thinking about giving up.....

[fishingca]

hello guy sorry for my first post being really negative, I've done research regarding boilies which i have imported a few with no luck in my local pond, dynamite source, mainline maple8, k 1 "not imported". with no luck. Is there a boilie or some kind of bait that always works for you? some thing that never fails? i have tried corn but in my local pond its not allowed, it must be blended in some kind of form. i'm so close to just giving away all my fishing gear. Gone to the point of just finding a new hobby, i feel that my search, hooks, rigs, baits i invested in have not paid off. Thinking on giving the oddessey xxx a shot but cant find them anywhere here in the U.S. I live in the Los Angeles Area. Any help would be appreciated

[Gaz]

i think the problem is not helped by keep changing bait? the baits you have tried are tried and tested baits proven to catch carp. dont give up, get a bait stick to it and keep it going in. you will catch.

 

one of the biggest things in carp fishing is being on the fish, if you aint on or near them unless your long haul you aint gonna catch them.

 

how big is the water? what is the stocking like?

[garysj01]

I have to say i agree with gaz, its so easy to blame the bait, you might need to do some pre baiting for a while, but stick to one bait, if you can see carp at close quarters just watch their reaction to the bait, or spend a few weeks baiting up the same spots, and then fish over the baited area's, work = fish the more effort you put in the more likely you will catch.

[ianain]

As said above, make sure the fish are there first.

 

Has anyone caught carp from there?

 

Have you tried worms, maggots, bread, chick peas etc..? (See particles)

 

Keep trying and something will work.

[fishingca]

I see carp swimming around all over the pond, and some nice big ones, I could get the carp to my area but they just seem to taste the bait And run

[brighton_carper]

I see carp swimming around all over the pond, and some nice big ones, I could get the carp to my area but they just seem to taste the bait And run

 

Are you fishing through the night, or just day sessions? It's just that on some lakes, including the one I normally fish, the Carp just don't really feed much during the day. If I only fished days on my lake, I'd have only caught two fish in the last two years.

[buzzbomb]

If it's that bad maybe carp fishing really isn't for you. It's a lot cheaper than golf though, so give it another shot. Look up Socal Carpers and see where they go - seeing how it's done should give you some confidence. Some anglers luck into a fish the first time out and are hooked for good, some have to plug away at it. Sometimes boilies can be an instant bait on wild carp that have never seen them before (was my experience) but all the factors that cause a fish to bite or not are still in play so it is never a given. I'd be inclined to open the field a bit and try other things. If you fish 2 rods put a piece of sausage, or potato, or half a rubber earplug soaked in clam juice..... and a boilie on the other if you like. If you still want to give your gear away pm me!

[peteblount]

Just stick at it mate keep going keep putting the bait in and have confidence in your bait and rig its just a matter of time and you will have mr carp on the bank

[ianain]

I would give bread a serious go.

 

Try floating bread crust (providing there are not too many ducks around). You will be able to test this out by just throwing bits in and see what happens. Once they have a bit of confidence, you can then try to catch one.

[dunkel]

IMO Boilies are marketed to appear to be the greatest bait ever, and in most cases that isn't true. They require introduction and in the US that can get costly. Don't give up because boilies aren't working. Have you tried making your own doughball/paste? I have some good recipes that have worked for me. Most of the ingredients can be bought at the grocery store. If you'd like a recipe or 2 shoot me a private message and I'll hook you up. With corn not being allowed that limits you a bit when it come to alternative baits. Maybe you could try packbait with a puff as a pick up or pop up fake corn?

[gmubeach]

Is it trout stocked? Its hard to make bait suggetions if the rules are the issue:) Can you use plain ol night crawlers?

To date my biggest carp was middle of the day with a ballof crawlers.

[turkn9ne]

Don't give up. Never give up man. Fishing can be slow or seemingly pointless at times when you just wanna toss the rod down and say forget this. I've been there but as the same time, when I started fishing at the age of 10 I was getting into 7 pound bass at a local stocked pond. That's when I got hooked. Then as the years passed I found myself at the age of 26 and I was seriously done with bass. Then I started chasing bowfin, catfish, and carp. Bowfin and carp are my favorite fish to catch. Unfortunately, after I got kicked out of my favorite pond to easily sight fish for carp, my carp fishing got really tough. It's not impossible though. Just slower now. Before at the pond I was booted from, it was fish on everyday multiple times a day. Now I'm lucky to get a few big ones per year. It's all about location to me. Sometimes it's easy bit most of the time it's really tough.

 

Don't get discouraged. I read alot of good advice from the people that already posted replies. Take their advice and remember that it takes time. The most important part is to enjoy yourself and enjoy the time spent at the water.

 

I recently put the spinning and baitcasting gear and picked up my fly rod again. Am I gonna catch as much fish? Maybe not maybe so, but I do because I enjoy it. And when I do catch carp on the fly, and I have, it takes my breath away I love it so much

[cyborx]

I recently put the spinning and baitcasting gear and picked up my fly rod again. Am I gonna catch as much fish? Maybe not maybe so, but I do because I enjoy it. And when I do catch carp on the fly, and I have, it takes my breath away I love it so much

 

MMmmmm carp on the fly, better than lemon meringue pie

[orygun]

Fishingca,

 

I am an escapee from SoCal. I fished many of the lakes in LA County at one time or another. Which one(s) are you trying? I had chance to sight fish in some of the lakes where the clarity was pretty good.  Something as simple as casting ahead of a school and dragging a nightcrawler in front of them and letting them swim by it was all it took.  Have you tried an inflated crawler, or earthworm or baby crawler? The old bass technique of a an egg sinker, swivel and 3-4 feet of leader works well. Or whatever length needed to get in front of them. I used this extensively for catfish and often caught carp in the process. I also left the bail open so the fish could swim a bit without feeling tension.

 

I have often caught them with 2" chunks of chicken liver or fresh mackerel cast without weight and again with an open bail. 

 

Not sure about your ability and/or desire to travel from LA. I was a regular at Prado Dam in the Chino area for several years. I was after catfish but as I mentioned caught lots of carp. Puddingstone Reservoir in San Dimas has lots of carp there. I grew up in that town and spent a lot of my youth there. Our favorite carp outings were with the use of ultralight rods with 4-6 lb line. The carp there can get quite big and trying to put the brakes on a large fish on that gear was a hoot. The various arms of the lake see less boats and are better for the fishing. 

[newmarket]

Welcome Ory , to the Asylum

[Minelab]

Thank you for starting this thread, I'm not new to fishing, but just started Carp fishing. I live in IN. on the Ohio River. I fish a channel off the River called Pigeon creek. Its loaded with Carp, Cat-fishing at dawn, I would see Monster Carp, I estimate to be around the 30lb range break the water next to a barge all the time. I went out and bought new Carp gear, spent a lot of money only to get Blank, Blank and more Blank. one day fishing down the creek, a school of carp Mocked me, they came up about 3 feet from the bank and stared at me. I packed up and went home. Thanks to the Lads on this Forum, I learned that they were spawning. I mainly fish with Method Feeders down the creek, to my surprise there are some big ones down there as well. Blank. Blank. Very discouraged, but never gave up. I watched a Video by Catfish and Carp, Luke fishes the Rivers here, he has some great easy to make and cheap recipes for method feeders. the one I hadn't tried was his Rice, Banana and Chocolate. I caught my first Carp with this. Rice and Ketchup recipes work great to. Time of day at the break of dawn and when the sun is going down and after 10pm with choice bait has been the key. I bought some artificial red worms off of E-bay from china to try, Cheep. used them with my method feeder straight on the hook and hook only with no weight. Working very well, Catfish like them to. I do soak them for a couple of days prior

After I caught my first Carp, which took for ever, I gained confidence and had learned a little to. Carp fishing just took off. I wanted to give up and sell my gear and go back to Cat fishing, but I couldn't, I wanted so bad to be successful, Love my Carp Rods and Reels, there Awesome and that thrill of the explosion when Mr. Carp takes off for the border. these River Carp work out unlike the Lake and pond Carp. they swim up and down the river in Strong currents for long distances, There powerful fish and you know it when you have them Hooked. Never Give up.

 

 

[bluelabel]

Why just boilies...?  There is tinned meat (spam/luncheon meat) prawns, shrimps, butter beans, chick peas, sunflower seeds, blacke eyed beans, haricot beans, bread,  bread paste,  cheese,  cheese paste, sultanas, raisins, there are any number of spices flavours that can be used to flavour these possible baits.. some can be used in their raw state... the world is your oyster ( yup even oysters)... get stuck in man...👍

[davew]

Over 5 years late in posting, but if the carp are tasting your bait and swimming off, you are using the wrong rigs (lol)! Have you ever heard of the hair rig?

[psychodiagnostik]

Not sure if the original OP is still around, but in this situation I'd try a "paylake" style setup, with a pack bait of maybe panko & cream corn juice plus a pack of jello powder and grape soda.  Add soda until it becomes sticky and clumpy but not too watery.  This is what works for me in pretty much every water I've fished, although you're leaving out the actual corn.  It should make a really sticky, stiff moldable paste that will pack around a no-roll sinker or method feeder.  Then, either hair rig or side hook a cereal puff like kix, corn pops, or similiar.  The "carolina" style is to really bury the hookbait in a massive ball but in my experience, pop up style works too.   In lakes and rivers where I fish, if carp are even remotely in the area, and are in any sort of feeding mode, this will draw them in if you're patient.   This has worked for me when carp wouldn't touch a hook bait on top of a pile of corn.  You need to make a lot of bait and re-bait every 30 minutes or so, give a sharp tug when you reel in to make any remaining bait ball falls off, and after a couple of hours you'll have a nice baited spot that will hopefully get the carp feeding competitively.

Indeed I think wild carp in USA that are never pressured need to be trained to feed on boilies, which is what I'm working on at my local river.

Be patient and don't react to liners, the rod tips will be going crazy if the carp start feeding, wait until you get a solid run.

[Minelab]

psychodiagnostik

I agree with you about training these wild Carp to feed here in the USA on the Rivers. It has taken me some time to learn this and be successful. I buy a 40lb bag of chicken feed that sinks, at Rual King for nine bucks. Mix it with a can of corn with the juice and then add a bottle of Red soda.The mix is just sticky enough to pack it to get it out and it breaks down quickly, I also use Old fashion Oats not cooked at different locations with the chicken feed and red soda. This has been working very well to draw them in. I use a pop up rig 80 percent of the time, Kev Horton’s Pop-up Rig and adjust the weight accordingly to the current. I figured out a quick change method using Bullet Weights EGSA Egg Shot and can easily reuse them with no damage to the line or weight, very much like the Fox version for a lot less. size 4 and 5 work the best. When my wife gets bored, she will paint them for me. I only use Nash Instance action pop ups, mostly 15mm, flavor does vary, but had the best of luck with pineapple crush. My favorite spot has a lot of grass carp and they are awesome to catch, don't weigh them due to the bank structure being so difficult, but use a nice Matt that I extend out in the water to land them on and release with out harm. I would estimate that some I have caught have been in the 30's. Fishing for wild Carp in the River is a challenge! But the rewards are all worth it at the end of the day. I sure wish at times I could have a nice chair to sit in and a burner to make some fresh coffee like those good old boys do in UK, but that's okay, I grew up on the river and I am use to the harsh conditions, those big cotton mouths though I have not. fell a sleep the other day with my feet at the edge of the water to wake up and see one close to six feet in length just in front of me cruising down looking for a meal.

 

[NC Angler]

This is why I love carping so much. The bodies of water are all so different. Yes it can be frustrating, but people think you can just throw bread and corn and you're carp fishing. Sure, this may work sometimes, but it's the adventure of figuring it out. If that's all it took to catch carp, I'd hate it. But, overthinking it with big production boilies and attractants could be an issue. Make your own and have some fun with it. I love making boilies, pack baits, etc; it's what keeps me interested. I also love fishing for trout and all the lures and flies you have to go through. I just find it interesting. 

[Minelab]

Its been a good year, gained a lot of knowledge and have been able to get some new reels and gear. I haven't picked up a catfish rod since my first post of wanting to give up. Carp fishing is a skill in my opinion, I totally agree with the previous post. More than just baiting a hook. I have been fishing a couple of lakes and have found them to be more challenging than fishing the river. Enjoying it and have learned to use chod rigs and PVA bags at the lakes with some good success. Took time to learn and have confidence in my rigs. My advice to any one just getting started is don't become discouraged , it just takes patience and some time to learn. I'm still learning and know I have only scratched the surface.  Vacation is just around the corner, going to Dale Hollow lake and hope to land my first Mirror Carp. Yes I'm having Fun.

[buzzbomb]

Dale Hollow Lake is a nice looking water; do you know where you'll be fishing from or are you going to have to search for a spot once you get there?  Is it legal to put in ground bait?  The lake I fish most often is quite a bit bigger, but on yours at almost 28,000 acres the same technique of baiting a spot (usually trying to get past the weeds to keep out of trouble) and hoping to interdict the carp as they cruise around the shore, should work as well.  I've always considered river fishing more challenging than the lake, just because current adds another dimension to baiting strategy, but I guess it's a personal preference.  Good luck on your holiday, and take lots of pics for us!

[Minelab]

Appreciate your advice buzzbomb, Yes ground bait is allowed, as to a place, working on that. I believe fishing the river for my self in currents just comes more natural for me, I have been casting out lines in them for over 30 years. I enjoy the challenge of the lakes because I am able to use different rigs such as Chod rigs and pva bags. Locating the Carp is a game of stalking and a keen eye. I learned that the hard way and believed I could just cast out anywhere. All in all its a wonderful adventure every time I go out. Until next time. Photo is my River hot spot, very difficult to fish due to the solid jagged rock, steep bank, you don't want to trip for sure. Have a Matt in the water and a second Matt further up to protect the fish. Knee pads are a must, At times its difficult keeping those two rods in the water here with proper baiting.