Being an avid coarse angler for many years prior to my arrival in Canada, it was surprising that I had not explored the carp fishery until recently. For the last several years, I have occupied myself with the so-called sportfish and neglected a species that I used to chase after. This year, I have been determined to land some Canadian carp. After many failures this summer, I am finally able to produce fish consistently.

To catch a fish, you must be where the fish are. This was especially important when it comes to carp fishing, as they move at a very slow pace. If you are not fishing at a location where the carp frequently visit, it can turn into a very long waiting game. Our first quest was to find out where the carp are in Southern BC. Ladner, a small city that is composed of both rural farmland and residential neighborhood, became our primary carp fishing spot this summer. It is only 30 minutes from Downtown Vancouver and there is a large network of sloughs that drain into the Fraser River. With the help of a few local anglers and some scouting around, we picked out several spots that looked extremely appealing.

Our first problem emerged as soon as we started fishing. There was a large number of smaller coarse fish that roam these sloughs. Redside shiner, a native minnow species, is between 2 to 6 inches long. These tiny critters are fast, hungry and often present in a large school. They can clean up your bait within seconds after it lands in the water. This became a real headache. To catch a carp, the bait needs to rest on the bottom for a long period of time. The fish needs to reach the bait, inspect it, before it decides to engulf it. With the bait disappearing so fast, it seemed impossible.

After some modification to the bait, the problem was finally solved. The key ingredient is corn meal. When corn meal is added into the dough, it seems to repel every single redside shiner in the water. For what reason, I do not know, but it definitely boosts up the confidence when I know my bait will stay intact before a carp reaches it.

Carp fishing requires a great deal of patience. It's not only a waiting game, but a test of your concentration. 95% of the time your rod tip or float will remain motionless, but your constant attention is required. A tiny tap on your rod, a wobble on your float can occur any second. You need to be ready to grab that rod and strike at anytime.

On July 14th, it finally happened, my first Canadian carp. While chatting, I could see some small movement on my rod tip from the corner of my eyes. It always amazes me how a tiny wiggle can raise your heartrate instantly! I quickly reached down, and waited for the next bite. The rod tip still moved slowly, but finally the line became slack. It was definitely a carp. The line immediately became tight again and at this very moment I pulled back the rod. There was a dead weight at the end of the line, it almost seemed as it was asleep. Within seconds, the fish started to tug the rod, and this was followed by a fast run. The burst of energy could be heard from the loud drag on the spinning reel. The furious carp tried to dive under reeds. Everytime when I was able to bring it up, it dove down again. After battling intensely for about five minutes, the fish was finally netted. The phrase intense battle is not an exaggeration. Although they lack the acrobatic movement that salmonids possess, a carp will make your life incredibly hard by taking long runs and diving under structures. A quick photo snap, and the fish was back into the water. Sensational! Although it was the only fish of the day, it only took one to regain my enthusiasm in carp fishing.

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