NEW SERIES! Catch22 Challenge

1 FLOAT TYPES

With fish moving up and down in the water it can pay to use two rigs set at different depths.

For ultra-shallow fishing (12ins or less) try a short dibber pattern. If you want to fish deeper use a 0.1g pole float with a wire stem and a nylon bristle for stability.

2 SHOTTING PATTERNS

If you’re fishing 12ins deep or less don’t have any shot down the line so you get a slow fall of the hookbait. If missed bites are a problem a bulk of four No11s set 4ins from the hook will make the rig a lot more positive.

At 18ins to 2ft fish with six No11s down the line, strung out with the bottom shot 4ins from the hook and the rest spaced above at 1ins intervals for a slow fall of the bait.

3 SHORT HOOKLENGTHS

Most carp caught shallow tend to be around 3lb to 8lb, so look to use a 0.17mm mainline to a 4ins hooklength of 0.15mm. Short hooklengths allow you to make the rig more positive by putting a shot near the hook should the need arise.

4 SOFT ELASTICS

Many anglers use too heavy an elastic for shallow fishing. A light, soft elastic like White Hydrolastic will allow you to lift into a fish and let it move out of the feed area so it doesn’t spook other feeding fish.

The soft elastic will do the work while you feed the swim again, helping to set you up for another quick bite. Fish it on a puller kit and you’ll be able to land even the biggest fish.

5 LONG LINE FOR WARY CARP

A neat little trick to use later on in your shallow fishing session is to set up a long line rig which you can use for flicking past your feed area.

There are two benefits to this – first, it can pick off any wary fish that are sitting at the back of my feed and second, it can help you catch a few more fish after they become wary of the pole being waved over their heads.

Use a relatively short float which takes plenty of weight – a 4x14 is ideal for this – and have up to 5ft of line between the pole-tip and your float.