Almost autumn

The need for plumbing and searching out the ‘hot spots’ becomes more obvious in early autumn than at any other time of the year. Generally speaking, results can be a bit hit and miss in September because the fish in your target venue are likely to have been bombarded with hoards of baited rigs in the preceding months. Yet if you track down the spots they visit regularly, you can certainly sneak a few chances before they really get their heads down when the big winds of Autumn arrive.

Obviously a well planned pre-baiting campaign will help overcome any shyness built-up by the carp, but a good plumb around now will uncover all sorts of otherwise hidden areas, especially those which are generally termed by the carp angling fraternity as ‘cleaned areas’. These areas of the lakebed may only be a few feet across, but as the weed density drops off with the cooler water, such ’hot spots’ can be uncovered fairly easily.

Some weeds take much longer to die off than others, but one type which tends to go much quicker than most is the cotton wool algae. Algae is present in all fisheries, but come the end of September/early part of October, blooms tend to lose their green colour and die back taking on a darker appearance, making lakebed examination a lot easier. Where cotton wool blooms have been present during the summer, you tend to get a light coating of black fluff that resembles hair which can easily be picked up by the marker rod or lead. A smooth ‘cleaned’ piece of bottom is what I look for, and usually one which is at least a yard or so across and surrounded by black fluffy algae.

One of the best ways of uncovering ‘cleaned areas’ is with a boat and some sort of looking glass, but not all venues allow anglers to do this so it is necessary to have a good cast around. I use two rods to do it thoroughly, the first armed with a simple marker float set up, and the second loaded with a baited rig. I’ll simply cast the marker out to the area I want to check, and then follow it with the rigged rod, taking note of anything I bring back on the hook. I’ll cast all around the marker, giving the rig plenty of time to settle on the bottom, before retrieving it and moving my attention to another area.

Marking territory
Obviously a ‘cleaned area’ may well have been created by the feeding activities of the fish, in which case, should I uncover one, I will have hit onto a sure winner, but another suggestion offered by anglers is that they are ‘cleaning spots’ – areas where the carp have rubbed themselves to rid any unwanted parasites and ‘cling-ons’ they may have picked up during the warmer weather. I tend to think that the later suggestion is a little bit misleading because I follow the line of thought that carp ‘clean’ themselves on the bottom in the early part of spring ridding themselves of the parasites that have taken hold in the winter. Their day to day activity in the warmer weather tends to keep most parasites at bay, with any rubbing on the bottom in the early part of autumn being done as a form of marking territory more than anything else.

As the food stocks deplete, the fish get more aggressive amongst themselves, and their marking of territory is a natural instinct. A lot of animals do it, the most notable being dogs when they rub themselves on the ground marking their smell after they’ve just had a good sniff. Like in the spring, this time of the year usually sees carp covered in red marks caused by such rubbing, or in the case of clay pits, covered with clay markings down the side. The marks won’t be as pronounced as they are after spawning, but nevertheless they will be obvious to the angler. Despite the fish all thinking that ‘cleaned’ spots are their own, it isn’t unusual for multiple captures to come your way from one if you get things right. Your presentation will usually be spot on because the bottom is clean, with the next important part of the equation being the choice of the right tactics.

Agitated and competitive
I can only speak about my own experiences here, and these very much point towards first tracking down the ‘hot spots’ and then keeping the baiting levels fairly light. Half a dozen or so freebies on a stringer alongside the hookbait would be my first choice in September, perhaps with a light coating of pellet just to increase the attraction. I always find mimicking nature is the best option, which is why I like to keep everything as tight as possible (e.g. similar to how the fish would find bloodworm beds). Early Autumn ‘hot spots’ tend to be quite isolated, so there’s no need for heavy or broad scatterings of bait just yet: these will come into their own towards the end of October, perhaps leading into November, when the weather will take a grip and the fish get into their pre-winter feeding mode.

If you’ve been targeting a venue with the same bait throughout the season then no doubt you will have lost a bit of faith with it during August as the catches dropped off. That is usually the nature of carp fishing, but my advice is to have confidence in your hard efforts because now is the time that they will really show through. The carp will recognise an established bait now more so than at any other time of the year.

Early autumn is a time when the carp begin to group up. They start to get agitated and competitive amongst themselves. They know winter is on its way and they head towards the areas they mark as their own and know there will be food. Such ‘hot spots’ are there waiting to be found by the angler. They may take some time to uncover, and they may be very isolated when you discover them, but early autumn is a transition time when the results generally only come to those who get each piece of the jigsaw right.
Crowy