Carp fishing in April

We have been getting a few carp at the upper lake this past few weeks. We were not targeting them,but they are getting more active as the water warms. Going to be a bit crowded there for the next couple of weeks tho.  sam

I saw one feeding in loyalhanna on Monday. He swam off before I could get my bigger rod.

We caught 2 big carp in the past week on jigs. While we were at another lake fishing for Bullgills to-day, my buddy caught an 37" carp on a jig with his ultra light,was a big surprise,but a lot of fun for him,especialy since we had no net.  sam

FishinGuy

Sam, you seem to catch allot of incidental carp on jigs. Could you explain your technique in a little more detail? Are you using a float? Do you let the jig rest on bottom for any length of time? I love catching carp, especially on light gear. I'd like to know how you do this so I could get a few bonus carp this trout season. Pm's always welcome if it's a "secret"

Fishing guy, No secret, I use 1/64 oz mini-foo or Trout Magnets tipped with maggots or waxworms under a bobber,slow & close to the bottom. I usualy fish coves in the spring. This is not a high percentage game. Later on, I will sight fish for them using the same method. The reason we catch as many as we do ( not really that many ) is that my buddys & I use jigs 90% of the time.  sam

I love sight fishing steam carp on light tackle. Big fish, hardly targeted, stalk and cast. So much fun. I'm still working on getting one on my fly rod. It's proved difficult so far. Most of the stream areas I target them in are pretty overgrown, and I'm no wiz with the flea pole. But I have tied up a bunch of small crayfish patterns that I think will do the trick this summer in one certain area I see them in.

Well i think im gonna head out tomorrow and see what i can do. Ill report back and let you guys know how i did. My old carp baits have been failing me the past year so i think im just gonna try some crawlers on the bottom. Unless anyone would like to exchange recipies?

Also sam, 37 inches? Holy hell i dont think ive ever seen a carp that big. And using jigs on light equipment...must have been a thrill.

The recipies ive always used are pretty basic. Either cornmeal, flour, and flavoring or quick oats and spices. They worked great for years but all last year i got shut out on my homemade baits.

I see a lot of other people on here talking about using corn as bait. Is it legal to use in trout waters? Ive always known it was good carp bait but i dont want to get nailed with a citation if i decide to sling some at twin.

Just don't chum. Trout will eat it too, but the areas I carp fish, I rarely see trout.

Wow, learn something new everyday... I've even been somewhat harassed by a pfbc officer accusing me of chumming one time at twin lakes. I was trout fishing and saw a school of carp. I didn't have any carp bait with me so I started tossing a few small balls of assorted power bait near them, just to see if they would eat. He got out of his car, walked about 200 yd over towards me and shouted. Hey! You know you aren't allowed to chum for carp right? I said no sir I wasn't chumming. I thought learned something that day, turns out he was wrong, not me. http://fishandboat.com/pa.sh/carp/carp_fishing.htm

Ok now I am curious. Is it legal to chum? I have always chummed with corn for carp.

FishinGuy

I'd love to hear some good local dough ball or boilie recipes as well. I've looked at a bunch of commercial boilies on line but never bought any. Too many to choose from and don't know what would work best around here. I catch 95% of mine on corn or bread.

Found a strawberry recipe online that kicks some serious arse for carp, never had to much luck one corn so I don't know how it would compare

Anyone on here use method balls or method feeders when carping? I've read allot about them but always thought they were illegal. Great, now I gotta buy more tackle.

Method feeders are the single best tool there is for carp fishing if you haven't been able to pre-bait the area. I use them all the time and they work great.
 
Chumming is not illegal in PA. If it was, a lot of carp anglers would be out.
 
You could theoretically receive a ticket for littering if a fish warden wanted to argue that you blanketed the bottom with "too much" chum, but that's as unlikely as it absurd.

They aren't the easiest things to get in PA, though thanks to the internet you can order some up. I personally use the unweighted spring feeders whenever I can get away with it (slow and still waters). I don't like the cage feeders or bolt rigs much, so I try to go with inline.
 
For mix I usually go with my own brew using a wheat base. Most of the commercial stuff is decent though. I can attest to a lot of catches with Dynamite's mix.

The carp were jumping all over the place at upper twin today, I will be up there tonight after work trying for one