Trip 11 Carp FishingWelcome back to another fishing adventure. With Meadow Lake only producing at night, I took a chance on a quick overnighter at Airfield Lake—despite it not being known for fishing well in March. Armed with a simple but proven baiting approach using quality boilies, pellets, oils, and solid PVA bag mixes, this session was all about building confidence in daylight bites and reading the water. Sometimes it’s not just about catching—it’s about trusting your instincts, refining your tactics, and reconnecting with a venue that just feels right.Tight lines and be lucky!

Trip 2 Carp Fishing - 2026I wasn’t sure I’d even make it out this week. With a house full of sick people, I was convinced it was only a matter of time before I went down with it myself. Thankfully, I stayed well enough to take a chance and load the car.With Monday night forecast as a washout, I had to think carefully about venue choice. Meadow Lake was ruled out straight away, leaving the club lake as the best option—despite fallen trees, closed swims, and water levels sitting right on the edge of flooding. As it turned out, those closed swims worked in my favour, giving me more space and less pressure.In this session I talk through my approach on a shallow, bait-boat-dominated lake, why I avoid spombing here, and how my simple “chuck-and-dump” baiting strategy helps keep the carp confident. Three spots, three hookbaits, steady pressure, and classic winter conditions set the scene.Mid-afternoon, the right-hand rod tore off and resulted in a hard-fighting 21lb 3oz common—a result I genuinely didn’t expect given how quiet the lake felt afterward. Silent nights, dropping temperatures, and tricky conditions followed, making that early bite feel even more special.A realistic winter session: one chance, one fish, and plenty of lessons. With February approaching and daylight stretching out, I’m hopeful things will soon start to turn.Until next time,Be luckyRichard

“Effort equals reward” is a phrase that should be ingrained in every angler’s mindset. But I believe it goes beyond just putting in work and expecting results. The real key is understanding that the effort you put in should be measured by what you personally want to achieve—not by someone else’s standards. Fishing is an individual pursuit, and comparing yourself to others can not only be pointless but can also harm your enjoyment of the sport.

Understanding Effort and Reward

For some anglers, just getting to the bank is a reward in itself. The time and effort required to pack up, drive to the lake, set up, and enjoy a session is their goal. Whether or not they catch is secondary; they’ve already won by simply being there and unwinding in nature. Others won’t understand this mindset because their own version of “effort equals reward” is completely different.

Some anglers are obsessed with catching, which is fine if that’s what motivates them. However, falling into the trap of fixating only on catching can lead down a dark path—a pit of frustration that’s hard to escape. This can suck the joy out of fishing, leaving you feeling like every session is a failure unless you land a fish. I’ve seen people quit fishing altogether because their obsession with results destroyed their love for the process. Some even sell their gear, completely disillusioned.

Boosting Your Baits for an Edge Over Other Anglers

Fishing is all about small edges, and one of the most overlooked aspects is bait preparation. Over the years, I’ve refined my approach to bait enhancement, ensuring my boilies are primed and ready before each session. I don’t believe in drowning baits in excessive amounts of flavour or liquid, as that can sometimes have the opposite effect. Instead, I take a measured and consistent approach, allowing my baits to absorb attractants gradually over time.

I like to keep my bait supply constantly rolling, so I always have well-prepared boilies on hand. My process is simple but effective. I start with several 3kg tubs of my chosen boilie and a larger 10kg bucket. Into each 3kg tub, I add 10ml of Classic Corn or Catalyst food dip, depending on what I’m favouring at the time, along with a tablespoon of Berrocel. Once these additions are made, I give the tubs a good shake every day for a week. This ensures an even distribution and helps the liquid penetrate deeply into the bait. After a week, I transfer everything into the larger 10kg bucket, where it will sit until needed.

When I’m preparing for a session, I take a portion of these enhanced boilies and place them into two small RidgeMonkey buckets, ready for my next trip. As soon as I return from a session, I repeat the process to maintain my bait supply. This rolling preparation ensures I always have top-quality, fully-boosted bait on hand.

Im back down at Airfield Lake for another three-night session. The conditions are almost identical to last week’s, but the pressure has dropped slightly, and a few more carp have been coming out. That’s always a positive sign, so I arrived quietly optimistic that things might just fall into place over the next few days.

Pulling into the complex, there were plenty of day anglers spread around, but still enough water to work with. After last week’s success on the bottom lake, I headed straight there for a proper look. Only two anglers were set up, both at one end, which left the rest of the lake open.

After a slow walk and a good period of observation, I settled on the last point. The wind was hacking hard onto the south bank, and this swim gave me good access to that area while allowing me to avoid the worst of the snags dotted along the margin.

It also dawned on me that I’d never actually caught from this swim before — always nice to have a little target like that in mind. Time to break the duck.

I found three potential spots with the lead, all slightly different in nature, which made it a difficult choice, narrowing it down to two rods. My baiting approach stayed exactly the same as last week — no need to change something that’s working.

Catching up on this week's news from my website, richardhanded.com

More Ramblings

I certainly believe there is such a thing as a nutritional edge in carp fishing, although I think it tends to be specific to individual waters. The reality is that there is something in every good bait company’s range capable of catching carp.

The real challenge is identifying what nutritional deficiencies exist within a lake and determining which essential nutrients the carp are not receiving from either natural food sources or the boilies being introduced by anglers.

From a carp angling perspective, solving this puzzle is extremely difficult because we rarely know exactly what carp are eating throughout the year, let alone the nutritional value of those food items.

However, there are several ways we can get closer to the answer.

Chilly Winds, One Chance and Lots of Questions

I arrived at the lake earlier than normal this week, having decided to load the car before heading off to my gardening job. Thankfully, it was in a quiet area, and I was only working on the front garden, so the car and all my kit would be safe enough while I worked. It saved me the usual trip home to reload everything afterwards, and with the house on my route to the lake anyway, it felt like a proper win-win situation.

With that cold northerly wind still hanging around and absolutely no signs of spawning carp yet, I headed straight back down to the bottom section of the lake again. I’m really growing to love this area of the water. It just feels right down there — quiet, tucked away and full of potential.

Trip 42 Carp Fishing - 2025I managed to squeeze in a two-nighter just before Christmas, with conditions looking very promising on paper. Air pressure was rising steadily from 1005mb to 1016mb during the session, with a big jump forecast for Christmas Day itself. Temperatures were set to drop, rain was pushing through early on, and the main concern was a persistent NE, E, and SE wind.After walking the lake twice and seeing very little, I trusted my instincts and settled on the north bank after spotting a couple of carp show. I kept disturbance to a minimum, fishing small PVA mesh bags paired with pop-ups and wafters, rotating hookbaits to see what the carp preferred over the 48 hours.The first bite came mid-afternoon with a welcome 17lb 5oz mirror, followed the next evening by a proper winter reward—a stunning 24lb mirror carp after a tense battle around dead lilies and marginal snags.With fish showing across different areas of the lake, a swim move became necessary, reinforcing how important observation and mobility can be in winter. Despite active carp and near-perfect overnight conditions, it wasn’t to be for another bite—but that’s winter carp fishing.A challenging but rewarding pre-Christmas session, and one I thoroughly enjoyed.Thanks for watching.Until next time,RichardHappy New Year.

Welcome back to another fishing adventure. Trip 41 Carp Fishing - Back down on the club lake for what could be my last carp session before Christmas. This was planned as a relaxed two-night social with a mate, but despite textbook winter conditions—mild temperatures, stable pressure, cloud cover, and a steady south-westerly—we couldn’t buy a bite.In this video, I talk through my thinking, the decisions made on the bank, and why I chose to stick with a proven approach rather than chopping and changing. I also question the pop-up versus wafter debate on this particular lake, make a mid-session tactical switch from solid bags to mesh, and reflect on how rising water levels may be influencing the carp’s behaviour.Another blank, but plenty to learn. The winter campaign continues.Tight lines and be lucky!