Cross Drove Fishery, a premier fishing destination among the fishing lakes in Norfolk, offers a diverse mixed-course experience in Hockwold cum Wilton, Thetford. It’s one of the few lakes where you’ll find a lake full of different styles of anglers. You’ll catch anything from small roach to giant catfish. I’ll go through a bit of information about the lake and the best times to visit.
The Lake
Cross Drove splits the lake into peg sections. Each section brings its own challenges as well as specific types of anglers. If you’re after the carp, there are a few sections that bring to mind. Peg 69-70 has some decent carp fishing being so close to some lily pads and also offers fantastic margin fishing. Another popular section of the lake is 59-62. These particular pegs can be productive in the evening and offer decent night fishing. If you’re after catfish, they’ve been caught all over the lake, but I’ve seen some nice ones come out of sections 31-35. More so with pegs 31-35, it also offers great bream fishing in the open water. You can catch tench from pegs from 42-46. Well that’s been my best pegs to date
What bait’s work at Cross Drove Fishery
It depends on what you’re fishing for. Most people ask me about the catfish. I can say now, that I’ve got no experience fishing for catfish, but the first big catch fish I ever saw on the bank was at this lake. The guy fishing was using a tin of spam. Yes! A whole tin of spam! He had it on a long hair rig, using a small twig as a bait stop. If it’s carp you’re after, keep it simple and do not put in loads of bait. Solid PVA bags have been reported to work the best. If it’s the tench and bream you’re after, you can’t go wrong with a good Heli Rig feeder set-up and chopped worm/maggot.
Best time of year to fish Cross Drove Fishery
Late spring. I’ve had the best results after around 10 years of fishing here. The summer can be good in the evenings, but the days can be tough and constantly chopping and changing until something works.
Conclusion
I like Cross Drove Fishery. It’s mature, not overly stocked and has some beautiful specimens of mostly all species including the Zander! It really can be a challenge but makes it all the more fun when targeting bigger fish. Let us know how you get on and comment below.
If you’re looking for another fishing lakes in Norfolk, check out all our indexed fisheries
