Thursday, October 1, 2015

One Fisherman's Disappointment is Another's Good Fortune

This beauty was landed in the last few days. Carp just
love nasty weather at this time of year.
Plain and simple.  The weather is going to suck in the next week to ten days if you are a surf fisherman. Believe me when I say NOTHING will be going on in that time period.  I had one friend at the Canal today reporting disappointment over the big waves, sand and weeds in the canal, making fishing impossible.  My son Jon called to tell me the water was going over the rocks at Pier 5 in Narragansett and even the Harbor of Refuge was all crapped up.  Still, another friend called to tell me that the south shore was all sandy and weeded up due to the big surf.  Hate to say this, but it will only get worse in the coming days.  This reminds me a lot of Hurricane Sandy. The build up to the storm really screwed up the water, the storm itself wreaked havoc and then it took a week to clear up. We are facing the same scenario with this double whammy of a lingering northeaster and the effects of a hurricane offshore.
Now, while all my friends and son were bemoaning the loss of fishing along the oceanfront I was sitting at a local pond tending my carp rods.  I've got to tell you, carp just LOVE this nasty weather. I fished for them during Hurricane Sandy itself and had a banner day. I fished yesterday in the pouring rain and gusty winds and carp were jumping all over the place as if they were celebrating the storm. And, they were hitting.  In a few hours I  had 11 fish up to 21 lbs.  That would even be a great striper outing.  In my old age I have learned not to sweat it when the oceanfront shuts down because there are plenty of other fishing opportunities in lousy weather.Sure, I want to be striper fishing in October, but for the next week I will be taking advantage of the good fortune the nasty weather brings, and I'll be targeting freshwater carp.
For anyone out there looking for info on how to catch freshwater carp, check out my carp fishing blog.