Is this our future?

joefromchicago said:
Was amused to read an article describing the case of some fishermen convicted and fined $4200 for over-harvesting carp from a Connecticut river designated as "trophy carp water".
Any thoughts about this?
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No good thoughts
 
I'm not sure about the "valuing" conversation, but when I think of fly fishing the first fish that comes to mind are trout.

Probably just because cold water fisheries are my passion.
 
swimmy said:
I'm not sure about the "valuing" conversation, but when I think of fly fishing the first fish that comes to mind are trout.

Probably just because cold water fisheries are my passion.
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I feel no guilt whatsoever and I am in no way wrong to value carp as below all other fish. :)
At the same time however I do not devalue at all the experiences of those who enjoy chasing them.
 
Rob Allen said:
Grass carp are the worst.. they destroy bass fisheries.
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Haven’t found that to be the case. One lake I fish is private. Grass carp were planted by the community to control aquatic weeds. I’ve been fishing it for years and the bass fishing is excellent. Used to only be LM but now SM are present. Likely planted by a local bucket biologist from a nearby lake that has them.
SF
 
Years ago, I went on a guided trip on the Columbia for sturgeon. The guide told me of a recent client (who had flown in from France) who had booked him for 3 straight days for salmon. Early on the first day, the guide spoke of the fish available on the river, and mentioned carp, and the size they attain on the Columbia. The client reeled in and they proceeded to fish for carp the next two and a half days. It's a prized game fish in Europe.

Early in my career, I worked for a grain export company in Portland, and our loading faciity was at Terminal 5, right where the Willamette and Columbia meet. The carp LOVED the gain spillage, and they milled around the ships docked there waiting for manna from heaven. The longshoremen would fish for them at lunch, and a 30-lb carp was not uncommon. I bet grain-fed carp tastes pretty good, if that's your thing.
 
swimmy said:
I'm not sure about the "valuing" conversation, but when I think of fly fishing the first fish that comes to mind are trout.

Probably just because cold water fisheries are my passion.
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I mean, if I lived where you live I'd probably have similar feelings. But here in WA where we don't really have amazing moving water trout fisheries (generally) and the anadromous fisheries are on the way out... I'm kinda all about the warm water opportunities these days. Carp might not be as pretty as trout, and the places they seem to hang out sure aren't, but at least it's something to fish for. And they seem to take a fly, fight hard, and be worth the effort. (Or so I hear, I have yet to fish for carp. I'm just a bass/panfish guy for warmwater)

Rob Allen said:
Grass carp are the worst.. they destroy bass fisheries.
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I can never tell what the story is with this. Is it legit or is it like the opinion people seem to have about whitefish harming trout fisheries? For every comment like yours, I've heard a story like @Stonedfish tells. Maybe it has more to do with how they are introduced, how many (+ if they can breed) and what specific species of carp they are?
 
Josh said:
I mean, if I lived where you live I'd probably have similar feelings. But here in WA where we don't really have amazing moving water trout fisheries (generally) and the anadromous fisheries are on the way out... I'm kinda all about the warm water opportunities these days. Carp might not be as pretty as trout, and the places they seem to hang out sure aren't, but at least it's something to fish for. And they seem to take a fly, fight hard, and be worth the effort. (Or so I hear, I have yet to fish for carp. I'm just a bass/panfish guy for warmwater)


I can never tell what the story is with this. Is it legit or is it like the opinion people seem to have about whitefish harming trout fisheries? For every comment like yours, I've heard a story like @Stonedfish tells. Maybe it has more to do with how they are introduced, how many (+ if they can breed) and what specific species of carp they are?
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It probably depends on the lake and the cycle the lake is in.

One thing I'm learning as I add years exploring and chasing warm water bass is how much the lakes cycle. Some years you have hundreds of panfish in the shallows and some years you hardly see any. Big bass in a lot of lakes seem to cycle as well. Carp are ever present but they don't usually ruin a bass fishery in my experience. They can make it hard to fish during their spawn however...
 
Billy said:
It probably depends on the lake and the cycle the lake is in.

One thing I'm learning as I add years exploring and chasing warm water bass is how much the lakes cycle. Some years you have hundreds of panfish in the shallows and some years you hardly see any. Big bass in a lot of lakes seem to cycle as well. Carp are ever present but they don't usually ruin a bass fishery in my experience. They can make it hard to fish during their spawn however...
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I don't think we see many Grass Carp. I believe, I could be wrong, most of the carp we see in popular bass lakes in WA are common carp. I don't know if Grass Carp are bad for bass but a healthy bass lake typically has lots of "grass". If Grass Carp were to take over a good bass lake that has grass as it's dominant source of cover, and if they destroyed that grass, that would eventually be bad for the bass in that lake.
 
Coach Potter said:
I don't think we see many Grass Carp. I believe, I could be wrong, most of the carp we see in popular bass lakes in WA are common carp. I don't know if Grass Carp are bad for bass but a healthy bass lake typically has lots of "grass". If Grass Carp were to take over a good bass lake that has grass as it's dominant source of cover, and if they destroyed that grass, that would eventually be bad for the bass in that lake.
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You are correct. I was mostly speaking about Washington and not thinking about specifically grass carp...
 
I think it all depends on where you live and your reason for fishing.

I value anything that eats flies that I can target with a reasonable distance of where I live. Conventional trout in western WA are not something I value highly. They are meh.. stockers for the most part. I’d rather target salmon, SRC or warm water species if available. I definitely fish for stockers on occasions and enjoy myself when doing it. When I lived in MT it was all about trout. Same with CO.

CT is a different though. Growing up there, I lived within biking distance to the Farmington River which is one of the better trout rivers in New England. There are few opportunities like that in the state though, especially for trout. Lots of places to target small native brookies (which I loved doing) and your everyday 10-14 inch stockers but not destination worthy trout waters. I can see where fishing for a species like Carp would gain popularity. Especially with the ups and downs they are seeing with species like stripers.

In the end, they are big fish that pull hard and are easily accessible to a lot of people. I see the appeal. I understand a lot of our concerns with how states manage fisheries…overreach, waste, ineffectiveness, etc.. That said, I have no concerns with a state throwing protections on a ecologically important or valued (for whatever reason) species if there is a risk poor angling practices or over harvest is a threat to their population or the ability for some to grow to trophy status is defined waters….if that is what anglers in that area want.
 
Driftless Dan said:
Years ago, I went on a guided trip on the Columbia for sturgeon. The guide told me of a recent client (who had flown in from France) who had booked him for 3 straight days for salmon. Early on the first day, the guide spoke of the fish available on the river, and mentioned carp, and the size they attain on the Columbia. The client reeled in and they proceeded to fish for carp the next two and a half days. It's a prized game fish in Europe.

Early in my career, I worked for a grain export company in Portland, and our loading faciity was at Terminal 5, right where the Willamette and Columbia meet. The carp LOVED the gain spillage, and they milled around the ships docked there waiting for manna from heaven. The longshoremen would fish for them at lunch, and a 30-lb carp was not uncommon. I bet grain-fed carp tastes pretty good, if that's your thing.
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They love carp in Europe its all they have anymore! Carp are well thought of enough to get their own calendars, with hot nakid ladies holding them in all kinds of precarious situations.
 
longputt said:
In my opinion carp clearly fall into the "a face only a mother could love" category!
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As well as "some Mothers' Sons"" . . . ;)
 
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