wolfville

Sounds fun. Thanks for sharing.

Hi Rich, I still remember that day you two came carp fishing with me on your trip (was that the first camping trip you two did?) That's memory.

T.S., there are carp everywhere. Some very good carp fishing at Stratford, Woodstock, and St. Mary just to name a few. But you want the big girls, Hamilton is a great choice and closer to you. Peterborough is where I go if I can't catch everywhere else and it has yet to failed me. (now I have said this, I know what's going to happen next time I go)

I can tell you what I have and what I like, but it's very hard to get them in Canada so... I second the opinions from the above. Shimano and Daiwa are all good. Get one that can take 300+m of line just to look good, the thing is, depending on where you fish, you won't need more than 150m of line if you fish twice a year. The new thunnus are very nice if you can add a bit more to your budget.

NWC is an on-line store but it does have store hours you can go there to check out the stuff before you buy. Try send Stephen an email from NWC's site and he will take care of you. I'm not sure about CKI but I think you can at least make an appointment for a visit.

Not sure what type of net handle you have but you can get a "match" net head if it fits. There are a few on-line stores in Ontario that sells quality Euro-style carp and match gears. My favourite is New World Carp (www.newworldcarp.com), Carp Kit International has mostly carping gears but worth a check too. BTW, Nice fish and glad more people are enjoying this fine sport of carp fishing.

I have to say something but my wife may see it so... thanks anyway ;-)

Some will like iPhone some will BB, and then some neither. No one can tell you what will work for you so get both if you really want to find out as some of my friends do;-) I decided to go for the iPhone and have been very happy since but that's just because of my usage -- mainly leisure and not much business. Best of both world is get an iPhone 4 and bring your laptop to share the data plan via personal hot spot, however powerful BB is, it doesn't beat a laptop. I know BB does the data sharing to some extend too but probably not as flexible as the personal hot spot.

Like Victor said, it is the hardest time of year for carp. They are still catchable just not as easy as a few weeks ago. Keep at it. Changing your rig, bait, presentation may get you fish but confidence in what you do plays a big role too. Honestly speaking, if I can catch a carp every 10 minutes every time I go fishing, I may not like it as much as I do now. It's when you are not catching that you learn more about fishing.

Carp are still there, most people I've talked to told me it's been slow this year but the few times I fished there I average 10+ fish every time with only the first outing less than 5. Maybe I have just been lucky.

Normally, when you can see carp, you can't catch them. They are likely just sun bathing if they are near surface. If you are stuck with that venue, the best advice is to throw in a can of sweet corn (or feed corn if you have it for the cost factor) the day before you fish it. Your setup is fine. I'd use at least a 2oz lead and shorten the leader a little bit (I don't normally go over 6" of leader). Do some research on a hair rig, it does improve the hook up rate and not hard to make at all. As to where the big carp are, that's the million dollar question. This time of the year carp fishing is harder due to the warm water temperature, they are either spawning or go to deeper water after spawn for cooler/more oxygenated water. You should have more luck fishing the early morning or in the evening for the same reason. Good luck. I started carping thinking the same way you do, but after a while, I stop going north at all ;-)

Nice pics, I'm sure it's a lot of fun. Victor, you didn't like it because you didn't go to the right place ordering the right food ;-)

Those are some nice carp, a mirror is always special. Nicely done.

It's gonna be a while before you catch a 50lb carp in Canada, but you'll catch 20 x 20lb carp in a day soon. (that's 8 times more weight anyway). Welcome to Canada.

Nice fish. Sounds fun.

I bought my first two buzzers for $25 including shipping from the states, that was about 5 years ago and they still work fine. I then bought a nash (or was it a fox?), a relatively cheaper one for the brand, at around $50, and that thing failed after a few months. I then picked up a pair of delkim and haven't had the need to look for others since. Delkims are about $100 - $200 each depending on the model. My advise is, either get a cheap one so it doesn't hurt too much when it does break. And spend more when you're willing to pay more for a better one, especially after you have seen the different models on the bank in person. They do the same thing just the more expensive ones look better (truth). More importantly, buy them from a credible vendor like NWC, Stephen stands behind the stuff he sells. I have had some warranty issues with some tackle from him and he always get things corrected. My suggestion is if you're picky for features, if you have to get things like remote receiver, snag bars, sexy purple light (or any specific colour), or differentiated drop-back indication, then you're limited to a selected few. But like I have said above, they serve the same purpose and carp don't know which one you're using. I don't even use one for carp fishing most of the time in the last year or so.

Happy Birthday Carole, break a PB !

Happy Birthday!! Another month and we should carp fish together again.

Thanks Lorne. I enjoyed every second of it.

If you are renewing your contract, make sure you bargain. When my contract with Rogers expired 3 months ago, I called and asked for iPhone 4. After like 5 calls (everyday I got a different offer) to see what they'd do to keep me, I got a sweet deal. For about $42/month including everything, I got 500mb data, 250min any time, 100min long distance, 100 text, unlimited weekend and week evening starting at 6pm. This on a new 3 yrs contract and the iPhone 4 then comes free. A lot of people don't like a contract but if it doesn't bother you, this is the way to go. It's about what I used to pay for a lot less.

I find single CUKK corn on a hair rig with #14 hook the best for carp < 8lb, especially with a feeder rod. These CUKK corn kernels are tough enough to deter the unwanted species while attractive enough for carp. For bigger fish I use single giant corn (white or yellow, but I prefer white) as hook bait most of the time, when that doesn't work, there are always tiger nuts to the rescue. My experience tells me it's never the hook bait that catches you more fish, it's all in the feeding (assuming you got the location right). Just talking from my experience and I don't have to be right.

There are other WWD-like venues and I fish/catch there all winter long. Unfortunately, they're all quite a way out. The air temperature doesn't affect them much in WWD, it's more for anglers' comfort. We had a match late January with air temp of -14 or so, and fish were playing. Personally, I'd rather fish when it's just below freezing mark so I don't need to deal with the melting snow / muddy bank. For example, tomorrow ;-)

Great news, thanks Lorne for sharing.

I don't think there's anything different/special in WWD carping, if you need different rigs or tactics it's because of the flow/depth/venue specifics...etc, not just because of being WWD. The hardest part of WWD carping is finding an accessible WWD swim and as you indicated it's already done. Carp will be there, if not more concentrated due to cold water temperature everywhere else close by.

Musky Mike, if I'm not mistaken, the current recorded Ontario carp record was caught in Port Hope, so I am sure if there's access, it's only a matter of figuring out where and how those carp want to play.