Day three

 

Day three...where we basically destroy all carp in our vicinity. We showed up at the river and as I led the way through some brush to the flats...I spooked three carp. Moments later we all had carp on the line, and that pretty much sums up the day.

Three guys...all fishing basically the same water but we had so many targets it didn't matter. On the day both Travis and Justin were over 20 fish to hand, and I landed a minimum of 30. Just incredible fishing. Everywhere we looked we found fish. Most were cruising or tailing, no fish truly spawning but they all had it on their mind.

At one point Wendy and Travis took a break to drink a beer. I caught a carp. Not to be outdone they both stepped back into the water with a beer in one hand. They both hooked up in minutes. Just sick fishing. I was pounding on tailing carp with a trouser worm, but the hybrid got more than its share as well.

This mirror was a highlight. In full cloud cover Wendy spotted the fish seeking food in the rocks near the bank. I flashed the video camera just as he cast to, and stuck the fish with a perfect presentation. We also recorded a triple, pictured above. With the high water the real challenge was taking the photo. We ended up ducking into a pile of sticks, scrambling into position. I had to one hand my fish, crash around and fire off the timer...it was a big mess of grinning carp fisherman!

 

Oh yeah...and this big monster ate. We were actually walking back to take another look at an area we had worked through quickly and she just sort of appeared in the deep water. I was in position and flipped out a fly...minutes later (yes...minutes) and there was more backing in the water than I have ever seen. It was nuts. Eventually this 23 lb lumpy bigger came to hand.

And that wasn't the end of the highlights! We hit another flat, and walking three abreast we stuck fish after fish as the light fell. We just couldn't stop. As we spread a little farther apart I spotted a big, dark fish up tight. I crept into position and laid a hybrid next to her...immediate set and run. As I battled the fish I heard Wendy tell Travis "This is a big one!" I knew my fish was nice, but this was Wendy's trip, so I clamped down on my line (fish was in the backing) and walked backwards to Wendy and Travis, a couple hundred feet away. I was literally towing this carp with all 90 feet and probably 100 feet of backing in the water. I got the the boys, and watched Travis net a clear 20 plus for Wendy (23 once weighed). At this point, I resumed fighting my fish and when she got close we all realized this was another 20 plus lb fish...a double 20! The tricky part was that due to a gaping hole in my net, we only had one and it currently was occupied with a 23 lb fish. I got her close and reached down and belly scooped her in one shot. The photos show some pretty big smiles.

 

We fished on in the fading light, three swashbucklers, content. Day three was epic.

 

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