March 2013 | Issue 187 | £3.90 craftycarper.co

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JULIAN CUNDIFF / MYLES GASCOYNE / MARK BARTLETT / ROY RUSSELL / NIGEL SHARP / OLI DAVIES / KEV HEWITT

FREE BAIT FOR ALL! Odyssey XXX boilies for every reader from

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Inner-cityCarping!Nash Tackle’s Alan Blair goes in search of carp like this from urban environments

SPRING INTO ACTION!Expert carp anglers including Terry Hearn,

Iain Macmillan and Ian Russell put you on the right track for springtime success

On sale February 20th – March 20th 2013

If your free gift from CC Moore is missing, then someone is

probably already catching using your bait, so ask your newsagent.

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Crafty Carper /// Issue 187 /// March 2013 /// www.craftycarper.co

What’s on this month’s cover...

6 Crafty Carper

FEATUREUrban Banx – Alan Blair

63 Nash operations director Alan Blair isn’t

afraid of doing things differently. In this

awesome new feature he targets the fi sh at the

venues we overlook – the local canals and park lakes.

CRAFTY COLUMNISTSEditorial – James Turner

11 Editor James Turner tells

us what to expect in this

month’s awesome new edition of

Crafty Carper, and what he’s been

up to over the last few weeks.

Diary of an Everyday Carp

Angler – Julian Cundiff

141 Our Jules has had

another busy month,

packing in as much carp fi shing as

his family, work and the weather

allow. It’s a huge month for

Jules as he turns the big 5-0.

OUT & ABOUTThe Traveller – Mark Bartlett

13 Carp Team England and Team

Fox star Mark Bartlett takes

the reins of our Traveller feature

for the fi rst time this month. Taking

over from Mark Pitchers, he kicks off

with a trip to Longleat in Wiltshire.

The TicketMaster

84 We delve into the plethora

of top UK day ticket

venues once more and pick out

a few of the best around. Inside

info, bailiffs’ tips, and vouchers

for FREE fi shing lie herein.

Hot Holiday Venue – La Val Doré

90 Planning to venture to

sunnier climes for your

carping? Look no further than La

Val Doré and its collection of fi rst-

rate kippers. Page 90 is where it’s

at for some prime French carping.

INTERACTIVECatch Column

26 Here’s where you send in

your catch pics, and we

make fun of your silly hats and

celebrate your cracking captures. The

monthly winner bags themselves

a £50 Mainline Baits voucher.

The Question Is

71 Send us your conundrums,

problems, head-scratchers,

and brainteasers for our expert team

of carping sages. They’ll solve your

little tactical snafu, and we’ll send you

an awesome prize for your trouble.

Competition –

Taska Baseline Tungsten

130 Taska’s new range

of tungsten-infused

end tackle is given the Crafty

inspection, and we offer readers the

chance to win the entire Baseline

Tungsten range, worth £60+.

Front cover: The ever-enthusiastic Alan Blair proudly holds aloft a pristine carp caught from his urban location.

FREE GIFT!!CC Moore Odyssey XXX boilies

We’ve got together with the guys at CC Moore to give

you a free sample of their popular Odyssey XXX boilies.

Get them out and have a look to see what you think.

If you’re wondering what to do with them whilst on

the bank then check out Crafty TV for some top tips.

FEATUREGetting Quick Bites – Brian Byford

48 With the temperatures (slowly) starting to

rise, and the fi sh becoming more active,

master of the quick bite, Brian Byford, shows

you how to bag a few in double-quick time.

TACTICSSpring Tips From The Experts

24 It’s the time when the carp have

woken from their winter nap and

are raring to get on the munch. We’ve

gathered some advice from the experts to

help you prepare for the season ahead.

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Crafty Carper 7

Contents /// March 2013

BEHIND THE SCENES AT CRAFTY CARPERHighlights of the month…

Subs Offer

137 Fancy taking out

a subscription and

having Crafty Carper delivered to

your doorstep every month? Head

to page 137 to find out about

this month’s special subs offer.

Inbox

138 Stories from around the

carping universe are

uncovered for your reading pleasure in

this month’s Inbox. Plus we print the

winner of the Kent Particles sponsored

‘Reader’s Letter of the Month’.

FEATURESThe Great Crafty Debate

33 Once more we pose a

question to the finest

minds in the world of carp fishing.

This month we ask which rig they

would use when fishing a pop-up.

Day Session Dangler – Phil Sainty

37 Fitting sessions around

work, family and social

commitments can put a serious dent

in your carping time. Hull angler

Phil Sainty is joined by the Crafty

cameras on one of his day sessions.

Crafty Carper Under-21s

43 BYCAC 2012 champ Josh Jones

returns with his blog, and

former BYCAC runner-up and carping

machine Calum Kletta takes a trip to

Abbey Lakes in search of a new PB.

Keep Motivated – Neil Spooner

109 Our country’s weather is

pathetic, and enough to sap

anyone of their enthusiasm. But being

an armchair warrior won’t catch you any

carp, so Korda ace Neil Spooner has a

tonic that will have you raring to go.

Most Memorable – Sean Leverett

122 Essex angler Sean

Leverett has had a great

year, and here he tells the story of

the capture of his Roach Pit target.

Five-Minute Interrogation

– Mark Hogg

146 Amiable northern carper

Mark is subjected to

the Crafty brand of interrogation. We

shined a bright light in his eyes, at an

undisclosed location, and forced him

to answer our questions, sharpish!

TACTICSSpring into Action – Roy Russell

20Qualified angling coach and

Wychwood consultant Roy

Russell lets us in on his preparations

for one of the best times in the

carping calendar – spring.

One Rig Only – Richard Chapman

79 Derbyshire angler Richard

Chapman lets us in on

his version of the ever-successful

big-fish rig, the Hinged Stiff Rig,

which has caught him more than

his fair share of chunky carp.

Up Your Game – Ian Russell

115 Ian Russell is back

to help you put more

fish on the bank. This month he

takes a look at everything you

need to know about spot fishing.

CARP FOOD

Carp Food

53 All the stuff the carp

like to eat from the best

bait-makers in the business. Plus,

Joe Turnbull takes a look at high-

attract pop-ups, and we take a look

at the Sensas Tracix bait dye.

CARPERS’ KIT

Carpers’ Kit

95 Here we feature the good

and the great from the

world of fishing tackle, which this

month includes a look at Prologic’s

nifty new Unit alarms, and editor

James looks at the awesome Navitas

Atlas Fleece and Agent Jacket.

First Look – Trakker Levelite Bed

100 Our friends at Trakker

treated us to a first look

at the brand new Levelite Bed. And no,

it’s not a typo, this is not a bedchair.

In Focus – Fox Zig Aligna

103 Fox have released some

brand new line-aligners

designed for Zig fishing, and we’ve

been treated to a sneaky peek at them.

In Focus – Nash H-Gun

Dwarf Rod and Luggage

105 Following close behind the

innovative Scope range

from Nash is the brand new H-Gun

Dwarf range of rods. With a retractable

butt section and accompanying

luggage, it’s a little bit cool!

In Focus – Vision KFORE ST

Memory Foam Sleeping Bag

107 A sleeping bag with a

memory foam mattress!

You heard it right folks, this beast of

a bag has graced Crafty Towers this

month, and we’ve been snuggled

in to give it a proper test.

Money-saving Mega Deals

135 We snuffled around the

earthy grounds of carping

markets and found the precious truffles

that are the best deals money can buy.

CRAFTY COMPETITION WINNERS FROM CC185

Crafty Bait-rolling

Team Crafty’s Rich, Kris and

Gaz cooked up a storm for a

few future sessions. They

made a mess in Gaz’s kitchen

and managed to have a laugh

doing so. We’re unsure why Kris

is feeding the paste to Rich; it

could be Kris and Rich’s special

way of feeding one another

– bless ’em, they are close.

Ollie... or Jay?

One of Sparsholt’s finest has been

doing work experience at Crafty

Towers this month, and poor old

Ollie Dumville has been subject to

the Crafty brand of ridicule. One

of the design team’s many talents

is finding lookalikes, and they

decided that Ollie is the spit of

Jay from the Inbetweeners. We’re

certain that Ollie will look back

on his time here fondly – honest.

Crafty TV

Editor James ‘Coppola’ Turner

has been dying to use a new

little toy; a video stabiliser

bracket which keeps the

camerawork nice and smooth

when he’s getting the more

extravagant tracking and

panning shots. Plus we’ve

been cooking up some cracking

videos, so keep your eyes peeled

on the Crafty TV You Tube

channel over the coming weeks.

Diem Competition – The

ten winners each receive

a fantastic Diem clothing

package worth £78.96 each.

Steve Murphy, Horsham,

West Sussex.

Miss. L. Beckingham,

Hastings, East Sussex.

Jamie Brooks, Ipswich, Suffolk.

Greg Payne, Langford, Beds.

Martin Corless, Lancaster, Lancs.

Gavin Coope, Warwick, Warks.

Michael Haynes,

Stowmarket, Suffolk.

Sam Heather, Crawley

Down, West Sussex.

Lee Cook, Leyton, London.

William Austin Jr., London.

Broady Gets Onboard

Crafty welcomes the new editor of sister

publication, Carpworld. Steve Broad has

taken his place in the office, and will

take over from Angling Publications’ big

kahuna Tim Paisley. We’ve been looking

forward to Steve’s arrival, and can’t wait

to work alongside him. It seems James has

a new ally as we’ve got another ginger

in the office. What’s left of it anyway!

006-007_Conts_CC187.indd 2 08/02/2013 17:21

THE VENUESet in the beautiful Wiltshire countryside

in Warminster is a world famous attraction.

Longleat Safari Park is one of the country’s

best days out available, especially for the

family; there’s so much to do, so be sure to

check it out. You’re probably thinking, ‘What

on earth has this got to do with carp fishing?’

Well, Longleat boasts some awesome fishing

within the estate itself, and close to the

enormous main house there are three lakes;

the bottom lake is closest to the house

and is 2 acres in size. This is the general

coarse fishing lake and has a healthy

stocking of a mixture of species,

but it also holds some lovely

carp. Admittedly they are

smaller than in the other

lakes, but they’re carp

nonetheless, and there

are a lot of them. They

range from low-singles

to mid-doubles and you’re

bound to get the bobbins

dancing quickly on this pool. The

middle lake is familiar territory to me,

as it’s where I used to fish regularly when

I was just starting my carping career, and

even back then it was brilliant fishing. I was

having good hits, taking 40-50 carp in the

space of 36 hours’ fishing, with the majority

being high-singles and doubles. Now these

fish are a fair bit bigger, and there is a good

head of 20s in this lake today. The main

top lake is busy, and the middle lake is also

worth a look. There are some lovely features

in this lake, including some awesome-looking

reedbeds, an island slightly towards one

end of the lake, and a mini weir-type water

inlet, which in the warmer months can be

a killer swim. The lakes are tiered, and at

the top is what has me trekking across the

Mendips to wet a line. This 7-acre lake is of a

similar mould to the middle lake, just bigger

and deeper. Depths start at 4ft behind the

island where the water comes in, gradually

sloping down to nearly 11ft at the dam end.

This lake can, at times, have a little weed

growing in it, which I don’t think is a bad

thing, and it gives the fish something to

root around in. Over the last 19 years the

lakes have seen careful fishery management

and some restocking programs carried out,

which has led to the top lake at Longleat

having a tremendous stocking of some 600+

carp, from doubles right up to 35lb. With an

impressive head of 20s to go at, this makes

it the perfect water to get a bend in your

rod, especially in the colder months.

The restocking is done with

some of Mark Simmonds’

famous Simmos, which

are notorious for feeding

through the winter. Also,

it’s worth mentioning

that these lakes are

very consistent, and I

personally think this is due

to the water flowing through

the fishery. It comes from deep

in the hills and seems to be tolerant

to radical temperature changes, which in

turn doesn’t make the fish as moody in the

feeding spells.

FACILITIESThere are some glorious Portaloos

strategically positioned on the woodland side

of the lake – these are some of the cleanest

I have ever come across whilst fishing!

Other than that you will have to be fairly

self-sufficient because the main gates are

locked at 7.00 p.m. and automatically open at

7.30 a.m., so don’t forget to take some grub

because you’ll struggle for a takeaway.

TICKETS AND PRICESYou can either pay for the day, or for 24

hours or more by paying cash on the bank;

there are no card facilities available.

£10 for 12 hours; £20 for 24 hours.

RULES � No nuts, peas, beans or partimix

� No keepnets or carp sacks

� You can use up to three rods

� Barbless hooks only

� No braided main lines

� Compulsory unhooking mats

� Minimum of 10lb main line

� Bivvies only – no camping tents

� One spectator per angler

� No alcohol

� No dogs

� No fires or barbecues – small stoves only

� No bait boats

ADDRESSLongleat, Warminster, Wiltshire BA12 7NW.

Nick Robbins, Longleat bailiff – Tel: 01985

844496/Mobile: 07889 625999 (only

between 8.00 a.m.-6.00 p.m.).

ABOVE The sight on arrival – epic!

BELOW The much-televised house at Longleat. It’s a cracking estate and well worth a visit.

“With an impressive head

of 20s to go at, this makes it the perfect water to get a bend

in your rod”

The TravellerMark Bartlett

14 Crafty Carper

I walked past the two lads already

fishing, said hello and got chatting.

They managed a carp apiece through

the night fishing with boilies, which

was a good sign. It would be dark in

a few hours so I had a scout about up

behind the island for a few minutes;

nothing caught my eye and the water

looked pretty dead to be honest, so I

walked back down towards the dam.

I saw my first carp show itself right

down by the dam, which concluded my

efforts of fish detection for the whole

20 minutes. The wind started gently

pushing into the dam, so I faced my

brolly out of the wind, knowing full

well I would have some bad weather

at some point over the next 48 hours.

However lovely it is to watch the water

properly, it is far nicer and healthier to

stay dry in the cold winter months. I

set up in no time at all, and whilst I was

doing so another fish showed just to

my right in open water, which made me

feel a lot more confident of some action

for the night ahead. I always get a much

better feeling when I can see or hear

fish crashing out in the lake. The rods

were on the buzzers and ready to go,

but before I chucked them out I wanted

to check the bottom to make sure it was

clear. There were some dying weedbeds

visible in the margins, which made me

013-017_Traveler_CC187.indd 2 07/02/2013 14:27

TOP It wasn’t long until the first fish of the day made its presence known.

ABOVE Another one in the bag; the condition of these fish is testament to the fishery.

BELOW The jetty was producing a good few fish, so why not?

INSET One of the smaller fish of the session, but still pristine in condition.

ABOVE The typical stamp of fish that can be found here at Longleat.

RIGHT My little PVA bag and Clockwork Orange did the trick early doors.

The TravellerMark Bartlett

Crafty Carper 15

wonder how clear it was further out;

the lake is not massively wide, so rather

than chuck my marker lead into the

middle of my swim, I whacked it straight

across the lake into the far margins.

There was no one fishing on the

other side and it would also help keep

disturbance in my swim to a minimum.

A couple of chucks later and my braided

main line marker rod gave me the all-

clear for my starting plan of attack.

My plan was to fish three rods on little

Funnel Web PVA bags, with some stick

mix and pellets mixed together and

jazzed up with some liquids. I opted

for this because the water was really

coloured due to the amount of rain we’d

been having, so hopefully this would

help the carp detect my super-yummy

offering in super-quick time, even more

so with the hi-viz 10mm Clockwork

Orange pop-up that I was using as a

hookbait. Two rods were going on these

and one on a hi-viz yellow Pineapple

pop-up, however, I was going to fish

these as wafters by inserting some

lead wire (from some leadcore) into

the bottom of the pop-up to make

them sink really slowly and then make

them even more attractive by dunking

them in some Hinders Betalin before

I cast them out. Betalin is an amazing

additive to enhance hookbaits in

either winter or summer; it almost

permanently taints whatever you dunk

in it, leaving it smelling lovely for hours

on end in the lake, and it is especially

a sure bet for using with plastic corn.

The fish in Longleat are fairly young,

so there is no need to complicate rigs.

My chosen approach was as follows:

Fox lead clips with small 2oz leads and

simple 15lb Reflex braided hooklinks

of 6ins or so. These were Knotless

Knotted to a Size 6 Fox SSBP hook with

a small piece of tubing down the shank;

this stops the bait spinning around the

shank and fouling the hook when it’s

on the bottom. It was time to get the

rods out; I started with the left-hander,

which was fished to a sluice (a jetty-

type feature) that releases water into

the middle lake. This sticks out into

the lake off the centre of the dam wall

and is an obvious feature, and probably

where most people put some bait in,

so one rod on that was a definite. The

other two were just random casts into

the open water close to where I’d seen

the fish top. It was just before dark

and I received a twitchy take on the

left-hander; as the fish bolted towards

me my super-fast recovery brought me

into contact with a spirited fighting

common carp of around 10lb. It put up

a good account of itself and it was in

perfect condition, looking like it had

never seen a hook before. The fish

was soon returned and my Clockwork

Orange wafter was repositioned back

on the spot, ready to welcome the

next sweet-toothed carp

to my net – hopefully.

013-017_Traveler_CC187.indd 3 07/02/2013 14:28

11>>Phil uses a

long Hair

when he fi shes a wafter

because he likes the bait

to move as naturally as

possible on the lakebed.

7>>Whilst pink is supposed to be a

winner, Phil reckons the fi sh could

be up in the water a touch due to the sudden

break in the weather today and temps hitting

10°C, so a Zig is also brought into play.

9>>After a couple of hours of no

action, Ladywood bailiff Gus calls

in for a chat whilst doing his rounds, and

he puts Phil onto a spot that he’s confi dent

will produce fi sh at this time of year.

10>>Whilst chatting, Gus

also says that orange

has been doing the business since

the turn of the year rather than

pink, so Phil changes over to a

Peach & Pepper wafter on one rod.

8>>All three rods are out and Phil keeps

his lines pretty tight to see if he can

pick up any line bites to help him locate the fi sh.

Although it’s fl at calm, the forecast is rain and

lots of it, so the bivvy goes up, just in case.

12>>When using

a long Hair, a

PVA foam nugget is a must;

he doesn’t want the Hair

tangling around the hook

in fl ight on the cast. As an

added bonus, once the rig

has settled on the bottom,

the foam nugget will rise up

to the surface, giving you a

visual marker to

bait to.

Day Session DanglerPhil Sainty

38 Crafty Carper

037-040_Sainty_CC187.indd 2 08/02/2013 10:57

13>>All the rods are

repositioned

towards a shelf which Gus

pointed out earlier, and Phil’s

now pretty confi dent of a bite.

14>>It’s not long until the liners

start coming, so there are

defi nitely fi sh in the area. Phil sits on

his hands and crosses his fi ngers.

15>>Game on!!

Not 10

minutes later and it’s fi sh

on! Phil plays it steady

because he’s waited

until just past lunchtime

for his fi rst bite.

16>>Get

in! As

the fi sh crosses the

net cord Phil thanks

his lucky stars; the

pressure to catch

for the camera

is now eased.

Day Session DanglerPhil Sainty

Crafty Carper 39

17>>A lovely-

looking mirror

is well worth the wait, and

all Phil can do is thank

Gus for pointing him in

the right direction. That’s

the sign of a

good bailiff.

037-040_Sainty_CC187.indd 3 08/02/2013 10:57

“I used to use tiny solid

PVA bags all the time, but

nowadays bigger bags bring

quicker bites,” explains Brian Byford, as

he ties up his fi rst solid PVA bag of the

session. Set up opposite the only two

islands on Farm Lake at Willows Farm

Fishery in St Albans, the plan is to get

the bags tight to the island margins.

“I’ve fi shed here on a number of

occasions,” continues Brian, “and while

small PVA bags are easier to cast the

80 yards or so to the island, you can be

sitting here for an hour before it fi nally

rattles off. I’m not sure why, but that’s

not the case with bigger bags. Perhaps

it’s because there’s more bait to draw

the carp down to the rig. Whatever

the reason, with a background in carp

match fi shing, including competing

regularly in the BCAC, I am not a patient

angler when it comes to getting bites.”

It’s 9.00 a.m., and before long

Brian has two large solid PVA bags

cast tight to the right-hand island

in front of him; one to the middle of

the island and one on the corner. He

explains that it’s around 2.5ft tight

to the island, but shelves off quickly

into 8-10ft. With the warmer weather

today, and the fact that carp love to

patrol tight to island margins, Brian

explains that you have to be within a

rod length of the island for the best

result. If the bags drop short and end

up in the deeper water then you get

pestered by bream; the carp tend

to head straight for the warmest

section of water, and the shallower

areas will be warming nicely with the

sun making an appearance today.

With three rods at his disposal, Brian

sets about positioning the third. Using

his marker rod, he locates a gravel

bar that runs parallel with the swim,

roughly two-thirds of the way to the

islands. Then another solid PVA bag

is positioned right on top of the bar.

The temps are on the rise and the carp will be getting a bit more active in the coming months, so we’ve enlisted the help of Brian Byford to reveal how he looks to pick up quick bites;

he has a track record for catching in double-quick time.

ANGLER PROFILE

Brian Byford...........................Age 42...........................HometownHertfordshire...........................OccupationTree surgeon...........................UK PB40lb 3oz...........................Favourite venueTring Canal...........................RodsE-S-P Refl ex...........................ReelsDaiwa Emblem 5000...........................AlarmsFox MMXR

All the bits needed for Brian’s bag mix; he was confi dent that this lot would result in some quick action.

48 Crafty Carper

048-050_QuickBites_CC187.indd 1 08/02/2013 14:36

“Because of the warm sunny

conditions, I’ll start by fi shing on top

of the bar in the shallower water,” says

Brian. “In the past, I’ve done best by

fi shing just off the bar, into the deeper

water where the lakebed goes from

gravel to silt, but that area is 12ft

deep, which I think is a little too deep

for today’s conditions. The good thing

about using solid bags is that you’re

never committing too much bait to

one particular area, so if you need to

try a few different spots throughout

the day, it’s ideal. On the fl ip side, if

you are targeting a specifi c area, or

getting bites from one spot, then these

larger PVA bags allow you to build the

swim accordingly because you deliver

a handful of bait with every cast. I do

have plenty of bait with me and I will

use a Spomb to put some out if the

action hots up, but I’ll only do that if

the action is consistent in one area.”

The rods have barely been

out for 20 minutes when the

one positioned on top of the bar

screams off. There’s a fair bit of

bubbling appearing around the lake,

but so far the carp have refrained from

showing, which, according to Brian, is

unusual for this venue. Still, because

he’s attached to a hard-fi ghting

carp he’s not particularly worried.

The fi sh stays deep and puts up a

slow, heavy fi ght. It kites off to the

left and Brian applies the pressure as

he tries furiously to get the fi sh into

his margin. There’s a large jetty to his

left, with thick wooden posts stretching

down to the lakebed, which the carp

instinctively kite towards during a

fi ght. Just as Brian thinks he has the

fi sh clear of the jetty, he hears the

lead knock against one of the wooden

posts and everything goes solid.

“Gutted,” sighs Brian. “That

felt like a good fi sh.”

As soon as the rod is repositioned

on top of the bar, the liners start.

There are clearly fi sh in the area,

and if Brian gets another take from

there he’ll reposition the rod currently

cast to the corner of the island to

the bar, so he can capitalise on any

action. For now though, with neither

rod cast to the island producing

anything, he redoes both, casting

them back to the same area.

“Unless I’m fi shing in the harshest

of winter conditions, when action is

expected to be slow, I only leave a

rod for about an hour before redoing

it,” explains Brian. “Simply recasting a

fresh bag to the same spot can often

be enough to induce a take, even

when you’ve had a rig motionless for

a while. I’ve had takes so quickly after

recasting that there could barely have

been time for the PVA to melt before a

fi sh picked up the hookbait. You’ll also

notice that I coat my hookbait in glug

every time I make a solid bag, with

my preferred glug being Solar Tackle

Chinese Take-Away. Because it’s thick

and PVA-friendly, it helps to keep the

hookbait in position, in the middle of

the bag, while I fi ll it with my chosen

mix and tie it up. It’s a little trick that

makes tying solid bags a bit easier.”

The wind picks up, blowing

diagonally across the lake and straight

into the jetty to Brian’s left. With the

change in the weather the odd fi sh

starts to show, a couple of which are

in the small gap between the two

islands. Brian winds in the middle rod,

ties a fresh bag and casts it out to

where the fi sh showed. He explains

that carp are rarely on their own in

well-stocked venues, and if you see

one show then there’s a good chance

there will be a few more in that area.

The action on top of the bar, or the

liners at least, have dried up, so Brian

repositions the rod right up against

the edge of the left-hand island

where he’s seen another fi sh show.

It takes a couple of casts, as it’s not

an easy chuck with a crosswind, but

eventually it lands on the money.

“It can be tough getting the rigs

really tight to the islands, and it’s a

pain when you have to tie a fresh solid

bag for every cast,” says Brian. “On

waters like this though, where bait

boats are allowed, it’s often the only

way to get consistent action. I’ve opted

for a slight change in tactics, and have

added Solar’s Up & Down Mix to my

PVA bags, which sounds like a minor

change but it’s an important one. This

stuff is unique and designed to release

food particles and attraction up through

the water column over a prolonged

period. With the warm weather today,

I reckon that a lot of fi sh will be in

the mid- to upper layers, and creating

a column of attraction from lakebed

to surface will get the carp to drop

down and investigate

the contents of the bag.

ABOVE The third rod went bang on top of the gravel bar that Brian found.

All three rods were in position, but would it result in a quick bite?

ABOVE It didn’t take long for the one on the bar to go, but unfortunately it was lost.

ABOVE Brian opted for the Chinese Take-Away Glug, and put the rod back on the bar.

“Unless I’m fi shing in the harshest of winter conditions, when action is expected to be slow, I

only leave a rod for about an hour before redoing it”

Getting Quick BitesBrian Byford

Crafty Carper 49

048-050_QuickBites_CC187.indd 2 08/02/2013 14:37

90 Crafty Carper

Hot Holiday Venue

Le Val Doré Complex

If the answer to the question above

is yes, then Le Val Doré is the

ideal venue for you; it’s situated in

northern France and only 75 minutes

away from Calais. Le Val Doré is also

only 1 hour away from Boulogne, and

30 minutes away from Dieppe, so

travelling to the complex is quick and

easy from a number of ferry ports

The complex is over 40 years

old, 52 acres in size, and boasts five

mature gravel pits, which are lined

with trees and reeds. There are 29

swims over the five lakes, so you are

sure to have enough room to fish.

Over the whole complex there are

over 2,000 fish, with a number of

different species to go at, including

carp (mirror and commons), some large

sturgeon, and catfish. The largest

carp on the complex is 74lb, with the

average size being around 26lb, and

the complex record for catfish is 200lb.

All the lakes are mature gravel pits

with a number of different features

to fish to, for example, gravel bars,

lilies, silt, sand, etc., and the average

depth of all the lakes is around 3.5ft.

Lake 1 is a 16-acre pit which

contains carp to over 70lb, and catfish,

sturgeon and grass carp to over 36lb;

Lake 2 is 13 acres and has carp to

over 74lb, with catfish to over 154lb,

sturgeon and grass carp; Lake 3 is

one of the smaller pits, is 8 acres

and holds carp to over 54lb; Lake 4

is another 8-acre pit that holds carp

to over 52lb; and finally, Lake 5 is 13

acres in size and has 600 carp, and

grass carp to mid- to high-50lb fish.

For the past 14 years the guys at Le

Val Doré have introduced a number

of fish into the lakes every year to

help improve the stock and keep

the lakes running efficiently, which

shows how well they are managed.

When booking there is a limited

amount of space on each lake at any

one time. On the small 8-acre lakes

the maximum number of anglers is

six, and on the large 16-acre lakes

the maximum number of anglers is

14 at any one time; the lakes are also

available for group bookings. Each

of the lakes has a certain number of

swims which enables anglers to spread

Are you looking for the perfect holiday venue, where you can catch some big carp and also have a great time with the family?

090-091_HHV_CC187.indd 1 08/02/2013 15:21

Hot Holiday Venue Team Crafty Carper

Crafty Carper 91

NEED TO KNOW: Le Val Doré

TicketsDrive-and-survive weekly

bookings, possible

exclusive lake hire.

Prices€210 (£178) per person per week

on the whole complex. Exclusive

lake booking from €1,100 (£960)

Main RulesNo boats; no sacks; barbless

hooks only; no braided main

line; respect the fish and other

anglers on the complex.

AddressVal Doré Lakes (Sarl Le Val Doré)

1 Chemin des Aulnes – Guimerville

76340 HODENG AU BOSC – France

ContactTel: 0033 233 394 258

Mobile: 00 33 608 109 134

Fax: 00 33 322 405 958

Email: levaldore@sfr.fr

Websitewww.valdore.com

baits out, however, you are allowed

to use remote-controlled bait boats.

There are only a few rules to abide

by; the first is that throughout the

whole complex you are not allowed

to use carp sacks. On the main lake

the rules are that it is barbless hooks

only, no braided main line to be used,

and to respect the fish, other anglers,

and the rules that are in place. There

is a bailiff on site at all times to help

if you need anything, and to check

that you’re following the rules.

The cost for a week’s fishing on the

complex is around €210 per person,

which works out at around £178,

and weekly bookings for the lakes

start at €1,100 (£960). That price is

for up to six anglers for the whole

week, and all the permits needed

are included in this price. There are

extra charges for the food package

or any tackle and bait supplied. CC

their rods around without disturbing

others, and every swim is said to be

productive, so you are sure to get a

run from anywhere on the lake.

The main tactics that have done

the business throughout the

complex are small-sized boilies

with hemp and maggots, and

tackle-wise, small hooks and

safety leaders work well, so

you don’t need to up your

tackle just because

you are fishing in

France; English

tactics seem

to work best on

here. While you are

fishing you may need

some items of tackle,

and the guys at Le Val

Doré have their own

shop on site, which

stocks a wide range

of tackle. There is also a restaurant

with a bar on site, so anglers and their

families can enjoy a nice meal whilst

looking out over the whole

complex. However, if you

don’t go with the family,

there is a food package

available for an extra fee,

and it’s well worth it.

Other facilities on site are a shower

room, a number of toilets placed all

around the complex, an electricity

supply to most swims, and finally there

is a fridge freezer which can hold all

your fresh frozen baits. All guests are

welcome with the anglers, and there

is plenty to do for the family. There

are a couple of towns in the local

area, so if the family doesn’t want to

stop on site, there is accommodation

available in the vicinity.

If you don’t want to transport your

own bait over to France in the car, you

can simply buy any bait you need on

site. The guys at Le Val Doré have

a wide range of bait, including

Mainline, Sticky Baits and

Dynamite, and every bait

is allowed – there are

no restrictions on what

you use. There are no boats

allowed on the lake to row

090-091_HHV_CC187.indd 2 08/02/2013 15:21

Most MemorableSean Leverett

124 Crafty Carper

122-125_MostMem_CC187.indd 3 07/02/2013 12:14

what I suspect was the same fish

showed again, just in front of the

spot, but despite these shows I still

wasn’t sure whether anything was

going to happen. It didn’t, and despite

sitting up a lot of the night, I didn’t

have so much as a single bleep.

I watched the spot the following

morning, but it looked devoid of any

activity. Within an hour though, a

fish showed a couple of times, and

before I knew it the area had gone

dead once more. The pressure had

dropped, the wind had turned, and

with it came rain. I was sure my

chance had gone. It looked and felt so

different from the last couple of days.

As I sat watching the water from

under the brolly, my mate Marcus,

who was set up next door, joined me

for a few brews, and it was during

this tea-drinking session that the

subject of Atlas came up once again.

I just couldn’t get this fish out of my

head. As the morning passed so did

the rain and it started to brighten

up a little, and I began to feel that

it could once again happen for me.

I was sitting at the top of the swim

with Marcus when I noticed a small

patch of bubbles come up on the spot.

A couple of minutes later the middle

rod signalled a few bleeps. I looked

at the rod and the bobbin pulled up

halfway; to start with I thought I had

been picked up by a bird because

there were quite a few sitting above

the spot at the time. They dispersed

in a hasty fashion though, and the

bobbin stayed where it was. A second

or so later the bobbin rose another

inch, and with that I unclipped the

line and felt it between my fingers.

As I did so I felt it

pull once again,

so I picked up the

rod and lifted into

it. I immediately

felt something kick

on the other end,

but before I knew it everything had

gone solid. I got to the high ground

at the back of the swim to see if I

could get it moving, but it wasn’t

going anywhere. Whatever was

attached was in the big weedbed

at the back of the spot and wasn’t

budging. There was no other option

other than to take to the boat, and

with life jackets on we headed out

to where the fish was weeded up.

As we reached the spot a large

weedbed rose to the surface, and

just under the water behind it was a

big creamy-coloured mirror. I couldn’t

Most MemorableSean Leverett

Crafty Carper 125

see which fish it was, but I remember

thinking that it looked like the creamy

fish I had seen show on several

occasions. I couldn’t net it at this

point because the weed was stopping

me, so I had to put the rod down and

remove the weed from the line.

Once the weed was off the line

and I was back in direct contact with

the fish, it powered off on a mighty

run and dropped down into the

deeper water. I could feel it twisting

and turning on the bottom in an

attempt to shed the rig, but in doing

so it picked up my other line, which

caused me more problems. Add to

this the fact that

it had also gone

through another

weedbed and

collected another

load of weed in

the process, and

I had a real problem. I eventually got

the fish up to the surface, but once

there I still couldn’t land it due to

the other line being caught around

the tip ring. I couldn’t cut the line

because it would possibly leave a

rig out in the water, yet I couldn’t

reach the fish with the net. What a

nightmare! The only option was to

try to untangle the lines from each

other so I could at least net the fish.

After a load of messing around,

I managed to untangle enough line

to get the fish close enough to

net. It took a couple of attempts,

but eventually I slipped the net

under a huge mirror. As soon as it

was in I passed the net to Marcus

so that I could sort out the rest of

the tangle, and it was then that

he told me what I’d got. It was

Atlas! At last I had beaten the fish

I had been obsessing about for the

last few weeks. What a relief!

As soon as I’d sorted out the line,

we headed back to the bank, to the

small crowd that had gathered and

had been watching our boat battle.

On the mat she looked massive,

and for the record she weighed in

at 45lb 10oz. To be honest though,

I couldn’t have cared less what

weight she was, I was just happy to

have eventually caught her. After a

few pictures she was returned, and

with that my obsession was over.

By changing the hooklink from

a long one to a short one, and

by switching from my preferred

Blowback Rig to a KD Rig, I had

beaten the fish that had possibly

been getting away with a free

feed for the last few weeks. It just

goes to show that a few changes

can make all the difference. CC

“I could feel it twisting and turning on the bottom

in an attempt to shed the rig, but in doing so it

picked up my other line...”

RIGHT Back she went to fight another day.

BOTTOM Job done! GET IN!!

122-125_MostMem_CC187.indd 4 07/02/2013 12:14

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