A Giant Winter Carp Haul — From the Margins
When people imagine winter carp fishing, they often think about casting to the middle of the pond, particularly on vast, deep waters like the mighty Grenville Syndicate. Well, on a recent trip, OMC's Nathan Collins truly ripped up the rulebook, catching multiple monster carp from right under his feet.
"Watch the epic session on OMC Fishing TV"
Winter carp fishing can be tough; the fish aren't really on it, they aren’t moving much, and locating them can be difficult. But find them and the results can be spectacular, as Nathan showed during his recent session at "The Lake of Dreams".
Seeing a fish show at close range in Peg 3 early in his walk-round made location easy. Slip-D Multi Combi Rigs featuring the Lock Hook and Pink iScream pop-ups were deployed quickly — you don’t want to waste any time when it’s cold — and within an hour the alarm was away with the first fish of the trip.
The action continued fairly consistently throughout the session, with only one slow period during the night. Nathan finished the trip with seven fish including a 27lb mirror, four thirties, a 42lb brute and a new personal best...
The biggest of the epic haul was Nathan's first-ever fifty at 52lb 9oz — a stark reminder of why Grenville is known as the "Lake of Dreams". When you get on the fish and angle effectively, results like this are possible for anyone.
"What a way to finish a mind-blowing winter carp trip - 52lb!"
Huge fish at catapult range, underarm flicking the rigs out — this was not a style of angling you’d expect in the cold. But it just goes to show that the carp make the rules and will be where they want to be.
If this doesn’t motivate you to get out whatever the weather, we’re not sure what will.
Journalist Chris Haydon joined the OMC family in spring 2024, after six years working for the UK’s number one fishing publication, Angling Times. He is a keen coarse and carp fishing all-rounder, based in the South West and regularly fishing venues such as the famous Cotswold Water Park.
