Becoming interested in Carp fishing.

sd2 · Posted: Sat Jul 09, 2011 2:42 pm Post subject:

[quote="englishcarpman"]

blackstonecarp · Posted: Mon Jul 11, 2011 10:24 am Post subject:

Heh yeah...getting them is easy, picking them out if the fun part. Sadly we don't have maggot vending machines like I've seen in England!

My point is though carp are omnivorous. I have used various baits including chicken livers all summer long with great success. They will continue to be opportunistic all year round as they require a constant source of energy and will not shy away from mussels/worms/insects/meats etc in the summer. Just like they won't shy away from corn/pineapple/strawberry/potatoes in the winter.

The exception being only if there is a strong food source nearby like a mulberry tree when there is a short time they will feed almost exclusively on that.

Many times when I look to use baits for a new area I think about the water. I try to match one bait to what the water has in abundance. Say if there are a lot of shrimp or mussels I will make a shrimp boilie to use the carps sense of familiarity to catch them. Then I will make one completely foreign bait like say strawberry as there is no possible way for that to be in the water and use the carps curiosity to make it work. Leaning on either strategy will bring results..combining both is a strong approach.

markb · Posted: Mon Jul 11, 2011 11:58 am Post subject:

I was talking to a Brit yesterday. He said they'd take a plastic yoghurt cup, cut holes into it, put in some meat, and hang it from the branch of a tree over the water. Flies get in to the cup and lay eggs, and when the maggots grow, they eventually crawl out of the holes and fall into the water. The carp get a slow trickle of maggots that keeps them coming back for more. Then you just freeline maggots on a hook under the cup. Nice trick.

englishcarpman · Posted: Mon Jul 11, 2011 1:22 pm Post subject:

LOL yeah yog cup is an old trick but it has always been kinda a lake thing i thought.

as for making my own maggots..... im not squeemish... but breeding my own maggots as opposed to buying a pint of mixed colours at my local tackle shop has just never appealed to me, and my wife would KILL me at any hint of smell! so im kinda screwed on that front! Very Happy

and i have no idea how to colour them properly. yes, red and yellow food colouring but there is a process the comercial maggot farmers use to colour the bodies right the way through as opposed to 'staining' them.

skoda · Posted: Mon Jul 11, 2011 2:31 pm Post subject:

surely lost my appetite while reading Smile

englishcarpman · Posted: Mon Jul 11, 2011 3:10 pm Post subject:

EXACTLY!..... maggots from a tackle shop, no worries i'll eat my sandwiches at the bankside and fish with maggots.... breeding my own just seem completely diffrent maggots somehow.

oh man.... do i have issues? LOL

markb · Posted: Mon Jul 11, 2011 9:11 pm Post subject:

Maggot farmer: http://www.ruralnorthwest.com/artman/publish/article_8723.shtml

englishcarpman · Posted: Mon Jul 11, 2011 9:45 pm Post subject:

awesome thanks Mark..... maybe check this out guys... http://www.forkedtreeranch.com/newfishingbait.html i cant find a 'dealer' in MA so have to buy more than 5,000 at $5.75 per 1,000.
kinda wonder if someone on MAFF wants to step up and buy and sell them in smaller quantities for us,
if there is a demand for them maybe i could do it myself.... hmmmm better open another post for that after i have found out from an Admin here if that would even be allowed. Confused