# Toussaint River Carping



## GMR_Guy

I arrived in Port Clinton on Sunday to do some scouting for carp. Turtle Creek was the first place I looked at. It was VERY shallow and was FULL of shiners. There were quite a few people fishing there. It's one of them spots that a lot of people like to fish at because the access is great - not because the fishing is good. There were not any signs of carp activity. The next place was the Toussaint Wildlife Area. This place did not look like it did on the park map and it had changed a lot since the last satellite image was taken. Siltation changes a lot of things. There were a few spots here that looked worth a try, but only two of them generated any enthusiasm from me. I would have chummed a spot in advance, but it was occupied by people fishing for bullheads. This would be the place that I would return to.

At daybreak I was by myself at Toussaint. I had my choice of two decent spots (a choice I would later regret). After casting out two rods baited with sweetcorn, loads of maize and sweetcorn were slingshotted out in an effort to bring the carp in. As I waited for the carp to arrive, I noticed that carp were breaking at my other spot, but I thought I could eventually get some carp in my spot. Well the wind was blowing in my face and the wind was causing the current not to flow like it was the day before. I was counting on the current to bring the carp to me. There was carp moderate carp leaping activity throughout the day. At one point I SAW THE LARGEST CARP I HAVE EVER SEEN IN MY ENTIRE LIFE COME CLEAR OUT OF THE WATER. IT JUMPED TWICE AND IT WAS HHHH-UUUU-GGGG-EEEE. THOUGH THE CARP WAS VERY FAR AWAY, IT STILL LOOKED LIKE A GIANT. THE FISH HAD TO BE WELL IN EXCESS OF 40 INCHES AND 40 LBS. Unfortunately, I can't cast 300 yards and could not reach it. Dang that fish was big! After hours of no carp I decided to call it quits for the day. But the sight of that big fish made me want to try the spot again the next day.

On Tuesday, I chose the better of the two spots. This spot seemed to always have some small current going through it, regardless of what the wind was doing. There was very little carp working the huge expanse of water. The tally for the day was 3 carp from 20 to 26" - not what I came for. All three were caught on chick peas. If nothing else I had gained some confidence in a new bait.

On Tuesday afternoon, I was disheartened to see netters arrive. They placed their long net in the exact area that I saw yesterday's monster. I observed them through my weak 10x monoculars. After a long time they got the fish corraled up and I watched two guys sort the fish. Large white grey fish were being let go (I think these were sheepshead/freshwater drum). The carp and bullheads were tossed 10 to 15 feet through the air into a flat bottom boat. I don't know if the boat had water in it. I didn't see all of the dozens of fish that were caught, I just hope that the monter carp of yesterday wasn't one of them. Sad.

Wednesday was my last day. Carp activity was practicaly non-existent. I only had two carp to show for my efforts. The largest was a healthy 28". Both were caught on chick peas. 

The spot where I fished has potential. Luck, skill, and experience were not on my side.

Attached is a picture of the netters and the healthy 28" fish.


----------



## GMR_Guy

Let's try the netters pic again.


----------



## crappielooker

yeah..its heartbreaking every time i go up there and see them netting the fish.. nice goin on your new bait man..


----------



## GMR_Guy

I forgot to mention that a bald eagle was kind enough to fly over my spot on a couple of days. It was a thrilling experience to see my my first wild bald eagle. I also got see a mink for the first time. The mink swam about 15 to 20 feet away from me.

A lot of people would think differently about paylakes if the fish that were put in them came from the waters that they fish. "Out of sight, out of mind." "As long as it is not in my backyard." A good compromise between netters and fisherman might be if they were to place a maximum size limit on carp such as twenty to thirty pounds.

A couple of ODNR guys came and checked my license. They were totally ignorant about big carp in the area. They asked with incredulity if I had come all the way from Middletown just to fish for carp.


----------



## tpet96

> compromise between netters and fisherman


Not a bad idea. They should impliment rules for areas they can do it as well. Kind of a bummer to drive all the way to the Lake to fish, only to find nets right up on the bank all the way through the fishing areas. I mean right ON the bank. LOL. Affects perch, crappie, bass, etc. guys as well. Happens all week long at East Harbor state park, and many locations along the western basin each spring.


----------

