Carp on the fly - true sport

[TonyCarpBoy]

I love carp fishing in general but I have become fully addicted to taking carp with flies.

It is great sport as you need to see them to have any level of success. This means that they can see you which leads to a lot of foolish looking crawling up to the water. (If you want to actually catch fish)

I will post a few general tips and try to get some pix posted.

Tony

[Bobb-o]

pleasae do....I have tried for a while now to catch a carp on my fly rod all to no avail. What flies are you using to catch yours?

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Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity and I'm not sure about the former.
-Albert Einstein

[Toad]

Tony-
So I've got this spot up around Brainerd-- gin clear with a nice little population of absolute "buffalos." We're talking carp ranging from 15 up to 40 pounds or more. But they're roamers-- fish that poke along near the surface in little pods of 5 to 15 fish. They're super spooky, and so far, I've never seen them feed, nor tempted them to feed on any surface offering.

Only thing they've taken is a #16 White Wulff fished wet. I'm at least somewhat certain these carp must be feeding on tiny midge larvae, but altough I've made countless casts to cruising fish with many different midge patterns-- down to #20s, so far, no dice. So, I've hooked 3, landed 1, which pushed 30.

Been doing carp with a fly rod on and off for over a decade-- including grass carp, but I'll be darned if I can crack the code on these fish. They've kept me up nights, if you know what I mean.

Got any thoughts? You'd be more than welcome to join me on this fishery if you happened to venture up toward Brainerd sometime.

-a friend,
Cory Schmidt

[TonyCarpBoy]

Flies - I have had success with a variety of flies. Presentation seems to be very important though. The best one by far is a crayfish-y bead-eye two-toned wooly bugger. (annoying description). If they are spooky, cast a ways past them and strip into view. If they are more aggressive, drop it a foot in front of and to the side of their head.

Nymphs of all sizes and types seem to work at some time or another. I have taken 20 inch fish on size 20 and 22 generic nymphs and have had a lot of luck with bead head nymphs. I think a little flash helps get their attention but too much turns them off.

Short, slow strips are important usually (not always). They seem to pick up very quickly that a scud cannot swim three feet in a second. <g>

Anything buggy works.

The absolute best thing is to find a natural chum line like a stream with cottonwood or seeds floating on top.

Never let them see you! I have been relearning this daily. lol

I used to go near brainerd every few months (dad lived on the whitefish chain) but I don't get up there any more. If we do, I will let you know. I like to learn fishing spots and tricks from other like minded folks.

Tony

[MNTrout]

Hey Toad,

I fly fish for Carp all the time, not that it makes me an expert or anything. I'd love to get together some time and try in the Brainerd area.

I now live on the east coast but come back and visit my parents who have a place in Pequot during the end of july start of august. Let me know if you want to try out a few spots.

Also do you know of any good lakes to site fish or that have good flats to try and site fish for carp in the brainerd area. Give me an email if you do and I hope we can get together when I'm back in town. I was going to send you a PM but am unable to do so for some reason.

MNTrout

[so haaad]

If you know of an area where carp feed on cottonwood seeds, then try throwing the same yarn flies as you would for steelhead. They work fantastic, plus you have a strong hook for the fight. This year I've tied a few yarn flies with some foam for bouyancy, so I will let you know how they work.