Can Anyone Say Mirror Carp...?

After seeing fish show at around 30 metres out I decided to place two of my three rods at 3 metres depth. Both rods were fed with a couple of handfuls of 15mm and 18mm Dynamite Baits the Source boilies using the throwing stick. The third rod fished at long range in 1.5 metres of water in front of a large willow tree using 2 Dynamite Baits 15mm Fluro Pineapple pop-ups fished over a mix of 15mm and 18mm Source boilies.

After 12 hours the right rod at 30 metres out screamed off and after a short fight this grey 15lb 13oz Mirror graced the net.

On Saturday late afternoon a typical Johannesburg thunder storm was rolling in and the clouds were growing darker and darker. My girlfriend and I had just finished putting all the essentials under the brolly when the rod fished at long range had a few bleeps before the rod tip bent over.

I hit it and immediately the fish took line and a few seconds later it felt as if I had I lost it. I was winding the slack in desperately when suddenly the rod tip bent over again I felt a few nods and then my Daiwas started giving off line rapidly.

Certain the fish was now on the fight began. All seemed well when the heavens opened and the rain began to come down like a torrential storm. Standing waist deep in the water I then realised the fish was snagged on a broken piece of line. After struggling in the storm for a good 25 minutes with the fish in really close under the rod tip it was touch and go to get this one in the net.

Just then my mate arrived back from the shops and we netted one of the most beautiful carp I have ever seen. 22lb 4oz of pure ecstasy.

Good Things Come To Those Who Bait...

After pre-feeding my swim everyday for a week at a local municipal water – Emmarentia Dam my mate Ryan and I arrived on Saturday morning at 3.00am with worried expressions.














We casted in a our single hookbaits on each rod to around 40 metres out and baited up over each rod with 10 boilies using the throwing stick.

Fishing was slow as expected as a cold front had pulled in the day before but Ryan and I pushed forward with Ryan losing a good common on a buoy after a decent fight mid morning.

Shortly afterward I managed a 16lb 6oz Common on a Pineapple Fluro pop up tipped off with a white artificial sweetcorn.

At 16.30 I had another screaming take so typical of Emmarentia carp on a Monster Tigernut pop up tipped off with a yellow artificial sweetcorn... after going on no less than 4 long hard runs the fish seemed done and ready for the net.

Once on the unhooking mat and the fish taken out of the net a truly special fish was revealed... What must have been one of the old Granddads of the lake, this fish seemed blind in the left eye which was completely whitened over. The tips of the fins white with old age.

22lb 9oz and my first 20 from the water... All in all between the two of us we managed 4 takes and 3 fish. A good result after the weather took a turn for the worst and although the bigger fish weren't around we know they are there and its just a matter of time until they grace the folds of our nets....