40LB+ FULLY SCALED CARP FROM UNDER THE ICE! 

  • Posted: 17th January 2025
  • Author: Team DNA
We’ve not seen many fish so far this year that can hold a candle to this one!
Mark Bartlett opened his account for 2025 in the most unlikely circumstances and in the most impressive fashion possible, tempting a magnificent 41lb 4oz fully scaled mirror from under the ice on his syndicate water.
Fishing with his good friends Kev and Dean in bitterly cold conditions, it was a wonder the lads even managed to get their rods in the water, let alone catch something!
“With the weather coming in bad, we knew it would be touch and go whether we could get the rods out before it froze,” admitted Bart.
“Out went a tightly spodded area with a bucket of crushed Bug, Insect Meal and Crayfish Mini Mix pellets and a few maggots. With the chance of the rods being stuck out there with no chance of a re-chuck, I opted for 15mm Bug Corker wafters tipped with a piece of plastic of corn, as there were a few crays about.
“The following morning, with the lake iced over, I had a super-slow take on the left-hander. After a heavy, slow, plodding fight, one of the big fullies lay in the net – what a carp, one of the finest I have caught!
“I had longed for a big 40lb fully since fishing St John’s for the Big Plated, but never managed that cuddle. At 41lb 4oz, I was made up, mainly because I had caught the fish of dreams with two of my best mates next to me. Absolute memories for life!”