1 Gather the ingredients and put the brown crumb in the mixing bowl.

2 Add an equal quantity of fishmeal groundbait and mix it in.

3 Water is added and mixed in by hand to give a stiff groundbait.

4 Take a large stone and place it in the middle of the groundbait. This makes it sink even more quickly.

5 Finish the balls of groundbait off by moulding them into complete balls. These will sink to the bottom without breaking up on the way down and then break up on the bottom.

It works for Avid Carp star Ian Russell - it could work for you too!

Ian Russell - cover star!

AVID CARP-sponsored star Ian Russell is widely acknowledged as one of the very best catchers of carp on day ticket waters.

His simplistic but intelligently thought-out approach seems to work wherever he goes.

Angler’s Mail magazine got Ian to take us on a winter carp hunt for the issue cover-dated January 10, 2012 (pictured right).

And as you’ll see from the brilliant Action Replay feature inside the magazine he caught fish to order.

Here, exclusively online, is a close-up look at Ian quickly tieing up his rigs to finish up with what you see above. Follow these steps…

1. Using a baiting needle, a boilie goes onto the loop at the end of Ian's hook link, adding an Avid Carp Corn Stop below it..

2. Ian sets the distance from hook eye to bait that he wants his hair to be, before he uses the knotless knot method. This is really straightforward, quick stuff when you get the hang of it.

3. A few turns round with the hook link, below the eye of the hook, down the shank..

4. Almost there with the final few turns. Note how those final turns are set.

5. The link goes back through the eye, to have a loop tied into it for connection at the safety lead clip. Here by Ian's bait, the business end, the job's a good 'un!

They need far less food than they require during the rest of the year when they are much more active, so to cajole them into feeding you need to alter your feeding approach as well as selecting the right bait.

Here Angler’s Mail reveals ten great baits that have a top reputation of catching even the most stubborn of fish in tough winter conditions.

1 Salt
The addition of salt to baits is a great attractor at any time of year, but it really comes into its own during cooler conditions when you want to create a small area of maximum attraction. Forget chemical-laden table salt and opt instead for sea or rock salt which is easily incorporated into pastes or groundbaits or sprinkled onto maggots, casters, pellets, hemp or corn. Small PVA bags of pure salt are perfect to use with any hook bait and are a little-used but devastatingly effective winter edge.

2 Bread
Bread is a top winter bait especially on the rivers where chub and roach both adore flake, crust or punch. Although mashed bread is widely used as groundbait when bread fishing, for winter use a finely liquidised white, sliced loaf which produces smaller particle sizes and is less likely to fill up a feeding fish; remove crusts from the slices for an even finer mix if the going is really tough. A PVA stick of compressed crumb is a little used but brilliantly effective winter carp tactic – use in conjunction with a single grain of white, rubber corn.

3 Chocolate malt
Choccy malt breaks all the rules.  Unlike all other flavours which can be counter-productive if used in excess, it is impossible to add too much. For a brilliant winter carp puller add 20 ml of the gorgeously sweet liquid to an egg and mix up with a proprietary fluoro-white pop-up mix to create small – 10 mm is ideal – pop up boilies. Reserve a bit for paste too.

4 Lecithin and alcohol
Oil-based flavours and attractors and fishmeals lose their attractiveness as oils become more viscous in cool temperatures. To ensure flavours leach out and are not locked into bait add lecithin granules (from a health food shop) to fishmeal groundbaits and pastes. Alternatively, mix up paste baits with alcohol to ensure excellent dispersal – a tot of the odourless vodka is the usual choice but experiment with whisky or gin for a really different scent.

5 Maggots
One of the very best coldwater carp catchers. A mesh PVA bag of maggots, in conjunction with a bunch of grubs on a hair-rigged maggot clip, is one of the most reliable of winter carp tactics. Maggots are easily digested, colourful and loved by carp. Cast regularly and tightly to build an area and don’t forget to include a couple of rubber grubs on the rig to balance the weight of the hook.

6 Spices
Spicy flavours have long had an association with winter fishing and with the proliferation of Asian stores there is a bewildering range of brilliant additives with which to spice up your baits. A sprinkling of turmeric on maggots, a shake of garam masala in groundbait, chilli-laced hemp, coriander flavoured corn, meat dusted with garlic salt and pastes made with belachan paste are just some of the spicy options – which are only limited by your imagination.

7 Paste
Hi-attract paste hook baits are only one part of the winter paste story as the versatility of the bait lends itself to a number of different applications. Most notably it can be used as a ‘plug’ for watch-style leads or as a wrap around for any bomb or hook bait; it can even be ‘blobbed’ onto PVA stringers. The paste used in this way gives a longer-term leakage of flavour-charged particles into the swim and acts as a great fish-puller, especially in the rivers. To give a more rapid breakdown for non-hook bait applications mix pastes with water rather than eggs.

8 Corn
For coldwater commercial carping there are few baits to beat a simple grain or two of sweetcorn. Corn is easily digested, highly visible – even in coloured water – and, unlike maggots, resistant to the attentions of small silvers. A couple of grains hair-rigged through the middle sit perfectly on an 18 but, if the going is really tough, a single grain presented lengthwise on a size 20 should do the trick.

9 Liquids
Solid PVA bags are not just for filling with solid baits. The tactic of filling bags with neat liquid flavours and attractors has brought me winter bites by giving a massive explosion of attraction with no feed. Make sure you use PVA-friendly mixes and experiment with different mixes: condensed milk combined with chocolate malt is a good starter for carp.

10 Peperami
The spicy meat snack checks all of the boxes when it comes to winter fishing, despite the fact it is on the oily side. Highly attractive to carp, chub and barbel it can be whittled down to tiny chunks for use with scaled down line and small hooks, yet it still packs a serious punch in terms of attraction once the outer skin is sliced off. Try a thin slice as a topper for half a 10 mm pop-up boilie for excellent winter carp results.

]]> http://www.anglersmail.co.uk/uncategorized/best-winter-baits/feed/ 0 http://www.anglersmail.co.uk/uncategorized/how-to-unhook-pike-correctly/ http://www.anglersmail.co.uk/uncategorized/how-to-unhook-pike-correctly/#comments Tue, 27 Dec 2011 12:16:51 +0000 rholroyd http://www.anglersmail.co.uk/?p=16383 PIKE, despite being aggressive predators, are extremely delicate fish and easily damaged in the wrong hands. It is essential for anybody fishing for pike to be able to handle them confidently and unhook them correctly. Here’s how… 1 The first rule of predator fishing is to avoid deep hooking. That’s achieved by prompt striking allied to efficient bite indication and rigs.]]> PIKE, despite being aggressive predators, are extremely delicate fish and easily damaged in the wrong hands. It is essential for anybody fishing for pike to be able to handle them confidently and unhook them correctly. Here’s how…

1 The first rule of predator fishing is to avoid deep hooking. That’s achieved by prompt striking allied to efficient bite indication and rigs. Pike swallow their prey head-first and you need to wind down and pull into the fish immediately to prevent the trebles becoming lodged deep inside the throat.

2 Equip yourself with long nosed forceps of varying lengths to clamp on the shank of a treble and extract it from the pike without causing damage. Pliers are useful for lures. Wear a gardening or butcher’s chain mail glove to grip the pike under the bottom jaw between the gill filaments and gill cover.

3 Control the pike on the unhooking mat by trapping it between your knees without actually putting any weight on the fish. It’s critical to prevent it thrashing around, otherwise you could suffer cuts or even worse injuries from a flying treble.

4 Gently turn the pike onto its back, gripping it under the jaw and lifting slightly to open the mouth and locate the trebles. Maintain slight pressure on the trace to remove the furthest treble first. Gently feed your forceps through the gill cover to loosen a treble that’s deeper in the throat. Then simple remove the other treble and the pike is ready to be returned to the water.

Full story appears in our exciting double festive issue, out now, with free gift!

The new bumper Christmas double issue of Angler’s Mail comes with a FREE set of brilliant Bait Boosters for attracting fish to your bait.

Your eight FREE Bait Boosters come on a plastic mount so that you can break one of as you need it.

Red is a colour that grabs the attention of predators such as pike and perch, which is why it features so often in lures, trout flies and why red maggots often work better than white ones.

In the magazine (cover-dated December 20/27, 2011), we have a picture guide to how to put your FREE Boosters to good use.

And we have also got a superb instructional video. It stars our Where to Fish On Tour contributor and cover star Steve Collett… showing you what to do.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE VIDEO!

Angler's Mail - the No.1 mag has the No.1 Facebook, and we ran the first live fishing Q&A in November 2011.

ANGLER’S MAIL MAGAZINE’S Facebook page (click here to join) recently ran a live forum starring Dr Paul Garner of Peg One tackle and Fish Frenzy baits.

In a session of two halves, Paul talked first about baits. Then – below – he discussed tackle. Here are his expert answers, full of top tips!

Polarising sunglasses are vital to Paul Garner, and many other top anglers too.

WHAT ITEM OF TACKLE WOULD YOU NOT BE WITHOUT?

This really got me thinking, and perhaps surprisingly, my answer isn’t strictly an item of tackle at all!

It would have to be a good pair of polaroid sunglasses – preferably two, as I am always losing them!

I absolutely love being able to spot fish in the water, and OK on a lot of venues you can’t do this because the water is too murky, but where you can see the fish it is such a thrill. Plus I have honestly lost count of the number of times that I have caught fish only after I have spent some time looking for them.

Even on a venue where you can’t see the fish a pair of polaroids will help you concentrate on the float tip, or quiver tip, so I would be lost without them.

Question thanks to Angler’s Mail magazine Facebook fans Kieren Borer and Dave Chandler.

Don't skimp on hooks, go for quality, says Paul.

IS IT WORTH SPENDING A LOT OF MONEY ON TOP GEAR?

Well like most things in life, you generally get what you pay for BUT that doesn’t mean you have to be using all the latest gear to catch a lot of fish and some items are much more important to spend your money on than others.

Firstly, make sure you have the right bait, you aren’t going to catch much if you don’t get that right even if you have the best gear in the world.

Secondly, do not skimp on the terminal tackle items. The bits that actually connect you to the fish. Always use the best hooks, line, floats, swivels, etc that you can afford. When you are connected to that special fish you really don’t want to be worrying about whether you hook is strong enough or if your line is going to let you down.

I was also asked about asked about hook sharpness, and this sort of fits into this answer as well. Yes, hook sharpness is MEGA important for almost all kinds of fishing, so keep checking the sharpness, and along with other items of terminal tackle if you think they have suffered any damage then change them straight away.

The bigger items, like rods and reels, there are some great products out there at all prices and the best advice I can give you is to ask other anglers on the banks of the venues you fish what they are using and what they think of it. After all, every venue is different, and what may work great on one, might not be the ideal choice on another.

Question thanks to Angler’s Mail magazine Facebook fans Ian Allen, Anthony Wood, and Kyle Smith.

It's quite easy to avoid tangles with Method feeder rigs, as Paul explained.

HOW DO YOU AVOID TANGLES ON METHOD FEEDER RIGS?

This normally happens on the cast if you are not putting the hook bait actually in the bait that goes around the feeder.

If the hook is hanging loose then it tends to be dragged through the air on the cast and can tangle with the main line at the back of the feeder.

Several companies now make flat feeders that come with a mould, and these do make baiting up dead easy once you get the hang of them.

I know a lot of people worry about putting the hook and hook bait actually in the groundbait or soft pellets, as it could make it difficult for the fish to actually get at the hook bait, but my mate Stu Morgan and I have actually filmed method feeders falling through the water and most time the hook and hook bait break free as the feeder hits the water surface.

The other thing worth trying is shortening the hook length, for carp I normally use around 4-5 inches, but go up to about 8-10 inches for bream, the shorter you go the less chance there is of it tangling.

Question thanks to Angler’s Mail magazine Facebook fan Mandy Jenner.

Click HERE to read Paul’s responses on bait.

LOADS OF TIPS ARE IN OUR MAGAZINE! Be sure to read our All The Answers section in Angler’s Mail each week. If you have a question for the mag’s experts, you can ask it by emailing: richard_holroyd@ipcmedia.com

Angler's Mail - the No.1 mag has the No.1 Facebook, and we ran the first live fishing Q&A in November 2011.

ANGLER’S MAIL MAGAZINE’S Facebook page (click here to join) recently ran a live forum starring Dr Paul Garner of Peg One tackle and Fish Frenzy baits.

In a session of two halves, Paul started by talking about baits. And below are his expert answers, full of top tips!

Commercially produced, but these boilies are offered by Paul as halves.

DO YOU MAKE YOU OWN BAITS?

The answer Kevin is that most of the time I use baits from the major bait companies, but there are still times when I want to alter the flavour, shape, texture, buoyancy of my bait, and this is much easier to do if I make them myself.

All of the bait companies put a huge amount of research into developing baits that really catch fish, so I can’t compete on my own with that level of development, but I do like to use something a little bit different, so I will use their baits and put my own mark on them.

For example, I will chop boilies in half, make a paste out of the base mix ingredients, perhaps use a pop-up and a bottom bait to alter the buoyancy.

It is worth mentioning that you can come really unstuck making your own baits, I have been there, come up with what i think is going to be a great bait and then blanked royally on it!

So these days I tend to let the bait companies do the hard work and then add my own twist to them.

Question thanks to Angler’s Mail magazine Facebook fan Kevin Pestell.

Flavours do make a difference, says Paul.

DO FLAVOURS MAKE A DIFFERENCE?

The short answer is yes. A few years ago a friend and I spent a lot of time looking at different flavours and additives and how fish in large tanks reacted to them.

Some of the results we got were simply amazing, the fish would literally rip up the gravel in the tank looking for food! This wasn’t just carp either, roach, tench, and barbel, we got similar results! Even with very small amounts of flavour the results were the same.

Remember though, this was in tanks, I then tested the same additives with wild fish where I could watch them with my underwater cameras and I got some good results, but nothing like as good as in a tank.

In general we found that the ‘food dip’ type additives were better than just flavours, we got great results on Scopex Squid, Monster Crab, Amber Strawberry, the all time classics really.

So would I flavour fishery pellets as was asked in the Q&A session on the Mail’s Facebook, yes definitely. And I know a few top match anglers who have really got into this to make their baits stand out.

Question thanks to Angler’s Mail magazine Facebook fan Sean Masom and others.

Those red balls help Paul pop-up his deadbaits for pike fishing.

WHAT DO YOU DO WITH DEADBAITS FOR PIKE FISHING?

Deadbaits – I pop them up almost all the time. I normally use the pop-up foam balls that you can buy and attach them with a short length of wire to the trace.

A lot of the time I want them only semi-buoyant though, so they sit just off the bottom, not right up in mid-water.

Do oils and flavours make a difference – yes, a lot of the time we are using sea baits, which aren’t natural anyway. Pike have a highly developed sense of smell, so adding oils, or just mashing up some fish, so you get a real trail of flavour will get you more bites, especially on rivers where you get a nice flavour trail going downstream.

I use a lot of different deadbaits, but just recently I have been catching a lot of fish on herrings, but like all things, that’s because I have got most confidence in them, and that has so much to do about all fishing!

Question thanks to Angler’s Mail magazine Facebook fan Gary Wilson, Andy Scott and Matt Wooldridge.

Click HERE to read Paul’s responses on tackle.

LOADS OF TIPS ARE IN OUR MAGAZINE! Be sure to read our All The Answers section in Angler’s Mail each week. If you have a question for the mag’s experts, you can ask it by emailing: richard_holroyd@ipcmedia.com

You can simply collect worms from your garden and fish them the same or next day but, for longer upkeep and for a regular supply of worms, it’s best to create your own wormery.

Here’s how…

1 You can buy your own wormery from garden centres like this example. To start simply empty the wormery of all its contents. If you have any difficulty in extracting the platform, push down firmly on the outer edge.

2 Assemble the tap. Locate in the hole and hand tighten firmly with the nut on the inside and washer on the outside.

3 Fit the polystyrene leg into the recess of the separating platform and insert the separating platform foot down into the bin.

4 Some wormeries come with bedding but you may need to make your own. You need to shred newspaper, preferably black and white print without too much colour (the paper is food so the finer it is, the easier it is for the worms to digest). Wet the paper thoroughly and mix with 75 per cent Irish moss peat and 25 per cent paper. If necessary add more water so that when squeezed tightly only a tiny drop of water emerges.

5 Place a single sheet of newspaper on the platform and add about two to three inches of bedding in the middle.

6 Add worms. Leave the lid off so the light makes them bed in.

7 Add kitchen waste only when the worms have disappeared. The kitchen waste should include peelings, small amounts of bread, split tea bags, egg shells and paper kitchen towels. Use very little onion, leek or citrus fruit peel as it is too acidic. Replace the lid and ensure the clips are securely clipped into place otherwise the worms will just crawl out of the bin in the dark. Kitchen waste can be kept in a dark plastic container and turned every two or three days (aerobic composting) until ready to be used. Tip off excess liquid before adding to the top of bedding. Kitchen waste can be added every three or four days in a thin layer across the top. If it has not been eaten don’t add any more, wait until it has disappeared.

8 Don’t use the lime supplied with some wormery kits as the compost will become too acidic and could kill the worms! The ideal ph is neutral and one handful of egg shells every four weeks or so should achieve this. The presence of tiny cotton thread-like white worms (natural and quite harmless) is an indicator of acidic conditions. Blue Litmus Paper (40p from the chemists Boots) will turn red if the bedding is too acidic.

9 After a month have a look for good worms which can be used for fishing. Check around the edge, and within the top three inches of bedding.

UPKEEP

Every four to six weeks add another layer of bedding because the original two to three inch layer of bedding should be reduced to worm castings  (i.e. have been digested and gone through the worm’s body).

If the waste material looks too wet, only use dry shredded newspaper in the bedding, adding more if necessary to soak up the excess.

When the bedding reaches the top (typically 8 to 10 months) take out the top three inches of bedding where the worms should be and set it aside ready to be reintroduced into the bin once it has been emptied. Then tip the rest of the bedding onto a sheet and look through for any worms. Also look for the eggs which worms lay every two weeks – they go brown when ready for hatching – and reintroduce these eggs to the new bedding in the bin.

The old bedding can be used in handfuls as a top dressing or can be used to make quality potting compost, a topping for house plants and garden tubs and is excellent for tomatoes and roses.

After ten weeks the liquid feed in the bottom of the bin should be ready to be tapped off and then the wormery sump should be emptied every couple of weeks or so by using the tap.

If the wormery is kept outside, place it on a few bricks to give easy access to the tap which should be turned 180 degrees from right to left to fully open. To use the liquid feed for organic plant food dilute with ten parts water.

Carper Neil Spooner uses a stick float fixed to the line conventionally like this.

NEIL SPOONER, of Korda, finds an unusual use for an old fashioned stick float. He catches big carp on them – as revealed in Angler’s Mail magazine (issue cover-dated November 1, 2011).

He reads what is happening on the bottom on lakes – fishing close in with a carp rig down the line – by using a stick float lying flat on the surface.

Here, with clear photos to help you if you’re unsure how to rig up, Neil explains the stages in making his rig.

It brought him a giant result at Layer Pits, Essex, when we joined him for Angler’s Mail magazine! So why not give it a go…

Slide two float bands onto your mainline...and push in the float. Easy!

This is exactly how your float should sit, laying flat and set just overdepth.

1. PUTTING ON THE FLOAT…

This could not be easier! Simply slide two float rubbers up your line, attach your float (see pictures above).

2. NOW ON GOES THE LEAD…

I like to use the lightest lead I can get away with to avoid any unnecessary disturbance. This is a 1/3 oz GURU lead.

I removed the swivel and attached a Kwik link to a Big Eye swivel instead. I fish it free running to increase sensitivity.

Lastly, a shok bead is placed over the swivel for the lead to safely sit against.

Neil's complete set-up looks like this - subtle and ready for action. Note the end of the rig... a running lead and a carp fishing hook link.

3.NEIL’S END RIG…

I use one of my tried and tested carp rigs. This consists of a size 8 Wide Gape-X, an Xtra Small Rig Ring, a 10mm length of Shrink Tube, 5 inches of Supernatural finished off with a size 8 swivel. Follow the photo sequence below if you would like to make a rig just like mine…

Components for the hook link end of the rig.

Slide a Micro Rig Ring onto the hook.

Take a length of 18 lb Supernatural.

Now whip a knotless knot using 18lb Supernatural braid, be sure to leave a couple of inches for the hair.

Tie the hair length to the rig ring using an overhand knot.

Form a loop in the end of the braid to which you can attach your bait.

Slide a 10mm length of shrink tube over the eye of the hook.

Shrink the tubing using the steam from a kettle, be careful not to burn your fingers.

Tie the braid to a size 8 swivel, you want the rig to be around six inches long

The rig is now complete and should look like this.

Get on the sausage paste this week - Martin James will!

It’s National Sausage Week (October 31 – November 6), and to celebrate Angler’s Mail tapped up our old mate Martin James. He not only likes eating ‘em, he fishes with ‘em too.

The veteran BBC RadioLancashire fishing presenter, who hosts the weekly At The Water’s Edge show, revealed how he was planning to fish with sausage during National Fishing Week…

‘If the rivers are low I will be fishing the bait without any weight, allowing it to roll down the swim,’ said Martin.

‘This idea is working well on the River Kennet. In fact last Tuesday I even had a mirror carp estimated at about 18 lb.

‘In high water I fish sausage meat paste before I try any other bait. I have used sausage paste since the 1940′s, it’s a bait my granddad used a lot for tench.

‘A good tip. Bait a size 4 hook with a chunk of crust then mould sausage paste around the crust. This will give you a nicely balanced bait which will also counteract the weight of the hook,’ added Martin.

Sausage catches chub, barbel, carp - and other species too!

USEFUL LINKS…

HOW TO MAKE YOUR OWN SPICY SAUSAGE BAITS

MARTIN JAMES’ SHOW ON BBC RADIO LANCASHIRE

BRITISH SAUSAGE WEEK WEBSITE