# carp help



## imalt (Apr 17, 2008)

I found a good carp hole by my new house in loveland on the lmr. I was using a black wooly bugger yesterday casting to the carp. Almost every cast a carp would charge it but then when it got within a couple inches it would turn away. These fish aren't easily spooked there is alot of foot traffic near this hole. I was going to try to spray some crawfish scent on the fly to see if that made a difference. It was like a kick in the nuts watching the carp charge towards the fly and waiting for the take and then nothing.


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## sbreech (Jun 6, 2010)

First off...I'm NO carp expert..but chumming might help. Chum with some cheetos - We always feed carp cheetos at resorts and stuff...and then throw a "cheeto fly." I'm sure that would work.


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## AtticaFish (Nov 23, 2008)

Not positive what size you were throwing but........... downsize your fly would be my first suggestion. I've caught a few from my local river with larger minnow and craw patterns while fishing for smallies - have much better luck sight fishing for them using #10/#12 nymphs or scuds. A small sparsely tied yarn or bunny leech works well also.

G-Luck!


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## fishmerf (Mar 28, 2008)

Hopefully AndrewS will respond to this. If I remember correctly, he tied a smaller wooly worm looking fly with bead chain eyes. That guy is a carp catching machine.


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## ngski (Aug 16, 2005)

Basically get them in a feeding frenzy, chuming definately helps throw some bread out, and use a smaller 12 nymph hook, 2x would be suggested depending on the size of the carp. Tie on a egg, crayfish, mulberry, egg sucking leach, or I used a maggot fly. Cast into the feeding pool and hang on. The take will be slight so watch for line to move then set the hook and hang on. I had a 10lb plus carp on with an 8 wt took me about 15 minutes before landing it. 

If your casting to a group of carp avoid putting it on top of them and watch for the slight take.


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## TheCream (Mar 19, 2009)

Chumming isn't necessary, I only do it at the zoo because the fish are in deeper water where I can't see them to cast to them. And it's fun. 

There are a ton of fly patterns out there but I'm fairly convinced that color and size are the main 2 things to worry about most of the time. I tie most of my carp flies in three colors: black, olive, and rusty brown. In clearer water, I would use the rusty brown and olive colors more, but in dingy water like I always have to fish for them, I use black 99% of the time with great results. I know people that use buggers with great success on them, my best pattern has been Mike's Carp Candy. But there are 50 carp patterns out there with different names and most of them are fairly similar. Small, buggy, and often resembling a dragon/damsel nymph and/or a crawfish.


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## bfurderer (Mar 19, 2010)

Yeah, there is no need to add scent the fly or to chum. It will also help to de-scent the fly by rubbing it in the mud on the stream bank. 

Qithout knowing what the carp are doing, mudding, tailing, crusing etc I would recommend the following. Going down a tippet size (fluorocarbon recommended). Turn over a couple rocks in the river as well and look at what sort of aquatic insects or invertebrates are in the river. If you are in moderate to fast water I would also try fishing a large (#10-8) weighted nymph under a small indicator just like you would for trout. Try a hare's ear, scuds or stoneflies if you see some in the rocks, or even a SJ worm. Black, rusty brown, olive, and tan are all good colors. Get the fly in the carp's feeding lane and watch for their reaction. Good luck and let us know how you do.


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## TheCream (Mar 19, 2009)

bfurderer, I'm not so lucky to be able to find a lot of carp in clean, clear, flowing water where the fish can more easily see the fly. In the murky backwaters and mud flats where the fish are feeding/rooting, I will usually add a little spritz of scent to the fly. As a trial, I did notice an increase in takes with a tiny shot of craw scent on the fly, and black is the only color I will use in those conditions due to its visibility.

In the most recent issue of Fly Tyer that I picked up, I see a recipe for an interesting dragonfly nymph that I will try for carp. It uses a small chunk of foam for a body, which is supposed to make the fly suspend a little in the water. I think it will take some trial and error to get it balanced just right but I see that being a decent option for carp. My carp boxes have flies with no weight, some with bead chain eyes, some with brass/lead eyes. Carp in shallow water may kill that suspending dragonfly pattern.


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## jhammer (Jun 13, 2011)

When I go after carp, I just have at it. The water is pretty murky here too, and black is about the only color I use. I cast close to tailers and let the fly settle. Then, I start twitching the fly to get their attention. When they're stacked up near fast and moving water, I just start casting. I have a few spots where they chase down flies like bass.


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## imalt (Apr 17, 2008)

These carp definitely weren't tailing. They were basically just suspended in roughly 3 ft of water. I would cast a #10 wooly bugger within two feet of the group and at least one would always purse it on the fall but get within a few inches and bail out. The water is very clear in this creek so I dont know if they see the hook or not. I use 8lb fluoro leader. I appreciate all the advice though I am going to try everyones ideas.


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