Acclaimed as the only day-ticket venue in the UK to offer two 60lb-plus carp, the best known water at Bluebell Lakes is probably the nationally renowned Kingfisher Lake which has produced several common carp over 50lbs - the most famous of these being 'Benson', a stunning common which is caught fairly regularly and whose best weight so far was when he was taken in 2006 at 64lbs.
Benson is pictured at the top of the page with Kyle Smith when he was caught in May 2003 at 60lbs 8oz.
The venue also holds some big pike with the venue record currently standing at 41lbs 12oz - a beautiful fish taken by predator angler Colin Bailey from Kingfisher Lake in 1995.
Despite its reputation for specimen fish, Bluebell Lakes is also a great pleasure angler's fishery. You don't have to become a reclusive 'camper' to enjoy good catches and plenty of fun in attractive surroundings!
Car park access is available and there is a well stocked tackle shop on site which sells a large selection of terminal tackle by Nash, Korda, Trakker and Fox as well as boilies, pellets, groundbait, dips and tinned hookbaits by Nash and Dynamite as well as the fishery's own range of carp baits.
Inside the tackle shop there is a decent cafe where breakfasts, burgers and other snacks as well as hot and cold drinks and a range of confectionery can be bought. The cafe is open every day in summer and at weekends between November and March.
Bluebell Lake
Anglers who have never visited the fishery before are advised to start on Bluebell Lake or one of the other waters rather than head straight for Kingfisher.
Regarded by regulars as the easiest of the waters, Bluebell is a general pleasure, match and specimen water which offers the best of all worlds and is suitable for anglers of all ages and abilities whether novice or expert.
The fish range enormously in size, although these days there are fewer smaller fish in the lake than there used to be. These include common carp averaging between 16lbs and 33lbs with a good head of 20s, mirrors to 30lbs-plus, bream to 14lbs, tench over 10lbs, perch to 4lbs, crucian carp to 4lbs with some believed to be of record size, roach to 2lbs and eels to 7lbs 8oz. There are a lot of carp between 15lbs and 25lbs.
Although few pegs fail to produce, as a general rule it is best to fish facing the wind, particularly if you are after the carp when it is advisable to fish no more than 20 yards out and often close in to the sides.
For general coarse fishing, try putting out a bed of scolded maggots mixed with maize flake and fishmeal groundbait. Over this you can fish most baits including strawberry or fishmeal carp pellets (not trout pellets), bread, cheese, dog biscuit, luncheon meat and red and white maggots.
For pleasure angling a size 14-18 hook is advisable with between 2lb to 10lb line depending on what you are expecting to catch. Pole anglers are advised to use a minimium of No 8 elastic.
Although depths vary from two to four feet around the sides to between 16ft and 19ft in the middle, most pleasure anglers fish between two and seven feet deep on the float and up to 20 yards out when on the feeder.
For float fishing worms, especially brandlings or a lob chopped into three, work particularly well when fished on a size 10 hook whilst other popular baits include meat and cheese. Most popular floater baits are biscuits and bread. Maggots are a good bait for fishing the feeder, especially when accompanied by fishmeal or fruit flavoured groundbaits. A piece of corn with two maggots on a size 10-14 hook is also good. The on-site shop sells soft carp pellets which also make a good bait.
For the carp, 14mm strawberry, banana, peach melba, tutti frutti, monster crab, squid/octopus, crayfish and supermarine boilies are commonly used on a size 4-8 hair rig. Fish either under the rod tip or up to 20 yards out and groundbait very lightly so as not to attract 'pest' fish.
Kingfisher
The main specimen carp water on the Bluebell complex, Kingfisher Lake is home to Commons over 40lbs as well as monster Mirror Carp, pike and bream.
Depths vary throughout this seven acre water but generally average between 14 and 16 feet depending on the time of year with most anglers concentrating their fishing between 10ft and 12ft on the popular swims.
The point swims can be deadly from April until the end of September whilst the other swims are good all year round. Anglers on the Point swims tend to fish between 20 and 60 yards out whilst elsewhere anglers cast to around 40 yards or fish close in to the banks.
Fishing close to the bank or about 20 yards out are also popular methods for pegs along the Creek bank. Fishing is also generally good in the margins where cover is provided by the overhanging willows and beds of lilies.
Popular particle baits include hemp, sweetcorn, maize and carp pellets as well as more traditional boilies, maggots, cheese and luncheon meat. When fishing maggots a good idea is to fish a maggot clip or hair-rig 20 to 25 maggots and fish either on the bottom of just off the bottom.
During summer, surface fishing using bread and dog biscuits has been very successful, paricularly in calm warm weather when the fish can be enticed with a few free offerings.
Sandmartin
Until a few years ago Sandmartin (left) and Swan Lakes were one but were separated by the creation of a causeway which has now become well established.
Situated near the entrance road to the fishery, Sandmartin is the deepest of the two lakes with about seven feet of water being found up to 30 yards out from the Creek bank before the bottom shelves to between 18 and 20 feet. The deepest water can be found out from the road bank where the bottom falls to about 26 feet about 30 yards out.
Stocked with between 100 and 120 commons and mirrors ranging from 13lbs to 32lbs, the Sandmartin now regularly produces fish to 30lbs with the lake record currently standing at 39lbs 8oz. Its two best-known fish are White Lips and Three Scales, both mirrors in the upper 30s.
In addition to the carp there are bream and tench to double figures, roach to over 2lbs, some good sized perch and pike the mid-20s. As a result, Sandmartin is a regular venue for Pike Anglers Club events and are used for ACA qualifiers. The most popular piking techniques are traditional live and dead baiting but few anglers bother with the spinner.
For the silver fish, most anglers use ordinary brown, white or flavoured groundbait to which casters, hemp, scolded maggots or sweetcorn can be added. Best hook baits include red and white maggots, casters, worm, sweetcorn and luncheon meat. When fishing the shallower margins most anglers use the waggler but over three rod lengths out a sliding float, swimfeeder or leger tackle is needed as the banks shelve steeply to the deeper water.
Because nost anglers fish Sandmartin for the carp the most popular baits tend to be pineapple, plum or Source boilies, sweetcorn, quarter-inch pieces of Pepperami or 21mm halibut pellets fished on a hair-rig.Anglers going after the carp should note that there is a minimum 12lb line strength and minimum of Size 10 hooks on this water.
Swan
Following its development as a prolific big carp water, Swan Lake is now becoming nearly as popular as Kingfisher with specimens to over 60lbs, the biggest of which is believed to be 'The Creature', pictured at the top of the page when it was most recently caught at 64lbs 2oz and in the introduction section when it was caught in April 2005 by Dave Nicklin at 56lbs 6oz.
In addition to 'The Creature' there are at least four other known 40lbs fish in Swan, some 35 known 30s and a good head of mid-20s. There are few fish under 20lbs in this water
About nine acres in size with 27 pegs, Swan is between four and seven feet deep at the far end from the causeway with the remainder of the lake shelving away from here to between 14 and 16 feet.
In addition to the carp, Swan holds tench and bream to double figures and chub to 8lbs. Anglers fishing for the non-carp species tend to head for the causeway bank corners and ledger sweetcorn, maggots, pellet or 10mm boilies.
Mallard
Opened in Spring 2008, the 20-acre Mallard Lake on the right as you drive into Bluebell Lakes is the venue's new runs water, being stocked with an estimated 2,000 commons and mirrors between 6lbs and 37lbs.The biggest fish to have come out in 2008 weighed 25lbs whilst the average size has so far been about 12lbs.
Formerly a private syndicate carp water, Mallard has a total of 49 pegs, most of them doubles, which are evenly spaced around the lake. In addition to the carp, Mallard also promises to be a cracking silver fish water with a 17lb 6oz bream already having been caught and tench known to run to 12lbs. There are also decent heads of quality roach, rudd and perch.
The 17lbs bream was taken in August 2008 by Antony Nolan who was fishing a 10mm boilie for carp in about 16 feet of water in the tackle shop end of the lake.
The most popular areas of Mallard tend to be the pegs alongside the entrance road because these are less weedy than other parts of the lake and because anglers can park their vehicles behind their swims. Whilst parking is also available in the field which runs behind much of the far bank, this can become inaccessible for cars in wet weather.
As one would expect, all modern and traditional carping techniques work well on this water but unless anglers are fishing large baits they can also expect to pick up some of the tench and bream.
Popular baits so far have proved to be boilies, sweetcorn, and 21mm halibut pellets fished over large beds of 6mm pellets and free offerings. Other baits which have proved successful include artificial sweetcorn and luncheon meat.
Whether going for the carp or silver fish, a general rule of thumb on Mallard is to keep things simple. Also, because there are not large numbers of small fish in the lake, anglers going for the silvers can fish maggot or worm without fear of being pestered by little nuisance roach, rudd or perch.
This makes Mallard suitable for club matches with the 2008 match record standing at 214lbs.
Wood Pool
With about 30 pegs, Wood Pool can be found at the top end of Swan Lake and is an easy-to-fish pleasure and match water divided into two by three central islands crowned with trees and shrubs.
About six feet deep throughout with an even bottom, Wood Pool frequently returns match catches in excess of 50lbs with the biggest fish being carp to 6lbs; tench, bream and Golden Orfe to 4lbs; and roach and rudd to 1lb. As a result, taking 50lbs plus can be a busy affair.
Most popular techniques for fishing the water are waggler or pole using scolded maggots as groundbait with single red or white maggot or caster on the hook.
The River Nene
Bluebell Lakes' two-mile stretch of the River Nene regularly produces carp to 30lbs, bream around 7lbs, chub to 6lbs, tench to 5lbs, perch to 3lbs, roach to 2lbs and eels to 7lbs. Willow Creek, which splits off the main river at the weir and runs through the Bluebell Lakes site, is recognised as a venue where you are virtually guaranteed fish of all species in the summer but which comes into its best form in winter with quality roach and chub catches a regular event.
Most anglers fish a waggler or small balsa float about two to three feet from the far bank and about four feet deep whilst pole and whip are also well suited to this water. Suggested baits are bronze maggot regularly fed both to the far bank and under your feet. The feeder may be responsible for larger chub just off the far bank.
Sport on the river was further improved early in 2006 when an additional 30 peg stretch which had previously been unfished was opened for angling and is now available for both pleasure and match fishing.
 Bluebell Lakes' own website is where anglers can keep in touch with day-to-day developments at the fishery and find out information on latest catches. The site also features an Anglers Photo Gallery. Click on the logo to go to their site. |
How to get there . . .
Bluebell Lakes Fishery is reached from the main A14 which runs east/west across Northamptonshire. At the A45/A605 junction on the A14 at Thrapston take the A605 north towards Titchmarsh, Oundle and Peterborough. After several miles you pass the turning to Oundle on the left. A short distance further, again on the left, is a turning for Tansor. Drive through Tansor, ignoring the turn marked "Village Only", and just after you leave Tansor the white railings marking the entrance to Bluebell Lakes can be seen on the left.
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Coventry specimen carp hunter broke the Bluebell Lakes carp record when, fishing the venue's Swan Lake, he landed 'The Creature' which weighed in at a massive 54lbs 2oz.
Specimen carp anglers now have a new venue to go with the opening of Bluebell Lakes' new runs water, Mallard Lake.
Bluebell Lakes
Bluebell Lakes offers specimen, pleasure and competition angling on five lakes, a match pool and a two mile stretch of the River Nene and one of its backwaters in surroundings which vary from tree clad lakes to open gravel pits to grass banked river.
In addition to its big carp, Bluebell Lakes is also renowned nationally for its big catfish - above left is Lyon Pickin with his monster 84lb specimen taken from Kingfisher Lake in September 2005 - plus its big bream to 14lbs 8oz, tench to 13lbs 8oz, chub to just over 9lbs and perch to over 4lbs.
In addition, even the river produces monster fish with carp over 30lbs, perch to 3lbs, eels over 7lbs, roach to 2lbs and tench to 10lbs plus.
The shop also holds a decent stock of carp rods by Nash as well as match and spinning rods by various manufacturers and a good selection of luggage, bedchairs and bait buckets by Nash, TF Gear, Fox and Trakker.