Winter Carp fishing
Whilst most people fishing for Carp tend to only fish the warmer months and then target species like Pike in the winter. Some of the most rewarding fish come out during the winter. A slight change in rigs and tactics will often bring rewards. As the weather changes so does the water and the surroundings, you should change your approach to account for this, as it gets colder algae and weed start to die down, this will make the water go clearer, there will be more debris on the bottom. Like all things fishing its a percentage game and you want to increase your chances of catching so even just a 1% advantage is massive. To increase your percentages a few things to consider:
As the water clears, carp will often become weary of line and braid in the water, to counteract this, a Fluorocarbon rig (same light refraction as water) will be practically invisible in the water, if you are not a fan of Fluorocarbon you can consider using our new Camo Fleck Material.
As the temperature drops the Carps metabolism slows down and they become more lethargic often not venturing more than a few metres during a day. They will often hold up in the deeper warmer water so it is very worthwhile casting a marker float around to see if you can locate some deeper areas.
Because Carp don't move around much consider using a Solid PVA bag approach, this will put a small parcel of boilie crumb around your hook bait. The rig you should use with this method is a short uncoated supple braid, often around 4 inches long. You want a small rig so it only takes minimal movement from the fish for the rig to come tight to the weight, this will in turn flip the hook ready to pierce the lip.
Avoid using high oil baits such as pellets, they rely on warmer water to break down the oils in them.
Think about your baits, as the Carp don't need as much food during the winter, a smaller single wafter or pop up will often trip up massive fish.
In the winter you often find the fish will be more willing to feed late afternoon/ Early evening once the sun has been shining on the water warming it up slightly.
What Ready Made Carp Rigs to use and when, why and how!
D Rigs:
These are made with either 100% Fluorocarbon (be weary about "fluorocarbon coated" This is just mono with coating on it which dont tend to make a difference) Or use our new CAMO FLECK material which has a unique camoflauge colour so it dont show as un-natural straight lines in the water. These rigs are designed for using a wafter, the stiffness of the rig material causes the hook to flip instantly and take hold inside the mouth. This rig will also reset it self in the event of a aborted take. This rig works best on a clean bottom.
Ronnie Rigs / Spinner Rigs
This rig is made for a pop up more than anything else although it can be very effective with a wafter. This rig has a stiff boom which prevents tangles and again excellent resetting properties. The Ronnie Rig or Spinner rig can take some very minor tweaking to get the best out of it. Attach your pop up using your choice of bait attachment ( We offer 13mm metal bait screws, micro flexi swivel or a rig ring - All matt black ) and test your rig in the margin, you want the boom to lay flat and the hook to sit upright, if you find that your bait lifts the boom, simply add some rig putty until you get it sitting perfectly. This rig is very effective over "chod" ( Leaves etc on the bottom)Combi Rigs:
We offer several options on Combi Rigs:Adam Penning pop up rig, and the Darrell Peck style Combi rig are both suited to pop ups like the ronnie or spinner rig ( perfect for those who don't like the ronnie rig) The Adam Penning Style pop up rig has a coated braid "boom" section and a fluorocarbon hook section with the hook mounted in a multi rig style. The Darrell peck style is the other way around, a stiff boom section and supple hook section.
The Danny Fairbrass combi rig has a stiff boom section and a supple hook section but this rig is connected using the loop to loop method, really handy if you need to change the hook quickly, this rig is also available with a hair for those who prefer that method to mount their bait. The "df" style combi rig can be used with any hook bait and if often very effective with artificial baits
The Solid PVA Bag Rig:
These come in a shorter length, with a choice of hook pattern. Designed to be used with either a bottom bait or a wafter and to be placed inside your pva bag. Made with a choice of rig materials (my personal favourite is Korda Dark Matter uncoated braid, the weight and suppleness of this braid makes it a perfect choice, the weight will pin the rig down out of the way of any passing fish) If you are fishing over debris then I would use Korda Super Natural, this is really supple and unweighted so it wont pull down in to the debris (also makes a great method feeder rig)