Carp on the fly

[Phish 0]

A small black Tube woolly bugger with black barred white rubber leggs, #10 hook. Used a sucker spawn as a dropper and watch your fly disappear and strip strike.

[Piker20 0]

Is a sucker a sub species of the carp cause they look pretty similar.

[Robert M 0]

Is a sucker a sub species of the carp cause they look pretty similar.

They are all part of the minnow family

[Piker20 0]

My mate has got engaged to a texan and he was amazed at the number of fish he saw when he was catching small mouths last year. It seems that catching HUGE carp in the states is still an untapped market when you look at the numbers who travel to France or Spain or further in Europe from the UK to catch them.

[bullship 0]

My mate has got engaged to a texan and he was amazed at the number of fish he saw when he was catching small mouths last year. It seems that catching HUGE carp in the states is still an untapped market when you look at the numbers who travel to France or Spain or further in Europe from the UK to catch them.

 

 

Yeah....they don't exactly have the same appeal here. i have a hard time finding people to fish with that wouldn't prefer catching tiny trout.

[Robert M 0]

Definitely an untapped resource.

[Piker20 0]

I know at times a shoal of carp/suckers can be almost too easy to catch and targeting a different species keeps the passion burning but it has always amazed me that fishermen can object to catching a specific species to such an extent. I say if its wet with fins I'll pull it in anyday.

[Phish 0]

Right on Piker. I actually find them Rough species tough to catch on the fly and they fight harder to.

[WiperDawg 0]

I've done well here in Colorado on Dave Whitlock's red fox squirrel hair nymph in sizes 10-12, and simple bead head maribou leeches in the same sizes, in black, olive, and brown. Depends a lot on the water you are fishing. We used to have a lake in Northern Colorado 8 or ten years that had some of the most aggressive carp I've ever seen - they would charge a fly in the flats from 10-12 feet away. Great fun - I caught six fish over 20 pounds in one summer and one over thirty! Saw five rods broken that summer as well. Sadly, that lake has been developed now and is members only - the residents all thought we were trying to poach their damned stocked rainbows, and none of them believed we just wanted to catch and release carp. I do miss those days!

 

Wiper Dawg

[Phish 0]

Fished for tailing carps yesterday and caught 5 including this big one 25" all on the 3wt.

[Piker20 0]

Nothing like getting your rod folded in half.

[Jim2Flies 0]

Carp are the fresh water bonefish.

On a fly I have caught 28" bows on a dry fly in WYO, 11 lbs bucketmouths in KS, but nothing but a carp has taken me into my backing 2-3 times. Broken hooks, broken leaders... Gimmee those golden fresh water bones anyday!

 

When you want to catch them they are as finicky and skitish as any trout.

Zug bugs with big "wet" fly collars, cottonwood seed imitations, small crayfish. Now that I am in Arkansas it seems to be tough to find them. KS was the best for sand pits, ponds and lakes with the golden bones

[Piker20 0]

Preaching to the converted here. It amazes me that fishers can become so blinkered to just one or two species and neglect the others. Many a time I'd give my granny to go home with anything tugging my line over a cold blank day.

[Phish 0]

Those darn carps kept me on the water 2 hours longer and getting sun burnt. Something that going after trouts cant do. hehe! I have never seen a fish that could pick the fly up and spit it out as fast as a carp. Skitty fish!

 

This is fly I used.

[Piker20 0]

Don't know how well known it is in states but carp will devour fry and in the autumn (Fall) in UK a small deadbait makes a great bait. I've caught them a few times when I've been using sardines for pike or when using samll 4inch freshwater baits for perch and zander. They don't appear so tackle shy at this time either.