Published: February 12, 2012
Fly-fish for carp? For many anglers, the first response might be, “Why?” For coldwater anglers, carp have long been the fodder of mean-spirited jokes, a species more likely to be pursued with a bow and arrow than a bead-head nymph. But the fly-fishing frame of mind regarding Cyprinus carpio is changing.
Will Rice, an outdoors writer based in Denver, had his moment of “carptharsis” a number of years ago.
“During the spring runoff, trout fishing in the Colorado Rockies is just not happening,” Rice said. “One May, a friend and I were eager to wet a line, so we headed east from Denver to fish a reservoir for wiper,” a striped bass and white bass hybrid.
“We rented a boat and began zipping around,” he said. “At the edges, high water had pushed over the banks into some grass flats. We took a closer look and saw all these fish moving around — 10- to 12-pound fish — finning, mudding, even tailing. They were carp. We didn’t catch any that day, but it was eye-opening to see fish behaving like this — the way bonefish and permit behave. Carp are a species you can sight cast to with a fly rod without traveling to the Caribbean.” Comparisons to bonefish in terms of their skittishness and strength have earned carp the nickname golden ghost.
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