MoCarp

these are not at all like a spawn bag, If one uses a hair rig--you will almost never hook any fish 'cept in the mouth these bags disolve in less than a minute and the food bits waft about. meanwhile your hook bait is independent of the contents of the bag, in fact its best to use a single piece of plastic pop up corn dipped in the flavor in the PVA bag the small offering hovers just above the pile and is snapped up in the feeding frenzy Rare is the day I hook a fish deep (one reason I quit using bait on Trout until I went Euro) tip: a piece of cork shaped like a tad larger trout pellet--hair rigged then coverd in a paste made from dried shrimp powder (mexican food store) and wheatees cereal wetted with cream corn-- for color I like a dark color so I use a pinch of suger beet powder (bulkfoods.com) Smear it around the cork--- trout will hammer it when use with a PVA of trout chow carp love it and also is a awesome channel cat bait! Mo

PVA or poly vinyl Alcohol--is used by Euro fisherman to deliver a small chum bag of goodies to the area around your hook-- one there the water dissolves the PVA leaving your tidbits right on your hook area what to put in it? ----corn gluten pellet, rabbit pellets, even trout chow, one trick is canned sweet corn dusted in strawberry jello to keep it from melting the pva--mmmmmmm yummy!-- even bread crums and a touch of fish oil/salmon eggs--maggots & oatmeal--the combos are endless. the fish come fast and feed with abandon, great way to trick the wary Mo

This is a rod pod where rods rest, with the line running through a bite alarm that beeps when the line moves out or toward you. The alarms are adjustable for sensitivity, beep tone, and loudness so you can tell which rod has a bite plus a light that comes on when a take is detected--the little light feature is very handy at night http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d75/MoCarp/Rod-pod.jpg http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d75/MoCarp/rodonbeeper.jpg Reels are have a bait runner feature--basically a second drag that lets line come off the reel under tension with the bail closed--baitrunner tension is adjustable--it is engaged with a lever in the back and disengages when you start reeling. http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d75/MoCarp/baitrunner.jpg Rods are usually long from 9-13 feet powerful butt sections to cast distance and soft tips for playing big fish close without hooks pulling out http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d75/MoCarp/sodshinen.jpg http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d75/MoCarp/eirorod.jpg The rigging is called a hair rig/bolt rig http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d75/MoCa...ty_carp_rig.jpg http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d75/MoCarp/hairbaiting.jpg Fish can take the bait without feeling the hook before its too late---it also is less likely for the fish to be gut hooked with this set up. They do not feel the hook until the bait part is swallowed then as they feel the hook the fish try’s to expel it and is stung by the hook--one of the reasons the hair is tied the way it is--to have the hook turn in as it is expelled http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d75/MoCarp/carptoon.jpg http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d75/MoCarp/takingabolt.jpg One of the best tricks is to use PVA ( poly vinyl alcohol)--they make webbing and bags just for fishing-- -which dissolves in water— http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d75/MoCarp/meltedpva.jpg Chum is put in pva and it is tossed out with your hook bait to draw fish in and keep them feeding http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d75/MoCarp/pvabag.jpg With fish that can be huge a big net is a must light weight, these euro nets can be used with 1 hand--the net itself has no crossbar just two arms that are usually at least 40" long, fish slide over the bar less lip of the net & then lifted vertically as the net was not designed to lift fish horizontal like traditional nets http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d75/MoCarp/4076ff31.jpg http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d75/MoCarp/t_mrx900.jpg Fish after netting are usually placed on a padded mat--for 3 reasons-- 1) to protect the fish 2) to calm the fish, they flip around less on a mat 3) many mats double as a weighing sling just loop the handle in the hook of the scale and subtract the weight of the mat--many times big fish are damaged putting the hook of the scale in a fishes gills http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d75/MoCarp/lumponmat.jpg Chasing that biggest carp in the lake may take a few days--so in Europe they camp right on the water in fishing tents called bivys http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d75/MoCa...super20bait.jpg One of the backbones of euro style fishing--is chumming--since you do not have the luxury of moving around looking for feeding fish--chumming is used to bring fish in and keep them in the area feeding Here is a catapult http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d75/MoCarp/pults.jpg http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d75/MoCarp/pulting.jpg spods tied to the line and cast out--the nose floats and the bait falls out--better when the fish are at distance http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d75/MoCa...20TB20Spods.jpg Remote control bait boat--chum is placed in the center dropper hopper piloted out to place the chum bed http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d75/MoCa...te_6_small1.jpg As you can see the whole bank fishing thing is as sophisticated as you want to make it-- Euro fishing offers a challenge to even the most hard core angler-- Many anglers may look down their noses at carp, if you try it a few times you will quickly get addicted to the powerful runs carp are known for. Few fish can rival even a 10 pound common carp for line stripping run after line stripping run--you can just imagine the fight of a fish of 20 pounds! Eating smaller carp is an option, doing so may even help a lake produce bigger carp, but releasing the biggest ones to catch again -- many times you will recatch the same big fish again and again over several years--usually a little bigger each time http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d75/MoCarp/pic11.jpg So where to get this kind all this kind of gear? lots of euro stuff can be bought at Bass Pro & Cabelas--bait runner reels, the longer euro action rods you can get from Cabelas (for trout they have a nice 11 foot live bait rod-)--I have ordered gear online from 3 sources.most of the terminal tackle that is needed is affordable & available there I have bought from these 3 with satisfaction-- http://www.wackerbaits.com/ http://www.americancarpsociety.com:8080/ACS/home.jsp http://www.royalcarp.com/Scripts/default.asp

for those interested a few of us "Euro-Carpers" will be at a small city lake about 1 hour 50 min from Springfield or about 1 hour and 15 minutes south of Kansas City depending who is driving the lake was prebaited last Saturday and you can fish almost on the tailgate of your truck--we would be glad to have company and shoot the breeze with you! ITS ALSO A GREAT PLACE TO BRING THE KIDS! open park mowed nice and a safe place... oh yah we may even catch a carp or 2 Just Pm me or Jim for directions MO

what he said!--the bars screw in to the tops of the tripods or pod as the case may be--and bite alarms go on the front--nice thing with the reels in freespool you do not have to stand on top of them when waiting for a run

Thats my "Ozark Rod pod" or a pair of tripod adapters with 6 banksticks, very stable--but a lot heavyer than a euro pod--and only a tad cheaper-- as far as the rods --what can I say I am a baitcaster man--just put them on clicker and freespool--only trouble is that most all euro rods are ringed for pinning gear-- 'cept cabelas predator casting 11' 6" and 1.75 test curve--a bit light for the bigger fish at the "spot" and ACS MIA II which I have a pair in 3 1/2 test curve awesome rods but pricey at $250 each (wife got miffy about it too) also use a fenwick 9 foot steel head rod great rod for about $75 not as long as the pred but a better rod-- reels ether 6600 abu garcia rockets or the new for 06 abu garcia 6500 c3s--much better drags than the older reels (need it too) Mo

sure will give you a heads up as it will be soon head to the "spot"-- have room for several----just wish we had more water kickin bass I typically use a pair of 12 foot euro carp rod that are ringed for casting gear, 3 1/2 test curve with a pair of 6500 c3 abu garcia casting reels--usally 20 pound test green big game but when I need longer- 125 yard plus casts I drop to 15 Mo I allso use 9 foot micro lite bass pro rods with a size 20 I think okuma bait runners for trout and carp when I am feeling brave--I am looking to ad a fly rod just for carp yet to get one yet--as I am torn beetween that and a centerpin outfit but I want to catch some carp on a fly this year, can't imagin the rush as that first run is a killer Mo

from the bait buckets of carpheads is a bait that rocks for trout it even comes in a "trout pellet" flavor MO

here is a few pics--and how to tie a hair rig as a side note here is a special corn that smokes regular corn it even comes in a trout pellet flavor MO

I fish dough on a small spring that is hair rigged for springs on carp I use a football shaped one that I pull off a small #6 treble get them at bass pro--for trout I use anout 1/2 a ball point pen spring I will see if I can post pics

closest place I have heard is the Arkansas river, but I have not seen them in the "plague" numbers here yet like that I see in the news as a note these fish are NOT RELATED to the common carp that have been here for over 100 years--the bighead and silver "carp" have a body that looks almost king salmon like and a head with very low set eyes--the fish are filter feeders--it is said they are some of the best eating of fish and are grown for the table by the ton in the far east Mo

there are about 1000 recipes on corn alone--many " particles" are good for trout and carp--some just are not nutritious and get passed will little benefit to carp or trout, the Brits have spent a great deal of time looking at baits that are effective as well as nutritious to the carp to enhance growth- as far as trying carp, my best big fish spot is less than 15 minutes from you & the fish avg. about 15# 32"-38" long Carp fishing is a blast when the rip off 30 yard runs several times, even on heavy gear! I will give you a heads up sometime when we are at the "spot" and show you some 1st class string stretching! We fished there almost every weekend last summer from about the end of July till October Usually a friend and I caught 25-30 fish between us and about 4 fish would be in the 20 pound class even had a fish we have recaptured a few times with a split lip we named "Stacy" after the actor Stacy Keech (sp?) for obvious reasons (naming a fish is a true Brit tradition!) usally the fish is a bit bigger each time... Mo

Boil 1 gallon of water (well or creek) with 2 tablespoons kosher salt Once boiling stir in a full jar of Jiffy brand peanut butter and 1 bottle of McCormick’s vanilla butternut cake flavoring Turn off the heat and dump in 2, 1-pound bags of garbanzo beans (chick peas) Stir and cover and set over night, great hook baits and chum! Use on a hair rig Mo

more news http://www.news8austin.com/content/your_ne...asp?ArID=158196 Brian, there is quite a following for carp on a fly, have heard it called the bonefish of American freshwaters due to the explosive 1st run the next big money Tourney is in NY, but we are having the Missouri CAGI event near Branson at the end of June--sorry only Big fish pot money but there is a national award for the biggest caught on fly gear--in fact tradionalists use "centerpin" gear that for the life of me looks like fly tackle --Brian if you have any Fly caught carp many folks on the CAG site would love to see them post up!

http://www.carpanglersgroup.com/forum/inde...showtopic=14613 http://www.americancarpsociety.com/cgi-bin..._pro.cgi?fid=06 43lb 02oz.... new Texas State Record and worth a cool quarter Million way to go Tal St.Cyr

check it out, why those folks fish for carp? and join CAG?--simple its about people, big fish (carp over 40 and buff over 60), and being with friends as a note the Missouri state event will be at bullshoals this year--THE last Saturday in June Mo http://www.carpanglersgroup.com/forum/inde...showtopic=14555

Doug Reed is the state chair for Carp Anglers Group he lives in Stlouis and would show you all you need--he can be contacted through the CAG web site www.carpanglersgroup.com Mo

if its a native fish movement---say good by to all the small dams on the tributaries

I will be attending this event, I hope to give a report and pics when I get back! Mo http://www.dallasnews.com/s/dws/spt/outdoo...rp.21dd3fe.html It's carp diem Most 'rough' fans know only one fish can seize their day 06:35 PM CST on Saturday, March 18, 2006 By RAY SASSER / The Dallas Morning News AUSTIN – It's a laidback fishing deal at Emma Long Metropolitan Park on Lake Austin. The lake is really a wide spot on the Colorado River. Million-dollar mansions are elegantly perched on live oak-covered hills surrounding the urban oasis. It's the sort of setting that makes the hills of northern Austin an uncommon place. Mark Villanova and Donnie Hutchinson are fishing for common carp in this uncommon place. They've driven down I-35 from their Dallas-area homes and spent the weekend lounging in camp chairs, playing with Villanova's two children (Jordan and Jasmine), waiting for the high-pitched alarm that signals a bite from the rubber-lipped queen of the rough fish. "Bugle-mouthed bass" is one euphemism for carp. If you look closely at Cyprinus carpio, you'll understand the description. These Asian imports have a profile that not even a mother could love. Motherly love aside, the common carp has an uncommon following among Texas anglers such as Villanova, who lives in Bedford, and Hutchinson, who lives in Lewisville. "We all started out as bass or crappie fishermen," says Hutchinson with a wry smile. "Once you've caught a carp, you never go back. We're on the verge of a major explosion in the sport of carp fishing." The carp occurs in virtually every water drainage in Texas. Villanova and Hutchinson have caught carp from lakes all around the Dallas area. Grapevine is a local favorite for carpaholics. Unlike other fishing devotees who fiercely defend their secrets, carp fans are evangelists. They post internet reports on the Texas Fishing Forum, often transmitting photos from lakeside. As the men fish, their cell phones ring regularly. The callers are fellow carp fanatics who are stuck at work, at soccer games or in traffic and can't wait for updates. These guys suffer from "carpio tunnel syndrome" or maybe "carpio tunnel vision." Their distinctive gear draws a crowd wherever they go. At Emma Long Metropolitan Park, a bass fisherman walking along the bank stops to inspect the setup. He's carrying a spinning rod with a shallow diving plug tied onto his line. "I caught a 17 on the weed line down the bank," he says. "You caught a 17-pound bass?" shouts an incredulous Hutchinson. "No, a 17-inch bass," the bass guy responds. "Oh, well, we deal in pounds and ounces, and our average carp from Lake Austin weighs about 20 pounds," says Hutchinson, who once caught a 65-pound smallmouth buffalo from the very spot he's fishing. It's not the biggest buffalo caught on a rod and reel in Texas (state record: 82.22 pounds), but it's probably the biggest caught by an angler intentionally fishing for rough fish. Buffalo are native rough fish, though not as common as carp. Carp anglers don't get a lot of attention because the American fishing industry doesn't make much profit off them. The local feed store makes more money from carp anglers than the Berkley Corporation does. Most carp guys fish from the bank. They don't own a boat and don't really need one. Villanova only uses his small aluminum boat to put out bait or check for bottom contours within casting distance of the bank. The specialized tackle used by carp anglers is mostly mail-ordered from Europe, where carp fishing is a big deal. Villanova and Hutchinson both use rod pods –specialized rod holders driven into the ground and hold three rods. The rods are long spinning ones capable of banging out a 100-yard cast. The rod pod is equipped with battery-powered strike alarms that sound off when a fish picks up the bait and swims away. The alarm also signals what's known as a drop-back bite. That's when a fish picks up the bait and swims toward the bank with it. The setup looks like something James Bond use to fish. "We spend a lot of time just waiting for a bite," Villanova said. "Carp fishing is a social sport. I bring my kids when possible, and we usually have a few other friends along." Carp anglers bait their fishing area with corn or livestock range cubes. Hutchinson may use 100 pounds of range cubes in a weekend. Some anglers customize their own bait, mixing ingredients such as breakfast cereal and Big Red or other sweet soft drinks. Since the tackle manufacturers haven't caught on to carp fishing, the anglers are ingenious in adapting specialized gear to their needs. Villanova uses a water balloon launcher – an oversized slingshot – to broadcast a double handful of range cubes even farther offshore than he can using a plastic throwing stick. Carp may look stupid, but they feed cautiously and are seldom caught on an artificial lure. The idea is to bait the carp into an area and get them feeding aggressively enough that they pick up a baited hook. The hook that Villanova uses is not really attached to the bait. It trails the bait on a short dropper line. Carp feed by sucking up small aquatic critters. They also suck up silt, which they expel. That's when the trailing hook, called a hair rig, hooks the fish. "The carp is almost always hooked in the lower lip," says Villanova. "With this rig, you don't even lose your bait." The lip-hooking technique is particularly important to carp fishermen, who go to great lengths not to damage these hardy fish. Carp are handled on a damp, padded mat that protects their slime coat. The hook is removed, and the fish is weighed and photographed. Carp anglers are so concerned about harming the fish that the protocol for photography dictates the fisherman kneel or squat while holding the fish. If the fish is accidentally dropped, it won't have so far to fall. Hook wounds and damaged fins are treated with antiseptic. During tournaments, carp are staked out in mesh bags while a weigh-master is called in to verify the catch. The fish are then released. Holding them overnight in a mesh bag submerged in the water doesn't seem to hurt the fish. Villanova and Hutchinson are practicing for the Bassmasters Classic of carp fishing. The fifth annual Austin Team Championship Tournament is Friday and Saturday, March 24-25, and the Texas Carp Challenge follows starting Sunday, March 26. Town Lake is considered the epicenter of carp angling, and fishermen from as far away as Europe are expected for the tournaments. A $250,000 prize awaits the fisherman who can break the Texas common carp record of 41.5 pounds during the Texas Carp Challenge. Town Lake produced the current record, and carp anglers are convinced that larger fish have been caught and released in these waters. A quarter of a million dollars would surely be considered a cure for the common carp.

never thought of that--worth a try--- also heard of chunks of cucumbers as well Mo

in the Texas Conservation Publication by a fisheries person World According To Carp http://www.tpwmagazine.com/ http://www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/sports/14081218.htm Prized carp casting off its trashy image By BOB HOOD Star-Telegram Staff Writer They are big, bad and ugly. They have been called everything from a trash fish to the queen of rivers. So what makes the common carp not so common as a sport fish in the views of many anglers? "In Europe, the carp is the No. 1 game fish, but a lot of people over here still look at it as a trash fish," said veteran carp angler Mark Villanova, who lives in Irving. "We hope to change that. There are a bunch of fishermen called the Carp Anglers Group who are working at promoting carp fishing and changing the image of the carp from being a trash fish. Slowly, more and more Americans are catching on." Some attitudes are changing, thanks largely to highly competitive carp tournaments like two that will be held this month in and around Austin. The Carp Anglers' Austin Team Championship is March 24-25 at Austin's Town Lake, followed by the American Carp Society's Texas Cup Challenge individual event March 26-31. The rules are much different from those in largemouth bass tournaments, where the fish are kept in boat live wells, transported to weigh-in sites, weighed and later released. The carp anglers do everything possible to assure the quick release of their fish. Fishing is allowed from the bank only and each team or individual must fish in a pre-determined area marked by "pegs." Also, carp contestants are permitted to use only landing nets made of soft mesh material, carry their own pre-checked weigh scales, weigh their fish on a well-padded unhooking mat and weigh "sling," and release the fish immediately after the weight has been verified by an opposing team member or tournament official. The Texas Cup Challenge rules specify that only one hook may be used and no treble hooks are allowed while the Austin Team Championship rules call for "one hook per rod and no treble hooks, double hooks or grenades allowed." Villanova said many veteran carp anglers consider Texas one of the top states for producing large carp. It isn't unusual to catch carp weighing 10-30 pounds. The world record is an 82-pounder. "We have some of the biggest carp there are anywhere," Villanova said. "There is a group of us called the Lone Star Carp Brigade that hopes to organize a carp tournament trail and hold tournaments on about five lakes a year just like the bass tournament trails. This sport really is exploding." That's saying a lot for a fish that was brought to America for its food values and not as a sport fish. Villanova says he thinks how it all happened is one of the most interesting stories in fishing. Carp are indigenous to Asia but could be found in Europe by the 13th century. Their trek to America is credited to the U.S. Commission of Fish and Fisheries established by the federal government in 1871 to oversee the nation's fish interests. At the time, Europeans considered carp a delicacy. Izaak Walton wrote in his famous 17th century book The Compleat Angler that the carp was "the queen of rivers." In 1877, after commission studies indicated the carp would be a valuable food source in the U.S., the commission stocked more than 300 carp acquired from German fish culturists in a Baltimore pond and small lakes in Washington, D.C. By 1879, numerous states, including Texas, were applying for fingerling carp produced from the original stock. Texas' first freshwater hatchery was a carp hatchery built in 1881 at Barton Springs near Austin. By 1896, the U.S. Fish Commission had distributed more than 2.4 million carp to various states, Canada, Costa Rica, Mexico and Ecuador. By the following year, the prolific carp were so plentiful in so many places that the federal fisheries officials dropped their program and the existing populations of carp spread on their own. Various reasons have been given for why the carp's early reputation as a fine food source soon dwindled, and it became known as a trash fish. One theory is that pollution of many lakes and streams increased as the human populations expanded and the carp acquired its reputation as a "trash fish" because it can tolerate polluted waters better than many other species. But Villanova says the bad reputation for fish known to be capable of living as long as 47 years is changing. "In the carp tournaments, you will see anglers wearing their sponsors' patches on their shirts just like in bass tournaments," said Villanova, who is sponsored by Lone Star Baits. "It's weird how it is going in that direction, but that's what is happening." IN THE KNOW Carp fishing associations American Carp Society P.O. Box 1502, Bartlesville, OK 74005-1502 (866) 518-4227 www.americancarpsociety.com Membership: $45 for one year, $80 for two years, $100 for three Carp Anglers Group 3804 Yacht Club Drive, Arlington, TX 76016-2560 (888) 227-1118 www.carpanglersgroup.com Membership: $20 for one year, $35 for two years, $50 for three years Tournaments 2006 Carp Anglers Group Austin Team Championship March 24-25, Austin Town Lake Two-person team competition Fishing hours: 7 a.m.-7 p.m. each day. Field is already full Texas Carp Challenge March 26-31, around Austin Individual competition Entry fee: $250 per angler; entry deadline is March 20 Field: Limited to 275 anglers; contestants must be 12 or older. Fishing hours: 5 p.m. March 26-5 p.m. March 31 Awards ceremony: 8:30 p.m. March 31 Rules Each angler must have a cellphone to call in caught fish to a tournament official. A GPS unit is recommended to give tournament officials the angler's location. Bank fishing only. Fishing allowed within a 50-mile radius of Austin (for field up to 150 anglers) or within a 75-mile radius of Austin (for a field of 150 or more anglers). Three rods per angler, only one hook per rod (no treble hooks). Must have one accurate set of scales. Only soft mesh carp-friendly nets may be used. Any type of bait is permitted as long as it is not detrimental to carp or the environment.

cherry tomatos work

I am getting a rod/reel specifically for carp--don't laugh..its true I need something that can handle multable runs of at least 40 yards sometimes more-- fish will be 6 pounds on the small side with 14 -18 pounders to be expected with a stray fish in the mid-twentys and up Last thing I want is to have a nice fish on and get my tackle shelled out! Mo

intersting--that could very well be true---but I think the neosho strain may be more heat tolerant--may give them an edge in our droughts--I wish a genetic biologist would do some work on the elk drainage Mo

it is a passable trout creek, if you look might find a surprize!