Blip. Blip. Bliiiiip!

Dear Readers,

It's been a while and the blogging break is now officially over. In the future you will be seeing shorter blogs, longer blogs, or whatever. So be prepared for anything. I thought about changing the name of my blog to somewhat more descriptive of my pointless ramblings. 

So in the future it's not going to be only about carp, but also about carp. So without further ado, I present you: Carp Of The Thousand Lakes!

Hello! It's been a while! (this carp was from Slovenia Photo: David Primozic)

Fishing Plans For Season 2015

Hi all!

What is different this year is that I probably start making some of my own boilies. I experimented on some boilies a few years ago, but as I was fishing successfully with Prologic baits, I had no interest to go on with my bait production. Now the time is different, and I will start the long and winding road of baitmaking. Of course I have some ready ideas, mixes and flavours, so this will help me a lot. Luckily I still have some of my trusty old bait, so I don't have to depend totally on my own recipes. 

On another perspective, I am not totally sure how I will enjoy my long hours of boilie making, but I don't think I have an option. So this year you can expect some reports on my boilie development and possible catches. I hope it will be fun despite all the hard work.

One of the few carp I have caught from Finland that I can call fat. Most of the fish are long and lean. This fish is also in the photo below. (The net looks dry, but it isn't. Polarizing filter does wonders to reflections)

This beautiful common carp was really loving boilies (as you can see). Let's hope she will get obsessed with my own boilie recipes and I will catch her a few kilos heavier.

Indoor Carp Fishing

Hi all!

I might not be a big surprise that I am a keen gamer as I am a carp angler. So when I was approached by guys who are combining them, I was really interested in cooperation. Some of my blogs are on Dovetail Games Fishing -website. It is a fishing simulation, and at its current situation it is in development. It's on Steam early access, so enthusiastic gamers can go and check it out (link to my latest blog entry there).

http://dtgfishing.com/freedom-of-the-true-wild-arctic-fishing/

I have used some old texts, but will also publish something new there.

Best regards-

Henrik

Midsummer Nights (and Jinxed Again!)

Dear Readers,

Midsummer nights in Finland are really different from nights in Southern Europe. It really doesn't get dark even at midnight, and time has less meaning. But as much as I love the bright night skies, I still prefer the embracing darkness of August nights.

Midnight "darkness"...

My brother caught a big carp on a trip with me. I seem to have been jinxed again! My trips with my brothers have been really good, but not for me. If my calculations are correct, I have blanked on nine (9!) consecutive trips with my brothers. My misfortune seems to be of a very personal kind, as all of my brothers have been catching quite good. I hope I can lift this curse...

One Midsummer Morning

Dear readers,

I started my Finnish carp season a bit late. This year I am going to try to fish the season more on the later side (summer&autumn). Years before I have been struggling with May and June fishing, so this year I am going to try something different. I started the season just on Midsummer. 

The first rays of the sun were just hitting my swim when I had a run. (FYI - The sun rises 3:50 in midsummer... That's quite of an early morning.) I tricked the fish with Prologic Banana malt snowman 20mm+20mm (the swim was baited with PL Banana Malt Stick&Method mix). I was also using a new mainline, Prologic Interceptor Fluoro Carbon coated mono (0,40mm). The line performed really well, and despite playing the fish around the rocky&snaggy swim, the line didn't have any scratches. I am really happy with this.

A nice start for a (hopefully) successful season...

The long & lean common carp had some marks from spawning, and it was not really on its prime condition. Anyhow, the carp put the scales to 12 kg. A nice start for the season.

[For all the smart people who are asking why I am wearing a beanie in midsummer, I would like them to watch this video about Finnish "summer"..]

The Importance of Catch and Release

Dear Readers,

I was just thinking if I would write about this issue in some magazine, but I reckon this is the best way to deliver the message. As I have previously written, catch and release fishing (C&R) is quite a new thing in Finland, and coarse fish are mostly regarded as trash. Well, here is a series of photos to point out how C&R can be sustainable when done in the right way. This photo series is about the same carp caught in three consecutive years. The fish has been putting on weight every year.

Linear carp "Pöhkis" aka. Simpleton in 2011

Linear carp "Pöhkis" aka. Simpleton in 2012.

Linear carp "Pöhkis" aka. Simpleton in 2013

I already wrote in my earlier blog about the ESSENTIAL TACKLE considering fish welfare. C&R is not a religion about tossing the fish back in the water, it is about the best practice getting the fish back into the water. I really insist that all people doing C&R or selective fishing should pay attention to fish welfare. For instance, a lot of Finnish pike anglers don't have an unhooking mat. That is totally wrong. The boat floor is not the right place to handle a fish. Without the protection of the unhooking mat, the fish will loose a lot of its mucus layer. The mucus layer is really important for the fish, as it protects the fish from infections and parasites. 

What I always bring with me when I am fishing (fish welfare tackle):

- Big knotless landing net (Prologic XLNT)

- Landing mat (Prologic Inflatable with small walls)

- Weight sling (Prologic)

- Forceps & disgorger

- Camera tripod (and a lot of technical gimmicks to get the photo taken really fast)

These things are not lightweight. But it is the price you have to pay for fish welfare. If you are not ready to carry several kilos of fish welfare tackle, you should not be fishing at all. After all, it should be about fish welfare, not fisherman welfare. 

Sweat & tears (no blood) - C&R done properly!

Oktoberfest - The Search For October carp

My main target for the season 2012 was to catch a carp in October from a big Finnish lake. It's not that easy considering already some night frosts, which can cause fish to seek shelter in  deep pelagic areas. Also even on good conditions in summertime, big lakes can be tricky with very low fish densities. Anyway, I set my target and had a good prebaiting campaign with DD Bait. I found myself chucking in a reasonable amount of 20 mm boilies, as the carp want to feed before the long winter. 

One week I found time for a quick overnight trip, when conditions were on my side. The night was really dark. You can imagine how dark it can get on a remote Finnish lake at October! I lit some candles to heighten the spirits and make myself at home. After that I had some decent barbecue with sausages and toasts, when suddenly my rod had a long dropback bite. Red Bull snowman was just too tempting! I managed to land the carp in pitch black conditions. After the fish I hit the bed.

Midnight express. The quest for October carp had succeeded!

In the morning I had a slow run, which got a lot faster before I could get to the rodpod. After picking up the rod, the fish had some speed for leverage. The fish easily pulled 40 meters of 0,40 mm monofilament stretched to the limit. Unluckily, the hookhold wasn't that good. In brief, my October expedition was a success with two good runs in a quick overnighter. 

The Hidden Files of The X-Files

Carp fishing is shrouded in a veil of mystery, at least here in Finland. The carp fishermen are few in numbers and some like it that way. I haven't quite made up my mind if there should be more carp anglers or not.

Getting started with carp fishing is more of an journey than just chucking the rods out and reeling in the big ones. It really can take a few years before you find at least a few good carp lakes. That journey will teach you to appreciate the fish even more. You just cannot compare the fish caught from a big natural lake to the ones caught from day-ticket ponds. The difficulty factor is quite different. I hope I don't sound offensive because of my opinion, but it's the way I feel about carping. The places you find will probably become your secrets.

I hope my "secret spots" will stay secret. There is absolutely no point in telling the secret places to other fishermen. Then they would miss the essence of true carp angling, the journey into becoming one. That is absolutely the most rewarding thing in fishing. The fish, after all, are just fish. Nothing else. All you will truly experience in your lifetime is you. Remember, you will catch you first carp only once in your life. It should be a memorable moment, not just a quick guided trip into run-happy carp waters.

So most of the carp lakes in Finland are the Hidden Files of the X-files. For all the ones who think the truth is out there (and want to catch something instead of searching), should start with a Finnish day-ticket lake. A fishing licence for one year is 25 euros. You got it right. 25 euros... VERY cheap!   http://www.jokamieskalastajat.fi/index.php?p=7&yl=2

Last, but not least, is a horrifying photo of my possessed recliner chair.

The missing episode of "Possessed recliner chair", didn't see that on the X-Files.

Rig bits, pieces and boilies

Hi all again!

I wanted to write something about rig bits and pieces. Basically, most of what has been written about carp fishing rigs is just marketing work. What I learned from match fishing is that there are no big secrets out there. When someone invents a rig type and catches a carp or two with it, it's virtually in every carp magazine there is. In the meantime the basic bolt rig caught around 60 000 carp around Europe. It's not useless to consider your rigs in detail. Biggest differences are made in small details. That goes to all fishing. It's not about inventing something fancy, but to make small things right.

What my basic rig is: a Prologic C3 #4 hook, tied onto stiff reptilian 25 lbs hooklink material. The hooklink is cut to around 15-25 cm (I mean the ready rig is that long, remember to add some line for the knots). A multi bead is threaded into the line, and the end of the line is tied to a multi clip. This multi clip is then attached to Prologic Distance Leadclip Leader. Tie your mainline to the Leader and attach a lead (50-90 grams) onto the clip. Now you are ready to go carping in most situations. The only situations that this rig type is not good for are weedy bottoms and surface/middle water feeding fish.

My rig bits and pieces on a Prologic bivvie table. And yes, it's snow on the ground.  Luckily we are getting more and more each day.

The most important variable in carp fishing is not your rig. Don't go too fancy. You'll end up thinking about wrong things and waste your energy. Be in the right place when the carp feed, and you'll score with your rig.

Oh, about the boilies. I almost forgot. It is really funny to see the big differences in the UK and Europe carp angling scene. In the UK there has been a trend to fish with small boilies (10 mm or less!) and in France, a lot of good fish have been caught with boilies over 30 mm. The size difference is huge. So how would 8 mm boilies work here where we have huge stocks of nuisance fish? The answer is more than clear. It would be a nightmare to fish with small boilies, because the nuisance fish would always take the bait. So when reading articles about carp fishing, remember to keep in mind the following questions:

1) Is the bait suitable for the fish you are targeting? Nuisance fish problem?

2) Is the bait used in the article designed for heavily fished commercial ponds or big natural lakes?

3) Is there a critical difference in the climate or the water between the article and the lake you are fishing?

4) Is the article about just another "flinga"-paste to put on the boilie/pellet/etc? Is it more of an ad than a "I really use this"-type of an article.

You can come to see my bait bag anytime. You'll see DD Bait all the way. I have used some other brands as well, but the new HNV-series got my attention 100%.

Another Finnish carp going back to freedom.  With 8 mm boilies, I would have been harassed by 1-2 lbs bream patrolling the area. And remember, wild carp are cautious. A disturbance might cause them to loose appetite for many hours. You don't want to have too many nuisance fish on your hook.