Carp Anyone?

by:

Since reading this blog from Gareth Watkins, I’ve become more and more intrigued about the world of carp fishing.  The only things I’ve heard about carp are that they’re picky eaters and can be a very difficult fish to target.  Bowfishing for them has become pretty popular around some parts of the states, but as outlined in Gareth’s blogs, European countries have really taken to fishing for carp.  Now, normally, we’re all about stories on this site – I love stories and am not real big on tips, strategies, and such.  However, I’m so interested in this carp fishing thing that I decided I want to give it a shot this year, and so I’m asking all my readers out there if any of you have tips on how to rig up for and catch big carp.  I see giant carp swimming all over in the Snake River, not far from where I live, but have only hooked into a couple – and those by accident while fishing for catfish.  If you’ve got some good tips – I’d love to hear ‘em!

5 Responses to “Carp Anyone?”

  1. Blessed on May 1st, 2008 3:28 am

    We don’t eat them but we know people who do… They seem like nasty fish.

  2. gareth on May 1st, 2008 2:16 pm

    hi there,
    Not many people in Europe that fish for them for sport actually eat them. We practice catch and release. They are popular eating in Eastern Europe and often in Jewish areas…

    I personally prefer fish like Pike and Zander (like your Walleye). these are far better eating. However as a confirmed carnivore no fish beats a good juicy steak,

    cheers
    Gareth

  3. benji on May 1st, 2008 4:09 pm

    Carp have actually become quite a sporting option that many fly fishermen here have begun to target. I myself have never caught one and only actually fished for them only once (on a short lunch break) but have a couple ponds I know of that have some perfect “carp flats” for sight fishing for tailing “golden bones.” They can be incredibly challenging and fight with alot of power I hear. Here is a link to a blog I enjoy reading by someone who almost exclusively targets carp with a fly rod.

    http://carponthefly.blogspot.com/

    When I get back home I plan on exploring some of the local carp spots as there are a couple that are close enough to where I work I can get some fishing in on my lunch breaks.

  4. Tom Sorenson on May 1st, 2008 4:21 pm

    Thanks for everyone’s replies – some good stuff. Gareth emailed me a good story to check out:

    http://www.anglinglines.com/blog/carp-fishing-sessions-extreme-orient/

    And the site Benji sent has some great pictures to only fuel my desire to learn how to catch these fish. I’ll have to agree with Blessed – they do seem kind of like a nasty fish – my cousin won’t touch them, which I find kind of comical – but hey, if it pulls hard and makes another reason to go fishing, I’ gotta try it!

  5. gareth on May 4th, 2008 9:15 am

    Hi Tom & Guys
    Thought you’d also be interested in a new blog by a friend of mine Shaun Harrison on carp fishing. He has a bait company in the UK.
    I’ve doen quite a lot of filming with him and his main site has loads of the clips we shot.
    check out : http://www.questbaits.com
    and http://www.questbaits.com/blog

    Hope you find them interesting
    cheers
    Gareth

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