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bailybird

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Posts posted by bailybird

    carping in the rain

    in Carp on the Fly

    Posted

    So what does a carp fisherman do when the conditions are the absolute worst conditions you can have for carping? Go carp fishing anyway. I have to admit, that some of the biggest fish I've caught have come when it was raining, dark, and generally miserable outside. It seems like the bigger fish feel more secure, and they head right into the shallows and feed up against the bank. Despite no sun and a steady rain, if the fish are 1 foot from shore, you are going to see them. The key is to move really slowly, and peer into the water like you are trying to decipher one of those 3D picture puzzles.

    jKMw7fotip_new.jpeg

    I did just that today, and I found quite a few fish. I decided to use this great crayfish pattern my buddy Justin sent me. I looks incredible in the water, and I just had to use it even though it is quite a big bigger than most of the flies I usually fish. The first 3 fish I put the fly in front of ate it without a moment's pause. The fly landed, I twitched it into position, and the fish would turn and eat. For moment, things looked pretty easy!

    i4wgcQTSki_new.jpeg

    I landed the first fish, and it bottomed out my 14 lb weight net. The clunk of the handle hitting the 14 lb mark was not very load, so I'm guessing the fish was probably 15 lbs, though it looked really fat. I hooked 4 more fish, all good looking carp, but I lost each one when they straightened the hook out. The first carp I landed really weakened that hook, and the next 4 just bent it straight. It was the only one of Justin's flies I had with me, so I just kept bending it back and going after more fish. The best part about carp fishing is detecting the strike, and they were eating that fly so well I didn't mind losing them! I only fished for about 2 hours, and headed home to spend the rest of the day with Kelly, Elia, and JJ. This was my first big fish of the year, and despite getting soaked to the skin by the rain, it was an outstanding day of carp fishing.

    VeO6wrUm4x_new.jpeg

    looks bigger then 14lbs to me :D .nice fish

    14-pound Ghost Carp

    in Pictures, Stories & Video

    Posted

    Late Sunday afternoon, I asked my kids if they wanted to go fishing. They hemmed and hawed and finally said no, so I obtained a kitchen pass and went out by myself.

    I went to two waters and, for various reasons, either couldn't or didn't fish at either one of them. I decided to try another place at which I've fished before, though I'd never caught any fish there bigger than a sunfish. I didn't even know if there were carp there, as I'd never seen one caught nor had I seen any jumping. But, feeling adventurous (and running out of time since my first two places didn't pan out), I decided to give it a go.

    When I first arrived, I chummed out some sweetcorn and set up my gear. I had brought a 6'-6" medium spinning rod, so I rigged it with a circle hook on a Carolina rig, baited with corn, tossed the rig over my bed of chum, and set the rod in a holder. I also had brought a 10-foot rod rigged for float fishing, so I baited it up, tossed the rig out, and sat down to wait.

    Five minutes after I tossed out my float, I was shocked to see it disappear. I set the hook, and at first thought I caught a catfish or large sunfish (there were no carp in that water, remember?). Suddenly, this fish began to take a lot of line and surged away from shore. It made a couple more runs before it finally tired about 10 minutes later and a gentleman who had been fishing nearby netted it for me. I instantly knew it was the largest carp I had ever caught, and the largest I'd ever seen in person outside of an aquarium. Not only that, I learned later (from Lonestar on TFF) that it was a ghost carp!

    As I went about weighing the fish and getting it ready for a picture, I noticed that it had attracted a small crowd, primarily of other fishermen who had been bobber-fishing nearby. I weighed the fish at around 14 pounds (I couldn't tell exactly how many ounces, because either the fish was moving too much in the net or my hands were shaking too much!), and someone volunteered to take a picture with my camera phone:

    KoiWhite.jpg

    (I masked out the background to protect the location from catch-and-eat anglers. Also, I'm not that red in real life :D )

    During the fight, my dad called to wish me Happy Easter. He had called my home first, and when my wife told him I was out fishing, he called my cell phone. When I answered, his first words were, "So, you catching anything?" I told him, "Yeah, I'm fighting one right now. Listen to this!" and then I put the phone next to my reel as the carp was taking out line. It was pretty cool being able to do that. :thumb:

    Feeling I had already had a great day of fishing (after only 30 minutes), I started to think about packing up and going home (it was 7:00 p.m., and starting to feel damp and cold). Right about that time, however, my 6'-6" rod leaped into action. I set the hook on the second fish, and it felt large, too. Skipping the details, I'll just say that this one proved to be a pretty, 12.5-pound common carp that would have been my PB had it not been for that ghost/koi a few minutes earlier.

    It's funny how things work together sometime. I decided to go fishing on a whim, and wound up at my third choice of waters. I fished at a place that I didn't even know contained carp, and caught two that exceeded my previous personal best. And when I was walking to my car, a kid who had been watching said to me, "Wow, you're good!" :D

    Dg

    meat eaters are the worst :D :D

    Florida Fishing Trip......

    in Other Species Stories

    Posted

    So I'm back and man am I tired. The last couple of days, I think that is the hardest I have fished in a long time. I caught fish all most every time that I went out, but didn't take a pic of every fish that I caught. There wasn't a big fish of the trip but I did land fish on my center pin in the salt. It was a good trip but I think you really need a boat to catch some of the bigger fish that you hear about. I am glad to be home and after a couple of days to rest up and I will be out fishing my lake, Lake Michigan.

    First saltwater fish on my center pin a short Gag Grouper....

    DSC04760.jpg

    Here is a Spanish Mackerel that hit a 4" greenback minnow.......

    DSC04762.jpg

    and another..........

    DSC04761.jpg

    1" short of being a legal Gag Grouper............

    DSC04758.jpg

    Up close to a Mack..........

    DSC04743.jpg

    First Gag Grouper of the trip.....

    DSC04738.jpg

    NICE FISH COOL :D

    First carp of the year!

    in Pictures, Stories & Video

    Posted

    Well I was thrilled to catch my first carp of 2007 last weekend. It came in at 11.8 pounds, not a large fish but it made my day. The first of many to make their way to my net. I think this year is going to be a great year. I sat out about 11 hours last Sunday, and finally got this one on a tiger nut and pop-up corn.

    post-2012-1175379673_thumb.jpg

    I really was excited, I just had the worst headache ever, hence my expression.

    Oh, and I'm not blonde anymore as of Thursday.

    nice fish ....... :D

    Lake Ngaroto

    in Pictures, Stories & Video

    Posted

    Well i met up with Cameron and his Dad Steve at Lake Ngaroto today... Steve caught a ton of Rudd and up until i was packing up Cameron was out fishing me to! here are his 2 fish

    ngaroto2.jpg

    This was his first Carp! only about a pound but still put up a good fight!

    ngaroto3.jpg

    This looks to me to be a Hybrid

    then as i was just about to leave i got a hookup and initially thought it wasn't that big until it tried to take me into the weeds... it took a while to get into the net but we got it in the end :D it weighed in at 9.5lbs

    ngaroto1.jpg

    nice looking fish

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