600th Carp of the Year Falls on Cold Day

I landed my 600th carp of the year today on this cold day.  The fish, a mirror of about 10 lbs. hit hair rigged pineapple flavored Pescaviva (sweet corn).  This fish was part of a three fish outing.  I had two other mirrors.  They were hitting in a place that was partially covered with ice, but I was able to fish in an open spot. The best fishing occurred from 1:00 to 3:00, the warmest part of this cold day.  That time period is prime time to fish in the next month. Yes, they will continue hitting until the ice puts an end to the season.  In most years I am able to continue catching carp until mid December, but two years ago, I was able to catch them all winter long in open water.

This good looking mirror was my 600th carp of 2013.

FANTASTIC Deal on Camera

I've got to pass on info on a fantastic deal on a camera.  Most of the pictures you see on this blog were taken with a high end pocket, point and shoot camera, a Canon 2200 Powershot.  Well, on this Black Friday, the Canon store has a refurbished Powershot 2300, an upgraded model, on sale for $44.99.  That also includes a card and a case, and even includes free shipping!  That price is unheard of for a top quality camera. This camera is a 16 megapixel camera that has a zoom and can also take HD video.  It also has that all imprortant variable self timer that will let you get into a picture holding a fish with time to spare.  Don't let "refurbished" scare you.  That is all I buy.  These cameras were thoroughly reconditioned and carry the same guarantee as a new one.  If you are interested, the link is below:
http://shop.usa.canon.com/shop/en/catalog/11-29-13-powershot-a2300-refurbished-one-day-sale%20?cm_sp=SP-_-PS-_-Text_BFpage3

My Kind of Carpin' Weather

This is the first of three commons landed
today in the wind and rain.

I fished just about all day today in the wind and rain, and it was productive.  I love fishing in this kind of weather. It seems to put a charge in the carp, and I have had some of my best fishing days ever on some of the nastiest days imaginable. Hey, compared to last year when I fished in Hurricane Sandy today was a piece of cake.
I landed three commons today, all around ten pounds and had another fish on,  They were all taken on sweet corn fished ahead of a method ball.  The fish were active as I saw several fish jump, and I had a number of taps on my bait in this mild weather.  Just yesterday many of the places I fish were iced over, but all the ice disappeared today in the sixty degree temperatures.  With another cold spell on the way, it looks like the ice might return to these spots and shut the fishing down once again. The roller coaster ride continues.

Not Your Typical November

This is one of three decent commons caught on
this cold day using sweet corn.

I went out this week on Wednesday morning to one of my productive "small" late season carp spots.  When I got there I was shocked to see the place completely frozen over with a thin coating of ice.  This has never happened in recent memory in this location at this time of year.  But, this is not your typical November.
The weather along with the fishing has been on a roller coaster ride this November. Overall, the weather has been colder than normal, and I believe that has led to one of the most inconsistent Novembers I have ever fished.  I have been out every day in the last 6 days.  I blanked three of the days and caught fish the other three days.  Today, I went out with little expectations of catching anything on this cold day.  Besides, I had blanked on the last two outings.  Well, it turned out to be a decent outing as I landed three commons, all around 10 lbs. I got them all on Pecaviva sweet corn fished ahead of a method ball.  All of the fish also came in the early afternoon sun when things had warmed up a bit.
So, if you can put up with the cold, the inconsistencies, and the blanks, you may just luck into a decent day once in a while.  That's carp fishing this November, 2013.

Persistence Pays Off

Most fishermen would hang it up at this time of year.  Carp fishing is so inconsistent in late fall that it seems like there are just as many blanks as there are productive days. But, persistence can pay off.  I had been having a miserable two days of trying to find any fish.  I went without as much as a hit in those two days in some good spots.  The weather was just right but the carp were not in the mood.  Today everything was wrong.  It was cold, very windy and very sunny.  Yet, the fish were hitting.  I landed three commons and a mirror and all the fish were decent from 10-13 lbs. (see one of them at left). They all were taken on pineapple flavored Pescaviva, a form of durable sweet corn. By the way, Pescaviva is no longer sold.  I had been saving a can of it for the "tough times".
I even saw a few fish jumping today so they were active.  It all goes to show you just have to get out and try it regardless of the weather. So long as there is open water, I plan to continue fishing.

Iced Over in the Morning; Productive in the Afternoon Warmth

Today was an interesting day.  I checked out a few spots in the morning, and to my surprise, the place I wanted to fish was completely iced over.  It was skim ice, but nevertheless, the place was covered.  So, I went home, got a few things done, and went back later in the day.  When I went back in the afternoon after the temperatures had warmed considerably, the ice was gone and the fish were active.  It was typical about what can happen when air temperatures and water temperatures are on the rise in late fall and early winter.  I landed 4 mirrors and had several more hits, a real good day at this time of year. Check out the pics of three of the four fish landed today. The key here was that I was fishing the warmest part of the day from 1:00 to 4:00 PM.  From now until the end (late Dec.), that will be the best time of the day to fish, especially after a cold night. The other key today was that I was catching on sweet corn with no method ball.  From now until the end, sweet corn will be the most effective bait to use. I was also fishing a spot that is a good producer at this time of year.  Carp tend to bunch up in the cold and it is a matter of finding those winter spots where big numbers of fish bunch up.  It's a matter of putting in your time in order to find those productive spots.

Catching in the Freezing Cold

When I left the house this afternoon I was dressed as if I was going ice fishing.  With the temperature hovering around freezing, I decided to give it an hour or so at a local pond that had produced well in  the past in late fall/early winter.  With a wind blasting in my face, the wind chills were in the 20's, yet there was one carp interested in hitting.  Nothing sluggish about this guy as it tore off on a screaming run on the take.  The hard fighting carp turned out to be a 7 lb. mirror (see photo).  It was not a headliner by any means, but I was glad to catch at least one fish on this brutally cold day.

Here's a few tips for cold weather fishing at this time of year:
*Go with sweet corn on the hair rig.  Very effective bait at this time.
*Go small....small hook (#8), small sinker, small hair, short hooklink.
*Fish the warmest part of the day.  That time from 2:00 to 4:00 PM is a good time.
*Prebait if you can.  Yes, it still works.
*Look around for places that produce in the cold.  Not all spots are good.

"New" Guys Catching on Cold Morning

Ask some of our new guys, and they'll tell you the carp are still hitting.  I got out this morning with our newest RI CAG member, Todd, along with his friend Jimmy.  The air temperature was in the thirties and there was ice on my car when I went out in the yard.  Still, the carp were hitting.  The new guys ended up with two mirrors and a common, not bad for this time of year.  They were using lots different baits....sweet corn, maize and chick peas, all fished ahead of a method ball. Put in your time, even in the cold, and you will be rewarded.  Nice job, guys!

Disappointing Week

It has not been a good week of carp fishing.  I have been out just about every day in the last week, I have fished at least 6 different spots, and I have landed only three fish.
Novembers are usually not this bad.  In the past I have been able to average about 50 carp in the month of November. This November has been colder than normal and I attribute the cold weather, especially the cold nights, for the dismal start.  However, I also know that November can be streaky.  In other years, I have had some hot periods where I might catch 15 or 20 fish in a few days.  Let's not forget also that I landed the biggest freshwater fish ever caught in RI (36 lb. common carp) two years ago on November 10.  So, yes it can get very good in November.
If you look at the forecast for the next week, it is not good.  Temperatures next week will be in the 30's and low 40's for the most part by day and in the low 20's at night. So, looks like the tough fishing will continue until and extended warm period lights things up.

Sluggish

Nice fish, but it was sluggish on the take
and sluggish on the fight due to the cold.

When I left the pond this afternoon, the temperature was a cold 39 degrees.  Last night the low was in the in the high 20's.  It's been mighty cold for early November and the carp are feeling it.
Carp turn sluggish in the cold, especially when air and water temperatures drop suddenly.  Today I had a lot of small taps.  I'm sure these were carp, but they were too sluggish to take the bait.  I tried the usually tricks.....smaller bait, smaller hairs, smaller sinkers.  Finally, I had a fish take or I should say a continuously tapping of the bait, another trait of sluggish fish.  I pulled and was onto a sluggish fighter.  It turned out to be a mirror carp of about 10 lbs.
The good news is that the weather can't stay this cold at this time of year.  If you look at the forecast for later in the week, the temperatures should shoot up into the 60's.  That should improve the carp fishing and get the fish active again. The fishing season is far from over.

Should have been better.....

This is one of two small mirrors that ended a
disappointing day.  The fish was caught on maize.

Today should have been better.  It had "big day" written all over it.  We had a perfect late fall set up. The weather had been cold all week.  Yesterday turned warm with a warm night followed by a warm, rainy day today. That pattern usually lights up the fall fishing.  But, the carp were not cooperating. Ah, the inconsistency of fall carp fishing!
I got out today with three fellow RI CAG carpers.  We fished two different venues that had produced in past years at this time.  In all I saw one fish roll and that was it.  We had no hits.  Think about it....4 experienced carpers, 8 rods out, 4 hours of fishing and NOTHING.  It should have been better.
I did salvage the day as I stopped at another venue on my way home and managed two small mirrors in a couple of hours. Also, had another fish on. So, two small ones was better than nothing I suppose, but in my mind the day was disappointing.