—Shawn Good, Fisheries Biologist shawn.good@vermont.gov
Carp – Cyprinus carpio
This week I’m spotlighting the carp, another lesser known, unique and under-appreciated species in Vermont, and the fishing opportunities it provides. Unlike the native bowfin and gar, the carp is a non-native fish species. It was brought to North America from Europe in 1831 and introduced into waters in downstate New York for the commercial food market. By 1883 carp was established in Lake Champlain. They are now widespread throughout the lake as well as in the lower Connecticut River. These two populations provide some outstanding fishing opportunities for fish that can reach 40 pounds. And very few people target them.
Carp generally inhabit sandy bottomed shorelines with scattered, patchy weeds near deeper water. They are bottom feeders, and they use their snouts to dig up the tender roots of aquatic plants. They’ll also eat small mollusks, crayfish, and aquatic invertebrates and insects.
Use a slip-sinker so when a carp picks up the bait they don’t feel any tension. Toss your rig out into an area, set the rod down in a forked stick, and leave your bail open. Relax, enjoy your surroundings, and wait for a bite. When it comes, chances are it will be a doozy.
If you’re looking for something more unique and different, try fly fishing for carp. For determined fly anglers, this is possibly one of the toughest fishing challenges in Vermont. Carp are a very wary and skittish fish and quite sensitive to noise. To catch a carp on a fly, you have to sight-fish for them, and make long, quiet and accurate casts in front of actively feeding fish. It’s not unlike fly fishing for bonefish on Caribbean island flats.
Drew Price, a Vermont fishing guide, has been very successful catching carp on the fly in Lake Champlain. He says to spot fish, you first look for the tell-tale signs of feeding carp, which usually means a silt trail or clouds of sand being stirred up. Nose-down “tailing” carp are catchable fish. A suspended carp on the surface is usually not.
Cast accuracy is critical as the strike zone is about the size of a basketball immediately ahead of the fish. You must be stealthy, make long casts, and have soft landings. A slap or splash from your fly or fly line will spook them instantly. Drew likes to use six to eight weight rods with muted colored fly line and 10-foot long fluorocarbon leaders with crayfish pattern flies. If you hook one, be ready as you’re almost guaranteed to be taken down to your backing during their long powerful runs.
Here’s an interesting piece of fish trivia. Name the largest minnow species in Vermont. Yup – it’s the carp. Despite having an average size of 10 to 12 pounds, and often exceeding 30 pounds, the carp is a member of the family of fish known as Cyprinids – the Minnow Family.
Lake Champlain
Warm Water Species - While fishing has slowed down a bit, some anglers are still having luck fishing early and late in the day. Gaelan Chutter-Ames fished last week from shore by the bike ferry in South Hero and caught a five-pound largemouth bass on a Ned-rigged soft plastic crayfish. He also caught a few smallmouth bass on the same lure, all in the two-pound range. Gaelan also fished the Button Bay area of Champlain targeting pike. He saw several pike in the mid to high 30” range along deep weed edges in 10 to 15 feet of water. They were following his lure but not committing, and he only caught a couple small ones. But it won’t be long before these fish put the fall feed bag on.
While fishing, he found big largemouth bass in only a foot or two of water right on the shore, which is surprising for this time of year. He had his best luck using small lures, but the type didn’t seem to matter, as he was catching fish on topwater, midwater swimbaits, and bouncing the bottom with jigs. Roy says that downsizing lures is always a good idea in late summer, especially if you are looking for steady action.
Champlain Tributaries
Roy also spent some time kayak fishing Otter Creek in search of Master Angler-sized fallfish and smallmouth bass. This time he tried the stretch below Middlebury, launching his kayak from the access on Three Mile Bridge Road. Roy said the creek is high for August but is flowing quite clear, and though the drift was a bit fast, the paddle back upstream was fine. Roy found lots of small fallfish in the shallow stretches and he caught them on small 1/8 oz white and silver Rooster Tail spinners. Bigger fallfish in the 12” to 14” range were caught in deeper water using a medium-diving crankbait. He also caught several smallmouth bass in the 10” to 12” range.
Inland Waters
Regular contributor Nate Olson, who works for the department’s Roxbury hatchery, agrees with others that mornings and evenings have been the best time to fish for bass. Nate’s been catching most of his bass by fishing points and rocky humps in 15 to 30 feet of water with drop shot and Ned rigs, and a weighted wacky senko. This past weekend Nate fished the entire night enjoying both the fishing and Perseid meteor shower. He used topwater lures and had outstanding action, including a couple largemouth that were over four pounds.
Zach McNaughton of Springfield VT says the sunfish and rock bass have been biting hard lately, and he has some tips for getting the kids out fishing for panfish. Zach suggests targeting lily pad edges and brush piles and keep moving until your see schools of panfish. Simple gear and tackle are all that’s needed – a short pole and a small jig.
Once you’ve found a school, lower the jig down a few feet under the surface, jiggle it, lift it to the surface and then drop it back down again. Doing this repeatedly will surely draw the school’s attention and get bites. Zach also suggest huts have been great places to find rock bass. The fish are often tucked into the branches of the hut, and all you need to do is drop the jig into a small opening in the branches and jiggle it – the rock bass will be on it in no time.
Streams & Rivers
See also:
- Stocking Report - check to see what waters have been stocked. Search by waterbody or species. Leave all fields blank for a complete listing.
- 2019 Vermont Fishing Guide & Regulations | Online Fishing Regulations Tool
- Master Angler Entries - A quick check of what's biting now
- River Conditions by The Fly Rod Shop
- Fish Vermont Facebook