For a few years now I have been notorious for messing around with my fishing gear left, right and centre. Anyone who knows me will tell you that there is little tackle that I haven't owned in recent times. This year I wanted to set my gear up in such a way that I would be able to just go fishing at the drop of a hat as soon as the opportunity arose without having to mess around loading and unloading loads of bags, buckets and pointless items of luggage. I also wanted to be able to be very mobile and be able to set up and pack up as quickly as possible so that that I could move onto fish but still be able to take all the gear, food and bait needed for my usual Monday and Tuesday 48 hour stint. Basically I wanted to create the ultimate set up to make my time on the bank as effective as possible this year as the water I' m on as I write this, like many is extremely pressured and very busy keeping the fish constantly on the move. Many waters are this way in this day and age and its more than vital that the angler and his gear behave in the same way as the fish.

What I have come up with here is a set up that will suffice any carp angler, for any length of stay for practically any fishing situation in this country. The set up is light, speedy and is suited to a mobile or long stay approach and can be transported round the lake with ease.

So lets start at the bottom. The first thing is my Nash Trax Micro barrow. I looked at all the barrows in the Nash range and although they are all top draw, this one for me is top of the pile. It boasts a very compact folded down size with a front bar to stop your gear sliding if as well as that all important under barrow bag which is included in the price. Its also considerably lighter than some of the others in the range. Even though the barrow is light and compact the clever extending front bars make it plenty big enough to get as much gear on as you will ever need, making it perfect for days or long stay sessions. The main body can also be broken down into two small sections if car space is limited.

Going back to the barrow bag, this is only used to transport the lightest of items due to it being situated at the back of the barrow bed. The last thing you want when pushing a barrow is weight at the back. So in here I only have two items. One is the infil panel for my Nash Profile X brolly if bad weather is forecast, the other is the top layer of my Frostbite Sub 20 sleeping bag, again if the nights are due to be chilly. In the event of a warm dry forecast these items stay in the car.

Next on goes my bed. The Airlite bedchair is my bed of choice. I use the stand alone version. The bed is the lowest and lightest I have ever used making it easy to transport and it fits perfectly under my Profile X Brolly. The top layer of the excellent Frostbite Sub 20 sleeping bag stays permanently attached to my bed chair as does my Nash Carp Pillow for an instant set up and pack up should I need to move quickly. The bed folds up with ease with these two items inside so no need to keep taking your bag on and off all the time.

Behind my bed on the back of my barrow goes my unhooking mat. There is no question in my mind that the Nash Carp Corrall is the one. Without doubt the most fish safe and versatile mat on the market. I also use this mat to double up as a carryall and it contains the following: Nash refresh water bucket, Nash Weightlifter weigh sling, Nash safety zip sack system and bank stick, scales, Medicarp Ultra and forceps. In short I keep everything needed for a capture in one place so the carp can be cared for and returned as smoothly and quickly as possible. These items are also all very light and hence are placed at the back end of the barrow.

Now for the clever bit. In order to be mobile you need to have as little gear with you as possible right? But what if you are on a longer session with lots of bait, food, tackle, clothes, water ect? I believe many anglers cant be bothered to move onto fish and end up 'camping' because the thought of moving all their gear is far too daunting when all they want to do is chill out. The other problem is that if you take a heavy tackle bag, clothes bag, food bag, bait bag and the list goes on its virtually impossible to get all of that weight over the front wheel of the barrow, thus forcing the angler to load the back of the barrow and the barrow bag. This in turn makes the barrow feel a lot heavier than it actually is and the thought of moving becomes even more of an issue.

This is where the Nash Barrowlogic Tackle XL comes into play. This bag is awesome. And mine houses the following with ease and with room to spare. The left hand main compartment handles all my spare clothes, wash gear and water proofs. The main centre area holds all my brew gear, plates, food and five litres of water leaving the right hand compartment to comfortably hold over ten kilos of boiles. The ample sized outer and outer mesh pockets house all my tackle, receiver, camera, pop ups, PVA and just about anything else you can think of for that matter! In short everything I need to fish and eat fits in this bag with ease. Now before you ask, yes it does weigh a ton but I put it on top of my bedchair right over the front wheel and it becomes almost weightless when on the barrow. To be able to get all the heavy stuff like bait and water at the front of the barrow is a massive advantage. The Tackle XL then fits perfectly in the back of my brolly behind my bedchair and you wouldn't even know that its there, apart from the fact that due to the rigid alluimuim bars that it possesses it doubles up as the perfect bivvy table so that one less thing you need to take.

Then finally on top of that little lot goes my Barrowlogic Quiver. This is a serious storage system for the serious carper. The main pocket houses the excellent Profile X Brolly which goes up and comes down in seconds. The first outer pocket contains all the poles and pegs needed for the brolly as well and a couple of Nash Cobra Quickstick throwing sticks. This keeps all the sharp points of the poles and pegs away from the brolly eliminating the risk of damage. The smaller outer pocket is purpose designed for bank sticks and buzzers. Nash Grippa Stix are my rod support of choice. Very strong with a spiral point and weigh next to nothing with rock solid cam locks. Enough said. Finally my rods and net are stored in ultra protective Nash Nomad rod skins. I use the three rod versions and only take the permitted amount of rods required on the day. The rest stay at home or in the car. The entire quiver lays length ways over my barrow and doesn't even require a strap to hold it on.

 So there we have it. A barrow, a barrow bag, a bed, a mat and a quiver. It really doesnt get much simpler than that! Cost effective and very, very functional.

Trust me when I say that this set up is as quick and easy, yet as comprehensive as you will get. Any situation is catered for with ease and comfort. Cost wise its pretty good too as i'm only using two items of luggage to transport everything I will ever need for a long or short stay session. My mat, bed and barrow are left in the car all the time so all I need to do to go fishing is load some food, water and bait into my Barrowlogic Tackle XL, pop in into the car chuck my quiver on top, and i'm off! Simple as that. The barrow can be loaded super quick and unloaded just as fast and I have instant access to all my gear enabling me to fish off the barrow with little or no fuss. Once settled into a swim I simply pop the brolly up, place the Tackle XL in the back and unfold my bedchair. It really is that easy and this approach has taken a lot of unnecessary stress and complication out of my angling in recent months with some cracking results!

Lastly it only remains to say that all the gear listed in this article is nothing but the best from the Nash stable. The guys there really have got it bang on with the design and quality of this gear so buy with confidence as it will last you a lifetime. Or why not get down to your nearest Nash Road show in the coming weeks and check it all out for your self.

Hope to see you there

Be lucky

David