FFing for Carp

I have a buddy with a pond that is pure mud....all the time. He has far to many Grass Carp in this pond. The carp feed mostly on algae that is produced in the warm weather. I was going to tie up an algae imitation that another forum user posted but never got around to it.

I have went after them bow fishing and I'll say this about bow fishing.......#1, it ain't as easy as it looks, #2, those carp get smart after the first miss. The carp use to come feed around the shore but after missing them, they quit that practice.

Maybe this spring they will be back to shore feeding and my new found sense of bow fishing will be much better!
 
Thanks for hooking us up with a new Carpin’ thread, Afish!

Over the past 6 or 7 years I have had a ton of fun chasing carp with the fly rod. I pretty much learned it by just going out there and putting in time on the water. They can be extremely spooky and very challenging targets. I have designed a couple of my own carp flies over the years that I have gained a lot of confidence in. The past season or so have been slow for me and my Carpin’ ventures. I’m looking forward to hopefully getting back into it in 2022. Come March I’ll be scouting for carp as the water warms and Spring moves along and the carp come out of the deeper water into the shallow areas to feed. The adrenaline rush when you stick one on a fly rod is just really cool. Tight lines and screamin’ reels!
 
The last couple of years sight fishing carp in warm water streams has made me a significantly better & more aware wader.
 
Thanks for hooking us up with a new Carpin’ thread, Afish!

Over the past 6 or 7 years I have had a ton of fun chasing carp with the fly rod. I pretty much learned it by just going out there and putting in time on the water. They can be extremely spooky and very challenging targets. I have designed a couple of my own carp flies over the years that I have gained a lot of confidence in. The past season or so have been slow for me and my Carpin’ ventures. I’m looking forward to hopefully getting back into it in 2022. Come March I’ll be scouting for carp as the water warms and Spring moves along and the carp come out of the deeper water into the shallow areas to feed. The adrenaline rush when you stick one on a fly rod is just really cool. Tight lines and screamin’ reels!
Well.....are you gonna share your carp flies? Or......is that top secret.....can never reveal......gag order from the courts.....kind of a secret? :)
 
Oh....and here's one of my "successful" bow fishing shots!

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Well.....are you gonna share your carp flies? Or......is that top secret.....can never reveal......gag order from the courts.....kind of a secret? :)
Absolutely! I’ve never tried to keep any secrets about the many things I have learned over the years chasing carp with a fly rod. However, the one thing you won’t get out of me is the location of my mulberry “honey hole” - which is sacred ground!

One of my main “go to” carp flies I call the PMC. The name is from the three natural fur and feather materials used to tie it (Pheasant, Mink and Crow). I tie it on a Daiichi 1530, size 6 which is a 2X stong heavy wet fly hook. I use medium black bead chain eyes (tied on Clouser style) so the fly rides hook point up. Pheasant marabou tail, mink fur body tied in split thread style and a small covert feather from a crow as the soft hackle collar. Nothing fancy just good earthy toned natural materials the provide a good bit of motion with some subtle contrast. No shiny bead or glitzy flash in this fly.

It presents delicately and sinks to the bottom at a very calculated rate. I have brought many dozens of carp to the net with this fly over the years. If you can manage to put this fly into “the zone” in front of an actively feeding carp without it knowing you are there, the carp most certainly will eat this fly.

With the new site and ease of posting photos hopefully I can share a photo of my PMC with you.

Also from my past experiences, carp become increasingly more challenging to hook up on a fly rod after they have been bowfished over consistently. Good luck with your carpin’.

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What do you do with them
Garden fertilizer. But next year I plan on freezing a few to use for bobcat trapping. I've read where trappers use carp very successfully.
 
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