies.

With so many Carp in the lakes the margins around the edges are quite undercut due to the activity of them feeding and rubbing along the edges, and this provides a safer haven for not only them, but also the Barbel, who feed much better with something over their heads, and have a nearby place to hide in..

They can be caught all around the lakes, but I would tend towards swims with good reed growth around the edges. On Lake 1, the far bank and the opposite reed lined bank near the path are good, on Lake 2 the reedy swims along the near side, and the far bank of Lake 3 are all the prime spots, though I do know a couple of premium spots which I will discuss later. It is to be noted that all of these areas are margins close in.

TIME

Barbel can be caught all year round. In still waters I do feel that they do feed differently to rivers, however, and the Ashmoor Barbel are much easier caught in the warmer weather, late Spring through to early Autumn being the best time, with Summer being the best.

Having fished for Ashmoor Barbel many times, I would say that there is no best time of day for them, they are just as likely to feed in the mornings and evenings as in the middle of the day. They do feed better on a warmer day than a cold one.

METHODS

At any time of the year the Barbel can be caught on many methods. Float fishing, feeder fishing and legering being top ways.

With float fishing it is important to be fishing on the bottom, as that's where the Barbel feed. Plumb the depth carefully and either have the bait just sitting on the bottom, or give it an inch or two over depth to ensure the bait is there. 

Using a fishmeal based groundbait in a feeder, particularly carefully cast to the margins of the lakes, including the islands, will bring all fish from far and wide, including the Barbel. Casting every 5 to 10 minutes will keep the bait topped up and keep their interest. In warmer months, you'll barely have time to wind a quiver tip rod into position before it curls round into a fish if you are doing it properly, though not always a Barbel, they will come among the mix.

Using a feeder also helps to keep the rig from sinking in the soft silt at the bottom of the lakes. A method perhaps better than using a leger.

The method feeder is a similarly potent way of catching the Barbel, and is actually a better way of fishing for them if casting to distant margins.

With a feeder, the hook length trails out beyond the feeder itself, and this often runs the risk of hooking up into the marginal growth if fishing close. By using a method feeder, particularly a flatbed one, you can cast more confidently to marginal growth, and actually get a little nearer, as the hook length is smaller, and hidden within the groundbait on the feeder itself. 

4lb line should be more than enough to target the Barbel, and also give you half a chance of landing most of the Carp you will inevitably catch alongside them. I'd perhaps recommend 4lb line on the hook length, and 5 or 6 on the main line to deal with multiple casts, and less chance of losing an entire rig should a big Carp come and break you up, while giving you the best chance of the Barbel not noticing the line when feeding. 

Use a hook that is a suitable size for your bait. I tend to use a barbless hook between a size 16 and 12.

BAIT

The Barbel at Ashmoor Lakes can be caught with pretty much any bait, though it is important to remember with Ashmoor Lakes being a farm venue the lakes get a large quantity of natural bait that is around for the fish to feed on, not only under water, but also flying or blown in from crops in fields nearby, and as Ashmoor is set in surrounding woodland also, plenty of food comes down from the trees as well. Because of this, natural baits tend to be the way of things to catch fish easier.

This tends to be the way of Ashmoor Lakes. Maggot and worm catch many more fish than other baits, also including prawns and bread. Though naturally, using maggot and worm do tend to catch you a mix of species rather than picking out Barbel more specifically.

The Barbel love luncheon meat and pellets too however, and these baits tend to reduce the hassle given by the silver fish feeding on the bait, however a bigger issue then arises by using these baits, as the Carp love these baits too. Throwing in a lot of pellets and meat will bring in the Carp from far and wide, and they will bully the Barbel out the swim, and break the finer line you should be using to catch them. Therefore, it's a balancing act between feeding too much and too little, and fishing too light and too heavy that makes the Ashmoor Barbel a real challenge. 

With Ashmoor Lakes being a farm pond, and naturals being the way of things, it does mean that boilies are not a very effective bait for catching Barbel. Being maximum 6lb at present, a big boilie will be left uneaten by the Barbel, but perhaps smaller ones would be taken. Other baits outshine boiles by far though.

The key to all these baits though is to feed little and often, much like a match fisherman, and not toss out large beds of bait.

Another Barbel Falls to a Soft Hooker Pellet

THE BEST WAY TO CATCH

With the methods and baits discussed above, here I'm going to get into the number one method I use to target the Barbel. As I say, I have fished for them so many times that I know them like the back of my hand. Here's what I do to secure and whisker in the back of the net.

The first thing that's most important, as I discussed above, is fish in the margins. I never cast anywhere to catch a Barbel. Choose your swim, and fish a rod length away next to a reed fringed nearside bank, almost under your feet. Always with reeds, as that's where the Barbel will be over all other places.

Float fish, either on rod or pole, though rod tends to be easier if a Carp grabs the bait instead of a Barbel, and literally place the rig and float, right below the tip for accuracy, as close to the reeds as you dare. The closer the better. Fishing as much as 6" away I find reduces your chance of catching them greatly.

Make sure the rig has been plumbed to depth and the bait is on the bottom.

Don't add any bait at all to begin with. Any bait added brings in the Carp. The Barbel have much more sensitive barbules than Carp and will generally find a single hookbait first. In this way you can often pick up one or two bonus Barbel right off the bat.

For hookbait, it's true that maggot and worm and meat are all taken readily by them, but the premium hookbait on a size 16 hook is a single soft hooker pellet, a nice and oily one.

When adding bait after the first few fish with no loose feed fed (hopefully one of the fish at least being a Barbel) don't add too much. Adding too much bait will bring in hordes of Carp, and you'll be catching them all day long. Feed little and often, maybe even half a dozen similarly sized pellets to the ones on the hook every now and then.

A good float rod that can handle the odd Carp is best. I'd love to use a light match rod, but the Carp can be too brutish.

As promised earlier, I will let you into my favourite Barbel swims, though a little reluctantly as I'm sure they will all be taken from here on in. Those Barbel do love those reedy margins over all others, but if you can sit in a swim next to one of the pipes that join up the lakes, you will be in the prime spots for the Barbel. The Barbel love to swim from lake to lake through the pipes, but more than anything, they love to live in the pipes!

On Lake 1 the pipe leads to Lake 2 in 'Carp Corner', the corner that pokes out on the top left of the lake that stops it from being a square. The pipe is on the opposite bank to the one you sit on, you can see an indented bump in the reeds. On Lake 2, the pipe comes opposite this in another noticeable bump in the corner, along the bank following where the bird scarer banger points.

The pipe from Lake 2 into Lake 3 is to the left of the life ring hidden in the reeds,and also pops out into Lake 3 directly behind it. Again, if you look for it, you can see where it goes through, though it's less obvious and a little harder to locate.

You'll need to be careful when you hook one that it doesn't run straight back into the pipe though.    

You will still catch all of the species that swim in Ashmoor Lakes by doing this. There is no guaranteed method to only catch Barbel, but this way gives you the best chances of catching them than any other.

4lb of Hard Fighting Fish

Fish Facts: Crucian Carp

I caught my first ever Crucian Carp as a teenager from a local fishery from where I lived. 

The fishery was a series of very small ponds that were dug into a ditch system near a farm and were incredibly shallow. It was never a particularly good fishery, and remains so today unfortunately. During the summer months, when the weather heated up, the fishery dried down to the bottom and the silt cracked in the sun. Though work has been done to it in fairly recent years, it still gets extremely low and often dries up still. 
Anglers who fish it and have stuck with it all these years claim to have caught big double figure Carp from it, but when the water is low, and only about a foot deep or lower, it’s hard to believe the claims.
But I digress, back when I was a teen fishing it, you couldn’t imagine many fish surviving in the low to dry conditions of the ponds, especially when you could walk around and see the bottom and see no signs of any fish. But sure enough, when the water levels rose after rains, Aaron and I could always come down here and inexplicably have a successful day of Crucian Carp fishing with maggots on a basic float fishing setup. It seemed to us impossible for any fish to survive in these conditions, but somehow the hardy Crucian Carp always did. I don't know if they still reside there, as eventually we discovered better fisheries as we grew up, and I've never returned there.
For many years we always assumed that Crucian Carp were a species of fish that were small, perhaps only as big as your hand, as these were the biggest of them we ever caught from the venue as kids. This was until the hot summer of 2006 when we finally went to fish at the now famous Crucian Carp day ticket mecca of Marsh Farm in Milford in Surrey.
On a roasting hot day we fished Harris Lake and I hooked several Crucian Carp. I shall always remember the moment when the first one boiled on the surface just before netting. I naturally, from my experience, believed it to be a Tench I had hooked, as it would have been too big to be a Crucian, but it was indeed a Crucian Carp that I landed.
I remember Aaron and me crowding around it on the unhooking mat and feeling the sense of shock, disbelief, joy and excitement in the air as we openly marvelled at the size of it! It was 2lb 9oz in weight, actually a very average sized one for this fishery, but to us, being the first one this big we had ever seen, it was an absolute monster! A mythical creature that we could have never dreamed of.
Since then I caught many Crucians up to and around the same size from various fisheries, and I have come to love them so much as a fish that I rate them number 5 in my list of favourite freshwater fish in the UK.

The Joy of the Crucian Carp

The Golden, Shy Biting Survivor

Crucian Carp
(Carassius carassius)

The Crucian Carp is a member of the Carp family Cyprinidae.
At first glance it looks very similar to the Common Carp members of the same family, but it is a species that grows much smaller, being only a medium sized fish.
The Crucian Carp is much rounder in body then the Common Carp, its dorsal fin is higher and it has a flatter body, but more noticeably it lacks barbules either side of the mouth.
Their snout is quite stubby, and they have a terminal mouth.
They are often confused with Goldfish, and various interbred Carp, but there are many different ways to tell in more detail if it is a true Crucian Carp, the most popular test being to count the scales along the lateral line of the fish, which should number between 27-30 scales if it is a true specimen.
The body of a Crucian Carp is generally golden bronze in colour, some people describing it as buttery gold, becoming paler down towards the belly. The color of the Crucian darkens as the fish grows older. Its fins are convexly rounded and are a reddish, orange colour
The Crucian Carp is believed to be the only indigenous Carp species to the UK, unlike the others who at some point were imported into the country.
They are a schooling fish, moving about in large groups to feed and better survive predation. These schools are typically made up of similar sized and aged fish, usually the same year class. They can live for up to 10-12 years.
They are a shy species of fish, that are easily spooked and particularly famous with anglers for being very shy biters.
The British record Crucian Carp (as of 2020) stands at 4lb 11oz and was caught in August 2020 from Milton Abbas Fishery in Dorset by Craig Smithson.
A Crucian Carp of 2lb+ is considered a specimen fish

A Typical Crucian

Habitat

Crucian Carp thrive best in still or slow flowing waters such as lakes, ponds, reservoirs and slow flowing streams and rivers.
They prefer waters where there is plenty of aquatic submerged vegetation to both hide, breed and feed in, and are usually found swimming near the bottom of these waters, certainty in the bottom water column over all others
They are believed native to England, and can be found in Northern European regions from as far north as the Arctic Circle in Scandinavian countries to as far south as France and the Black Sea. They can also be found in Russia, where they can even be found in slightly brackish rivers.

Diet

Crucian Carp are an omnivorous species of fish, and eat a wide variety of natural food. Insect larvae, crustaceans, and zooplankton are on their menu, as well as filamentous algae, water plants and seeds.

Monsters in the Depths

Breeding

Sexual maturity of the Crucian Carp varies depending on the weather conditions of that area. In colder climates they reach maturity at a much older age than those fish living in warmer climates. In the UK the Crucian Carp tends to reach sexual maturity when they are 2-5 years old at around 3 ½ inches in length. Male Crucians mature much earlier than females.
They are a batch spawning species and the females lay around 100,000 yellow/orange eggs about 1 ½ mm in size, which they stick to underwater vegetation.
Crucian Carp breed when conditions are right, usually in May/June when water temperatures in their habitat exceed 18 degrees. Breeding is usually brought on after a rainfall.
Crucian eggs hatch quickly after as little time as 4 days and the fry live among the vegetation feeding on plankton and crustaceans until they grow big enough to venture out into the open. 
Crucian Carp hybridise with other carp species easily, such as the common domestic Goldfish.
They also breed with Common Carp creating what breeders of these fish call an F1. F2 Carp are the resultant crossbreeding of two F1 Carp. These crossbreeds are favoured by match anglers as they retain the fight of a Common Carp, but remain small like the Crucian.

Predators

Crucian Carp are preys upon by aquatic predators such as Pike and Perch, and where present, Catfish and Zander.
Above the water, a heron, egret or cormorant will make a meal of a Crucian Carp, whereas smaller birds like grebes and kingfishers will eat the fry.
Mammals such as mink and otters find Crucians easy to catch as they prefer shallower waters.

Breeding the new Generation

Survival

Crucian Carp are very wary, shy fish, and need to be this way to help avoid their predators. They travel around in schools so that there is safety in numbers. But this is not the extent of their quite unbelievable survival skills. 
Crucian Carp are renowned for being extremely hardy fish. But few realise quite how hardy they can be! 
They show remarkable adaptations to their environment and can cope with some truly extreme conditions for such a lowly looking fish.
They can survive perfectly in the smallest, weediest pools that hold water of poor quality, and even in water that has dangerously low oxygen levels, even surviving completely out of water for several hours.
During anoxic conditions (times with little or no oxygen) they survive by anaerobic respiration, being able to break down energy from their bodies without the use of oxygen. 
In summer months when the water drops dangerously low they survive by burying themselves in the mud or silt at the bottom pond or lake bed. Using this amazing adaptation they can survive these anoxic conditions and amazingly remain this way and survive for several weeks until rainfall refreshes their home.
The same is also true in winter months, when ice can block out the oxygen diffusion in the water. They can also slow down their metabolism in these cold conditions to expend less energy and survive like this for months until the weather warms. In the most extreme conditions Crucians can even produce ethanol in their muscle tissue and livers to survive freezing solid in temperatures that reach as low as 0 degrees.
Truly remarkable!

Conservation

Despite being an incredibly hardy fish, Crucian Carp are becoming severely threatened as a species. This is not caused by predation or pollution, but by the mere act of them breeding.
As mentioned, Crucian Carp cross breed with other Carp very easily. Introducing Common Carp, and particularly domestic Goldfish into a habitat containing true Crucian Carp is devastating. The resulting offspring over several generations can reduce a habitat of crucian carp into a habitat of contaminated hybrid crosses in no time.
The National Crucian Conservation Project, working along with The Angling Trust and the Environment Agency continuously work to stop this cross breeding from happening by monitoring fisheries that contain true Crucian Carp and encouraging new fisheries to stock pure unhybridized stock from reputable breeders.

Float Fishing is Best

Fishing

The most common and best way to catch Crucians is to float fish for them with a light tackle, either using a light, bendy match rod or a pole. Using this technique, the line should be low diameter, maximum 3b line and preferably lighter, and hooks should be small, size 20, 18 or 16 depending on what bait you are using. Plumbing the depth so that the hook is either on or just off the bottom of the swim is essential. Small pole floats, self cocking floats or quills are the best floats to use, that require little to no shot to hold position in the water.
Shotting on the rig should be spaced out and set to show even the smallest and delicate bites, as Crucian Carp are shy biters and a bite on the hook can register as even the tiniest dip or rise of the float.
Top Crucian Carp baits are maggots and casters, chopped worm, sweetcorn and small cubes of luncheon meat.
To locate Crucians, fish in shallow areas of the venue, alongside reed beds, submerged weed beds, by lilies and in the margins and approach and fish alongside the water quietly as they spook easily.

Bar of Buttery Gold

So that explains how those Crucian Carp in the venue I fished as a teen survived the drying up of all the water. It's amazing to me that a fish can adapt so well to these potential life threatening conditions. They just laid there in the mud until the water returned.
There is something truly relaxing about Crucian fishing to me. Perhaps it's because of the habitat they tend to live in and the weather it's best to catch them in. Sitting quietly beside a silent lily covered pond, plopping a float into the still margins on a warm, sunny summers day. It's one of those types of fish where you know that fishing for them in these conditions will lead to a slow, dreamy day of quiet patient angling, where you could easily snooze and doze the day away, fully relaxed, if it wasn't for the concentration needed to see the slightest millimetre of movement on the float that indicates a proper bite.

I have a great love for Crucian Carp and fishing for them in my heart.
The days I've spent Crucian Carp fishing as I've described above is one of the reasons why Crucian Carp are so high at number 5 in my favourite UK freshwater fish list. 
They are beautiful, characterful fish that are a delight to catch. They are not too common to be troublesome or boring, and tricky enough to catch where you really need to hone your skills as an angler. They can be a challenge to catch, making a capture of one, particularly one of a decent size, is a true angling achievement to be proud of.

Angling Archive: Running The Gauntlet

"Back in 2015 I wrote a blog on this very page about a session I had fishing on Busbridge Lake owned by Godalming Angling Society in Surrey. 

Back then I was a member of the club, and had access to all their wonderful fishing venues. My first time fishing Busbridge was certainly noteworthy for me as it turned into a very unexpected day where I saw fish behaving in a way I had never seen them before, and even catching a very lucky capture.

This Angling Archive post is what I wrote about my day after I returned from that lovely sunny days fishing 5 years ago..."

Busbridge Lake, Busbridge

 

Busbridge Lake

It was a glorious morning when we arrived at Busbridge Lake, owned by Godalming Angling Society. The pea green water was just starting to warm up in the morning sun.
There were only 2 other anglers on the lake, fishing close to the car park, and as Aaron and I were in no hurry today, we started the day off by walking around the lake, looking at all the swims and seeing if we could spot any fish movement.
After a quick chat with the other anglers, and having had a good look at where we wanted to set up, we settled in two swims next to each other, surrounded by woodland and overhanging trees, with a large patch of lily pads in the water between us.
I set up my rod for the day, opting as I usually do for a a float set up. 4lb line and a 3lb hook length and a float large enough to comfortably cast out to the end of the lily pads to the left of my swim.
Aaron set up a feeder rod, hoping to hook into some Bream in the centre of the lake.
Either way, one of us was bound to catch something, and if one of us started catching well on one technique, it meant that the other could change accordingly. The old 'divide and conquer' technique.

Despite Aaron's set up being good for the Bream, and mine probably being better for the Roach and Rudd, both of us were hoping for a bonus Tench or two today, hoping to pick one up before Winter set in in a few months.

A Typical Busbridge Snack...I mean, Roach!

Sprinkling in maggots at the for end of the lilies, and bombing in a couple of small balls of groundbait, my swim came alive with Roach. Small fish to be sure, I could tell that today was going to be a blitz of these if I wasn't careful.
The first 3 Roach came in nicely. I unhooked them with the care I always do, and slipped them back into the water beneath my feet. However, the third Roach didn't make it back to his friends.
I unhooked the little Roach, and bent down to my feet to release him. My hand was only a couple of inches away from the water when I let the fish go, and the Pike that burst from the water like a bullet from a gun must have missed clamping its jaws around my hand by only an inch!
Being so well camouflaged, and with the surface glare from the sun making looking into the water difficult, I had no idea it was there. And it was a huge Pike too. It was easily a 20lb plus fish if ever I have seen one. The Pike startled after snatching its meal and rushed off to the right of the lake, never to be seen again, but I can honestly say it wasn't half as startled as I was! If that fish had been any closer, my hand would have been ruined. Quite a close call.
I had a little walk over to Aaron's swim to tell him about it, and also to compose myself a bit, and returned back to fishing moments later.

Pike Attack!

Although the big Pike had disappeared, perhaps due to the commotion, other Pike had moved in. The next Roach I skimmed in with no problem, but the second silver fish went back into the water beneath my feet (this time my hand being a bit further away from the water) exploded into a cascade of silver scales, which fluttered like glitter down to the bottom of the swim. I hadn't seen the Pike take it, but I assumed one was there, as Roach don't have a tendency to spontaneously combust to my knowledge.
The next few Roach I caught had a lucky escape, as the culprit regularly made himself aware by dashing out from under the lilies, however, every fish I caught from here on in didn't have the same luck.

Doomed

Getting the Roach in wasn't the problem. Casting out to the end of the patch of lily pads resulted in a dipped float within minutes, and the only way to get them in without being snatched by following Pike was to reel like mad to get the fish in quick. Hooked Roach were skimming over the water like stones back to me to be unhooked, all followed by big bow waves and snatching splashes of the hungry predators. Quite unrefined.
No longer was there just one Pike in the swim, now there were more.
On release, every little Roach had to run the gauntlet of Pike that had positioned themselves around the swim. The freed fish could be seen on release darting off as quickly as they could to get away. Any snack that took a moment to recover before swimming off was snatched instantly. The 'slightly more with it' Roach that powered off as fast as they could were followed by a bow wave and a crash of jaws.
Not one fish survived, I am certain of it.

I counted 4 separate Pike in the swim in front of me. One to the left and right of the swim, picking off Roach and the odd Rudd, skimmer Bream and Perch I caught that ran in the margins one way or the other. The other two were further out, picking off the fish that ran out into the lake and into the lake depths. I have never seen anything like it. It was a very impressive trap, and looked like it was planned.
It came to a point when I felt really bad for the fish I was catching. Each little silver fish that I hooked was basically being given a certain death sentence. The only thing that could stop the blood bath was for me to stop fishing, and I didn't want to do that!
It is nature after all, the Pike need to eat too, and there are certainly plenty of Roach in Busbridge, so its not like a few would be missed, but all the same, something had to be done, not only to perhaps give the Pike less to eat, and perhaps making them move off for better pickings elsewhere, but also to try and target a bigger fish, like the Tench I was hoping for.
I decided, therefore, to change bait to pellet and sweetcorn. This certainly resulted in less fish going back into the water to feed the hungry freshwater crocs, as bites dried up instantly. From a fish every few minutes to no fish at all. The introduction of maggot and groundbait through the morning had made the Roach move in, but nothing much else, it seemed.
Aaron's feeder set up had resulted in less fish than in my swim, so changing to that wasn't on my mind, and he was also using similar bait.
Not really wanting to go back to maggots, I had a think about what I could do bait wise.

Tufted Duck

Busbridge Lake is fringed with woodland and wildlife. It's like someone dug the lake into the woods, and the woods are marching back to take it again. Its so peaceful, and one of the most beautiful lakes I have ever fished. Wildlife is everywhere, and there are so many types of plants and flowers around.
Having a break from the angling at late morning, Aaron had a walk around the lake to get some photos, and came across an adder sunning itself near the path around the lake. Ducks swam across the lake in front of me. I wondered if any of their young had made it to adulthood. I imagine that when the Pike are like they were in my swim, very little ducklings survive.
I took a break too, and made the most of the pork and pickle pork pies I had brought for lunch, (even using a bit of the meat for bait later on, to no effect) and noticed the elder tree behind me was packed with blooms of elderberries.
As a kid at Ashmoor Lakes I used to use elderberries as bait. I would grab a bag of dry hemp seed from the tackle shop and soak it over night, boiling it up the next day on my Granny's hob and stinking her kitchen out, much to her disgust.
On Autumn days you could find me fishing maggot and tares over the hemp seed, but also elderberries, which are plentiful. At the time I recall thinking that the fish didn't really like elderberries, but actually thinking that they just mistook them for the black pieces of hemp seed, but with free bait presenting itself for me to try, I figured I would give it a go.
I didn't have any hemp seed with me today, actually it has been a very long time since I have used it, now preferring to use tried and tested groundbaits, but the Roach and Bream groundbait I was using today smelt a bit hempy, and probably had some crushed up in it, so I figured it was worth a try.
Though the bites came a bit slower, I had quite a bit of success on the elderberry. All little Roach (who all ran the gauntlet and failed), I was surprised at how effective this free bait was.
Worth remembering on my next fishing trip. Perhaps the younger me had the right idea all along.

Another little Roach on the Elderberry. Mr Crabtree would be Proud!

I guess it was only a matter of time before I hooked a Pike.
With 4 very bold Pike in my swim, snatching at fish left right and centre, it was likely that at some point I wouldn't be able to reel a Roach in fast enough.
I had been watching the Pike in my swim all morning, as had Aaron, who came over several times to watch the spectacle unfold. Witnessing the Pike crashing and thrashing about, boiling the water up trying to grab the returning fish.
One Roach came in a little slowly. About half way down the lilies, the Pike that had taken residence under there swallowed the hooked silver whole, after the Roach gave a little pull back away from me to get away. My light float rod hooped over as the Pike charged into the lilies again. 

I managed, somehow, to get the fish out but as it ran out into the lake the 3lb hook link broke like a piece of cotton on its teeth, and the fish was off.
Only luck would have meant me having a chance of landing a Pike, getting the little hook to take hold somewhere around the Pike's mouth where the teeth wouldn't get in contact with the line.
But I can be a lucky devil from time to time, and the next time a Pike was quick enough to snatch a Roach on the way in, the hook must have held somewhere lucky too,
It wasn't one of the biggest Pike in my swim. Having watched them all morning, it was the 3rd biggest of the four. I had assumed they were all smallish Pike, perhaps only 6-8lb in weight, but the Pike that I finally played into the net that Aaron had rushed over to help me with, actually weighed 10lb 7oz, meaning that they were all much bigger than they looked in the water, and the bigger two of the 4 pike I hadn't caught were probably going on 12-15lb plus.
Having said that, the gut on this Pike was packed full of fish I had been feeding her all day, so I bet that added another pound on her in itself.
In the net I checked where my hook had held, somewhere on the outer jaw of the fish. I couldn't tell where exactly as when I looked closer, the Pike gave a snap of its jaws and the line was cut by its teeth like a knife. A very close and lucky capture indeed.

A Lucky Capture. 10lb 7oz of bold Pike.

The Eye of a Killer

Luck from there on in wasn't only on my side, but also the Roach's side as well, as the commotion had scared away all of the Pike from the swim. The little Roach, Perch, skimmers and Rudd all made it in fine, and got away safely into the water after being released.
In the early afternoon sun, Aaron and I decided to retire from Busbridge for the day and move to another lake in search of a Tench. The fishing did eventually die down. The day had been a hot one, not that we had really noticed it being sheltered under the over hanging trees, but the pressure was high yet again, and the fishing tailed off.
We moved over to Marsh Farm down the road, and spent the evening on there, between Hill Pond and Richardson's Lake.
The weather made the fishing tricky there too, with the match from earlier on in the morning reporting low catches. However, at last knockings, and through the Bream I was catching on Richardson's Lake, I did manage to catch one Tench, a lovely 3lb 8oz fish. A small success.
But today hadn't been about the Tench or even the Roach that I was expecting, but about those ravenous Pike. I've never had a days fishing like it.
I remember fishing at The Old Quarry in Surrey and having a Pike there being very bold, eyeing up Aaron's hand and swim feeder hungrily, and snatching the odd fish he put back in the water.
That day both Aaron and I managed to both hook the same Pike, having once been caught, it came back for more, and that was weird enough.
I've caught plenty of Pike in the past, but I've never seen them like this. If I didn't know better, I would almost say that there was a plan to it. It looked like they were working as a team. Each taking a corner of the swim, and driving the fish towards each other, cutting off the means of escape for the darting silver fish.
Pike are not known for their teamwork however, so perhaps it just looked like they were working together, when actually they were all just keeping their distance from each other, perfectly distanced to make a brilliant trap. Either way, it highlighted again for me just how bold and aggressive Pike can be.
I cant wait to come back here again with some lures in the Autumn and Winter!

The Old Boat House on Busbridge Lake.

Fishery Focus: Ashmoor Lakes Carp

I am lucky enough to be part of a family who own a fishery. Ashmoor Lakes in Old Basing.
It is a small, mixed coarse fishery packed with many species of fish.
Initially they were dug for me, and I have been fishing there all of my angling life, over 30 years. Its where I learned to fish, and as such I have extensive knowledge of the venue and how best to catch the fish.

So I figured it was about time I shared some of this information I've acquired through the years and how you can best target and catch certain species by design.

ASHMOOR CARP

Though Ashmoor Lakes is a mixed coarse fishery packed with many wonderful species, like most coarse fisheries, the Carp are by far the most dominant and common.

With Carp angling being as absurdly popular as it is, its rare to find a fishery without Carp in.
When Ashmoor Lakes was first dug and stocked it only had 2 Carp in it. Years later, just before the fishery was opened to the public, it was stocked with many more smaller Carp, and was topped up regularly through the years to a point where, if anything, there are way too many Carp in the lakes!
The old original fish are still there, and pushing 25lb in weight now, but are caught extremely rarely through the hoards of other Carp who get to the bait first.
Common Carp, Mirror Carp, Ghost Carp, Grass Carp, Crucian Carp and Goldfish are all present in Ashmoor Lakes. But its the King Carp species that are the most common, and the ones I will be talking about here.
The biggest Carp in Ashmoor is 25lb, reportedly. Though I know for certain a 23lb was accurately weighed on a separate occasion. The average fish however used to run at about 3-4lb, but now holds steady at 4-6lb.
In the winter, the average fish is around 2-4lb, as the bigger fish become more dormant with the colder weather slowing their metabolism.
The colours of the Common Carp vary from chestnut brown through to silver, all tending to be lean, large tailed, powerful fish. The Mirror Carp range from blue/greys and silvers through to browns, with beautiful accents of colour like yellows, oranges and purples. The Ghost Carp, both Mirrors and Commons, are pale whites and yellows, and often interbreed with the others producing different coloured young. The Ghosties are a bit rarer to find than the more naturally coloured Carp, but no less easy to catch.

A Decent Ashmoor Lakes Mirror Carp

LOCATION

Carp are found throughout all 3 lakes at Ashmoor, so wherever you fish, you will find them. Not only that, but it doesn't even matter which lake you fish on, as surprisingly to some, the lakes are all joined together. Beneath the ground joining Lake 1 to Lake 2, and Lake 2 to Lake 3 are two large pipes, allowing water and fish to pass through between them.
The main reason for this is so that when the lakes are topped up with water from a water holding pond in the summer when the water levels drop, the water flows evenly between them. But it also provides a channel between all the lakes that Carp regularly use travel between and feed in different ponds.
Many a time have anglers caught a notable Carp in Lake 2, only to come down a separate time and catch the same fish in Lake 1. It does mean, however, that if you are after a certain fish, there's no way of knowing which lake its likely to be in that day!
As is usual with Carp, in Ashmoor they can be easily caught near a feature. Along the far margins, by lily pads, and not forgetting the near margins, often right beneath your feet. Near margins are a top place to fish at Ashmoor, but rarely do I see people fish them.
With so many Carp in Ashmoor Lakes, the margins around the lakes are quite undercut due to the activity of the Carp feeding and rubbing along the edges, and this provides a safer haven for them, as well as good places to feed.
There are some more notable swims that Carp anglers like to inhabit. On Lake 1 the aptly named 'Carp Corner' is a popular place, a corner on an otherwise square lake that juts out making a little bay, and the unfishable 'Field Bank' that backs onto the farm land.
On Lake 2, the islands are obvious points, particularly swims where you can fish the area between the two. And on Lake 3, which is home to the lilies, any swim that has one of them in, though the whole lake is very popular due to the entire opposite side being unfishable.

TIME

Carp can be caught all year round. At Ashmoor as with many places, late Spring through to early Autumn is the best time, with Summer being the best. Carp love the warmer weather, and feed most strongly during it. During winter, the bigger Ashmoor Carp tend to get their heads down and become more dormant. Carp can still be caught, but expect them to be less frequent and smaller on average.
Fishing for Carp on a hot summers daytime however often proves unfruitful. Fish bask in the hot surface layers and show little sign of interest in bait. Far better is the morning and the late afternoon/evening. Prime feeding times.

METHODS

At any time of the year the Carp can be caught on all methods. Off the surface, on the float, on a feeder and on leger Carp tactics. By far the most popularly used method of the carpers is bite alarms and bolt rigs on the bottom. However I am here to tell you that this is actually the least effective method. Though any decent angler will soon realise that Ashmoors lake bottoms are silty, few people realise quite how deep. During lake maintenance, when I'm in the water in a wet suit, the silt often comes up to mid shin height. Carpers fishing bolt rigs on the bottom often complain that they don't catch many fish, but its mostly due to their rigs sinking deep in the silt, making it impossible for fish to find the bait. A problem eased by using smaller leads or helicopter rigs.
Feeders are more effective, as they tend to lay on the surface of the silt better better, and groundbait feeders encourage the Carp to root around in the silt if the bait does get covered a little. Float fishing is even better as you can get the depth dead right, so long as you allow that the plummet will sink into the silt a little too, and sometimes give you a false reading of where the lake bottom is.
Despite the large Carp being present, I would say that 4lb line for most float or feeder fishing is quite acceptable, as there is plenty of room to play a bigger fish in in most swims. With 6lb line for techniques like surface fishing or traditional carp fishing, or if you don't feel confident that you could control a running larger fish being better, as you gain more control over the fish. Many anglers use 10lb line or more, but it is often less affective, as the fish see the line. Size 10 barbless hooks are the maximum to be used at Ashmoor, and are more than sufficient to hook the biggest Carp in the lake, but obviously, using a hook that is a suitable size for your bait is the way to go, with myself never using less than a size 16 barbless when float fishing maggots.
A very good method to pick up a Carp at Ashmoor is to look for bubbles rising to the surface from feeding fish and to place a depth set bait over the top of them, particularly with a float set up to reduce disturbance. A worm or a prawn or a soft hooker pellet being the best baits for this.

BAIT

The most important thing to remember with Ashmoor Lakes is that its a farm venue. As many anglers in the know will tell you, farm ponds tend to be bit trickier to catch from. This is due to the quantity of natural bait that is around for the fish to feed on, not only under water, but also flying or blown in from crops in fields nearby, and as Ashmoor is set in surrounding woodland also, plenty of food comes down from the trees as well. Because of this, natural baits tend to be the way of things to catch fish easier.
This, to some degree, is the way of Ashmoor Lakes. Maggot and worm catch many more fish than other baits, also including prawns and bread. Though naturally, using maggot and worm does tend to catch you a mix of species rather than picking out Carp more specifically.
 However, Ashmoor Lakes is a popular venue, and gets plenty of groundbait, particles and pellet introduced by anglers, meaning pellets, sweetcorn and luncheon meat are also good baits. During periods of closure or quiet times, the fish are also fed on grain and bran based foods, so they are more used to it.
Being a farm pond, and naturals being the way of things, it does mean that boilies are not a very effective bait for catching Carp. Inevitably they will eat a boilie eventually, but all other baits out shine them by far. Pellet hookbaits are better. If you must use boilies (as for some reason the carp boys think they have to) I would suggest smaller ones, and perhaps more fish based smells to match pellet.
The key to all these baits though is to feed little an often, much like a match fisherman, and not toss out large beds of bait. In the summer I introduce about 8-12 pellets or maggots every 5 minutes or so, and less of larger loose feed like sweetcorn or prawn chunks. The Carp guzzle up near enough everything as quick as possible, as do the resident Bream hoards, so you need to keep their interest.

The King of all Baits

THE BEST WAY TO CATCH

Having discussed the methods to catch Carp at Ashmoor Lakes you'll notice I skirted around one in particular. And that's because it is by far and away the best method of not only catching Carp at Ashmoor, but also catching the bigger of them over the smaller ones.
I cant count how many times I have seen carp anglers sat behind bite alarms with rigs on the bottom of the lake, sat there all day catching nothing at all, when simple watercraft would show them that the Carp are up in the water. Often with fish clearly basking, swimming and feeding on the surface of the lake quite visibly. And this even includes the winter months.
To catch the bigger of the Carp at Ashmoor, the surface is the place to do it. The warm weather drives the fish up, and being a farm pond with lots of natural flies and bugs being blown into the water, its one of the best places for them to feed. Locating the fish in any chosen swim is very easy, you can visibly see them most times, and if not, you'll see the swirls of them taking things from the surface. You will also hear them sucking in food.
The Ashmoor Carp can easily be brought to feed on the surface with the introduction of floating baits, and by spending a little time watching the fish, and letting them feed, you can pick out the biggest fish of the bunch to catch. In this way, you can ensure you are getting the biggest Carp over the smaller ones, unlike all other methods. Not that its all about size. I will often catch prettier looking fish over larger ones, and always target a Ghost carp no matter its size when one appears.
By spending half an hour or so slowly feeding the Carp on the surface, usually with dog biscuit or bread, I can not only pick out the biggest fish or the one I want, but also watch its feeding habits to a point where after coming up and taking a bait, how long it will take for it to eat it and come up for another and also where it is likely to come up from. This method is very much about patience. Though bites can be as instant as 5-10 seconds, it very much pays to watch the fish for maybe half an hour to an hour to get a better quarry.
By far the best way to catch any fish, not just Carp, is to spend time watching them and learning how best to target them.

My tackle of choice when surface fishing is a nice light, small carp reel. At the moment I'm not actually using a carp reel, but a small lure fishing reel as these are designed to be cast and held all day, much like when surface fishing, and are naturally lighter. For the rod, nothing bigger than 1.75lb test curve. 1.5lb is ideal. A barbel rod. You don't actually need one this strong, but you have to be aware of snags the fish could run into and have enough power to bully them out or away from them, and also away ofn other anglers. Swims can be a little close together, and some anglers quite rightly would be unforgiving if you let your fish run all over their swim and ruin it.
Reel line of 6lb is more than sufficient for the task. Anything stronger then the fish see it and sense it before they even take the bait. The fish are wily enough to be wary of any surface bait before they take it. The last thing to use is a size 10 barbless hook, the biggest the venue rules allow. This is to ensure that the bread hook bait has the best chances of staying on, and also that the point protrudes from the bait to be able to hook the fish. And I never use carp hooks from certain Carp specific companies. These hooks work fine for bottom baits, but they are often too heavy to be used on the surface, and are also too thick and big. Not only do the fish see them, but they can also make your hookbait sit more unnaturally on the surface compared to the free offerings, and the fish can tell this. Fine gauge match style hooks are much better.
I will always fish near margin swims over distance fishing. Reason being, that that's where the fish are, and also I am free lining. There is no casting weight of a float on the line so it makes the whole thing easier. Having said that, pinching a bit of bread flake to the hook and dabbing it in the water, gives all the weight you need to swing it over to a far bank or island.
I would NEVER use a controller or bubble float at Ashmoor, as they are really not needed, and just provide weak points in your line, or things to snag around weeds, over hanging trees, or submerged roots and reeds.
When your target fish is spotted, its a case of placing the bait in front of it to eat. Watching and waiting for the mouth to open, engulf your hook, and close is mouth. Always wait for the mouth close, and strike quick, as within a second, they can spit it out again when they realise. Obviously, for all of this a pair of polarised glasses is as essential as bringing and using a rod, reel and bait. You need to be able to see the fish through the glare of the water. Never leave home without them!
As for bait, I sometimes use a rubber bait band with a tab to push the hook through to hold a chum mixer dog biscuit. Though I do find with Ashmoor Carp particularly, they do see the hook and be more tricky to catch on it. Far better is bread. Some swear by a fresh loaf, but I tend to use the cheapest sliced I can find. Only because I pinch out a 50p piece circle of bread from the middle, lay it between the shank and the point of the hook, then pinch it back over the shank. I find it stays on better, and leaves the hook point open to hook better too, and if by some miracle a Grass Carp appears, you are primed ready to give it a go. Which I will discuss in another blog at some point in the future.
As mentioned, the number one most important thing you need for surface fishing is patience. It can be incredibly stressful, but when you hook up, its infinitely more rewarding than any other form of Carp fishing.

A Beautiful Common caught Freelining Bread on the Surface