So, with the ticket confirmed I made my way to the meet Rob who was running the syndicate to obtain my membership pass!
The excitement was unbearable and all I could think about in my head was various fishing scenarios from what rigs & lead systems to use to what the lake bed and water would be like. So many things to mull over!
I decided to firstly visit the water with no tackle to assess the lake. Things like walking distance from the car park, swim access, swims and how many and what parts of the water they commanded, and of course to see if I could spot any of the lake’s prizes.



As I carried on around the lake poking my head into various swims I was expecting to see or even meet other members, especially being a Saturday afternoon in early March, but I didn’t, a blissful lake with not an angler in sight – Hmmm… I had this vision of a mass of dark green polyester bivvies lining up down the west bank of the lake. But no. Nothing. How nice was this.
With the eager anticipation to get the rods out on to my new chosen paradise the joy was short lived as something happened that no one was expecting. GLOBAL PANDEMIC & NATIONAL LOCKDOWN! Covid -19 was here.
Fishing and everything else in life came to complete halt in mid march….. Devastated. The wait began.
With all the madness going on it wasn’t until June that I finally stepped foot on the bank for a two night session. During lockdown I decided I would try and keep a diary of each trip so I could learn and figure out the lake as I progressed throughout the year. And so it began and the first day bankside came and went. WOW. What a place. Just me, a couple of other anglers, locked in at dark in 500 acres of royal park soaked in history.


With the battle plans laid out I planned on doing a two nighter. I heard a few fish had come out of swim 5 which finally speaking to the first member seen on the lake he told me that this swim has good form around may onwards upto around august.
Hearsay being that, I wanted to form my own views on the situation and lapped the lake to scope out the playing field. Having only seen fish showing in the out of bounds area up towards the dam wall end of the lake I was deciding to either fish swim 5 or 7 as they gave me the best vantage point should I decide to move onto showing fish.
After a long debate the decision was made to fish from swim 5. Rigs baited, leads clipped on and 3 rods went out at mid water just behind a weed bed in 8ft of water with a light scattering of the ever pungent ocean amino over the top of each spot. Traps set. Contented, I sat back, waited and soaked up the mild June evening hoping for those royal carp to pay me a visit.
Lloyd Chapman

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