Improve Your Coarse Fishing (UK)
Oh I do like a perch beside the seaside – Phil Taylor
Just a few miles from Phil Taylor’s front door lies an unassuming lake that’s home to an impressive head of specimen perch to more than 3lb
THE UK is blessed with hundreds of beautiful coastal towns that have plenty in common. Traditional fish and chips doused in salt and vinegar, slightly addictive 2p slot machines and long promenades overlooking the turbulent sea are just a few of the big coastal attractions. On the fishing front there’s a plethora of options open to sea anglers, with a huge array of species to go at from renowned beach and rock marks. But the keen coarse angler who lives by the beach usually clocks up the miles and heads inland to sample prolific sport on lakes, rivers and canals. However, big-fish enthusiast Phil Taylor has lived on the coast in the Lincolnshire village of Chapel St Leonards for several years and the mileage on his car has barely taken a hit. Despite living within a stone’s throw of the sea, he keeps his angling exploits local and what he has achieved has raised a fair few eyebrows.
“If you stood by the lake and kicked a football there’s every chance it would end up in the sea”
An unlikely gem
Phil’s unlikely story began around two years ago when he looked through his kit and noticed a dire need of topping up various items. A quick trip of less than a couple of miles to Lakeside Leisure’s tackle shop to stock up soon turned into a long conversation with the owners to unlock the true potential of Chapel Boating Lake, which is directly outside its front doors. “If you were stood by the lake and kicked a football towards the beach, there’s every chance it would end up in the sea – that’s how close it is!” explained Phil. “I’d seen people fishing the lake, but I had no idea what it held. I was told it had more than 20 different species with carp over 20lb, roach to 2lb and quality bream and tench, to name a few. “But it was the mention of huge perch that really got me interested. I had a few hours spare one day, so I gave it a go and I couldn’t believe what I caught, with several perch to just shy of 3lb coming in a short session.” It’s fair to say that at first glance the surroundings of the lake don’t hit the dizzy heights of the hundreds of other big-fish beauty spots in the country. Metal railings surround the water and separate it from a park full of static holiday homes, while pleasure boats are available to hire and cruise part of the lake inaccessible to anglers. No permanent pegs have been installed and it is down to anglers to use their watercraft to work out where to pitch up. There’s no doubt there is a very raw feel to the venue, but the lack of rural idyll is easily countered by the incredible potential for specimens.
Keep it simple
An island sits on one side of the lake and the carp anglers often chuck their boilie-baited rigs to it in an attempt to get the alarms screaming louder than the holidaymakers on the nearby waltzers. With no other major features to aim for, it would be easy to think that every other species
would also be lurking close to the feature, but Phil has found that the deep and open water is where the perch tend to hunt. “It is at least 4ft deep straight off the rod tip and then drops down to more than 11ft at around 10m. The perch seem to roam around the open water – sometimes they are close in the shallows and other times they push out.” Complicated rigs can stay at home when fishing Chapel Boating Lake, with floatfished worms over maggots the most deadly tactic. A chunky loafer-style float is adopted down the margins, with a waggler preferred in open water. Due to the depth, a rod of at least 13ft is required. “As you are only fishing 10m out at the most, you can get away with fishing the waggler. You’ll have a lot of line behind when you cast if you are in 11ft of water, but you only need to make the float travel a short distance.”
Big-fish haven
Driving down the bumpy lane to where I was told the lake was, it seemed a million miles away from what I would expect from a traditional specimen angling hotspot. The gulls could be heard squawking aggressively in the background, with families lining up at little shops to buy their ice creams and candyfloss. Pulling up at the side of the lake, the big-fish buzz still hadn’t hit me. Its appearance gave off the aura that it was a place for holidaying dads and lads to wet a line, while mums and daughters did a spot of shopping. But all those preconceived ideas were instantly blown away when Phil gently brought up his keepnet to show me what he had caught during the early stages of the session. “They must both weigh just under 3lb,” said Phil as I looked down gobsmacked at a net full of big perch where the 1lb fish looked like tiddlers! By constantly firing out pouches of maggots, the big perch kept coming. It was by no means fast and furious, but when you are coming back with a 2lb-plus perch every time the float dips you don’t mind the wait. A lone carp angler had managed to bank several fish over 15lb while we were there and a youngster had clearly caught the angling bug, smiling from ear to ear as he swung in a small roach every chuck with the assistance of an adult. They say you should never judge a book by its cover and Chapel Boating Lake is proof that the statement is spot on.