Unbelievable Springtime weather and quickly warming water temperatures have been a very welcome sign for most, if not all open-water fisherman this year. Panfish are on the prowl in the shallows, Walleye and Bass fishing is just around the corner, and for me & some friends this is prime time for early season Roughfish. Even though this spring started out with some crazy warm weather the fish did not seem to respond too much earlier than in years past. The Sucker run started approximately the same time as last year which for me was about two weeks ago…and finally in the last few days the Carp have slowly started to show themselves as well.
I’ve been hitting this particular stream for about three weeks now anticipating the first carp bite. We’ve had little to show for our efforts as far as Carp go until the last few days. The Sucker and Redhorse bite was phenomenal during this time and remains so to this day. Finally, these Carp are starting to show us their pretty mugs and it has been nothing short of AWESOME!
Weird Fact #1: As stated above the early spring did not make for an early bite…What is interesting is that all the females have had early guts already full of eggs! See photo example!
As most Roughfisherman know the tactics employed are fairly simple when it comes to Carp angling.. A #6-#2 circle hook and enough weight to keep it still depending on the current will usually do the trick. Bait can range from anything to corn, crawlers, boilies, doughballs, bread, etc. Basically whatever you prefer for your location. As far as I’m concerned now is the time to get out there in search of these drag peelers, get out there and have fun! Treat them nicely with a gentle catch & release and they will reward you with sore wrists and elbows! On a side note: I rarely get jealous of someone else’s catch but I have to give my dad major props for catching the largest Mirror Carp I’ve ever witnessed..just under 15 Lbs. Way to go POP!