Carp - Never tried it, pointers?

[missin44]

I'm thinking of trying carp on a fly rod soon. Any pointers on techniques, presentations, etc?

Thanks

 

[dakotakid]

Check out "The Carp Thread".
http://www.theflyfishingforum.com/forums/warmwater-fly-fishing/324249-carp-thread.html

 

[stl_geoff]

In addition to that, be prepared to be frustrated and humbled by the golden bone.

 

[fq13]

I played around with them when I was in Indiana. They really were like bonefish. They congregated in a shallow flats section of a local lake. I wade fished for them. I never got serious about it as I was more interested in the Smallies, but if you could put something like a stonefly nymph in front of them you had a chance. They were spooky and line shy. You had to be stealthy. It was a lot like wading for bones in the Keys. You needed to drop a nymph in front of them, then just slowly jerk it on the bottom. They were fun once you hooked one, they're a strong fish. Nothing spectacular, but a good fight. Not to sound sacrilegious here or anything, but if you just want catch one to see if its worth the trouble? Here's what you do (and this is guaranteed).
Step one: Buy some canned corn and chum the water for say two days before you fish.
Step two: Order some Gulp corn (put them on a number 8 hook)
Step three: Cast a bit of Gulp corn into the chum line and hold on.
Not exactly high society, but it works. Or just go with a nymph.
Good luck and have fun.

 

[john montana]

Try 'em...they are awesome on the fly. challenging, big, and a really interesting method. I love 'em, spend 90% of my time with a fly rod in hand looking for carp.

My rules that I try to follow.
1) Know your forage
2) Don't cast until you can see their head
3) You gotta make 'em move (to detect the take)
4) To catch more carp, cast at less.

Good luck!

All carp threads need a picture:



Who wouldn't want to hunt, spot and stalk a fish like this in 2 feet of water, then convince it to eat an artificial offering with no scent (carp feed mostly by scent). awesome! Good luck man...

 

[jimp]

now that is a fish, don't care who you are, that's a fish.

I was with a guy this past weekend and he mentioned that a good time to go for carp is when they are feeding, otherwise its almost impossible to get 'em to hit the fly. We did not see any while we were out, but he caught one the next day and he mentioned he found 'em when they were feeding. Works in Middle TN anyways.

 

[dakotakid]

John Montana's carp photos make me drool!

Found the following cottonwood seed fly on-line, but haven't tied it yet. Suspect it will be more effective when our cottonwood trees are dropping seed. Might try it before then anyway.

"Marabou Cottonwood Seed Fly - FAOL"

 

[jml43]

Try 'em...they are awesome on the fly. challenging, big, and a really interesting method. I love 'em, spend 90% of my time with a fly rod in hand looking for carp.

My rules that I try to follow.
1) Know your forage
2) Don't cast until you can see their head
3) You gotta make 'em move (to detect the take)
4) To catch more carp, cast at less.

Good luck!

All carp threads need a picture:



Who wouldn't want to hunt, spot and stalk a fish like this in 2 feet of water, then convince it to eat an artificial offering with no scent (carp feed mostly by scent). awesome! Good luck man...

I wish carp would get that big in the lake and areas I fish. Most are in the 6-12 range, some get over 15, but they a few and far between.

 

[chipgerrard]

Don't waste your time. What a garbage fish.

The hardly ever bite and even if they do they barely fight and are a slimy stinky fish. The are right up at the top of the list with the Goby for fish that we should kill

 

[fq13]

Don't waste your time. What a garbage fish.

The hardly ever bite and even if they do they barely fight and are a slimy stinky fish. The are right up at the top of the list with the Goby for fish that we should kill

Seriously? You're going with that? I think I'll disagree.

 

[chipgerrard]

Seriously? You're going with that? I think I'll disagree.

I would rather catch a cold than a carp

 

[fq13]

I would rather catch a cold than a carp

The tug is the drug. I booked a guide on the Madison. $450 all day. I caught one trout, but probably 100 whitefish. No joke. He tried every fly under the sun and worked like a Trojan handling the boat thinking I was disappointed. Thing is, he was wrong. I was enjoying a nice summer day, looking at beautiful scenery and catching fish on a 4 weight flyrod. Who can complain about that? I mean its not like you weren't going to release them anyway, and a whitefish puts up a respectable fight. Same with a carp. Its a wary fish, it takes technigue to catch one, they will give you a good fight and it beats the heck out of sitting in front of the TV. So why complain? Go catch one.

 

[nick k]

Don't waste your time. What a garbage fish.

The hardly ever bite and even if they do they barely fight and are a slimy stinky fish. The are right up at the top of the list with the Goby for fish that we should kill

This is the mark of someone who is truly a terrible fisherman and blames the species he is chasing. I think never fishing again should be your life goal. Maybe just stick to binge drinking, you should be decent at that.

Also, anyone who has ever caught a carp knows that they fight more than 95% of fish out there. The very fact that you think the opposite tells us you have never actually caught one and are just mad at the world because you cant.

"It is a poor craftsman who blames his tools."

 

[john montana]

Most guys that talk about how stinky, slimy, and what poor fighters carp are haven't caught one.

Name one other fish in fresh water that can do this to a guy on an 8 wt rod:



Here is another good one...a Ross reel that had the drag system completely destroyed by a carp, resulting in:



carp don't fight...that is a good one.

 

[chipgerrard]

This is the mark of someone who is truly a terrible fisherman and blames the species he is chasing. I think never fishing again should be your life goal. Maybe just stick to binge drinking, you should be decent at that.

Also, anyone who has ever caught a carp knows that they fight more than 95% of fish out there. The very fact that you think the opposite tells us you have never actually caught one and are just mad at the world because you cant.

"It is a poor craftsman who blames his tools."

Nick,

Couldn't be more wrong. I have caught many of carp on my fly rod and hate it.

I would out fish your sorry ass anyway bud. You just keep catching those carp. Good luck hah

 

[ditz]

There are those that prefer to catch a 8" trout to a 3# smallie too. To each his own.:surprise:

 

[nick k]

Nick,

Couldn't be more wrong. I have caught many of carp on my fly rod and hate it.

I would out fish your sorry ass anyway bud. You just keep catching those carp. Good luck hah

Yeah, still don't believe that. Sorry.

Maybe you caught some carp fry in a net once.

There are those that prefer to catch a 8" trout to a 3# smallie too. To each his own.:surprise:

It's not about saying someone should catch small fish or big fish. Its about saying that carp don't fight well, and that we should kill them all because of it. Neither part of that statement could be further from the truth.

 

[siege]

OK, a few guys in this area catch some big carp in the Blackfoot reservoir, a little south of here. Looks like fun, and a challenge on light tackle.
My question is, what do you do with them after you catch them ?
One source says kill them as fast as you can, because they are killing the trout spawn. They tear up the beds, and eat the eggs. Another says catch and release. I know at least one guy who puts them in his smoker, and considers them a delicacy.
Once you have landed that big 'ol pig, what do you do with it ?

 

[dakotakid]

OK, a few guys in this area catch some big carp in the Blackfoot reservoir, a little south of here. Looks like fun, and a challenge on light tackle.
My question is, what do you do with them after you catch them ?
One source says kill them as fast as you can, because they are killing the trout spawn. They tear up the beds, and eat the eggs. Another says catch and release. I know at least one guy who puts them in his smoker, and considers them a delicacy.
Once you have landed that big 'ol pig, what do you do with it ?

I release them, just like I do largemouth bass. The lakes that I can find them in don't have trout. I'm strictly in it for the fight, which they provide in abundance.

 

[nick k]

I release them, just like I do largemouth bass. The lakes that I can find them in don't have trout. I'm strictly in it for the fight, which they provide in abundance.

Same here. Carp some places are considered an invasive species, and a destructive one at that, but certainly not in every location.

I wouldn't kill them either way unless I wanted to eat them. Not their fault they are in there.