Hot and Heavy Carp Action in the Northeast

What if I told you that waterways not far from where you live are filled with potentially enormous, incredibly selective, hard-fighting fish that could spool reels, break net handles and challenge even the savviest anglers? Interested? What if I told you the fish in question are carp? Probably less interested, right?

For decades, American anglers have turned up their noses as carp, a fish that many deem as lowly bottom feeders. That perception, though, is beginning to fade as more and more Americans realize what Europeans have long known: Carp are an incredible gamefish and a worthy adversary that can make for unforgettable days on the water.

MASTER CLASS

Common carp are not native to the Northeast; they were introduced to states like New York in the 1800s as a food fish. Carp possess a number of traits that make them appealing, not the least of which is their size (they can grow as big as 50 pounds).

They spawn when water temperatures are between 60 and 70 degrees, and move to shallower water with a range of different substrates. When spawning they like to have some weed cover and will seek areas with current or water movement, especially shallow feeder streams of lakes and larger rivers. That means anglers have shots at fish pushing 20, 30 and even 40 pounds in relatively shallow and accessible water.

Pre- and post-spawn, these fish will be found in areas of lakes that hold preferred foods like freshwater shrimp, snails, beetles and even plant seeds and berries that fall in the water, all of which are easiest to find in the mud- and grass-covered portions of lakes.

With a varied and changing diet, they can be tough to target consistently, but the way they feed is what necessitates an entirely different approach to hooking them. Carp do not see something they perceive to be a meal and attack and swallow it like many predatory gamefish. Instead, they use their rubbery, downward-oriented lips to vacuum up whatever is on the bottom, tasting and testing it to see if it’s palatable. If they find something worth consuming, they blow out the mud, debris and substrate that provides no nutritional value and then savor the edible morsel.

That all makes hooking them a challenge. With fishing a bait on a traditional hook, anglers often find their offering is sucked in and spit out before they can react. So, carp fishermen developed the hair rig, which allows the bait to suspend beneath the hook so that when carp test it initially they are not sensing something foreign. If and when they blow the bait back out, the hook often catches on the corner of their lip, much like a circle hook would for striped bass. Paul Russell, owner and operator of Carp Fishing New York (carpfishingny.com) and East Coast Tournament Director for the American Carp Society, explains how it works.

“As they’re feeding, they’re turning their head, and they will inhale their food to get a quick bite,” says Russell. “The hook catches right on the inside of the bottom lip. Even if they are not trying to blow [the bait] out.”

With the hair rig, carp essentially hook themselves when they taste-test the bait, meaning you can tie into a discerning fish even if it determines your offering is not to its liking.

BATTLE GEAR

Russell emphasizes that you need stout gear to fight and land these dense, powerful fish.

“I use my saltwater stuff,” he says. “And I’ve had fish that I could not stop.” He recommends a 7- to 8-foot rod and at least a 4000-sized spinning reel loaded with strong monofilament or braided line.

“You will have them run at least 50 yards,” he says, adding that most fish make several runs. “Once you get them to the net, they just make more runs.” A fine-meshed net is best for the fish, and one is required to fish in American Carp Society tournaments.

If you’re fishing from shore on a lake or large pond, you might want to pre-bait the area you’re going to fish to increase the odds of carp actively feeding near your offering. There are a host of tools to make this possible. A boilie is a cylindrical bait ball that is designed to be thrown in an area where you are hoping to draw carp. There are a variety of different boilies on the market. Some are made strictly to attract carp and get them to eat, while others are meant to provide nutritional sustenance for carp, but the purpose is the same: They are meant to get carp feeding in a given area. Some anglers will mix and create their own boilies but many anglers buy them pre-made.

Next, you’ll have to consider how to get boilies to the part of the lake or river where you want carp to start feeding. One method is using a throwing stick, which has a curved, hollow tube that allows you to toss boilies in one area and cover the bottom with bait that will get carp feeding.

Although it can be tempting, Russell warns against baiting too heavily right from the start. He suggests anglers concentrate a small amount of bait in as tight an area as possible to bring feeding carp into a specific location. By keeping a small amount of bait concentrated, you are giving yourself the best odds that a nearby carp will eat your offering. Bait that’s either too plentiful or too spread out will only hurt your chances of hooking up.

THE TEMPERATURE TEMPTATION

Although anglers target carp successfully in shallow water in both the spring and the fall, late spring is the most popular time to catch these fish. When water temperatures hover between 60 and 70 degrees, carp will start making their way to depths between 5 and 10 feet, usually near grass beds or weeds of some type. This can either be in shallow bays of a lake or large pond, or often in streambeds where they empty into a larger body of water.

Carp are so large that, as they move, they create a unique, strange push of water on the surface that you will learn to recognize immediately.

Whether or not you pre-bait, the next step is to deploy your offering. The typical carp rig consists of one or two egg sinkers, a swivel and a hook (size 4 to 8 depending on the size of the carp and the bait being used) with a piece of corn on a hair rig. When a carp eats the corn, let him run.

A stout drag will apply steady pressure until the fish slows and can be turned. Then, it’s just a matter of bringing the fish back to your net. When they see the net, they usually take off again. Patience and a reel with a steady and powerful drag will allow you to eventually coast it into your net.

GO WITH A BOW

• Rods and reels aren’t the only way to take carp.
• Big, mis-hit carp can tow even 20-foot boats around easily. Adjusting for water refraction is critical when bowfishing. Aim below the fish for best results. (Shutterstock photo)

If you’ve ever wondered what it would be like to combine your love of bowhunting and fishing, bowfishing for carp is the answer. Guides like Jay Barnes at Frontenac Fowlers Guide Service (frontenacfowlers.com) on Cayuga Lake in New York guides bowfishers who wish to target these fish as they move shallow to spawn in June (most trips run from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m.). Barnes’ clients have shot carp up to 48 pounds.

Carp bowfishers use composite arrows with fold-back prongs that stick in the fish once they connect. Barnes uses AMS bows with reels that, depending on where the carp is hit, can allow the angler to fight the carp back to the boat. If the fish is hit in the tail, Barnes says, they can “pull a 24-foot boat around like it’s nothing.”

Adjusting your aim for the refraction of light in the water, even at night, is the most challenging aspect.

“Shoot below the fish,” he says, adding that the deeper the carp is, the greater the degree of refraction. “It’s a feel thing, and customers are typically more successful toward the end of the first trip or on their second.”

---

• This article was featured in the June/July 2025 of Game & Fish magazine. Click to subscribe.

---