The is a short tale of carp fishing semi disaster and lessons learned on that classic carp pit the Yateley Car Park Lake.
I fished one season on the Car Park back in 2005. As a boy I had seen pictures of the Yateley legends such as the awesome Basil and Heather. I even did my GCSE oral presentation on carp fishing and mentioned the great fish as an inspiration at the time. My original fishing partner, Steve Fudge, had gone on to catch many of the Yateley legends such as Basil over the years and I thought it was time to wet a line on the hallowed complex.
I had spent most of the previous few years angling on Mill Lane, a great Yateley Club water which sadly is now a bit ramme d out and has lost a lot of character. However I had had a fair few fish out of there, 20 odd including the 2 biggest mirrors, and it was time to move on. A few earlier ventures onto Yateley, the Match and Sandhurst, had yielded a few fish but nothing big and none of the really special Yateley Warriors, although a stalked capture of Nige's fish at an early 24lb stands out. My how she's grown.
Anyway back to the Car Park and a fresh season with shiny new Syndicate ticket. I was very familiar with the fish having made friends with many of the Car Park regulars over the years as a long time tea visitor, so started the season with something of a plan.
The draw and subsequent first night saw me lodged in the Chair, well baited in the close, although this may have been slightly contrary to current rules. However confidently feeding fish, including Arfur and Ugloe in the Chair left bush had me skipping with confidence. The Chair is always a nice option when the lake is rammed as you hold a fairly quiet corner with the left bank a bit of a haven for pressured fish who spend hot days milling around the End Works weed and fairly untouchable. Anyway a rod was fished to the aforementioned left hand spot at the just the depth in the margins Arfur had appeared to feed most confidently in the close. The right hand rod fished to the right hand margin. Both rods were fished on Mainline's activ8, a bait that had done a lot of business for Fudgey over the years on the venue.
The first morning dawned just the way I would have liked. With a locked up rod bent at an alarming angling around the Chair Boards. Piling the pressure on, perhaps a little too much I made a yard or two before locking. With the assistance of Od I waded to the spot in an attempt to free the weed from the line and was sad to find nothing but a ball of weed and no fish. Never mind. First night would be a little jammy. However I couldn't of course help feeling I blown the spot.
Never being the earliest arriving angler on a Friday night I'd always made my plans around the less popular swims such as the Chair, Steps, Back Bay and Middle Secret. The popular Des's/Curly bank usually permanently occupied. Being fairly Yateley local, at the time, I was fortunate to have the option of weeknight fishing and this has always been my preferred choice as the weekend circus has !
My second take and first fish landed came a month or two later. Turning up for a worknight I slotted neatly straight into the middle secret. Never the most popular fish I still liked the swim when fish were getting down the car park end of the lake. When they were moving around the Gate swim it was not uncommon to see them cruising down towards the middle secret and out towards the islands swim. Fishing one rod left, line angles were at the time very limited to two weed channels, with hemp and tigers a bubbler appeared on the right hand line. Always worth popping a bait on activity a single boilie was dropped down on a soft bottom at 30 yds.
Around 11am a single noter on the right hand rod signalled a fast take. A short and spirited fight followed before one of the Car Parks small population of commons nestled in the net. At 22lb not the finest prize in the lake but welcome nevertheless. You're always angling for one of the originals on the lake but the commons don't give themselves up too easily either.
Two weeks later and I was back in the middle secret on a warm clear evening. Again I decided to fish a single on the same spot and again a take resulted. This time at first light. Sadly this one didn't end so well. As the fish charge d left the line remained caught solid down in the weedy channel. A grey hump popped to the surface before the line parted. Gutted. The quick glimpse of the fish suggested Pearly which had yet to make an appearance that season and was looking big. She later came out at over 40lb a few weeks later for the first time.
So all in all a mixed bag season had resulted so far. 3 takes and one fish landed, a common to boot. Still, on a lake where 3/4 of the syndicate will blank the season it was hard to be too downhearted. The first step of catching of course is getting the takes.
A few weeks later and I was back on the CP for a walk. Stopping in the chair I sat chatting to "Listen here mate" Steve. Another angler keen on my much fancied Chair Swim we were discussing prospects over a cup of tea when a common boshed out in front of the Snags swim. Keen to encourage each other to ease the pressure on the Chair a mutual expression of "should try the snags" ensued. And rather than being caught up in a race for the swim constantly i would probably have made some sense!!! First lesson of carp fishing really is location so to ignore that kind of activity is pretty criminal.
Needless to say the Chair was still a focus of attention for the next weeks. When back in there angling one evening though it happened again. This time I didn;t see the fish but decided to fish this my next work night in the Snags.
The next nights angling saw me plotted up in the swim. Fishing a single to the edge of small ball of weed to the right, around where I'd seen the activity I settled down for the night. A couple of hours before dawn the rod on the spot took off with a slow plodding take. Tightening down on the fish this was definately a good fish. A splashy but not wild fight continued directly in front of the swim. Clearly not the hardest fighting fish but one with a bit of weight. After a labourious ten minuter the fish was folded neatly into the net. Leaning down on the and feeling down into the dark net i ran my hand down what was obviously a good chunk and sparsely scaled to boot. An original was mine.
My hand reached the tail and there wasn't much of it. Containing my excitement, believing the fish to be Arfur at the time, I propped the next on bank sticks and went to fetch my headtorch from the bivvy. Shining down into the net I was greated by a bare leathery flank, a moments thought, not Arfur, no not Heather but the Dustbin sat plumply in my net. Gently resting from the exhaustion of the fight. Yes yes YESSS.
Breathing deeply I sat back and mulled the options. A quick shout would get others around fairly quickly for a weigh and photo. Will ring Fudgey first though.
"Geez, got the dustbin in the net!!"
" I'm coming down"
Decision made. Would wait for Steve to turn up. The water not being too warm and the fish looking comfortable I was happy for her to sit in the net for a bit whilst a contemplative tea was drunk.
With Fudgey on his way and dawn not too far away I readied the kit for weighing and photos. If there is one thing I have seen to extreme levels on the Car Park, and rightly so, it's obsessive fish care on the bank. Water bucket filled to wet the fish and wet the matt, sling and scales ready to go, medicarp for the hook hold and any other marks laid out.
Fudgey duely turned up and we settled down for a quick tea. With it getting lighter by the minute a decision was made to give it 10 minutes or so for some proper light. Whilst it's not about the photo it's always nice to get those first light shots. A final brew was boiled and as we sat by the lake, holding the net whilst supping tea, Dusty stirred. Obviously with more light she was livening up a bit.
Then a surge in the net. As i was holding it not a problem, although it concerned me slightly so I decided probably best not leave it too much longer.
Ready to go. Light was now fast approaching, 5 minutes more should do it, and, perhaps foolishly, desire for a good trophy shot perhaps slightly overweighing common sense we left it 5 minutes more.
With a final tea on the go and nearly drank I sat holding the net once more. About to make the shout I paused instead. Rather then shout I reached down picked up my mug and drained the last few swigs from my Tea.
As i returned the mug to the ground Dusty surged again in the net. In actual fact it was more of a leap for freedom. Her head landed across the drawstring and at that moment the left net arm snapped and swung down. In one fluid moment she was out the net and gone. Gutted. What a numpty.
Why did I wait??? I paced about the swim. Why did I wait?? Why did I fucking wait!!!!
I didn't get much chance to angler further that year before the winter. Heading off to sea a few times on a career change mission and in fact, due to moving house, that was my only season on the CP. However it was a great season and whilst the only fish from 4 takes to see my unhooking mat was a common that's carp fishing at times.
It was also interesting to have had 3 of 4 takes on a single and on non conventional spots. Not a common method on the lake, anglers fishing an expensive pressured pit tend to be more confident on beds of bait on banker areas it seems, but singles had done a few fish over the years to anglers such as Darren Emberson, another old school work night regular. Whilst fishing single hook baits was generally met with accusations of pub chucking by friends, with three takes on the method couldn't really dismiss it!!
I got to thinking about singles and for the limited time angler I tend to think it's got some mileage. Especially on waters which see a lot of bait. The fish on lakes like the Car Park come out so infrequently they are obviously pretty adept at evading capture and a lot of this must come down to learning by association. When loads are fishing tight, boat dropped beds it doesn't take too much a stretch of the imagination to imagine the carp getting wary when caught consistantly in this fashion. Interestingly one angler a few years before had also had good success in widely scattered baits. Despite accusations of catapult ineptitude he caught!!
Another possible success factor with singles for short sessions is of course is that you are looking to put the bait to where the fish may already be feeding confidently, or even just present rather than pull the fish to your bait by using a baited area. If fishing singles encourages me to go with the old adage "location location location" then all the better.
I have no doubt for long term campaign purposes there is no substitute for a well thought out baiting campaign but it is all to easy to get sucked into the "everybody catches fishing a bed of bait on this gravel spot, therefore that's where I'll fish" mentalility and hoping to bore them out. It's not a suprising attitude as when you approach a hard pressured water, fishing tried and tested spots with tried and tested methods is reassuring and gives you the belief you are in with a chance. Not for me though.
More info on the Yateley Car Park.
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