Club FAW Social - Hendre Lake June 2018

by Martyn Russ

The main thing I love about the social sessions is getting to meet other anglers , club members and friends on the bank. Have fun whilst fishing, have a chat and banter and help each other catch some stunning specimens. It was great to have so many members turn up just to say hi and some even fished the lake after their own trophies. This year we had once again chosen our local venue, Hendre Fishing lake in Cardiff, due to most of our members being local to the lake and also the quality of fishing the lake has to offer. Originally the lake was a drain dug to reclaim the land around the area for social housing and was stocked with a huge variety of species. Linked to the foreshore by the back waters and reams this lake always manages to throw up a surprise or two with new fish entering the water. Tench, Bream, Roach, Rudd, & Perch to impressive sizes plus a huge variety of carp species up to the 30 lb weights and above. This lake is classed among the carp anglers as one of the best “runs”waters in Wales.

 

The weather forecast for the social was sunny and hot, which although is great for a gathering, it isn't good for fishing as it makes it difficult as they tend not to want to feed when too hot. Despite the high temperatures forecast I kept a positive attitude towards my fishing and made my way down to the lake. Upon arrival I had a quick look around the water and couldn't see any signs of the fish. I questioned a few anglers and they all seemed to say the same thing and that was they were up in the water because of the sun and not in the mood. Due to no signs of the fish and no signs of action from the anglers I chose a peg on the railway bank that I had fished before and knew the layout of the swim well. It was the second swim from the centre reams walking towards the carp park. The area I had planned on fishing was a patch I knew about that was between 13 and 15 wraps out in front towards a tall tree on the horizon. Choosing this spot would mean it would be easy to identify during the dark hours and I would be able to get back on the spot.

 To start the session I decided on my usual trick of throwing out 2 high attract baits one a balanced bait on the bottom and one a pop up. This usually tells me if the fish were in the mood for feeding or not just by how long it takes to get that first take. To do this you must use a bait you have complete confidence in knowing its not a case of “IF” they will want the bait but more a matter of “WHEN” they will eat it and how quick. In the mean time whilst waiting for the first take I set about preparing everything for the 4 day session ahead of me. I made up my spod mix which was a mixture of sweetcorn, hemp, Pellets and Boilies in 15 and 20 mm sizes. I then added tuna and  mixture of my own secret ingredient liquid additive. I then left this to soak in for several hours before attempting to use it. The reason I do this is because the lake is made up of deep silt and un-soaked baits can sometimes take on the smell and taste of the silt around it and this can put the fish off eating. They don't usually mind but can mean the difference between getting the take off a fussy feeder or blanking on a session at times. Once the spod mix was completed I set about making up some small sticks and stringers ready for my session and to be able to bait up quickly and get the rods back out on the spot after each fish as fast as I can and make the most out of the feeding spells.

 

Unfortunate the first take didn't come until around 12.30 after lunch with s small common around 11-12 lb in size. This told me that they really were not in the mood for feeding due to the heat and I would have to think about catching these fish. At first i though Zigs and surface baits were the way to go but they were not interesting and despite trying as hard as possible at both methods for a few hours nothing came. Many anglers on the lake were all trying the same things but no bites developed. It was at this point I realised that due to the heat they were lethargically hanging in the layers and the only way to get the bites would be to draw them down onto the bait. I do this by using high oily baits or glugged baits cast over a baited area. The first job was to create the baited patch so it was a case of grab the spod rod and start spodding out the mixture. I started of by placing 10 spods per rod out on the bottom and then cast the rods on top of the area. The hook-baits were all soaked in high attract glugg (Korda Goo) and had a stringer and PVA Stick on every rig cast out. This was to ensure there was a few freebies around each trap set drawing the fish onto the hook-bait, Each rod was clipped up at the exact same distance as the spod and every cast I made sure they were re-clipped each time. Accuracy in this kind of fishing would be very important as if you cast off the baited area the bites start to dry up. It wasn't long after I set out my traps ready for the first night when they dropped down and began to feed on the spot and the runs began to develop. I continued to get a run every 40 – 60 mins during the night right through till the early hours on the first night and was well pleased with the action.  

I then noticed as the morning came in and the day began to heat up the bites would slow up and it became more difficult to get them to take the bait, I again tried Zigs and surface baits with no results but every time I put a glugged bait on the bottom the rod would usually rip off after an hour or so and the bites were just steadily appearing from the baited area during the day. Due to this I continued to top up the baited area after every bite and a bit extra every 6 hours to ensure there was always food there for them to eat. As the second night drew in so did the action become more frantic resulting in several double takes and some lovely specimens being landed. Again it continued into the early hours and the lack of sleep was starting to get to me. Just as before as the day heated up the bites slowed down but this time I didn't bother reaching for the zigs or floater rod, instead I decide to continue placing glugged singles over the top of the food spot during the daytime and this seemed to be the key as the carp kept following them down and every couple of hours It resulted in a fish or two.

By the end of the 3rd day and night was approaching I had started to feel so tired from the lack of sleep due to all the action through the night it was starting to effect my fishing. That with the serious heat due to the heatwave we were having wasn't doing me any good. So I decided to pull the rods out for a couple of hours early evening before the action would really take off and get some rest. I did manage a couple of hours but it wasn't long before the angler took over again and I just had to get the rods back in the water as I felt I was missing out on bites. By continuing to feed regular and use high attract baits during the day time I was catching steadily for the entire session but it was around Tuesday when the temperatures became unbearable and I could see that the carp were starting to suffer during the fight so unfortunately it was time to call it a day and cut the trip short. I was also suffering from the heat so I really didn't mind and I had a really enjoyable session catching well over 20 + double figure carp (I actually lost count but approx 27 plus 6 big bream) .I really do like the longer session as you can really work at building your swim and catching the fish. I  am now looking forwards to my next adventure....

 

Wet nets & Tight lines 

First Long session 2018 June - Hendre Lake, Cardiff.

It doesn't matter how many times you have been fishing or how many years you have been doing it, you always get the nerves and excitement the day before your planned fishing trip. I always say "the day you don't get that excitement is the day to stop or give up"; but whilst it still makes me feel like a child i will continue to do the sport i love so much. Once again i had decided on doing my first long session around my birthday as a treat to myself and I also chose the local venue that i had joined for the season. Hendre Lake in Cardiff, Wales is a relatively old lake originally dug to drain the marsh lands around the area to make way for housing. Stocked with a variety of species including carp to over 30 lb, Pike to over 15 lb, Bream, Roach, Rudd, Tench, Perch and the occasional Chub, visiting from the back streams, Hendre Lake makes for a great course fishing venue and also a good water for new anglers to come along and learn the sport. Hendre is also classed among the carp anglers as one of the best "Runs" waters in Wales, This means you can drop by and be sure to get a bend in the rod.

The weather had forecast cloud cover with the odd shower and a possible storm in the evenings on the weekend with he sun coming later in the week. This looked promising for a few fish and made my excitement even more intense. I spent the evening preparing bait and getting everything ready for my trip. I am a firm believer in preparation equals success. The more i could do at home before the trip the more time i would have my rods in the water catching fish instead of messing about on the bank. As first light came and the sound of dawn breaking i couldn't contain my excitement and was dressed and ready to go hours too early. When my lift arrived i hurried to get all the gear packed into the van and off i went to the lake. After spending ages trying to put the wheels on my barrow, difficult at the best of times, I managed to get all my gear loaded up and ready to go. I decided to take a quick walk around the lake to see if there were signs of any fish. There didn't seem to be anything showing or any signs giving them away in their hiding spots , I talked to other anglers and they all said they were finding it hard and bites  have been few and far between with very little coming out. 

Upon arrival and at the star of the day i had noticed how clammy the weather had become and even though there was some cloud cover it seemed to be a lot hotter than what was forecast. this, along with the news that the lake was fishing hard, wasn't a very god sign to start a session on. I chose to ignore this and just look for the best swim i could get that would command the most water in front of me. I decided on my first swim on the railway bank on the left side of the lake if you stood in the car park. The swim i had chosen was the second from the middle outlet as there was already an angler on the very end swim. I proceeded to set up my rods and get my swim organised. Knowing that there was little sign of the carp and nothing showing or coming out i had decided on putting out 2 high attract baits that i have total confidence in so i could see what they were up to and if they were in the mood for a feed. I placed one rod on a wafter bottom bait at 14 rod length straight out in front of me and then the other on a running chod rig using a solar candyfloss pink pop up. The rods remained quiet for most of the day and this gave me time to get things ready such as my spod mix and sticks with stringers. The first fish didn't come till around Lunch time and was on the bottom bait wafter which showed me that they were dropping down in the water and were willing to feed.  

 

I then proceeded to spod out a bed of bait at the 14 rod length mark using a mixture of particles, Pallatrax Maggot and Blood-worm crush and Pallatrax Gammarus Shrimps all mixed in with a selection of Solar candyfloss and mainline IB boilies in whole and halves. I then re-cast both rods on the mark and sat and waited. As the evening came in and the temperature dropped the fish came on the feed and i started to catch.  This continued with a couple more fish into the evening and then after spodding out more bait over the top i set my rods ready for the night and settled down. I was then again woken at 2.30 in the morning with a one toner screaming run which resulted in a lovely 18 lb 10 oz common that didn't half put up a fight. I also managed to loose a fish at 4 am in the morning whilst half asleep trying to play the fish and stop it running into the reeds beside me i made a school boy error of forgetting my landing net and as i bent down to grab it , it saw its opportunity and dove straight through the reed bed tangling me up and managed to remove the hook from it mouth and plant it straight into the reed stem. How they do this is beyond my understanding but they seem to manage it every time. 

The next day was much the same with the weather changing for the worst and suddenly becoming sunny , bright and very hot. This turned the fish off and they didn't seem to want to feed. I was trying Zigs, Surface baits, Wafters, Pop ups, Naturals and even maggots and still nothing. I did manage to pick a few bites up from the feeding spot as the odd carp was dropping down for a feed every couple of hours and i was picking them off one by one steadily. A couple of the other anglers were trying surface fishing with not much happening until the evening when it cooled down and then they started to catch off the top. I was about to follow suit and switch over to surface baits when the rods started to get action again and the bites began once more. So instead of following suit i continued to spod more bait over the top after each bite and continued to catch carp very hour or 2. It was then, the second night, when all hell broke loose and the carp decided to come in mob handed and feed on the baited area. My rods were non stop most of the night with several runs and fish caught including loosing 2 hard fighting fish and a complete tangle with the angler in the next swim.  We think he had forgotten to turn his alarm back on after setting his rod as he didn't know he had a fish on. When i had one of the bites i was playing it and after seeing it about 20 feet out it dove down and suddenly became 3 times heavier, as i pulled the fish back to the surface to see what was going on i saw 2 fish surface together and they were all tangled. I managed to get them in and finish landing the second fish by hand-lining the fish in and finding it attached to the guys rod in the next swim. 

The following 2 days were much the same as the others,, cool in mornings, roasting hot during the day and through lunch with the action picking up in the evening and the nights. As i had now managed to get my swim going and the fish were constantly feeding i didn't really want to change swims but as there is a max 72 hour rule on the lake i had to move so instead of going for a wander around the lake i decided to just jump one swim up and ended up on the 1st swim on the centre outlet that commands the most water in the lake. I then spodded out more bait extending the baited patch from the swim next door into mine and then concentrating the bulk of the feed in front of me.  I placed my rods back on the mark and continued to catch and get plenty of action. Again most of it was during the evenings, nights and early mornings due to the weather being so hot. So much for overcast and a few showers. One of my friends then came down the lake to fish so i explained what i had done and where i had been feeding so he decided to join me and placed his rods on the spot where i was fishing before the move and that evening, with very little bait going in, he resulted in landing 5 fish during the night and 3 in the morning. 

The fishing trip had turned out to be a great success and i managed a total of 32 carp with 19 of the being in double figures with 24 lb 2 oz being the biggest of the session. The rigs that were doing the business were the Solar Candyfloss bottom baits on a blow back rig done with a Pallatrax size 6 Gripz hook on Pallatrax Steam-link in 25 lb with an inch stripped back subtle section at the hook end. The other rig that was just as good was the whipped D Rig with a balanced bait or Mainline IB wafter done with a Size 4 Gripz hook and again the Pallatrax Steam-link in 25 lb this time straight through to give a stiffer rig presentation. The chod rig was a standard running naked chod with a 1 inch hook-link fishing a pink candyfloss pop up. 

What an amazing session despite it being hard fishing when it was so hot, I still managed to convince them into having a feed and got plenty of fish on the bank. I can't wait for my next adventure now....

Wet Nets & Tight Lines