SECRET 7 CHANGED MY CARP FISHING!
I’ve always been a lover of a red fishmeal carp bait, and the profile of the Secret 7 was just what I was looking for when I started to introduce bait into my recent fishing campaign.
Now, being completely transparent, it started catching from the get-go, turning what were previously one-fish sessions into two- or even three-fish catches, and that’s when I knew the S7 had changed my carp fishing – for good!
Picture a large, 80-acre, weed-infested lake, with multiple islands, bays and plenty of underwater features and obstacles, some out-of-bounds areas, and then add in a generous stock of around 500 hard-fighting scaley carp from a variety of strains. I started to learn very quickly about what I needed to do and how to apply my bait in order to maximise my opportunities to slip the net around some of these wily carp.
My Secret 7 campaign produced many stunning scalies
BAIT PREP
I have always fished with fresh freezer baits and opted for 15mm and mini dumbbell boilies with plenty of corn (they love corn in there), with S7 Stick Mix scattered over, some S7 Liquid Food and, of course, a good smattering of S7 Amino Smoke. Fortunately, there are no real nuisance fish in the lake, aside from a few tench, so the smaller baits were perfect for this particular situation.
I like to prep my bait two or three days before my sessions, adding in the S7 powders and liquids as soon as the bait is thawed. Then I give it a good mix around in the bucket every 12 hours to make sure everything is coated and the liquids are getting absorbed. The corn will be the last addition to the mix and will go in fresh from the tin on the day of the session.
I like to prepare my bait a few days in advance
FINDING ’EM
Location is always key, and during the summer months the weed can be top to bottom high in depths of up to 16ft, creating vast walls and blockades of weed. The winds also play a big part and getting on a fresh or new wind can often result in you finding the fish. Some winds get split by the islands across the lake, and others blow straight into an area or bay. If you find them, the fish sometimes give themselves away with subtle shows or by fizzing when they churn up the weed and lakebed in search of food.
With 80 acres of water to navigate, I always drop my old mountain bike in the back of the van, grab my binoculars and try and do a few laps of the lake to help with location and finding those fish. Once located, its then down to finding those clear spots, somewhere to present that gives you some decent line lay and, more importantly, the chance to get the fish back through the weed and into your net.
Getting location right is always crucial
THE BUSINESS END
Hookbait-wise, the S7 Evo range offers highly attractive options, which I used in 15mm tipped with pink S7 Half Tones for visual attraction. These have been an established winning formula. The bait is either applied by stick, catapult or spod, depending on the range.
A tried and trusted combination
BAIT APPLICATION
After a few sessions, and with summer well and truly in flow, it was becoming evident the fish were holding up in a large weedbed within a bay, and it was here where I started to concentrate my bait application.
Fishing fewer than 30 yards out, I found two clear spots in amongst the weedbed, enough to present one rod on each. I then cleared a channel in front of me to ensure I could get the line lay I needed and have the chance to get the fish back through the weed. The swim itself was one that was often overlooked as it was quite small and you were limited to the range you could fish, so I had a good chance of getting something going in the knowledge I would be left alone.
Fishing one to two nights a week, I would bait up on arrival and put out any left-over bait when I was finished which.
The combination of the S7, the powders and the liquids started to get me bites instantly and it wasn’t long before I was getting multiple bites within each session, with some beautiful scaly fish gracing my net.
Multiple-fish hits became commonplace
On one particular session, a nice new and fresh easterly wind was pushing into the swim and with a little low pressure in the air I was feeling very confident. Two rods were deployed to the spots, along with 10 Spombs of the S7 mix, and it was less than an hour before the left-hand rod burst into life and a beautiful scaly mirror dropped over the net cord. Another two fish followed just as darkness fell and then I lost one in the weed just before midnight. With each take I was topping up with 3-5 Spombs of bait, and the action continued through the night and into early morning. With six takes and five landed, I very reluctantly packed up for work and headed home. I had no bait left to top the swim up before I went!
My confidence and trust in the S7 have grown so much and I can honestly say it has changed my carp fishing. Not only has it caught me fish wherever I’ve taken it, but it has turned those single captures into two or even three per trip.
Thank you, Secret 7!
