Is carp fishing boring?

fishplate42 · Oct 5, 2017

I have been talking to some carp guys, and they say they cast a couple or three rods out and leave the baited hook sitting there for hours - many hours. Some leave it there all day and night!

Not being a carp angler I am curious, what do they (you) do with the time. My first thought was you could sit there making up rigs, but at the rate, they will make a whole year's worth of them in a few hours. Then what?

Ralph

steve2 · Oct 5, 2017

Fishing is what ever you want it to be. Personally I would find this style of fishing mind numbing. To me it is no more than camping but each to their own.
I have known carp fishers that did what you say and would only recast if they had a run. They no longer fish for carp.

sam vimes · Oct 5, 2017

Much depends on your outlook, the water concerned and what you do during the wait. There are waters where being bored means you are doing something drastically wrong. On big low stocked waters it may just be par for the course.

The way that a lot of people fish for carp I'd be bored as hell. I've had baits in the water for up to 48hrs in the past, but not been remotely bored. However, I'm not the kind of carper that disappears into a bivvy, puts the telly on, surfs the web, reads etc and ignores everything but the bite alarms. That works for some, but it's not my idea of fun.

At very least, provided it's daylight and not hoofing down, I'll be scanning the water looking for clues to fish location. Chuck in a few brews and cooking food then the daylight hours soon pass. That's before you get the inevitable bankside visitors and distractions from the local wildlife. Things get a little tougher in the waking hours of darkness or in periods of grim weather, winter carping can be rather boring with shortened daylight hours and poorer weather. I tend to read a fair bit if I bother with overnight sessions after the clocks go back.

fishcatcher60 · Oct 5, 2017

I agree totally with steve2 on this one.
It's not my idea of fishing but each to their own.

Peter Jacobs · Oct 5, 2017

If you take that view then how about big Bream fishing or big Tench fishing where you are likely to be sat behind a trio if alarms for many hours per day, and night, waiting for a bite.

Many would think that constantly trotting afloat down the same swim for hours on end is just as boring . . . . . or constantly shipping a pole in and out all day for small silver fish? Boring?

Personally, in my Caro fishing days, about a decade in all, I tended to be rather like Sam, constantly searching the water, making baits, scanning the lake surface looking for fish indications as well as making occasional brews and meals.
There are many venues where success would depend on leaving your baits untouched for a couple of days and others where you need to re-bait and re-cast quite often.

It all boils down to "horses for courses" in the final analysis or (to mix metaphors) whatever floats yer boat . . . . .

unless it is a bait boat as there are many who are totally against those too . . . lol

Philip · Oct 5, 2017

fishplate42 said:
Then what?

Go home and sit in front of a TV instead...

tomino2112 · Oct 5, 2017

Even though I do carp fishing sometimes (but small carp) I recast at least once an hour, usually more often. I also do fair bit of float fishing for carp that is much less boring.

I not bored while waiting for bites, most of carping is done on commercials and the ones I go to have plenty of wild life around so always something to be observing.

That being said, I really dont understand people who leave bait in water for xx hours. My logic is telling me that they are doing something wrong. If you leave bait in water xx hours then basically you hoping that the fish will stumble upon your bait and your fishing is therefore pure luck. That being said I have zero experience catching 50lb mutants so what do I know...

thecrow · Oct 5, 2017

tomino2112 said:
That being said, I really dont understand people who leave bait in water for xx hours. My logic is telling me that they are doing something wrong.

There was a theory among carpers years ago that washed out baits worked better than fresh ones, whether it was true I don't know but I did catch my fair share on baits that had been in the water for a long time.

I had a friend that took this theory even further and buried his baits for his next session in the lake bed and left them there until his next trip, his thinking was that they would "smell" more natural and arose less suspicion from the carp, did it work? well yes he caught plenty but whether it was because of that or in spite of it I don't know.

Static carpers will catch less than one that is mobile, and I mean an angler that will move with the wind on some waters or on seeing fish in a particular part of the lake for a while I have moved in the middle of the night if circumstances warranted it.

All fishing can be boring if you allow it to become boring the trick is not to allow it to become boring, try something/somewhere different use different methods don't become a statue.

mikench · Oct 5, 2017

I will pass comment in the Hdygo thread but I just couldn't sit there waiting for 2 or 3 rods on a pod to spring to life! I enjoy catching carp even when I do not intend to!!

103841 · Oct 5, 2017

Ralph!! Your asking a question that often creates more arguments in the world of angling than just about anything else, light the blue touch paper and stand clear! However, the FM regulars are a reasonable bunch and will talk about the dark side in hushed tones so you may get away with it.

I've offered you a guest ticket on the CDAA waters which sadly you've been unable to take up this year due to your work committee etc. Had you been able to spend a day at Stonar with me catching Rudd you would have seen carp lads set up for anything up to seven days! One man and a dog seems quite popular.

Not for me, not my lifestyle, but I can understand the reasons why it appeals to some.

peterjg · Oct 5, 2017

I fished for carp for decades. Can it be boring? In truth yes it can be but where I fished it was beautiful with carp well into 50lb plus. It was fascinating as well as sometimes exciting. Very often I used to cast out and leave the baits out for as much as 36 or 48 hours, the reasoning being why recast when I will only be recasting to the same spots! Hook baits were usually tiger nuts which do not soften over time in the water.

While fishing I used to read books, bird watch, play chess on an electronic board and listen to the radio. There were 15 levels of skill on the electronic chess board - I reached level 14 but never did win on level 15 - perhaps I didn't carp fish enough. Probably done about 1200 nights over many years. And for what it's worth - I now fish for roach and a big roach is much harder than a big carp!

It was not easy fishing with very few carp living in the 50 acre pit. A good season would be just 4 carp caught. One season there I caught 19 carp made up of 1 40lber, 11 30lbers and 7 20lbers. On another adjacent pit (which was smaller and easier) if you caught five carp usually 2 of them would be 30s.

fishplate42 · Oct 5, 2017

s63 said:
Ralph!! Your asking a question that often creates more arguments in the world of angling than just about anything else, light the blue touch paper and stand clear! However, the FM regulars are a reasonable bunch and will talk about the dark side in hushed tones so you may get away with it.

I've offered you a guest ticket on the CDAA waters which sadly you've been unable to take up this year due to your work committee etc. Had you been able to spend a day at Stonar with me catching Rudd you would have seen carp lads set up for anything up to seven days! One man and a dog seems quite popular.

Not for me, not my lifestyle, but I can understand the reasons why it appeals to some.

You are right, for whatever reason I have not been able to fish anywhere near as much as I had expected to do this year.

My question was not meant to offend anyone, not having done it myself I was surprised when I was told that lines are left in the water for so long. I just wondered what others did. I can see I would take in the wild life and study the lake but for hours on end? As others have said, each to their own and although I like to try out all sorts of fishing, as you said, I don't think it is for me either.

Having discovered river fishing, in a small way over the summer, I am sold on doing more. There is no sitting about for hours waiting for a bite.

My mindset is I am going fishing so I want to fish. I think (and I may be wrong) that carping is as much about the camping as it is about the fishing - unfortunately, I have never been a fan of camping.

Ralph.

sam vimes · Oct 5, 2017

fishplate42 said:
Having discovered river fishing, in a small way over the summer, I am sold on doing more. There is no sitting about for hours waiting for a bite.

If you fish bigger baits for bigger fish, pick a tough river venue, or go at the wrong time, there can be just as much sitting around as carp fishing.

It's all about what you choose to do and enjoy most. Some seem to love the sedentary bait and wait option, some don't. Each to their own.

bracket · Oct 5, 2017

It is all a matter of definition. What one angler calls boring another would describe as eager anticipation. Me. I'm in the "catch anything that swims" catogary. Pete.

john step · Oct 5, 2017

Its nice to be active ie float fishing/feeder fishing with plenty of bites. However there are times when its great to just sit behind a couple of buzzers watching the wildlife go by and dare I say it having a snooze in the sunshine.
Just how you are feeling really.

103841 · Oct 5, 2017

fishplate42 said:
You are right, for whatever reason I have not been able to fish anywhere near as much as I had expected to do this year.

My question was not meant to offend anyone, not having done it myself I was surprised when I was told that lines are left in the water for so long. I just wondered what others did. I can see I would take in the wild life and study the lake but for hours on end? As others have said, each to their own and although I like to try out all sorts of fishing, as you said, I don't think it is for me either.

Having discovered river fishing, in a small way over the summer, I am sold on doing more. There is no sitting about for hours waiting for a bite.

My mindset is I am going fishing so I want to fish. I think (and I may be wrong) that carping is as much about the camping as it is about the fishing - unfortunately, I have never been a fan of camping.

Ralph.

I never thought for one moment that you were out to offend Ralph, but......... In my short time back to fishing (the same time you've taken it up), I know that if an argument is there waiting in the wings, it's those that choose to fish for carp and those that don't, forums are full and of it, you must have seen them.

Philip · Oct 5, 2017

fishplate42 said:
Having discovered river fishing, in a small way over the summer, I am sold on doing more. There is no sitting about for hours waiting for a bite.

Your at one of the well documented stages of a fishermans life...stage 2 or 3 or whatever it is.

Stage 1 was catch a fish ...anything will do ...stage 2 ...catch lots of fish (thats where your at it appears) ... stage 3 wil be catch a big fish...thats when you will start to understand why waiting is an unavoidable aspect to the fishing game as there are less big fish than small fish. ....the last stage of the fishermans life is that you dont really give a stuff what you catch, you just enjoy going.

...and no I am not at that last stage either ...I still want to put my net under a kipper or two yet.

mikench · Oct 5, 2017

I remain happy to catch anything! I find it odd that when after carp with a carp rod, a boilie as hook bait and a buzzer that I catch them on a feeder rod with prawn as the hook bait!

Its not straightforward this fishing lark but enjoyable nonetheless!

terry m · Oct 5, 2017

Wow, I must be the devil incarnate because, yes, some times during the summer I do sit behind a couple of rods carp fishing, and yes, shock horror I read several dozen books a season whilst waiting for a bite.

Do I want to sit with a pole puling out five hundred silver fish in a day? Nope. Do I want to criticise anyone that enjoys that? Nope.

Live and let live. Asking whether carp fishing is boring is like a soccer fan asking if cricket, rugby, rowing etc is boring and vice versa.

One thing I would say to the hordes that are too ready to denigrate the carp part of our pastime, if carp fishing did not exist, how many tackle businesses would go to the wall?

Another Dave · Oct 5, 2017

Back in the day there used to be a special 'tobacco strengthener' that helped pass the time, maybe they have something like that these days.

Is carp fishing boring?

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