5 Tips That Will Fill Your Nets & Slings With Carp This Spring
Spring is here! Which means we are in one of the best times of year for big carp fishing, so grab your kit and go get those rods out!
The weather might be a little all over the place, but don't worry, the water temperatures will now be slowly on the rise. Combine that with the changing light levels and emerging natural food and you have the perfect cocktail for those tricky big carp to make a mistake and end up in your net.
So, let's not beat about the bush, here's some great tips from the One More Cast Team that will help you catch a whacker this season...
"Match The Hatch Can Kiss My A**"
Yep, you read that right, OMC Founder Ali Hamidi has said “do one” to 'match the hatch' hookbaits in recent years, and this is even more crucial in the spring. You want your hookbait to be the first thing they see and detect in the swim, so hopefully they nail it without hesitation.
Super bright hookbaits are an obvious choice, but there are so many things you can do to pimp that hookbait up even further, here’s a few ideas…
Get on the Goo
Gooing up your hookbaits and loosefeed is a massive edge. The carp go mad for it, as underwater filming has shown, it certainly can draw more attention to your rig. Don’t be afraid to mix and match with flavours either, or the two types of Goo.
The Smokes, as the name suggests, are a thinner liquid, perfect for soaking into loosefeed or hookbaits for a quick and cloudy release of attraction that transmits through the column once submerged in water. The Supremes are far thicker and really cling to your bait, giving it that proper oozing appeal - most carp just can't say no!
Fill your Orbs
Open up a world of hookbait possibilities with our Revibed Bait Orbs. These little caged beauties can hold just about any hookbait you can imagine and are so easy to use.
Simply thread the Orb on to your hair rig or floss them onto a ring and stuff them with anything you like. Meat, paste, groundbait, you really can go wild with this amazing product and be totally different to everyone else on your lake - the carp won't know what's hit them!
What’s the right colour?
Colours are an interesting subject and no doubt you’ll have your favourites already. But a good rule is to try and contrast your hookbait to the bottom you’re fishing it over. For example, a white pop-up will standout massively over a silty bottom. A washed-out pink, however, seems to be a firm favourite over clean gravel.
The main thing to remember with colours is to experiment. Water clarity, light levels and many more variables can all impact the carp’s colour preference on any given day.
Add a topper
Making your hookbait standout doesn’t mean you can’t fish a normal bottom bait boilie, just give it that little bit more attention. If the nuisance fish in your venue aren’t too bad, try adding a tantalising topper of maggots to your hookbait using our Get Flossed Bait Floss.
If maggots aren’t your thing, try adding a half pop-up topper to your boilie. The added buoyancy won't be enough to lift the rig right up but can help negate the weight of the hook. It also acts as a great visual stimulant for the carp to zone in on too. This process has been made even easier and securer than ever with our new Tweakers Eyed Bait Screws.
Search The Shallows and Sunny Spots
During the spring, the carp are looking primarily for one thing, warmth! And they really will travel to any part of the lake to find it. This means they will spend a lot of time in shallow bays, margins and on bars, but also up off the bottom enjoying all the rays of light they can get on their backs. They might not have even visited these areas at all over the winter, choosing to stay in the deepest parts of the lake, which may well still be where they choose to do the bulk of their feeding.
Spring is a great time therefore to keep on the move and follow them round the lake. So don your OMC Peekaboo Glasses and Splashleaf Camo Cap and get out there after them.
Take It Easy With The Bait
When you see carp all over the place in the spring and seemingly far more active, it's easy to think you need to fill it in with bait to catch them. Whilst sometimes this might work on certain hungry waters, it is far better to play the cautious approach at this time of year.
Single hookbaits are a great choice if chasing fish around the lake, as they have no real reason to be suspicious of a lone boilie on the bottom at the moment and won't hesitate to investigate it.
If you have no confidence in singles and want to add just that little bit of attraction around your hookbait, a bag rig tied with our Fade Solid PVA Bags will present your hookbait nicely in almost any area.
Use a low 2mm diameter pellet to get the bag tightly compacted for better casting, match with a bright wafter style hookbait and you're ready to go. For even quicker and faster fishing with no hassle, check out our All-In-One Solid Bag Rigs which come pre-tied and ready to go on short leaders.
For boilie fans that want to be a little different, our ChopStix PVA System will help you deliver a small parcel of chopped boilie around your rig - the perfect mouthful for a curious big carp!
Get Off The Deck
Searching the upper layers with Zig Rigs, particularly on deep lakes, can be a huge edge in the spring. Even short Zigs 2-3ft off the lead can win bites in the toughest of conditions.
Again, like other methods mentioned, this is all about experimentation, but it helps to know the depth of water in front of you, so get that marker rod out!
Black foam hookbaits are a firm favourite of many anglers, possibly because they create the closest resemblance to natural food in the lake or simply provide the best contrast. Similar to bottom baits, tipping your Zigs with maggots or even worms can really supercharge their attraction, so Get Flossing again!
Be Prepared For Daytime Action
Perhaps more so than at any other time of year, during the spring, carp are super catchable during daylight hours. There are no hard and fast rules and every water behaves slightly differently, but with the carp more active and mobile during the day, opportunities for bites increase.
Be prepared to move about with the fish and be ready from first light till last and you could have non-stop action all day long - this really is a time to fill your boots!
With this in mind, comfort is key. Changing spring conditions mean it could be cold and wet one minute, then warm and dry the next, so good quality clothing is absolutely essential. Check out our awesome Clothing Range, which not only performs to the highest standard but will have you looking the nuts on the bank too.
What are you waiting for? Carp won't be caught scrolling your phone, grab your tackle, get out there and catch one!
Author Chris Haydon has just joined the OMC Family after six years working for the UK's number 1 fishing publication, the Angling Times. He is a keen coarse and carp fishing all-rounder, fishing in the South West region, including the famous Cotswold Water Park.
