|
||||||||
| ST LAWRENCE RIVER (have you heard anything like it?) | ||||||||
| This page hosted by | |
Get your own Free Home Page | ||||||
The Carp on the St Lawrence; this place has some of the biggest carp in N.A, but they dont come in lightly. Only during the springtime,can they be caught with traditional methods, read on for the why's & how's. If your serious about carp ,this place has to be on your list.
View of scenery typical around the St Lawrence 1000 Islands
I had promised myself a trip on the St Lawrence Seaway, now came the tricky part, planning & keeping everyone happy at the same time. I had already talked with my wife & we considered taking a boat on the St Lawrence in the 1000 Islands area. The more I thought about this the better it became, we could scout the area & have a family boating cruise at the same time. I might even get some fishing in as well !. Boating the St Lawrence around the 1000 Islands brought new meaning to the word. We came across wind waves & rock's like you would not imagine, so be careful if considering this type of trip, it is not one which can be taken lightly ,especially if bad weather is forcast. Good navigational skills are a definate asset ! I would hasten to add our navigation improved dramatically during this trip. Sail safe & look hard !
During the boat trip ,which was in mid May I had hoped to find
carp on the shallow's pre-spawn, we (just) were too early for
this, but we found plenty of other types of fish including good
size channel cats & panfish & pike a-plenty for the boy's.
Shortly after boarding the boat, we were caught in a cold front
with wind & temperatures not on out agenda, we even had the
furnace on for a day during this normally unseasonal weather. The
carp were sure not to make an appearance during this weather,
just my luck!. One good thing came out of this though, we used
the time to travel downstream to the St Lawrence at Long Sault to
check out the area. I was amazed at what I saw , there were carp
everywhere, but where do you start ? we drove along the causeway
which connects the Island complex, then I spotted something which
is never seen in Canada .There were people carp-fishing ! not
Canucks or Euro's but crazy Brit's, we got talking a while &
they were catching fish ; big carp & in front of my eyes a 36
lb'er was landed. The flame was now lit, my wife could see it on
my face; I had to have some of this, we would be back for sure.
We planned that if we were to drive up for the weekend after the
boat trip & I took off an extra days holiday,then I would
have enough time to do the business. That was it ,the plan was
set, the fish were here & THIS was the place they call
paradise !
At the end of the week we left the
boat & drove downstream to Long Sault, we arrived in
blistering 90 deg midday heat & we checked in on one of the
Islands in the comlex. I could see carp everywhere I looked ! but
where to start ?. I searched the shoreline for a likely shady
spot & as I came to a small point on the bend of the river ,
just before the intake area to the Islands , I spotted a group of
large carp. They were not swimming fast ,they were hanging there
& the water seemed to deepen at this point. I watched the
fish for a while & then a couple of them actually up-ended
& began feeding ! O.K then, definately worth a try. We
quickly pitched the tent at the campsite & returned ready for
action. We had a couple of cans of sweetcorn with us & I
gingerly fired some into the area. The carp were not scared by
this & I thought we were in with a good chance, we all fished
together & it did not take long to get some response. The
first indication came to my son ,Richard's rod which simply
curved demandingly towards the water, luckily he was quick enough
to grab it before never seeing it again, of course I am always
telling them to fish open bail , but you know kids - - - !. He
landed the carp & it weighed in at 23 lbs ,the look on his
face says everything that carp fishing should be about. My heart
was pounding : he had hooked a small fish !
Our first fish out to Richard (23 lbs)
Robert with a super 13lb common
We fished along till late afternoon catching several more &
then decided to go & look at the place we had seen the 36
caught earlier.We arrived at the other end of the complex with
barely two hours of sunlight left. I caste in & helped the
boys out. After half an hour I had a short run ,this happened
twice & then I changed the rig. The next run screamed & I
landed a mid double,& then the mozzies arrived & we were
gone ! we parked the van near to where we had fished during the
day, ready for an early start. I was determined to get it right
this time .
Next morning arrived & I was up at the crack of dawn. The
rods were cast to the spots, mid range with the boilies &
margin with the maize. I fished two rods ,they would have to get
the handcuffs out to stop me ! I watched the rod tips with
scrutiny.One tip dipped & sprung back, then the other, the
carp were there.The rod tips bounced maybe half a dozen times
& I knew the fish were not stupid. It was the rig , they were
spitting the hook , I reeled in & made alterations to the
terminal tackle, no good ; still the tips bounced- - -they were
not line bites. I changed hook links ,then the hook patterns ,
put on back stops to jerk the leads, nothing worked. Frantically
I sorted through the rucksack, looking for a big lead; on went an
inline 3 oz, I put on a backstop and re-cast putting the line
into a clip to keep maximum tension on the line against the lead,
the tips were bent down towards the water. I sat back to await
results, I did not have to wait long, within two minutes the
Optonic was howling & I struck into a brute of a fish. The
carp powered off to my right, the flyer of my reel was burning my
finger's, I had plenty of line so I kept on the pressure but let
the fish run to make the fish tire. The angle of the line
gradually began to move towards the bank, then the fish stopped;
stuck fast in a weedbed 100 yds along the bank. I shouted for
help & eased my way along the shoreline following the trail
of line. Eventually I came to the fish ,which was only lightly
embedded in the reedmace. I gave a few tug's on the reed's &
the fish powered off once again, back over to where I hooked it.
When I arrived back to the swim once again ,the fish was by now
coming in closer & I reached for the net, but the carp was
nestled against a sunken tree root, I just could not get him in
the net. I waded slowly into the shallow margin & carefully
positioned the big net in front of the fish, the root was not
fixed in the ground, I twitched the root & the carp could
only go one way,in a jiffy the carp was in the net. I heaved on
the handle & struggled up the bank with a lump of a fish, on
the weigh scale the hand swung round almost 4 times. Dam-it 29.5
lbs,but I was still over the moon with such a beauty!
29.5
lbs of pure Gold!
My wife had by now emerged from
the tent & was just in time to see the carp. We quickly took
a couple of shots & returned the carp to it's rightful
environment. Such a good feeling to return your catch , knowing
it will live to fight another day. I recast to the same spot with
the yellow perils' (boilies) within minutes the alarm screamed
again, this fish ran directly away from me & there was no
stopping it. Eventually the fish gained entry into a weedbed
& the hooklink snapped ! I hastily tied on a new rig &
rebaited, the cast was good, and carefully I set the rod in the
alarm ready for more. Sure enough after a short while the boiled
bait was away once again ! in 2 seconds flat I had engaged the
bail & was into battle with another cracker. This fish
repeated what the 29 had done except it took even more line &
I really thought the reel was going to be emptied. However I did
not panic & I remember thinking I could pile on the pressure
with 70-80 yds of line out, with so much stretch available,the
most likely point to break is the hooklink, but I had confidence
so : on went the brakes & I clamped the spool. The line
tightened for several seconds more & then I could see that
the fish was now kiteing towards the centre of the inlet channel.
Previously this area had been explored & it seemed there were
no snags out there. Only now I began to gain line, the carp came
in close & made a couple more runs, by now I had changed grip
on the rod to give me more leverage, my arms were well tired by
now. My wife was ready with the net, & with the second
attempt the carp was in !, there was no way she could lift it
& I was struggling too, I lifted the carp over the gear &
onto the soft grass, I was shattered & overjoyed, for I knew
that this fish was the one I had been fishing the last 7 yrs for
!, I hung it in the weigh sling & the avons rotated 4 times
& kept going, They bottomed out & so I have to give the
weight as 34+, I tried winding the zero setting to gain more
scale reading but still the scales would bottom out no matter
what! I set up the camera & the result is below. It dont get
much better than that !
34 lb+ St Lawrence carp (Long Sault Lake)
The carp kept
coming & before midday several more came to the net,
including another 30 ( 31.5) & 2x20's (25.5) (22.5) +some
double figure fish. The boys had there share with some cracking
fish too, but for me the St Lawrence will always have a very
special place in my memory. I keep saying it : fishing for carp
dont get much better than this ! & this was just the
reconaisance trip!?! We fished on untill the sun got too hot
& then we packed up our gear. I kept thinking of what I had
written before ( you cant catch a fish which is not there to be
caught) but this is one place where they certainly ARE there to
be caught . A weight had been lifted from my shoulder's with this
catch ; since I was beginning to doubt if ever one of these
whacker's would fall my way, it seemed at last someone up there
had listened to my prayer's. God Bless Canada ! 
Outlook from the swim where it all happened from. Note the root in the foreground (right). Top left there were lots of fish spawning in front of this island. The big fish came just overtop of the calm spot, about 35 yds out. All other fish were caught only 10 yds out.
The drive back home got me thinking what would be in store for
the next trip, I knew the carp would have probably spawned (&
moved) before my return . I would be back with some good freinds
( made through the computer world) & together we would have a
job on solving a whole new set of problems. Would we be up to the
job ? but thats part of the fun in carp fishing.
BFN Carpsava
P.S. Check out St Lawrence Pt 2 ! details of the main trip .