Ontario Angler
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Ontario Carp Fishing
By Lawrence Euteneier, Captain, Blind Fishing
Boat .Com
I first learned of Carp fishing as a boy when
reading “The Art of Angling”, written by Tiny
Benet. Tiny was the outdoor columnist for the
Toronto Sun and had a passion for fishing Carp
from the Humbor River in central Toronto. Tiny
stated then that Carp represented the greatest
and most under-valued fishing resource Ontario
had to offer.
There’s no doubt the sport of Carp fishing is
growing in Ontario. The number of Carp that
inhabit Ontario waters is significant and offers
promise of a great future. What other fish
exists in Ontario that school in
numbers upwards of 1,000 and more, with each
weighing from 10lb to 40lb and beyond.
For years it seemed catching a Carp was an
elusive goal in spite of their omni-presence . I
have since learned that I wasn’t the only fisher
out there being frustrated by their bold
attitude and crafty nature. It wasn’t until
Alain Danis, a Carp fishing convert himself,
introduced me to Jeff Vaughan, proprietor of
both the Long Sault Motel and Canadian Carp
Club, (situated on the St. Lawrence), and owner
of Robertson’s Fishing Tackle, one of the
top-five carp tackle shops in the U.K., that I
began to catch Carp consistently.
 While
exhibiting at sportsman shows around the
province I always have a photo of a Carp on my
table which inevitably has visitors confessing
their hidden passion for Carp fishing. Whether
it was the incidental catch of a monster Carp on
a Rapala crankbait, or someone’s personal
strategy for catching Carp from an inner-city
pond, the results are uniformly the same, fun.
For decades Carp fishers used small hooks
imbedded in balls of pre-soaked white bread with
the crust removed. It was a real lesson in sight
fishing as you only had a hairs breath to set
the hook before the Carp would spit the bait
after sensing the line or resistance. This
method is still preferred in certain situations,
such as capturing Carp that have adopted the
habit of surface feeding; however, the invention
of the bolt rig altered the way people Carp
fish. Bolt rigs have made catching Carp almost
effortless. Fishing floats is also an option
worth trying as their advantage is a vertical
presentation that eliminates line from sloping
in on an angle which can spook Carp from the
area as they circle below searching for food.
And let’s not forget fly fishing.
 One
of the reasons people blank when fishing for
Carp is there reluctance to deploy a sufficient
quantity and quality of bait to feed the area
they plan to fish. Using a quality bait or
method mix is the second. People often spend
hundreds, if not thousands, on their gear, and
then go cheep when it comes to laying out
$10-$20 for bait.
Carp fishing equipment can be as much or as
little as you choose. There are plenty of Carp
fishers out there catching good sized Carp on
medium/heavy spinning gear, and there are others
who have adopted many of the innovations coming
out of Europe and Japan. As with any sport fish,
one need only match the gear to the quarry being
pursued. Its one thing to pull 10-15lb Carp from
a local pond, but quite another to successfully
land 30+lb Carp on a river. And then there are
those 50+ Monsters that will pull out 300 yards
of 65lb braid without seemingly even knowing
they were hooked.
Whether to use a spod rod to place feed on a
specific section of a swim, or a marker rod to
explore the water’s depths from shore, is a
choice dependent on just how far you’re fishing
from shore. Large landing nets, weigh scales and
un-hooking mats become necessities for those
considering entering a derby, and if your
thinking of fishing straight through any manner
of weather, some sort of shelter such as a
light-weight broli and a chair to rest in after
those epic battles can come in handy.
 If
you’re going to fish a bolt rig or float, you’ll
want a baitrunner spinning reel that has both a
regular drag system and a second lighter drag
that can be set to work with a bite alarm.
Lines, hooks and weights are generally fairly
straight forward, with the emphasis on avoiding
creating rigs that can potentially harness a
Carp to a rock or some other under-water
obstruction should your line part. And then
there’s a rod rest, either a set of bank sticks
or a more versatile rod stand or pod. Top it off
with an electronic bite alarm, and your ready to
tackle anything Ontario has to offer.
Carp have figured in developed society for
thousands of years and represent the largest
commercial aqua-food species being farmed in the
world. Whether Carp belong or not as a species
in our province has been a heated topic for some
time now. Issues of evasive species are
certainly important, but at the same time, the
Common Carp has been present in southern Ontario
for over a century. It makes sense therefore,
that rather than ignore this amazing species,
why not embrace the Carp as the incredible
fishing resource it represents?
Those who love fishing Carp are well aware that
there needs to be a stronger understanding of
the sport of Carp fishing in Ontario. To this
end, TJ Quesnel, Jeff Vaughn and myself have
pulled together a website with information and
stories that will hopefully convey our
excitement for the sport and give you the needed
resources and motivation to become a devoted
Carp fisher
www.ontariocarpfishing.com
 Anchors Up,
Captain Lawrence Euteneier
www.BlindFishingBoat.Com
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