# Carp: possible state record???



## BottomBouncer

Rumors about a 50lb.+ carp in a pond/lake that I have fished lately keep coming up from various people fishing there. I have caught a glimpse of it.....and it is large, however I am a poor judge of weight/size. 

No one fishes for carp in this lake, and due to the amount of vegetation I highly doubt there is a population of "grass" carp in there.

You guys think it would be worth going after? 

What do you do with fish or such size if it is a potential record?


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## RiverRat

If i was going to target that fish thats in a small pond...it should be very easy to catch.....if you wanted to get it weighed by the ODNR for State Reords..then i would contact them at thier main office and ask them how to go about it..that is IF you want to return it alive..other than that they state keep the fish and turn it into them , which they will freeze, ect.

I cant see why you couldnt call them on your cell and have them come to the pond/lake and weight it and then release it..but ya never know this is OHIO's ODNR where talking about too.

Scott


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## H2O Mellon

Shoot yea, I'd target it if I were you, Scott had a very good point, call them on your cell that way the fish doesnt have to die.


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## TimJC

Unfortunately ODNR isn't in charge of state records. A board of Ohio outdoor writers are in charge of that, and state that the fish must be kept frozen for authentication.

I wish it was as easy as making a phone call to get someone to come out to verify it, but I don't think it is.

The Outdoor Writers of Ohio is in charge of state records. They don't mention anything about freezing the fish.

However, the Fish Ohio Application states "Possible state record fish must be kept frozen for verification by the Outdoor Writers of Ohio."


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## BottomBouncer

If it meant killing a fish, no matter what species, to set the record..........it's not worth it to me.

However, I could keep it alive. I have a pond in the front yard large enough to support a fish in the mean time.

It should not take long to catch him, I have the equipment to get him out of there. There's no doubt it is a big fish, but 50lbs??? I'm not sure, although I do have one credible source that hooked into him and got him close enough...estimated him in the 40's.


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## flathunter

WHY in the world does the record have to be kept frozen and killed..I have a better idea..Have every game warden carry a certifeid scale in thier vehicle, and they can come and weigh the fish and verify it.


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## M.Magis

I "think" they mean if the fish is being kept is has to be kept frozen to retain as much water weight as possible. If you can get it to a certified scale while alive it doesn't matter, but I may be wrong.


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## Master Angler

Because there are way too many cheats out there...just because it was weighed on a certified scale doesn't mean it didn't have a lead weight lunch if you know what I mean. They will do a fish autopsy if it doesn't seem right (weight to length).


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## RiverRat

MA's right...remember the "old" SM bass record, that guy finally omitted on his death bed that he stuffed it full of sinkers to break to record....sad!

I think for a CARP record you could easily do a catch and release state record with no problems...but a LM bass or W-eye...for get it ,they'd go over it with a fine toothed comb and make 100% sure it was legit.

Scott


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## TimJC

If I hook into a state record carp and my scale says that it is even close to 50#, I'm going to call someone to get the number to the ODNR office in SW Ohio. But that won't happen


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## RiverRat

Never say never Tim....always keep 2 numbers handy in your cell phone while fishing..the # to the ODNR's office for the area(district) your in...and 1-800-POACHER...! 

Scott


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## BottomBouncer

Have any of you fellas or someone you know, used the POACHER line? Forgive me for being a bit skeptical......I just don't see it working


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## M.Magis

Given the evidence they need to have, it probably doesn't work that often. But, at least it's there.


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## RiverRat

Yea it works...but you have to tell the ODNR that the fishing poachers are keeping LM bass or S-eyes for them to respond quickly....lol...hehehe....

Scott


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## PAYARA

its most likely a grass carp....but even if it was
a common of 50lb,what is the point in a record
if it puts the fish in danger?i say forget that record
setting BS!leave that crap for pepole who have to
prove something.carp state records are broke all
the time by CAG members.IN,TX,NY records have all
been broke and several others.but not ''officialy''.

besides, the OH carp record is not 50lb,but thats
another story.lol....


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## flathunter

I have called the poacher number many times in the past, at least a dozen times..I was reporting deer poaching near my rual home....They wanted so much information from me It was like I prctically had to make the arrest myself...I wont call agin.


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## BottomBouncer

Chances are if I ever caught something that I thought was record potential, I wouldn't even have a camera or measuring tool and no way to transport it. After some thought, the fish would then be let go. Just not worth it.......


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## Banker

confidence is great - best of luck catching that fish. I'm no carp fisherman but even if one knows that a 50 lber is in a smaller lake or pond, I still think your odds of catching it are quite low (even for "the best" carper in the world)...


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## RiverRat

lol...banker..thats funny.
In a small water like a pond, you can get the fishes confidence on taking a certain bait pretty easily...then its just a matter of presenting that same bait on a rig to not spook the fish...then its up to the anglers abilitys to land such a big fish...but in a small lake or pond that shouldnt be much of an issue.

Hey BB, give me a shout man and i'll hook ya up with ideas on how to catch it....i can come with ya and be your camera man...i have a nice digital camera and we can set up my digital video camera to capture all the action too.

Scott


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## Banker

thanks Riverrat,

I just finished reading "Sowbelly: Quest for the world record largemouth" and how they target individual fish. I have never really targeted individual fish (other than casting to a location when I see a fish jump). Earlier in the year while fishing a small pond the larries were spawning and my brother kept targeting individual fish. Paid off. On about the 50th cast he would catch the fish. This happened with about 5 or 6 difn't fish. So yeah...believable....best of luck and if you get a video I (and everyone else I'm sure) would love to see it. 

Good luck bottom bouncer!


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## BottomBouncer

Sounds good RR......bring a couple rods a try yourself......four is better than two. I just picked up a couple of cool new rod holders from Fisherman's. They telescope and adjust to fit however you want the rod positioned. They look cool and work great, used them today shiner fishin'.

We'll definately get out after 'um.

I remember my best night at Buckeye........talk about carpin' Twelve......yes 12 carp caught in one evening over the fish ohio mark, although I believe the F.O. of 26" is a bit small for a carp. All caught on 6lb. line, none lost. It seems carpin' at Buckeye isn't what it used to be.......any of you guys do any good at Buckeye lately?


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## cwcarper

I'm betting on the grass carp theory myself. My grandmother's farm pond was a bit larger than an acre and had 5 or 6 jumbo grass carp along with a few 20 - 30 lb commons stocked in it (it was an old pond and the fish were much smaller when stocked). The last year I fished it the pond was choked with vegetation...the grass carp would eat some of it but not nearly enough to be effective, so vegetation alone is not enough to rule out grass carp. In the water, both species look almost identical except maybe to someone who has had experience with both types of fish. As hard as I tried for 3 years, I never did pull one of the grass carp out of that pond, although I did land a few of the commons, with the largest weighing at over 26 lbs. 

BB...what size pond are we talking?? Depth?? Just curious...most ponds wouldn't be able to grow a 50 lb common around here, but under the right conditions it would be possible. Unless you have access to the stocking records it would be hard to say whether it was likely a common or grass carp, but it would be an awesome fish to catch regardless.


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## BottomBouncer

depth? maybe up to 7' heavy vegetation, apprx 1+ acre. personally, i've never seen the fish.....many dif people have told me about it.


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## GMR_Guy

BottomBouncer said:


> depth? maybe up to 7' heavy vegetation, apprx 1+ acre. personally, i've never seen the fish.....many dif people have told me about it.


 If the pond is only one acre and about 7' deep, then I strongly doubt that it would be capable of producing any common carp halfway approaching the state record of 50 lbs - unless the fish is regularly feed some darn good food. I'd say there's a good chance that the locals are misjudging (I'm being kind when I say misjudging) the size of the fish. You can't always believe what the locals say. There's one place where I fish that a regular claims contains an 80 lb carp! However, if I believed his story was only a half-truth, I'd be spenbding all my time there. Some people can't judge the size of a fish and some people make up stories.

The grass carp theory is quite plausible. The pond you decribe might be able to grow a very large grass carp - something in excess of 30 lbs. At Ashland Central Park (in Ashland, Kentucky) they have a pond of about the same size that you describe and it contains around a half dozen or more grassers in the 30 lb range. The pond was choked with weeds when the grassers were first stocked, but the grassers quickly put the submerged vegatation into extinction. The grassers now live off the very frequent offerings of visitors to the park. A lot of people, most people, misidentify the grassers a common carp. Unfortunately, they do not allow any fishing in the pond.

If the ducks and geese are not too numerous, you might be able to raise the fish by chumming the surface with bread. This would be most effective in the early morning or late evening. There are a lot of ways to go about chasing the monster, but chumming the surface might provide you with the best oppurtunity to see him - if it exists.


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