CTFishTalk.com: Just a hair shy of PB - Connecticut River Reports ( CT River Reports ) - A Community Built for Connecticut Fisherman.

JustinSolak · Joined: 17 Jul 2011 Posts: 245 Location: East Hartford, CT

Fished one of my favorite spots on the mighty CT River on October 13th (sorry for such a late report) Was targeting carp with a batch of homemade tigernut popups and armed with a bag of prepared maize. It was a "bad tide" but we decided to get out and try anyways.

I only managed one fish on a string of maize, but it was one worth puttin in the photo album.

This ol' girl rand in at 29lbs 4oz, a mere few ounces shy of my 29lb 11oz PB that I landed back in the spring. Unfortunately I didn't have my camera with me, so all i have is cell phone pictures.

To follow that up, the next night in the same hole, I landed 3 fish. 2 little dinkers. One of which got stuck around a log some ways out, and required me to kick off the shoes and wade in to save it from bein tethered to a branch after a snapped it off. The 3rd fish rang in at 28lbs 8oz. THAT one i gotta proper photo of on my camera, just not on the computer yet.
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DirtyDawg10 · Joined: 27 May 2009 Posts: 2238 Location: Granby, CT

Very nice!!

Flipper · Joined: 21 May 2010 Posts: 347 Location: Enfield

Those are some nice carp! My PB is only 20lb but I don't get to do it as much anymore.
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PECo · Joined: 06 Oct 2009 Posts: 5203 Location: Avon, CT

Hey, Justin, how do you weigh big carp? When Tim got his on Batterson Park Pond, I was afraid to hang it from my digital scale like I would a largemouth bass:

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SAP284 · Joined: 07 Jun 2011 Posts: 655 Location: Central, CT

Wow nice! Definitely still a very clear picture for a cell phone. Sometimes I use my cell phone camera over my regular digital lol.
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Steve

jonnyfly00 · Joined: 08 Nov 2010 Posts: 104 Location: Simsbury, CT

Guys use weigh slings to safely weigh carp. So you wouldnt have been able to really weigh it unless you were properly prepared.

PECo · Joined: 06 Oct 2009 Posts: 5203 Location: Avon, CT

Would you seriously injure a carp if you hooked it underneath a gill plate with a scale?

Heck, I don't even know why I care. It's not like I or someone fishing with me will ever boat a carp again. Rolling Eyes

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fishfinder · Joined: 19 Jun 2011 Posts: 1672 Location: Naugatuck, Ct.

Awesome fish man. I have to look into doing some carp fishing. The main reason I started Salt water fishing is that I just love catching BIG fish so this might be my next thing. What is s set up for carp like? do you use basically a saltwater pole set up?
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CatDaddy · Joined: 06 Sep 2011 Posts: 62 Location: New Britain

CTO is having a carp fishing seminar on sunday oct 30 at noon. it is taking place at batterson park pond in new britain. they are having carp fishing experts there to answer any questions. they will also have loaner poles for anyone who is not equiped. the area will be pre baited also. i received an email about this event and i sure will be attending.
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CatDaddy

PECo · Joined: 06 Oct 2009 Posts: 5203 Location: Avon, CT

Have they refilled the pond?
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JustinSolak · Joined: 17 Jul 2011 Posts: 245 Location: East Hartford, CT

Peco: As johnny said, we use weigh slings. Before i had a weigh sling, i weighed him in the net. Still not great for the carp, but if you hang em under the gill plate, you can actually damage it, even rip it.

fishfinder: I use a longer rod, similar to a noodling rod you would use for salmon fishing. It helps to play the fish more with the rod instead of relying on the reel. 9ft Cabela's Pro Guide will do the trick. Price tag of 40 bucks. If you have a saltwater setup with heavy line, make sure you set your drag a lot looser than you would normally, as most size 2-6 hooks won't stand up to 40+ pounds of pressure and hooks get bent. My girlfriend is still mad about a monster she lost 2 years ago while i was still learning what gear to use.

CatDaddy: I spoke with the owner of CTO a few weeks back and he informed me of the fish-in at Batterson. I know he and Ethan were puttin it on. The owner doesn't know too much. Ethan is no expert, but he's far from amateur. Hopefully Iain and Nigel will attend (Saxon Tackle Co. owner and current state record holder) If i'm not mistaken, both from England, and Iain's got over 30 years experience, so if anyone is interested in learning to carp fish, these are the guys to talk to. I won't be attending due to an upstate NY trip, but my mates will.
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...of all the liars among mankind, the fisherman is the most trustworthy.

Nothing makes a fish bigger than almost being caught.

CatDaddy · Joined: 06 Sep 2011 Posts: 62 Location: New Britain

peco- i was down at batterson on tuesday and the water was still low. it is coming back up but slowly. a few weeks back if you were at the launch you could see the two cement barriers a few feet out, well now those are submerged again. the island is still above water (someone built what looks like a paramyd on the island) but not nearly as much is showing. i dont think they will refill it though, but with this rain and the little brook flowing into the pond it should fill up soon.
justin- i dont know much at all about carp fishing, but after seeing many at my local bass hole im excited to learn. im sure i will learn something at the seminar. who knows! maybe even catch my first carp. did you see the one peco's buddy snagged at batterson a week or 2 ago? what a monster!
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CatDaddy

PECo · Joined: 06 Oct 2009 Posts: 5203 Location: Avon, CT

I was there and met the three local yahoos who built the rock pile on the island. No offense intended to the yahoos. Very Happy

They obviously know how to have a good time. Like ice fishing at Batterson until the State Police come with two cars and a helicopter to remove them from the ice. Rolling Eyes

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CatDaddy · Joined: 06 Sep 2011 Posts: 62 Location: New Britain

ice fishing at batterson??????????
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CatDaddy

PECo · Joined: 06 Oct 2009 Posts: 5203 Location: Avon, CT

For those who don't know, Batterson is closed from October 31 to the third Saturday in April the following year (e.g., from October 31, 2011 to April 21, 2012).
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