Picture of the Day

Double Mania

Today's double turned out to be two decent size commons.
These fish hit hair rigged maize fished ahead of a method ball.

This will not be a record year for me in terms of numbers of fish, however I have landed more doubles this year than I ever caught.  Today I landed my sixth double of the year.  A double is two fish on at the same time while fishing with two rods.  It usually happens to me a couple of times a year, but for some reason it has happened with more frequency this year.  Just luck I suppose.
This has been a very good last couple of days of carp fishing for me.  Yesterday it was 5 fish; today it was 9 fish.  These are very good numbers of carp at this time of year.  They seem to be hitting at all times with some fish coming in the morning, some falling in the evening and some even coming after dark.  The common thread here is that all the fish are falling for hair rigged maize.

Prebaiting with American Chop Suey....Huh?

This 12 lb. common was caught in a spot
that was prebaited with American chop suey.

We had some leftover American chop suey in the fridge that my wife wanted to feed to the garbage disposal.  I said, "Hold on, I can use it for chumming." I know from past experience that some of the guys at the Merrimack River have chummed pasta, so why not this which is basically made with elbow macaroni and tomato sauce, two things carp do like. I'm not sure whether they go for the hamburg.
Well, it has worked.  A couple of days ago I landed a nice size common in a spot prebaited with the American chop suey. Today I landed 5 mirrors in a place that was prebaited with the chop suey.
Carp like any product made from wheat.  Stuff like bread and pasta fit the bill.  They also like such table fare as rice, potatoes, peas, crackers, nuts and any kind of cake-like dessert.  Add to the list dry dog food, dry cat food and bird seed. All of these things can be prebaited to lure carp to a swim.
While I prebaited American chop suey, I did catch the fish on maize.  I haven't quite figured out how to hair rig a piece of elbow macaroni. 

Change in Venue Produces

I never stay anchored to one spot, especially when that spot is not producing.  This happened this past week.  I was catching carp in one location for about a week, but then that spot died with the change in weather.  Two blanks and I was out of there.
So, I have been moving around and I found a decent spot from my list of places I fish.  Tonight I landed two good size mirrors from this location (see photos).
Most experienced carp fishermen have a number of "good spots" that they fish regularly.  I actually have about 10 spots or venues that I fish a lot.  They all are unique in some way. Some of these are good spring spots, some good fall spots, some produce on rainy days, some are good on sunny days, some are good in high water and some are good in low water. I've come to these conclusions from a lot of hours fishing in these locations over the years.  Most are within five miles of where I live.  So, if one place is not producing, I get out of there and try another.  That thinking has worked for me in the last few days and led to some decent catches.

Anatomy of a Hair Rig

On the last post a reader asked about rigs.  I use only one type of rig, what most would call a standard hair rig.  The only thing I vary about this rig is the sinker.  I generally use a one ounce "no roll" sinker that I make myself when fishing ponds or rivers with a slow current.  In river with a fast current I might use sinkers of 2 or 3 oz.
The hair rig I use is made with 50 lb. test Power Pro braided line.  I like red line, but others use the green color with equal success.  Here is the video link on how to make the hair rig by tying a knotless knot: http://ricarpfishing.blogspot.com/2009/03/making-hair-rigs-option2.html
One key here is to make the hooklink or leader short from 3-5 inches in length. The other key is to make the loop (called the hair) in the hair rig the right length.  I like it dangling about 1/8 inch off the back of the hook when bait is added.  That length will be determined by how much bait you want to add to your loop.  A large boilie will need a longer hair than two kernels of corn. For hooks, I like an Umpqua Tiemco 2457 hook when fishing for small to medium size carp (under 20 lbs.).
The diagram of  my rig is below.  You can double click the picture for a larger view.

First Carp

I met this guy named Tony a couple of days ago in one of the spots I was fishing for carp.  He was fishing with his family for largemouths.  He saw me catch a carp and came over and asked me a few questions about how to do it.  I gave him some advice and also told him about the blog. He said he was going to check out all the info on the blog to learn more about carp fishing.
Today I went back to the pond and immediately noticed a small crowd gathered around a guy fighting a fish.  It was Tony and he was onto his first carp.  I became a spectator also and later netted the 8-10 lb. common carp for him. We took a couple of photos and then Tony released the fish.  It was his first carp, a beauty, and one to remember.
It's always rewarding for me to see a newcomer to carp fishing land his first carp.  So, congrats to Tony on landing his first carp.  Hopefully, this will be the first of many for him
.

Gorgeous

I got out a couple of days ago with my friend Eric Medenbach.  Eric is a new convert to carp fishing here in RI and a quick learner who has landed some big fish already.  Aside from his fishing talents, Eric is simply the best fishing photographer I have ever met. From the framing to the sharpness to the exposure, his pictures are magnificent.  Here is a photo of a near 20 lber. that I landed that day, and a gorgeous photograph that Eric took.