Dry fly carp fishing

[TheCream 0]

On my last outing I spotted a lot of smaller carp (1-3lbs) in shallow, clean water close to the weed edges. I had none with me so I couldn't try it, but has anyone ever tried standard dry flies on carp? Not mulberry flies or cottonwood seed flies, but actual terrestrial or otherwise standard dry flies? Any successes? Failures?

[eastern fly 0]

Funny that bring that up. Sumday I was fishing and there was a Grannom hatch going strong. I was watching egg layers and then see a good 10 pound carp rise and take a caddis like it was a rainbow. I thought about the same thing. Dry fly carp fishing.

 

Kevin

[Piker20 0]

Works great. Crane flies are a good pattern. So too are Wulfs and as Eastern fly saw sedge hatches. The only reason I think more aren't caught on traditional flies is that the line diameter to present them well means the fish often isn't landed. But fish to 10lb should be catchable on a fly rod and 'normal' line strengths. In nature allfish only have access to what nature gives them and flies should take every fresh water species. Its just that for some species the water quality makes it too prohibitive and baits are going to out perform any fly.

Here in UK the carp will still come to the surface in the winter when a patch of sun warms the margin and I have caught them from the surface with ice around the margins and air temp around 3deg.

[shoebop 0]

I had a friend who, years ago, used to fish for carp with flies and tried to get me to go with him on several occasions. I never could go with him, however. But he would tell me all about all the fun he had battling 20# carp on a flyrod. I'm sorry I never got the chance to go with him. I tried to hook up with some carp about three weeks ago when I was out on a lake and they were in the shallows just like you mentioned. They were too spooky and I couldn't get a fly to land soft enough. I will try it again in the future.

[PWB 0]

One day a couple years ago I was catching bluegills on a Royal Coachman and it was sipped off the the surface by a nice carp. Finally landed the 8 pound beauty! Fun stuff!!!!

[MIKE*A 0]

Several years ago, I was fishing a local stream for smallies. I was wet wading in water up to my thighs when I saw some swirls at the edge of a weed bed, as I got closer, I could see dozens of damsel flies hanging on the tops of the weeds drying/spreading their wings. There was a light breeze, and I could see the occasional damsel falling into the water at the edge of the weed line. There was at the time what I thought to be a smallmouth sipping the damsels off the surface like a trout, I was fishing streamers at the time and after rummaging thru my boxes could only come up with a humpy as a dry fly. I tied it on, and made a perfect cast, the "smallie" sipped it off the surface, I set the hook and the fight was on.....it made a short run up stream, turned and came at me like a torpedo, I couldn't strip line fast enough. It went between my legs, wrapped the line around my right leg and got off....I never got a look at it.....for days I cried about losing a trophy smallie, but the more I replay that in my mind, the more I believe it was probably a 3-5 pound carp.....

 

Mike

[Phish 0]

I missed that Grannom hatches that goes on down there. It brings many fishes to top surface for some blow ups that is unreal! It the reason I designed a fly to immitate them called the Dark Horse.

[DoubleHaul 0]

We used to target carp (and big catfish) during the whitefly hatch (Ephoron leukon) on the Potomac and Susquehanna Rivers. During a good hatch everything in the river would come up for them. Somewhere I have a picture of a carp way over 20lbs caught on a #12 white comparadun...

[Matt B 0]

I target carp on occasion. This one fell to my 6wt. They do put up a great fight.

[ditz2 0]

Matt B.....gotta luv those Medalists....