Crushing the Barb

I saw a post by Henry Gilbey on his fishing blog about crushing barbs while sea fishing for bass. Now I know that he is using trebles and we don’t in carp angling, but the question of crushed barbs is an interesting one.
I remember when we did the Remy video that they insisted we use barbless hooks only. I have previously written about “Barbed vs Barbless”, so I won’t go over that again. But are crushed barbs not a better way to go than either barbed or barbless. Barbed vs Barbles
I have been doing this for a long as I can remember, for the simple reason that, while I didn’t want to use a barbed hook, I couldn’t find the barbless version of the model I like…ie. Drennan Continental Boilie hook. So for years I’ve been crushing the barbs on these hooks.
I think it was Tim Paisley who wrote about the advantages of a crushed barb, as it leaves a small bump on the hook, that helps avoids the movement and sewing machine effect that can happen with a barbless hook. It remains however far easier to remove, and more importantly give the fish a chance to shed the hook if it breaks you off or gets snagged. The penetration is better than a barbed hook but it does stay in better than a pure barbless.

Maps,Navigation and GPS

Not really a fishing topic this, but one about something that I find useful when travelling to a new venue.

I’ve already written on a couple of occasions about GPS units and how much I like them as navigational aids in France. In fact I’ve used the Tomtom One now for a number of years and would be lost without it. Most of the units on the market are of the street navigator type, which are perfect for getting from A to B and finding ones way around a city, but they give very little  or no information about the type of terrain one is on and many don’t have any info at all on lakes, tracks to lakes etc. For this an Ordinance Survey topographical map is the best tool.

Now topographical GPS devices do exit also, aimed at hikers and offroaders they are like an electronic geo-referenced Ordinance Survey map. They give you your exact position and allow you to install very detailed maps of your chosen area. But, and this is a big BUT, they are extremely dear for the best ones. The Garmin Dakota 20 or Twonav Aventura are in the 400-600€ bracket and that is without the 25:000 scale  maps that cost over 100€ each. This for me was a real deal breaker…I just can’t afford that amount on a gadget.
However recently I have found a great plugin on a French GPS site that allows you to turn your Tomtom into a great off road/fishing tool. The plugin is called “ttmaps”.

Why France for Carp?

by Gareth Watkins

Carp fishing as we all know is  immensely popular now, with more and more people coming into the sport every year. This puts a huge pressure on the ticket lakes, club lakes and syndicates across the UK. Most anglers outside the ‘A’ list are faced with long waiting lists and the slim chances of getting on a water with big fish. Ticket lakes are often crowded and fish sizes modest.
For a number of years carpers have been looking towards France.

But is it the Carpfishers ‘Eldorado?’   What does France have to offer?

1) Access to bigger fish: Well firstly in the majority of cases there are no syndicates or waiting lists to fish the top waters. You can simply book up with a lake  or go it alone to a ticket or public lake.
Whatever you choose you’ll have access to bigger fish than the majority of lakes in the UK.
The continental climate in France gives us just that few degrees extra average temperatures, which is enough to get the carp feeding longer throughout the year. You gain on average one degree for every 100 km you travel south. Also the strains of carp stocked into France have generally been fast growing mirrors and they can reach 30lb in just 5-7 years.

Carp Hooks – Barbed V Barbless?

By Jon Perkins

This is a subject which has been debated for many years and both barbed and barbless hooks certainly have their place in modern carp fishing.I beleive that on the majority of waters and in the majority of angling situations, barbless hooks are better for the carp.
Most fisheries these days have a rule governing the type of hooks that are allowed, I would say that the majority of waters have a barbless only rule, but some still rule in favour of barbed hooks – which is correct ?
There are several factors involved in why these rules are made, some of which are fact and some of which are speculative.
There is little doubt that more fish will be lost during the fight when a barbless hook is used. With a barbless hook there is nothing to prevent the hook “falling out” of a carps mouth, in fact the only thing keeping the hook in, is the presuure on the hook via the tension on it through the line. Carp can very quickly “learn” that by twisting around during the fight and thus making as many different angles between itself and the line in its mouth they can often shed the hook. Be in no doubt that from the moment the hook catches in the carps mouth, its sole objective is to get rid of it ! This has been shown on the Korda DVD’s with very pressured fish even trying to get rid of the hook before running off, which is their primary instinct.When a carp reaches a weedbed it can shed a barbless hook in seconds because it has something to use to create an angle and a slack line. I have experienced this many times myself and watched it happen countless times. I’m not saying it happens every time because sometimes the hook has such a good hold in the mouth “that was never going to come off” !

Seven Tips For Warm Winter Carping

Carp fishing in the winter can include long periods of inactivity. It is important that you stay warm, especially now that the weather looks as though it is ready to turn very cold at the end of January. Below are some hints and tips to help you stay warm during the long winter sessions. Most of this is common sense, but it doesn’t hurt to remind yourself of the obvious now and again.

1) Lots of Layers
Ensure that you wear several layers of clothing. The air trapped between the layers acts as insulation against the cold. Two T-shirts, a thin fleece, jumper, jacket. If you get too hot, you can just remove a single layer.

2) Stay Dry
Few things are as miserable as being cold and wet. Ensure that you have a good quality waterproof outer layer, stay under, at least, a decent brolly or preferably in a bivvy with an extra skin. I have a Fox Frontier bivvy which goes up in no time and keeps the worst weather out. Not only will this keep the rain off, but it will keep the rain out too.

Six Tips for Big French Carp Waters

by Gareth Watkins

As more and more UK carp anglers venture abroad to France they are confronted with a huge choice of waters and fishing conditions. The giant fish we read about in the magazines, the success stories of leviathan carp all sound very attractive. These fish do exist and the potential of some large waters is outstanding. For this very reason, France has been the number one destination for the travelling angler for a number of years.
Smaller pits and lakes don’t usually pose too much of a problem for anyone who has the usual armoury of techniques and tactics at his disposal, and the usual UK approach will cope without any problem. Those who fancy having a go at one of the big French waters should only do so if they have done their home work and are well prepared for such a venue.

Lakes like the Der Chantecoq, the Foret de l’Orient, Salagou and Madine all hold massive fish, but all are, by English standards very big waters.

Driving in France

Below is an extract from the AA website with tips for those wanting to drive in France. I recently had a lad of 17, who although he had a UK licence was inquiring about driving abroad. Below are the rules for most of Western Europe and were update last in July 2009.

France Touring Tips

This information should be read in conjunction with our general advice for motoring in Europe.
1.Drinking and driving: If the level of alcohol in the bloodstream is 0.05 per cent or more (0.02% for bus/coach drivers), severe penalties include fine, imprisonment and / or confiscation of the driving licence.
Saliva drug tests will be used to detect drivers under the influence of drugs – severe penalties as above.
2. Driving licence: Minimum age at which a UK licence holder may drive a temporarily imported car 18, motorcycle (up to 80cc) 16, motorcycle (over 80cc) 18.
3. Fines: On-the-spot fines or ‘deposits’ are severe. An official receipt should be issued. Vehicles parking contrary to regulations may be towed away and impounded.
4. Fuel: Unleaded petrol (95 & 98 octane), diesel (Gazole) and LPG available. No leaded petrol (lead replacement petrol “Super carburant” available or lead substitute additive). Petrol in a can is permitted but forbidden by ferry and Eurotunnel operators.

Ten New Year’s Resolutions

http://www.croixblanchelakes.com

by Gareth Watkins

1)      Get out and fish a bit more: It’s funny but the more you get involved in fishing the less time you get to get out on the banks and participate in this sport that we all enjoy so much. I read so many times on the forums young anglers wanting to get a job in angling. Most imagine that they will simply get paid to go fishing. How wrong can you be! Since first getting involved in the carp angling scene I have fished less and less over the years. My friend Shaun Harrison used to say he only got to fish two nights a week when he worked at Walkers, but now he tells me since he has set up his own business he doesn’t even get that.

I know just how he feels. Even owning my own waters, it is hard to get enough time to fish. Also when I have a full house of customers it is not possible anyway. So for 2010 I need to find a way to make a concerted effort to get out on the bank more often.

Happy New Year 2010

All of us at Croix Blanche lakes wish you a very Happy New Year 2010. We hope you all manage to bank that monster carp.

We look forward to see you on our venue this coming season.
Tight Lines
Gareth

5 Winter Carp Fishing and Bait Myths Busted!

Some old catch reducing myths about winter carp fishing and baits still persist. Some of these myths might be things you have unwittingly accepted as fact – so beware! You would be surprised to know what some of them are so read on for the truth and reap the rewards of seeing things from a fresh carp fishing perspective!

1) Carp hibernate for the winter.

Carp do slow down their feeding in winter as their bodies are very much in tune with the temperature of the water surrounding them which means that the enzymes that control their metabolism, digestion, amounts of swimming and movements done is generally much more restricted in order to save energy. Actually finding winter carp is one of the major problems in winter and early spring and this is why regular feeding with baits is so important to keep fish visiting spots which makes catching them much easier. To do this in order to be much more in command of fish feeding behaviours in a lake takes a quantity of bait and is one of the reasons I continue to make my own homemade baits despite all the commercial baits around. (Extremely effective winter baits do not require loads of expensive high protein ingredients!)