SANDHURST LAKE, HAMPSHIRE
Nestled in the carp-fishing epicentre that is Yateley, Sandhurst is a highly-regarded day-ticket venue with a particularly fine reputation for autumn and winter form
SANDHURST has a stock of around 400 carp, and although these average around the low twenties, an ever-growing number of thirties and forties make this one of the very best day-ticket waters around for big fish. Depths around the lake run between 2ft and 10ft, and there are plenty of features to target. We’ve enlisted the help of fishery manager Nick Leach to give readers a bit of inside info. He said: “The fish like their bait, and slightly popped-up hookbaits tend to do well – things like short chods, hinged stiff rigs and Ronnie rigs. But finding the fish is key to doing well. They don’t show themselves so much in winter, but in summer you will regularly see them jumping out.
“There’s not really a bad swim on the lake: they all do fish. Don’t ignore the corners – the bailiffs will often fish them if it’s busy and they’ve all had the bigger fish.
“Normally during the summer months the car park swims – the Pipes, swims 10/11 and 26/27 – are popular, and the fish will often come into the margins where you can stalk them. It can get weedy, and we do dye the water and rake some areas to keep the weed back, but it’s worth finding the clear spots. Once the weather starts to cool, the Bailiffs swims (23-25) normally do a lot of bites.
Hookbait-wise, yellow and orange offerings over a good freezer bait like Mainline Cell, Sticky Manilla/ Krill, CC Moore Live System or Pacific Tuna all work well.
“The fish come into the margins, where you can stalk them”