Dozens of Carp at a lake near Spokane

J

Jim in Anacortes

Life of the Party
Visited family over there, went out on the lake and saw over a hundred Carp in less than an hour from my Kayak. PM me if you want the exact location. Some of them were huge (20 pounds maybe). I was not fishing, but I have read about fly fishing for them on this forum and thought I might gain some local knowledge and insights for my next visit. I have a five weight flyrod, floating and sinking lines and can tie any recommended flies. I normally don't have much time to fish when I'm there, and am hoping that some of you might shorten the learning curve ("spoon-feed" me how to start out). I would be in a kayak with fly gear, but I have a 4 1/2 year old nephew that has never fished that could use a conventional rod ( Zebco) from the shore with bait (corn maybe?). Any input would be much appreciated, Thanks, Jim
 
Do you have an 8wt or higher? Little crawdad patterns work really well.

For the nephew are you talking about a spincast reel? If so you may want to respool the 6lb test to something stronger, likely braid to fit on those or try to get 10lb+. I probably would go 15lb test for kids but 10lb test is also fairly common in carp world. Especially if it’s an open lake.

Bottoms up approach will be easiest imo for the kiddo. Couple splits or inline sinker, and suspend some white bread (preferably the honey white) floated off the bottom.

And with all that go for it! Even if you don’t have the best setup go with what ya got, worst case something breaks, memories will be made. Both of you wear sunglasses.
 
Look for the happy, comfortable fish with their heads down and tails up, slowly waving as they graze. Get a fly close to them, pull in to their line of sight if needed and let them hoover it up. Don't force it. Let it be "their idea." Wait for the head movement toward your fly, wait a second or two, and strip set.

Don't underestimate their strength and fighting power. Trout gear is going to be pretty undergunned for all but the smaller ones.
 
I sure do appreciate the input! The thought of hooking on to one of these (over 10 pound) fish, in a kayak with a five weight intrigued me. Bare in mind that my kayak may end up at the middle of the lake, by the time I net the fish,..... but as long as my leader is strong enough to "tow" my kayak (10lb test).... I think it is possible. Fishing from shore or a vessel, is far different from fishing from a kayak. The kayak is almost like a buoy in the movie "Jaws", and allows for much lighter "tackle" to "land" much larger fish..... But obviously a 5wt would be comically under gunned... Another question.. recommended bait for my nephew? At most he will fish with me for like an hour off the the dock. Getting a "hook up" would be way cool. Corn or bread seems to be the internet advice, but...... any secret carp bait for Western Washington? Also, I will gladly give the exact location to anyone..I just do not want to "hotspot".
 
Jim - I used to fish a local carp lake with a 5 weight but the carp there rarely exceed 10 pounds, until they do. It was one of those that did which caused me to move to an 8 weight. I'd love to see you hook one from your kayak and speed off to the far shore.

Some time back, two guys I knew from Spokane, told me stories about dry fly fishing mayfly patterns for carp on a lake somewhere close to Spokane. I guess they'd get one shot and by the time the fish came to the net, the hatch was over.

Have a blast!
 
Thanks for the response Buzzy.. I was just going for a short (and rare) kayak ride with my sister. Instantly I saw the carp (polarized sunglasses). They were "prolific" to say the least. Every single time we paddled forward they would scatter. It is simply impossible for me to dismiss the notion that I must, one day, rip one of those Carp lips... Ideally with my nephew as a witness.
 
Jim in Anacortes said:
Thanks for the response Buzzy.. I was just going for a short (and rare) kayak ride with my sister. Instantly I saw the carp (polarized sunglasses). They were "prolific" to say the least. Every single time we paddled forward they would scatter. It is simply impossible for me to dismiss the notion that I must, one day, rip one of those Carp lips... Ideally with my nephew as a witness.
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Like @Evan B says, don't underestimate their strength and fighting power. As the water gets warmer, they get meaner and badder.
 
All these responses are like gold to me. Humbly I will ask..what fly? On the bottom, or suspended? It was obvious to me that every "corner" held dozens of carp from 14 inches to over 30 inches. I typically saw them in less than 10 feet swimming away from my kayak. "Sight fishing" could be effective for targeting the huge ones, but at first, I will be content to (logically) assume that Carp are there (feeding) just outside of the area where my Kayak "spooks" them. Honestly, there were so many that I (that knows nothing) assume sneaking up in a kayak,,, making one stealthy cast and waiting for a slight tug, using a popular fly on the bottom with minimal movement might be a worthy tactic......Thanks in advance for any additional input, Jim
 
Jim in Anacortes said:
All these responses are like gold to me. Humbly I will ask..what fly? On the bottom, or suspended? It was obvious to me that every "corner" held dozens of carp from 14 inches to over 30 inches. I typically saw them in less than 10 feet swimming away from my kayak. "Sight fishing" could be effective for targeting the huge ones, but at first, I will be content to (logically) assume that Carp are there (feeding) just outside of the area where my Kayak "spooks" them. Honestly, there were so many that I (that knows nothing) assume sneaking up in a kayak,,, making one stealthy cast and waiting for a slight tug, using a popular fly on the bottom with minimal movement might be a worthy tactic......Thanks in advance for any additional input, Jim
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See the post above about what to look for. That will realistically be done in like 2-5' of water to be done effectively with a moderately weighted fly.

Look up bonefish and carp flies. Don't over think it. Anything moderately weighted and buggy looking will get interest in many cases.
 
Jim -
I fish for carp when the weather gets too warm for trout - you seem to be describing schooling carp that are in deep water (deep for me when carp fishing is water deeper than three or four feet). For me and my carp fishing, it's all about sight casting. Spotting a fish, whether a feeding fish (Evan B says look for one that waving (its tail) at you. That's certainly ideal and what I look for but sometimes slow moving fish in shallow water are looking for a meal. In deep water - I have had very little success but - sometimes a fly cast near a fish that's not spooked will trigger an eat.

Here's something I shared a year or so ago: https://www.pnwflyfishing.com/forum/index.php?threads/carp-the-golden-bonefish.4217/#post-98533

Flies? The first few years all I fished were woolly worms (mostly black with grizzly hackle). I have three fly boxes of carp flies. Insane? Yup. Certifiable.

Pat
 
As a kid I caught carp (incidentally) fishing with worms. They were damn big, fun to catch but "just a Carp". This lake near Spokane has big bass and big trout....normally I would be targeting them (on days that the wind would allow) but the shear number of large carp that I witnessed seems to be a very attractive fishing opportunity for an old guy (like me) or a youngster with his first fishing pole. Again thanks for the input ....I'm off to tie up some woolly worms
 
Jim in Anacortes said:
As a kid I caught carp (incidentally) fishing with worms. They were damn big, fun to catch but "just a Carp". This lake near Spokane has big bass and big trout....normally I would be targeting them (on days that the wind would allow) but the shear number of large carp that I witnessed seems to be a very attractive fishing opportunity for an old guy (like me) or a youngster with his first fishing pole. Again thanks for the input ....I'm off to tie up some woolly worms
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Wooly worms with a tungsten head or barbell eye to be sure 😉
 
The Carp I saw were in less than 10 ft. The big ones would actually "stir up the bottom" when we got too close to them. Every single time we turned a corner these giant fish were there. The notion of "sight fishing" for them seemed to take a backseat to the notion of "sneaking up, casting once and hoping that the biggest Carp in the "group" gets hooked. Again, I will state that I know nothing about this fishery and am eager for any input.
 
Jim in Anacortes said:
The Carp I saw were in less than 10 ft. The big ones would actually "stir up the bottom" when we got too close to them. Every single time we turned a corner these giant fish were there. The notion of "sight fishing" for them seemed to take a backseat to the notion of "sneaking up, casting once and hoping that the biggest Carp in the "group" gets hooked. Again, I will state that I know nothing about this fishery and am eager for any input.
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Stick to shallower water. No matter how many are in ten feet of water, the chances of catching one there are slim. Find the ones in the knee deep water and find one that's comfortable.
 
I'm extremely interested Evan B. It seems that presenting a woolly worm in less than three feet would be favorable to targeting the fish in slightly deeper water.?? Also from a kayak I was unable to actually observe the fish before "spooking" it but the shear number of fish leads me to believe that any area I cast to,,, will hold large Carp. Are they feeding in knee deep water? What are they feeding upon?
 
Jim in Anacortes said:
I'm extremely interested Evan B. It seems that presenting a woolly worm in less than three feet would be favorable to targeting the fish in slightly deeper water.?? Also from a kayak I was unable to actually observe the fish before "spooking" it but the shear number of fish leads me to believe that any area I cast to,,, will hold large Carp. Are they feeding in knee deep water? What are they feeding upon?
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They feed on any and all bugs, shellfish and crustaceans at all depths. What's important about the knee deep water is that's where you can effectively fish for them. Anything deeper and you'll have a hard time getting the fly in the right spot, and most importantly, seeing them eat.

A carp will suck your fly up, count the thread wraps, then spit it back out if you don't see them eat it. So fish where you can see them feeding or hanging out.

The one caveat is I've caught fish in deeper water but mostly around weed lines and they were still only a foot or two below the surface. Slow sinking fly near them and they went for it. But the ones down deep will be a tough target.
 
@Jim in Anacortes - in your 8:04 pm post you mentioned "spooking" the carp with your kayak. Carp are far more wary (usually) than any trout I've ever fished for. When we fish for carp from a boat, we pole the boat. Electric motors can spook carp before you're in casting position. Silence is golden. Evan's right on when he says carp will suck the fly in and spit it back out if you don't react to (see them) their eat. It's very, very (very) rare to have a carp eat and get hooked on a blind cast. Very rare (for me, anyway). Good luck.
 
Might add here that spring is spawning time for carp and they may be interested in....erm, something else, other than feeding, especially if they are thrashing about in shallow water. Had a local river that flooded at the mouth during spring runoff, as kids we targeted carp in every way you can imagine and some you can't.😉
 
joefromchicago said:
Might add here that spring is spawning time for carp and they may be interested in....erm, something else, other than feeding, especially if they are thrashing about in shallow water. Had a local river that flooded at the mouth during spring runoff, as kids we targeted carp in every way you can imagine and some you can't.😉
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The ones that are... Done... They are ready to get some easy calories, though.
 
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