Carp, a Eurasian fish introduced here in the late 1870s, were thought to be a handy gamefish to replace the loss of native fishes along with being a yummy meal. The gamefish part lost a little of its flavor when it was realized that carp would not hit lures. They were also low on the choice of seafood menu items.
But they are still great gamefish that come in large packages. They hit baits readily and fight hard. For lake and pond fishing, the right tackle, bait and chum, combined with a lawn chair and forked stick to hold a rod, can make for a great summer afternoon. Boat fishermen on a lake or slow river (my favorite) can plop a lawn chair or two into a large wide jon boat, double anchor it from each end (cross-wise in rivers with slow currents only). Add some clamp-on rod holders for a great time.
Both spinning and casting tackle work for carp. The best casting reels are standard wide spool models with a line-out click that signals when a carp is taking bait. Some of these are still made and in slightly larger sizes, are among the new reels from ICAST this year.
You can also check with Grandpa to use his clicker casting reel from the 1930s. Lacking a click, carefully free spool the reel slightly and place a clothespin on a large line loop above the reel that you can quickly remove when a carp hits. The clothespin signals a running fish. Use a straight handled casting rod, since this fits best in boat or bank rod holders. A straight handled spinning rod works best for the same reason of fitting it in a rod holder. For most fishing, choose rods in the six to seven foot range.
To allow carp to run when first mouthing the bait, the best spinning reels are the “bait runner” type that have a standard front drag for fighting fish and a rear “line running” drag.
Flip off the rear bait runner drag when you are sure the fish has the bait. Lacking a reel like this, use the clothespin and loop line trick between the open bail spool and the first guide as listed above. On both casting and spinning reels, consider braided lines that give you more feel of what the fish is doing.
Single hooks, well sharpened, are best for carp fishing, using simple bait running rigs. For this, slide the line through an egg sinker or eye of a bass sinker and tie on a barrel swivel. Tie on several feet of 12 to 20 pound mono. Tie on the hook. This rig allows the carp to take the bait without dragging the sinker and possibly dropping the bait.
Use commercial or homemade carp dough (cooked flour or corn meal with water, and vanilla scent or strawberry or raspberry Jell-O for flavor) or canned corn Niblets. Chum the fishing area with the same bait and get ready for summer fun.
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