Last week there were quite a few spare pitches so I chanced arriving in the afternoon so I could fish into the evening. Of course, with the sun shining all the spots I favour were already occupied. I settled in what I call the reed corner, the first spot I fished on the lake many years ago and once my clear favourite. However, I lost so many fish in the dense reeds that I stopped fishing there.

Today there seemed to be little choice, while the reeds have now encroached much further leaving a very narrow channel of open water through which to play large fish, even assuming you can keep them from the reeds. I started free-lining with bread but although the line tightened occasionally it seemed that roach were the culprits, and I hooked nothing. But I could see carp moving in the reeds less than a rod length out, so dropped in some floating crust.

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It wasn't long before two good sized carp both went for the crust at the same time, although I contrived to pull away from both of them. I persevered, and sure enough a fish soon took the crust and ploughed straight into the reeds despite my efforts to turn it. Fish and hook gone!

I decided that I couldn't go on in that swim, as landing any decent sized fish would be impossible, so left to walk around the lake to find another spot. Surprisingly I found the spot at the other end of the reeds was free, the chap who was there when I arrived having left. It is very close to the next pitch, where the woman of a man and wife pair was fishing. I don't like to be that close to other anglers, but I do like this spot as it offers a better chance to keep any hooked fish from the reeds.

First cast with free-lined luncheon meat along the side of the reeds, but a respectable distance from them, resulted in the line streaming away and a battle to keep a carp from the reeds. I won, just, the fish entangling the line around a reed stem almost under my feet during a last-minute surge. A nicely coloured 8lb leather carp (14.25). The husband of the woman next to me got very concerned as I applied side pressure to the fish, fearing a breakage, with my terminal tackle subsequently whizzing towards his wife. He obviously didn't realise that it amounted to only a hook, they both being of the more conventional feeder fraternity.

Things then went quiet and I tried float fishing. The roach once again dominated the scene, with a couple perhaps around the 6-8oz mark but far too many missed bites. Whatever happened to the tench? In the past I could expect to pick up at least one during a session.

At around 17.00 I noticed carp picking bits off the surface so tried free-lined crust. I had bought a baker's loaf with quite rubbery crust, which is ideal for this type of fishing. It wasn't long before I managed to hook a fish and soon had a 5lb 10oz common carp on the bank. This was followed shortly after by a similar fish, this time a shade lighter at 5lb 9oz (17.30).

It then quietened down until the evening set in, at which point the expected margin foraging was clearly underway. I could see the stems moving in the main reed bank and also in a small reed cluster almost immediately under my feet to the left. I dropped in a free offering there and a decent sized carp quickly emerged from below to suck it in. After one miss with crust on the hook, the next time a fish was on. However, it raced immediately towards the main reed bank and all attempts to turn it, or even slow it, failed spectacularly. It was a big fish and it took my hook with it. I had another take soon after and fortunately this time the fish stayed in open water. After quite a tussle a 10lb 3oz leather carp was in the net (18.50).

The chap and his wife had left some time before, so I then went to where she had fished and dropped a piece of crust by the reeds. Sure enough, it was soon taken and this time a leather carp of just under 10lb was the reward (19.15). I went back to my spot and rounded things off with a 5lb mirror carp (19.40) just before my proposed packing up time.

Although I had a bit of luck getting a preferred spot after somebody left, the evening margin stalking worked out just as I had hoped. There is something magic about watching for fish movement and then tempting them to take a piece of crust no more than a few inches from the bank. And the result is truly explosive!