Day-Ticket Carp Tips How halving your baits can be beneficial
For big rivers nothing beats a feeder packed with pellets
IN SUMMER just about all river fish develop a liking for pellets.
On some waterways this can become close to an addiction, as they home in on these highly nutritious baits, which enable them to replenish the reserves spent during spawning. From barbel to roach, pellets pack a punch that is difficult to beat.
On big rivers the feeder rules supreme, as it ensures that there is always a trail of bait close to the hookbait. Smaller rivers can require a more stealthy approach, because the ‘spladoosh’ of a big feeder hitting the surface can see fish fleeing for the nearest snag, but on rivers like the Trent, Severn and Ribble the fish are more likely to be attracted by this disturbance.
PELLET PUDDING
You can use hard pellets fed through a blockend feeder, but a much better approach right now is to use ‘pellet pudding’ in an open-end feeder. If barbel are your target, don’t be shy. An XL-size feeder will put in around an eighth of a pint of pudding each cast.
Unlike hard pellets, a feeder filled with pudding releases a host of different sized particles of bait into the water, from a cloud of tiny bits that will be mopped up by minnows, to whole baits.
By creating a melee of different sized fish, all mopping up the bait, you not only attract the bigger fish, but trigger their feeding too.
By attracting fish of all sizes, though, the feeder will soon be empty and the contents mopped up, so it is important to keep recasting.
I like to fish two rods on the same line, one higher up the swim than the other, and recast one of the rods in turn every 15 minutes to keep the trail of bait going.
TWICE THE BAIT
Another advantage of using pudding is that it works out much cheaper than feeding hard pellets. As the baits are soaked they absorb water and swell up to almost twice their original size, giving you twice the bait for the money.
The consistency of the soaked pellets is perfect for using in the feeder too. While most will hold their shape, they will have a sponge-like consistency and bind together well when soaked.
Try not to push them too tightly into the feeder, as this can slow the release.
I like to pack them just tight enough so that they hold in the feeder on the cast.
It is important to add just the right amount of water to your pellets to achieve the right consistency. Add too much and the pellets will turn to mush... too little and they will not be soft all the way through. As a guide, use enough water to just cover the pellets. Every so often give the tub a good shake to redistribute the pellets so they are evenly soaked.
If you do get the mix wrong then add a little groundbait to them to soak up the excess liquid. I also like to add a handful of crushed hemp as this imparts more of that hempy flavour that fish love.
ON THE HOOK
My favourite hookbait when using pellet pudding is a whittled-down
15mm boilie. This resembles a pellet, but is much tougher and easier to hair-rig.
While dark-coloured, fishy flavoured boilies work well, try also mixing one up with a bright bait, or add a piece of fake corn as a ‘sighter’ to draw the attention of the fish to the hookbait.
The splash of a big feeder is a common sound on many big rivers, especially in the summer months, and for good reason. This is a brilliant tactic that catches a lot of fish.
Remember to keep recasting the feeder to create a constant trail of bait in the swim. This will draw fish up from hundreds of metres downstream to your pellet banquet.