Carp Fishing Tackle

Question:
I am off to France in a few weeks to fish a very little previously fished water, anyone give me any tips on what tackle to use. The lake is 35acres and has a slightly silty bottom and is roughly 14ft deep it varies a lot with a lot of trenches and bars. I have been out of fishing for 10 yrs and I am just getting back to it. I presume all my old style hair rigs are still in use today so I can just make some more of them (with new material and tackle of course) What I would like to know is has there been any new tackle that I would find might come in useful the carp are quite large so I have heard :o) and would a standard size 6 star point hair rig be fine. Do people still prefer pop ups or is there new stuff about? Quick descriptions of some simple setups would be good as well.

Answer:
Use a very simple running lead rig with a simple hair rig for the bait; I don't see any reason for making it any more complicated. As for bait I'd favor something like Tiger Nuts or Maize - if these fish haven't been fished for very much they may take a while to become accustomed to a brand new bait - saying that I'd still take a nice big bag of boilies with me! You can use pop ups if you like - I rarely use them myself but there is no doubt that they work particularly well. I'd use a larger hook than a 6 myself - when fishing the Thames I often use a size 2 in a fairly strong pattern; remember these fish won't know what a hook is and a 30lb+ Carp has a very big mouth! As for *new* items of tackle the only thing I'd suggest is a very big landing net and a nice big unhooking mat.