Our first fish of the month competition of 2015 has gone well with lots of 20lb plus fish being entered. The winner has now been announced via our website and Facebook page and will also be mentioned in the next issue. Congratulations to our April winner and remember to send in your catch reports to info@hawkhurstfishfarm.co.uk for your chance to win 24hrs free fishing! Mays competition is now underway……

Spring is in full swing here at Hawkhurst Fish Farm. The Daffodils are in full bloom, Kate and Wills our resident mute swans have laid their eggs on the island directly in front of the café veranda…. again! And what with the warmer temperatures that have graced us of late the fish have been really active triggering, as predicted, an influx of catch reports! Let’s hope that the weather stays fine throughout this month as May is notoriously known for its success rate with some impressive sized carp around the 40lb mark gracing the banks in the past.

Main Lake – has really come alive with numerous upper 20’s and several 30+ carp banked. Anthony Reed had a 24lb Common on peaches and cream wafter, Jamie Payne had a lovely 24lb 14oz Common – his new PB, caught within an hour of casting out!  Chris Greening netted a 22lb Mirror, Dan Barden smashed his session netting his PB Carp and Catfish with a 26lb 8oz Common and 46lb Cat along with 14 other carp weighing up to 19lb 4oz. Toby Payne banked a pristine 36lb 8oz Common, Adam Holmes fished a 36hr session  and had a lovely 14lb Grass carp on hybrid over hemp and maggots, a 23lb 2oz Common and a beautifully scaled 26lb 5oz Mirror on Pink almond wafters over the same hemp and maggot mix. Paul Barker hooked an absolutely stunning scale-perfect 23lb Common, James Sharples had a 25lb 5oz Common to Enigma Baits. Seb Nicholas had a cracking session with 5 carp up to 22lb and 5 cats up to 25lb, Paul Birks bagged an impressive 30lb Common, Leon Burns reeled in a 43lb Catfish, Tom Gardiner had a lovely 28lb 8oz Mirror along with a 41lb Cat – both came to halibut pellet. Neil Chapman caught a 24lb Common. Scott Downham hooked a 25lb Common and 22lb 10oz Catfish.

Dove Lake – has seen its fair share of anglers over the past few weeks all eager for a challenge! The inhabitants of this lake can really sense an angler’s presence and tend to hide the other side of the island opposite swim 8 – a great choice for day ticket anglers! Our bailiff has witnessed several stunning, large carp caught from this lake recently but catch reports have not been sent in! We urge you to do so as we can then keep you all up to date with what is being caught! Remember it’s not just about the carp and Cats… Ken Durrant caught a hefty 9lb 12oz Tench on worm and corn, Matty Cage had a 24lb 2oz Common.

Specimen Lake – has had its highs and lows over the past month, however it has picked up and started to fish steadily again as Specimen Lake is renowned for whatever the conditions! Jack Flower had 4 nice Perch up to 3lb fishing cage feeders with worms tipped with red maggots, Tommy Flower hooked a 20lb Common, Keith Burns netted a 24lb 8oz Mirror and another one of our members who unfortunately wishes to remain anonymous had a beautiful 31lb 4oz Mirror – such a shame we don’t have a picture!