Rob Hitchens did it a few years ago in the Lindholme winter league and cleared up….

I suppose it’s the ammount you put on the hook that does it,as well as the texture.

I use paste regularly in winter and it can be deadly on the right days. A pellet type float and rig is the order of the day with just enough paste to cover the hook and fished at dead depth. Think of paste as a very soft pellet that covers all of the hook and you can see the idea behind the hook bait and its potential benefits. On some days paste can be the only hook bait that will produce regular bites. I have even caught on paste after breaking ice so temperature does not come in to if as to if paste will work or not. Sometimes paste can pick out the bigger fish and is often the top hook bait for quality skimmers and F1s in winter. Paste can also be a useful change bait on venues where roach are a real problem when attempting to first use expander pellets as hook bait to target better quality fish. However, a word of warning. Pellet is often much better at producing quicker bites and there are days when paste does not work even though your swim is solid with feeding fish. Line bites can still be a problem as with normal summer paste fishing. However, on hard difficult days. Indications on the float that are clearly line bites can help in sorting out a swim and working out a feeding pattern or best depth to fish with pellet. Knowing that there are fish in your peg can be of real help in winter. So, paste has lots of uses in winter. I always have paste with me and use it as a change bait when using pellet as my first choice hook bait. There are very few venues where i have been confident of targeting the fish on paste from the start of a match unless its the proven hook bait on that venue. Although, i have switched to paste after struggling with pellet many times and then bagged up or at least been able to pick out a few fish that would not look at a pellet on the hook on very difficult days. Paste can just as easily produce no bites. Just depends on the venue and the mood the fish are in from day to day. There are several different ways to feed when using paste in winter but basically feeding in a similar way to how you would feed when using pellet is the norm. Little and often with 4ml pellets is often the best way in my experience. Basically rewarding the swim after catching each fish and your not going to go fare wrong. Ground bait can also work as does feeding small amounts of paste.

@TrueBlue wrote:

I use paste regularly in winter and it can be deadly on the right days. A pellet type float and rig is the order of the day with just enough paste to cover the hook and fished at dead depth. Think of paste as a very soft pellet that covers all of the hook and you can see the idea behind the hook bait and its potential benefits. On some days paste can be the only hook bait that will produce regular bites. I have even caught on paste after breaking ice so temperature does not come in to if as to if paste will work or not. Sometimes paste can pick out the bigger fish and is often the top hook bait for quality skimmers and F1s in winter. Paste can also be a useful change bait on venues where roach are a real problem when attempting to first use expander pellets as hook bait to target better quality fish. However, a word of warning. Pellet is often much better at producing quicker bites and there are days when paste does not work even though your swim is solid with feeding fish. Line bites can still be a problem as with normal summer paste fishing. However, on hard difficult days. Indications on the float that are clearly line bites can help in sorting out a swim and working out a feeding pattern or best depth to fish with pellet. Knowing that there are fish in your peg can be of real help in winter. So, paste has lots of uses in winter. I always have paste with me and use it as a change bait when using pellet as my first choice hook bait. There are very few venues where i have been confident of targeting the fish on paste from the start of a match unless its the proven hook bait on that venue. Although, i have switched to paste after struggling with pellet many times and then bagged up or at least been able to pick out a few fish that would not look at a pellet on the hook on very difficult days. Paste can just as easily produce no bites. Just depends on the venue and the mood the fish are in from day to day. There are several different ways to feed when using paste in winter but basically feeding in a similar way to how you would feed when using pellet is the norm. Little and often with 4ml pellets is often the best way in my experience. Basically rewarding the swim after catching each fish and your not going to go fare wrong. Ground bait can also work as does feeding small amounts of paste.

how do you make your winter paste if its not a secret .

thanks in advance

Soak some carp pellets in cold water until soft. Then mash them up and add extra water until you get the texture of soft putty. Any pellets will make paste but attempting to mix and match your hook bait to your feed pellets is often the bast approach. If you want a paste that breaks down a little slower. Make your paste from trout pellets. Most fishery owners dont mind paste that is made out of trout pellets but ask first. Just break the trout pellets down so they become soft by adding boiling water and leave them to soak for a few hours. Then add cold water to get the right consistency. I personally like using Skretting excel 3ml trout pellets.

@TrueBlue wrote:

Soak some carp pellets in cold water until soft. Then mash them up and add extra water until you get the texture of soft putty. Any pellets will make paste but attempting to mix and match your hook bait to your feed pellets is often the bast approach. If you want a paste that breaks down a little slower. Make your paste from trout pellets. Most fishery owners dont mind paste that is made out of trout pellets but ask first. Just break the trout pellets down so they become soft by adding boiling water and leave them to soak for a few hours. Then add cold water to get the right consistency. I personally like using Skretting excel 3ml trout pellets.

thanks thats how i normally do it but have never tried it in winter might give it a go at weekend if not catching .if i can find a decent match to fish

Fished paste yesterday, dead depth & fed dampened micro pellets.
The paste was made by using skreetings pellets softened using a combination of:-
boiling water, salt & garam massala seasoning powder.
Place pellets in a bowl & add the liquid to cover them. Leave them for a couple of hours, & then either put them in a food processor or push through a maggot riddle.
Add water on the bank, if necessary, to soften to the consistency you require.
This will work straight from the kitchen but will improve with freezing.
Catch plenty.
Regards Peter.

I know this works well around my way on some of the FI venues – cefn mabley and white springs. I have had a few hammerings on this method but after sorting myself out on fishing the paste in the summer. What floats do you use – how do you set up your rig to see those smaller pieces of paste are still on the hook or has come off

Use a normal float and rig that suits pellet fishing, depth and weather conditions and undertow in your swim. My first choice of float would be a KC Chimp. Although there are a lot of very good floats suited to pellet fishing and so winter paste fishing. Shot the float fully with a bulk of number 8s, 18 inches from the hook and add 2 number 10 droppers spaced equally between the bulk and hook. Im looking to have about 5mm of bristle showing once the float is fully shotted. A size 18, tubertini 808 hook completes the rig.

Plumb up your swim in the normal way to find dead depth. When you start using paste on the hook make any small adjustments to the depth so you really are fishing at dead depth when fishing with the paste on the hook. It can take a few drop in,s to get the depth of the rig just right. However, i believe that getting the depth right is critical to seeing all my bites and hooking almost every bite that i get.

You will find that your float becomes very stable in the water with the paste on the hook and will only moves very slowly with any undertow. If there is a strong undertow and the float is being dragged under as it moves though your swim. Either switch to a bigger sized float, remove a little of the shotting to show a little more bristle and adjust the depth accordingly to find the correct depth of the rig again. You can also add a little more depth to the rig to create a small bow in the line between the hook and the float. This will help in stopping the float from dragging under and create extra stability in the rig. Its a mater of trial and error or experience to get the rig working correctly and showing when the paste has been dragged out of the paste.

Once you get the rig and depth just right for the conditions. Your rig will then be very stable even if it is slowly drifting with the undertow if you allow it to inch though your swim on a tight line to the pole tip. Adding back shot can help in dealing with difficult gusty winds. When the paste falls off the hook. The float speeds up and becomes unstable and either moves with the wind or moves faster with the undertow. You will find that once you have experienced these changes in the movement of the float. You will soon realize when the hook is not in your paste and its time to rebate your hook again. If there is no undertow or wind. The hook will stay in the paste for a very long time before needing to be changed. Thats where confidence comes in to play in knowing that the paste is still on the hook.

I hope that all makes sense.

Very well explained TrueBlue.
When fishing waters that have aereators running, as Darenth, I use a stiffer paste.
Regards Peter

This paste mix is a bit different from most. 2 pints of crushed halibut pellets. 500mls of veg oil.A few drops of chilli sauce and a good splash of Thai fish sauce(supermarket) or better still the block form grated up (Chinese supermarket or similar)50% red 50% black food colouring use as much as you like. Water to get the texture you need.
Method; Heat the oil add the chilli sauce and the fish sauce or grated stuff, warm until you can smell it. Add to the crushed halibut pellets mix with a spoon add the food colouring and a bit of water.knead and add water as you see fit.Wash up and fumigate the kitchen unless you like sleeping in a cold shed.
This paste like many others is better after it’s frozen. This is the thinking behind the ingredient’s. The oil helps stop the paste dry out in summer?? and is a good carrier of flavours.Fish sauce is v.salty and stinks but is not in the same league as the block form. The colours are because i use a lot of black groundbait and i will often dust my paste with it.Next season i am going to try a sweet paste with a base of oil and molasses.The fishy paste has caught me a few mid twenties and many doubles from the very snaggy margin swims on mature lakes using a light(to them)soft carp rod 10 lb line and korum seamless hooks.I lost to many battles using ever tightening red hydro original xrs combo,then feeder rods,avon rod until out came the carp rod, pole float combo. Interestingly i had no loss of bites or increase in liners when using 0.17 to the ten pound coaser rope that i now use in that situation.Try it if your losing to many big fish in a snag pit down the edge.

no wonder your fingers are inky, bet they pen and ink too lol!

inky finger, that seem’s like a lot of effort for something as simple as paste. I guess if it works for you, and you have confidence in it then that’s all that matters.
Personally I only use plain Skretting micro’s for paste fishing. I cover a tub full with lake water when I arrive at my peg, by the time it’s all in they are perfect for feeding or squeezing into a paste.

Hi,johnny mac,I’m a very keen cook and will often play around with different ingredients in my fishing baits. It keeps me amused ! It’s also nice to catch on a new creation.Your comment smed was bang on….I am only popular with the wrong sort of pussy after using it lol .
I wear gloves while working it until soft enough. Don’t care when fishing as i’m not a girl. I just use ‘really good hand cleaner’ from motorist shops when i get home.

This thread DAT?

Thats the one,thanks.Should make it a sticky every winter.

Well done DAT/the margin gnome. So thats how i fish paste, lol

Now find the thread on paste from about 4 years ago that had almost 200 posts. Best thread ever. I was told that it was being edited and then was being put in the members area. No idea if that ever happened but i would love to see it again. There was so much info in that thread and was a must read for any anglers interested in paste fishing.

Have been catching fine on paste through the winter, even after breaking the ice – I fish it exactly the same as in summer.