Monday, July 16, 2007

Cloudy July Monday Carping

As I am "on call" 24 hours a day sometimes in my work, occasionally it takes me right through scheduled days off. When this happens I try to catch up at a later time. Monday of this week was quiet so I used it for a day off. It's hard to get the carping out of the blood once it is there, as others who have tried it will attest. So... here we go again. I fished today from 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM and caught 12 carp. Five were juveniles (yes, I caught more "small carp"). The rest were respectable fish. The largest today pulled the scale down to 10 pounds. There was also an 8, and a 7 1/2. The rest were fish between 5 1/2 and 4. Again, too many to recall which picture is which, but you get the idea. The hotspot today was the spot I found last time with the creek coming in. The fish were thick in this area. I was doing quite well until a guy showed up with his two boys. They moved right in beside me and crowded me out. Rather than make an issue I just moved on - not for the man - he should have known better - but for the kids. However, several dog trainers were working their retrievers in the area, which effectively spooked my next two favorite spots. I moved around the pond to try to find a new spot. Since sound carries across the water I found myself wishing I had stayed in the spot I was crowded out of. The guy spent several hours yelling at his two boys. Each time they got hung up or did something wrong he would launch into a tirade. He particularly mocked the oldest one, a boy of around 10 or 11. Finally he grabbed up his tacklebox and rods and stormed off, boys in tow. It was a sad situation. Though perhaps I should have said something, I've learned from past experience that with guys like this it seldom has any effect other than making them madder. It's a shame. Those kids will end up hating fishing, if not their dad. I know I wasn't always as patient as I should have been when my own boys were growing up, but this guy took the cake. A real piece of work.
Anyway, after they left the carp moved right back in. I went back to where I had started and picked up right where I had left off. The spot was such a fish magnet that even hooking and landing them didn't put the others down for very long. That creek must carry some comfortable water or perhaps some nice food. A few large bluegills and tiny bass, also attracted to the spot, decided to get into the action. I didn't photograph them. Here are the photos I took, beginning with one of the feeder creek.














Since the summer weather hit the fish activity has greatly increased. When I first arrived there were carp bubbles all over the pond. Warmer water means faster metabolism, which in turn means more active fish.

z~

3 comments:

smallmouth said...

I need a place like that to get me started.

zonker said...

Wish I could transport you to that spot for about four hours. You'd be forever hooked on carping. :-)

Anonymous said...

Just great photos.

I'm sorry to see the comment about the adult trashing the kid's efforts- what a wasted opportunity. I've seen it before, tried to engage both the adult and the kids, and left, seething.

Let me know how to reach you and I'll upload a photo or two of our kids catching big carp on Lake Jordan in Alabama over this past Fourth of July weekend- on light tackle- fun!

Kevin McGuire
woolseyworkshop@juno.com