carp on yhe fly

[i8abug]

Any carp fishers here? (fly rod) Need help on a few patterns to start with.

[mkwerx]

I fish carp but still have yet to conquer them on the fly, despite lots of research on the subject. There are a few carp gurus here though - and some over at Westfly (a dedicated fly fishing site).

[Travman]

I usually spend a couple days early each summer chasing carp with a fly on the Snake. I think I posted after a trip last spring with some patterns that worked well, using the search feature on this site might get you more info. My go to bug is usually a plain-jane black wooly bugger. My experience has been that a thicker, webby hackle works best. I've also fished beadhead nymphs recently with some success. Good luck, those things are a blast on the fly!!

[john montana]

Try nymph patterns in sizes 8-12. I fish a lot of San Juan worms, carp carrots and rubber legged hares ears. Carp will eat about anything, the key is getting the fly onto their dinner plate. Good luck!

[veilside180sx]

Originally Posted by john montana

Try nymph patterns in sizes 8-12. I fish a lot of San Juan worms, carp carrots and rubber legged hares ears. Carp will eat about anything, the key is getting the fly onto their dinner plate. Good luck!

And doing it...w/o spooking them is usually the hard part.

[Abalone]

This gets talked about this time year of IFISH. You could do a search and gather lots of information.

What has been described to me here before is this: Cast in front of the carp and let the Wholly bugger or what ever settle on the bottom. When the carp move over it or close to it do a slow twitch. They like feeding off the bottom. I have never tried it but I betcha it works.....

I bet they outfight a trout.

[RazorClam]

I was told by my uncle many years ago that black ants work well. He used to fish the columbia slough out of his canoe.

[native steelie]

most of the carp ive ever caught fight decently for about a minute or two then give up and its just reeling in a log. ive never really had much luck catching them off a fly but i know its been done. i do see them feed off from the top quite often. most of the carp ive ever caught are off from spinners though. probably not much help but a little info none the less

[Maineiac]

This is an email I got from my friend who is working on his PhD studying carp. PM me if you'd like to participate or like some more info.


Carp fishing in Malheur National Wildlife Refuge- June 18
Thanks to club member x, we have a new and very exciting
trip planned for June 18. This outing could literally be a once in a
lifetime experience. The Malheur National Wildlife Refuge is located
just outside of Burns, OR. A couple of areas are open to fishing, but
most of the refuge is closed to fishing. Some years ago, carp were
illegally planted in Malheur. This invasive species has taken over
many parts of the refuge, crowding out native species. Electro
fishing has been used as a method of population control in the past,
with limited success. COF members have been invited to try our luck
with fly rods. Recreational fishing is illegal in the area of the
refuge where we will be. Thus, we are not fishing recreationally; we
are volunteering to help with scientific sampling “for age and density
via fly rod.” All fish are to be killed and examined by
U.S. Fish & Wildlife personnel performing research on the population.
I have never tried fly fishing for carp. However, fly fishing for carp
is widely reported as quite enjoyable. These are big, powerful fish.
Heavy gear is required — at least a six weight rod; a seven or eight
weight would be better. You will also need a floating device of some
sort. The carp outing is on a Friday. I plan to stay another day or
two and fish Krumbo Reservoir, Fish Lake, or the Donner und Blitzen
River. Let me know if you are interested in this trip. The more the
better as far as the U.S.F.W. is concerned, but some coordination is
going to be required

[soundflood]

Oh man this sounds fantastic..I have a gig in Idaho that weekend or I would be excited to fish for the cause..

[Dom C]

I usually fish rubber legged hares ears with a small bead to make it sink really slow and not spook the fish. Advice given to me by John Montana years ago. They work well, but it's mostly about getting the fly in the right spot.

[garyk]

The lakes on Sauvie Island Wildlife Management Area hold approximately:

167,389,980,343,432,321,649 Carp.

Please come and take a truckload home with you.

No C&R. Absolute C&K

[Adrenaline Junkey]

I have had good success with olive brown and black woolly buggers. there are quite a few carp patterns but anything big and ugly seems to work. I have caught most of mine why fishing a sinking line for bass and i use crayfish patterns for that. If i was going to be serious about catching one i would get out early in the morning or late evening and find pods of them spot stalk or drift to them with long upstream casts and let the fly move into them a lot like catching bone fish. a good john boat and pole would be worth its weight

[soundflood]

Looks like my weekend freed up! I am really hoping to make it out for this now.

[Moe]

Size 6 black Wooly Worm with red tail.

[Oregonism]

I know of a spot where you can cast to pods of carp pretty easily from the shore and I was hoping to give it a try. Should I take out my 8wt or go for the long haul with the 5wt?

[veilside180sx]

Originally Posted by Oregonism

I know of a spot where you can cast to pods of carp pretty easily from the shore and I was hoping to give it a try. Should I take out my 8wt or go for the long haul with the 5wt?

Take the 8 wt.

[kill2hunt]

im in socal right now and ad a blast a lake called cachuma this weekend. i was going for smallmouth but with all the carp feeding in the shallows i just had to try. a small olive bugger cast to within two feet of them got strikes every time. never thought they were so willing. what a blast, pure power.

[Buoy8]

anything that mimics something slow, dark, & able to fit in their mouth- wooly worm/bugger, leech pattern, crayfish pattern, medium sized nymph. It will all work

[john montana]

This one took a simple green bodied fly with hackle and a gold bead on Sunday.



Towing the beast to shore:

[bbaley]

Hi all -
would anyone be willing to share some pics of your favorite carp flies ?

(looking to try it out, no experience yet!)

[dgdawg]

The most current issue of Northwest Flyfishing has a feature on carp fishing in Moses Lake, WA. Check it out for patterns.

I think the first time I heard about fly fishing for carp intentionally was Dave Whitlock's "Golden Ghost" article. If you look on the web, you might be able to find it somewhere. I don't remember what magazine it was in. There were some great patterns in there -including a Mulberry.

I've been intending to try fly fishing for carp for years now and just haven't gotten around to it. So many things to fish for. Good luck.

[Artwo]

I watched a show awhile back where they were fly fishing Lake Las Vegas. From the boardwalk area of the lake they were spot/stalk fishing for large (some very large) carp using what the guide called it..................Cheeto fly.

This thing looked just like a cheeto puff that people would throw into the lake feeding the fish. It worked remarkably well with takes on every cast.

From what I understand this pattern is made by the guide that does the trips there and is not available to the public. Someone should tie one up and try it out.

[GameChaserFid]

You are the Joe Montana of carp angling!