Autumn/winter carp and tench challenge

[wunwetfoot]

Hi Andy, why bother with nuisance fish (i.e. Carp)...... fish for the Perch! Follow Steve Burkes advice and stick to the worms. No fish can resist a nice fat juicy old lob (and they definately don't need flavouring here in the UK!) There's a very good possibility that anything other than what you are fishing for will be a good specimen!

Good luck!

[Phone]

Andy,

 

Don't let the naysayers sway you. Remember it is the journey, not the destination you seek.

 

Phone

[Andy_1984]

you hit the nail on the head there Phone.

 

i know places i can go for 3lb perch that are much better to target than on the canal. There has only ever been a handful of 20-30lb carp caught on the canal so i think a big winter double would be quite an achievement.

 

oh i forgot to mention phone.

 

canals here, in glasgow are long man made stretches of water connected by lock gates to get to higher or lower canals. you could go 5-10 miles in either direction and not see a lock gate. as for the stretch im targeting its about 8 miles long(with twists and turns) before encountering a lock gate.

 

originally used to transport things such as grains in the 1800's went in to disrepair when we got the railways and closed until it reopened around the 1980's as a kind of leisure destination for boaters, runners, angler, cyclists etc.

 

i suppose you could almost call them a still water as there is not a great deal of flow if there is no wind up. depth is generally no deeper than 8ft and sorta uniform from bank to bank(maybe coming up to 4ft in places).

 

as for plant matter it is heavily weeded in most areas with a thick black gungy disgusting silt(doesnt effect water quality) when you dig through the undergrowth with plenty of reeds, tall grass and trees on the banks edge.

 

it can be quite featureless but ive picked a few interesting spots with over hanging trees, inlets and..... oops i better not mention that one its a dead give away. they are not very clinical our Scottish canals they are almost wild and natural habitats left mostly to their own devices most of the year with the odd dredger clearing weed when ever a boating parade or festival is being held in the summer months. saying that though they very rarely see any boat traffic.

 

have a look here: http://www.scottishcanals.co.uk/

Edited September 29, 2012 by Andy_1984

[Phone]

Andy,

 

The FIRST thing you should do is read this:

http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/stati..._eng_171216.pdf

 

A sulfurous smell in the muck would call for tablets of sodium bicarbonate added to your ground bait. Frankly, I would popup from the bottom. Can you guesstimate how deep the muck is this year. Sometimes you can use a piece of white cotton thread on a weight. It will stain the depth of the muck, at least as deep as the weight you use is taking it. That's how much I'd popup.

 

For bait, no question, start with very very salty natural flavors (FISHMEAL or shell fish; etc.). In fact, add road salt to your ground bait along with the bicarbonate!

 

You know, at 7c the hookbait and groundbait will not influance the fish (carp) all that much. Seriously, if you can brew tea via a open flame even hot rocks are good chum. You are not trying to feed the fish - they're not eating. You trying to invoke and invite a curious instinctive response to "have a go". Don't forget to experiment with a tiny spinner blade at the top of your hair (bottom if you popup). Holographic fish eyes will catch you nuisance perch.

 

Phone

Edit: (sodium bicarbonate floats. break into pea size chunks and use a pva bag)

Edited September 29, 2012 by Phone

[Phone]

Andy,

 

This has remained a "fun" thread. Thought, since I'm just sitting here in the house Sunday afternoon NOT fishing, I'd give you some encouragement on your quest.

 

I've caught carp in every state (50) except Alaska. In that case, when I had the chance, I caught a stupid goldfish - fittingly enough in Gold Creek near Anchorage. Should have been fishing in Vancouver I guess but that's Canada. In many of our states I've faced cold water although I admit not once I can remember off hand did I intentionally select a situation like you describe. The old canals in NY sound similar and locally in Kansas we have long narrow coal stripmining pits with an abundance of natural carp. 7c (44 - 45 F) is about the bottom of the barrel for intentionally targeting carp. They, carp, are caught through the ice by accident all the time in our northern tier of states. I have never ice fished for carp.

 

The Carp Anglers Group has a tournament called the First Fishing Folly (FFF) on New Years Day. I never cease to be amazed how many carp are caught.

 

Jerome Moisand, a member (probably a charter member) from the early days does a really good job with his underwater camera. He also is the director of the FFF every year. This years video is called Carp Live! First Fishing Folly 2012 you can google it on youtube. He's from Boston via France although I don't know where they fished the FFF this year.

 

Before you "discover" it for yourself here are the 2012 results from Jerome:

 

""""We had 147 registered participants, the cold front took quite a toll, but at the end 95 brave souls did go fishing on Jan 1st, including 12 juniors, across 15 states/provinces, catching 112 carp for a total weight of approximately 845 pounds.

Oh, and Phone, 92 of those carp were caught in a water temp less than 50 degrees Fahrenheit.""""

 

Like I say, they CAN be caught in cold water. It's not because they are feeding. Ohh, and I SERIOUSLY dispute Jerome's water temp claims!

 

Phone

Edited September 30, 2012 by Phone

[Steve Burke]

Andy, put away thoughts of Carp and Tench until spring. I am Tenching at the moment and wondering what the hell am I doing It is time to start packing away the summer and spring species tackle and get the Pike and Zed tackle out. Only a few days and the traditional start of the Pike season, well for southerners anyway.

 

I've no experience of fishing for carp and tench in Scotland, but October can be a brilliant time for these species on Wingham down here in Kent. And October is my favourite month for big bream, as it is with a number of bream fanatics. November can be equally good if the weather remains mild, especially for carp that'll be at or near their heaviest weights of the year. Indeed, our best-ever catch of big carp came early December last year with a member catching 2 forties (including a lake record mirror at 49-08 and a lake record common at 47-08), plus 2 thirties and 2 twenties - all in a 2 day session!

 

At the moment catches are just beginning to pick up on Wingham after a hard summer, largely because there's been a glut of natural food this year. Early autumn is always a difficult time, but soon afterwards you have the cream of the fishing down here as the natural food diminishes and the fish realise winter is coming. In fact at some time in late autumn the summer species go on a feeding binge and throw caution to the wind. It's for this reason I restart my tench and bream fishing now, and don't switch to perch and pike until after the clocks go back.

 

This binge often seems to happen when the temperatures go back up again after the first cold snap. It varies from year to year, and of course is likely to be later down here than up north.

 

Will it have already happened up in Scotland?

[Andy_1984]

havnt monitored the temps to be honest. afternoon temps have been holding steady around 13c-14c for a couple of weeks now. if the weather forecast for next weekend is anything to go by its to get colder but calm and sunny at the same time.

[DarrenBranks]

Andy,

 

Have you been out for a go yet? Been up a few times to the "basin" for the pike. The carp up there have been moving a lot once the sun goes down. I'm taking a guess here, is one of your three swims going to be at the pillion? Looks good to me seen a good few surface feeding fish there. A small suggestion from me would be to keep some bread with you on your quest as I've seen a lot of fish feeding on the surface;) anyway best of luck. Also keep us updated.