i agree and disagree with you "mountain man" I agree with the thought of going to far in front of a family with kids, there was really no need for that. I'm all for the "wackem and stackem" process but that was going a little to far for me. But, I disagree with the comment of us shooting the carp and letting them lay. There are "bad accorns" in fishing and bowfishing, a missplaced shot is just as bad as a sharp hook that has impeeded the eating process of any fish out there. I also want to ask the fellow bowfisherman what you use the carp for? I have found out from an early age that carp are a good fertalizer. A fond memory of mine is when i was around 5-6 years old going out with my father and bringing home a couple of carp for my grandmother's rose bushes(god rest her sole) AND I HAVE TURNED THAT MEMORY INTO A PROCESS THAT I DO EVERY YEAR IN MY GARDEN!!.. just was wondering about everyone else?

The farmers like them here. I bowfish, steelhead and salmon fish alot. By far I love to fish for steelhead browns and salmon in NY and Erie. And you wanna talk about a rough crowd. Like I said, every sport has its ups and downs.Bowfishing is what it is, and some ppl just don't like it. It is also a blast. And I have sunk more money into the sport than I care to admit. And unless you have been out at night to see what the carp population really is, you don't have a clue on how many carp there really are.

 
Keep on digging bfer's

hey bigtrout you ever shoot em up at glendale lake? that lake should be full of 3 lb carp cuz i shoot some monsters out of there. all the lakes we go to the bass boys tell us to shoot every carp we see. they the carp mess up their bass fishin. yeah if you have a boat you should get in the sayers lake carp tournament its bad ****

slate run and kilbuck in june during the carp rut is nuts! i heard good stuff about yellow creek. never there though

ORIGINAL: accordbw

Here ya go,its a diner but a lot of guys eat it since they know how to prepare it correctly.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bFCbifraN0&feature=player_embedded I will see if I can find the expensively cooked ones.

This is more like it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vD3dj5KQJzM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CG2HfUv23uA&feature=related

carry on.

i can't wait to roll out this spring and summer and shoot them up. how about you carp killer? the numbers this year are gonna be legendary. we gotta bring a cooler this year just incase we get into some cats. if people would start keeping carp that they catch instead of releasing them( 50 per day limit). the carp numbers wouldn't be so high and the anti-bowfishing crowd would have a legit gripe. it seems to me that they know carp are junk fish but don't admit it. it's kind of like shooting crows and ground hogs, most people don't eat them either,but it's still a good time spent outdoors.                                                                                                                                                                        

ORIGINAL: bigtrout4x4

hey clay does that work for humans too??? say a big fat slob dies does 3 midgets appear from the sky like angels to take the slobs place????
[/quote
Its called biomass but what do I know. If a lake has a bunch of small fish there usuall aint no bigones not enough food get it.

ORIGINAL: Pork




carry on.

Fun, ain't it.  Unless it's a debate about 10 in. iceholes.
It's rare that a thread gets past 2 pages in this section, but we're well into the 2nd. page now on this.

That is correct in your definition but let me explain how this works. 3 don't magically appear. Its a process over time. Lets say the biomass of a certain area is 500lbs and you only shoot the largest fish so the weight will be replenished over time. The carp fry will grow and more survive because the biomass is not taken up by the larger fish.More survive and more will also not reach a larger size like the ones shot because too much of the biomass is taken up.If the smaller ones were taken out the larger would get larger because there is more food available and the little ones would not survive from the fry stage therefore balancing out a lake.The problem with carp is there size. A lot of times people will say why don't other fish take over the biomass and not many fish in the lake that will reproduce in such larger numbers and grown as quickly. A bass may take years before there isn't predatory fish threat anymore due to its size whereas a carp will grow quicker and therefore not have a predator to worry about.

If you think this whole biomass is bs then I find it hard to believe stories of lakes that used to be great for bass or other fish getting smaller over time. Now a lot of these lakes guys instead of practicing catch and release they take all the larger fish and leave the small ones. Over time this same effect happens with any species on a lake.I could tell you 4-5 lakes here that have slim numbers of carp that used to be awesome bass,pike and walley lakes but overharvest of larger fish have left them void of the trophies.They are few and far between and you find yourself catching dinks all day long.

As far as the whole bfer thing. Its a sport you enjoy and I enjoy carp fishing. Its as simple as that. I like a hard fighting fish and bass gets boring after a while even after catching good size ones.

I think the problem with comparing fish with hunting weather it be deer or any other specie is that game have the ability to move whereas fish are confined to a lake so they are not able to change habitat unless of course its a river then you have some ability to do so..Also I would say how long the specie can live for, places a big role as well.

ORIGINAL: bigtrout4x4

hey clay, biomass= Ecology. the amount of living matter in a given habitat, expressed either as the weight of organisms per unit area or as the volume of organisms per unit volume of habitat. so clay---just so we get this straight i dont see anything about if you shoot a big one 3 magically appear. well, maybe in your magical little leprachaun world. hey clay think of this go and tell the pagc about your thoughts and have them use your method for deer. They are actually telling us the opposite let the spikes and 4 points go, so that the population left will get stronger. hey mr. biomass please inform me more!! please!!

Well there you go bigtrout but if cant figure out that fish dont magically appear then you prolly aint gonna understand what was just explained to you. Many articles about this. They want you to put the big fish back. All im saying is carp arent garbage fish and take skill to catch. You and 90% of fishermen have been miss informed about carp. When you hook into a nice carp your equipment better be in tip top shape any flaws will be exploited very quickly and then hes gone. You ever carp fish?

Arguing on the internet much?

I would say thats more than accurate. Most all fish move in closer to shore at night to feed so you would defintately have a greater feel for whats in the lake.Having the bright spotlight certainly would show a ton. I know when I use my headlamp for some night stalking on the banks I see a lot of fish that way and I am always surprised how close in they do come.

ORIGINAL: buckcs64

ROFLMFAO , quite a few people would beg to differ.... 

Point I was tring to make is that you need to get out at night. You can tell alot more about whats going on in any particular lake. Not that you don't know anything.   If you wanna take that another way...ok.  Just tring to give some insite to the sport. Argue on, some ppl are impossible.