After glancing at the opening photo for Deborah Weisberg's piece on the growth of carp fishing in the U.S., all I can say is, "To each their own." While I won't be tying garbanzo-bean-flavored Clouser Foxy Red Minnows any time soon, I applaud those who have challenged themselves to trick these very difficult fish on a fly rod.
Carp: "The Greatest Fighting Game Fish in North America"
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More than 15 years ago I told well-known fly tier and all-around outdoorsman in New Hampshire, Lew Brodie, about my effort with my son to rid a brackish pond on Long Island of carp.
Lew sent me a handful of flies he made based on my description of taking carp on bait rods using floating bits of bread crust. The flies he tied looked just like bread crust chunks. I caught more than half a dozen carp using them and experienced my first thrill of carp on the fly. It was amazing!!
Me son and I took more than 100 fish out of that pond over 10 years, the largest weighing in at 24 pounds. Its pretty hard to find any there now, although they visit occasionally from a nearby river into which the pond opens. Getting the big car population out allowed a strong food chain to build, bringing us more perch, sunnies, bass and others, but the carp remain the best fighting fish we have battled here.