Bob Sampson: Carp gains interest in U.S.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By BOB SAMPSON
Norwich Bulletin
Posted Jul 08, 2009 @ 11:32 PM
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Carp fishing is the European equivalent to bass fishing here in the states, particularly in England and France, where anglers have invented fishing techniques and tackle specifically designed to catch this elusive species.
Because of the Internet and educational shows, such as “In Fisherman” and “On the Water Television,” carp have grown in popularity from a species that was once shunned as “trash fish,” to a fish that has developed a large and growing fan club. For starters, they are challenging to catch, they grow very large and pull harder than any other freshwater fish you’ll catch in this region.
Carp hunter
Among the growing number of carp converts is a Norwich resident who moved from Rhode Island a couple of years ago, an avid carp specialist named Steve Wasilewski.
Steve is a soft-spoken fisherman who has targeted common carp almost exclusively for nearly a decade. He became enthralled with this species as a child when his brother, Kevin, got him started chasing these elusive and hard-fighting minnows in a lake near where they grew up in Warwick, R.I.
Through reading, watching TV shows and trolling the Internet for carp fishing information, Steve and his fishing buddies have developed a hybrid European/American style of carp fishing that has totally captivated his fishing interests for the past seven or eight years.
Steve said as he began realizing what a hard-fighting and challenging species carp is, he started buying specialized tackle from Europe and modifying American gear to suit his constantly evolving carp-fishing approach.
Steve is doing something right, because he has two state records to his credit. A few seasons ago, he set the Rhode Island record, with a 321⁄2-pounder that came from a small, nameless pond in Warwick that he knew held some oversized carp.
On May 28 of this year, while fishing by himself, he caught, kept alive in a large container, documented and released a giant 401⁄2-pound, 38-inch-long dirigible of a common carp from the lower Connecticut River to set a new Connecticut record for this species. Serious “carpmeisters” are concerned about releasing their catches, just like the tournament-minded bass fishing fraternity that has been growing and developing here in America since the early 1970s. Both groups of anglers are all about conservation.
The common carp (also called German carp or Cyprinus carpio) are the largest member of the minnow family. They were introduced to Connecticut from their native waters of Europe and Asia back in 1844. Closely related to the popular Asian aquarium species, the gold fish, another big minnow that can grow to 10 pounds or more in the wild.
Bigger in Europe
According to the record books, carp may grow larger in Europe, based on the fact that five out of the nine IGFA freshwater line-class records, one of which is the all-tackle world record, were set in Europe, where carp is king.
The International Game Fish Association all-tackle world record is a 75-pound 11-ounce blimp from Lac de St. Cassien, France, back in 1987. However, the 20-pound line-class record was a 57-pound, 13-ounce minnow that came from the Potomac River in the United States in 1983. So there may be potential for more of the IGFA records to fall to U.S. fishermen, as carp fishing becomes more popular and widely accepted across the nation.
Carp don’t jump like a smallmouth bass or hit with bad intentions like a muskellunge or pike. They feed on plant material, so they are most consistently caught on formulated baits and scents, concoctions of corn meal, flour mixes, canned corn, peas, beans and any other vegetable that will stay on a hook. Occasionally, they eat a worm or snap at a small lure, so many are accidentally hooked by anglers targeting other species.
Carp are a hard-fighting, very tricky fish to catch, a finesse sort of species that Europeans figured out, and have fished using specialized tackle with the zest and monopic focus that bass fishermen possess here in the states.
Anyone who has ever intentionally or accidentally caught one has to know that these minnows deserve a tremendous amount of respect for their pulling power. A 10-pound carp will pull more line off the reel during a fight than any bass, pike or musky of that same weight that I’ve ever dealt with.
This pulling power and their elusive nature has attracted the full-time fishing interests of a large and growing number of anglers across the country and deservedly so. They are a great species that is finally receiving the credit it deserves in angling circles around the world.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By BOB SAMPSON
Norwich Bulletin
Posted Jul 08, 2009 @ 11:32 PM
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Carp fishing is the European equivalent to bass fishing here in the states, particularly in England and France, where anglers have invented fishing techniques and tackle specifically designed to catch this elusive species.
Because of the Internet and educational shows, such as “In Fisherman” and “On the Water Television,” carp have grown in popularity from a species that was once shunned as “trash fish,” to a fish that has developed a large and growing fan club. For starters, they are challenging to catch, they grow very large and pull harder than any other freshwater fish you’ll catch in this region.
Carp hunter
Among the growing number of carp converts is a Norwich resident who moved from Rhode Island a couple of years ago, an avid carp specialist named Steve Wasilewski.
Steve is a soft-spoken fisherman who has targeted common carp almost exclusively for nearly a decade. He became enthralled with this species as a child when his brother, Kevin, got him started chasing these elusive and hard-fighting minnows in a lake near where they grew up in Warwick, R.I.
Through reading, watching TV shows and trolling the Internet for carp fishing information, Steve and his fishing buddies have developed a hybrid European/American style of carp fishing that has totally captivated his fishing interests for the past seven or eight years.
Steve said as he began realizing what a hard-fighting and challenging species carp is, he started buying specialized tackle from Europe and modifying American gear to suit his constantly evolving carp-fishing approach.
Steve is doing something right, because he has two state records to his credit. A few seasons ago, he set the Rhode Island record, with a 321⁄2-pounder that came from a small, nameless pond in Warwick that he knew held some oversized carp.
On May 28 of this year, while fishing by himself, he caught, kept alive in a large container, documented and released a giant 401⁄2-pound, 38-inch-long dirigible of a common carp from the lower Connecticut River to set a new Connecticut record for this species. Serious “carpmeisters” are concerned about releasing their catches, just like the tournament-minded bass fishing fraternity that has been growing and developing here in America since the early 1970s. Both groups of anglers are all about conservation.
The common carp (also called German carp or Cyprinus carpio) are the largest member of the minnow family. They were introduced to Connecticut from their native waters of Europe and Asia back in 1844. Closely related to the popular Asian aquarium species, the gold fish, another big minnow that can grow to 10 pounds or more in the wild.
Bigger in Europe
According to the record books, carp may grow larger in Europe, based on the fact that five out of the nine IGFA freshwater line-class records, one of which is the all-tackle world record, were set in Europe, where carp is king.
The International Game Fish Association all-tackle world record is a 75-pound 11-ounce blimp from Lac de St. Cassien, France, back in 1987. However, the 20-pound line-class record was a 57-pound, 13-ounce minnow that came from the Potomac River in the United States in 1983. So there may be potential for more of the IGFA records to fall to U.S. fishermen, as carp fishing becomes more popular and widely accepted across the nation.
Carp don’t jump like a smallmouth bass or hit with bad intentions like a muskellunge or pike. They feed on plant material, so they are most consistently caught on formulated baits and scents, concoctions of corn meal, flour mixes, canned corn, peas, beans and any other vegetable that will stay on a hook. Occasionally, they eat a worm or snap at a small lure, so many are accidentally hooked by anglers targeting other species.
Carp are a hard-fighting, very tricky fish to catch, a finesse sort of species that Europeans figured out, and have fished using specialized tackle with the zest and monopic focus that bass fishermen possess here in the states.
Anyone who has ever intentionally or accidentally caught one has to know that these minnows deserve a tremendous amount of respect for their pulling power. A 10-pound carp will pull more line off the reel during a fight than any bass, pike or musky of that same weight that I’ve ever dealt with.
This pulling power and their elusive nature has attracted the full-time fishing interests of a large and growing number of anglers across the country and deservedly so. They are a great species that is finally receiving the credit it deserves in angling circles around the world.