Need some Carp help.

[outdoorsmanfool 0]

I have a creek down the road from me and it is loaded with carp. sad thing is i can't get any of them to bite, i'm guessing they are spawning right now but wont they still bite flies? i have tried the wooly buggers and backstabber flies. any recommendations or tips would help thanks!

[Piker20 0]

Carp will become sex fixated. But after the party they get serious munchies so keep your eye out for the spawning slowing down. Aside from that, if you can see fish, I large daddy long legs (crane fly) or a sedge cast to individual fish should work.

[Goats 0]

There is a reason that carp are so plentiful!!.

 

There are very focused spawners!.

[eastern fly 0]

You should get in the carp swap that going on right now there's still room.

 

Kevin

[outdoorsmanfool 0]

thanks for the tips guy's and i am new to this site... i have heard of the swaps but i don't know what they exactly are... unless you wanna fill me in? haha

[eastern fly 0]

A swap is something you do with the other members. Someone will host it. Set a theme (fly type), and the number of swappers. Typical number is 12. When you get in you tye up 12 or what ever the number is. Tag your flies with your screen name and send them to the host. When you ship them you also send a return package with the correct STAMPS. Not a metered postage. He/she (didn't forget you shoes) will separate all the flies and you will get one back from everyone that got in.

Its a good way to learn other patterns and it make you better. If you do get into on make sure you use some kind of shipping box that will hold the flies. I see lots of stuff come and cant get all the return flies in them. I hope you try it.

 

Kevin

[Steve P 0]

I'm hosting the carp swap right now. Get in. We have 2 spots left open.

 

As to your question I'll answer once I have a little more info.

 

What kind of water clarity do you have right now? Inches or feet? What sort of bugs/invertebrates/bait fish inhabit the waters? Roughly what is the water temp?

 

Steve

[Kirk Dietrich 0]

Steve, I know you asked this to Outdoorsman but that water clarity gets me too. Where I fish in urban drainage canals, the clarity is twelve inches or better however, the bottom is so soft that when the carp are tailing looking for vittles, the mud they stir up clouds the visibility to zero, half the fish's body is not even visible in the mud only parts extending out of the mud cloud.

I'll cast past the fish and drag the fly under the surface until it is near the fish's head and then let it drop and they still don't see it. The only ones I've been able to catch are ones I just watch tailing and they tip up and move along and just before they tip down in clean/clear water make the same presentation. Even with those most of the time they ignore the fly or sometimes spook. Yesterday, I had three takes, hooked and landed one of those but had over two dozen refusal/spooks.

Thoughts?

Kirk

[Piker20 0]

If US carp act like UK ones they will key in on fry and small bait fish at certain times. I imagine that when like that they will actively hunt down a slowly tweaked fly.

When they are tipping up and rooting its likely they are sifting bloodworm and tiny bits out of the mud. Often I've hooked a fish on my bait when it does that little reverse body/head up move before puffing some clean water through their gills. They seem to see the bait and think, OH! I missed that bit.

Someone posted a tail buoyant fly for carp that I think would be ideal for this scenerio. Cast it out to just ahead of a rooter, it sits on the bottom, the buoyant tail wafting about and then when the fish lifts up it'll either wolf the fly in or slowly tweak the fly and hold on.

Remember that most of a carps natural food is not moving fast, if at all.

 

OR just tear your hair out and remember there's always tomorrow.

[Steve P 0]

Go black or go home... I fish the Missouri River about 350 or so miles (by river) from where it meets the Mississippi. Or water is thick with silt. 6"of visibility is a great day. I fish 3 primary colors. Black, dark sculpin olive (dark brown olive darn near black), and dark olive (darn near black). See a pattern? Also scale down your flies. I fish a size 6 most often. Almost all of my nymphs are on a #6 2xl. All of my creatures are on a #6 standard length. I fish a lot of carp crack, black ops, carp zonkers, and Wizard sleeves. Rarely do we spook a fish unless it gets line slapped on an errant cast (pretty often... lol). Give some of those a shot and also take a look at John Montana's hybrid. The Fly piker is referring to I believe would be McTage's trouser worm or rather the floating trouser worm. Both great flies for certain applications just not all that effective around here often enough for me to have them in my box. Tie simple generic patterns. All of my nymphs (excluding one) are basic simple patterns tied with either soft hackle or rubber legs. All of them tied in the round. I think the more a fly looks like it were scraped from a windshield the more a carp wants to eat it.

[Steve P 0]

Kirk you had better get in on the carp swap too.... You'll see a little more what I'm talking about with my flies.

 

Steve

[ditz2 0]

Regretfully my local small creeks don't have any carp. I have spent several hours on a small river that flows thru a small city fishing for carp. The water was low and pretty clear. I found fish that were mudding in the shallow riffles and I also found them in water probably 3 to 4' kinda cruising. There is a paved foot/bicycle path along the river with a light to fair amount of traffic. Most of my casts were on the long side. 50 to 80' and at that distance I could not actually watch the fly. I would spend 3 to 4 hours a day over about 6 or 7 days. I actually spooked a couple of fish but for the most part they just ignored me and my flies and I tried a wide variety of carpy stuff. Over all those days I may have had a couple of takes but not sure. Obviously no hook ups. I did find it quite frustrating. There were a few smaller fish but many of them were 12# and up. I hope you fellas can figure them out. I sure didn't.

[Steve P 0]

Ditz, in that amount of time I would bet I could get one on for you. Though they can be extremely spooky and very picky at times. You HAVE to have confidence in your gear, your fly selection, your ability, and most importantly yourself.

 

Steve

[outdoorsmanfool 0]

i would enter the swap but i feel like my flies wouldn't be good enough i have only been tying for about 1 1/2 i can tie some good ones but not all of them are perfect. and i don't have much materials. i will look forward to the next one though...............but back to the carp im fishing in about 1-2ft of water it is clear in the area i am fishing the bottom is sandy then mucky in certain areas and their is other fish in this stream such as bass and minnows. i am not so sure on what they would be eating i know they always hang around this over hung branches and fallen down tree's but if i can hook up to one of these bad boys it would defiantly be a good fight.

[outdoorsmanfool 0]

one more thing.. i think i need a better fly rod i got a cheap fly rod combo and the line could be better so i am going to get one of them next. it is a 5/6 weight rod though.