Nighttime Carpin Lights Up

This week has marked the start of nighttime carpin for me here in RI. Of the last nine carp that I caught this week, 8 have been landed at or after dark. See the picture on the right of one of the mirrors that I caught last night. Note that I have also been fishing equally in the daylight as well as at night. So, that should tell you just how productive nighttime fishing has been.

The tactics are the same at night as in the daytime. Make sure you have a reliable headlight and keep stuff on the bank very organized and easy to find. Bite alarms that light up are almost a must, especially in dark spots.

I like fishing at night. It's very quiet, there are few fishermen to compete with, the yahoos in boats are not around, and the fishing can be very good. Carp like it too as there are times of the year when nighttime is more productive than daytime. We're in one of those periods right now.

Sweet Corn

Sweet corn from the can is very effective for carp. While there are many carp fishermen that live and die by flavored corn, my guess is that there are also an equal number who use sweet corn as their "go to" bait. I like to use sweet corn in delicate presentations when carp are selective in their feeding. This is especially true in early spring and late fall when the water is cold and minimal feeding is going on.

I use sweet corn on the hair rig in two ways. One way is to just use sweet corn kernels, either 2 or 3 kernels on the hair. The other way I use it is by mixing a combination of sweet corn and flavored corn. I usually use a kernel of flavored corn sandwiched between two kernels of sweet corn. I was out today landed a couple of decent mirrors. The only thing they would take was a kernel of the Baitstop's Big Time Banana in between two kernels of sweet corn.

I also have my favorite brand of sweet corn. I especially like Green Giant "Super Sweet Yellow and White". This corn tends to be a little larger and more durable than most sweet corn varieties.

Sweet corn is far less expensive than flavored corn, it's easily obtained in super markets and it's a pretty effective bait.

BEST of RI Carp Fishing

We are about to move into April and that means better and more consistent carp fishing. With a lot of fishermen about to go out and hit the shores, here is my line-up for the "Best of RI Carp Fishing".

Best Pond to catch a lot of carp- Tie... Spectacle and Mashapaug, Cranston, RI- These are two ponds but they are connected by a pipe that runs under Rt. 10. The shoreline is not pretty and the access is limited, but both places are loaded with commons from 6-12 lbs. with occasional teens.

Best Place to catch a PB (personal best)- Lake Tiogue, Coventry- Lots of fish from the high teens to the low twenties. Nighttime fishing is very productive. Limited access.

Best Pond to catch a mirror carp- Scott's Pond, Lincoln- The place is loaded with mirrors from 6-12 lbs. with an occasional fish in the teens.

Best Access- Olney Pond, Lincoln Woods State Park- A road goes around the entire pond and the whole shoreline is accessible. Most fishermen don't even know there are carp here, but it has some nice fish up to 20 lbs.

Best Surprise pond- Roger Williams, Providence- There are big commons, mirrors, koi and even ghost carp here. You may even hook a thirty pounder. You just have to find the fish as this place lots of nooks and crannies.

Best Place to explore- Blackstone River from Woonsocket to Pawtucket- A real gem and its loaded with carp of all sizes, but 98% of the river is inaccessible. Find the spots to get in and you are golden!

Flavored Corn

Another "trick" that sharpie carp fishermen use is flavored corn on the hair rig. Yes, it works, and sometimes it is the only thing that works. I was out yesterday targeting mirror carp. I could see some swimming around and knew that if I found what they wanted I would have some good action. I tried a kernel of strawberry flavored corn sandwiched between two kernels of sweet corn. This set up had been hot in the last two weeks, but it didn't work yesterday. The only thing they would hit was The Bait Stop's "Big Time Banana" flavor, a new highly concentrated flavor I had just gotten in a few days ago. I landed 4 mirrors (see picture of one of them at left) and lost 2 others on the way in. Banana was hot yesterday.

You can buy flavored corn from a number of online carp bait stores. I am currently using a lot of innovative varieties from the Bait Stop (http://www.thebaitstop.com/) . These include such varieties as "Cinnamon Butter Rum", "Andy's Anise", and the above mentioned banana. I also use several varieties from Big Bob's (http://www.bigbobstackle.com/) which include scopex, strawberry and honey flavors. I've also use Pecaviva flavored corn sold by Wacker Baits (http://www.wackerbaits.com/). I especially like tutti-fruitti and scopex Pescaviva.

I find that the fruity flavors work best in cold water....spring and fall. The buttery flavors like scopex work better in the summer.

Most carp fishermen carry several jars of flavored corn with them and often discover by trial and error what works best. When you find that flavor that works, get ready for some hot action!

A Beautiful Fish

March 12.....a nice day here in RI......and another great day of carp fishing. Landed this fish in the low twenties, a beautiful looking common.

A Terrific March Outing

It was cold, windy and rainy here in RI today. It was my kind of carp fishing weather. I went to one of my favorite early season spots, a shallow water pond that has a tendency to produce within the first two weeks of ice out. I ended up having one of the very best early spring outings that I ever had!

Within a half hour of baiting up the spot and baiting my hooks, I had my first runner. The fish turned out to be a big (by RI standards) common of 20 lbs. I set up my tripod and camera to take a timed shot, and as the camera was clicking, the second alarm went off.....22 lber.! This continued pretty much the whole time I was there, and I ended up landing 12 carp with 4 of them going over 20 lbs! All the years I had been fishing this spot I have only taken a grand total of 3 twenty pound fish. It was a phenomenal day.

Early spring techniques were in play, and I think that made a big difference. I was using Big Bob's Strawberry Maize sandwiched between two kernels of sweet corn on the hair rig (see photo at right) with small hooks (size #8). I was also using Ace Hooklink, terrific stuff when it comes to hooking capabilities. I was also using a small oatmeal method ball flavored with molasses that was packed around a half ounce egg sinker. It was all delicate presentation stuff and that makes a big difference in early spring!

Making Hair Rigs (option2)

This is the way most carp fishermen make thier own hair rigs. It is called knotless knot. I will be using 50 lb. test braid to do it but many fishermen also use hooklink material. Cut a piece of line about a foot long. Begin by making a small loop with an overhand knot at one end and trim the excess. Pass the unknotted end of the line down through the eye of the hook. Adjust the size of the hair you want and hold in one spot. Next, start wrapping back (wrap on the side of the eye that is solid and not open). You want to wrap about 6-10 turns, depending on how far back you want to go. When finished with the wraps, pass the end of the line down through the eye of the hook. Tie a swivel at the end of your line and you are ready to go. Most of these leaders measure 3-5 inches long when completed. Note that some fishermen add shrink tubing to the shank of the hook to hold everything neatly in place. And, you do not need a fly tying vice to do this.