Get your carp rod bending as the water gets warmer – carp tips

More carp tips and tactics – It is now that time of year when mother nature sounds her wake up call and brings carp fishing to life, the larvae are starting to hatch, the yearly cycle is dawning and the first mosquitoes are searching for your blood. A time when once again we can relax outside the bivvy and watch the descending sun reflect nature’s glory off the mirror like surface. It is my preferred season as in the past it has proved to be the most productive. It is also a time when those in the right swim in the right conditions will have a result, their always seems to be that one person who finds the carp in feeding mode, which is one of my objectives for this piece; to explain how I would go about getting it right in the changing period –

Carp fishing meteorology tips

A combination of an increase in water temperature and the right meteorology seems to flick some sort of  switch, the result being an intense feeding spell where caution is thrown into the wind. This is not pertinent to a few venues but a common occurrence on many, suddenly carp talk is inundated with catch reports. Whatever the reason, it is across the board, UK and European lakes alike. The dates when it happens differ across the latitudes and longitudes of Europe andriver carp fishing is a little behind. However a commonality is that when comparable conditions occur whatever the country the switch is flicked, normally when the water temperature reaches between 12 and 15 degrees on a hot spring day. The commonalities between countries are down to a number of reasons but driven by one, the change in climatic conditions. If you understand the likely effects of the climate it will add another string to your bow when considering what the carps habits are likely to be and at what depth they are likely to feed. Understanding the changes will put some of the spring feeding phenomena into perspective and maybe place another piece in the jigsaw.
So what effect will an increase in water temperature have on the carps movements, here are my tips and tactics – will they be in the deeper areas? Will they head for the shallows? Will they follow the wind or will they be at the back of the wind? Will they want a little or lot of bait? What will be their preferred feeding depth? What baits are likely to entice them to make that mistake? Lots of questions, I suppose you are expecting me to give you some definitive answers? Well, it’s not that simple but here are a few carp rigs, as there are so many variables, depth of lake, natural food, stocking level, water conditions, weather, angling pressure, moon phases, the carp’s state of mind and weather all play a big part. So what can I tell you? Well I can explain my findings and can reflect on my own experiences and come up with some findings that you may find useful, paying particular attention to feeding depths.

Carp in the surface layers – tips

The surface layer increases in temperature when a sudden rise in air temperature and a warmer wind blows across the lake. I have scuba dived on some deep lakes in typical spring conditions, it was noticeable how suddenly the water temperature changed as I descended, the warmer upper layer known as the thermo cline had a marked temperature difference in comparison to 2 metres below. A typical example of how much of a part feeding depths play was highlighted by Mark England and Gary Thomas in the 2005 England France match. The majority of their takes came at under 2 metres in several metres of water, they carefully placed their hook baits on ledges on what can only be described as cliff face ledges. They went on to be the most successful team in the match due to fishing at the patrolling and feeding depth, probably in the thermo cline.
Now I have mentioned the thermo cline, where would you expect the carp to be after a long cold lay up? They are likely to be in the upper layers during warm spring days, and those are the depths I would prefer to place a carp bait, that extra warmth must be bliss to a carp after being huddled up in some snags or silt for the last 3 or 4 months! No wonder they like to play and frolic and shake them selves out of the water. Now, I will relate the theory to one of many past sessions whilst on my carp fishing holidays.
I have over 5000 photographs on my hard drive all in dated files, therefore it is fairly easy to look back and note the conditions and depths the fish were caught from. A typical example of using previous knowledge to advantage was demonstrated last year during an early spring trip to an 800 acre lake in Hungary where the weather conditions were suited to fishing the thermo.
I monitor the weather very closely prior to any session even more so in spring, but was extra keen prior to this trip due to the large carp that the lake contained, including a number over 70 lbs.  A couple of weeks prior to the off, I searched the internet for a comprehensive long range forecast for the region. The weather was not encouraging, for 2 weeks prior to arrival it was close to zero at night and cold breezy days, the depths averaged 30 – 50 ft consequently the temperature near the lake bed would not be much above the mid winter average, not a promising thought on a new lake of over 800 acres, bare in mind that deeper lakes take a lot longer to warm up and cool down than shallow venues.

As we stepped of the plane I was not confident, although the wind direction had changed to a more promising south westerly and the air temperature was averaging 14 degrees centigrade. We arrived at the lake at about 2100 hrs and the night temperature was down to low single figures, a sharp increase in temperature was needed to make a marked difference to the water temperature, even then it was going to be hard going. The following day was the first day of a nine night session. Although we were still wrapped in cool weather gear the weather was on the change, the air temperature had increased by a couple of degrees and the surface temperature was warming.

Carp fishing the thermo tips

The group drew names out of a hat to choose swims, I was one of the last out and had my own ideas of  where the majority of fish would be. The air temperature was the highest it had been for some weeks, it was forecast to continue rising, the wind was fresh and forecasted to be variable from north west through to south west. This deep lake was about to receive the warmest wind that it had in the past 4 months, which was sure to increase the temperature at surface to over 13 degrees thus creating a definitive thermo cline! The warm fresh breeze was going to encourage the carp to move with it? Taking this into consideration the wind direction was visually mapped onto the plan of the lake, this gave me a rough idea of where the majority of the fish would be, if my theories were correct? Bare in mind it was my first trip to the lake therefore had not seen the area into which the wind was blowing, I had come near last out of the hat and was surprised to see the remainder of the party opt for a central area of the main lake rather than the 200 acre bay that the wind was belting into, did they know something I didn’t or was my theory wrong?

After a scan round with a sonar I located several plateaus near the entrance of the bay, with the tallest being 2.5 metres from the surface to its peak and the surrounding depths averaging 12 metres. An ideal spot in those conditions as the carp are likely to be in the warmer upper layer and these features were likely to be at the base of the layer. Two more spots close to the warmer thermo cline were found, each at about 3 metres from surface to plateau, these were the shallowest areas in the 200 acre bay. The obvious choice for the fourth rod was about 12 feet out on the drop of at a depth of 2 metres, again into the thermo. The wind was belting into the bay causing a bit of a brown mud slick close to a small peninsula, an attractive feature. The wind stayed in the same direction for 2 days, I caught each night until the wind changed direction, as soon as it did the fish followed, with me not too far behind. I am a mobile angler and will follow the fish. It is a very tiring method but more rewarding than sitting in the same swim for long periods of time. Effort equals reward, if that means moving every time the fish move then move, if that means moving every day so be it, its hard work as my fishing partner for the trip, Keith (2006 World Carp Classic winner) discovered, we moved 5 times in the first 7 days, each time with the wind. The air temperature had risen steadily and the fish finder showed a rise in surface temperature, carp activity increased as the water temperature neared 13 degrees. This change flicked the switch and there was a marked increase in catch rate, not only for myself but also for the others on the trip, the carp started to switch on during the latter half of the session.

Too cut a long story short and not go into intricate detail, I caught nearly as many carp as a single angler than the combined total of the other group members. Why? Past experiences have taught me that fishing in the windy half on top of features in the patrolling level will produce more fish during spring when the temperature is rising. I had seen carp crash over 100 metres from the plateau and had experimented by placing a hook bait right below them but they would not venture 40 foot down to the lake bed, and remained in the comfort of the thermo zone. On reflection I may have enticed these fish with a 35 foot zig i.e by getting a hook bait up into their level? So what have I learned that you can take away? The baited rig can be bang on fish but if its in 40 foot of water, below the comfortable patrolling depth (thermo) they are unlikely to go down to pick up a hook bait, you are more likely to catch away from where you can see them crashing if you are able to get a bait on top of features in the thermo, See the graphic as it explains what I am getting at a lot clearer.
This trip to Hungary is only one of the many instances of where I have hit it right in the changing season. I am aware of this yearly change and closely monitor the forecast to catch it right, in the last few years the theory has worked as my album proves!

Seasonal angling tips

Do bare in mind that what I have mentioned above are preferred early season conditions and not definitive, you may well turn up to your chosen venue in April or even early May to find pretty cold conditions with a possibility of minus night time temperatures. For early season trips I tend to carefully select venues for the warmer climate, normally the North West or Southern half of France.
In all the years I have fished abroad I cannot recall fishing a small commercial venue that has average depths of over 4 metres, more often than not they tend to be shallower normally under 2.5 metres. That said the warmest area is still at the surface when the air temperature suddenly rises, therefore would still fish to the obvious shallower features in the warm windy half, a typical example would be a bar or plateau that the wind is blowing towards, not necessarily right in the teeth of the wind but definitely in the windy half. Windy shallows are also good early season spots as they tend to be warmer and more oxygenated, especially bulrush fringed bays or weed beds. If however the wind is cold and near or below the water temperature I may not use the warm wind rule but edge towards a winter approach, maybe even fishing at the back of the wind.
We are now at that time of year when a big hit is on the cards if you get your location and timing right. But be prepared for all eventualities, use small amounts of bait when appropriate and increase the amount if you are lucky to be there at the right time. Don’t go abroad with the intention of caning it in, those days are long gone on most venues but their will be occasions when the right angler in the right swim will have a right result, think about your approach and fish at a depth where they are likely to feed and you may be the one with the big hit.