I haven’t targeted carp in over 60 years. I decided that with it being so hot, that some early morning trips, chasing carp for just a few hours, to Bountiful Pond, would scratch my fishing itch. I also had never used a hair rig or anything other than nightcrawlers to fish for carp. I got a carp-bait recipe from a local angler (a can of corn, 1/2 package of strawberry Jell-O, some masa and some oatmeal) and mixed up a batch. I bought me some hair rigs and went for it.
I found that the carp loved my bait; however, as I suspected the size 8 hooks that came on my hair rigs were too small. I landed 3 carp, had one wrap around a snag and cut my line and I missed 7 or 8 powerful bites (the small hooks likely didn’t hook well enough). The bite abruptly ended around 10:30 AM. I did some research and discovered that even carp quit biting when the water gets too warm, so I will be getting there around 6:00 AM, on my next trip.
Catching carp reminded me why, as a young teenager, I enjoyed riding my bike from Payson to Spring Lake to catch some hard-pulling carp. As Pat used to say, they definitely stretched my string. I’m looking forward to my next trip.
Way to go Kent, sounds like a fun trip, any time you can catch any fish that weighs over 11 lbs, it’s a good day. Was it a catch and release or kill trip? or as Pat called it gillomitery(sp?)
It was a catch and release trip. I might keep one now and then and filet for bait. It has been a tough year for catching white bass, at Utah Lake, and we have discovered that the catfish like carp just fine.
That is a nice one. Not really. It seems to have plenty of smell; especially if when removes the skin (although it doesn’t stay on the hook as well without the skin).
I went out again this morning and only got one bite. I think the record heat yesterday heated the water to the point that they were in no mood to feed.
