Starting the 2017 Season

Thanks Kevin, Sam, Jessica, and Jeff for asking why I have been lazy prodding me to get back to the blog.  Here you go.

Starting the 2017 season near the end of May?  Well hell yes!  I'm talking about the carp season of course.  Normally I would have started sooner but it has been cold this year so the beginning of the season has been delayed.  Oh, and one more thing, I was distracted, or completely unavailable. Unavailable........because....................... I went fishing in Cuba.  What an adventure that was for this old guy!  More on that in another post coming soon.

My first fish of the day, and of the season, was a fully scaled mirror; I sure liked that.  It was nice to hook up just minutes after starting.  I thanked the carp for taking my fly.  The first fish being a mirror boded well for the day, for the season, and I think perhaps for all of my life.  Black Betty tricked this wonderful fish.  (I only fish the red tail version anymore.)

We don't see that many mirrors on the Columbia so my friends and I covet them.  If I see more than one fish and I can tell one of them is a mirror I will cast to the mirror.  Much of the time I can't tell if the fish is a mirror or a common until after they slosh or until I get them near me.

Well heck, my second fish was a mirror too.  He was nice and chunky and had almost no scales on his sides.  In this picture I have lifted him up with my left hand and am trying to use the camera with my right hand.  For an old guy like me, that's multi-tasking and it ain't easy.  



 

This same fish had two rows of scales down his back.  He looked a linear mirror with the scale lines moved up on top.

The "hog of the day" award goes to this next fish.  Lets pretend the reason you don't see the whole fish is because he was too big to fit in the picture rather than me not setting up the camera correctly.  Either way he's a porker.

I saw and caught fish in spurts.  I had a good number of shots and had three fish to the net within the first hour.  That makes me feel way more clever than I actually am.  I kept stalking and then didn't see a single fish for an hour and a half.  After that I got two shots and didn't connect.  I kept moving and started seeing fish again about 30 minutes later.  I put several more in the net and thanked the Good Lord for a wonderful day.

#blackbetty, #carplodge, #carponthefly, #flyfishingforcarp, #mirrorcarp

Catfish on the Fly

Many years ago when I made my first cast to a tailing carp how was I to know what doors that would open in the future?

Nearing the end of a good day of carp fishing I was slowly wading back in the direction of my Carpwagon but still keeping an eye out for another shot.  The silhouette of a fish came into view; I thought it was a funny looking carp but he was big so I was immediately in the hunter's mode.  As I eased closer to the fish I thought damn, that carp has a big head.  A bit closer and I realized that carp was a catfish.  Well, I've never caught a catfish; I had no idea if one would take a fly or not.  I just acted like he was a carp and put the Chocolate Cherry in front of him.  Go figure; I made one cast to that ugly handsome sucker and he took the fly.  What a surprise!  I'm one for one; I'm battin' 1000 on catfish.

This first picture shows the fly in the right side of his mouth.

He is sloshing in this picture.

He just finished sloshing and has the leader under the other whisker.  This picture gives some perspective to his length.

Handsome? Beautiful? Ugly? Exotic?  What do you think?  

When Carp Fishing is Heavenly

There are days when turbid water, wind, and the devil clouds conspire to make carp fishing darn difficult. There are days when the water is clear, the wind blows lightly and the sky is blue; oh, but wait, there are almost no fish to cast to.  Heck that's even worse than the bad conditions!  I have to remind myself that if carp fishing was easy everyone would be doing it.   

There are days when the conditions are tolerable and there are still very few fish.  There are days when the conditions are tolerable but I'm still seeing a good number of targets and getting hook ups; those are great days.  There are days when the conditions are good and I'm getting lots and lots of shots.  When I can cast to those fish rather than reaching out and just dropping the fly in front of them, those days are heavenly.

On my last trip to the Carp Lodge I fished several days.  One of my days was heavenly.  It sounds like kind of a silly word to describe a session but when I got back to my carpwagon as I was getting my boots off I said to myself, "That was heavenly".  It really was.  I was getting so many shots and hooking up so often I just didn't want to get out of the river to take any pictures where I was holding the fish.  I was fishing a two fly rig with a Chocolate Cherry on top and Black Betty as the dropper.  They took both flies.  There were virtually no clouds, the wind was light and the water was clear enough that I was casting a fair distance to tailing fish.  

All the hook ups made me feel more clever than I actually am.  Lets be objective here--I don't have a 20+ fish day when I only see 10 or 12 fish.  It just isn't possible to catch more fish than I see.  On this day I was blessed to be fishing in a very target rich environment with receptive fish.  Indeed, it was heavenly.  

Not your typical carp

An ordinary Columbia River carp is a common, is about 28-29 inches long and weighs 8-9 pounds.  Some, not many, are smaller but typically not very much smaller.  Some are larger.  Some are way larger.  A Columbia River carp can be 29 inches and weigh more than 9 pounds because his tummy is fat.

An ordinary Columbia common.

This common has more girth so he tips the scale over 10 pounds.  

This Columbia River carp is not ordinary.  He is a mirror and he is longer than 28 inches.  When I see a group of fish and I can tell one of them is a mirror I will virtually always target the mirror.   There was a group of three tailing fish but I could not tell this one was a mirror.  He was the largest of the three so I cast to him.  He picked up Black Betty just like I wanted him to.    He was an extraordinary fish; he reminded me how very fortunate I am to be a carp fisherman.  Damn, I love my river! 

Nettin' Carp Like a Gunslinger, or, Carrying a Net Made Easy

In my last post I mentioned that probably the highlight of the trip was being able to easily and comfortably carry a net.  I had wanted to get video of me netting a fat Carp but I will have to wait until I am fishing with someone else for that.  For now here are some pictures of the net and the way I am carrying it.  Katy took video of me kind of "playing a fish" and accessing the net.  Okay, the line is wrapped around the leg of a table so I guess I playing a picnic table but bear with me until I can get some video of the real thing.  

I am using a large Solvkroken telescopic net.   That link is to the manufacturer in Norway.  The net is widely available in the UK.    The handle telescopes but more importantly the net easily folds down to a small package. As near as I can tell the only place to get this net in the United States is the Red Rock Wilderness Store in Minnesota.  Talk to Jackie; she is very helpful.  

I believe I first purchased this net 8 years ago.  I was concerned that the cotton string bag would not work as well as as a soft nylon mesh bag so I had it replaced by a guy who makes nets for professional aquaculturists.  I always use that net when I fish for Carp from the Zodiac.  You can see a picture of it here; it has the white bag.  With the nylon mesh bag the net no longer folds as compactly as it does with the cotton string bag.  I love this net.  It is strong and durable.  It opens and closes easily.  I have weighed fish over 20 pounds in this net by simply putting the scale hook on the frame of the net.

This is me standing in the gravel by the Carp Lodge.  I'm wearing my new Patagonia Stealth Atom pack.  I'm also wearing a new Solkroken net.  You can't even see it.

The net is in a scabbard.  The scabbard has a belt loop at the top so it slides smoothly around the pack strap.

The net in the scabbard up close.

For wading I purchased another Solvkroken net and left the original soft cotton bag on it.  By itself the net is great.  On a 1 to 5, I would give it a 5.  I was already completely sold on the net.  For wading and stalking Carp now I have a way to carry the net easily and comfortably.   The scabbard was only $21.95 from Yellowstone Angler.  When the net is in the scabbard it doesn't catch on brush or weeds like it would if it was open all the time.  The scabbard is nylon mesh so it drains easily.  The net slips in and out quickly using just one hand.  This is the large or maxi size net.  It comes in a smaller size for Trout etc.  


I have only used this setup two days but know that it has now become a part of my standard Carp gear.  

A 16 pound 6 ounce fish that I netted with my new setup and weighed in the net.  

A smaller fish in the net

Catchin' Carp and Nettin' 'em Like a Gunslinger

In the video I only open and close the net.  The handle also telescopes farther out.  

Up next will be a post about my recent results with flies from Chris at Missouriflies.com

After that I am working on a post about estimating the size of Carp.  Stay tuned.

Ella the Carp and the Land of Mirrors

The Blackfoot Reservoir appeared on my radar back in 2005.  The body of water has only Mirror Carp.  Seeing pictures of large Mirror Carp made me wide eyed and I knew I would fish there one day.  In 2006, I corresponded with a Euro-style angler from California who had been there with some of his friends.  His stories and his pictures cemented my determination to travel to the Land of Mirrors.

This is Ella the Carp.  She is a Common Carp.  She lives on the wall in the Carp Lodge next to Harry the Heron.

Ella was made by a word worker who lives very near the Carp Lodge.  She has 244 separate pieces.  Each scale is an individual piece.  (Guess how much we paid for Ella.  Seriously, guess please; you won't be offended.)

I am guilty of personifying things at times.  It works for me.  Sometimes it makes perfect sense to me.

Ella is anxious for me to go the Land of Mirrors.  In anticipation of leaving for this trip she and I posed for a picture together awhile back.

Is it that all of the Carp in the Blackfoot Reservoir are Mirrors that piques my interest so much?  It is that in part, but the Carp in that water are big and that really piques my interest!



Yes, I want to catch Mirrors but I want some major phatties!  And I know Ella wants me to hook up with those hogs.  Oh, and John, Ella and  I want you to catch some big ones too.

I have tied some extra Carp Carrots, Chocolate Cherries, Salt & Peppas, and Black Betties just for you.
See you soon fat Idaho Carp...

Old Boots

Are they such old boots?  Not really.  More like well worn.  I suppose they are like me.  Am I really that old?  Not really.  More like well worn.    

It is time to replace the laces on my boots; that's for sure.  Even though the boots themselves are well worn I don't think it is time to replace them yet.  Again, like me.  

Looking at these tired, scuffed, scratched up old things brings to mind so many good memories of rivers and lakes I have waded.   Memories of days on the water...memories of walking and walking to find fish, memories of kicking rocks, memories of stepping carelessly and scaring Carp, memories of tailing Carp...memories of the take...   

In time I will have to replace the boots and as silly as it is I know already that I will feel like some of my memories will be lost with the boots.  

When it comes to getting rid of things that aren't useful anymore Katy says that I am, "Swift and sure."  Usually I am.  Still there are some things that one might say I get overly attached to.  I've gotten attached to these old boots as if they aren't part of the memories but they help hold the memories.  They do.  

On Thursday I leave to fish for Mirror Carp in the Blackfoot Reservoir with John Montana.  We are meeting Chris from manyafish and Brent from Uprising.  

Worn as they are, these old boots are ready for some new memories.  Like me.