St Johns Lake

Probably the best big carp day ticket water in the UK

Arguably the most famous day ticket water in the country, this 18 acre gravel pit has proved itself as one of the top day ticket lakes on the Linear site for many years and is well known throughout the carp fishing fraternity. We at Linear have lost count of the many anglers who on their first visit to this very scenic water have gone home thrilled in the knowledge that they had caught a personal best carp, tench, catfish, pike or even bream there.

A majority of the carp that the water now holds are in excess of twenty pounds in weight with at least 40 weighing in excess of 30lbs. Many of these bigger fish have been caught at over 36lb and at the right time of the year at least seven of them have been recorded in excess of 40 pounds. In fact during recent years, four different fish were caught in excess of 47lb. The complex record for a common is 48lb and for a mirror it is 48.12 pounds.

St. Johns, along with Manor Farm Lake for their sizes, could possibly be amongst the most prolific twenties and thirties day ticket waters in the country and with the carp in both lakes continuing to grow, Linear expect the waters to produce even bigger fish in the future. 

Linear is continuing a stocking policy on St. John’s that has seen nearly 400 good size carp introduced over the last four years – the continuing plan is to introduce selected fish from their stock waters on a regular basis 

The tench fishing is first class and fish to over 12lb along with bream of over 15lb have been recorded. Catfish regularly feature in catches and continue to be targeted by dedicated catfish anglers, the biggest recorded in 2016 was a staggering 90lb, a new lake record. We are reliably informed that there are now five fish over 70lb in the water, one which weighs over 80lb and the other 90lb. Pike to over 20lbs have been caught and in the past the water has produced them to over 28lbs.

Cars must be parked in the car parks provided. Do not block or park in front of any fishery gates, if you block a gate, you may be asked to leave the fishery.
Anglers must not stop their cars anywhere on the main B4449 road or in the entrance to Manor Farm Lake & St. Johns.
Anglers fishing Hardwick Lake & Smiths Pool should only leave their vehicles in the main Hardwick car park although they are permitted to unload their tackle along the track leading to Brasenose and adjacent to the two waters.
No driving or parking on the grass at any of the lakes. If you break this rule you will be asked to leave the fishery, no matter how far you have travelled.
You are not allowed to reserve swims – The only exceptions are as follows: A) If you have already spoken to one the fishery bailiff's and paid for the swims when setting up. B) You are allowed to put a bucket in the swim when you first arrive and choose a swim but you must immediately return to your car, load your tackle and return to that swim. If a bucket is left in a swim for longer than 45 minutes, fishery staff may remove it. C) Lake hire is available for match and events, waters can be booked in advance dependant on availability, only bookings of over ten will be considered.
Barbed or barbless hooks may be used. Please Note: Hunts Corner Pond and One Summer Pond Rules may vary to the main day ticket carp lakes – See noticed board located at Hunts Pond or speak to the bailiff for more details.
Rods must not be left unattended. Up to three rods only are allowed and you must have the appropriate E.A. licence to cover these.
No carp, pike, catfish or any other fish to be retained for long periods - carp-sacks are not allowed. Floating retention slings are permitted for retaining fish for up to 30 minutes whilst un-hooking mats, scales and cameras are prepared. (Please see further details on retention slings under the Rules Header of our web-site).
Unhooking mats must be used at all times for all carp, pike, catfish and large fish of other species.
You must never stand up whilst holding a fish – when taking photos or returning a fish. Always keep the fish as low to the ground as possible, either above an adequately padded unhooking mat for photos or in a sling when returning the fish.
No boats, drones, bait boats, radios, guns, fires, picnics, swimming, drugs or heavy drinking.
NO DOGS EXCEPT ON A LEAD AND UNDER CONTROL.
There are no bait restrictions, but all multiple baits such as seeds, nuts, peas and beans must be well soaked, well cooked and used in moderation.
Permanently fixed leads are not allowed and unhooking mats should always be used for any fish - RIGS WILL BE CHECKED BY OUR BAILIFFS.
You are not allowed to use a spomb to introduce bait unless it is used in conjunction with a 'spomb float' attachment (if you’ve haven't got one with you, they can be purchased from the fishery). This is to help prevent lost/cracked off spombs sinking to the lake bed and causing snags.
Spodding maggots is no longer allowed. They can only be used as hook baits, in PVA bags or in feeders. As a general rule you shouldn't be using more than around 4 pints per day.
No live or dead baiting is allowed for catfish or pike between March 31st and October 1st.
No live fish to be taken onto the site from outside sources.
No transferring of fish between waters - no fish to be taken away or killed.
Pike fishing is only allowed in the winter months between October 1st and March 31st.
Wading is not allowed, except when aiding in safe netting or release of fish, in shallow water areas. Please do not wade on any of our waters to position baits. Always put your own safety first when returning fish.
The lakes are on private property, so you should do nothing to disturb others, make no noise and keep lights at night to a minimum.
If you are fishing the back of Smiths Pool you MUST NOT cross the ditch from Brasenose-One to unload your tackle, these slopes are slippery and dangerous and must not be used. All tackle must be unloaded at the end of Smiths Pool and walked along that bank to your swim.
The use of BBQ’s is permitted but they must be raised off the ground. If you use a disposable BBQ and it burns the grass you will be asked to leave the fishery.
Anglers fishing Oxlease Lake must wait in the main Hardwick car park until the gates to this lake are opened – Do Not block the Oxlease gate and park along the track adjacent to Newlands Angling Club or you will be asked to leave.
If you double up in a swim you can only fish two rods each, with the exception of a handful of large swims dotted around the complex. If you are unsure whether you can use 2 or 3 rods each, when doubling up, please check with the bailiff.
Beach-caster rigs are allowed but they must not be fished near heavy weed and you must be watching your rod at all times to avoid your hook bait being picked up by a bird. Only one beach-caster set-up can be used at a time. Most importantly the lead and float must be designed so that they can drop off or break away from the hook-link, if the setup is lost.
NO LITTER - TAKE IT WITH YOU

Advice for fishing in UK can be found HERE.

GPS:
Lat 51.746726989746
Lon -1.439216971397

ADDRESS

Linear Fisheries, Off the B4449, Near Hardwick Village, Witney, Oxfordshire. OX29 7QF

PHONE

07885 327708

EMAIL

chris@linear-fisheries.co.uk

WEBSITE

Website

SOCIAL FEEDS