Probably the best known water is 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 every year 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.
In addition to its big carp, Bluebell Lakes is also renowned nationally for its big catfish - above left is Lyon Pickin with his monster 75lbs 8oz specimen taken from Kingfisher Lake in September 2005 - plus its big bream to 14lbs 8oz, tench to 13lbs 8oz, chub to just over 9lbs, crucians to nearly 15lbs 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.
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!
The tackle shop is also home to 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 enromously in size and include Common Carp from 2lbs to over 40lbs, Mirrors to 30lbs-plus, bream to 14lbs, tench over 10lbs, Golden Orfe to 4lbs, 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.
The most productive swims are said to be Pegs 1-6, 30-36 and 40-52, although few pegs fail to produce. However, as a general rule of thumb 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 Lake
The main specimen carp water on the Bluebell complex, Kingfisher Lake is home to Commons over 40lbs as well as monster Mirror Carp, catfish, pike and bream.
In summer the water can sometimes be fairly weedy, which leads to an abundance of natural food and high growth rates so at these times it is vital to find clearings on the gravel bottom and to fish these spots. In the last couple of years, however, most of the weed has been cleared and has not re-grown.
Anglers should also be aware of two gravel bars which arc across the centre of the lake from the Bluebell bank to midway down the toilet-block bank. These gravel bars give depths between six and 13 feet along their ridges, but between them is a channel up to 19 feet deep.Fishing the top of the gravel bars can be very prodictive whilst in winter the deeper water can often be a haunt for the fish.
Depths vary throughout this nine-and-a-half acre water from eight to 24 feet, but most anglers concentrate their fishing between 10ft and 12ft on the popular swims.
For winter fishing, most anglers go up to 40 yards out where depths range between 16 and 20 feet. The point swims are 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 next to the toilet block whilst the other South Bank swims are hottest from February to November with anglers doing best fishing about 65 yards out or close to the rod tip.
Popular particle baits include hemp, maize, groats and carp pellets as well as more traditional maggots, cheese and luncheon meat. When fishing maggots a good idea is to fish a 'Medusa' - super-glue several maggots by the blunt back end to a ball which is then fished one to four inches off the bottom. During summer surface fishing using bread and dog biscuits has been very successful.
Sandmartin and Swan Lakes
Until a few years ago Sandmartin (left) and Swan Lakes were one but were separated by the creation of a causeway which is now becoming well established.
Situated near the entrance road to the fishery, Sandmartin is the shallower of the two lakes at between four feet near the entrance road shelving to 20 feet at the causeway. The most underfished water at Bluebell Lakes, it now regularly produces fish to over 30lbs with the lake record currently standing at 39lbs 8oz and its two best known fish being White Lips and Three Scales, both mirrors in the upper 30s.
The fish species and sizes are much the same in each water, which are well known for tench into double figures, roach well over 2lbs and pike over 30lbs. As a result, both Sandmartin and Swan are a regular venue for Pike Anglers Club events and are used for ACA qualifiers.
Although the pike can be difficult to catch, because there are few small pike in the waters those which are caught are usually well into double figures. Most popular techniques are traditional live and dead baiting but few anglers bother with the spinner.
For the silver fish - which include roach to 3lbs, rudd to 2lbs, perch to 4lbs and tench into double figures - 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.
Swan Lake is now becoming nearly as popular as Kingfisher with carp to just under 60lbs, the biggest of which is believed to be 'The Creature', pictured in the introduction section when it was caught in April 2005 by Dave Nicklin at 56lbs 6oz. Dave was fishing 14mm monster crab boilies to taken the fish.
The Creature was last caught in May 2006 by Middlesborough angler Les Marsh when it came out at its biggest ever weight of 59lbs 4oz. Les was fishing from the point on the East Bank with Dynamite Spicy Chicken Indulgence boilies.
Particularly productive pegs are at the top end of Swan near the reeds and the pegs by the road. On Sandmartin, the concrete block peg next to the conifers (above left) is a particular hot spot, especially for pike, whilst the pegs along the road side are good for tench. The far end of Swan (left) is the shallowest part of Swan Lake at between six and eight feet deep.
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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Specimen carp anglers will soon have a new venue to go at when Bluebell Lakes opens its new runs water for angling early in 2008.
Bluebell Lakes
Bluebell Lakes offers specimen, pleasure and competition angling on four 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.
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.
Car park access is available for disabled anglers to many of the pegs and there is a well stocked tackle shop on site which sells a large selection of terminal tackle by Nash, Korda and Armaled International as well as boilies, pellets, groundbait, dips and tinned hookbaits by Nash, Dynamite and Van Den Eynde. The shop also holds a decent stock of carp rods by Nash; match and spinning Rods by various manufacturers and a good selection of luggage, bedchairs and bait buckets by Nash, Nevis and Trakker.