Deal, Kent
8 lakes
Specimen carp fishing and mixed coarse fishing
Night fishing available on selected waters
Cottington Lakes is a day-ticket fishery complex situated on Sandwich Road near Deal in Kent.
The venue has eight named lakes, ranging from specimen carp waters through to heavily stocked pleasure and match lakes:
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New Pepper Lake
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Old Pepper Lake
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Christine Lake
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Black Lake
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Heron Lake
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Windsor Lake
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Elliot Lake
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Match Lake
For carp anglers, New Pepper, Old Pepper and Christine are the main specimen waters, with Heron providing another smaller carp option.
New Pepper Lake
New Pepper forms the newer section of Pepper following an extension completed in 2007.
Pepper itself began excavation in 1990 and first opened to carp anglers in 2003, having previously operated as a trout water. The 2007 extension nearly doubled its original size.
Today the complete Pepper water covers approximately seven acres and consists of two distinct sections joined by a narrow causeway.
New Pepper comprises swims 9 to 16 and is the deeper of the two sections. It also contains three islands in its centre.
A channel runs along the length of Pepper, with the deepest water situated towards the far end of New Pepper.
Across New and Old Pepper combined, the fishery states that the water contains more than 200 carp, including approximately 40 fish between 30lb and 40lb and 14 fish over 40lb.
There are four dedicated car parks positioned around Pepper, with the fishery stating that no swim is more than a couple of minutes’ walk from its nearest parking area.
Booking is described as essential because of the lake’s popularity and limited number of swims. Half-lake and whole-lake bookings are also available.
The fishery notes that half-lake bookings on New Pepper and whole-lake bookings exclude the Bailiff’s Swim, which remains reserved for Cottington Lakes bailiffs.
Old Pepper Lake
Old Pepper is the original section of the Pepper water.
It comprises swims 1 to 8 and is characterised by shallower water and mature reed beds, giving it a noticeably different character to the deeper New Pepper section.
Although listed by Cottington as Old Pepper Lake, it remains connected to New Pepper via the narrow causeway, with both sections forming the approximately seven-acre Pepper water.
The carp stock quoted by Cottington — more than 200 carp, around 40 between 30lb and 40lb and 14 over 40lb — relates to the overall Pepper water rather than separate published stocks for Old and New Pepper.
Old Pepper can also be booked as one half of Pepper for anglers wanting a more private session or group booking.
Christine Lake
Christine is Cottington’s other principal specimen carp lake.
At approximately 3.5 acres, it is significantly smaller than Pepper and is limited to a maximum of six anglers at any one time.
Depths range from around four feet in the entrance bay beside the car park to just over six feet elsewhere.
There are several bays and two islands, giving anglers a variety of features to target.
Cottington states that Christine holds a good stock of common and mirror carp to over 40lb, as well as double-figure grass carp.
The fishery currently gives the Christine lake record as 40lb.
Because only six anglers are permitted at a time, Cottington recommends booking in advance.
Heron Lake
Heron is a much smaller carp water with just six pegs.
The lake contains three islands and Cottington currently states that carp can be caught to 28lb.
For anglers who don’t necessarily want to tackle the main specimen waters, Heron provides another dedicated carp option within the complex.
Black Lake
Black Lake is a 32-peg mixed coarse fishery rather than one of Cottington’s dedicated specimen carp waters.
Depths range from approximately three feet near the car park to around nine feet in parts of the far bay and along a central channel.
Anglers can fish from the main bank as well as pegs situated on central islands.
Cottington’s current Black Lake webpage appears to contain some duplicated text from its Christine Lake description, including references to Christine’s carp stock. For that reason, we haven’t attributed those carp weights to Black Lake.
Windsor Lake
Windsor is a 24-peg pleasure lake and is aimed more towards anglers wanting regular action than specimen carp fishing.
It is predominantly stocked with common and mirror carp between approximately 3lb and 8lb, although Cottington states that occasional fish reach around 20lb.
Other species include:
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Tench
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Bream
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Roach
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Rudd
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Chub
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Perch
The lake regularly produces sizeable pleasure and match weights.
Elliot Lake
Elliot is a small 20-peg lake with a central island.
It was created in 2005 by removing the final two lanes of Match Lake and was subsequently stocked with a mixture of species.
The fishery describes it as particularly suitable for anglers fishing with children or those wanting plenty of bites.
Cottington records double-figure carp to 18lb 8oz being caught in 2018, alongside tench, perch, bream, roach, crucian carp and crucian crosses.
The lake has a largely flat bottom around four feet deep, with a shallower shelf around the central island.
Match Lake
The Match Lake is a 30-peg, snake-shaped water designed primarily for match fishing, pleasure anglers and youngsters.
It is heavily stocked with carp ranging from around 8oz to 10lb, along with large numbers of roach and rudd.
The maximum depth is approximately 4.5 feet, and anglers are restricted to using one rod or pole at a time.
The Pepper Lakes Explained
One point worth clarifying for anyone visiting Cottington for the first time is the setup of Old Pepper and New Pepper.
Cottington lists them individually as:
Old Pepper Lake — swims 1–8
New Pepper Lake — swims 9–16
However, physically they are two sections of the same approximately seven-acre Pepper water, connected by a narrow causeway.
Old Pepper is the original, shallower section with established reed beds, while New Pepper is the 2007 extension, featuring deeper water and three central islands.
The published carp stock figures apply to Pepper as a whole, rather than Cottington publishing separate stock figures for each half.
Location
Cottington Lakes
Sandwich Road
Deal
Kent
CT14 0AR
01304 371898
Cottington advises visitors not to navigate directly using the postcode, as this can direct vehicles towards the farm.
CarpTalk Summary
Cottington offers a particularly varied selection of waters on one complex.
For specimen carp anglers, New Pepper and Old Pepper are the main attraction, with a combined stock stated by the fishery at more than 200 carp, including numerous thirties and fish over 40lb.
Christine provides another genuine specimen option with carp to over 40lb but on a much smaller, six-angler lake.
Heron then offers a smaller carp water, while Black, Windsor, Elliot and Match cater more towards mixed coarse, pleasure and match fishing.
For anyone researching Cottington before a session, the main thing to understand is that Old Pepper and New Pepper are listed as separate lakes by the fishery, but are two connected sections of the larger Pepper water.
Have you fished Cottington Lakes? Share your experiences, catch reports and any tips for Old Pepper, New Pepper or Christine below.