Name: Mike van der Spek
My perfect carp: Grass Carp
How to catch it:
I like to keep it simple. I use 2 or 3 rigs I can trust, and, very important, I use sharp hooks. Depending on the waters I am fishing and on the question whether this will be a one-off or that I will regulary return for fishing in the future, I decide on my strategy: when it comes to instant fishing, it is important to localise the fish.
In that case, you only have to present your rig in a proper manner and with bait to be selected by you. However, if I intend to fish a water thoroughly, I adopt a different approach. Most waters have so-called "holding areas", where the fish are often located, and there are migratory routes, where the fish pass. Once I know the "holding areas" and the migratory routes, I know where I can start feeding I like to distribute a lot of feed on a large public water (this is not advisable for most paid waters).
And then it all comes down to investing a lot of time and effort into your feeding places, and the fish will flock in droves. Keep your fishing simple, use the right location and the right strategy, and last but not least: don't give up and just keep going! Sounds logical, and you are sure to catch some lovely fish!
Name: Andy Parr
My perfect carp: Fully Scaled Mirror Carp
How to catch it:
If I can give anyone advise it’s always to keep your fishing simple. Turn up, locate the fish and use a rig that you are confident in. I see too many so called wonder rigs in the magazines that are just there to sell end tackle. In my opinion you need to be paying attention to the top anglers, they use very basic rigs and are catching on nearly every outing.
What I do concentrate on is hook sharpness, whether it’s straight out of the packet or something I have hand sharpened myself, that hook needs to be needle sharp.
A sharp hook will convert more pick ups to actual takes. Yes it may turn out to be one fish per hook but do you want to risk losing a fish of a lifetime? I know I wouldn’t!
So now you have established the correct location and you have an effective rig coupled with a sharp hook it’s now down to bait. Now whatever you put in front of a feeding fish 9 times out of 10 it will eat it. We all have our own preferred bait manufacturer but a bait that will pass through the fish easily will keep the fish coming back for more and enable you to catch multiple fish on a session.
Location, simple rigs, a sharp hook and a decent bait may sound really obvious but I can guarantee you will land more fish.
Name: Kevin Paradowski
My perfect carp: 25 lbs carp
How to catch it:
For me, the most important thing about angling is flexibility. There’s no point in sitting endlessly in one place and waiting, like on that day.
I could see a lot of activity on the other side of the river. However, I did not know what kind of fish it was at first. So I cast my carping kit with a 20mm boilie slightly away from the hustle and bustle. Nothing happened. It seemed to me that the bait was too big and the chosen line and leader were too thick.
I grabbed my Method rod, attached a 10mm pop-up and filled the Method with 2mm pellets. Less than 5 minutes later, the tip bent double and the fight began. On the light equipment with 0,16mm line and 16 hook, it would be an unforgettable tussle. If I had stayed with my original tactics I would have missed out. Being flexible is usually the key to success, not a more expensive boilie or even more expensive feed.