Fishing Reports

By Clint Walker

We bring you the latest catch reports and news each week from Clint's Walker's 'Carp-Talk' North West round up. If you have something to include, get in touch.  

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06th January 10

Ha! Come on then, who has caught anything?? It would appear that ALL NW waters ‘have a lid on’ and continue to frustrate anglers by being solid with ice; not good. It doesn’t look like things are going to get any better in the very near future as more cold weather is on the way....

However; at least some are committed (daft?) enough to try; City fan Colin Baines found what may be the only ice free peg in the whole of the North West when he set his rods up on the Belmont Estate.  I think he had to break a hole to start fishing, and, if you saw him, no doubt you were tempted to call the ‘men in white coats’, but at least he was keen enough to have a go.  Full marks to Colin, even though no fish were taken, at least he has the nuts to get amongst it! Well in chum!

Belmont is part of the Lymm Angling Club’s extensive portfolio of top notch waters, some of which contain some mighty big carp.  With over 20 still waters and at least 10 stretches of river including parts of the River Severn, there are plenty of opportunities to bag a new personal best.  I’ve joined for 2010, and I’m really looking forward to meeting some of the anglers who I’ve seen grace this column during 2009.  Well known waters such as Belmont Pool, Shakerley Mere and Lymmvale all come under the club ticket and with a membership numbering around 1500, it has enough clout to bag even more waters in the near future.  A cracking forum giving up to the minute information and the latest catch reports provides all members with the chance to learn and share hints and advice throughout the Lymm  venues.  If you want to get involved, have a look at the club website www.lymmanglersclub.com

Another venue I’ve been lucky enough to bag an invite to is Cleverley Bridge off the M6 up near Lancaster.  The specimen lake, which will intrigue carpers in known as Swanbrook, but there a few more pools to try for other species.  Swanbrook is one of the nicest places I’ve had the good fortune to sit by and it has everything you could ask for in a fishery.  Shallows, reed beds, lilies and deeper margins all contribute to a lovely fishery and Keith Holloway, head bailiff has all the advice you could ever need to catch some of the residents which run to well over 30lbs. The price for a 2 rod day ticket is only around £7, with an extra £3 for a third rod.  A 24 hour pass will set you back just £18!  Only sensible rules such as no tins and only properly prepared particles etc means that you can have an enjoyable day without being shafted by bait bans.  Give them a bell on 01524791637 or have a scan of www.cleverleybridgefisheries.com  Definitely worth a trip up North!

Cleveley Bridge Fisheries

29th December 09

Wow!! The big freeze finally hit the North West and it doesn’t look like it will get much better any time soon! Temperatures overnight of minus 11 have ‘put the lid on’ all over our patch so the catch reports (apart from Eskimo anglers) have completely stopped for a week or two... So far I have had no river reports from around our region, so I don’t know if any of you are tough enough to try it? If you do, let me know!

The winner of this month’s Screamer sponsored bait prize goes to club member Jay Johnson from Runcorn for his catches off Lymm Angling waters. As you may have already seen, Jay has featured twice this month with lovely looking mid doubles and low twenties caught from a couple of venues on the Lymm card. By doing things differently, casting single baits at showing fish, Jay has found the carp when others have struggled and certainly deserves this month’s award. Well done Jay.

As catch reports are thin on the ground, I thought I’d give you some information on Cheshire venue Gawsworth Hall as a ‘featured fishery’.  Situated in the village of Gawsworth near Congleton, current owner John Birch has taken an already prolific fishery and developed it into something special.  In addition to the existing Wall, Lodge and Park pools, John has added a canal match length and various other picturesque lakes to complement this already well established site. If you want something unusual, Wall pool has some fantastic ghosties and koi up to around 15lbs. These stunners give an excellent fight in shallow water and are well worth looking for.  Wood pool is the main specimen lake at Gawsworth, a lovely mid size pool of around 4 acres, it has some big carp in that go up to around 30lbs.  Admittedly the real biggies take some finding, but there are loads of twenties and mid doubles to chase.  Floating baits take multiple catches in summer months and when its colder, bunches of maggots will take fish. Alongside the carp, there are also some big tench to tempt form under the lilies or in the deeper margins.  With lots of snags, features, reed beds and deeper channels, there are plenty of things to get you thinking. For more details, call John on 01260 223442 or look at the website www.gawsworthfisheries.com.

It just remains for me to wish all who read Carp Talk and especially my NW column a very happy and prosperous 2010, I hope you all had a great Christmas and I’d like to thank all those who submitted catch reports to me this year; without your input I can’t write a column!  Don’t forget to send me your best catches from the next 12 months, just remember there are prizes to be won! Happy New Year.

Gawsworth Hall Fishery, Nr Congleton, Cheshire.

23rd December 09

Wythenshawe Woodhouse Park Anglers ‘Deadmans’ syndicate gave up a stunner to local angler and bailiff Lee Clarke. Fishing a 48 hour session, Lee used a homemade winter boilie mix presented snowman style at 40 yards range. 30 scattered freebies and a small PVA bag cast to a harder patch among the silt resulted in the largest fish to come from the water this winter. A size 7 ESP hook on a suffix heavy skin hook link was enough to bring 28lbs 8ozs of smashing winter mirror carp to the bank.

Brenda Jefferson at Izaak Walton Fishery near the Staffordshire village of Chebsey tells me that winter matches are still producing huge weights of carp to many anglers.  The week before last saw a top weight of over 80lbs needed to win the match, and this week you would have had to put at least 40lbs in your net to be in with a shout! In spite of the cold snap, this picturesque 134 peg, 4 pool fishery continues to give up fish to hardy visitors.  For more information call Brenda on 01785 761535 or check out the website www.izaakwaltonfishery.co.uk

23 year old car worker Ryan Curran had a quick overnight visit to local a Manchester water and winkled out this lovely looking carp of 16lbs 6ozs. Another example of how pre planning makes a difference, Ryan spent some time prior to his session looking around until he worked out where the fish had been feeding, then trickled in 2 kilos of Scott Eyres (SAE Baits) crab and oyster boilies during the week before setting up to fish.  An 18mm bait fished KD style on an 8 inch hook link terminating in a size 8 Nash Twister hook proved the winning combination for Ryan who targeted a deep silty channel at 50 yards range which was baited with 20 odd freebies before the hook bait followed...a nice result in cold conditions.

Jay Johnson is still catching from Lymm Anglers Waters. You may remember JJ from a couple of weeks ago with a brace of 20’s caught on Dynamite baits chocolate malt and tiger nut boilies, well he’s back among the fish with ‘Brett’s Fish’ at 25lbs 4ozs from Belmont Pool near Budworth Heath in Cheshire. Using the same tactics as before, Jay presents his baits on a chod rig cast at showing fish and surrounds his hook with just a few free offerings.  He tells me that doing something different to most other anglers on the waters is the secret to his success.  Lymm Anglers have a great selection of waters to suit most angling styles and annual cards are available for next season by download from their website www.lymmanglersclub.com You can even pay online!

To finish this week I’d like to thank everyone who has sent me catch reports this year and wish all CT readers and staff a very Happy Christmas and a fantastic 2010. Hopefully lots more NW fish will be caught in 2010, if they are, then don’t forget to let me know!

              Lee Clarke                               Jay Johnson                       Ryan Curran

15th December 09

I’m starting off at the ever popular Wyreside Fishery this week. This fantastic fishery is still producing good catches of carp to visiting anglers even during the colder weather. Sally Hughes, General Manager, has sent pictures of a great session for Barry ‘Gummy Bear’ Davidson (why?!) who took 3 fish, all over 20lbs with the biggest coming to the bank at 28lbs! The others were worthy captures of 23lbs and 26lbs, so not a bad session really.....All the fish were taken on fruity pop ups, presented on size 8 long shank hooks surrounded by a few bottom baits to get them going. Heavy rain showers made the fishing hard work, so congratulations to Barry for sticking it out. Book in at Wyreside on 01524 792 093 for big carp or big pike or take a peek at www.wyresidelakes.co.uk for the latest information.

Ever fished a small pool that has thrown up a surprise? Lee Watson did just that when he found a free fishing half acre lake near his hometown of Bolton. A new p.b. of 33lbs 10ozs came as a result of opportunist fishing after Lee spotted the fish mooching about in the shallows and decided to stalk it. Getting the fish to feed confidently in a quiet area of the pool was the first problem, so Lee patiently flicked out a couple of baits every few minutes before presenting an Essential B5 pop up on a hair rig with the line draped over the remains of the weed stems and lilies to hide it. Lee tells me that watching the fish hovering over his bait before taking it and crashing off nearly gave him heart failure! A short fight ended with a cracking lump in the net of which Lee was rightly proud. Unfortunately Lee’s camera skills are not as good as his angling, and the pictures are not so good. I’ve got them, and it really is a monster, but not high enough quality to be published sadly...

There's nothing worse than packing up to see another angler take a monster from the peg you’ve just left... Unlucky then Andrew Gilliver, who took 6 fish to more than 17lbs and lost another 3, before letting visitor George Cook move into his vacated swim. On his very first visit to Four Seasons fishery near Blackpool, George slipped the net under a 26lb new lake record within 10 minutes of casting out! Popped up wrigglers did the damage, leaving a slightly miffed Andrew to congratulate the captor! The big one beat George’s personal best by over 10lbs so I suppose a little dance was done! To be fair, Andrew had the ‘Swirly Common’ at its best weight yet of 17lbs 6ozs, so its not all bad news! An unusually marked carp, its easily recognised if you fancy a crack at it. Contact Ben or Jon on 01253 894357 or visit their website www.fourseasonsfisheries.co.uk for details of the special winter rates and the latest news.

Pictured below left to right George Cook and Barry Davidson.

I’ve had a load of reports from 19 year old Jay Johnson who is doing extremely well on Lymm Angler’s waters. Jay has been watching other anglers and decided to do something completely different to everyone else! Ignoring the PVA bag or single bait approach, Jay has taken to waiting for fish to show, then casting baits at them even if it means moving around the lake several times a day. A chod rig guarantees the bait is clear of the bottom muck, and by using a pop up when most others around him are on bottom baits. Dynamite baits chocolate malt and tiger nut  are doing the damage for Jay who chucks in a few well spread loose baits around each hook bait before sitting it out. A lot of the fish are around the 20lbs mark, so well worth chasing. Jay’s best session so far has resulted in 17 fish over a six hour visit! Pictured this time with a Beech Pool belter taken earlier this week, Jay can only fish every other weekend due to work commitments (in the Guiness kegging plant!) so has to make good use of his time. 

I quite fancy Lymm Angler’s ticket next year, the website www.lymmanglersclub.com  gives loads of great information on over 25 waters with more due to be added to the club in 2010, and you can download an application and pay online.

Another angler who is becoming a regular to the column is Dan ‘Swampy’ O’ Brien who is still catching well on short sessions at Macclesfield Waltonian’s Tegg’s Nose reservoir.  A few hours on Friday evening resulted in a 14lb mirror and a smashing 20lb common carp taken over small heavily baited areas with a bait presented chod style.  As Head Bailiff Steve Hicks said last week, the club are feeding the fish up with about 50kgs a week of bait and pellets to keep them on the hunt for food as the water cools. The fish are piling the weight on so why not give it a go? More details from at www.waltonians.co.uk or ring Steve on 07881818486. Membership now available for 2010, seniors priced at just £55 for 3 rods all year! Doesn’t come much cheaper....

Screamer Baits have been rebranded ready for the launch of a new website and new product lines in the New Year, to continue the amazing success of 2009. Their sponsorship has been much appreciated since I started the column so thanks again Phill!

                Dan 'Swampy' O'Brien                                      Jay Johnson

Great news for 21 year old Ben Wilson from Blackpool who has won October’s monthly prize provided by Screamer Baits.

Consistent fishing from Ben during a month of changing weather has resulted in 2 new personal bests at firstly 24lbs and then a cracker of 29lbs 12ozs. Both fish were taken at prolific local water Four Seasons Fishery from the deeper waters of Lodge Lake and both were tricked on maggots presented on a hair rig. Having noticed that most anglers had boilies on the hook, Ben developed a different attack which obviously paid off; not bad going for someone who only took up carping 7 months ago! Maggots and smaller baits still doing the business and the BOGOF offer still applies for all mid week sessions if redeemed within one month of original visit. Receipt for the first session must be provided when booking free visit, but pay for 24 hours get 24 hours free etc. Contact Jon or Ben at Four Seasons on 01253894357 or look at the website for the latest gossip.

This week has seen the first snow of the year on high ground in the North West, but in spite of this, Steve Hicks, head bailiff on the Macclesfield Waltonians operated Tegg’s Nose reservoir reports that the newly introduced  stockies and existing fish are being fed up on around 50 kilos of bait per week, so are on the lookout for food. Dan ‘Swampy’ O’Brien did a couple of hours and landed ‘The Parrot’ at 16lbs 6ozs. One of ‘Paul’s Northern Hope Pukka pop ups’ presented chod style into 11’ of water  trapped the lump which has put on a couple of pounds since it was last caught. Annual cards for Macclesfield Waltonians cost only £50 including a first year joining fee and the club offer some BIG carp for the competent angler. A well managed portfolio of finely stocked pools ensures plenty of potential for year round fishing. Website www.waltonians.co.uk gives details of membership applications and much more information. Steve reckons the stocking and feeding policy will almost guarantee winter action!

More news from the generous sponsors of my column, Screamer Baits. Phill Broderick and the development team have unveiled a new logo to celebrate a new year and the launch of a new range of pellets. Soon to be released after months of testing, the new soft hooker pellets will tempt plenty of big fish for specimen and match anglers. I’ve had them in new ‘Cheezie’, Bloodworm and Maple X flavours and they are consistently picking up bonus fish on cold days. There are plenty in the tub and will keep you in hook baits for ages! Look out for them and other baits in their extensive range in NW shops and online.  All carp pictures submitted to my NW report are available to view on their website and the monthly prize winners form a ‘Hall of Fame’ which is recorded for posterity!

      Dan 'Swampy' O'Brien                     Phill Broderick - screamerbaits.co.uk

25th November 09 A big fish for 19 year old carp addict Aaron Isherwood. Fishing the ‘Melches’ off Plodder Lane near Farnworth, Greater Manchester, Aaron dropped a 6 bait stringer in the margins to trap the venues biggest resident at 29lbs 3ozs! Not only is it the biggest fish in the water, it’s also a new personal best for Aaron and a stunning fish. Taken on a pro-biotic robin red its hook bait it’s a belter! Tickets are only £6 per day and with fish like that it’s money well spent.

One of the prettiest fish I’ve seen for a long time came out to Stoke on Trent angler Dave Lee who has been targeting the low stocked Pershall Pool  near Eccleshall, Staffordshire, for over 18 months, and this gorgeous mid double is only his 9th fish in all that time. Caught off the back of a dead weed bed at 60 yards, Dave tricked the beauty with a double scopex boilie hook bait presented on a chod rig surrounded by a few freebies. It was the only fish from the water over a three day session and I think it shows true commitment. Nice fish and committed angling.

Lakemore Fishery near Haslington, Crewe is fishing well with plenty of carp coming off both Horseshoe and Long lakes. Single baits and bunches of maggots are throwing up  lots of mid doubles all the way up to 24lbs and even cats to 32lbs! Golden lake has just received a stocking of carp to 10lbs to support the already impressive fishing. Ring Mark on 07771 848801 for the very latest, and don’t forget the winter ticket offer is still available. Further details on the website www.lakemorefisheries.co.uk

The inaugural NW English Carp Heritage Organisation bash in Warrington got off to a flying start at the British Rail Social club. Over 100 lads and lasses turned up to hear guest speakers and helped raise over £750 towards further events. ECHO is the largest supported angling pressure group dedicated solely to preserving and protecting carp stocks for the future. Why not pop along to the next meeting and see what you can contribute?

Final word this week goes to Mark Carver who snaffled a lovely 21lbs 8ozs mirror carp from Pendle View Fishery in Clitheroe. Mark crammed in a quick overnight session testing the SLK baits from the DNA stable. A bottom bait fished in conjunction with a PVA bag of SLK pellets did the trick. My source tells me that Mark has been doing well on his last few visits to Pendle, quietly bagging up each trip while others are struggling....must be the bait to be on. Tickets for this fine NW fishery are available pre booked or on the day and, with a new venue record recently out at 43lbs 1oz,its well worth a visit. Loads of other 30lbs+ fish to go at, why not try and join Pendle’s ‘30’ club? Contact the fishery on 01254 822208 or via the website www.pendleview.co.uk

      Aaron Isherwood                       Dave Lee                          Mark Carver   

The weather is causing chaos for many anglers this week, rain, wind, sunshine and fog all combine to make things tough, but the fish are still coming to those mad enough to brave the elements!

One of the prettiest fish I’ve seen for a long time came out to Stoke on Trent angler Dave Lee who has been targeting a low stocked water for over 18 months, and this gorgeous mid double is only his 9th fish in all that time. Caught off the back of a dead weed bed at 60 yards, Dave tricked the beauty with a double scopex boilie hook bait presented on a chod rig surrounded by a few freebies. It was the only fish from the lake over a three day session and I think it shows true commitment. Nice fish!

Four Seasons Fishery near Blackpool is still throwing up big fish to visiting anglers. Stephen Cross struck into a superb common carp off Lodge Lake on the complex. At 28lbs 6ozs, it’s a smashing winter carp showing just what can be achieved from day ticket fisheries. Taken on fake maggots tipped with an SBS corn popper on a size 6 ESP raptor, it came within 20 minutes of a move onto showing fish in front of peg 3. Venue virgin Jamie Coad fished a small Questbaits pop up to nail a 21lb common off the Mill, and fishery manager Ben tells me that loads of fish are coming out. With a BOGOF offer for all mid week tickets at the moment, meals delivered to the peg, optional 240v hook up and shower rooms for overnight anglers, can you afford not to have a crack? Contact them on 01253894357 or visit www.fourseasonsfisheries.co.uk

A big fish for carp addict Aaron Isherwood. Fishing a water near Farnworth, Greater Manchester, Aaron dropped a 6 bait stringer in the margins to trap the venues biggest resident at 29lbs 3ozs! Not only is it the biggest fish in the water, it’s also a new personal best for Aaron and a stunning fish.

Still no pictures from Cleveley Bridge (buy a camera fellas!) but Daryl Jarvis enjoyed his stay in the Fishermans Lodge. Resting up in comfort, Daryl spent the day fishing from the point swim on Swanbrook to take a nice common of 23lb 15ozs on a Screamer bait boilie (what else!?). Manager Keith Holloway reports plenty of singles being taken in matches from around the fishery with bigger carp off Swanbrook. Contact Keith on 01524791637.

Last word this goes to Chris Rigby who sneaked a couple from an undisclosed Northern gravel pit. Casting almost 90 yards to a bed of lilies, the fish came in at 17 and 22lbs and both took CC Moore custom rolled baits presented as a two bait stringer with no other freebies; the big one took Chris over 20 minutes to land as it put up a spirited scrap! It’s not Chris’s first appearance in the column, and I don’t think it will be his last!

                          Stephen Cross                           Aaron Isherwood

                              Chris Rigby                                  Dave Lee

This week, I’d like to start with a reminder about the NW ECHO launch event and social to be held at the British Railway Club, Winwick Rd, Warrington on 20/11/09. Priced at just £3 on the door, with a licensed bar, raffle and guest speakers including Nash sponsored NW professional Jamie Clossic and Ruth Lockwood; (resident chairperson of ECHO.) It should be a top night to meet new people so why not pop along?

A  Staffordshire club water produced a smashing 20lb 6oz fish for 35 Year old Newcastle under Lyme angler Dean Towey. It’s his 39th carp in just 4 months on a tough water and his 6th over 20lbs in 3 weeks! Fishing to a lightly weeded area at around 70 yards, Dean trapped this one on a home made fishmeal pop-up over a kilo of similar bottom baits. A size 8 Fox Armapoint hook caught hold during a horrendous storm, so Dean had to get soaked to land it!

John Young has taken advantage of a showing fish to land a pristine upper double from Roman Lakes near Marple. Fishing over a spodded bed of hemp and maize, John woke from a lunch time nap to see some fish crash on the surface around 90 yards away against the far bank. Quickly winding in his single maize hook bait, he recast at the fish, and, while sinking the line, felt it shoot out of his fingers as the carp took off with the bait! A short scrap and 17lbs 2ozs of lump lay in the net. Great opportunist angling John, well in! Contact Roman Lakes on 0161 4272039 or visit the website; www.romanlakes.co.uk

I’ve had another great report from the lads who are running Four Seasons Fishery near Blackpool. Regular rod Ben Wilson is among the big fish again on Lodge Lake. After his mid twenty last week, he had  an even better fish at 29lbs 12ozs! A Northern brace coming in at over 54lbs is fantastic angling by anyone’s standards, and just goes to show how much good work has been accomplished at this fledgling fishery over the last 12 months by the new owners.  A big bunch of grubs on a size 8 Korda hook resulted in a tough 20 minute battle with this well known scrapper. The fish had been caught in July at 24lbs 8ozs so to put on over 5lbs in a few short months shows how hard they feeding; yet another Four Seasons 30lb’er to come I think. Mill Lake is still producing carp to smaller hi-vis pop-ups or maggots.

Since buying his winter ticket, Andrew Gilliver has taken 22 fish in just 6 sessions, so it certainly appears worth the money. You can also BOGOF mid week at Four Seasons this winter; each ticket is ‘buy one get one free’ on all mid week sessions on all waters. Get further details from the website; www.fourseasonsfisheries.co.uk  or give Ben or Jon a call on 01253 894357.

                 Ben Wilson                         Dean Towey                          John Young