Recent fish

[john montana]

I got to fish with Adam from Orvis and RA Beattie (bad ass filmmaker and photographer) on Sunday. Truthfully, I was nervous as hell that my status as a total hack would be exposed. It probably was, but I did stick a few fish, and had RA there making me and Adam look way cooler than we are:



We caught enough fish early on that RA got to take the rod (which meant I got to carry his massive tripod around...that sucked. Every time I looked up to check a passing cloud I nearly fell over). He stuck a great fish:



Late in the day, we got a double. Who is happier? Adam with the mirror, or RA with the bigger fish?



I didn't get left out...had plenty of fun myself:



I know Flybum gets to fish with RA often...lucky guy. He and Adam are great guys and I had a blast!

 

[Spydeyrch]

Totaly awesome there John!! Nicely done. That larger one that RA has in the doubles picture is one ugly beast!!! With its eye all black and the mouth protruding that way with the camera angle, it looks almost alien like. Very cool!! :clap:

So did you guys get an film shots? Gunna post it soon? :think: It would be very cool to see!

Take care man.

-Spydey

 

[john montana]

Not sure what he is doing with the video...but I think he got some cool stuff. I haven't seen any of the footage.

 

[igquick]

Nice carp once again

I was watching Lessons From the Carp Lodge on youtube and the guy in the video mentioned you...i was like WHOA!

 

[steelhead_slayer]

I always enjoy your post. Those are BIG amazing. I would love to feel the fight of those monsters someday

 

[john montana]

Thanks guys...those are both pretty nice fish. The bottom one is my biggest fish of the year at 25 lbs. The top fish weighed 23.

Mr. P (Jim) is a friend of mine igquick. I actually just fished with him a week or two ago when my buddy from SD was here. I fish with jim a couple of times a year. Good guy...knows carp.

I'm off to Lake MI friday...4 days of carp and smallies in the crystal clear waters of lake MI! Pray for sun for me! From last year's trip out there:





Can't wait!

 

[FlyBum]

Well done Sir... :clap:

Can't wait to see the video!

 

[john montana]

Agreed Flybum...I'm sure RA will do something cool. I know he got at least one of those big fish on video when I set the hook.

 

[Modest_Man]

I do believe I shocked up a carp today out of the Willamette that might be as big as yours John. Hit a freaking pod and a half of them in a slough. I need to see about access and head back with my fly rod...

 

[john montana]

Good luck!

 

[Modest_Man]

Not to hi-jack your thread but I don't feel that it really deserves a new thread. Yours looks chubbier, but I also need to improve my hand hiding and long arming. . I couldn't get my fingers to touch around the caudal peduncle and it was 695mm fork length, which puts it at right about 30" total length.

 

[igquick]

It visually looks like a 10 to 12 lber but the length of a 15 lber...pics can be so deceiving, at first i thought johns first pic was the 25 lber not the last pic...

 

[john montana]

I am with igquick on that one modest man. Based on my experience that would be around 10-12 lbs. the length is never a guarantee on the weight because of how differently carp can be shaped but I would peg that fish on the high end of 10-12 lbs based on your measurements and the pictures. The big fish are usually around 36 inches long but even that isn't set in stone. It is their thickness and "shoulder" that really give them serious weight. That is a nice carp...super clean and actually really beautiful but it isn't close to the size of the two I caught Sunday. I would bet that is one of the smaller males, and somewhere in that slough is a big female or two. If you find it...let me know!

The "ordinary" carp on the big c seem to be about 9-10 lbs in weight. I catch a lot that size. 18plus lb fish are a lot more rare, and I have only landed 4 that broke the 30 mark.

Do you guys shock a lot of carp?

 

[igquick]

Is it me, or does the more aerodynamic the common carp is, the harder it fights via angling?

Sometimes i wonder why you havent shocked any carp that was super huge...maybe they are a bit immune? Need more voltage lol

 

[Modest_Man]

Bigger fish actually get hit harder than smaller fish, it has to do with the larger mass.

We get quite a few of them, just depends on where we're sampling. The photo is of one 6 minute run today. The one I'm holding up is on the right...guess it was just quite a bit larger than the other ones we got (I think there are 11 in there).

 

[john montana]

Very cool. That size distribution makes total sense to me. I see that similar, though maybe a notch up, on the big c. The slough and pond fish in general are smaller than the fish that stay in the river. There are tons and tons of 9 lb carp...not nearly as many smaller ones, and a solid number of bigger ones. I bet that unscientific approach is annoying! Hah...

Pretty cool job you have. I am totally jealous.

 

[john montana]

As for fighting igquick...we call em "Apex Athletes." The 16-18 lb carp just crush us on the fly. Occasionally the big 20s do too, but usually they make a run or two. The Apex fish just do not quit. Love those fish.

 

[igquick]

In a way im kind of glad the apex athletes are 16 to 18...i dont have to put stronger line or do anything drastically different if a 30 lber ever pops up, which i feared a year before...sadly enough, the 25 lber fought like any other common carp...10 minute fight on 8 lb line