Friday, July 24, 2015

Kayak Carp

Ludicrous. Insane. Stupid. But just plain fun. I finally caught my first carp from a kayak today.


I started out walking shoreline, but I only saw a few fish. I did have one eat from a good fish, but the line was buttoned down tight in my fingers and with one powerful head shake the tippet broke. When I got out on the kayak some perch and smallmouth sporadically nipped at the fly.



After stopping to photograph a great blue heron I made my way to my intended destination, a nice back bay with a combination of rocky and mud/leaf matter bottom that makes it the perfect location for carp to forage. I knelt instead of sitting in the kayak and soon began spotting tailing carp. I spooked the first two, most likely because I made small noises trying to set the paddles down. The third and fourth may have taken, but I didn't hook either. The fifth took for sure and I missed it, which was a bummer because it was a very special fish. It was fairly large, but that's not the cool part. It was bright white. I saw it tailing 20 feet away in very dirty water. When I got close I cold see it was almost entirely lacking in pigment, except the fins which were yellow and a gold sparkle on the scales. What I wouldn't give to get another shot at that fish.

I spooked the next one. But finally I passed by one that was tailing violently in the leaf litter. I managed to turn without making much noise. I dropped my Black Ops in front of it and it made a decisive turn.

All hell broke loose. The craziest battle I have ever had with a fish ensued. I was given a run for my money by an average sized carp. The fish towed my toward deeper water, but was eventually going fast enough to dump into the backing, although only a few feet. By this point I had figured out that the fish would go under a rope holding steady a big inflatable slide. I began pulling myself towards the fish, and got in position to pull the rod under the rope and out the other side. After a little run around the fish went back through, this time not stopping. gave slack and paddled back to the rope to repeat the exercise. I was able to get the fish within leader distance before it ran again. I went for a dance in and out of the buoys. The fish occasionally pulled me around in circles. Eventually I decide to take matters into my own hands. I dumped about 15 feet of line and paddled to shore with the rod between my legs. They say that the last thing you want to do when fighting a fish is to give slack. In this case I needed to get my feet on solid ground to land my fish. And when I was I finally was the one in control.

The Black Ops was nailed perfectly in the upper lip. When I picked up the fish for a photo he posed with dorsal up. Strong, smart, and beautiful.




I got a couple more shots but eventually the heat and the wind drove me off the water. But not before I got a great shot of a lesser blue heron on a fallen tree limb in the water. It's so beautiful on the lake in the morning.

7 comments:

  1. GREAT trip, fisherman and carp. The heron was awesome. I sure wish I could have been there to see you in that kayak dance on the water. Great pics. Thanks for the trip!!!
    Tie, fish, write and photo on...

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  2. I'm betting you'll manage to meet that white carp soon. Enjoyed reading and seeing the pictures of this adventure.

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    1. I'm betting otherwise. It's a big lake. Finding that one fish again is like finding a needle in a field of hay.

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  3. Wow ! This was like a ride at Disney's Animal Kingdom....you sure make good use of that little red kayak !
    Thanks for sharing.
    - G.

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    1. It's not so little when you're hauling it across the street on your shoulders!

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  4. Love the name of that streamer. That sounds like a hectic and crazy fun way to fish...I want to see you land one on the kayak! Just don't fall in!

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    1. Thanks.
      Carp flies are typically in their own category, the Black Ops is much closer to a nymph than a streamer.
      When I'm carrying hundreds of dollars of gear in the kayak, I am not landing a carp in it. It's also essentially impossible, with a nine foot rod you cannot get a heavy fish to the kayak.

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