Carp love lake weed. It’s a simple fact that is too often ignored by anglers, who see weed in waters as the enemy when it could be an ally. In this article, we explore how to fish in a weedy lake.
The key to utilising weed to your advantage is to first understand why the carp love it, understand how to fish safely in and around weed, and what tackle to use in these scenarios. You will also need a good knowledge base on how to play and land a fish in these conditions.
Why do Carp love lake weed?
Lake weed offers a few key benefits to a carp. Firstly, weed in a lake will provide cover for fish, whether this be from the sun or from predators like otters or large birds. This cover is more crucial to smaller fish, but these habits stay with the carp through their lifetime. Additionally, carp have been known to swim against weed to clean themselves.
There is an abundance of natural food found in lake weed that the carp can’t get enough of. Everything from water lice to mayflies live in amongst weed, and when a lake is full of the stuff, it can be a task in itself just to get the fish to take interest in the angler’s bait. This natural food is essential for less-fished waters as it enables carp to carry on growing, and it also manages the weed volume, but it can present a challenge when it is time to fish!
How to fish in lake weed?
So, we know why the carp can be found in and around lake weed, but how do we use this to our advantage? Well, there are some hints and tips for fishing in lake weed, and some pieces of tackle you can use to your advantage.
The easiest way to fish using weed is to fish as close to it, without going into it. Casting your rig into weed will tangle it beyond recognition and will not present a bait to the carp. Instead, cast tight to the weed and be ready to go. If the carp picks the rig up and heads into the weed, you’re all but guaranteed to lose the fish, so you need to have the drag on your reel set nice and tight so that line can be taken, but only under heavy pressure. As soon as the fish is hooked, pressure the fish as heavily as possible away from the weed and into some open water, where you can then play the fish more delicately. This can be a frustrating method of fishing, but it can reap very nice rewards for the patient and attentive angler.
Another way to fish with weed is to find holes within the weed to drop a rig into. This is even more frustrating than the aforementioned method, but some fish will simply not leave the safety of the weed, so the only route is to try and fish within it. Ideally, you will have a boat on hand in case you need to free the fish if it becomes tangled in the weed. This is a difficult way of fishing, particularly if you do not have something like a bait boat or baiting pole to assist you in landing on the right spot. Again, you must fish with tight drag and sit on top of your rods to stand a chance of succeeding.
Equipment for fishing in weed
Fishing in weed is difficult and requires some beefy tackle. You should upgrade the breaking strain of your rigs and mainline and ensure that you are using a rod with a test curve of 3lb or above. It may sound like overkill, but you may be surprised just how volatile fishing in and around weed can be.
Placing rigs in the correct areas is also extremely difficult, particularly for hookbait presentation. For this, you will be best served by using a bait boat or a baiting pole. Baiting poles are the safer option, however, they can be difficult to manoeuvre and impossible to use at any great distance. Instead, you could utilise a bait boat such as the CatchX Pro, which has become a hot favourite for carp anglers. Now, it is not recommended to use bait boats in weed, but you can certainly use them for placing rigs tight to a weed bed, and the CatchX Pro features a grid design over the rotors which prevents weed from being wrapped into the boat. This will allow you to place rigs exactly on the correct spot. Additionally, the CatchX Pro includes a fish finder, which will allow you to check the bottom of the lake to make sure there is no hidden weed beneath the surface.
Angling is often all about confidence and with these techniques and tactics, you can be certain that you are always fishing in the right areas and that your rigs are presented correctly.
For more information about the CatchX Pro, visit: https://www.baitboatworld.co.uk/catchx-pro-precision-meets-power/
