Carp Campaign Neglect

I have been quite neglectful to this journal and to the carp that I so savor.  There is more than one reason, but primarily my work-life has gone from a somewhat manageable state to an almost impossible one.  My time on the carp creek has been quite limited and coupled with the condition of the creek when time is possible has led to this great neglect and regret on my part.

I have been out somewhat, however, and those trips have been productive.  The Aftermath fly continues to entice carp after carp.  Conditions have made this the toughest carp by fly season this angler has had to deal with.  The wind has been absolutely insane and now the creek is choked with tassels that the wind pushes upstream into blankets.

 

Yesterday the carp were feeding on the tassels on the surface.  Upon seeing the surface feeding I was inclined to tie on a dry pattern, which would have certainly been a Stimulator.  But, the wind was howling and it would have done little good to try and get that dry to a target.  Instead, I took the Aftermath and targeted surface feeding carp by putting the fly directly in front of them as they sipped the surface.  The carp would absolutely dive bomb for the fly and suck it mid-column.  It was a beautiful sight to watch. 

 

My last four or five outings have been dominated by chop on the water.  The last two days the chop has been more like swells on this sea current of this prairie ocean.  It makes for a most difficult day.  The carp still somehow come my way though and I am quite thankful.

 

To get caught up here are some pictures of some of the latest carp and they all came by way of the Aftermath.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



A Carp Here... A Carp There

Capturing a January or February carp here on this prairie ocean is a rare and rewarding experience.  So far, 2014 has been very kind this this fly angler with both January and February carp coming to my hand by way of the fly rod and Aftermath fly. 

March 28th is the official opening of our carp season.  It's a date established by Charlie and me years ago once we decided to get serious about fly fishing these wonderful creatures.

Although we are still two weeks away from our official start date, I've been venturing to the little creek we have the last couple of afternoons. 

The water is still a bit cold for a lot of activity.  The big guys seem content to hold by their dens near the far and undercut banks while the youngsters come out to play.  I'm content with the big guys holding and the youngsters on the go because it doesn't matter what size carp I catch.  I like them all. 

Monday, I went to the creek about 1:30  in the afternoon.  The weather was sunny and there was a stiff breeze.  The creek is a really odd color right now - a really pale green and it makes seeing the carp difficult.  Since sight fishing was out of the question I simply started blind fishing to shadows in the creek.  Before too long, one teenager latched onto the Aftermath and I employed a solid hook-set. 

 

With that one carp I was satisfied and left the creek.  On Tuesday I returned to the creek at the same time.  Again, it was sunny.  However, the wind was howling this day.  The chop on the water was so severe it almost became nauseating after looking at it for ten minutes or so.  Once again, I was resigned to blind cast.  After what seemed like two dozen or so casts I hadn't even got so much as a love bump.  Walking upstream I could see the silhouettes of several carp across the creek so I decided to do something I rarely do and that is enter the creek.

 

Our creek is quite thin and it doesn't take much movement at all to push a lot of water.  Normally, Charlie and I stand at the edge of the creek and roll our flies out to the carp, but today that wasn't working so I went full stalking mode.  It took a long time to inch up to the carp and then an overhand cast was made.  I missed the first eat, but on the next cast the Aftermath struck gold. 

 

 

Again, this one carp seem to satisfy my appetite for a little interaction between this man and fish and I left the creek. 

 

Sometimes I like to just sit on the bank and watch the carp as they live.  I know that the flies we use, the rods the lines, the clothes we wear are all important elements when it comes to successfully capture these creatures.  However, I think our attitude toward the carp is all important and I will speak more of that later.