Hello all. I am looking to get into fly fishing for Carp this year. I have all my gear ready, the right flies, read all the info out there. All I need is a good place in the Merrimack Lawrence/Haverhill/Methuen areas, that I can see the carp swimming so I can target them. I have been wadeing in Forrest Lake and have seen them in the shallows. I want to find a spot on the river where I can wade the shore line and see the carp. Any info would be so appreciated.
Thanks in advance
Jason
Thanks in advance
Jason
I'm sure you have read this online as well but what they heck right...Just sight fishing carp can be a pain, there are many areas of water that your sure they are in but of course the water is murky or what not, So what I see many of fly fisherman doing is carrying a loaf of bread. This way they can stalk shore lines of likely carp feeding areas ( which for reference are typically 2-10 feet in depth, and usually around some form of cover ) tossing out a few pieces of bread here and there and waiting to see fish, then casting to them when they surface.
The other thing you can do is scout out local flora ahead of time, looking for fruit bearing plants like grape vines, mulberry trees etc then tying flies to mimic those items and you can usually bet that carp will be around as they have grown accustomed to feeding off those plants.
sadly,I do not know the Merrimack well enough to give specific areas nor do I fly fish so for me carp fishing is a different approach as I am much more of a "set up a swim, then fish it for hours" kind of guy. However the point I want to get across is, Carp will typically be around most of the waterway, just take a few moments to watch for signs like jumping, bubbles etc or likely shoreline to feed around and set up your own trap for them. Then if nothing in 10-15 minutes or so slowly move on, once you get a couple of fish you'll start to really notice trends in where you catch them and soon enough will prolly have your own "secret" spot heh.
The other thing you can do is scout out local flora ahead of time, looking for fruit bearing plants like grape vines, mulberry trees etc then tying flies to mimic those items and you can usually bet that carp will be around as they have grown accustomed to feeding off those plants.
sadly,I do not know the Merrimack well enough to give specific areas nor do I fly fish so for me carp fishing is a different approach as I am much more of a "set up a swim, then fish it for hours" kind of guy. However the point I want to get across is, Carp will typically be around most of the waterway, just take a few moments to watch for signs like jumping, bubbles etc or likely shoreline to feed around and set up your own trap for them. Then if nothing in 10-15 minutes or so slowly move on, once you get a couple of fish you'll start to really notice trends in where you catch them and soon enough will prolly have your own "secret" spot heh.