Page 14 - Aug_2014

CARP FLY
“P
resentationis really criti- 95 degrees, making them an ideal sum-
mer alternative to cold-water species.
cal,” says Drew Price, a fly

fishing guide from Colches- on
HOW TO FISH TO CARP
ter. “Success rate is only 10-15 percent
The ideal scenario for catching a Lake if your presentation is good. It can be re-
the

Champlain carp is somewhat analogous ally, really challenging.”
to a saltwater flats situation: “mudding” Is Price describing the delicate art
By Weyland Joyner
fish—akin to tailing bonefish—have of presenting a hand-tied caddis imita-
their mouths down and their tails up in tion to picky rainbows on highly pres-

the shallows, rooting for crayfish and sured systems in the late spring? Throw-
nymphs.
ing streamers for aggressive browns in
Sometimes the fish can be waded the fall? Zeroing in on a rare steelhead

to, but most often it is best to have a flat- run on Lake Champlain tributaries?
bottomed boat that can be poled out to Try carp, that bottom-feeding
a pod of carp without alarming them. bass-like fish common in Vermont’s
Ninety percent of carp fishing is sight larger streams and rivers and abundant

fishing, according to Price, and stealth is in Lake Champlain.
important.
“Carp are the hot species in fly
Having a strong, double-haul cast fishing right now,” says Price. “I’ve been

and good presentation is essential to fishing them for 12 years, pretty serious-
putting a fly in front of mudding fish ly for the past six.”
without spooking them in clear, shal-
low water. Casts of 20 to 50 feet are CARP AS GAME FISH

typical, and they need to be accurate on Unlike native brookies, athletic rain-
the first try.
bows, prehistoric browns, and many of
“One of the biggest problems I see Vermont’s other game fish, there is very

is trout anglers coming out for carp and little romance surrounding carp, his-
trying to fish for trout, and they fail,” says torically a much-maligned “trash fish”
Price. “Carp fishing isn’t trout fishing.”
known for rooting around in muddy flats
Price says that a slow, strip retrieve in warmer water.

is most effective. He fishes mostly sub- I first became aware that carp were
surface flies—crayfish and nymph pat- a viable sporting option a few summers
terns—and says that sometimes he lets ago, when I was working in a fly shop
his fly sit still in the water to attract fish. in Idaho. My boss was a guy who reg-

The most important thing is to put the ularly leads trips to such locales as the
fly right on the carp’s nose without scar- Seychelles and Mongolia; if there’s such
ing it.
a thing as a “good” permit angler, he’s

Carp generally cruise the shal- probably one.
lows in loose pods, and are often found So imagine my surprise when I
in weed beds. For this reason, a 6 to 8 asked him what his weekend plans were
weight rod is necessary to pull sub- one Friday.

surface flies out of weeds when they are “You know, I’ve been thinking a
snagged.
lot about carp...” he mused.
Price also stresses the importance
WHY CARP?
of fluorocarbon leaders. Fluoro leaders,
as opposed to more common mono, or Since then, carp fishing has really blown
monofilament, leaders are almost invis- up in the fly-fishing world. There are sev-
ible underwater. Fluorocarbon tends to eral reasons for this spike in popularity.

be more expensive than monofilament, “If you think about it, they’re a
but Price says it’s worth the expense. He freshwater fish that’s hard to catch, they
fishes a 3x leader.
get large, and they’ll take a fly,” Price ex-

“They’re one of the most challeng- plains. “This is a fish that will be mea-
ing fish in the lake,” Price continued. “I sured in pounds, not inches.”
fished for 50, 60 hours before I hooked Price says 10-12 pounds is an average
into one.”
carp, but they get much bigger: his per-

For intermediate or experienced sonal best is 35 pounds.
fishermen who want to wet a fly when Carp are often billed as the “poor
water is warm, or for those who want man’s bonefish,” sometimes called

a taste of the flats fishing experience, a “golden bones.” Like their coveted salt-
carp fishing expedition may be an op- water counterpart, carp are a fish that
portunity to explore a unique and exotic can be sight-fished to in shallow flats Fishing guide Drew Price shows off a good-size carp he recently caught fly fishing in
style of fishing.
while they are “mudding,” or rooting Lake Champlain. Catching carp and pike on a fly rod has become a hot sport during
the warmer months of summer.
Photos courtesy of Drew Price
Price, however, strongly recom- around for crayfish and nymphs.
mends starting out with a guide, to get Though they’re difficult to hook, Carp are strong, fast fish, and expect to play that fish for at least 10
the hang of it and start having success. once they’re on, the fight is incomparable.
“It’s ridiculous there’s not more people while they may not leap like a rainbow minutes; 20 isn’t unusual,” Price says.
“I would put them down as the fish or eat like a brown, they offer a thrill The advantage of carp is that they’re
doing it,” Price says of carp fishing. on Lake Champlain you’re most likely to more in line with saltwater species like plentiful. An adaptive species, they have
“Carp are hot now, and I’m one of the see your backing with. I’ve had my whole bonefish, which take off like a rocket a musculature that is optimized to live
only people doing it.”
line and backing out, and broken off, in
when hooked-or simply spooked. in lower oxygen waters than other game
30 seconds,” reports Price.
“When you hook an average sized carp,
fish. They can be found in waters up to

14 VTSPORTS.COM
AUGUST 2014