Never try to repeat a success, they say.

Quite right too. Within fifteen hours of leaving Willows, head fuzzy with carpy joy, I was back in the same swim at first light despite the frost for a second helping. Presuming it would be too cold for the carp to be on the feed until the sun hit the water, I started with a light float and maggot for some less fussy roach and bream. Over the next hour I had no bites at all and had seen four carp come out to anglers unaware of my excellent fishy thinking, fishing them out from the shadiest side of the island where the rising sun struck the water last of all.

Think like a fish, they say as well, but I'm not sure the fish have always read the same memo.

I swapped to a bright coloured wafter and method-fed towards the island. I had two good takes, and on both occasions the shop-bought 4-inch 8lb hooklink snapped in the middle mid-battle. It really wasn't fair. The third from the same packet seemed tough enough when i tested it, but the fish had had enough and the whole lake seemed to go quiet. With no more bites, and with 90 minutes left, I popped to adjacent Warwick's Water for some quick and easy small roach action. Ha. Didn't set a single bite.

So it was a blank, a pretty undeserved one, so I have no fishy photos to show you, but here's a goose.  There you go. That's fishing.