Mainline Articles
BRIGHTEN UP YOUR WINTER!
Consistent carp-catcher, Lawrence East reveals one of the simple and straight forward tactics he uses when it comes to targeting winter carp!
One of my best winter tips is using bright, visual hookbaits. Now, for anyone who does know me, I tend to use these throughout the whole year, you'll very rarely see me using a match the hatch hookbait. I'm a big believer in if it isn't broken then don't fix it and I've caught my fair share of carp over the years using hookbaits which are pumped full off attraction and super bright and visual. This way I have a choice of how I'm going to present a trap whether that be a single hookbait, a spread of boilies or fishing over a spod mix. Because I want my hookbait to be the most attractive and eye-catching food item in my swim with ideally the carp finding it before eating whatever else I've fed them.
Sometimes even when they aren't feeding heavily that fleck of colour will catch their eye and because they're inquisitive creatures this may force them into having a look at your hookbait. Now, when I say 'look' or rather examine, obviously carp don't have hands like us and the only way they can investigate something is with their mouth, you get where I'm going with this. The Hi-Vizual Pop-Up range are perfect with my favourites being Pineapple Juice (yellow), Milky Toffee (white) and the Shellfish and Blackpepper (washed-out pink), I tend to keep things very simple and not over complicate my angling, which is why I stick to three colours. Also available in the range are the Bait Sprays, which are not only perfect for soaking your baits in prior to your sessions, but by giving them an extra spray before you cast out, you really are packing those baits full of irresistible flavour.
A lot of my fishing is now based around Solid Bag work and I love the Pastel Barrel Wafter range with my favourites been the Cranberry & Orange version. The reason I put so much trust into these baits are for two reasons, number one; they have an element of buoyancy which means when the carp feeds on the contents of your solid bag the bait will fly up naturally in the fish's mouth. Number Two; they are the correct size, now, that may sound a little strange to some people, however, if you use a hookbait which is bigger than your free offerings inside your bags this can sometimes have the opposite effect. You want your hookbait to imitate the rest of your bag mix so it all goes in just a couple of mouthfuls, I have tried bigger hookbaits and my catch rates have certainly decreased along with more lost fish and a few dodgy hookholds. So, in my opinion where solid bags and hookbaits are concerned - keep it small!
