Mike’s Diary
Spring is in the air
Posted in Mike’s Diary on 03rd April 2011I'm not really sure where all the time has gone this year but at least we can say spring is now well and truly upon us. I've even managed to get the rods out for the first time in over 5-months! It was just lovely to be at the lake side once again and I love this time of the year, especially the amazing dawn chorus as night turns to day and filling our lungs with cool fresh spring air after another long, hard and frustrating winter - yes, spring has finally arrived and here's to a long sun filled summer - hopefully!
Oh yes, I nearly forgot - I also caught one! Not a giant at 22lb 8oz but its sheer beauty more than made up for its size and it was only the third fish out of the difficult venue in 5-months - a very pleasing result. I'm planning to do a bit more over the next month before hanging my rods up for the rest of 2011 and concentrating on our new house build. It will be a very frustrating time for me but I have to get my priorities in order, besides, the fish will still be there and my hunger will be greater than ever when I finally return.
On the bait front we have never been so busy and for the first time in the entire history of Essential Baits, such is the demand, we are now working on a 4 week lead time for fresh boilies, this despite working 12-hour rolling shifts every day!! We are doing our very best to look after our customers and I would like to personally thank everyone for their loyal support and patience. As our customers keep telling us - "the best is always worth waiting for"...
Boilie Paste
Mark Stubbles with yet another fine cold water carp. Mark is an extremely succesful and consistent angler and instinctively knows the rewards little edges can bring.
Many anglers tend to overlook the advantages that paste’s can give. Throughout the colder months I nearly always wrap a thin layer of paste around my hook bait. This not only gives the bait a better ‘leak off’ in terms of attraction as the paste slowly dissipates, but also gives the hook bait a completely different texture.
Paste is also an essential requirement if you prefer to make your own cork ball pop-ups or balanced baits. A 10mm cork ball with approx 3mm of paste wrapped around it will give you a nice balanced 16mm hook bait. To make pop-ups however, you will need to wrap a thinner layer of paste around the cork. I find that a 12mm cork ball with approx 1.5mm of paste wrapped around the outside creates pop-ups buoyant enough for most presentations.
Top Tip
We make the paste soft enough for most applications, but if you find the paste starting to dry out a little, just dampen it down with a ‘Bait Glug’ or a ‘Liquid Food’ and re-mould together. (Rinse hands in warm water first)
If you need to leave the paste standing for any length of time, make sure you wrap it up in cling film otherwise it can quickly dry up. It will be fine to wrap up in cling film and leave in the fridge for 24 hours if needed.
