2023 Carpin’ Thread

[dc410]

I’ve been a member of this forum for the past 9 years, but it wasn’t until I met @dc410 last week and he told me about this annual Carpin’ Thread, showed me some of his carp flys and a picture of a carp he had just caught, that I even knew about this thread, and the enthusiasm that he and other members here have in carp fishing.

This afternoon, I looked up on the shelf just above my desk, and saw this covered box that my wife bought me while she was in England many years ago.
It has a quote from Izaak Walton in The Compleat Angler circling its top “I love any discourse on rivers, and fish and fishing”. This thread and that box have been staring me right in my eyes for a long time but I obviously didn’t take notice.

I don’t know if I’m quite ready to begin doing some serious carp fishing, but I really did enjoy meeting you last week @dc410, and having that that discourse on carp fishing. You can bet that I’ll also be following this carpin‘ thread in the future.

View attachment 1641231026

Cool stuff, @mt_flyfisher. I enjoyed meeting and chatting with you as well. I fished the Juniata River up above Duncannon on Saturday evening. Smacked a bunch of Smallmouth and tested out the boots I bought from you while wet wading. I didn’t spot any carp on Saturday but if I would have I would have immediately went into carp mode. The boots worked great for me. Thanks!

 

[Silent Ocelot]

Glad to hear, Mt has sold me my favorite net.

 

[dc410]

I hit my local berry spot at daybreak this morning after giving it a rest for a solid week. The water was a bit higher and off color from yesterday’s storm system that came through midday. It was great to see the waterways get a shot of freshwater from this storm.

The mulberry trees are still producing and the carp are still feeding on them. There are actually still a fair amount of berries on the trees that have not ripened yet. It appears that the “berry hatch” may continue for a few more weeks. The number of carp working the berries seems to have decreased but I still was fortunate to bring two more carp to the net this morning on my deer hair berry fly.

I also stopped at one of my favorite ponds that I haven’t fished for several weeks. After locating several feeding fish, I fooled one into eating a Foxee Redd Minnow and brought the spunky 25 incher to the net. There were a number of carp in the pond that were clooping. I really couldn’t figure out whether they were actually feeding on top or maybe just sucking in air. They definitely weren’t interested in a mulberry, because I effectively spooked every fish that I attempted to present a berry fly to.

I also needed to do some net repair when I got home. I have developed a decent size hole over the past few weeks in my net. I repaired the hole using backing material. As I netted the second fish I caught this morning it dove straight through the hole in the net which added another level of complexity to landing the carp. It’s not a good situation to have your leader/fly line through a hole in the net with a hard fighting carp on the end and the rod bent almost over itself. It’s a certain recipe for a busted fly rod. I quickly stripped lots of line off of the reel and chucked the whole fly rod up onto the bank and landed the carp by hand. I got lucky on that one!

I’m thinking the berry season may go well into July so there is plenty of time to get out there and give it a shot. Good luck with your carpin’!

 

[tomgamber]

So when you tie this, is it like a purple sucker spawn?

 

[dc410]

So when you tie this, is it like a purple sucker spawn?

Nope, I’ve spent a number of years figuring out this pattern and tying it on the right hook with the proper amount of weight underneath the spun deer hair fly to achieve the “plop” that gets the head turn from the carp. The only way anyone can really understand is to get out there and do it … until you get it figured out. It’s a hell of a lot of fun trying to solve that puzzle. Tight lines!!!

 

[mt_flyfisher]

Normally, I wouldn’t name any specific fishing spots, but for carp’n (and since I don’t fish for them ..yet) maybe it’s okay to make an exception. Anyway, I know that a couple of you live or work near Lancaster and might be interested in checking it out…if you haven’t already.

I went to lunch today with an old friend (as in about 84 years old) that I hadn’t seen in a couple years. He’s a big hunter, but not so much of a fisherman, but my ears perked up when he began telling me about how he used to go carp “fishing”. One summer he said he went nearly every day and got over 100 Carp in the Pequea Creek somewhere near the Pequea Valley school. He said there is, or at least was at the time, a “backwater” in the creek there that had lots of carp.

He knew immediately about how carp ate mulberries, and I showed him some of the pictures of carp and mulberries from this thread.

Anyway, when I pressed him more about what he used to get all those carp, he admitted that his carp fishin‘ wasn’t done the same way as we do our fishin’, but with a bow and arrow…Lke I said, he is a big time hunter…

Anyway, the Pequea Creek might be worth checking out if you’re nearby and looking for some carp.

 

[dc410]

Great tip on the Pequea, @mt_flyfisher. There are a lot of carp in that fishery. It runs through a lot of Amish farms up through the Pequea Valley. If you take the time to ask for permission to fish it you’ll more than likely be granted permission.

 

[tomgamber]

Nope, I’ve spent a number of years figuring out this pattern and tying it on the right hook with the proper amount of weight underneath the spun deer hair fly to achieve the “plop” that gets the head turn from the carp. The only way anyone can really understand is to get out there and do it … until you get it figured out. It’s a hell of a lot of fun trying to solve that puzzle. Tight lines!!!View attachment 1641231108

Ok, so it's a "dry fly" oh wait, you said its weighted. I mean it looks like a mulberry. Thanks for the pic. I'll have to think on this one. My deer hair tying days are over. I do love that it has a stem.

 

[dc410]

Ok, so it's a "dry fly" oh wait, you said its weighted. I mean it looks like a mulberry. Thanks for the pic. I'll have to think on this one. My deer hair tying days are over. I do love that it has a stem.

Part of the purpose of the weight wrapped under the deer hair is for the “plop” on the presentation. The other part of the weight is to get the fly to ride in the surface film like a natural mulberry does. Usually about 75% under the surface and 25% above. The devil is in the details with this particular fly. Carp are really very discerning, if the slightest detail doesn’t seem right to them they will simply flat out refuse to eat it. I’ve had them rise to it, thoroughly inspect it, actually open their mouth like they are going to take it and still totally refuse it. It’s a lot of fun!

 

[dc410]

I went out this morning just after daybreak to hit my mulberry stretch again. It was a muggy, damp morning with the vegetation soaking wet from the overnight rain. The creek was also very off color from the recent agricultural runoff making seeing the carp very difficult unless they were working the top. At the beginning of the season I went back through all of my carp fishing notes and realized that I needed to catch 26 carp this year to catch my 200th carp on the fly over the past eleven years. I knew that if I actually made the commitment I could do it this year so I set that goal for myself back in January.

The morning started off tough as I was still seeing plenty of berries dropping but didn’t see any carp actually feeding on them in the first 4 or 5 potential berry holes. Any carp activity I saw was mud clouds and bubbles from fish feeding on the bottom. I wasn’t ready to switch gears into nymphing mode so I pushed on. It was starting to seem like a bust until I approached my berry honey hole and the “shark tank” was literally boiling with dozens of carp feeding on berries on top. As quietly as I could, I slid down the steep, muddy bank and into position on the edge of the creek. I literally had fish eating berries 3-4’ in front of me (too close for me to fish for them with my 9’ rod). At one point I watched a fish work the surface like a vacuum cleaner taking at least 8-10 berries back to back in a line. I tossed my berry fly right in front of the last berry and the carp inspected it and flat out refused it. Unbelievable! Obviously the fish had experience with my fly earlier in the season. I had some fish actually spook as they came up to look at my fly. I was starting to get concerned that spooking these fish might put the whole group down shortly. Finally I presented the deer hair berry fly in front of a single fish and it ate it. I guess I was lucky to target a fish that didn’t have any encounters with my fly earlier in the season. It was an aggressive fish and the tough battle pretty much torched the hole but I finally brought the 200th carp of my fly Carpin’ career to the net.

As the berry season is definitely starting to wane I normally transition back to nymphing for the rest of the summer and into early fall because nymphing for carp always works all season long. However, this year I’m considering trying to continue to locate carp during the summer that are still looking to the surface to feed. I’m going to try to catch some carp on top on terrestrial patterns. I’ll need to tie up some ants, beetles, crickets and hoppers on some hooks specifically for carp. Regular standard wire dry fly hooks are not heavy enough to hold a decent carp. Carp terrestrial patterns should probably be tied on 2X heavy hooks. I’m looking forward to having the flexibility to catch carp on the bottom as well as possibly on top for the summer season.

As I think back on the many experiences and all the stuff I’ve learned about catching carp on the fly over the past 11 years, it has been a crazy, fun ride! Tight lines… carpers!

 

[Fly-Swatter]

dc410: That's a very impressive milestone!

Yesterday I found a spot on a river 45 minutes from home that had roughly a hundred carp in a half-mile section. They were in various size groups. There were a lot of aquatic grasses and some sections had a lot of small clamshells. There was a cream Cahill hatch. Water depth was between 2 and 4 feet. Clarity was pretty good down to 5 feet. It was cloudy then sunny over the course of 90 minutes.

We saw a few carp breaching. It wasn't like the full airborne thing they sometimes do. It was more like the porpoising thing they do when spawning.

We tried for them on foot and in my raft and only managed to spook them.

Questions:
1. Does this seem like they are spawning?
2. How significant is time of day regarding their feeding activity?
3. How important are leader length and tippet size in spooking the carp?
4. How important is pattern selection compared to approach & presentation.
5. How important is clothing color in spooking carp?

As you probably figured, we were pretty frustrated but excited to return to that challenge/opportunity.

Thanks in advance for any questions you answer.

 

[Silent Ocelot]

Well done @dc410! 200 carp is pretty impressive! Glad you got to make your goal. What is your rig when you are nymphing for carp! Now that you said you can nymph for them I may have a shot at getting a strike!

 

[dc410]

dc410: That's a very impressive milestone!

Yesterday I found a spot on a river 45 minutes from home that had roughly a hundred carp in a half-mile section. They were in various size groups. There were a lot of aquatic grasses and some sections had a lot of small clamshells. There was a cream Cahill hatch. Water depth was between 2 and 4 feet. Clarity was pretty good down to 5 feet. It was cloudy then sunny over the course of 90 minutes.

We saw a few carp breaching. It wasn't like the full airborne thing they sometimes do. It was more like the porpoising thing they do when spawning.

We tried for them on foot and in my raft and only managed to spook them.

Questions:
1. Does this seem like they are spawning?
2. How significant is time of day regarding their feeding activity?
3. How important are leader length and tippet size in spooking the carp?
4. How important is pattern selection compared to approach & presentation.
5. How important is clothing color in spooking carp?

As you probably figured, we were pretty frustrated but excited to return to that challenge/opportunity.

Thanks in advance for any questions you answer.

Fly-Swatter,

Here are some answers to your questions:

1. The porpoising certainly doesn’t seem to be feeding behavior so I would have to say “yes” to spawning activity. Often the females will deposit lots of eggs particularly in and around vegetation because their eggs actually stick to the vegetation. The smaller male carp chase the females around spewing milt on to the freshly laid eggs. The good news is when the spawning is over they will go into serious feeding mode.

2. Carp feed all throughout the day, but my personal preference is to target them just after daybreak. IMO the carp seem to leave their guard down a bit real early in the morning when feeding.

3. I honestly don’t think leader length or tippet size are a big factor in spooking carp. I like to beef up on the tippet end to be able to apply serious pressure when needed to keep them out of the debris. All of the carp that I’ve caught over the past month on mulberry flies have been with 12 lb. test tippet. I also always use a non-slip mono loop knot to tie on all of my carp flies. It gives the fly some added movement and it is an extremely strong knot (I can’t really ever remember one failing while fighting a carp).

4. A stealthy approach and presenting your fly into “the zone” are much more important than the actual pattern you are using. Put a fly that has movement (looks alive) into the zone of a feeding carp without it knowing that you are there and 9 times out of 10 the carp will eat that fly.

5. Clothing color is worth considering. I don’t get all decked out in camo clothes and face paint, but I do generally where drab, earthy colored clothing and avoid any kind of shiny items like belt buckles, etc. Use vegetation to your advantage and be very careful to never cast your shadow onto the water.

Good luck and keep after ‘em, there is a lot of time left in this Carpin’ season! Put your time in, it’ll eventually come together for you.

 

[dc410]

Well done @dc410! 200 carp is pretty impressive! Glad you got to make your goal. What is your rig when you are nymphing for carp! Now that you said you can nymph for them I may have a shot at getting a strike!

Thanks.

My carp nymphing rig is just my “carpin’ rig”. I use the same outfit whether I’m nymphing for carp or fishing deer hair berries on top. My workhorse carp outfit is a 9’ 8 weight Cabelas Three Forks rod with a Cabelas RLS reel. The majority of the carp that I’ve caught over the past 11 years have been on this outfit. I plan on continuing to use it until it finally blows up, and one of these days it will blow up! I’m absolutely certain of that. Good luck with your carpin’!

 

[Tigereye]

Neat little game you got going there. Carry on and good luck. Carp must be smarter than me. I can never pass up a ripe mulberrry. Best eating fruit there is.

 

[dc410]

Anybody Carpin’ tomorrow? I probably will be at it at daybreak. Historically, the weekend of the 4th of July holiday has been a really good time for me sticking carp on the fly. Part of it is because I have a bit more time to get out with the holiday and the other part is it’s a great time of year in the heart of the Carpin’ season. Usually mulberries are done by now, but I’ll probably give my berry stretch one more shot early tomorrow morning to try to stick one more carp on the berry fly in July. I will probably then check out a meadow section of stream that I’ve done really well over the years in July. I haven’t fished this section yet this season and I’m looking forward to seeing what’s happening there. Good luck to all who get a chance to get after them - I hope you stick some good ones!

 

[Kyle]

rivers are high and merky by me. i have a 4 day weekend. really hoping to get out maybe sunday and monday.

 

[dc410]

rivers are high and merky by me. i have a 4 day weekend. really hoping to get out maybe sunday and monday.

Good luck, Kyle. I hope you can locate some feeding carp!

 

[Kyle]

Good luck, Kyle. I hope you can locate some feeding carp!

still high and merky by me. i will have to try and find a pond with carp in it.

 

[dc410]

I was out this morning just after sunrise to try to catch another carp on the 2023 “berry hatch”. As I got to my favorite berry stretch I could tell that things were definitely changing. There were still some berries on the trees and sporadic berries were plopping into the creek. However, most of the carp that I saw feeding had already transitioned back to feeding on the bottom. Heads down, tails up, silt cloud flying, trying to root up some grub on the bottom. I finally found one carp in the upper end of the “shark tank” hole that was still actively feeding on berries. I aggressively presented my deer hair berry fly in the area of the feeding fish and it turned and took it without hesitation. My lucky day! After a spirited battle I brought the fish to the net.

In the lower part of the “shark tank” hole I saw another really nice carp (probably 30+” fish) cruising around just under the surface. I took a quick shot at it and the carp totally ignored my presented berry. However, a smaller carp came up out of the depths in the murky water to inspect my berry fly (very much like a trout coming up to a mayfly). The carp got to within inches of my berry fly and totally spooked! That fish must have had an encounter with my berry fly sometime over the past month.

I have to say that the “berry hatch” is probably over as I switched back to nymphs this morning. My size 10 deer hair berry fly is showing a bit of wear (as it should after bringing 12 carp to the net over the past 29 days - all on this same fly). I never had a run like that with the same fly in my many years of carpin’.

I finished up hitting a meadow section of stream that has been good to me over the years. I saw a fair number of feeding carp but they are extremely spooky! Since the Covid era these fish have been bowfished over fairly hard and they are still so spooky that it is virtually impossible to get a fly into “the zone” without putting them down. I need to do some “scarping”’ to locate new carp populations. Good luck, carpers!