Carp is a desirable trophy for any angler. It grows quickly and reaches impressive sizes, and when fished it offers strong resistance, which is why anglers love it. It is caught mainly in paid ponds, of which there have become a lot recently. But even though the reservoirs are paid, it is far from a fact that you will be able to leave with a cage full of fish. Fishing for carp on a pond also has its own subtleties and nuances. Fishing for carp on a pond has its own nuances, which will be discussed in this article.
Carp bite at different times of the year
The darkest season for carp fishing is winter. At this time, it mainly stands in the deep parts of the reservoir and only occasionally feeds.
In the spring, it comes out to shallow water areas where the water warms up the fastest and begins to feed before spawning.
Well, the best season for carp fishing on a pond starts from the end of May and ends in September. With the beginning of summer, carp move throughout the reservoir; they can often be found in deep areas of the reservoir. His favorite habitats are snags, holes, edges, shell rocks, bushes and trees hanging over the water, and the edge of reeds.
In the fall, as the water gets colder and the vegetation dies, the carp go to the deepest parts of the reservoir, where they gather in large schools and gain weight before freeze-up.
How to choose a promising location
Choosing a promising fishing spot is no less important in carp fishing than bait. Carp do not stand anywhere in the reservoir, but try to stick to certain paths and ply along proven routes. Of course, if the fish is active, then it can be caught without knowing the bottom topography. If the reservoir has little vegetation, then the carp stands in deep and flat areas.
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It is necessary to feed the bait in the same place, and not scatter it at different points. Choose a landmark on the opposite bank and throw bait, aiming at it.
Don't be lazy and study the fishing spot well before fishing. Promising places cannot be seen from the surface of the reservoir. The channel, the transition from one type of bottom to another (for example, from sandy to muddy or vice versa), shell rock - all this is hidden under water. The most accessible way to explore the terrain at the fishing point is to punch the bottom with a marker weight. More expensive - using an echo sounder.
How to find carp
The main task when fishing is to find carp. This is the only way to catch a large specimen. Of course, the quality and correctness of the selected gear, bait, and bait significantly influence the fishing result. In addition, weather conditions and feeding tactics at the fishing site are of great importance. But even if everything listed above is in perfect order, and the fishing place is chosen incorrectly, you shouldn’t count on catching a large carp.
Rule #1. Familiarization with the bottom topography
Bottom topography
Having arrived at a reservoir, especially if it is little known, there is no need to start fishing right away. The very first thing you need to do is familiarize yourself with the bottom topography. An echo sounder can help with this, of course, if it is available, but if this device is not available, then a spinning rod equipped with a 30 gram sinker will help to study the bottom of the reservoir and find a suitable place for fishing. After completing 5 to 8 casts to points of interest in the reservoir, you will be able to find out not only the approximate depth, but even the nature of the bottom.
However, many fishermen are in no hurry to fulfill this condition and tend to throw away their gear immediately upon arrival and start fishing. In most cases, success is minimal and all only because little time was devoted to the preparatory stage.
So, in order for carp fishing to be successful, you must be guided by the following points. It’s immediately worth noting that carp choose a parking spot based on air and water temperatures, wind direction and time of year. Based on this, it is necessary to start looking for a place to fish.
Rule #2. Main carp sites
Carp in the reeds
Carp can be found in places that can serve as temporary shelter for it. Such places could be:
- driftwood,
- reeds,
- bridge piles,
- islands.
In such places, carp not only find shelter, but also food.
There are large numbers of small larvae in the grass, and you can find shells in snags. Finding such places is easy; just look around carefully; in extreme cases, you can use a marker rod.
It is best to look for carp in these shelters in unfavorable and inclement weather.
When fishing for carp in artificial reservoirs, many people believe that the bottom is flat in almost all areas and you can catch carp anywhere. However, this opinion is not correct, since even the slightest difference in depth can cause fish to gather near it in large numbers. It is important to feed a promising area correctly. The bait that will be used for fishing must be added to the bait composition.
In spring, carp are most often found in spawning areas. Such places include shallow bays, heavily overgrown with grass. Carp visit these places not only during the spawning period, but before and after spawning. Therefore, it would not be a bad idea to cast your tackle in such a bay, despite the fact that its depth is less than a meter.
Rule #3. Find a carp feeding area
Carp trail
When choosing a place to catch carp, it is worth remembering that in most cases it always feeds in the same place. Therefore, it is very important to find such a place. Carp feeding places may vary depending on the time of day, but most often carp feed in areas of the reservoir with sharp changes in depth, as well as in places where streams flow into the river or there are sharp turns in the river.
Provided that weather conditions are stable for at least three days, carp appear in feeding areas several times a day. If you manage to find a feeding place for carp, then the capture of trophy carp will be ensured.
An excellent place for catching carp is a section of a reservoir or, as fishermen call this place, trails along which carp move from shelter to feeding areas. Provided that feeding the place is done correctly, it will be possible to attract a whole flock of carp to the fishing spot. Finding trails is especially easy on the river. Fish almost always walk along the trails at the same time.
You can also attract carp to the fishing site using an artificially created feeding site. The selected place must be fed with the same composition for a long time. It is important to note that you should always feed the area at the same time. After the place is well baited, you can come and throw gear.
By following all of the above recommendations in choosing and searching for a place to catch carp, as well as feeding the place, you are guaranteed to be able to feel the heaviness and feel the powerful blows of the hooked trophy carp.
Fishing for carp on a feeder
Feeder fishing for carp requires patience and perseverance. Therefore, you should not wait for bites every five minutes, as happens when catching roach or other white fish.
Gear for carp fishing on a feeder:
- The rod is 2.7 - 4.2 meters long and weighs from 40 to 100 grams. Long rods are needed in cases where it is necessary to make a very long cast (80-100 meters). For fishing at close and medium distances, short rods are quite suitable. As for the rod test, it all depends on the size of the feeder and casting distance.
- Reel size 3000-4000. It must have a good friction brake. The carp resists strongly and a properly adjusted brake will help avoid annoying slips when fishing.
- Monofilament line. The main one has a diameter of 0.20 – 0.25 mm. Leash - 0.14-0.20 mm. Thin fishing lines are best used only when the bite is capricious. The length of the leash is from 20 to 80 cm. Braided fishing line can also be used as the main one, but due to the fact that it does not have “memory”, more frequent fish runs are possible.
- Thick wire hooks. Size - 12-6 according to international numbering. The size of the hook depends on the fish's bite. When the bite is active, you can use large hooks; when the bite is capricious, smaller ones can be used. Hooks must be made of thick wire only. It is not difficult for even a small carp to bend thin hooks. When fishing with corn, bronze-colored hooks work well as they match the color of the bait.
After clipping the line, be sure to count the revolutions of the reel. This will help you find the feeding point in case of a break in the gear. Although many fishermen do not recommend clipping the fishing line, since it will be problematic to remove it when bitten. Instead of a clip, it is better to mark the fishing line with a bright marker or use an elastic band.
The most popular feeder equipment for carp fishing is the paternoster. If the bite is capricious, you should reduce the diameter of the leash and the size of the hook.
Fishing with carp gear
Carp fishing is not just fishing, but a whole philosophy. Its essence can be formulated in one sentence – caring for nature. Therefore, the “catch and release” principle is dominant in such fishing. Carp fishers are focused not on the quantity of fish, but on its quality. those. The weight of the trophy is important to them.
Particular attention should be paid to the choice of fishing location, since fishing is often carried out for several days and the wrong place can ruin the entire fishing trip.
A large number of gear is another attribute of a carp fisher. Their set certainly includes the following gear:
- Rods are from 3.2 to 4.2 meters long, medium action and with a weight of 100 to 200 grams. As with feeder rods, the length depends on the fishing distance. Medium action is most optimal when fishing for carp, as it dampens fish jerks better than fast action rods and has better range compared to slow action rods. Carp anglers use a marker rod to measure the bottom. It has high sensitivity, thanks to which all bottom irregularities are well monitored.
- Method type feeders. Unlike feeder fishing, where mesh feeders are more often used, open feeders are used here.
- Monofilament line with a diameter of 0.30 - 0.50 mm.
- Thick wire hooks.
- Rod-pod or stand for fishing rods. You can attach 2-4 fishing rods to this stand. It is equipped with electronic and mechanical bite alarms.
- Electronic bite alarms. A very convenient thing when fishing for carp. The sound signal can be configured in different tones. This is very convenient, because by the sound you can determine which rod the bite occurred on.
- Powerful carp reels. Such reels have a large fishing spool (you can wind it with, for example, 300 meters of fishing line with a diameter of 0.30 mm) and are equipped with a baitrunner function (thanks to it, the carp will not be able to drag the rod into the water).
- Big landing net. Since the main goal is to catch trophy carp, the size of the landing net should match the fish.
Particularly advanced carp anglers feed the place using a radio-controlled boat. With its help, you can feed any point on the pond without spending a lot of effort. You can also import not only bait, but also equipment.
The most popular bait for this kind of fishing is boilies. They are mounted using hair accessories. Hair installation is specially designed so as not to injure the lips of the carp. Since the hook is located at a distance from the bait, the carp will not be able to swallow the bait deeply. In addition, it is detected on the lower lip, where it has few nerve endings.
Safety
Carp is a cautious fish; this fish becomes especially careful when it approaches the coastal zone to feed. Therefore, you should choose for fishing areas with snags and other shelters that can provide safety to the fish.
Carp can always be found among thickets of underwater vegetation, for example, backwaters covered with duckweed or water lilies. In these conditions, the carp will feel much more confident and if you manage to carefully throw the bait among the water lilies, then the bite and capture of the trophy will be guaranteed. The list of promising places for carp fishing does not end here; you can also try to catch it:
- in areas near dams and near bridges;
- in deep-sea zones, 4-5 meters;
- on sandbanks in the morning and evening hours;
- around flooded and hanging trees;
- at exits from pits, on edges and sudden changes in bottom topography.
Read: Banana-based bait for catching carp and crucian carp
Of course, it would be correct to note that the choice of fishing location should be carried out individually on each reservoir. It is recommended to simultaneously select several promising points, which are fed generously at least 1-2 days before fishing.
