CARP TACTICS Five tricks to beat the weed

Lakes around the country are full of lush green weed, loved by fish but a nightmare for anglers. Here, Lewis Read shares his simple tips to help you conquer weedy waters

ANY COMPETENT angler should be able to fish weedy waters safely and successfully but to do so demands an elevated level of commitment, constantly minding the rods and taking care with hookbait placement.

First, take a long, slow look at the swim to weigh up your chances. Take into account the density of the weed, the size of the fish and their distance from the bank. If you’re not 100 per cent certain that you can catch from here, then move on.

Mainlines should be 0.35mm minimum, which should break well above 15lb on the knot. Other tackle components, including hooklinks, should be equally strong. Forged, high carbon steel hooks are a must – there’s no place for fine-wire patterns here!

Pinpoint the clear spots

Building up a base knowledge of a lake’s topography takes time and effort. There are no easy shortcuts. The edges of visible weedbeds are a great starting point, though, and wearing a good pair of polarised glasses will help you identify these.

When you find a spot, place your mainline under the spool clip and tie on a short piece of coloured marker elastic. You can then use distance sticks placed 12ft apart to measure and record distances of spots and make a note of any skyline targets to cast towards.

Becoming competent at casting and feeling leads down to identify clear spots is a big edge on weedy waters.

Perfect presentation

Whatever type of weed you’re fishing in, you’ll have a fighting chance of presenting a hookbait if you can get a bare lead to hit the lakebed.

Masking the hook with a small

PVA mesh bag of pellets or crumbed boilies, or placing the entire rig inside a solid PVA bag, are both certain ways to achieve a well-presented bait. Dissolving nuggets are a popular way to protect the hookbait on the cast.

The chod rig is an excellent set-up when a clear spot can’t be found. This presentation enables you to fish a buoyant hookbait on top of the weed, as the short hooklink can move up the leader and isn’t dragged down by the lead. This works exceptionally well where weed is so thick it catches and holds your free offerings and stops them reaching the bottom.

Don’t pull the line tight when you’re sinking it, as this causes the hookbait to be pulled down into the weed, thereby ruining your carefully positioned rig.

Playing a carp in weed

The most important thing here is to ensure your lead can be dropped on the take. This makes landing carp much easier, as you’re removing a lump of lead that could otherwise become wedged and collect weed.

If a hooked fish does become weeded up, steady, firm pressure is the best way to encourage the fish to start moving again and allow you to tease it back out of the weed.

Never pull for a break if a fish is totally stuck. If it’s wedged that badly, call the fishery owner and ask for boat assistance.

If a boat is available, just getting above the fish, clearing weed off the line as you go, will help enable you to get a direct angle of pull.

A small PVA bag will protect the hookpoint.

In summer, lakes can be thick with weed.

This will lock the lead in place, but a pull on the hooklink and a firm shake will see the lead drop off every time. Push a tail rubber over the top stem of the lead. Allow your leader to run over the top of the lead, not through the centre. Use the swivel at the bottom of the leader to push into the base of the lead.