Dealing with Turtles

I landed this carp this moning
with turtles all around me.
Note the bait is a single
artificial corn. Turtles will
usually not go after artificials.

You can tell we have moved into a summer pattern of fishing. It seems like the turtles are just about as plentiful as the carp these days.

There's no messing with these guys.
Try to save the sinker, cut the line,
and let it go.

I was out the other day, and I noticed my rod tip began to twitch.  All of a sudden, the line took off slowly with the dit....dit...dit sound of the alarm.  I knew right away what it was. I picked up the rod, set the hook, and it seemed like I was onto a log, but the log was moving. I slowly reeled in the heavy weight and when I got it near shore, it was a big ass snapping turtle the size of a manhole cover. I knew it.  I went into my turtle routine, grabbed a stick and slipped the sinker up the line so it could be saved.  I then cut the line and the beast was free. No messing with these things. That was my first snapper of the year, although I have gotten several sun turtles so far.
How do you get away from these things?  There are a few things I do in "turtle spots"....
1. Don't chum- any chumming or prebaiting will bring every turtle in a pond to your swim.
2. Forget the method ball-  more bait, more likely to attract turtles.  Just go with the bait on the hair.
3. Use plastics- turtles tend to not go after plastics, though some aggressive ones will. I use a kernel or two of plastic corn on a short hair.
4. When all else fails, pack up and head to another spot.

Competing in the CAG National Big 4

My biggest common  so far is this 29 lb. 2 oz. fish. In this
tournament you must submit a photo with the fish, the scale
and the logo.

The Carp Anglers Group is now running one of their signature national tournaments.  It is the Spring Big 4.  From May 1 until June 15 about 50 of the best carp anglers from all over the country compete in this event.  The way this runs is that you enter your 4 biggest carp by weight and the total becomes your point total.You also must submit proof which amounts to a photo of the fish, the scale used (in the photo) and the CAG logo (in the photo).
I enter this event every year.  My goal is always to try to get to 100 lbs. (average of 25 lbs. a fish (by the way.....not easy to do)), and to attempt to score in the top ten.   Every time I have entered this event I have made the top ten.  My best finish has been second place. Currently, I am sitting in second place with a total of 116 lbs. ( fish of 31/8, 29/2, 28/14 and 26/8).  It is still very early in the tournament, and a lot will change in the next few weeks.  But, I am hoping also to up my total. A couple of more 30's would be great!
We have 5 RI CAG members who signed up for this event.  They include Todd Richer, Bob White, Manny Dias, Tony Carvalho and myself. All of these guys are veteran carp fishermen who know what they are doing.  All of them have caught many big carp and are capable of a top ten finish. We all just need a little bit of luck!

Photo of the Day....31 lb. , 8 oz. Mirror!

I landed this gorgeous 31 lb., 8 oz. fully scaled mirror today. It's not easy to get
a 30 lber. around here and catching one is always a thrill and a fish to remember.

Out with the Sweet Corn, In with the Maize

Maize is a big and hard corn bait.
It is far more durable than sweet corn
at this time of year.

A couple of weeks ago when we had that warm spell, I made the switch.  I had been using sweet corn in most of my applications, but that warm spell brought out the pests.  I'm talking bluegills, suckers, horned pout and turtles.  All of these varmints just love to pick apart the sweet corn leaving you  with no bait on your line. It was time to use the more durable maize.
Maize is a hard and bigger corn. I buy mine as "whole corn" at Tractor Supply.  A fifty pound bag is about 8 bucks.  Other RI CAG guys buy it from Dick's Sporting Goods where it is sold as deer corn. Here's a review on how to prepare it.  Put it in a big pot (fill about a third of the pot) and add water to fill the pot.  Let this sit overnight.  Then boil it for about 35 minutes. Once cooled, you can now package it or refrigerate it.  It can be used as chum or a hook bait.  Some fishermen will also flavor it.

I've had real good success in the past
two weeks using one kernel of corn and one
artificial, white, pop-up corn on the hair
rig.  This has accounted for big
numbers of fish as well as some real
big RI carp.

I've been having great success in the past two weeks using one kernel of maize along with one kernel of white, artificial corn on the hair rig.  When used with a method ball, that has accounted for big numbers of carp along with a 26 and 29 lber., real good size fish for RI.
Realize that any corn baits can not be used in RI waters where trout are stocked. Where trout are not stocked corn baits are ok to use.

Photo of the Day- 29 lb., 2 oz. Brute

This recent warm weather has woken up the big carp in RI. There have been
good numbers of 20-29 lb. carp landed by RI CAG members in the last week.

April Results in RI CAG Big 3 Tournament

Tom Perron, one of our top big carp hunters here in RI , grabs
the early lead with this impressive 26 lb., 10 oz. carp.

The RI CAG is currently running our annual Spring Big 3 Tournament. In this event, members enter their biggest April fish, their biggest May fish and their biggest June fish.  Add up all the weights and that is your score at the end of June.
April was a tough month of fishing in RI this year with all the cold and stormy weather. But, our guys and gals did a great job, once again, of landing some very impressive carp for the first third of the tournament. Note that all the entries must be landed in RI waters.
Here are the April results:

Tom Perron – 26 lbs., 10 oz.

Angel Medrano- 25 lbs., 15 oz.

Sean Reed- 21 lbs.

Brian Savage- 18 lbs., 8 oz.

Manny Dias- 18 lbs., 3 oz.

Laura Mitchell- 16 lbs., 4 oz.

Tony Carvalho- 14 lbs., 6 oz.

Warm Weather, Rain Perk up Fishing

Here's a good one from today's rain sitting
in some shallow water. Carp fishing here in
RI is on an upward trend!

This was a predictable pattern of spring which perks up the carp fishing. We had some warm weather up in the sixties earlier in the week, and today it was a warm rain with temperatures in the mid 50's.  All that has combined to really perk up the fishing in the last few days.
I've landed 16 carp in the last several days with some good ones in the mid to upper teens. I've also seen a lot more activity with fish jumping and bubble trails giving away the fish's presence.  They have also been more active on the take and the fight, a sure sign that the water is warming.
My best bait continues to be a combo bait of sweet corn and a white artificial corn fished on the hair rig.  I also have a method ball packed around the sinker.  While the carp activity has really perked up, the pests are on the increase also.  I've spotted sun turtles, caught horned pout and suckers, and have had a lot a picky short takes, a sign of bluegills banging at the method mix.
So, things are looking up, finally.  Great time to get out and go carp fishing if you haven't done it yet.