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My boy and I are planning a day of cat fishing this weekend at Utah Lake, assuming mother nature will be nice. Before we head out there I was wanting to use carp for bait seeing how everyone has said that the cats love em. Unfortunately, I have never caught or even try to target them before. I plan on hitting the Benson marina.
I have been searching on you-tube on how to catch carp. Everything I saw on you-tube it say to use sweet corn as bait. Now correct me if I'm wrong, I thought corn is illegal. Since carp is consider as a trash fish will the state allow us to use corn to catch carp?
If I can't use corn can someone please give me some pointers of what and how to catch carp. Is there a better place in Cache Valley to catch carp other then the Benson marina?
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Just put on a plain ole worm and let it sit on the bottom. You'll catch catfish too that way. When you do get a carp eventually, thump it and immediately carve the fillets off to make sure that they are nice and bloody. Cut into 1" square chunks and fish it on the bottom too.
The rig you want to use is to slip a 1/2 to 1 ounce barrel sinker one your line, tie on a quality snap swivel, 18" of leader, and attach a size 2 or a size 0 baitholder or octopus hook to that (use the same rig, but with a size 4-6 hook for carp). If you're not familiar with this type of setup, just google "Carolina rig" and look at images. Bait up and let it soak where there is a little current flowing for the catfish, but not too much current, and if targeting carp, the still water is a little better. You could also just use a bobber 1-4' above your hook with no weight and fish it that way too.
As long as you're trying Benson Marina trying for carp, try on the west side of the lake just north of the bridge for the first 100 yards or so. You'll only need to cast about 40-60 feet. There is a channel running through there. Fishing in the channel is good during the day time and fishing closer to shore in the shallower water seems to get the nod at night when the cats come out of the channel to hunt the shallows. Anywhere there can be good at any time of the day or night though. If it's only carp you want, then anywhere around the marina will be fine, just use the Carolina slip rig so that the carp doesn't feel any resistance. They are pretty wary fish when you are actually trying to catch them.
On worms, be prepared to weed through lots of small bullhead cats, they won't mess with the carp meat quite as much. They'll peck at it, but you won't get as many on the carp. The worms will work well for channel cats too, but the carp and bullheads will be pesky.
Hope this helps a bit.
Mike
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My friend and I used to fish for carp a lot in high school. We mostly used cheap, sugary white bread. The cheaper the better. The more processed the wheat is, the more pliable it is so you can just mold it around your hook.
There are a lot of carp in the shallow backwaters of Cutler. The slough across from the church in Benson has a ton as does the slough up north of the pig farms.
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No I'm not in the cat contest. If I was to enter I would be in the North. We are just heading down to Utah lake this weekend to do some cat fishing.
Thanks for the info and as soon as the weather clear up I will give it a go and let you all know how my first experience with carp fishing goes.
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Use granny's bread and make part of it into a dough ball about 1 inch or a little less. Use garlic salt, powder or minched and mix with the dough ball. Fish it just of the bottom with a bobber. You may also be surprised what else takes a bite.
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