Small River; Hard Fighting Carp

I landed 6 hard fighting river fish today. The moss was deceiving and fish were escaping my grasp as the moss covered the hook at times preventing a good hook hold.

The fish from this venue are some of my favorites for colors and scale patterns. There are a lot of muddlers in this spot. I've never caught a mirror here, but the lake above the dam has a good supply of mirror carp.

The biggest fish today

A nice fish to break a lull around lunch time

I threw in that "euro pose" as an inside joke. My wife laughs when she see's those photos on Instagram. I have always preferred to look directly at the camera.

Beautiful White Koi

I love koi. At some future date I am going to build a koi pond at my house. They are so majestic and watching them glide through the water is very relaxing.

Detroit River carp

I caught a nice carp this morning in the Detroit River near Trenton.

I love shore fishing, but sometimes finding fishable shoreline access is easier said than done if trying to target a specific area of the river.

18 pounds

I'm searching for a good spot to catch sturgeon  from shore once the season opens up later this month.

Toledo Zoo Sturgeon

I enjoyed the sturgeon in the aquarium exhibit.

Pre-Holiday Carp

We spent the holiday in Toledo going to the zoo and watching fireworks,  but on Wednesday prior to the Mud Hens game, I caught some river carp.

2nd carp in the mid-teens

1st carp for the day 

These carp are typical size for the Detroit River at venues we fish.

Bigmouth Buffalo

I got out for some carp fishing today at a venue which also offers chances to catch smallmouth and bigmouth buffalo.

Its been awhile since I landed a nice buffalo, big or small. That changed today.

The fishing was slow today, but picked up around 2 p.m. enabling me to land two fish in 30 minutes time.

Bigmouth Buffalo 

Common Carp

The clouds and periodic rain with a stiff 20 mph wind and 60 degree weather caught me off guard a little, but landing a couple of nice fish helped make up for it.

Buffalo pictures never really turn out to my satisfaction. Their scales are so sensitive resulting in redness which detracts from the fish a little bit.

Did you know?

Bigmouth buffalo can live up 110 years and are native to North America.

Kids Fishing Event in Ann Arbor

I assisted at a kids fishing event yesterday in Ann Arbor's Gallup Park from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thanks to Daniel Slaby and Andy Solomon for hosting the event and inviting me. The spot is an area next to a kid's playground and a kayak launch. I chose a spot on the left side of the prebaited area and being that close to activity I witnessed a lot of kids doing what kids do and parents standing by but letting them do it. With that mindset, I had a nice day of fishing.

The little kids could not reel in fish but they enjoyed posing with, holding and touching them. I guess I'd describe my spot as carping's version of a petting zoo.

I was able to help 5 kids reel in fish. One was even a mirror. Several parents came to me and requested that I get them a fish. I'm happy I was successful. Even those with hook pulls learned that fishing has both ups and downs, but there's always a next time.

I even proved that when you have a lot of fish in the swim, 4 kids can be throwing handfuls of rocks directly over your rods casted 20 feet from shore and you can still hook and land fish. I ended with 18 fish. Unfortunately, I didn't get a picture of the biggest fish, but it definitely made a 12 year old very happy.

Next year I'll bring an assistant for netting and pictures. Doing it alone makes for alot of aches and pains the next day. :-)

Missouri River

Missouri River - Boonville MO

One of my carp fishing goals is to catch a 30# or larger carp from the Missouri River or one of its tributaries.

The main river would be extremely tough most any time of the year, but finding a solid current break or a smaller connecting driver or creek seems like a potential strategy that might work.

I've fished a spot on the Lamine River in the past and caught some low teens sized carp. I can't wait to try again sometime in the pre-spawn part of spring time.

Biggest Carp of Spring 2019

26 pounds 6 ounces

After a couple of days with rainy weather and below normal temperatures I took advantage of better weather and headed out to catch some carp. Day 1 yielded no bites or fish. Day 2 produced one bite and this 26 pound 6 ounce fish. It saved my spring fishing efforts so far, which have gotten off to a slower than expected start in 2019.

When I hooked this fish in 9 feet of water about 40 feet off the bank I was convinced it was a catfish. It thumped several times and then gave ground and then thumped some more. When Bill lifted up the net to show the bigger than expected head on the fish things turned happier for me.

It was difficult getting the picture just right though because he kept flopping and squirming. It happens that way sometimes.

Carp Fishing Memory

My wife took these pictures early one morning shortly after I finished setting up to fish on the Detroit River. I didn't end up catching anything, but I recall a nearby neighbor catching a very large pike off the end of his retaining wall. I could hear the surprise and excitement in his voice from 200 feet away.

Carp Fishing in the Rain

I'll go ahead and admit that I like fair weather and sunshine for fishing. But sometimes the will to fish outweighs the desire for comfort.

$75 Reward: Referrals to Help Me Catch 30# Carp

I've made this offer in the past and received some suggestions, but none that turned into a 30 pound carp on a new body of water I've never fished before.

Rules:

- Somewhere I have never fished before.
- Accessible from shore without a boat.
- Within an hour drive of Ann Arbor, MI.
- First recommendation of the spot qualifies for $75.
- Only one winner will be paid.
- If I go there in 2019 and catch a 30# carp, you get $75.

A 14 pound Mirror

I was trying to catch a carp at a local lake back in 2014 when another fisherman let me reel in this nice little mirror carp.

I've been hooked ever since.

I'm still fishing with him on a regular basis 5-years later. I have made several new friends due to carp fishing both online and on the bank.

Early Years of My Carp Fishing

For 4 years this 26 pound carp
 was my personal best carp

First fish of 2019

I caught fish #1 and fish #2 for 2019 Saturday at the Michigan Carp Anglers spring fish in at Lake Erie.

My biggest was 22# and the second fish was an upper teener that I did not weigh. I didn't get good pics of the first fish (mat shot and release video).

22 pounds on my first fish in 2019

Upper teens for the second fish 

These fish were caught on flavored field corn with fruit and berry flavors.