My local water has a boilie ban, what can I use instead?
My new water has a boilie ban, what other baits could I use as an alternative? Rob Horton, via e-mail
“There are plenty of waters around that don’t allow the use of boilies, but there is nothing to worry about with such a huge array of different types of awesome carp-catching baits around,” reassures Alex Grice. “Like a lot of anglers today, boilies are a first port of call when it comes to carp bait but there are so many other devastating baits that are sometimes overlooked in my opinion that are just as good for getting bites.
“I am a great fan of using pellets; there is no doubt that pellets are phenomenal at attracting and enticing carp to feed. There are many shapes, sizes and flavours of pellets on the market today that provide great opportunities when fishing for carp. With so many different pellets you can, without doubt, make some of the best mixes using various sizes and shapes that will not only make the fish much easier to catch but will also be a lot more instantly attractive than boilies. Using a blend of different sized pellets will offer many bait items for the carp which will keep them feeding for hours, as the different sizes breakdown at staggered speeds. My preference for pellets is smaller sizes, these usually being 1 to 4mm in size, but it’s also a good bet to add a few larger ones which could be used as hookbait options. CC Moore’s readymade Mini-Ultramix pellets are a top blend of small, highly attractive pellets that are great for all manner of applications. Pellets lend themselves perfectly for use in PVA bags, spod mixes and Method mixes alike and really do add pulling power when used in conjunction with other baits or on their own. To further enhance and boost the attraction properties of your pellets, try using a liquid bait dip when using PVA bags or to lightly coat the pellets before baiting up.
“Hempseed is another great alternative loose feed bait and compliments many other types of alternative hookbaits like sweetcorn and tiger nuts. This natural product is one of the best baits of all time and creates a fantastic feeding response from carp. CC Moore’s Intense Hemp is a great, oily particle that when used in conjunction with pellets provides a great fish pulling loose feed. And, by adding a few larger pellets or sweetcorn freebies means you have many options for use as hookbaits as well.
“To really spice up your hemp, experiment by adding different liquids and additives to create a super boosted carpet feed. In general, try to keep your hookbait small when fishing over hempseed, a few grains of plastic corn or a small 8mm pellet will be much more readily taken than a large hookbait because of it being a lot more blatant over a large bed of smaller items. Another great tip when using a blend of hemp and other small particles is to add a light coating of boiling water to the mix, this will really kick-start the bait and release all the natural oils present working from the off when introduced into the water.
“Finally, there are so many alternative hookbaits available in many colours and sizes. Bright single hookbaits will catch carp in all circumstances be it orange, yellow or white. The colours are endless and it always pays to keep changing the colours to see what’s working best. Other than bright single baits there are many pellet type hookbaits in many flavours, these work really well in conjunction with small bags of pellets. The Bloodworm Hookbaits and pellets from CC Moore being my favourite and a great carp-catcher on all types of water.
“There simply are so many types of bait other than boilies available that will catch carp without question. Keep trying different bait types and you’ll find your results will be just as good that you may never have to use boilies again!”