Anyone who called into the shop last week will probably know that Jon has been out at the fantastic Abbey Lakes complex for a few days angling. However, on this occasion the trip to France wasn't just a holiday. While out at the venue both Jon and fellow BCAC winner and Team Bankside member Ian Poole were taking part in the filming of a new Carp Fishing DVD that's being put together by Rob Hughes of Angling International.

Due out in the spring of 2009, the DVD is being filmed on Abbey Lakes and so far there have been some impressive specimens caught for the camera. Both Jon and Ian chipped in with a number of good fish on their short stay at the venue, with Jon taking the pick of the bunch at 52lb, which was also a new personal best.

The actual carp caught will only form a small part of action, however, as Rob has spent several days at the venue clad in his diving gear collecting some amazing underwater action that's totally different to much of what has been seen before. The amazing water clarity of Abbey Lakes has lead to some amazing footage that answers many questions about what's really going on out there. 

Bankside will be one of the first to stock the new DVD so keep an eye on the site for further updates. For more details on Abbey Lakes go to anglinginternational.com

With the BCAC over for another year, Team Bankside member Ian Poole has been out and about on a variety of waters over the last few weeks, and recently bagged a nice brace of fish during a tough few days on Yateley Sandhurst. Just three carp were landed during his stay and Ian managed to land two of them. Off the mark quickly with a 33-06 mirror, Ian backed up his first fish with a 24lb common on his last afternoon to ensure a successful first trip to this busy day ticket water.

The winning bait for both carp was Richworth's K-G-1, with the hookbaits fished inside solid PVA bags of Bankside's Mini Mass pellets and crushed K-G-1 freezer baits. A size 8 Korda Wide Gape tied to 3 inches of Korda Supernatural braid was the winning rig, and this was combined with the very efective outline rig which ensures the lead comes off when a carp is hooked. 

After a very dour start to the season, it's nice to see the River Severn finally hit some form, and running water expert Alan Smith has been making the most of it. His latest rampage through the stocks of Severn carp has resulted in the capture of this cracking 28lb mirror, amongst others, on a short overnight session. Once again, a prototype Bankside boilie was the winning bait - watch this space for further news on a release date.

Barbel now, and Bankside Tackle's 'top man' has also been spotted sneaking about on the banks of the Severn in the dead of night, and a series of sessions on the lower stretch of the river has seen Jon bank one of his target fish in the shape of this stunning 12-10 barbel, a big Severn specimen by anyone's standards. The ever consistant Team Barbel boilies fished alongside a small bag of XL Grubbers was the succesful tactic, and one that's accounted for big barbel from many of the local rivers this year.

Over the last couple of years Jon has been receiving an ever increasing number of requests about carp angling tuition, and we are very pleased to announce that from October 1st Bankside will be offering a limited number of tuition sessions on the Richworth Linear complex.

Jon has the full portfolio of Linear Fisheries day ticket waters at his disposal which offer something for everyone. Whether you are keen to learn how to catch consistently on prolific waters such as Brasenose 1 and 2, or refine your big fish skills and at the same time go in search of the Big Fully Scaled from St. Johns, Jon has the knowledge to put you on the right track.

Cutting his teeth on venues such as the pressured Linch Hill complex and then successfully moving on to waters such as Dinton Pastures, Jon has captured more than 60 English 30's and 5 x 40's on his travels around the UK's big fish scene. Along with his match partner Ian Poole, Jon's also a regular in the British Carp Angling Championships and has just capped off a run of consistent results with a convincing victory in this years final. It's fair to say that Jon knows how to succeed on all types of waters and it's entirely up to you as to how you want to tap into his extensive carp angling know how built up over the last 20 years. Trips can be tailor made to suit your carp angling requirements and cover as many or as few subjects as you want.

To book a session or for more details please contact Jon at the shop on 01684 294511.  

Judging by the amount of catch reports we have received recently it seems as though many Bankside customers are out on the banks and catching in what has to be one of the best times of the year for both carp and barbel. First up is a big barbel off the Loddon and here's what the lucky captor had to say: 

"Hi Jon,
Attached is a snap of one of the better barbel I've caught with the Team Barbel boilies, caught on Sunday night on the river Loddon. Unfortunately I discovered that my scales had run out of battery but I reckon it was between 10 & 12lb. I had another of 12lb 4oz about two weeks ago from another stretch of the Loddon, again on the Team Barbel boilies.
Your Team Barbel boilies have definitely been my best performing barbel boilie for a long time so good work on those little beauties! I'm off for a week's fishing on the Wye next week so we will see how well received they are up there!
Many thanks and speak soon,
Justin Garrett"

Carp now and an angler who has been steadily getting amongst the big commons throughout 2008 is Alan Smith. After several good seasons on the more pressured lakes around the Oxford and Gloucester region, Alan has been concentrating on running water this year and the 24 and 27lb fish pictured are just a small sample of the action Alan's been finding. A prototype Bankside boilie has been the winning bait, and more details of these will be released shortly.

Regular Bankside customer Colin Warner recently dropped in a picture of one of his recent catches taken on a quick overnighter at Linear Fisheries Smith's Hardwick. The heavily plated 26lb stunner is one of the fish Smith's Hardwick has become so famous for over the years, and fell to a Bankside Grubber Hookbait fished alongside a small PVA bag of mixed Grubber Pellets cast a short distance down the margins. Well done Colin!