Do Carp deserve more respect?

[Chris Kuhn]

Trust me, I am no trout snob, nor do I look down on people who fish for carp. They just give me the willies.

[rayfound]

Chris - you in town yet? That park pond near your house is apparently getting trout now.

Honestly, I have no idea how to catch trout in a place like that, but I would be willing to try a few times on my lunch break or something. The cold weather will hopefully keep some of the crazies indoors.

[Chris Kuhn]

Chris - you in town yet? That park pond near your house is apparently getting trout now.

Honestly, I have no idea how to catch trout in a place like that, but I would be willing to try a few times on my lunch break or something. The cold weather will hopefully keep some of the crazies indoors.

Everybody who fishes here is a bait dunker and I think the only ones having any luck are the cormorants. I am probably going to wait until January to get a license.

[Papasequoia]

Poking Fun is Cool & I enjoy it as much as the next person..
But I've had, for lack of a better word, "Trout Snobs" basically call me a retard/Idiot/Fool for targeting Carp. They've never tried for them, But they Know what the whole experience is about...

No trout snobbery from me. I just think it's an ugly fish and that many (although I'm sure not all) of the places it lives aren't very good looking either. I'm fortunate enough to live closer to the Kern or the Sierra than I am to the carp waters of LA/Bakersfield, so no real 'need' to target them out of necessity. On the other hand, I do have that new 8wt that is still in the tube, and I hear that there are carp in Isabella so I'm sure that one of these days will find me up there giving it a shot. After all, the tug is the drug, right?

[Rockstar Fisherman]

Carp do not deserve respect, they beg for food just like puppies or dogs. All you can say is that anyone that fishes for them on purpose truely enjoys fishing. Granted I wont go out and purposly target them, I only fish for them as a last resort, and they've made many happy fishing days for me. But they're still ugly and disgusting. I'M NOT AN ADDICT, I SWEAR!!!

[Chris Kuhn]

Carp do not deserve respect, they beg for food just like puppies or dogs. All you can say is that anyone that fishes for them on purpose truely enjoys fishing. Granted I wont go out and purposly target them, I only fish for them as a last resort, and they've made many happy fishing days for me. But they're still ugly and disgusting. I'M NOT AN ADDICT, I SWEAR!!!

Sure I bet you can quit anytime you want to.

[Flyjunkie]

Carp do not deserve respect, they beg for food just like puppies or dogs. All you can say is that anyone that fishes for them on purpose truely enjoys fishing. Granted I wont go out and purposly target them, I only fish for them as a last resort, and they've made many happy fishing days for me. But they're still ugly and disgusting. I'M NOT AN ADDICT, I SWEAR!!!

Sure I bet you can quit anytime you want to.

Yeah Just try to quit Carp......

[BradW]

You guys have it bad. Now don't get me wrong. I see nothing wrong with fishing for carp. Obi-wan "Its the pull" I've even been known to purposely fish for the bottom feeders. My only problem is where I fish for them. Trout=nice flowing clean cold water, with the fresh scent of pine. Carp = mud and what's that smell. Now, as Raider did and catch a nice 20 inch carp in the wild trout section of the lower Owens, that's different (and that's if I believe him ). I'm just not sure I would admit to fishing for them in public.

Brad

[STMFlyGuide]

All this carp talk... bah...what are they good for? I'll tell you... Has anyone here chased bonefish on the flats? Well if you have now go out to a carp flat and see if you can catch them like you catch the bone...I'm telling you I guided and fished for bonefish for a full year... this is where I lived http://www.locogringo.com/xcalak/ http://www.xcalak.info/ Basically you see a bone you throw a decent cast to him you feel the hit and you hookup! The difficulity and preciseness of the cast go up as the larger bones are much more weary.. But in the end after being a heavy carp addict for the past three or four years, this is what I have concluded;...Carp are much more subtle fish (until hooked that is) much more weary, and much more aware of their surroundings... One reason is beacause of this webwerian apparatus they posess..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weberian_apparatus

After catching hundreds of bones I can say anyone that can catch a carp consistently on a flat can also go to a bone flat and commit outright sins against the well known bonefish... I am talking about sight casting to cruising carp.. Fishing for them in the LA river with a strike indicator is a little different.. Although there are sight casting opportunities there as well... So if you want to refine all your fly fishing skills including; percise accurate distance cast, delicate fly presentation, fly selection, and fish fighting skills, find a flat and go after carp...I tell you that it is as enjoyable if not more enjoyable, and definately more challenging than hooking the bonefish ( oh and bonefish dont get as big as carp) I would say carp are between 5-10 times harder to trick than the average bonefish and almost twice as hard as tailing permit in most conditions.. dont get me wrong I would go back in a second to chase bonefish because of the beautiful places it takes you and they are truly an outright blast... but if there are carp around .... Im on it!!!

[Bernard]

Apologies if someone already has said this but although they deserve the utmost respect, one just need not fish for them! I always vow that if I ever get another tattoo, it'll be a traditional carp in eithe a Japanese or Chinese motif ( most likely Chinese - why I just don't know heh heh ). They have a rich lore and a curious place in many cultures ( not just Asian ) but when it comes to tying a fly, reading a map and losing sleep over google earth the end of the tippet has an adipose fin. A huge hats off to you urban anglers who keep your jones off with those beasts.

B

[midger]

I give 'em all the respect they are due.

[Rockstar Fisherman]

Craig you are correct, they do seem to be very wary fish elsewhere, but in those waters I could care less to fish for them. I only fish for them when there nothing else to fish for and I'm already somewhere where they are. Now if I ever take a trip specifically for carp, you can void everything I've ever said negative about carp.

And for the record I don't think any less of a flyfisherman that targets carp, it's all about fishing!

[fflutterffly]

Simply, if it takes a fly it's worth fishing.