It’s been a few weeks to remember for DNA Baits angler Cass Cole, with one long-awaited syndicate capture followed by an even more rewarding first fishing trip with his young son.
Fishing an overnight session on his Cambridgeshire syndicate after work, Cass ignored carp showing tight in the margins, knowing the resident crayfish would likely cause problems overnight. After spending time with a bare lead to find the right area, he located a clean patch of soft clay at the bottom of a marginal slope, surrounded by fresh weed.
Fishing a Secret 7 Corker Wafter on a braided blow-back rig over around 2kg of Bug and Secret 7 boilies, his patience was rewarded the following morning. Just as he was packing away, the rod tore off and he landed one of the lake’s prized residents – Patch Fully at 36lb 4oz – along with a quality mid-twenty common.
As good as that session was, the next one proved even more special.
Taking his three-year-old son Nate for his first-ever carp fishing trip to a local park lake, the pair spent a couple of hours stalking fish in the margins. Using an SLK Corker pop-up trimmed to resemble a floating dog biscuit over a scattering of mixers, it wasn’t long before Nate watched his first carp confidently take the bait from the surface.
The result was a lovely upper-double common, but the real catch was a lifelong memory. According to Cass, Nate has been asking to go fishing every day since.
Have any of you introduced your kids or grandkids to carp fishing yet? What age did they catch their first carp?