Carp Camp

One of the cool things about fishing for carp is that it be as simple as using beat-up rods and canned corn or it can be as serious as using thousand-dollar set ups and homemade boilies. A few friends that sit on the latter part of that spectrum recently wrapped up a week-long camping and carping trip on private land along the Connecticut River. They may not readily admit it, but these guys are among the best carp anglers in the region. I was fortunate enough to drop in on their carp camp for a day.

The last time I fished with this crew was in the fall of 2013 and it was an absolute blast. The amount of carp knowledge that fell on my lap in that session was out of control. This time didn't disappoint either. While the windy conditions were a pain to deal with, lot of laughs were had and there was a steady pick of smallish carp up to 21-pounds throughout an incoming tide. However, just about every other day that week provided much better action and size with eight fish over 30-pounds gracing their nets.

Throughout the week they had special guests visit from all over and there was enough camera equipment on hand that it looked like a GoPro commercial. This crew takes pride in their fishing and camping and do a hell of a job documenting and sharing their passion. Here is one of their videos from the same spot last fall. I can't wait to see what they have in store for the video project this time around. 

 

  

Revisiting

My friend Todd and I recently took advantage of a break in our work schedules and fished together for the first time in a long time. It's always a treat getting stream-side during the week since most of my trout fishing is regulated to the crowded weekends. The plan was to revisit a stretch of river that we had fished a few February's ago. It was great to be back on this portion of river again in mid May when there was much more life apparent in the water and woods around us. We dropped one vehicle upstream and drove down river a mile so with the other and waded our way back.

It was a gorgeous spring day weather wise and the fishing was pretty damn good too. We found more than enough freshly stocked trout to keep us busy at each stop along our route and there were a few higher quality trout mixed in. The highlight of our day was an awesome brown trout that fought like mad and was the most beautiful fish I had seen in some time. If I had to guess, I'd say that one was born in the river. It was a hell of a way to cap off a fine day on the water. We'll have to revisit this stretch more often. 

Like Old Times

"Sometimes it's about the company, sometimes it's the fishing, but every now and then the two elements line up for an incredibly memorable day." Those were the wise words from a friend that I shared the river with on Friday. While we don't fish together as often as we used to, we try to make it count when we do. This was a damn good outing, one that reminded us of old times. Times when our biggest responsibility was being in good position for the start of a hatch. Life has changed a bit in the decade-plus since we began fishing together, but between the laughs, cold Guinness, fresh fiddleheads, and rising trout, it brought us right back. It was like old times.