want to see some nice carp?

[HuskyMD]

scroll down and check out the 200+ pound carp from thailand!
http://www.carpecarpio.com/bigcarppics1.html

[Anthony]

Dem some ugly fish. I've never seen a fish so round before, those mirror carp are something else. I think I'll stick to saltwater species. Still some impressive fish though.

[Wrong Way]

Some of them look like mutated fish. I'd freak out if I caught them.

[SeaSalt]

husky, that picture of carp from thailand is picture of my family... you see my dad with cool hat and sunglasses? :D j/k

[JettyPaul]

i know a spot in gunpowder on belair rd. where they breed under a tree - fun to catch - anyone ever eat any? - i mean throw a little corn out and you can litterally put a cigarette butt on for bait and they will hook up(never have , being sarcastic - lay off lol) - again fun to catch but i dont think id eat - any that has let me know how they are and whats the best way to cook em

[FL FISHERMAN]

Caught a grass carp for my mom in FL on the lake we live on. She wanted to try it since they are so abundant in my lake. Well lets say after two bites the rest went into the trash. Very tough and bland. Think about it, they don't eat any meat so they dont' get any protein and the meat isn't as juicy, tastey and tender as fish that eat more than grass and weed. I personnaly have never tasted em and never plan on it but they are real fun to catch though. My biggest is about 35 lbs and the fight like heck! And you are right when they are feeding they will almost bite anything. I caught my largest on a topwater popper fishing for largemouth bass.

[HuskyMD]

I haven't fished for carp either. I have caught carp while fishing for catfish though. It wouldn't matter for me so much though as I tend to be a C & R guy. DID YOU GUYS SEE THE CARP FROM THE CHESAPEAKE BAY IN BALTIMORE?

[JettyPaul]

believe it or not carp is whats for thanksgiving dinner in 1 country - its tradition - cant remember who or what country but an actress was on a late night show and said this

[Wtrdog]

i've never actually eaten Carp, not to big on eating fish, but the meat from the ones I've gotten up here is red meat. SurfMan's family loves them maybe he can speak to the flavor. They are just too ugly to try. We usually bowfish in the potomac for them. They are thick in the summer, especially when they start breeding and rolling around on the surface.

[Pauky]

I don't know what it is about those ugly carp, but the Europeans just love fishing for them. I wouldn't mind it for a day or two, but not all the time like they do. Check out this carp, it's gotten so fat it looks more like a seal:

http://www.carpecarpio.com/leewoodward48mirror.jpg

FL,

Ya'll didn't like the carp meat, eh? Well, did you know that, at least in the Great Lakes, the carp was introduced as an "additional food source?" Go figure!

Check this out: A couple summers ago, I was fishing on CBBT and these couple guys pulled up with a dead carp and started cutting chunks out of it's side for bait. Wouldn't you know it, everyone around using bloodworms, squid, croaker, spot, and what ever else wasn't catching anything except these two guys using the carp as bait. I mean they were getting slammed left and right with bites. Granted, most of the bites were sharks, but still. That flesh must put out a strong oder that sharks like.

[Ruedy]

My Pop's from Germany..........When I was a kid we used to go swimming at a lake in a park in PA.......There usually were a few fishermen there and one time this fella caught a big Carp. Pop got all excited when the guy was gonna release the fish so the fisherman gave the fish to my Pop.......Well on the way home, Pop was just beaming about what a deal he just copped and what a great delicacy Carp is.............Well the fish got cooked and it tasted like MUD!.........We did just like FL FISHERMAN and threw it in the trash......I don't believe I'll ever eat another piece of carp but they are fun to catch! (UGLY, too!)

[Manayunk Jake]

Greetings All!

Lots of familiar faces on that page (I use to be a CAG member and fished the PA, NJ and DC Fish-Ins.) Pound for pound, carp are probably the toughest fish in freshwater.

The European Carp were puposely bred to look like that by monks who had a lot of time on their hands. The short, rounded body was easier to cook. The body shape takes away from the fight, and the Euros go crazy over wild carp (the kind we have in just about every river and lake.) Brits spend big money to fish the St Lawrence River for 30-45 lb carp.

The "Siamese Carp" isn't really a carp at all. They are some mean-ass fish and tough to land. The Euros pay for expeditions to fish for the "blue carp" and Mekong catfish. I'd personally would rather fish for Amazon cats -- some species can exceed 200 lbs!

Grass (Amur) Carp are some tough fighters, and sometimes referred to as freshwater tarpon because of the big leaps they make when hooked.

Carp were introduced into the United States as a food fish, but never caught on. Like most other species, you have to know how to cook them. Modern carp fishermen think killing a carp is a crime against nature, and most practice CPR -- catch, photograph, and release.

We have our own well-known Chesapeake Carper (http://www.chesapeakecarper.com/) on this board -- Pat Kelly. Pat has caught some impressive fish from SPSP and other "saltwater" locations. Give it a try some evening when there's nothing but dink stripers around....

[HuskyMD]

Say I got bored striper fishing and decided to try for carp, how would I approach the carp fishing? Still a bottom rig? dough, cheese, corn?

[markedwards]

husky yes you can use the same rig and sometimes the same bait
carp are big vegeterians which is why they'll take corn so readily. and if there's tree overhanging the water they will stage under it and feed on the fruit or seeds falling into the water.they are also one of most intellegent fish swimming and can be very wary so some brits use other baits the best is feed corn boiled with jello providing different scents.as far as taste goes it can vary just like other fish but them being vegeterians in the summer if there is a big alge bloom they will feed on it and it can throw the taste off,but a remedy for that is to soak the meat in milk for a few hours and it'll remove the taste. and there is a group called the chesapeake carp anglers group and they have a "fish-in" every april on the tidal basin and a national one in chicago every september. do a search and check them out

[JettyPaul]

and if there's tree overhanging the water they will stage under it and feed on the fruit or seeds falling into the water



thats what i was talking about then - thanks marked

[Manayunk Jake]

Greetings HuskyMD!

Carp fishing is like fishing for any other species -- you can make it as simple or complex as you want.

No need to get fancy with American carp. They're not hooked over and over again like their Euro cousins. The number one bait for carp in the U.S.A. is still sweet corn right out of the can. If you want to add a little flaver, drain the fluid, put the wet corn in a ziplock bag with a bag of strawberry Kool-Aid. Let it set overnight in the fridge....

Use a medium spinning rod with 12 - 17 lb test. Slide a 1 to 2 ounce egg sinker onto your main line, then tie on a swivel. Use a leader about 18-24 inches long from the same line, and finish with a size four baitholder. Throw 3 - 4 kernels of corn on the hook, and cast out into deep water. You may have to wait for a carp to find your morsel, so prop your rod behind a heavy rock. You'll hear the drag scream when the carp picks up the bait and runs with it. (Some folks like to leave the bail open to minimize the chance of losing a rod!)

Watch out, though.... Carp fishing can get under your skin. If you feel the need to get more serious, visit the
CAG Web Site (http://www.carpanglersgroup.com/)
for more ideas and tips.

[HighCap56]

Fillet the carp carefully and secure to a hickory plank.

Smoke the fish on the hickory for three hours on low heat.

Remove carp fillets from the hickory.

Throw filets in trash and eat the hickory!

:D

[murphman]

Not really! I saw one at the North Carolina Aquarium the other day. Carp can be fun if caught by accident..nothin like wading a river on a foggy morning fishing for smallies and having a 30" carp hit your chartruse twister and jig combo.:)

[Manayunk Jake]

Greetings murphman!

One thing that really gets the carp purists steamed is that most state records are set by BASS fishermen. They swear the carp are snagged, but I know for a fact that big carp are at least occassional predators and will hit lures. My biggest carp was caught on a live 4 inch chub while fishing for muskies in the Schuylkill River. I even caught a foot-long goldfish on a Rooster Tail Spinner while fishing for (uggh!) trout....