The Great Carp Myth.......

[Ron The Hat Clay]

Up to about 1950, carp in England were classified as being almost uncatchable and that it wasn't even worth spending time trying to catch them.

To a certain extent this was true, but I don't think they were difficult due to the basic nature of the species; rather it was a result or there being so few of them.

That ikon of early carp fishing - Mapperley Reservoir, held the record for several years prior to Bob Richards catching his 30 pounder from Redmire. Albert Buckley's feat in landing a 26 lb carp on 31/2 lb line was revered by many. In truth the fish was probably suffering from dropsy and his line was close to 8 lbs bs. And there were so few fish in there at the time. I know this as two old friends of mine, both in the Northern Specimen Group, spent many days and nights in search of a Mapperley fish, and they caught nothing.

Then Bob Richards, cast out a lump of breadpaste to a spot where the owner of a lake at Bernithan Court in Herefordshire used to feed the ducks, and a 31 lb carp grabbed the bait. For a short period after this capture, Bernithan Court, renamed Redmire, gave up a number of fish quite easily, culminating in Walker's 44 pounder. After that, Redmire fish became very difficult to catch, due I think to the fact that there were so few of them,(quite a few were removed to be stuffed) and that they had been educated not to eat bread. Of of the 50 original stocking, I doubt if by 1960, there were 20 fish left.

When I started fishing the huge waters of South Africa, and after I had learned to catch the carp, I realised that carp were not all that difficult to catch. In fact the difficulty in targeting the big fish was made all the more apparent by the fact that you had to wade through hundreds of small fish first. I forget the exact numbers taken, but certainly at times, a weekends fishing would result in the capture of anything between 20 and 100 fish.

And today, the heavily stocked commercial fisheries of this country often produce individual match catches of up to 500 lbs of fish.

Certainly carp are not all that difficult to catch, are they?

Or perhaps our methods have become more effective.

But what do you think? Is the idea that carp are difficult to catch a complete myth? I think it is!

[sam vimes]

Depends entirely on stocking densities and angling pressure. The most dopey mug fish will be damned hard to catch if it's one of a handful in a big water. Likewise, a well stocked big fish water that's hammered can also see the inabitants become very hard to catch.

[bennygesserit]

I don't know but wasn't it innovations like hair rigging that made the difference ie a presentation which suited their way of feeding

[Bluenose]

I was going to blindly say "It depends on stocking densities" but then I thought of angling pressure as well and then I think "well commercials are heavily pressured and yet they still produce."

Then of course there are the so called ultra difficult gravel pits which contain one carp for every 4356927674679 acres, now is that difficulty down to location or the often considerable angling pressure?

Good question Ronald!

[barbelboi]

IMO Successful big carp fishing is about understanding the fish and its environment, NOT the latest bait or 'rig of the moment'
Jerry
PS I believe Bob Richards was one of the first to fish Redmire and was pretty much a novice angler who was snapped up many times before gaffing the big one. Therefore they probably weren't difficult to hook in the early days.

[Ron The Hat Clay]

Originally Posted by barbelboi

Therefore they probably weren't difficult to hook in the early days

Well there was this notion that carp would only bite on the finest tackle, and then the big fish would make good their escape by breaking you.

[barbelboi]

Originally Posted by Ron The Hat Clay

Well there was this notion that carp would only bite on the finest tackle, and then the big fish would make good their escape by breaking you.

Hence my first sentence IMO Successful big carp fishing is about understanding the fish and its environment
Jerry

[Ron The Hat Clay]

Originally Posted by barbelboi

PS I believe Bob Richards was one of the first to fish Redmire and was pretty much a novice angler who was snapped up many times before gaffing the big one. Therefore they probably weren't difficult to hook in the early days.
__________________

Bob Richards was certainly the first to fish deliberately for the carp at Redmire. His tackle was hopelessly inadequate and landing his 30 pounder was subject to a great deal of luck, if not the fish was probably not in first class condition.

Redmire was of course fished quite often when it was a stocked trout water. The carp were put in on recommendation by Leney to try and keep the weed down.

[Ron The Hat Clay]

One interesting aspect of Redmire was that in later years, a handful of known carp kept being caught on the regular basis. The fish known as "The Bishop" for instance that was caught by Tom Mintram, Jack Hilton, Roger Bowskill and finally at 51lb 8oz by Chris Yates as a new disputed English record.

One has only to look at the photographs of "The Bishop" to note that the fish was in a shocking state of health, which proved to be true when the poor thing died some weeks after Chris Yates had caught it.

And Chris Yates 43 3/4 lb common carp was a proper pudding of a fish. Again I think something ailed it.

Dropsy?

But anglers such as Rod Hutchinson took Redmire apart. What had become an almost impossible water became a doddle to who I believe is one of the greatest thinking carp anglers of all time.

In addition to a few South Africans I have met along the way.

[The Monk]

It was a myth of course Ron, in the early days many believed that carp could only be caught on light tackle, well light lines certainly. I believe a number of factors lead the anglers of the day to believe this, one was low stocking densities the other of course was the very nature of carp themselves, the myth of course was put to rest as more people became interested in the specie from the late 50s and certainly by the late 60s, throughout the 70s the number of carp anglers was growing rapidly and by the late seventies the bolt rig and hair rig came into being and thus momentum in the growth of the sport eccelerated chaging it beyond recognition forever. The carp fishing of today is certainly not the same sport of the 60s when I started carp fishing, in those days we were more hunters, bolt rigging has seen the rise of the trapper. You have a lot to answer for Mr Clay, lol