WEST NORFOLK & THE FENS: Tom Callaghan included a new PB of 26lbs in a five-fish haul from Pentney Lakes – after a pep talk from a bait guru.

The Terrington-based carper was armed with boilies formulated by Cawston-based Carp Bait UK, with top secret ingredients replacing things like mass-produced eggs and soya base mixes, which the firm claims that carp have grown wary of.

After a blank first night on the Cabin Lake, in which temperatures outside his bivvy dropped to minus 4C, Callaghan moved swims and plumbed around.

He found a gravel patch and baited up, before taking carp of 10lbs, 15lbs, 19lbs, 22lbs and 26lbs.

'The new bait did the trick,' said Callaghan, 20. 'I went to see the guys who make it, we got talking and they told me a few things to try with it – I was in there ages.

'A lot of what they were saying made sense, especially the carp steering clear of additives everyone else has been using for years.

'They won't say what's in their baits, but whatever it is the fish were definitely on for it.'

Carp Bait's website does not reveal the ingredients, but says that two years' research has gone into the recipe.

Now Callaghan has his sights set on a 30 from the Pentney complex, which has produced carp to 40lbs, but slipped off many anglers' radars in recent seasons.

'I love it down there, it's a great session water where you can bivvy up and get stuck in,' he said.

'It's got some good tench fishing as well, I got side-tracked by them a few times last summer, they take some finding but they come thick and fast when you do.'

Pentney boss John Block said Callaghan's catch was the best so far this year from the Cabin Lake.

'Tom deserved those fish,' he said. 'He was in for a couple of days, trying different things until he caught.'

Things might be over on the rivers, but fishing's about to get into gear on the stillwaters.

It's just two weeks until King's Lynn AA's lakes open on April 3 – see next week's EDP angling section for a full preview.