Choose life. Choose a lake. Choose a swim. Choose a bait. Choose a rig. Choose sleepless nights under the stars. Choose the nocturnal music of branches creaking in the wind, leaves whispering, and the eerie night-calls of owls and wildfowl. Choose bright moons shattered in the rippling surface of lakes, and purple skies at sunset perfectly mirrored. Choose silent mist-shrouded pools at dawn. Choose visions of white-flowering waterlilies turning green-gold in the half-light. Choose the flashing bronze flanks of carp, twisting below the surface, on the edge of visibility. Choose a heightened heart-rate. Choose an emotional rollercoaster. Choose the psychological assault-course of planning, watching, locating, preparing, casting and waiting. Choose the endless hours of strung-out anticipation. Choose the rush of striking, hooking, fighting, and landing (or losing) the fish. Choose to walk the tightrope between desperate failure and the adrenaline-inducing, life-enhancing triumphant high of success. Choose life. Choose obsession. Choose Carp Fishing.
"Greg Freestone, Carpspotting 2011"

Questions and Answers with Steve Briggs




An interview with Steve Briggs, sponsored angler and Nash consultant.
Before I begin this interview I would like to say a big thank you to Steve for finding the time to do this interview, it really is appreciated, right then let’s begin…


So then Steve, when did it all begin?  Where was the first place that you wet a line?

The first place I actually fished in my life was on the small river Darent in Kent with my father just fishing for minnows and small roach, I would have only been six years old or something like that – it was great fun. But I started carp fishing at Brooklands Lake also in Kent when I was about 12. It actually took me two years to catch my first carp, which happened in March 1974 when I caught a beautiful 16lb 4oz mirror on a cube of luncheon meat. The fact that it took so long to catch made it more special and more memorable. After that the carp gradually came to my net more frequently and 40 years later they still give me that huge buzz!


The result of a great nights fishing at Brooklands Lakes in the mid 1970’s


When did you begin to target big carp?


In reality I guess it was about 1984 when I fished Darenth Tip Lake, which at the time had the reputation of being the hardest water in the Darenth Valley and also the water with more 30lb carp than any of the others. It was tough to start with but through the winter I managed to catch four different 30’s, which was actually a record for the valley at the time and gave me real confidence that I could catch from the harder waters.

The fish called Scar Bar, which was my fourth 30 of the season in 1984


It was also around this time that I had my first trip abroad to the legendary Cassien, it was a trip that totally blew me away and would effectively change my life. 30 years later and Cassien is still the best place I’ve ever been to in my life and it started me on the trail of big continental carp. In 1987 I caught a 61lb 8oz mirror, which was just mind-blowing for me back then and I knew I wanted more like that!


My first 40 from my first trip abroad in 1986


Carp fishing goes from strength to strength each year. Like myself, you target big carp, did you just follow the trend?


My carp fishing is changing all the time and that has meant going off in different directions. At the moment I’m almost constantly fishing abroad, but I still love my fishing in the UK too but I need something to inspire me. Next week I’m off to Grenvilles in Cambridge for four days and I’m really looking forward to that as there could be a 60lb mirror in there now!



A good 40 from Grenvilles Lake in Cambridge – a water I really enjoy fishing


I wouldn’t say that I’ve followed trends as such, I fished Yateley but it didn’t do much for me, whereas Fox Pool in its original days, Wraysbury 1 and the Mere all captivated me in different ways. When I’m looking for a water to fish, I like to target one that holds some sort of PB for me – it doesn’t mean that I’m always just solely after that fish but I like the idea that it puts me in with a chance. But I will always do my own thing – even if that means going against the grain and causing a bit of flack. For instance I’ve fished Elphick’s Lakes a few times and I caught the big one from there at 59lb 2oz, which many people didn’t like, but I liked the fish and I was very happy to catch it when I did and I know there’s nothing dubious about the fish like some people try to make out. I just do the fishing that suits me at the time.
 

A 71lb 8oz common from a recent trip to Hungary – I like to chase the big ones wherever they are!



Can you tell me, and everyone reading this interview, more about your personal angling?


All of the fishing I do is of course business related in some way as I work for Nash Tackle and of course write for several magazines around the world, but my fishing is also the fishing that I want to do and Kevin Nash and Alan Blair are happy to let me do my own thing as at the end of the day it’s what they took me on for in the first place.


Despite being heavily involved in the fishing business I’m still able to do the fishing I want


I’m at my happiest when fishing with my long term partner Joan, we just love the same things and enjoy getting away from it all. I guess love the big wild waters abroad such as Cassien as we love the space, freedom and peace that comes with that type of fishing.


It was love at first sight with Cassien and it’s still my favourite water today



Do you have a memorable capture?


That’s the easiest question to answer! Without a doubt my greatest and most memorable capture would be the Black Mirror from the Mere. I first walked around the Mere in the early 1990’s but didn’t get around to fishing it until 2005. I didn’t do any home work but just started from scratch, which wasn’t the best idea but those first sessions I just felt lost really, not seeing much – although I did lose one on my tenth night.

In 2009 still without a fish I decided I needed to take it more seriously and I began to put a lot more time and effort in  - and it worked, that year I caught three commons of 20lb 4oz, 29lb 12oz and 38lb 4oz. After that I knew what I needed to do to catch them. It was the hardest thing I’d ever taken on in my life and the opportunities were small and very brief but I knew what to look for and in 2010 I started of with commons of 32lb 4oz and 34lb 2oz. But then on June 18th I hooked the one that everyone wanted and seeing the Black Mirror go over the cord of the net is a vision that will stay with me forever! At 51lb 12oz it was also my first UK 50 plus.
   
The fantastic Black Mirror – head and shoulders above anything else I’ve caught!



What’s the best piece of advice you could give to anybody reading this regards targeting big carp?


Well, it’s not rocket science really, firstly I would say work hard and never give in. The greatest things are normally the hardest to achieve but if you go at it half-hearted then it’s not going to happen unless you get really lucky. I spent 143 nights after the Black Mirror, in fact I didn’t catch anything until my 63rd night but giving up never entered my head.


Secondly I would say keep everything simple, find a style of fishing that suits you and don’t vary too much from it. It’s no good chopping and changing rigs or baits, for the most part I just use a good quality bait and a rig that is simple but one that will land the biggest fish in the lake if I hook it.
   

Good baits and strong, simple rigs are the basis for all my fishing

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