T
ired and defeated, I turned around on the canal path and began my hike back to the truck. After nearly two miles of walking I hadn’t seen a single sign of cyprinus carpio but during my hasty retreat I almost missed the only fish of the session, a large common that was slowly cruising in the middle of the water column. I led the fish significantly, landing my damselfly in its path. As the carp approached, its predatory instincts took over as it keyed in on the easy meal. A short while later, I released the twenty-pounder back into its deepwater lair. It was yet another cruising carp that fell victim to a mid-column presentation on fly.
behavioral characteristics of carp that will take a fly. Certain carp that are on the move need to be avoided. Depending on light conditions, barometric pressure, moon phase, and weather, carp will actively move from one feeding area to another. These fish move with a purpose and will not go out of their way to take a fly. On the other side of the coin are laid-up fish. These fish are stationary, near the surface, and often near some form of structure. Despite their laziness, these fish will take a properly presented fly...but that is a topic for later discussion.
Most conventional carping techniques call for weighted flies that are presented along the bottom to actively feeding carp. The water I frequent is too deep or filled with snags, mud, and weeds that make fishing the bottom almost impossible. On top of that, the fish are too spooky to be properly presented with any weighted fly. In order to achieve any success, my friends and I had to develop new flies and presentations to fool these golden ghosts. Un-weighted flies such as damsel and dragonfly nymphs became standard issue on the still waters in our area. We quickly discovered that carp actively feed not only on the bottom, but also on aquatic invertebrates throughout the water column.
The Hoist
In order to successfully carp in the column, one needs to understand the
The best behaviors for success come from actively feeding carp. These fish are “mudding” by rooting amongst the bottom for their food, creating a visible mud or bubble trail. After each nosedive, they will ascend in the water column to move to another area. This is when they are most susceptible to a fly angler and when they often reveal themselves in deeper water. However, fish don’t have to be “mudding” in order to be on the feed. Fish that are slowly meandering throughout the water column will eat a fly presented in the middle of the column. These “prowlers” are actively using their senses to find food and this behavior is common in carp inhabiting deeper waters. These two behavioral