Canol fisheries...again

I can't leave this place alone. Going to have another go and see if I can get a carp! Umbrella is a necessity!

Canol Fisheries - Revisited

I revisited Canol Fisheries the other day to try and improve on my poor session a few days before. There was no wind and the lake was smooth as glass with all fish movement plain to see, prior to setting up a nice sized carp rolled in the water in front of my swim. I was feeling optimistic. 

The weather had deteriorated but I had with me my large umbrella so wasn’t fazed. I set up in the same swim I had hooked and consequently lost what felt like a large carp, I then fed the swim with a loose mix of hemp, halibut mix and sweet corn.

I setup with hair rigs on light method feeders on both rods and put the first in a deep depression to my front and the other on a weed margin which connected to a channel between weed on the other bank. Before long I was getting movement on the rod tips and had struck into my first fish, this proved to be one of many tench that must have been hoovering up the bed of bait that I had laid in the swim. 

There were quiet moments where I had no fish but the action was fairly consistent. I hooked into what felt like a good fish by the weight but the lack lustre fight it gave proved that I had a bream, I lifted it to the surface, it flapped once and was unhooked-gone. A shame as it looked and felt to be about 6-8lbs.

I thought it would be wise to throw some bread on the surface whilst the ducks were at the far end of the lake. As soon as the bread hit the water there were dark shapes swirling beneath, I wanted them to be carp but the slow lazy action was characteristic of the bream. I setup a rod with a surface controller and thought I’d have a go at these fish, after a short wait I had hooked onto one of the bream. The fish turned out to be a fairly beaten up bream with one eye blind and displaying a few lesions, I unhooked it in the water and let it swim on its merry way. I continued on the surface. Another fish took the bread and I reeled it in, it was the same beaten up bream! I wouldn’t have thought a fish would return to feeding on the surface so shortly after being caught, this surprised me and triggered a sense of sympathy for the poor beaten fish. 

I continued until the evening with a good session but disappointingly no carp. I had improved on my previous session but the loss of what felt like a big strong carp still hung over me. I think the numbers of carp in the water are lower than that of the tench and bream. I also believe the clear conditions of the lake may also make the carp more wily, next time I may use a different approach to target them specifically though not sure what that would be. I did see an angler the other day land an 11lb common with red maggots maybe that is the way forward?

Canol Fisheries - Wild Welsh water.

I visited Canol Fisheries which is situated in Felindre, Swansea. It is a beautiful location encompassed by the valley and wild Welsh countryside. 

The lake has been left in a fairly wild state itself with an abundance of weed (broad-leaved pondweed) allowing only a handful of spots to be fished. There is a healthy habitat here for the local wildlife, being surrounded by natural springs and copses of trees. There were a mixture of damsel and dragonflies, a recent spawn of toads and the obligatory red kite. 

Small Toad!

Spot the kite.

There is low angling pressure at this venue which may be due to its isolated location and non-commercial status, leaving the fish in good condition and full fighting fetter. The hardcore carp anglers would most likely be put off by the fairly clear water, I believe this adds to the challenge if targeting the common, mirror and grass carp. There are resident tench however, that are known to flourish in the clear water, Canol also hosts a head of bream.

On arriving at Canol I parked up and surveyed the venue. I was initially concerned by the cover of weed which covered three quarters of the lake making only certain areas fishable, I wondered how an excess of vegetation would effect the fish. I walked the perimeter and saw little sign of fish, non whatsoever in fact, even with the clear water. 

Ascended perspective.

Excess weed?

I chose a spot that was opposite a clear stretch of water flanked by weeds either side. 

Spot of choice.

I set up a running hair rig baited with normal sweet corn adjoined to a false rubber grain, I cast this in front of me into about 5ft of water. 

Simple rig.

I set up my other rod with a crystal float set at a foot short of the lake bed next to the weeds to my right, this baited again with corn. My plan was to scope out the abundance and species of fish in this swim. I had no bread or maggots which in hindsight was a mistake, I believe a few red maggots are a very good candidate to lure most freshwater species.

The float had some tentative bites then went under, I struck and found myself connected to a tench of approximately a pound, it fought fairly hard for its size but I managed to lose it in the pond weed. I continued with the float laying down a light mix of halibut ground bait, hemp seed and a spattering of chilli sweet corn. 

All went quiet with no action on either rod, only small line bites on the hair rig, with the float dead. I decided to change tactic slightly and changed the float for a hair rig baited with floating sweet corn. This seemed to work as time passed with increasing movement on both rod tips (one a carp broom handle, the other a quiver tip). Again all went quiet and I started to despair. I literally put my head in my hands and as I did this I had a screaming run on the carp rod, I struck and connected to what felt like a very powerful fish. I had to bully it which I don’t like doing as it was heading straight for the cover of the pond weed. The fish was bending the rod in two, I wasn’t worried as the rod was equipped with 8lb Korda Subline connected to braid hook link and a  strong Gardner hook. However pride comes before a fall, something gave and I lost the fish. The braid had given way, of all things I would not have expected this. I believe there was a weakness in its length somewhere, the hook was gone with the fish. It wasn’t the knots as I tie five turn grinner knots which have never failed me, yet (touchwood). 

Feeling rather deflated I mused on the ‘one that got away’ as you do in these circumstances. I genuinely believe it felt above the 15lb mark, which would have made my week. To rub salt in my wounds another fisherman turned up and caught a 12lb common within ten minutes. Still eager to sniff out one of these pristine fish I continued with the same methods up to dusk, I saw a few fish rising on the surface but the dark shapes ignored all my free offerings. 


About an hour before dark I had another screaming run on the carp rod which, I let it go a few seconds then struck. I felt instant opposition on the reel which felt all wrong-the line had wrapped round the spool! I struggled to unravel it to little effect as the fish was lost, another one! I had no idea of the size as it fled before I could connect.

I finished the session without getting my net wet but having learnt two important lessons: 

•  always check the integrity of the line and knots
•  always check the reel and line lay

The owner mentioned that he has started on another lake nearby, he has stocked it with small carp and trout at present. I left a report in the car park drop box detailing my struggling session. The other fisherman had two decent carp and a nice tench, which he was fishing for.

I am going to visit the venue again very soon, to finish what I had started, I want a rematch with ‘the BIG one that got away’.

Valley Farm Fisheries - Hidden treasure.

I have only recently discovered and fished Valley Farm Fisheries over the past six months; it has somehow eluded me until the present time. The lake is tucked away in Walpole, Suffolk, in a very peaceful location, there are a number of nice features with deep pit areas, overhanging trees and islands.

The lake is stocked with a very nice mix of fish species including roach, rudd, bream, perch and carp (predominantly common and mirror). The owner told me that he had also stocked it with a few small Barbel but has not seen them at all. There is an otter fence erected along the lake perimeter which is reassuring and the whole venue is immaculately maintained. Landing nets and unhooking mats are provided with the use of ones own forbidden for disease control. There are signs up reminding fisherman not only of the rules and regulations but notes on fish welfare too which is refreshing to see. The owner/bailiff is full of advice and has been there every time I have fished, very useful if you need advice or tips.

The fishing has a lot to offer, I have had a great evening fishing for carp on the surface along one of the margins using bread and a surface controller where I caught ten plus fish above 6lb with the biggest being 13lb. Here are some samples from that session.

There are nice tench to be found lurking under the trees along with good perch, interestingly I caught a tench using a small tutti frutti boilie combined with a cage feeder and a hemp and sweet corn mix cast straight under a tree in only a few feet of water, I wasn’t targeting them but was happy with it nonetheless.

There are bream to be had as well all of which I have caught with red maggots, which is also the preferred bait of the resident perch. That is the most interesting thing about the lake in question there is such a well balanced mix of fish that they are all up to offer, I am quite sure red maggots would produce anything in the water with boilies targeting the carp, treacle soaked sweet corn also worked well.

Overall I recommend Valley Farm Fisheries for those of us who aren’t crazy on commercial carp fisheries and for people that truly appreciate catching good specimen fish of all species. £7.50 for an adult day ticket.